Florida State University Athletics
Tuesday, February 6
Chestnut Hill, MA
7:00 p.m.
Florida State
at
Boston College
Primo Spears: For The Love Of The Game
2/5/2024 4:35:00 PM | Men's Basketball
CHESTNUT HILL, Mass. – At the 16:28 mark of the first half of Florida State's game against SMU on December 16, Seminole Head Coach Leonard Hamilton looked down his bench and motioned for guard Primo Spears to check into the game.
The junior guard was about to make his first appearance as a Seminole. Following a loud welcome from the Seminole faithful inside the Donald L. Tucker, he earned 26 minutes of playing time and scored 10 points, with two steals, one assist, and one rebound against the Mustangs.
For Spears, an excruciating period of uncertainty had come to an end.
"The opportunity to play for Coach Hamilton and the Seminoles was a relief and a big weight off of my shoulders," said Spears who will lead Florida State against Boston College on Tuesday at 7:00 p.m. at the Conte Forum. "Sitting out the first eight games of the season was hard."
Tuesday night's game against the Eagles will be televised on the ACC Network.
The Seminoles' game at Boston College will be a homecoming for Spears, who hails from Hartford, Conn. The front door of his childhood home is just a little over 90 minutes from the basketball court inside the Conte Forum on the Boston College campus. Spears has often been heard in the Seminoles' locker room this week bartering with his teammates for their tickets to Tuesday's game. He expects nearly 30 family members and friends to be seated behind Florida State's bench when the game against the Eagles tips off.
"My folks give me great energy at the games they are able to be at," said Spears who has bartered 28 tickets from his teammates for Tuesday's game. "I am eager to play in front of so many members of my family and friends because I feed off of their energy."
Spears transferred to Florida State from Georgetown last spring after playing at Duquesne as a freshman. He was the leading scorer for both the Hoyas and Dukes, with now being the Seminoles' second-leading scorer averaging 12.2 points per game in his 13 games.
After he pledged his commitment to Hamilton and the Seminoles on April 29, 2023, it took until December for Spears and more than 40 other transfer student-athletes across college basketball to be declared eligible to play for their new teams at their new schools.
It was Seminole assistant coach Kevin Nickelberry who gave the good news to Spears just days before Florida State faced SMU in December.
"After Coach Ham and I found out the great news that he would be eligible, he asked me to tell Primo," said Nickelberry. "I pulled him out of a film session and told him he had to begin watching film differently from now on. A big smile crossed his face because only then did he know that he would be able to play for the entire season."Spears utilized his time to watch and learn while becoming a better player.
"The biggest thing I learned while sitting out was that our system at Florida State helps you become a better player," said Spears. "Coach Hamilton's offensive and defensive game plans allow you to show all of your capabilities because we switch everything. Knowing how to switch helps you show your ability to guard all five positions. He also wants us to play at a fast pace so you have to learn how to get stops and guard in transition.
"Being in the point guard spot, there are a lot of IQ things that you have to be prepared for," said Spears. "Seeing guys like Jalen Warley, Jamir, and Chandler Jackson and the decisions they make, I've tried to bounce off their IQ. Gods blessed me to have that room to learn to make those decisions."
Spears has certainly been able to display his immense talents in the first 13 games of his Florida State career.
He has scored in double-figures in six consecutive games and is averaging 14.3 points per game since scoring 13 points in Florida State's victory at Notre Dame on January 13. Double-figure scoring has come in 12 of his 13 games as a Seminole with two double-figure scoring streaks of six games each.
In addition to ranking tied for second among his teammates in scoring, he is averaging 24.4 minutes played, while shooting .774 from the free-throw line. He is also ranked among the team leaders in both assists and steals.
As the only player in the ACC coming off of his teams' bench to average in double-figure scoring, Spears is putting his name in the conversation as the ACC's Sixth Man of the Year award. Beginning in 2019 when Mfiondu Kabengele won the Sixth Man of the Year award, it has been presented to four Seminoles in the last five seasons – Kabengele, Patrick Wiliams in 2020, Scottie Barnes in 2021, and Matthew Cleveland in 2022. Kabengele, Williams, and Barnes were all first-round NBA Draft picks.
Spears' role at Florida State is different from his role at Georgetown, and he has grown to understand the incredible benefits of the system he is now tasked with running as one of the Seminoles' point guards.
"At Georgetown, I was accustomed to playing the entire game," said Spears. "At Florida State, we can't take any plays off and have to use all of our energy because we succeed in utilizing the depth of our roster. We go hard for the entire time we are in the game, take a quick rest, and get back into the game. It's a system that allows us to use our talents because we are never saving our energy to make it through an entire game. I really enjoy playing in this system."
