Adam Fisher talks about enjoying the ‘pressure’ of returning Temple to basketball prominence
In a summer sit-down, the Owls' new coach talked about living closer to home, Penn State's success, and the new college landscape of NIL and the transfer portal.
There’s a chance someone will tell Adam Fisher about this story before he sees it himself.
Since his return to the area as Temple’s new men’s basketball coach, the Bucks County native has had a host of people looking out for his well-being, many of whom tend to be family members who unlike Fisher (who had coaching stints in Miami and State College) remained close to home. Many of these same folks are eager to see if his brand of basketball is one that will lead Temple back to an era of postseason play — and March Madness appearances.
» READ MORE: Temple wants more fans at the Liacouras Center. Step 1: Winning more games.
Last week, Fisher saw two of his former Penn State players land with NBA franchises at the draft and another sign an NBA Summer League deal. He caught up with The Inquirer to talk about what success looks like to him, to the players he coaches, and for the program he’s set to lead.
How are you adjusting to life at Temple, and in Philly?
It’s been great. You know, I’m a Bucks County guy. I’m excited to be back to my roots, to be closer to family. You know, this is the sixth-winningest program [in NCAA history]. I always say [to our players and coaches] ‘We’re team No. 128.’ You know, we have a chance to really start something special here and change the narrative. It’s important for the guys to all buy in and for the team that comes in to buy in as well. We want to bring back a tradition of success and a tradition of winning, and that’s what I’m excited to do.
How has the name, image, and likeness landscape scoped your view of recruiting — and hopefully retaining players?
Well, it’s just a thing that we have to embrace. I’ll say as a coach, it doesn’t change what you’re looking for. You know, we still want to bring in great young men. We want to bring in great student-athletes that other teams and other players can look up to. You know, guys like [guards] Hysier Miller and Jahlil White, these are stand-up guys that, you know, we want as representatives for our team and have other guys see as players they want to play alongside when they consider Temple. Really, it’s about bringing in the players who want to come here, but also it comes down to winning. I think you build a winning culture and you’ll consistently have players that have an interest in the program and we’ll have an interest in finding the right players that are going to help you be the most successful. And that’s what I feel like I was brought here to do.
What are your goals for this team? And with those goals, does that bring along any pressure?
I’m here to win right away, there’s no grace period. And yeah, with that comes a certain amount of pressure, but all jobs come with pressure. I find that I’ve always thrived on pressure. Look, I’m here to win right away, and I’m asking my staff and these players to have some blind faith, you know?
We also want Temple fans to have some blind faith in us, too. We want to be a team that people in the community are proud of. We want fans to be there every night supporting us and supporting us and trying to get Temple back to the consistently winning program that it once was. I’m confident that with the team and the coaching staff that we have here that we can do that. You know, so I don’t mind the pressure. Pressure breeds success. And that’s what we’re trying to do here, is to build back a successful program.
» READ MORE: Camren Wynter joins Temple basketball as special assistant to head coach Adam Fisher
Talk about seeing three of your former Penn State players — two, who like you, have ties to the area — find their way on an NBA team last week.
Sure, it was amazing for guys to see guys like Jalen Pickett, Seth Lundy, and Andrew Funk find a place. I was so happy to see those guys receive success. It’s a testament to the work they’ve been doing, and the time and energy we as a Penn State staff put in to help these guys.
You know, I look at a guy like Jalen Pickett. He was a guy that I was calling four to five times a day in the [NCAA] transfer portal. Seth Lundy is a great guy and I’m happy for his opportunity. Andrew Funk has a skill set that I think will find him latching on to a pro team. Honestly, in my eyes, he’s a pro already. He’s got the focus, he’s got the drive. In fact, two days before the draft, he was here at Temple practicing with our coach [former Drexel and Penn State guard] Cam Wynter or Coach Cam, as we call him.
Andrew and Coach Cam are in the gym, training, going through the motions, and to see that, I mean I was like a proud dad. It was exciting to see these guys dedicated to getting each other better. I take great pride in being a PSU grad. Being able to go there and be a part of [former coach Micah] Shrewsberry’s staff and help that team make it to the NCAA Tournament and to go as far as we did, means a great deal to me. It’s the kind of success I’m looking to bring to Temple and the type of mentality that we’re looking for.
How do you look to build that continuity with the revolving door that the NCAA transfer portal creates? Essentially, it has created this free-agent market for college players. What are your thoughts?
Honestly, where some guys think that it can be frustrating, I actually think that it can help you. Look, I’m not here to complain about it. My mentality is let’s figure it out; let’s see how it can be a solution. I think it’s all in how you attack it and look at the positives. You know, there are a lot of great players that come through the transfer portal.
[Personally], if you think about it, it’s been a quicker recruitment process. You know, it used to be three years to recruit a top player. Now, with a thing like the transfer portal, you go from three years to about three weeks. That’s exciting. I think that there are ways that we can look at this as a positive for teams and for programs and really kind of embrace what it’s going to do and the level of player it can bring in.