Hangin' with T.J. Sapp

Had an opportunity to spend about 10 minutes chatting with T.J. Sapp earlier this week, and it was a fun conversation.

Brad Brownell recently told me Sapp is really confident and unafraid. The first thing Brownell noticed when he scouted Sapp was his ability to communicate on the court.

"One of the things I liked most about him was the way he talked on the court. He wasn't afraid to tell people what to do. He wasn't afraid to lead a little bit."

You can pick a lot of that up when you sit down and talk with the kid from Oakland Park, Fla. Here are some notable excerpts from my conversation with Sapp, who figures to get a good look at point guard in the wake of Demontez Stitt's departure (not to mention Cory Stanton's).

TI: With just six returning experienced guys on this team, does this freshman class sense an opportunity?
SAPP: "I think we have a sense of coming in right away and helping out. We're all motivated. We all come in the gym at any point in time since we have 24-hour access to the gym. We'll be in here at 2 if we can. Not too long ago, Bernard (Sullivan) was in here at 4 in the morning before our 6 o'clock workouts. We're all trying to do whatever it takes to come in and help right away because we know it's going to big on us to help out. We're kind of light on players, and some of us are going to have to step up -- if not all of us."

TI: From a position-specific aspect, with Demontez and Cory Stanton gone, do you have a sense of the opportunity before you?
SAPP: "Yeah. I feel like it's a great chance for me to come out and play right away. But that's on the coaches. I just have to show them my all and show them that whatever they need me to do I'm willing to do for me to help out the team. But I feel like it's a great chance for me to come in and help the team right away, if possible."

TI: What impressed you about Coach Brownell during the recruiting process?
SAPP: "He's kind of like my coach at home. He was an energetic guy, a bunch of energy, and was cool like a friend or a brother. But when it came down to coaching, he was a coach. And we never got business and relationship mixed up. He kept that separate. Coach Brownell is a lot like that."

TI: What did you like about his X's and O's, based on what you saw on TV?
SAPP: "They run like a motion-type offense, but first they push the ball up the court to try to score. If they don't have anything out of that, they run straight into a motion offense. Move the ball around, set picks. I like that because that's what I got used to with my high school. If we can't score first, we pull it out and run plays, motion, flex."

TI: I'm sure you know how much defense you're going to have to play under him.
SAPP: "I definitely know. That's one of the main things I'm working on besides my point-guard skills. Because this school here is big on defense. You watch their games, they play tremendous defense. They're all over the place, holding teams to their lowest points. They do a great job on defense, and everybody knows that a freshman coming to college isn't coming onto the court unless you play defense."

TI: Some guys these days might be turned off by such a defensive emphasis. What turns you on to it?
SAPP: "I'm one of those players that want to get better at all points of my game, at everything. I want to play defense. I actually like that. My last coach was big on that, too. Jam up in your guy, stay on them, don't let them touch the ball, don't let them get to the paint, things like that. So it's something I'm used to and something I want to do to better myself as a player."

TI: Do you have a preference for point guard or off the ball?
SAPP: "If I had to pick, I'd say point guard because that's something I've been working on and if I do have a chance to make it to the next level, that's what I'd most likely be playing there. If anything, I'd love to play point guard this year. But I wouldn't mind doing a little 1-2 combo. I've been doing it all my life, so I'd be used to it. ...

"In high school I was more of a scoring point guard. So that would be probably a difference here. Here, I might be strictly a point guard. If I'm in position to score, I'll score. But most likely I'll be trying to get my teammates involved."

TI: Have you heard people say that you're kind of like Stitt in that you can do a lot of different things?
SAPP: "I've heard that a lot, that I'm kind of that big combo guard like Demontez. I've got to get my defense right so I can try to guard the best offensive player every night. Yeah, I've heard that a lot."

TI: Coach Brownell pays a lot of attention to mechanics and fundamentals. How are yours?
SAPP: "I wouldn't say I have the best mechanics, but that's what we have coaches for. I know for sure he'll get my mechanics right. My shot wouldn't be the best. My dribbling and stance and all that wouldn't be the best, but I'm quite sure I'll get all that right before the season starts."

TI: So tell me about your shooting mechanics.
SAPP: "My elbow on my shooting arm sort of goes out most of the time. It's not something I do on purpose; it's something I've been doing all my life. I was trying to fix it before I got here, but it's still a process I'm working on right now."

TI: Assistant coach Rick Ray Tweeted a photo of someone puking after a recent workout. Rumor has it that was you.
SAPP: (Laughing) That was me. Every Friday we have a strongman workout where we test our toughness and flip tires and everything. I did a great job, but I ate a lot before I went. So afterwards it was like killing me and it all just came up. It was a bad idea.

"So to all those who don't know: Don't eat before you flip tires."

LW