Coach Hopkins At The Olympics
8/5/2012 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Syracuse assistant men's basketball coach Mike Hopkins is a court coach with the U.S. Olympic Team that is competing in London. The squad remains unbeaten in pool play after a close call in a Saturday contest with Lithuania. Here's some observations from Coach Hopkins:
You've seen some impressive offensive performances in your time as a player and coach. Gerry McNamara's 43 points against BYU in the NCAA Tournament comes to mind. How do you rank Carmelo's 37 against Nigeria?
Carmelo's performance was the best individual performance I have ever seen -- 37 points in 14 minutes of play was incredible. He was in a once-in-a-lifetime zone. You have to remember that Carmelo is coming off the bench and still is shooting at such a high level. That is very hard to do. People don't realize, the game before, Carmelo was 6 for 6 from the 3-point line vs. Tunisia. I think he made his first seven threes. Absolutely incredible
Was there any hint, perhaps pre-game or in warmups, that Melo was going to have that kind of game?
There was no sign before the game. The one thing that we are seeing is how explosive offensively he is on a consistent basis. He has been huge off the bench with his scoring punch. He is one of the best scorer's in the world.
Have you been able to tour London at all? What sites have made the biggest impression?
I love London. It is a very clean city that has a great vibe to it. They have a lot of great music playing all over the Olympic grounds. The people are really friendly. I was able to go on a tour and see all the amazing sights and learn about their history. Big Ben was really cool to see. I always thought Big Ben was a clock tower, but Big Ben is the actual bell above the clock. You learn something new everyday!
Who is the biggest star you have seen in London?
Olympian Dan Johnson. Had my picture taken with him. It was awesome.
And our players are all stars! It's amazing
You've seen some impressive offensive performances in your time as a player and coach. Gerry McNamara's 43 points against BYU in the NCAA Tournament comes to mind. How do you rank Carmelo's 37 against Nigeria?
Carmelo's performance was the best individual performance I have ever seen -- 37 points in 14 minutes of play was incredible. He was in a once-in-a-lifetime zone. You have to remember that Carmelo is coming off the bench and still is shooting at such a high level. That is very hard to do. People don't realize, the game before, Carmelo was 6 for 6 from the 3-point line vs. Tunisia. I think he made his first seven threes. Absolutely incredible
Was there any hint, perhaps pre-game or in warmups, that Melo was going to have that kind of game?
There was no sign before the game. The one thing that we are seeing is how explosive offensively he is on a consistent basis. He has been huge off the bench with his scoring punch. He is one of the best scorer's in the world.
Have you been able to tour London at all? What sites have made the biggest impression?
I love London. It is a very clean city that has a great vibe to it. They have a lot of great music playing all over the Olympic grounds. The people are really friendly. I was able to go on a tour and see all the amazing sights and learn about their history. Big Ben was really cool to see. I always thought Big Ben was a clock tower, but Big Ben is the actual bell above the clock. You learn something new everyday!
Who is the biggest star you have seen in London?
Olympian Dan Johnson. Had my picture taken with him. It was awesome.
And our players are all stars! It's amazing
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