By Laura Amato
The spotlight is bright and Shamorie Ponds is more than ready to step right into it.
The former Thomas Jefferson star was one of the most highly recruited high school basketball players in the country last season, but he opted to stay close to home—heading to St. John’s with a very specific goal in mind. He’s going to help turn the Red Storm program around. “I have a high IQ and I play with a slow pace, but I know what I’m doing on the court,” Ponds said during the team’s media day last month. “I play calm and there’s not too much pressure. So I know that I just need to bring the same thing that I was doing at Thomas Jefferson and the high IQ and the type of leadership to the college game.”
The Red Storm won just one Big East game last year, but Ponds is determined to provide the squad with the kind of spark that will lift St. John’s back to the top of the college basketball ranks. It won’t be easy and Ponds is well aware of the hometown microscope he’s under, but the former Orange Wave guard is ready to do his city proud.
Ponds was named the Big East Preseason Rookie of the Year and—despite some early-game miscues—finished with 12 points, two assists and five steals in St. John’s 99-49 exhibition victory over Baruch Oct. 31. Still, he’s not too worried about that.
“I’m not going to be focused on just [my own stats],” Ponds said. “I just want to see the team win. I want to see us all get accolades.” Ponds—a 6-foot-1 left-hander with one of the softest shooting touches in the game—was a consensus four-star, top-50 recruit after leading Jefferson to its first city championship since 1954 last season. He could have taken his talents just about anywhere in the country, but couldn’t shake the draw to St. John’s. Ponds attended nearly every home game last year and the Red Storm wanted him just as much as he wanted them.
“I’m happy he felt that way,” said head coach Chris Mullin. “We always felt like he was the perfect fit.”
Ponds is only a freshman—playing in his first college hoops game on Friday night—but he’s already settled into a leadership role with the Red Storm. He’s become a calming presence in the backcourt, focused on helping his teammates cut down on the turnovers and full-court miscues that plagued the squad last year.
“When things go bad we can’t go into a shell,” Ponds said. “So I think I really bring that to the team—calming them down and bringing them together.”
Ponds found a preseason rhythm with fellow first-year guard Marcus LoVett—unable to play last season due to academic issues—and with the return of sophomore guard Federico Mussini in the backcourt, the freshman is certain St. John’s has the weapons to notch victories this season.
He knows there are expectations for him—the hometown kid determined to make good for the hometown team—but the only thing Ponds cares about is the score at the end of every game.
“That spotlight might get too bright, so I’m just trying to not pay it no mind,” he said. “I just want to play my game and do what the coaches want me to do.”
