Written By Sam Ekstrom
Senior year of college is a stressful time in any student’s life. The safety net provided by your college years is about to drop you out into the real world. There are résumés to create, jobs to apply for, tests to take. You’re trying to balance your desire to cram as much carefree fun as possible into that final year with the logical premise that, as a senior, you need to figure your life out … fast.
Now, when you’re a senior athlete – in this case, a basketball player with a once-bright NBA bright – your final college year is like a four-month-long job audition. Your résumé is fluid, constantly changing based on the performances you put on film. You’re not sure whether to pursue the stability of a normal, everyday, 9-to-5 vocation or take the gamble on professional basketball fame.
Such is the predicament for Gophers guard Andre Hollins.
“It’s tough when you’re a senior,” said head coach Richard Pitino. “[It’s] difficult when you don’t know where you’re going to be in a couple months, and sometimes that can bother guys as well.”
Hollins has reached the final chapter of his Gophers career and now has choices to make professionally. Like his other fellow seniors, Hollins is unlikely to be drafted in June, but what separates him from the likes of DeAndre Mathieu or Mo Walker is his once-high NBA stock.
It’s tougher to let go of a dream when it once felt attainable; you don’t want to let it die completely.
A promising prospect
Hollins splashed in his sophomore year by averaging 14.6 points per game, including a 41-point outburst against Memphis and 26.5 ppg in the Gophers’ two-game NCAA tournament run.
According to the Pioneer Press, nbadraft.net projected Hollins as a future lottery pick in February of 2013. This endorsement was based on Hollins’ potential, though; not his current status. The projection had Hollins entering the draft after his junior season, which meant he’d have to take another significant leap in his third year.
Another NBA prospect website, draftexpress.com, profiled Hollins before his junior season. “Moving forward, it is entirely likely that Hollins will emerge as one of the more prolific scoring combo guards in the Big Ten, if not the country over the coming seasons,” wrote Matt Kamalsky. “His jump shot has obvious value at the NBA level, but his lack of size means it will be his ability to become a more capable floor general and defensive player that will likely be determining factors on where his stock stands when he becomes eligible for the draft.”
Hollins was far from the first Gopher to receive national publicity. Former forward Rodney Williams, known for his high-flying acrobatics around the rim, was projected as a first-round pick in his early career as well, but Williams never developed a jump shot and wound up falling out of the draft completely. It was a cautionary tale: Projections are merely projections.
The Gophers’ rising star failed to make another leap forward in his junior season, which eliminated Hollins’ chance of being a lottery selection in last summer’s draft. The Memphis native dealt with an ankle injury, saw his scoring average reduced to 13.6 ppg and suffered a decline in field goal shooting and 3-point shooting.
Knowing that seniors are rarely drafted highly in the NBA – only five in the first round and none in the top 10 last year – Hollins was burdened entering his senior campaign. Not only were the Gophers’ faithful counting on him to lead an NCAA tournament team, but he also had a future to keep in mind.
A rocky start
Like the rest of his team, Hollins looked good through the first 12 games as the Gophers coasted to an 11-1 non-conference start. Then the wheels fell off.
Minnesota started 0-5 in conference play as Hollins shot 20.7 percent from the field in the five losses.
“I think he’s been forcing it a little bit,” said senior guard DeAndre Mathieu in January.
“It’s tough, just mentally, knowing it’s my last year, struggling like that,” said Hollins, “but I’ve had a lot of support from teammates, the staff, my family. Just gotta keep working.”
One of Hollins staunchest supporters was Coach Pitino.
“Everybody’s expecting too much out of him,” said Pitino after the team’s devastating last-second loss at home against Iowa. “Like when we lose, it’s always Andre. I think he’s doing a lot of really good things. I think with seniors it’s always very hard, and maybe he’s putting too much pressure on himself — I’m not sure. But he gives us great effort every day.”
Perhaps to fans’ dismay, Pitino loyally stood by his senior guard through the turmoil. While virtually each starter was benched for a time, Pitino stuck with Hollins despite his 12-for-58 shooting mark through five games in conference play. Hollins had always been a high-volume 3-point shooter; never as aggressive on the dribble drive as he was from beyond the arc. His 22 percent shooting from 3-point range was bound to improve, figured Pitino. Meanwhile, the coach liked what Hollins brought on the defensive end.
“He has done so many things intangible-wise, and that’s why I’ve always rolled with him because he’s been guarding the team’s best player,” said Pitino. “It’s not like he’s physically this great defender. It’s all been will. That’s why he’s been playing. That’s why we’ve stuck with him.”
