When I say Devoe Joseph LOVES basketball, I mean it. Joseph, breaths, sleeps and absolutely loves everything about the sport. Even after a 66 game season, he is hungry for more. Not only is Joseph a 4-star recruit and one of the best players in Canada, but he’s been invited to try out for the Canadian Olympic team. If you were lucky enough to see Joseph in last weekend’s Nike Hoop Summit game, you’ll see that he is smart, fast, determined, and a winner.

When speaking to Joseph, you cannot help but get excited. His positive attitude, passion for hoops and the Gophers, is absolutely contagious. He is exactly the kind of kid you dream of landing at your school. He is a player that had his pick of just about every school from Vanderbilt to Texas, Virginia Tech, and National Champs - Kansas; he picked Minnesota without any doubts. Last year's freshman Al Nolen and Blake Hoffarber exceeded Gopher fan's expectations, I'd bet that Jospeh will follow that trend as well.


GH: You had some major schools recruiting you, what made you know Minnesota was the place for you?
DJ: When I was on my visit, it really felt like a family atmosphere, and the people and the fans down there are just great people. I really enjoyed it more than any other place. Also, Coach (Tubby) Smith and the coaching staff are just great coaches and I really think well of them, and they can help me develop the most as a player.

GH: What were your top 4 schools that you had narrowed your list down to, before you chose Minnesota?
DJ: Texas, Kansas and Vanderbilt. That seems like it was a long time ago!

GH: Was it a tight race?
DJ: Since Minnesota came onto me with Coach Smith, they were #1 from the very beginning. I was pretty clear about that.

GH: Did you know much about Coach Smith before he recruited you? Did you follow him much during his career?
DJ: Yes. There is actually another player from Toronto, Jamaal Magloire, that my dad coached. Coach Smith recruited him, and he went to Kentucky.

GH: For the record, how do you pronounce your first name?
DJ: Duh-Vo

GH: When you came to The Barn, you were met with an overwhelming amount of “we want Joseph” cheers and signs, did that play into your decision?
DJ: Oh definitely. Just this year, the fans knew who I was, and there was so much great support from them, and they really wanted me to come there. It definitely helped me make my decision.

GH: What do you think of watching games in the Barn, and how it would feel to play there next year?
DJ: The Barn is great. I just like the atmosphere; I think the fans are crazy. I like the cheers, the raised floor looks fun, and it just looks like there’s a lot of history to it and it’s just going to be exciting to play there. That was definitely one of the selling points.

GH: Does Minneapolis remind you of Toronto? Did that factor into your decision?
DJ: It’s a bit like Toronto. It wasn’t so much that it was an urban school, but that I really liked the people there. They were all very kind people, and that reminded me of Toronto; a family atmosphere.

GH: Did you get to watch the Gophers play much this year?
DJ: Oh yes. I actually made it out to Michigan for one game, and I saw of other games, I saw the Indiana game at Minnesota, and I saw the Illinois game at the end of the season.

GH: Did you enjoy getting to meet some of our student section at the Michigan game?
DJ: It was fun. The fans there were exciting and fun. I went up there and hung out with them, and it was a joy to meet them.

GH: With the long seasons in Canada, do you feel wore down when the season is over?
DJ: Right now I feel great, I feel like I’m in good shape, and I don’t feel worn down at all. I’ve had lots of time to rest and I feel great.

GH: When was your season over?
DJ: It finished in March.

GH: So, you’ve had about 2 weeks off to rest, do you consider that a lot of time?
DJ: Oh, a week is a long time for me! (laughing)

GH: Are you ready for more practices and less games?
DJ: Oh, of course, practices are great. I’m sure practices are going to be a lot more intense, but I am ready for the adjustment.

GH: If you made the Canadian Olympic team, which kind of time commitment would that be if you did make the team?
DJ: It’ll be 24-7, pretty much every single day. It will be a very busy schedule, we’ll be going into Germany, Greece, and it’ll be basketball pretty much everyday.

GH: When will your practices start?
DJ: In June, and if we qualify in the pre-qualification in Greece, it will go until the Olympics in August.

