St. John's Deivon Smith hopes to go from sling to giving it a shot
Deivon Smith of St. John's at the beginning of the second half against Villanova at Madison Square Garden on Saturday. Credit: Jim McIsaac
Heart and competitive fire are measured mostly in deeds — never analytics — and St. John’s Deivon Smith proved he’s a high scorer in both categories on Saturday night when the Red Storm beat Villanova at the Garden.
He suffered a significant right shoulder injury before halftime, came out for the second half in a sling and, with the Red Storm having slipped from a lead to a deficit, removed the sling and asked back into the game. He clearly was too hampered to contribute but proved an inspiration in the 12-point win.
“He’s a warrior,” coach Rick Pitino said.
Smith, the team’s point guard, was at it again at practice on Monday as St. John’s (14-3, 5-1 Big East) readied for Tuesday’s game against longtime rival Georgetown (12-4, 3-2) at the Garden.
Asked if he might play, Smith replied, “I never rule myself out until it’s time to go and I’m not suited up, honestly. I try to play through a lot of things and I’m a pretty tough guy, so I’m just going to keep doing treatment, keep doing what our staff asks and just try to be ready for whatever’s next.”
School officials are calling it a sprained shoulder and Smith said he’s still “pretty sore.” The righthander said he is able to shoot. But when asked about ballhandling, passing and defending, he said, “I haven’t done too much — [I’m] just trying to get everything 100% or as close to 100 as possible. I haven’t really done too much . . . but I feel like if I put my mind to it, I could do it.”
St. John’s showed Saturday that it still can win without Smith’s considerable talent on the court. After he exited for good with the Red Storm down three and 8:29 left, St. John’s outscored the Wildcats 30-15 with RJ Luis Jr., Kadary Richmond and Simeon Wilcher scoring 25 of those points.
Luis had 23 of his 30 points and nine of his 10 rebounds in the second half. For that performance and his 18 points and 10 rebounds in a win at Xavier on Tuesday, he was named Big East Player of the Week. The two victories, however, didn’t elevate St. John’s back into the AP Top 25; they missed by one spot.
Smith said the pain he felt after the collision with Villanova’s Wooga Poplar was among the worst he has felt on a basketball court.
“It hurt a lot — I wouldn’t lie,” Smith said. “I wasn’t really aware [and] I couldn’t brace myself for the hit. It was painful . . . I don’t want to give too much detail on it because I might play on Tuesday, but I heard some stuff in there when it happened, like a little crack or whatever, and I was in some pain. But it did pop.
“My range of motion is getting better with the treatment, so I’m just taking it one step at a time.”
When the Red Storm returned to the court after halftime, Smith didn’t warm up and took a spot at the end of the bench. But as St. John’s failed to maintain its lead, he suddenly was in the second seat next to Pitino.
“I told him ‘put me in’ and I told him I was ready to play . . . He sent me right in,” Smith said. “I was still in some pain, but I was hoping my adrenaline would kind of take care of the rest and do that for me. But I didn’t really think that was the best fit for us to win the game, with me playing hurt, playing with one arm, so I let my teammates handle it.”
“When I saw he couldn’t shoot it, I just took him right back out,” Pitino said. “He’s a pretty tough kid.”
Notes & quotes: The chances that sophomore Brady Dunlap will return from his injuries this season seem to be getting slimmer. His recovery from December ligament surgery in his left hand is on schedule, but a recently discovered abdominal tear could be his undoing. He planned to get a third opinion before determining if he needs season-ending surgery. If that’s the case, he could get a medical redshirt to retain a season of eligibility . . . Pitino said freshman Jaiden Glover (wrist) was still feeling pain when he shot on Saturday but was holding out hope he might be available Tuesday.
Roger Rubin returned to Newsday in 2018 to write about high schools, colleges and baseball following 20 years at the Daily News. A Baseball Hall of Fame voter since 2011, he has covered 13 MLB postseasons and 14 NCAA Final Fours.
