http://www.newsday.com/sports/college/west-coast-star-polee-was-sold-on-st-john-s-lavin-1.2422106West Coast star Polee was sold on St. John's LavinEven living in Los Angeles, a short ride south on the 405 freeway from UCLA's Westwood campus, Dwayne Polee knew about the Big East Conference.
"I watched it on Mondays and Thursdays," he said Tuesday, referring to the league's primary nights on ESPN. "So I know a lot about it."
What Polee didn't know about was St. John's. He saw the Red Storm only a couple of times.
"They didn't really have structure," he said of last year's 17-16 team that finished 13th in a 16-team league.
After leading Westchester High to its second straight Division I title and being named California Player of the Year, the 6-7 Polee had narrowed his choice of schools to Oregon, UNLV and Georgia. And then, new St. John's coach Steve Lavin entered the picture.
Polee was only 11 years old when Lavin was fired as UCLA's coach, so he felt no real connection. But Lavin knew Westchester coach Ed Azzam, and former Comet Trevor Ariza had played for him at UCLA before starting his NBA career.
"I knew his background at UCLA because he recruited Trevor Ariza from my high school," Polee said of Lavin. "I talked to Ariza about Lavin, and he said [Lavin] was one of the best coaches he ever played under. He said I couldn't go wrong. He said he's a players' coach, and you can come to him about any situation off the floor . . . Me and my parents had confidence in coach Lavin."
So, with the one scholarship he had to offer when he took over a team with 10 returning seniors, Lavin hit a home run. At a school that was having problems recruiting in its own backyard, Lavin used his West Coast ties to convince California's top player to "Go Big East, young man."
For the Red Storm, it was like making a moon landing. People took notice. They had to view St. John's in a new light.
"New York? Playing in the Garden? It wasn't very hard to sell," Polee said.
Then why has it been so difficult for every coach on Utopia Parkway since Lou Carnesecca retired? It's been a very hard sell, but suddenly, the recruiting class Lavin is putting together for next season is starting to shape up as a top-five group, according to many rating services. Lavin is pulling in players from all over the country, and now, some of the top local stars are waking up to St. John's again.
"I feel like I set the trend for St. John's after I committed," Polee said gleefully.
When the Red Storm celebrated the official opening of practice a couple of weeks ago with a "Midnight Madness" program that was among those televised on ESPN, Polee said: "I met most of the incoming recruits. I got a chance to get in their ear and say, 'We're going to be good next year. So come in and work hard, and we're going to do the job.' "
Before Lavin starts over with a virtually new team next year, he can help his seniors try to reach the NCAA Tournament for the first time, and Polee should make an impact. Lavin said Polee would have been the prototypical player under his late mentor at UCLA, John Wooden.
Listing Polee's attributes, Lavin said: "He's long and lean; he runs the floor like a deer; he's light on his feet; he has great hands and footwork; he can create off the bounce; he's a nice passer who doesn't rush and makes good decisions, and he has the versatility to play four positions."
Not a bad starting point for a new era at St. John's.