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5 questions with Providence’s Kim English

Kim English is stepping into a new weight class. After two years at George Mason, the 34-year old head coach is about to begin his first season as the head coach at Providence. I caught up with English this week in Rhode Island to discuss his new position, Bryce Hopkins, the Big East, and much more.

Jon Rothstein: What’s the biggest different that you’ve found in being the head coach at Providence versus being the head coach at George Mason?

Kim English: I don’t want to disparage any other university, but it’s more about what Providence is rather than what George Mason isn’t. It’s everything in the state of Rhode Island. There’s a lot of other mouths to feed in the DMV. That would be the difference. Providence’s basketball program is the state of Rhode Island. You see and you feel the support everywhere.

Rothstein: You’re entering a league now in the Big East that’s going to have significantly more teams in the NCAA Tournament than the one that you just left — the Atlantic 10. How exciting is it to be in that situation after not getting a plethora of Quad 1 opportunities while you were the head coach at George Mason?

English: It’s very exciting. We have probably 14-20 Quad 1 opportunities within the league. The league schedules at a high level, including the non-conference portion of the schedule with the Gavitt Games and the Big East-Big 12 Battle. There’s great MTEs. We have a great home-and-home series with Rhode Island. It’s really exciting — the opportunities that we’re going to get on a nightly basis. It’s challenging, but challenging is what you want. If you’re in contention for a championship in the Big East, you know that you’re going to be in contention for a quality seed in March.

Rothstein: To win in a league like the Big East you need to have great players and you have one in Bryce Hopkins. As you envision him in your system this season, what do you see?

English: I think we’ve got a few great players. I think Bryce (Hopkins), I think Devin (Carter), I think Josh (Oduro) — they’re all really, really good. I think the way that we play is tailor made for Bryce. He’s going to have a ton of space. We’re always going to have shooting around him. The passing that Josh Oduro brings and the playmaking of Jayden Pierre, Garwey Dual, and Devin Carter — it’s all going to help Bryce. Bryce is going to play out of close outs. Bryce is going to play out of the post. He’s going to play out of straight line drives. He’s going to play out of ball screens. Any way you can imagine — that’s how we’re going to use him offensively. But it starts with how we defend because that’s going to be the key to us getting out in transition.

Rothstein: It’s getting harder and harder for true freshmen to impact college basketball because of how old the sport has become, but Garwey Dual is a first-year player that can make a difference — why?

English: He’s really talented. He’s a natural on the court, especially in the open court. He’s a very talented offensive player and defensively he’s very talented as well.

Rothstein: This is a program over the last decade that has expected to be in the NCAA Tournament on an annual basis. How much have you broached that topic with your team?

English: Not at all. It’s a given. We’re playing to contend for a Big East championship. Like I said, if you’re there — you’ll be in position for a good seed in March. It’s pointless to talk about the NCAA Tournament in July and August. We’re just trying to become the toughest, hardest playing group that we can possibly be.

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