Conor Enright, who played two seasons at Drake and a season at DePaul, announced his commitment to Indiana on Wednesday.
Enright, a 6-foot-2 guard who averaged 6.2 assists last season for the Blue Demons, has one season of eligibility remaining.
Inside the Hall spoke with Enright on Thursday morning about his decision to commit to the Hoosiers and much more:
On why he was interested in Indiana after entering the transfer portal this spring:
“Honestly, I was a fan of Indiana just because of my brother (Kyle) going there. I kind of always liked Indiana and they didn’t have a coach, so I thought it was an option depending on who got the job. And then coach (Darian) DeVries gets the job, who I’ve known since I was 15, so it was kind of a perfect storm in that sense.”
On navigating the compressed timeline for recruiting in the transfer portal:
“I think this time it was a little less stressful compared to last year because I had an idea of what the transfer process looks like and last year, I wasn’t expecting DeVries to leave Drake, so that was a bigger surprise for me.
“But now, I had a prior relationship with both coach DeVries and coach (Ben) McCollum, so it was little more casual for me talking to both and setting up visits. And then the other coaches, they reached out, but it was relatively quick that I entered the portal and committed but it was definitely an easier process this time around.”
On what it’s like being in the portal as a player and managing all of the contact:
“I didn’t actually have an agent last year so for me, last year, I was getting a lot of phone calls the first couple of days. It was stressful because they’re all calling you and they want to recruit you, too. So they don’t just call one time, they want to keep up. They’re all doing their job but when you have 20 or 30 schools talking to you, it gets a little overwhelming.
“This time around though, I had some contact myself, some contact with my high school coach, a lot mostly through my agent so some things get filtered that way and you can see what you like and don’t like. So that makes it a lot easier when you have people helping you. You just need to make sure you have the right people.”
On why the Indiana visit was impactful and what led to his decision to commit:
“Right when I stepped into Assembly Hall, I was kind of envisioning myself playing there. And I just got the chills a little bit. Indiana is known as a historically great program and being able to be a part of that, be a guy that plays here and makes a big impact… I just saw that and said ‘I can’t pass this opportunity up.’”
On his assist rate last season at DePaul and his success as a playmaker:
“I definitely got a lot more opportunity to have the ball in my hands and because I got more opportunity, I got a lot better at making those reads. I think that’s definitely a big piece I added to my game. I think I can still get a lot better. Keep the assists high and cut down on turnovers, so I can keep growing in that area. But it was definitely a big jump for me this year.”
On the decision to move on to DePaul:
“Ultimately, I think DePaul is moving in the right direction, I think it’s going to be a great program. The coaches there have it going in a good way. But I’ve got one year left and I want an opportunity to make a deep run in the NCAA tournament and I think with how much I trust coach DeVries, I know he’s a winner and combined with Indiana being a winning program, that’s the perfect combination. Just winning is the biggest thing I was looking for.”
On how beneficial it was having the relationship with Tucker DeVries when he looked at IU:
“It’s awesome. It’s somebody I already know, I already feel comfortable. I also know Garrett Sturtz and Nick Norton who are also on staff and Ryan Horn, the strength coach. Having all of those prior relationships provides a comfort zone already. A lot of people don’t get that when you’re going somewhere new. I’m going somewhere new, but it’s old friends for me, old relationships.”
On watching the rest of roster develop this spring and how closely he’ll follow that process:
“I’m going to be locked in on it for sure. Obviously as I see coach start recruiting guys, I’m going to hop in there and start recruiting them myself a little bit. I’m definitely interested in starting to get to know guys that want to come play at Indiana and building that relationship off the court and then watch their games and see how I can play with them and benefit off of them and how I can make them better and how they can make me better. So I’ll definitely be watching closely.”
On his injury last season and a timetable for getting back on the floor:
“I had a torn labrum. I actually tore it at Drake and then it was fine the rest of that season and I had a couple of instances of shoulder subluxation so it kept getting more unstable so I eventually had to get surgery.
“I should be 100 percent middle or end of July. I’ll be doing non-contact workouts and being able to shoot pretty much all summer and getting in shape. I’ll be ready to go for the season. That definitely affected me a little bit. My shooting dropped significantly when I had that injury. I was wearing a brace and wasn’t playing the best. So I think being able to have this last year fully healthy will be big for me.”
On coach DeVries and what Indiana fans can expect from him:
“He’s just really passionate about what he does. He can be that intense coach but he can also be someone that you can talk to off the court and hang out with a little bit. He’s a good mix of both. You can kind of put him anywhere. He can be that respected coach and he can also talk to fans and interact with them that way.
“Overall, he’s a dude that wins and I think he’ll bring that to Indiana.”
(Photo credit: DePaul Athletics)
Category: Recruiting
Filed to: Conor Enright
