Josh Christopher exudes positive vibes. The infectious enthusiasm carried by the highest rated recruit in Arizona State history parallels with the optimistic expectations surrounding the No. 18 team in the country heading into this season.
There’s justification for sky-high expectations in Tempe this year. Christopher’s commitment – the 6-foot-5 guard was the 12th ranked recruit in the 2020 class according to Rivals – in April, coupled with the return of senior guard Remy Martin sets the Sun Devils up to be one of the leading contenders in the Pac-12 and a threat on the national level.
Bobby Hurley has an understanding of what he believes the 2020-21 version of his program can do. A large factor in those beliefs is Christopher. Just as he has during the first five years of his tenure as head coach at Arizona State, the Sun Devils’ will be challenged early, with an opening night game against No. 2 Baylor. A win against Scott Drew’s Bears would set up a potential matchup with Jay Wright and No. 3 Villanova.
“This is why I came here,” Christopher told reporters Monday during his first meeting with the media. If the Sun Devils were to beat the Big 12’s preseason favorite and take on No. 3 Villanova, it would be the eighth time a Hurley-led ASU team took on a top-10 team in non-conference play. “A lot of times, schools get early preseason games, and they might play a mid-major or a low major to get started. No, let’s go ahead and see what we’re made of off the rip.”
Christopher’s embrace of these high expectations and challenging matchups makes sense. With over a million views on his commitment announcement video and 765,000 followers on Instagram, he’s shown himself not to be afraid of the spotlight. So it’s no coincidence that he’ll be a focal point on an Arizona State team that is ranked in the Associated Press’ preseason poll for the first time since James Harden was gracing the court in Tempe.
Christopher – who surpassed Harden as the highest-rated recruit in ASU history – contacted the Sun Devil legend and current NBA superstar, asking for approval to wear No. 13 in maroon and gold.
That request, and the symbolism of the wish being granted, is further indication of what Christopher expects to accomplish during what many assume will be his lone season in Tempe.
“If I was worried about pressure; I wouldn’t have asked to wear number 13,” said Christopher, who was named a 2020 McDonald’s All-American prior to his arrival at ASU. “This is why I’m here. This is exactly why I came here. All the pressure stuff, that stuff is all fun to me.
“Pressure’s been a part of me all my life, but pressure makes diamonds. You’ve just gotta play basketball.”
With Harden’s No. 13 jersey hanging in the rafters of Desert Financial Arena, the jersey number signifies a connection to greatness at Arizona State for many of the ASU faithful. But for Christopher, it represents something greater for him and his brother, sophomore guard Caleb Christopher.
“13 is who I am. I’m 13, and my brother is three,” Christopher explained. “That’s a bible verse. Psalms 133 is ‘how beautiful and how pleasant it is for brothers to dwell in unity.’ My brother wears three here, and I think it was important for me to wear 13 so that me and my brother can match a bit like we used to. I asked [Harden], and I got the go.
“That was the most important thing for me when it came down to making my decision. Was it to go to college, or was it to go get paid? Forget basketball. My brother’s in Arizona going to college, and I have the opportunity to live with my brother, make more memories with my brother that we can tell our kids about.”
Arizona State’s schedule always provides it with plenty of opportunities to make a name for itself. But for as much as Christopher expects he and his teammates to challenge opposing team, he said he’s expecting to have the best brought out of him by Hurley.
“At high school, the ball was kind of rolled out to me,” said Christopher, who led Mayfair High School to an 82-38 record during his four seasons. “This year, I was looking for maybe a little more of a challenge. I told coach Hurley the day I committed just to push me as hard as you can.
“He’s been on the court with legends. He’s one of those guys, so if I can pick his brain as much as possible, that’s why I came here.”
Accolades and previous production aren’t hard to find when reading through the Sun Devil roster. Adding Christopher to a backcourt which returns a preseason AP All-American and the 2020 Pac-12 Sixth Man of the Year presents its own challenge for Hurley and the Sun Devils, but it’s one that Christopher – a 39.4 point per game scorer his senior year of high school – isn’t worried about at all.
“On this team it could be anybody’s night,” said Christopher, whose signing in April gave the Sun Devils a second five-star prospect to pair with freshman forward Marcus Bagley. “Get the ball to the hot hand. As long as guys make the right plays and knock down shots, it’s going to be a pretty unstoppable team.
“That basketball will make its way from one corner to the other back to the other. I promise you. Of course, there are guys that can get their own bucket, and we understand that, so when a guy goes and gets his own bucket, it’s OK… If I’m not scoring the basketball, I can dish it off to someone else. It’s going to help all of us show what we can do and show that we can do a variety of things.”
Worry doesn’t appear to be in Josh Christopher’s range of emotions. Speculation about how many shots will be available for him isn’t something he partakes in. Basketball is simple to him.
“I will say, Devin Booker, averaged eight points while he was at Kentucky,” Christopher said calmly. “So, the ball is going to make its way around. It’s a long season regardless of how many games we play. It’s just basketball. Basketball is art. You make it work.
“Whatever you have, you take that, and you make it work. There’s a lot of talent on our team, and all guys gotta do is make the right play. Hit the open man. If you’re cooking, keep cooking. If you’re not, hit the next man.”
Last week, during the Pac-12’s conference media webinar, Hurley and Martin discussed the blend of styles that Arizona State would play this year. Over the last three seasons, Arizona State has led the Pac-12 in scoring per game. With an excess of guard talent, that mark could extend to a fourth straight year with the offensive firepower possessed by the Sun Devils. Hurley said the Sun Devils have “built a track record of producing a style of play that’s exciting,” a claim Christopher placed extra emphasis on making sure people understand.
“I would tell any guard to come play for Bobby Hurley,” Christopher said with a smile. “Of course, guys are going to make their own decisions, but it’s ‘Guard U’ for a reason.”
Last year, ASU’s half-court defense turned opponents over on nearly 20 percent of its’ defensive possessions. The depth provided by young impactful players like Christopher and sophomore guard Jaelen House, coupled with experienced veterans like Martin, Holland Woods, and Alonzo Verge give ASU a plethora of options at the guard position which Christopher believes can wear on teams and create the same results.
“I think as far as defense goes, whatever player on the opposing team we need to go after, we can be interchanging guys on him the whole game,” said Christopher. “One play Remy gets on him, and then Jaelen [House] gets on him. Caleb gets on him. [Alonzo Verge] guards him, I can get on him. Being interchangeable, we can really tire teams out the whole game just because of how deep we are.”
Christopher sees where pollsters are setting the bar for Arizona State this year. Set higher than usual for a team in Tempe, he’s raising it.
“They had us at 18 in the AP polls,” recalled Christopher, a week after being given All-Pac-12 Preseason Second Team honors. “I think we can be way better than that. But it’s all a matter of getting on the court and seeing what you’re made of.”
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