Grad transfer Jahaad Proctor talked to us in a recent edition of Gold and Black LIVE. Here is an excerpt of what the 6-foot, 3-inch guard from Harrisburg, Pa.,, had to say. Click here for full interview
GoldandBlack.com: What do you want to get out of Purdue academically?
Proctor: The main goal is to play basketball but I know someday, whenever that is, the ball will stop bouncing and I take great heart and pride in my academics. Krannert is one of the best business schools in the country. To get my marketing degree/masters from there would be amazing. I didn’t want to let go of the opportunity. I thought that would be a big opportunity (to come to Purdue) to capitalize on as well as playing for one of the best teams in the country, especially one of the best coaches in the country. I think that’s something that I always talked about my entire life, balancing basketball with my academics. Here at Purdue I can do both while excelling at that extreme level that I always wanted to be at. That kind of sums that up.
GoldandBlack.com: Did you think it was possible to play basketball and do the grad transfer?
Proctor: Originally, no. My freshman year at Iona I had Stats in my schedule. My big thing was that I wanted to graduate early and get my masters degree in four years. I didn’t plan on originally leaving Iona (after one season) after some circumstances happened. Once I got to High Point my goal again was to graduate early if I could. I knew I had the extra year to play and get my masters and just see where it would take me. That’s what ended up taking me to a very far place (Purdue).
I ended up just taking the best opportunity and just opened up my recruitment and came here. I talked to other schools and I didn’t feel like any of them competed even with the business school aspect and stuff. Purdue just gave me what I wanted from players, coaches, school, basketball,; everything just lined up. Not to say the other schools weren’t any good, I think Purdue just kind of swept me off of my feet. I think that’s the reason I only took one visit and committed a few days later.
GoldandBlack.com: How do you see fitting in when you’re an older guy and you’ve got a little bit more wisdom?
Proctor: Just using my knowledge. Like you said, I’m a fifth year player. I’ve been in college all four years. Our team isn't old but it has experience and I have experience. So it’s just using what I know, using what they know. It’s not like I haven’t been to a tournament before (he played in the NCAA while at Iona), but I haven’t been there at a level Purdue has. That’s where I want to go. A lot of guys know what it takes to get there. I know what it takes to win a conference, but I don’t know what it takes to get to the Sweet 16, the Elite Eight, or even a rebound away from the Final Four. I haven’t experienced that.
My new teammates give me knowledge on that, I give them knowledge from what I know. Regardless what year you are, there is a lot to learn when you’re in college. Everything is constantly changing. I think what I did first (when I got to Purdue) was just absorb all the knowledge and information that was given by the coaches and the players and I took that and interpreted it and took my own type of knowledge and just narrowed my way into fitting in.
The guys are just extremely fun to be around. I’m pretty close to everyone on the team. It’s probably the closest team I’ve been on since my freshman year at Iona and that team was pretty close. We did everything together and I’d say the same for this team. You have that feeling when it’s time to get your chance, you take it. I’d say I took my chances with pickups or practices and stuff and I just ended up fitting in (here at Purdue). Now I’m so comfortable. When your comfortable it’s a lot easier to fit in.
GoldandBlack.com: How have your past experiences shaped you into what you are now reds?
Proctor: I think it just goes back to knowledge. I learned a lot from Coach Cluess (Iona) and from his style of play, the importance of sprinting and getting up and down the court. With Tubby (Smith, High Point) you learn a lot about the pace and the value of each possession, how important it is to get the ball in the paint to score.
With Coach Painter, he kind of combines all of it and it just makes a whole bunch of sense. We read off stats and he tells you the more time you get the ball in the paint, the more time you score and the less time you get the ball in the paint the more turnovers you have, and it just kind of makes sense on my two different styles of playing from my two different coaches. It’s knowing that the other coaches that I played for have significance still, but Coach Paint, he has been a coach of the year. Even though they are very known coaches, knowing that Coach Paint can combine the two, it just all makes sense to me.
GoldandBlack.com: What is your best skill on the court, and what are some things you need to work on?
Proctor: I would say I have to be active defensively (for area of improvement). I’m constantly getting in trouble for not closing out with my hands. I would say I’m very active after the dribble, I’m just always a tad late on throwing my hands up on the closeout. So I would say on the defense aspect, just being active at all times because active hands help your teammates for a second, helps yourself for a second, you never know what the offense players are going to do, so just using my hands (is critical). I think I’ve been pretty good on defense, some of my coaches would probably say different (smiling), Eespecially Coach Lutz he’s very hard on me.
Offensively, I’m not going to change who I am. You’re going to see the same player as you have seen if you have ever seen film on me. I consider myself a three-level scorer. We have an excellent team. Our front court is very good, very talented. So we just have to be more efficient, because I’m not going to get the 15-20 shots I used to get a High Point. I just need to be more efficient, which I think I can do. I’ve been pretty efficient my entire career, it’s just making the most on having fewer shots which I believe I can do.
Ultimately, I’m here to win. I want to win. Whatever I have to do to help whether that’s starting, whether that’s sixth man, whatever it is, I would want to do whatever it takes to win. Plus, to get us another Big Ten championship and get us to the National Championship. I believe we can do it and whatever position they want to put me in to get there, I’m all for it.
GoldandBlack.com: How do you come about being that offensive team you want to be?
Proctor: I think we’re a very good defensive team. I think we’re going to get a lot of points from our defense. I don’t think there’s going to be a specific person or one kind of particular style we’re going to play from. I think we’re going to be a very diverse team that’s playing in many different ways, depending on how the game may go, who we’re playing, or whatever that may be.
GoldandBlack.com: Defensively, who has been your toughest individual to play with at Purdue?
Proctor: I would say Nojel Eastern. Most of the times I get matched up with him I think I do a very good job on the defense end against him as well. He’s a All-Big Ten level player, he was the defender on the team last year, and those are the type of guys you want to play against. You can go against the best of them, then I can go against anybody. I would say I get him sometimes but sometimes I don’t. For the most part he challenges me the most, especially since he’s a lot bigger and I can’t get used to playing like I was at High Point where I played against smaller guards. I’ve just got to use my advantages.
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