James meets the media
Mar. 2, 2009
Speaking publicly for the first time since suffering a fractured left foot last Wednesday that ended his four-year tenure at Marquette University, senior guard Dominic James was upbeat when talking about his future, emotional when talking about his teammates and coach Buzz Williams and looking forward to being able to help the Golden Eagles for the rest of the season in some sort of coaching capacity.
James, who met with the media at the Al McGuire Center with Williams looking on, remains on crutches with his foot casted after having a pin placed in it on Friday at Aurora Sinai Medical Center.
He was unable to travel with the Golden Eagles to Louisville for their game with the Cardinals at Freedom Hall on Sunday, but said he watched the matchup on TV with his father.
"Obviously it was a different perspective for me -- watching them on TV was kind of hard," he said. "But just knowing they were out there playing for me...really meant a lot and got my spirits up."
James said he wasn't quite sure what to make of the injury when he suffered it in the opening minutes of MU's 93-82 loss to Connecticut last Wednesday at the Bradley Center.
Replays showed his foot give way as he drove from right to left on the baseline. He ultimately passed the ball away, and then limped downcourt after the Golden Eagles missed a shot.
"All I can remember is I planted on it wrong," he said. "It kind of felt like my shoe had busted open. I felt a little pop and then I came back downcourt and I signaled to Coach, 'I need to come out of the game.'
"But like always, if you look at Coach and tell him you need to come out of the game, he'll look the other way. So I finally got his attention, went over to the sideline and I knew that something was wrong -- especially when I tried to maneuver it a little more."
James said the only previous surgery he'd had was for a hernia when he was a youngster.
Trainer Ernest Eugene, meanwhile, said there was no evidence to suggest that James had been playing on a stress fracture yet that the type of fracture he suffered for a person of James' stature and weight is somewhat rare.
James also echoed what Williams and some of his teammates have been saying since the injury.
"I told the guys and the guys told me, and they understand that this ship must keep moving," he said. "I'm not going to be an anchor to my teammates; I want to be a propeller. I want to push them away. They're doing an excellent job of that.
"They know I don't like sympathy. Coach is not a sympathetic guy. I'm just living my dreams through them."
James will learn early Tuesday if he'll be able to make the trip to Pittsburgh with the Golden Eagles. Doctors will need to be certain he is not in danger of developing a blood clot at high altitudes in order to be cleared.
If he does make the trip, he'll have a spot alongside Williams on the bench. Williams, meanwhile, joked he'd have a Michael Talbot dress shirt and tie -- Williams' preferred designer -- waiting for James.
"It''s something I'm going to have to get used to," said James of his new perspective. "I'm going to enjoy it from a coaching perspective. I've always felt like I've been a coach, especially being an extension of Coach out there on the court. But now I'm just on the sideline."
James had to fight back tears when asked about his teammates, specifically classmates Jerel McNeal and Wesley Matthews.
"I couldn't ask for a better group of guys," he said. "It's hard just discussing it. That's my
family. The support has been unbelievable. And it's not just from my teammates; it's from the whole Marquette family.
"That's the reason why I came here...and that's the best thing about this university. It has nothing to do with how long the ball's bouncing; it's got to do with how long your heart's beating. And as long as my heart's beating, I know I'm going to be taken care of."
After about 20 minutes, Williams replaced James at the microphone. He measured his words carefully, clearly touched by how well James had handled the Q&A.
"I don't know how much more maturity, how much more wisdom you could get from a 22-year-old young man," he said. "Dominic James has a spot with me until he decides he wants to play, or until he decides he doesn't want to play.
"He and I have developed an unbelievable relationship in a very short period of time, and I'm very grateful for that. I'm very hurt for him and for his family, that it ended the way that it did. But what a statement about our program and about him as a human being to have the response to the ending the way that he has."
Here is a
complete transcript of the news conference, as provided by MU.
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