Lavin aide Dunlap runs Storm show for now
Steve Lavin of the St. John's Red Storm reacts from the bench near the end of the first half against the Syracuse Orange during the quarterfinals of the 2011 Big East Men's Basketball Tournament presented by American Eagle Outfitters at Madison Square Garden on March 10, 2011. Credit: Getty Images
In one whirlwind year, Steve Lavin established himself as the face of St. John's basketball, and he restored a degree of glamour and charisma missing since the retirement of Lou Carnesecca. In all the excitement surrounding last season's return to the NCAA Tournament and the signing of six top-flight recruits, the underpinning for Lavin's instant success -- an outstanding staff of assistants headed by Mike Dunlap -- flew under the radar.
But the value of the group hired by Lavin is at the forefront now that the Red Storm's coach has been sidelined since practice began while recuperating from prostate cancer surgery. The assistants have been charged with preparing the newcomers and holdovers Malik Stith and Jamal White for life in the Big East.
All the assistants have their responsibilities, including the player development and recruiting expertise of Tony Chiles and Rico Hines, but the primary voice on the practice floor belongs to Dunlap, the "Wizard of Lavinwood." He has been running the team in consultation with Lavin, and until the head man is ready to return to the bench, Dunlap will call the shots in games, starting with Monday's home opener against William & Mary.
Lavin and Dunlap are West Coast products who share a similar basketball philosophy based on the teachings of the great UCLA coach John Wooden. Lavin sat in Wooden's old seat for seven seasons at UCLA, and Dunlap quotes the master just as fervently.
Mention the Red Storm's relative lack of height compared with most Big East teams, and Dunlap says, "John Wooden would always say, 'Never recruit to height. Recruit to quickness.' We have quick players."
Ask about the rebounding ability of 6-8 post player God'sgift Achiuwa, and Dunlap says, "He can rebound against the best in the country in my opinion. He's 7-3 through his arms. As Wooden always said, 'Measure their arms, not their height.' "
As Lavin went about the business of culture change last season, he and Dunlap worked something like a good cop-bad cop routine on the court. Lavin was supportive and encouraging, and Dunlap was the enforcer in practice who worked relentlessly to break players of bad habits and teach the fundamentals. Off the court, Lavin was friendly with players but, as head coach, kept some problems at arm's length while Dunlap put an arm around players who had trouble adjusting.
In the past month, the six new recruits have come to know both sides of Dunlap, the intense taskmaster at practice and the father figure.
"He's two completely different people," forward Maurice Harkless said. "In practice, he's hard, a perfectionist. We need that. Off the court, he's a nice guy. If you ever need anything, he'll help you out."
As the oldest and most experienced of the recruits, Achiuwa has received considerable attention from Dunlap, who wants him to avoid foul trouble and is teaching him how to shoot a jump hook. Dunlap also believes Achiuwa must become a vocal leader because of his two years of junior college.
"Generally, I'm not a talkative person," Achiuwa said. "Coach Dunlap stressed, 'Gift, you have to talk to these guys.' I'm working on that. Every team should have the extended voice of the coaches in the locker room. I treat it as an opportunity and a responsibility."
The roller coaster of experiences, good and bad, will shape this team and build its chemistry. Dunlap points to the changes that occurred for last season's senior-dominated team after it won at West Virginia and later knocked off Duke at Madison Square Garden. It showed them that everything Dunlap put them through in practice could pay off.
As hard as Dunlap pushes players in practice, he also spends time "fence-mending" later on.
"You do that in various ways by going to the training table, for example, and let them take after you or tease you about something you said in practice," Dunlap explained. "Go to their tutoring sessions for 15 minutes to let them know there's something more important than basketball. It could be a call to their mother.
"We do a myriad of things to fill the cup of emotion on the back end so we can take it away during practice and be hard on them."
It's a proven system.
