Anderson lays down gauntlet for Red Storm team with veteran upside

Mike Anderson praised his St. John’s team Thursday, saying Red Storm could be one of his better teams and a Big East contender. (Photo by the New York Post)

NEW YORK — Mike Anderson made it clear Thursday, in no uncertain terms, that he was not only aware of the criticism and pressure surrounding his embattled first three years at St. John’s, but also working to combat the naysayers less than a month away from a crucial fourth season in Queens and an increased expectation of a return to the NCAA Tournament for a once-proud program still trying to reclaim its halcyon days and restore them to the status quo.

Anderson, with a roster that — in his own words — was described as “the most talent I’ve had since I’ve been here,” took the time to dispel the notion that his seat at the helm of the Red Storm’s ship had become significantly warmer, reiterated his constant objective and went a step further, indicating this current iteration of St. John’s basketball has what it takes to be one of the better units he has shepherded through two decades as a Division I head coach.

“Every year, I feel like that,” Anderson reflected Thursday as St. John’s held its annual team media day. “To me, every year is like that. I feel like this team, with what it’s been through, did we learn from that, did we bring in guys that can add to that? I think so. To me, the pressure is each and every day, just going out and trying to get better. I think we’ve got a bit more grit, we got a little jump start this summer. We’re going to see a big difference in this team. One of the things this team will have is some depth. I expect us to play better early on with so many guys coming back.”

“There’s a lot of excitement, and I’m even more excited because I have an idea of what we’re working with. Our job as coaches and a staff is to mesh this team and make it become a team. We have a lot of talent, probably the most talent that I’ve had since I’ve been here, more guys who fit what we’re doing. We’ve got eight guys that are coming back that fit what we’re doing here, developed in our system, knowing what we’re trying to do on and off the floor.”

With a core group headlined by a returning Posh Alexander, plus transfers Andre Curbelo and David Jones to pair with Dylan Addae-Wusu, Montez Mathis and Joel Soriano, and incoming freshmen Kolby King and AJ Storr, Anderson certainly has the pieces. Can he develop them into a unit capable of getting to a place St. John’s has only been five times this century? That is the question.

“This year, we have a special group,” Alexander echoed. “We’re not trying to look too far ahead into the season, we’re just trying to make it far. I see exactly what he’s saying. He’s excited about this team, we’re just taking it one day at a time.”

“I just had a conversation with Posh,” Anderson elaborated. “My question to him was, ‘From your first year here to where you are right now, do you think you’ve improved and developed?’ He said, ‘Yeah, Coach. The game has kind of slowed down for me a little bit.’ I think he’s really changing his body and taking all the things that took place, and trying to come back a better leader for our basketball team. I’m looking for more guys to make a jump. One of the guys that has played outstanding since we got back in the fall has been Esahia (Nyiwe). We talk about a glue guy that can do a lot of different things, he’s going to be an important part to this basketball team.”

In St. John’s August trip to the Dominican Republic, the Red Storm turned heads with its pace of play and efficient use of Soriano, who averaged a double-double per game and continued to demonstrate the leadership role he has spent the offseason carving for himself. Alexander, no longer in the shadows of Julian Champagnie, has appeared to follow suit.

“I wouldn’t say I wasn’t a leader, but Julian was the main leader,” Alexander recounted. “I wouldn’t quite say it’s my team, but I’ve just been here the longest, so everybody looks at it like that. I’m just here to try to win games.”

“It motivated me a lot, the feeling I and my teammates had leaving Madison Square Garden (after blowing a 17-point lead against Villanova in the Big East tournament). I’m just taking it another step and trying to be the best version of myself. Last year, I felt like I played well, but not to my best potential. I have a lot more to prove this year.”

So, too, does his head coach, who has been impressed with the early results of a team he feels can make noise in a Big East that will undergo a changing of the guard of sorts, with Villanova now adjusting to life without Jay Wright to create more of an uncertain picture at the summit.

“My last picture of this team was the Villanova game,” Anderson recollected. “I saw the hurt and the feeling that our guys — we thought we had arrived — the feeling that they had at the end of that game was something that we built on all summer, the DR trip, adding five newcomers with two really good transfers in David Jones and Andre Curbelo, and a freshman class that, I think, is kind of underrated. But the biggest key is the core guys that are coming back. It’s going to be a league that’s wide open, a lot of teams that are out there that are really good, but guess what? We’re one of those teams.”

“Every year, to me, is a year where we’re trying to get to the tournament. This team here has got all the components. My goal every year is to win a national championship, that’s what I talk about. The given is being there. I believe we’ve got the personnel to do the things that I want to do. We’ve just got to take it one game at a time. We’ve got a good non-conference schedule, and our league has proven year in and year out that the Big East is one of the best leagues in the country. I think our guys understand the task at hand, and I think they’ll perform.”