Troy Men’s Basketball Signs Two Players
TROY, Alabama – The Troy men‘s basketball team and head coach Phil Cunningham announced two additions to their roster on Tuesday. The Trojans will add Shawn Hopkins and Alex Hicks to the squad for the 2015-16 season, joining three other newcomers. “Recruiting can sometimes be compared to riding a roller coaster, and the addition of Shawn and Alex at this late date is a great example because we just picked up two talented student-athletes,” Cunningham said. “Shawn gives us an athletic wing with a versatile skill set, and his extended experience with the Finnish National Team has definitely prepared him for this opportunity. Alex gives us another in-state prospect, which is an emphasis for us in recruiting. He has to sit out this year, but he has the potential to be an all league player as soon as he becomes eligible. Our coaches deserve a lot of credit for their efforts in adding Shawn and Alex to our team. Coach (Chase) Richardson turned over a lot of stones to find Shawn, and then Coach (Marcus) Grant’s background as a professional player in Finland gave us the added ‘in‘ we needed. Also, Coach (Ben) Fletcher established a relationship with Alex last fall that turned out to be valuable when he became available at the end of the summer.” Hopkins, a 6-foot-5 swingman, a native of Nokia, Finland, graduated from Nokia High School in 2014 and comes to Troy as a freshman. Hopkins has played with the BC Nokia Club since he was nine years old. This July, his team won the FIBA U20 European Championship, the first gold medal in Finnish National Team history. In the finals against Sweden, Hopkins played 27 minutes and scored 12 points in the 80-76 victory. In the tournament, he averaged 7.9 points per game, while reeling in 2.9 boards per contest. He shot 51.2 percent (22-of-43) from the floor, and ranked 16th in 3-point percentage, shooting 38.1 percent (8-of-21). His father, Garcia Hopkins, was drafted in the 1979 NBA draft and played professionally in Finland against current Troy associate head coach Marcus Grant. Hicks, a 6-foot-8, 205-pound forward, is transferring from Walters State Community College in Tennessee. A native of Seale, Ala., he graduated from Glenwood Academy in Phenix City, Ala., in 2014. During his lone season with the Walters State, the three-star power forward by 247Sports.com averaged 15.1 points and 7.6 rebounds per game. He shot 47.2 percent from the floor. He enters Troy with three years of eligibility and will redshirt the 2015-16 season. Hopkins and Hicks join newcomers Daniel Peace, Jordon Varnado and B.J. Miller. The Trojans return two starters, including Sun Belt Conference Freshman of the Year Wesley Person and John Walton III. The Trojans return four letterwinners and three redshirts. The Trojans kick off their season with a home exhibition against AUM on November 5, before traveling to South Florida for their regular season opener on November 13. Troy 2015 Signing Class Daniel Peace – G – 6‘1″ – 182 – Jr – Decatur, Ga. (South Georgia State) B.J. Miller – G – 6‘0″ – 180 – Fr. – Meridian, Miss. (Meridian HS) Jordon Varnado – F – 6‘6″ – 215 – Fr. – Brownsville, Tenn. (Haywood HS) Shawn Hopkins – G/F – 6‘5″ – 185 – Fr. – Nokia, Finland (Nokia HS) Alex Hicks – F – 6‘8″ – 205 – So. – Seale, Ala. (Walters State CC) (Courtesy: Troy University Athletics)