When asked what he had learned the most about what he calls a very emotional period in his life, his answer was simple.
"The game was taken away from me in a sense," said Spears. "The time I wasn't able to play reminded me of the love I have for this game."
The junior guard was about to make his first appearance as a Seminole. Following a loud welcome from the Seminole faithful inside the Donald L. Tucker, he earned 26 minutes of playing time and scored 10 points, with two steals, one assist, and one rebound against the Mustangs.
For Spears, an excruciating period of uncertainty had come to an end.
"The opportunity to play for Coach Hamilton and the Seminoles was a relief and a big weight off of my shoulders," said Spears who will lead Florida State against Boston College on Tuesday at 7:00 p.m. at the Conte Forum. "Sitting out the first eight games of the season was hard."
Tuesday night's game against the Eagles will be televised on the ACC Network.
The Seminoles' game at Boston College will be a homecoming for Spears, who hails from Hartford, Conn. The front door of his childhood home is just a little over 90 minutes from the basketball court inside the Conte Forum on the Boston College campus. Spears has often been heard in the Seminoles' locker room this week bartering with his teammates for their tickets to Tuesday's game. He expects nearly 30 family members and friends to be seated behind Florida State's bench when the game against the Eagles tips off.
"My folks give me great energy at the games they are able to be at," said Spears who has bartered 28 tickets from his teammates for Tuesday's game. "I am eager to play in front of so many members of my family and friends because I feed off of their energy."
Spears transferred to Florida State from Georgetown last spring after playing at Duquesne as a freshman. He was the leading scorer for both the Hoyas and Dukes, with now being the Seminoles' second-leading scorer averaging 12.2 points per game in his 13 games.
After he pledged his commitment to Hamilton and the Seminoles on April 29, 2023, it took until December for Spears and more than 40 other transfer student-athletes across college basketball to be declared eligible to play for their new teams at their new schools.
It was Seminole assistant coach Kevin Nickelberry who gave the good news to Spears just days before Florida State faced SMU in December.
"After Coach Ham and I found out the great news that he would be eligible, he asked me to tell Primo," said Nickelberry. "I pulled him out of a film session and told him he had to begin watching film differently from now on. A big smile crossed his face because only then did he know that he would be able to play for the entire season."Spears utilized his time to watch and learn while becoming a better player.
"The biggest thing I learned while sitting out was that our system at Florida State helps you become a better player," said Spears. "Coach Hamilton's offensive and defensive game plans allow you to show all of your capabilities because we switch everything. Knowing how to switch helps you show your ability to guard all five positions. He also wants us to play at a fast pace so you have to learn how to get stops and guard in transition.
"Being in the point guard spot, there are a lot of IQ things that you have to be prepared for," said Spears. "Seeing guys like Jalen Warley, Jamir, and Chandler Jackson and the decisions they make, I've tried to bounce off their IQ. Gods blessed me to have that room to learn to make those decisions."
Spears has certainly been able to display his immense talents in the first 13 games of his Florida State career.
He has scored in double-figures in six consecutive games and is averaging 14.3 points per game since scoring 13 points in Florida State's victory at Notre Dame on January 13. Double-figure scoring has come in 12 of his 13 games as a Seminole with two double-figure scoring streaks of six games each.
In addition to ranking tied for second among his teammates in scoring, he is averaging 24.4 minutes played, while shooting .774 from the free-throw line. He is also ranked among the team leaders in both assists and steals.
As the only player in the ACC coming off of his teams' bench to average in double-figure scoring, Spears is putting his name in the conversation as the ACC's Sixth Man of the Year award. Beginning in 2019 when Mfiondu Kabengele won the Sixth Man of the Year award, it has been presented to four Seminoles in the last five seasons – Kabengele, Patrick Wiliams in 2020, Scottie Barnes in 2021, and Matthew Cleveland in 2022. Kabengele, Williams, and Barnes were all first-round NBA Draft picks.
Spears' role at Florida State is different from his role at Georgetown, and he has grown to understand the incredible benefits of the system he is now tasked with running as one of the Seminoles' point guards.
"At Georgetown, I was accustomed to playing the entire game," said Spears. "At Florida State, we can't take any plays off and have to use all of our energy because we succeed in utilizing the depth of our roster. We go hard for the entire time we are in the game, take a quick rest, and get back into the game. It's a system that allows us to use our talents because we are never saving our energy to make it through an entire game. I really enjoy playing in this system."
When asked what he had learned the most about what he calls a very emotional period in his life, his answer was simple.
"The game was taken away from me in a sense," said Spears. "The time I wasn't able to play reminded me of the love I have for this game."
Players Mentioned
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/ Men's Basketball
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