FRAN Fraschilla, an ESPN collegebasketball analyst and former coach at Manhattan College, St. John’s and New Mexico, talked with The Post’s Justin Terranova this week about the upcoming college basketball
season.
Q: Can St. John’s be more competitive in the Big East?
A: The simple fact is, since St. John’s has been down, schools like Pittsburgh, Louisville, Marquette, Villanova have come into the New York area and cleaned up in recruiting. That has set St. John’s back, but their program is improving steadily, and [coach Norm] Roberts is the right guy for the job, at least at this time.
The biggest thing Norm has done, after the last coach [Mike Jarvis], he has brought some stability, and guys
aren’t getting in trouble off the court. But ultimately he will be measured by the success on the court, and I think he is still a year or two away from knocking on the door in terms of an NCAA bid. The Big East starts with Georgetown this year. It is a league, top to bottom, that is a murderers row, which makes it difficult to climb up the ladder if you are a team like St. John’s.
Q: Which teams can compete for a national championship?
A: There are six teams that jump out at me as clear front-runners to get to the Final Four – Georgetown, Louisville, Tennessee, Kansas, UCLA and North Carolina. Among that group, North Carolina will have the preseason player of the year with Tyler Hansbrough, and they will certainly have an opportunity to win it all.
Q: Last year, as freshmen, Greg Oden and Kevin Durant dominated.Do you see anyone coming in this year who can have a similar impact?
A: No one in my mind will duplicate Kevin Durant’s freshman season, but there are some freshmen that will
dominate college basketball this year. A few who come to mind are Derrick Rose of Memphis, Kevin Love of
UCLA, Indiana’s Eric Gordon and Kansas State’s Michael Beasley.
Q: Is there any local team that might surprise and get into the NCAA Tournament?
A: Fordham is a dark horse. Derrick Whittenbu rg has done a wonderful job of resurrecting that tradition. The Atlantic 10 is going to be an improved league, but Fordham should be a team that plays in the postseason, and there is a chance they can make it to the NCAA Tournament.
Q: Will you coach again?
A: I get three or four call every spring about coaching jobs, including one from the Big East this year. I am at
a stage in my life where I am watching my boys grow up into their teen- age years and have probably one of the best jobs in basketball with ESPN. So at this stage I am very happy, but I would never say never. I have
stayed very close to the pulse of college recruiting, particularly in the New York area.