Link to the Coach Avery Johnson Press Conference 11 am Central

Al A Bama said:

Coach AJ is a very friendly guy. In one day he took the campus by storm. He was everywhere: press conference, in Coleman C. answering questions from the media, at football practice talking to Coach Saban, at football practice talking to the football team, probably working to hire assistants, probably recruiting, checking to see what needs to be done in Coleman C., etc. Amazing! If you could package that awesome energy that he has at 50, you could become very rich.

That Superman post says it all. He was Superman today.

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bamafan157 said:

The thing that amazes me is how much he seems to already be enjoying himself. I know he's just talking to the press, but on the video of the interview in Coleman, he seems to be genuinely having fun. I don't think I've seen a coach who looks like they're having fun in interviews with the press. If he has this much enthusiasm doing what many coaches would consider "the worst part of the job", then I can only imagine how it's going to be on the court. Enthusiasm goes a long way.

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Johnson stressed recruiting in his time at the podium, citing his recognizability from his NBA and ESPN careers and promising to “put a fence around the state” of Alabama. But in a later question-and-answer session with reporters, he indicated that he planned to build on a foundation of current UA players as well.

“I had a situation with the (New Jersey) Nets where it needed to be a clean slate because they were 12-70 the year before,” Johnson said. “But in this situation, there are a couple of pieces in place. I'm not blowing up the roster. For the most part, the roster will stay intact.

“We may have to make some decisions later, but we will make those at the appropriate time.”

Alabama has two scholarships available going into the late signing period that begins next week. Johnson did not say whether he might bring in more than two new players, but did say that “everything was on the table” in terms of building a roster.

“I'm looking for kids who are tough-minded, who embrace physicality. I'm looking for kids that are unselfish, who care more for their teammates than themselves.
“They can be anywhere. High schools, working with high school coaches, is good. AAU is good. Junior college is on the table. I went to junior college. Fifth-year graduates are on the table. We will look at whatever will improve our team.”

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