Florida State added Robert McCray, V, who led Jacksonville with 16.4 ppg, and he was the only Dolphin to average double figures last season. Photo courtesy of Florida State athletics.

Coach Luke Loucks played a school record 136 games in four years at Florida State, and he is still tenth with 391 assists.

Loucks was on four consecutive NCAA Tournament teams under coach Leonard Hamilton as the Seminoles won the ACC Tournament in 2012.

Coach Luke Loucks won championship rings with the Golden State Warriors in 2017 and 2018. He also coached the Nigerian national team in the 2020 Olympics. Photo courtesy of Florida State athletics.

“We got two of our guys (at ACC Media Day), Kobe MaGee and Chauncey Wiggins,” said Loucks. “Obviously, Chauncey, you guys have some familiarity with, and Kobe, you’ll get to know.  The tough part about this is I can only bring two players. I wanted to bring about seven or eight of them because I feel like we got a pretty good team.”

Wiggins played at Clemson two seasons ago on the Elite Eight team, where he averaged 17.8 minutes, which grew to 23.6 mpg last season.

“I think I can teach him that basically everybody has a different scheme, and it’s pretty weird, because being in the ACC,” Wiggins said about his leadership. “I mean, you have teams that just always play the same way for three or four straight years.”

NBA Approach: Loucks comes back to Tallahassee with an eye on playing at a fast pace, where the transition game can find the three-ball as well as a layup. The new coach will look for a disruptive defense that can create turnovers and allow for an odd-man advantage on the fast break.

Loucks spent the last three seasons with the Sacramento Kings after one year in Phoenix, where where was in charge of the Suns’ strategic approach. From 2016-2022, Loucks worked as an assistant to Coach Steve Kerr at Golden State. He and Knicks head coach Mike Brown gelled when they were at Golden State as both were huge football fans.

Brown took Loucks to Sacramento as his assistant to begin the 2022-23 season.

“I was an intern making minimum wage,” said Loucks. “My first time coaching at any level. I just finished playing professionally. Mike Brown was coming off his third go-around as a head coach in the NBA.”

Loucks lauds Brown’s analytical ability.

“He to me is the most detailed coach I’ve ever met in my life,” Loucks commented. “A lot of it was because of his mentorship from (Spurs coaching legend) Gregg Popovich.”

Defensive coverages by Florida State’s opponents will gameplan against sharpshooter Kobe Magee, who shot 48 percent from the floor and 43.9 percent from three for the Drexel Dragons last season. Photo courtesy of Florida State athletics.

Loucks sees Brown as a mentor and gives him credit for being able to take over the Seminoles.

“Mike took me under his wing and taught me the ins and outs of what coaching is, how to teach, how to prepare, how to watch film, how to break things down. Ultimately, how to build relationships.”

New ‘Noles: In addition to Wiggins’ previous stop at Clemson, Magee comes over from Drexel, while Robert McCray, V, was a key scorer at Jacksonville. Former St. Bonaventure guard Lajae Jones is a dynamic player on both ends of the court.

“The player development, the people that he brought in, the coaching staff, they all have the same mindset, and they all have the same goal. With that energy that they bring in every day, I think it’s definitely something that’s motivating,” noted Magee.

Freshmen Cam Miles and Thomas Bassong should help to create a solid rotation. Miles played a key role for the famed IMG Academy as the point guard, while Bassong has a 7-4 wingspan and can create off the dribble.

 

 

 

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