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Q&A: U Commit Amir Coffey: "I am coming back better than I was before I got injured."
Q&A: Gopher Commit Amir Coffey: "I am coming back better than I was before I got injured"
By Chris Monter
http://www.gopherhole.com/news_article/show/565162?referrer_id=
Amir Coffey, a senior wing from Hopkins who is considered the state's top prospect in the Class of 2016, committed to Minnesota two weeks ago.
Coffey helped lead the Royals to 30-2 record as a sophomore as they finished runner-up in the Class AAAA Tournament, losing to Lakeville North in the title game.
Unfortunately, he suffered a season-ending knee injury against Burnsville earlier in the season as a junior. Coffey played in only three games and averaged 23.7 points, 6.7 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game. He shot 54.1% from the field, 35.3% from three-point range and 65% from the line.
Coffey is back on the court and shined at Lakeville South with the Royals playing against 2015 state champion Apple Valley and third place finisher Shakopee.
Gopher Hole: You recently committed to Minnesota and got a little bit of a weight off your shoulder. Do you feel a difference?
Amir Coffey: Yes. It is a lot of weight off my shoulders and I don't have to worry other schools. I can focus on winning.
Gopher Hole: Obviously, your family was very proud. What has been the reaction of your friends and other people?
Amir Coffey: Most people are proud of me. My family and close friends. I mean you always have a couple of haters talking to you, but you just rule them out and stay with positive people.
Gopher Hole: Is it nice to have that decision made and now you can focus on your senior season?
Amir Coffey: Of course. It is a lot of weight off my shoulders. I don't have to worry about talking to all those coaches and the recruiting process. It is just important that I can focus on just one thing.
Gopher Hole: Did you like the recruiting process or did it kind of get old after a while?
Amir Coffey: It got old. It has its ups and downs. It is a blessing to be recruited, but it gets tiring, talking to all the coaches and texting and calling every other day, so I didn't really enjoy it.
Gopher Hole: Minnesota got a commitment from another kid shortly after you from Eric Curry, a kid that you got to know on the EYBL circuit and he also visited the same weekend as you. I know that you said that you were working on him a little bit to get him to commit. How pleased were you when you heard the word that he was coming to Minnesota?
Amir Coffey: I was very pleased. We actually met two years before that at the Nike Camp (Top 100) in St. Louis and we have been friends ever since. We just ended visiting on the same weekend and we are good friends, so I was very happy about that.
Gopher Hole: Does that make even more special because you know him and you both committed the same week?
Amir Coffey: It does. We have been building a relationship ever since that Nike Camp, so it is pretty cool to go to school with someone that you know.
Gopher Hole: What does it mean to you to go to the same school as your father?
Amir Coffey: It's cool. It is pretty cool to follow in his footsteps and when I get there, I'll start making my own legacy.
Gopher Hole: Every time, I see you, I swear that you are bigger. What are up to height and weight-wise?
Amir Coffey: 6-7. I still a couple of inches left in me. Hopefully, I'll get to 6-8, 6-9.
Gopher Hole: Then you can look down at your dad?
Amir Coffey: Definitely.
Gopher Hole: What are the expectations at Hopkins this upcoming season? You lost John Warren (a first team All-Metro choice by the Star Tribune and second team All-Metro selection by College Basketball News), but you have a lot of players coming back this season.
Amir Coffey: I think that every team, the expectation is to win a state championship and that is definitely ours. We just have to put the extra work in and get ready for the season and I think that we will be ready.
Gopher Hole: How nice is it to be back on the court after being gone for so long?
Amir Coffey: It's been nice. I was out for six months. It is a blessing to be able to play again and I am not taking it for granted.
Gopher Hole: How much has your game changed? You are bigger and stronger, but how has your game changed?
Amir Coffey: Just adding strength to my game. Attacking the basket. Explosion. Finishing around the rim. Still really the same player. Just stronger, bigger and faster.
Gopher Hole: Unfortunately, when you get hurt sometimes, it is a bit of a mental process coming back. Is that something that you have faced yet?
Amir Coffey: No. I am coming back better than I was before I got injured. I was working out when I couldn't play, getting stronger and getting faster. I was still working on my shot and everything. I would say that I am coming back stronger than I was before, so that is not a factor.
Gopher Hole: You had that leg injury when you were a freshman. Do you think that kind of help you to do what you had to do?
Amir Coffey: Yes. I have been through that before. I came back better then and I want to come back even better this time. I have been through it before, like I said, and I knew that the stuff I am able to do, like the rehab and workouts and how much harder you have to work to get back to where you were before and get better than you were before. I kind of knew what it took.
Gopher Hole: You talked about your relationship with Eric. Have you gotten to know some of the current Gophers and what are your relationships like with those guys?
Amir Coffey: I already knew a couple of them and on the visit, we were with them the majority of the day. I started to get to know most of them and build a relationship then and I am pretty close to all of them now.
Gopher Hole: They are going to be a very young team. What do you expect to see out of them this year?
Amir Coffey: Just to get better. I am sure that they have their own expectations. My hope is for them to just get better. I don't want to put game limits or any success on them, because I know that they are a young team and they are building, but just get better and keep working. The class coming in, I can say that for us, I know that we have been working hard on our game to try to do everything.
Gopher Hole: I think that the expectation are that being so young that they might struggle a little bit, but when you come in with Michael (Hurt) and Eric coming in and two transfers that are sitting out, that the following year, they should be really good. Is that what you are looking forward to being a part of that as a freshman?
Amir Coffey: Yes. Even Coach Pitino told me that they might struggle early because they are a young team, mostly freshman and sophomores and the two transfers sitting out. There are not any big expectations right now because I know that they are working and it is a young team, but the following year, hopefully, we can keep building and get some wins and make some noise in the tournament.
