HAMPTON, VA (WTKR)- New Hampton head men's basketball coach Ivan Thomas knows the 757 well. He grew up in Norfolk, coached at Kecoughtan and embraces the style of hoops the region offers.
"757 kids are some of the toughest kids in America, bar-none," Thomas remarked during the Pirates' media day Wednesday. "I put my stamp on that. I wear it like a calling card."
That makes it no surprise that to make up a good portion of his first roster at Hampton, Thomas has turned to homegrown talent. Seven Hampton Roads products are suiting up for the Pirates as the new head coach looks to turn around the culture and the record.
"We've got a lot of 757 kids this year," Norfolk native and junior forward Kyrese Mullen pointed out. "We really didn't have a lot (last year), so it's good to play with some kids that I grew up playing against, playing with."
14 new faces grace the HU roster for the upcoming campaign. While many of the 757 products transferred in, graduate student and Chesapeake native Dan Banister Jr. and Mullen represent the lone carry-overs from last year's squad as they look to help engineer a turnaround.
"It was a refreshing conversation, knowing that a new brand of basketball was coming to Hampton University, being able to be a part of a new program with a bright future, being able to start a new culture," Banister said.
"The coaches and being back home," redshirt freshman guard Etienne Strothers said of his decision to transfer to Hampton. "These are guys that are from here, they've seen me since I was a kid so I already felt the connection. I already felt the love from here."
The roster is a whose who of area stars. Strothers was an all-state performer for some strong Menchville teams, Trevor Smith led Woodside to a state championship and was Class 5 State Player of the Year and George Beale Jr. guided King's Fork as an all-state player. Ryan Hite (King's Fork) and Elijah Kennedy (Green Run) are also looking to make a difference for a college program in their own backyards.
"I played against Trevor, Ryan, [George] and even [Kyrese]," Strothers pointed out. "It's pretty good. Now we're putting all the pieces together, coming from playing against each other to now making chemistry on the same team."
"Just getting to know them outside of basketball," added Smith. "Building a bond with them, it's been fun."
All of them are part of Thomas's push to rebuild Pirate basketball. His main goals are to transform the culture and turn the program into a winner. Hampton has not reached double-digits in victories since the 2020-2021 season, but the hope is that the climb to hanging some more banners in the rafters has already begun.
"Winning here and if we can go to March Madness, I feel like it would be good for the 757," Smith said. "Winning a championship here like I did in high school I feel would just be great."
"We take a lot of pride in that," noted Strothers. "A lot of people overlook the 757 when it comes to basketball, I can tell you that, so at the same time we're trying to put our name on the map, we're trying to change the culture here."
Hampton tips off its season November 4 at home against Mid-Atlantic Christian. A tip-off time has yet to be announced. Last season the Pirates finished 9-24 with a 3-15 mark in the CAA.
