One of state’s top prep players explains decision to leave early, play for Pitino now.
Martin County senior Trey James, a 6-foot-10 center regarded as one of the top high school basketball players in Kentucky, has decided to forego his senior season with the Cardinals and join Rick Pitino at Iona immediately.
The New Rochelle, N.Y., college made the announcement official Tuesday after news of the departure had already become public knowledge, especially after the big man went absent from Martin County’s lineup the first week of the season.
“They called (late last month) and said go ahead and get everything set up, and we started looking at flights to come up,” James told the Herald-Leader. “It was very sudden. I think it’s a great opportunity for myself and I’m just going to make the best of it.”
For James, the combination of the uncertainty about the high school basketball season and the opportunity to play college basketball a season early without losing any eligibility due to the NCAA’s COVID-19 waiver proved to be the deciding factor.
“If it had been a normal year, there wouldn’t have even been a thought of going,” James said, noting his final fall high school semester included only about eight days of in-person classes due to COVID-19. “There wouldn’t have been a chance I would have left at the beginning or the middle of a season. If it was normal, I would definitely be there right now, trying to get ready for the district tournament. But with all this, it was a pretty easy decision.”
Each year a number of football players make the jump straight to college early in order to get a head start on being part of the experience, like Frederick Douglass’s Jager Burton this past season and Lexington Catholic’s Beau Allen, a year ago.
But it’s rare in basketball. James said he thought about it “for about 20 minutes.”
“It was easy to make,” James said. “(Pitino) is one of the best coaches of all time and maybe the best coach in the country, right now.”
Pitino spoke in a school news release Tuesday about James’ advantage in getting an early jump on his college career.
“Trey joining us early accomplishes several things. Most importantly we can help develop our 6-10, 240-pound center and give him a head start in everything, including academics,” the Iona head coach said. “With our current injury situation, Trey will also provide depth in our thin front court while he learns our system.”
Breaking the news
The hardest part for James was telling his Martin County teammates. He broke the news to them at their practice on Dec. 30. Social media began stirring about it that night.
“I told Brady Dingess first, what was going on,” James said. “I wanted to make sure he heard it from me personally. He’s always been a very good friend over the years and we’ve grown up together. … Then I went with the team at the start of practice. It was hard telling them all that.”
Martin County Coach Jason James, also Trey’s uncle, said the team was devastated, but understood the opportunity their teammate had.
“What do you do? It’s hard to tell (Pitino) no,” Coach James said. “And you don’t lose any eligibility, so you get four and a half years, basically — you get a leg up on everyone else. It’s just kind of hard to pass up.”
Martin County moves on
James holds the state’s career blocks record for a high school player with 737 rejections from his seasons as varsity eighth-grader to his junior year. He averaged 14.8 points and 11.1 rebounds per game last year and helped lead Martin County to a 15th Region championship and corresponding spot in the state tournament that was canceled due to worries about the virus.
With James, Martin County was considered a favorite to defend its region title and, hopefully, actually make the trip to Rupp Arena this season.
“I’ve probably talked to over 20 coaches, you know, just some of the great high school coaches around, not just in my area — because I’m sure they’re glad (Trey’s) gone — and they say it’s just an incredible opportunity,” Coach James said. “Obviously, (Pitino) thinks a lot of the kid to want him there right now.”
Martin County has only had a few practices without its big man and took on Rowan County in its opener, suffering a 69-47 defeat and allowing 26 makes on 30 Rowan attempts in the paint along the way, a total that proved how much James would be missed.
“Everybody was just in shock, really. It was tough on the guys,” Coach James said of the adjustment. “Trey impacted the game so much whether he scored a basket or not. … He was truly missed for sure.”
Martin dropped its second game to Harlan County, but got a 77-66 win over Hazard on Saturday led by Dingess’ 30 points.
Iona’s push
Iona began hinting at wanting James to join the team now rather than later, over the last couple of weeks, Coach James said.
Iona sophomore Osborn Shema, a 7-foot junior-college transfer expected to anchor Iona’s frontcourt this season, has yet to take the court due to injury. Iona’s next tallest forward is 6-9 freshman Nelly Junior Joseph. Robert Brown, a 6-8 forward, has elected to medically withdraw for the spring semester. So, frontcourt depth appears to be a problem for the Gaels.
But Coach James thought Iona’s recruiters were joking.
“Then the assistant called me (late last month), … and said, ‘Coach, we’re going to want him here Friday,’” Coach James said.
James originally committed to Wake Forest early last year, but reopened his recruitment when the Demon Deacons fired coach Danny Manning. Last summer, he committed to Iona after a Zoom call with Pitino.
James is regarded as a three-star recruit, the No. 2 player in Kentucky’s class of 2021, and the No. 38 center in the nation, according to 247Sports.com. His other offers included Iowa.
“I think the key with Trey is, it’s not so much the system, but player development. If he’s developed the right way I think you’re going to have a special college basketball player,” Pitino told the Herald-Leader in an unpublished November interview. “I think the sky’s the limit to how great he can become because he’s got size, he’s intelligent, he works hard. He’s got all the ingredients to be a real good one and we’re excited about that.”
When James arrived on campus last week, Iona’s practices and games were on hold due to COVID-19 protocols. The Gaels have had two COVID-19 stoppages since the season began. He has been texting with his new teammates and getting his feet on the ground with the coaching staff, though. He’s not sure how much playing time he might get early, if any.
“Even if I don’t play a single second this year, then I will still have had a half a year to go ahead and learn the system and everything he needs me to do,” James said. “Then I’ll just be a step ahead for my actual freshman year.”
Pitino, the former Kentucky and Louisville coach who is in his first season with Iona, said in November that his experience living in the state and coaching players from eastern Kentucky, of course, helped in the recruitment of James.
“I coached John Pelphrey and I coached (now Pikeville coach) Elisha Justice, who works out Trey quite a bit and plays against him,” Pitino said. “I know the area fairly well; certainly love the athletes from that area because they’re unbelievably hungry. Trey’s got great potential because he has the body and the mind to get better. He’s just scratching his potential.”