The team’s ‘best player’?
As expected, Hollins turned things around in the Gophers’ sixth Big Ten game against Rutgers. The 22 year old dropped a season-high 31 points and drained seven 3’s in the team’s first conference win. Then he poured in 21 at Nebraska. Then 28 against Illinois.
Hollins went on a nine-game streak of scoring double figures that only ended last Saturday against the highly-ranked Wisconsin Badgers.
The senior, a media favorite, has repeatedly been asked about the reason for his turnaround, and his answer has consistently been the same.
“I was taking the same shots, I just wasn’t hitting them,” Hollins has reiterated numerous times. “That’s the beautiful thing about basketball. You have plenty of opportunities, plenty of games left. You can go 0 for 11 one game and then not miss the next game.”
“I think since Rutgers he’s understood that this is his last hurrah,” said Pitino on Feb. 17, “and he’s making the most of it, he’s doing a lot of things, and he’s trying to pull everybody with him.”
Hollins now has his season scoring average at 14.6 ppg – right where it stood after his much-acclaimed sophomore season – and the Gophers are 5-5 since his breakthrough against Rutgers.
A Hollins 3-point shot is like a jolt of adrenaline for this team, particularly at home, where the crowd roars for Hollins, knowing what a sparkplug he can be. He is a momentum shooter with good range who isn’t afraid of heat checks. And just as the crowd feeds off Hollins’ marksmanship, so does his supporting cast.
“Seeing our leader come out there and hit shots, get defensive stops, it helps the rest of the team get going,” said freshman Nate Mason, who has been mentored by Hollins throughout the season.
“He’s been really an awesome leader in getting guys to come with him,” said Mathieu. “I’m trying to step up and be that vocal leader and get guys to come with me as well so I can be right beside Dre.”
Knowing expectations would be high coming off an NIT win – not just for Hollins but for the team – Pitino tempered expectations all year. During the non-conference season, he refused to label a ‘best player’ on his roster. This was a strategic maneuver; no coach wants a player to feel entitled.
But when asked the same question on Feb. 17, Pitino was quick to acknowledge Hollins.
“He’s playing like our best player,” the coach said. “I didn’t think since I’ve been here that we’ve had one guy play like our best player until now, until the last couple games.”
Playing for money
Hollins has been engaged in numerous talks about playing professional basketball over the past several months. Ironically, the discussions haven’t been about him but instead his girlfriend Rachel Banham, the Gopher women’s star with a torn ACL.
While Banham decided to return for another college season to strengthen her already-high draft potential, her boyfriend may not be looking at an equally surefire path.
Hollins no longer appears in any mock drafts and will probably have to go the route of his former teammates. Trevor Mbakwe – another once-highly-projected prospect — plays professionally in Europe, while Rodney Williams belongs to Oklahoma City’s D-League team.
“I think [Andre] can play for money certainly,” said Pitino. “I think he brings a lot to the table. I think he’s starting to show he’s playing with better motor offensively lately than he was early. I think he’s shown defensively that he can do a lot of things. I think he’s a great kid and a great leader, and he’s got high character. He’ll certainly be able to play for money.”
After torching Illinois for 28 points on 10-of-15 shooting, Hollins received ample praise from Illini coach John Groce about his shooting ability. If Hollins is to be a pro, it will be because of his long-range shooting touch. The senior is 39.2 percent for his career from beyond the arc.
“I think because he can make tough ones off the catch and bounce is what makes him special,” said Groce. “There’s a lot of shooters who can make them in catch-and-shoot situations where they’re stationary. He can make them in a dead sprint off a screen, he can make them off the bounce. … I told him after the game, I don’t know how many times we’ll maybe play them again, but in case we didn’t, I respect him, and I’ve enjoyed competing against him.”
Hollins has, at minimum, five games remaining in his collegiate career: three regular season games, one Big Ten tournament game and some kind of postseason game, whether it is NIT or CBI.
After that, it will be time to look at his body of work – his résumé – and see what kind of job he can land. For now, he’ll enjoy his final handful of games in the Maroon and Gold.
“Trying to take it in,” Hollins said. “Cherish every moment.”
Sam Ekstrom is a staff writer for Cold Omaha at 105 The Ticket and a play-by-play broadcaster in Burnsville, Minn. Hear him on 105 The Ticket Sunday mornings from 8-10 a.m. on “The Wake Up Call.” Follow him on Twitter @SamEkstrom for further insights.