Sync

By Jonny Meyer Archie Goodwin talks March Madness, shooting slumps and returning Facebook messages. + Enlarge

Sync caught up with basketball recruit Archie Goodwin after March Madness ended. In his exclusive Player’s Diary, he discussed some of the programs recruiting him which made deep runs, Facebook message floods and why SpongeBob has got it going on. Look below to see a video of Goodwin at a slam dunk contest.

“I watched North Carolina and Kentucky play, but I didn’t too much care for who won, because I like both of the teams. I like both of the coaches, and they’re both recruiting me. I was impressed with the way both teams played.

“Brandon Knight’s a very good player. There’s no doubt in my mind he will be a one-and-done player this year. But he had a very off game, like six of 24 or something and when you have a game like that if you don’t see the ball going in, you gotta start thinking: ‘Hey, I better get somebody else who might have a better opportunity to score besides me.’ I think that’s what some senior and junior guards have over freshman guards, who don’t understand that as well as they do, because [freshmen] are trying to show everybody that they can come out of the shooting slump so fast when sometimes you can’t do it.

“U-Conn came into the year not being one of those teams that people thought were going to do good. They progressed over the year and won the championship. That was very impressive for me. Coach Calhoun did a very good job with his guys, [University of Connecticut junior] Kemba Walker did a good job leading his team and I couldn’t be more happy for them.

“Kemba’s more of a point guard than I am, and he pounds the ball a lot. I’ve been trained to use two or three dribbles to get to where I want to go. If I don’t get in, then just pass the ball around, but Kemba will pound it in and all throughout the lane, step back — he has a deadly jumper, too. I think we play different.”

Which questions by reporters and coaches tire you the most?

“From reporters, I’m getting tired of hearing do you have a top five [potential college choices], do you have a top three, when are you gonna commit? I don’t mind the questions, but I feel if I answered the questions one day, or two days or one week ago, then the answer’s not gonna change in that quick of a time. From coaches, I’m probably tired of hearing some saying “Oh, c’mon, commit now.” Because I know that sometimes it’s just all fun and games, but I feel that if they’re serious about the matter then I think they should respect my decision on telling them how long I’m gonna wait to decide.

“I hear a lot of that from different fans on Facebook, too. From fans, I get about 20 or 30 messages a day. From people that I know, something like 10 to 15. Fans ask me when I’m coming to visit their school and what other colleges I’m going to. If I’m in a good mood or an okay mood, I’ll take the time to answer the ones that I can, but if I’m tired or have a headache or it’s just one of those days, I won’t answer their questions.”

Archie Dunks

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What do kids your age like to do for fun?

“We don’t like to do anything staying in the house. We like to go out to parties, go downtown and see what’s going on, go to the movies, bowling alley — just something like that. More likely I’m too busy to do any of that, because I’m so busy playing basketball or working out.”

What do you do when you’re at home?

“At home, I’m really just watching anything on TV that comes on that I like — movies, NBA games, a cartoon or two. Fairly Odd Parents is up there, but SpongeBob is the best, hands down. Patrick and Timmy and SpongeBob — they’re just too funny. So I have to watch them. Right now, I’m listening to Soulja Boy, Rocko and Gucci Mane’s ‘I Don’t Love Her.’”

The third Player's Diary: Pelphrey, Sunbelt and his season

The second Player's Diary: In contact with coaches

The first Player's Diary: The life of a high school basketball recruit