GH: With that kind of commitment, do you fear you’ll get burnt out at all?
DJ: I don’t think I’ll get burnt out at all. Basketball for me has always been 365, 24-7 type of deal. If I don’t play basketball for two days, I feel like something is wrong. I think I’ll actually be in better shape practicing every single day.

GH: What has Coach Smith said about the possibility of you being an Olympian?
DJ: He’s definitely excited about it. To go to the Olympics is a once in a lifetime experience.

GH: If you don’t make the team, do the coaches want you to come down here?
DJ: If I do not make the team, I’ll be down there right away. I’ll try to get into summer school, or just to get better work-outs. If I do make the team, it’ll be a busy summer, and I’ll just be there by the beginning of the school year.

GH: When will you find out, when are tryouts?
DJ: In the beginning of June, and they will last 2 weeks.

GH: What year is your brother (Cory Joseph) and is he being recruited by D-1 schools?
DJ: My brother is a sophomore, and he is being recruited by many D-1 schools, a lot of schools that recruited me. I think Minnesota is also recruiting him.

GH: You also have a teammate, Maurice Walker, who has been gaining a lot of attention. Can you tell me about him?
DJ: Maurice is a big kid, he’s 6’9, and he has good post moves, he can shoot the outside shot, he is young, like my brother. He and my brother played on the junior national team, which is a great accomplishment for them – they were 2 or 3 years younger than the other players. They are definitely going to be top players.

GH: Are you going to try to recruit them both to Minnesota?
DJ: Of course! I’ve been trying already (laughing).

GH: Have you gotten to know your teammates? Particularly, members of your recruiting class?
DJ: Not very well, because of the distance. I’ve talked to some of them, but I really haven’t gotten to know them very well. I’ve heard Coach Smith talk about Ralph Sampson III, I hear about him a lot. I actually saw him at NBA camp, but we didn’t get a chance to sit down and talk or anything.

GH: Has Coach Smith told you if you are going to play the 1 or the 2?
DJ: He hasn’t really told me. I’m just going to play wherever they want, whether it’s the 1 or 2, it doesn’t really matter to me. To me, when you’re playing basketball, you’re just playing basketball; there are no specific positions to me.

GH: What was it like playing against the top American recruits last weekend at the Nike Hoop Summit?
DJ: It was a great experience. The American guys are very athletic, and they had a great team. Our team had a bunch of pro prospects, and a 7’4 guy, it was a great experience just being in that game.

GH: Did the game expose any of your weaknesses and thing you know you need to work on?
DJ: Not really. I thought I played under control, I fit in. I noticed that a lot of those guys are really strong, and more built than me, I definitely need to get stronger so I can bang a little more with those guys.

GH: You hadn’t played with many of these players before, and there seemed to be language barriers, what were your biggest frustrations?
DJ: There was definitely language barriers, but I wouldn’t say there were any frustrations. It’s more just fun. It’s a great experience, a bunch of players from all over the world getting together. We all got along great, we all had fun, throughout the whole week. I wouldn’t say there were frustrations, just language barriers.

GH: How big are you?
DJ: 6’3, 175 pounds.

GH: The announcers compared you to Maryland’s Juan Dixon…if there was a pro or college player you’d compare your game to, who would it be?
DJ: Wow, I would take the Juan Dixon comparison any day. Juan Dixon is a great college player that ended up being a pro. I really like his game, I’ll take that comparison!

GH: What do you think your greatest strengths are?
DJ: Ability to shoot the ball, I feel I make good decisions on the court, and I feel I play hard and that I’m a winner and I hate to lose. I really never give up, I feel like if I do that, then everyone will come with the same mentality and it carries over.

GH: You are a very unselfish player, have your coaches ever encouraged you to be more selfish?
DJ: Not really. It’s just knowing your role, on some teams, they ask me to score more and I need to be more of a scorer and shoot the ball more. On some teams, there are a bunch of great scorers, so they can score, and fill that role. I don’t think I’m unselfish, I just think I’m playing good team basketball.


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