Media Day Q&A: Garrison Brooks

Tar Heel junior forward Garrison Brooks spoke with reporters last in the Smith Center as part of UNC's annual preseason media day.

Below are highlights of Brooks's comments.

On what he has been seeing in practice from his teammates
"Our guys are really working hard and trying to get the plays down, and trying to get our fundamentals down to what we do every day."

On his and Brandon Robinson's leadership roles
"I just try to lead by example and try to be a vocal leader. And try to help everyone if they are struggling with anything, and just try to become a leader to get us all to mesh together."

On adjusting to new players in the mix
"Honestly it's not very hard because I feel like everyone is on the same page and everyone has the same goal."

On what has changed about his game entering his junior year
"I pretty much will be the same defensive guy. I have become more of a rebounder since Luke [Maye] is gone, and I have tried to become a more offensive threat and become a better leader."

On making adjustments on the offensive side of the ball
"Just trying to gain more confidence and working on my skill and working hard."

On how Justin Pierce and Christian Keeling have looked in the opening days of practice and their personalities
"They're really good. Justin shoots the ball at a really good rate, and he doesn't take very many shots, but he makes them when he does. Christian is a great scorer, he just flat out scores the ball. Christian kind of got a loud personality and Justin is the complete opposite. Justin is a very quiet guy and won't say much. Christian is kind of loud - like in a good way though."

On Cole Anthony's talent and abilities
"Cole is one of the best players in the country already and he hasn't even played a game. I think that is a lot to say and I believe in him. He is a really talented guy, a really hard worker. I think the thing is about Cole is he is one of the hardest workers I have ever seen. Cole is here [Dean E. Smith Center] like at all times of the night, stays longer than anyone after practice."

On whether or not he is a natural leader rather than growing into the role
"It's one of those things that I haven't learned how to do. Of course I didn't think it would be this year that I was going to be needed as a leader, but I am willing to step-up and provide that role for us."

On taking Armando Bacot "under his wing"
"I've tried to teach Armando everything I know and just try to emphasize what coach is teaching us."

On having two bigs on the court at the same time and how it helps him as a player
"It'll help. I feel like he [Bacot] will be a huge huge contribution to our success, so that will be one of the biggest things for us. Having Armando here and having Luke [Maye] here, Luke helped me a lot. Now I'm trying to help Armando and I think Armando is going to help me always get better because he pushes to be better everyday."

On the team's defensive mindset
"I think everyone is sold on getting stops, and that's the way we win games. I believe we could be really good on defense."

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University of North Carolina Athletics

Players Mentioned

Cole Anthony

Armando Bacot

Garrison Brooks

Christian Keeling

Justin Pierce

Brandon Robinson

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