N.C. State's Grant Not Afraid to Show Emotions

N.C. State senior Gavin Grant never fears showing his emotions or stepping up with the game on the line

Whether he's hitting clutch free throws to close out wins or throwing down a highlight reel dunk, the senior from the Bronx always say hello to his friends and family back home with that familiar X symbol.

"The Bronx,” Grant said. “That's what it means. The Bronx."

And by no means can Grant avoid playing with his emotions on the surface – positive or negative.

"Definitely, you’ve got to show emotion,” Grant said. “I go out there having fun, and basketball is an emotional game. Anybody who tells you otherwise probably never played it or never watched it."

The outspoken Grant rarely holds back on the court or in interview settings. Before the season, he said he didn’t see State losing more than four games this year. It's only December, and the Pack has already lost three times.

"I don't regret saying it. We haven't lost four games yet,” he said. “And even if we did you four games, I still wouldn't regret saying it because I never said that we weren't going to lose less than four games. I said we have the talent and ability to go through the season and maybe lose four games or less."

Two seasons ago, Grant thought his talent and ability were under-utilized. Frustrated by the rigidity of Herb Sendek's Princeton offense and wondering if he would remain in the country during immigration hearings, Grant considered transferring away from State. Then Larry Harris, the assistant who recruited Grant, talked him out of it.

"I thought I should have been scoring more and playing more. I was a sophomore, and actually I was doing just fine for a sophomore, but I wanted to do that much better," he said.

Now content with the decision, his basketball future remains a mystery.

Asked where he’ll be a year from now, he said, “Hopefully, I'll be playing in the pros, but anything can happen. I may be overseas. I might not play basketball at all. I don't know what I might be doing.”