1 on 1 with Nate Lubick
Nate Lubick signed a National Letter of Intent with Georgetown University on Wednesday, the first day of the early signing period. With his recruitment now officially behind him, Lubick caught up with the New England Recruiting Report and reflected on his career to date, many of the important people who influenced his life along the way, and what he hopes to achieve in his last year at St. Mark’s and going forward to Georgetown.
NERR: Nate, you just signed with Georgetown on the first day of the period. Tell us about that experience.
Lubick: We just had the team and some friends over to the house. We kept it pretty small. Mel [Melsahn Basabe] and I both signed the papers and that was basically it.
NERR: This summer there were a lot of rumors flying around that you were considering de-committing. Obviously that never happened, but did you ever consider not signing?
Lubick: No, I wouldn’t say that. That whole thing in July just blew up because someone said something to one person who said something to someone else. It was like a bad game of telephone that eventually ended up on ESPN and got blown way out of proportion. I never said I was de-committing or anything like that.
NERR: So you are excited to be heading to Georgetown next year?
Lubick: Oh yeah, I’m definitely really excited. I think they’re going to shock some people this year. Last year they had a really good start but obviously didn’t finish well. It’s a perfect fit for me with the way I play and I hope to go in and play right away.
NERR: Do you think you’ll be playing the 3 or the 4 next year?
Lubick: The 4 and the 3 are pretty interchangeable in their system, but in terms of the number it will probably be the 4, which is definitely more of the inside out position, but still perimeter oriented. They tell me it is the hardest position to play in the system because you are not only a big man but also a facilitator so you need to be able to do a little of everything. So I will be inside and out but in terms of the number it will be 4 I think.
NERR: Now that your recruiting is out of the way, what are your goals for this last season playing for your dad at St. Mark’s?
Lubick: Well it is my last season with my dad and with my little brother and I want to make it a memorable one. I definitely want to go after another championship and in terms of personal stuff just always continuing to get better. I’ve been working real hard in the weight room this fall and have actually put on 15 pounds of muscle.
NERR: When the New England Recruiting Report first started over three years ago, one of the first events we covered was the all-star game at the final session of Eastern Invitational. You were just getting ready to begin your freshman season and at the time I do not think most people expected you to develop into the player you are today. What were your expectations back then?
Lubick: That’s funny because right after that very game Colgate offered me a scholarship and I was going crazy and trying to convince my dad to let me commit. I just thought it was the coolest thing in the world. My dad is who he is and he’s been pushing me really hard since I was in the third grade. I remember after that event I was like ‘holy crap this guy knew what he was doing this whole time, making me do 2-ball dribbling in the grass when I was in the 4th grade. I always dreamed of being a division I player, never mind going to a place like Georgetown, but never really knew if it would come true. The more time goes on and the farther I get away from everything, the easier it is to look back and realize I owe it all to my dad.
NERR: How about the travel circuit. How has that helped to shape your game and your recruitment?
Lubick: Well first and foremost I will go out and say that obviously I haven’t been a part of every team in the country, but from what I’ve seen, the way that the New England Playaz and [program director] T.J. [Gassnola] does things is head and shoulders above anything I’ve seen. T.J. is the funniest guy in the world and he really really cares about everyone who puts on a jersey. You go to all the best tournaments, stay in the best hotels, get tons of top notch gear, and more than anything else you get someone who cares about you, not just now but five years from now. Sure he’s got his faults like everyone else but he goes out of his way to make sure everyone gets where they want to be.
NERR: So it seems that was obviously a relationship that was important to you?
Lubick: It has been, aside from my family, it has been the most important personal and meaningful relationship for me and I know that I wouldn’t be who I am right now if it wasn’t for T.J. I said this to him the other day when I was signing my letter, it didn’t feel right without him there. He had to be somewhere that day and just to not have him there to take a picture with it just didn’t feel right. No one deserves to be treated the way T.J. has treated me. I know he would do anything for me and it is the same the other way around, I would do anything for him. He is not just the guy I played AAU for, it is going to be that way for the rest of my life.
NERR: Where there any other people that played a significant role in your development as a player?
Lubick: Well playing for the Playaz also introduced me to Coach Carroll. There aren’t many programs where you can have an ex-NBA coach as your AAU coach and on paper we may not have been one of the premier teams in the country but our success had a lot to do with Coach Carroll coaching. Austin [Carroll] is my best friend in the world and seeing how much he has grown, and having had the opportunity to do it along with him, has been amazing. Obviously the fact that he and I were such good friends made it easy for me to get to know Coach Carroll, but he has cared for me, sincerely wanted me to get better, and taught me a lot, not just about basketball, but about being a man. More than anything else Coach Carroll just taught me how to be a man and deal with some of the problems that come along in life.
NERR: How about some of the guys you have had a chance to play with along the way?
Lubick: I’ve definitely had some great relationships with guys at St. Mark’s and the Playaz. I really enjoyed this past summer and am really happy for how well it’s working out for all of the guys. We had some guys come into the season without a lot of recruitment and by the time the season was offer they had a ton of offers. That’s the thing about T.J., he doesn’t care if you are top 100 in the country or top 600 in the country, he is going to fight for you no matter what. He knows everyone in the basketball world and far beyond that. I’ve had teammates who say I’m interested in this school or that school and T.J. gets on the phone and those coaches are there watching us the next day. So I’m really happy for guys like Anthony Ireland and Ming [Naofall Folahan] that the summer went so well for them. To be honest I can’t think of anyone off the top of my head that I’ve played with who didn’t get division I offers. Between that, T.J., and Coach Carroll my AAU experience couldn’t have been much better.
Naofall Folahan
Anthony Ireland
Melsahn Basabe
Nate Lubick