Q&A: Gopher Commit Amir Coffey: "I am coming back better than I was before I got injured"
By Chris Monter
http://www.gopherhole.com/news_article/show/565162?referrer_id=
Amir Coffey, a senior wing from Hopkins who is considered the state's top prospect in the Class of 2016, committed to Minnesota two weeks ago.
Coffey helped lead the Royals to 30-2 record as a sophomore as they finished runner-up in the Class AAAA Tournament, losing to Lakeville North in the title game.
Unfortunately, he suffered a season-ending knee injury against Burnsville earlier in the season as a junior. Coffey played in only three games and averaged 23.7 points, 6.7 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game. He shot 54.1% from the field, 35.3% from three-point range and 65% from the line.
Coffey is back on the court and shined at Lakeville South with the Royals playing against 2015 state champion Apple Valley and third place finisher Shakopee.
Gopher Hole: You recently committed to Minnesota and got a little bit of a weight off your shoulder. Do you feel a difference?
Amir Coffey: Yes. It is a lot of weight off my shoulders and I don't have to worry other schools. I can focus on winning.
Gopher Hole: Obviously, your family was very proud. What has been the reaction of your friends and other people?
Amir Coffey: Most people are proud of me. My family and close friends. I mean you always have a couple of haters talking to you, but you just rule them out and stay with positive people.
Gopher Hole: Is it nice to have that decision made and now you can focus on your senior season?
Amir Coffey: Of course. It is a lot of weight off my shoulders. I don't have to worry about talking to all those coaches and the recruiting process. It is just important that I can focus on just one thing.
Gopher Hole: Did you like the recruiting process or did it kind of get old after a while?
Amir Coffey: It got old. It has its ups and downs. It is a blessing to be recruited, but it gets tiring, talking to all the coaches and texting and calling every other day, so I didn't really enjoy it.
Gopher Hole: Minnesota got a commitment from another kid shortly after you from Eric Curry, a kid that you got to know on the EYBL circuit and he also visited the same weekend as you. I know that you said that you were working on him a little bit to get him to commit. How pleased were you when you heard the word that he was coming to Minnesota?
Amir Coffey: I was very pleased. We actually met two years before that at the Nike Camp (Top 100) in St. Louis and we have been friends ever since. We just ended visiting on the same weekend and we are good friends, so I was very happy about that.
Gopher Hole: Does that make even more special because you know him and you both committed the same week?
Amir Coffey: It does. We have been building a relationship ever since that Nike Camp, so it is pretty cool to go to school with someone that you know.
Gopher Hole: What does it mean to you to go to the same school as your father?
Amir Coffey: It's cool. It is pretty cool to follow in his footsteps and when I get there, I'll start making my own legacy.
Gopher Hole: Every time, I see you, I swear that you are bigger. What are up to height and weight-wise?
Amir Coffey: 6-7. I still a couple of inches left in me. Hopefully, I'll get to 6-8, 6-9.
Gopher Hole: Then you can look down at your dad?
Amir Coffey: Definitely.
Gopher Hole: What are the expectations at Hopkins this upcoming season? You lost John Warren (a first team All-Metro choice by the Star Tribune and second team All-Metro selection by College Basketball News), but you have a lot of players coming back this season.
Amir Coffey: I think that every team, the expectation is to win a state championship and that is definitely ours. We just have to put the extra work in and get ready for the season and I think that we will be ready.
Gopher Hole: How nice is it to be back on the court after being gone for so long?
Amir Coffey: It's been nice. I was out for six months. It is a blessing to be able to play again and I am not taking it for granted.
Gopher Hole: How much has your game changed? You are bigger and stronger, but how has your game changed?
Amir Coffey: Just adding strength to my game. Attacking the basket. Explosion. Finishing around the rim. Still really the same player. Just stronger, bigger and faster.
Gopher Hole: Unfortunately, when you get hurt sometimes, it is a bit of a mental process coming back. Is that something that you have faced yet?
Amir Coffey: No. I am coming back better than I was before I got injured. I was working out when I couldn't play, getting stronger and getting faster. I was still working on my shot and everything. I would say that I am coming back stronger than I was before, so that is not a factor.
Gopher Hole: You had that leg injury when you were a freshman. Do you think that kind of help you to do what you had to do?
Amir Coffey: Yes. I have been through that before. I came back better then and I want to come back even better this time. I have been through it before, like I said, and I knew that the stuff I am able to do, like the rehab and workouts and how much harder you have to work to get back to where you were before and get better than you were before. I kind of knew what it took.
Gopher Hole: You talked about your relationship with Eric. Have you gotten to know some of the current Gophers and what are your relationships like with those guys?
Amir Coffey: I already knew a couple of them and on the visit, we were with them the majority of the day. I started to get to know most of them and build a relationship then and I am pretty close to all of them now.
Gopher Hole: They are going to be a very young team. What do you expect to see out of them this year?
Amir Coffey: Just to get better. I am sure that they have their own expectations. My hope is for them to just get better. I don't want to put game limits or any success on them, because I know that they are a young team and they are building, but just get better and keep working. The class coming in, I can say that for us, I know that we have been working hard on our game to try to do everything.
Gopher Hole: I think that the expectation are that being so young that they might struggle a little bit, but when you come in with Michael (Hurt) and Eric coming in and two transfers that are sitting out, that the following year, they should be really good. Is that what you are looking forward to being a part of that as a freshman?
Amir Coffey: Yes. Even Coach Pitino told me that they might struggle early because they are a young team, mostly freshman and sophomores and the two transfers sitting out. There are not any big expectations right now because I know that they are working and it is a young team, but the following year, hopefully, we can keep building and get some wins and make some noise in the tournament.