University of Minnesota Athletics
A True Team: Junior Guard Brent Lawson
12/10/2003 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
"I think our team is taking the steps in the right direction in terms of getting along and being a team," stated junior guard Brent Lawson.
Lawson is one of many on the Golden Gopher basketball team that is learning the importance of teamwork. Lawson was born in St. Paul, but moved to Maple Grove, Minnesota as a child and has lived there ever since. As a boy, Lawson used his athletic abilities by playing baseball, basketball and football. Playing sports was always fun for Lawson as a child. He enjoyed playing on team with others that loved to compete just as he does. Throughout high school, he concentrated on basketball, and he knew he wanted to play basketball at the next level.
"When I was younger I knew I wanted to play when I was older," explained Lawson. "Being a part of a travel team and watching college games on television made me realize that I wanted to be apart of a college program."
As Lawson got older, he discovered that basketball was more serious than it was as a little boy. But that did not stop him from wanting to play. He attended St. Francis his freshman year of college, a small school right outside of Pittsburgh. He played in 26 games and started in 21 of them. He was sixth on the team in scoring as a freshman. Lawson thought St. Francis was the perfect fit for him but did not realize how hard it is to be so far from home.
"I decided to go to school there because I was really impressed on my visit," Lawson said. "I liked the players and the coach, and I thought I would like a smaller school. But I did not like it as much as I thought I would."
Lawson came back to Minnesota for his sophomore year of college. He wanted to be closer to home and try to play for a big time program. Every kid growing up in Minnesota dreams of being a Golden Gopher basketball player and playing in Williams Arena day in and day out. Lawson is one of 12 Minnesotans on the Gophers that is living out their childhood dream as a Gopher basketball player.
"Coming back to Minnesota was best for me," Lawson expressed. "I just like to compete. The toughness of the game makes me a stronger person. I enjoy going out there day in and day out and trying to win."
Although Lawson was only at St. Francis for a year he believes he learned some valuable lessons and had an overall good experience. His coach at St. Francis was pretty hard on them. So Lawson learned about toughness and teamwork. He learned how to do things that you don't want to do even though you know you have to.
Lawson's transition from St. Francis to Minnesota was not as hard as one may think. Before coming to the University of Minnesota, Lawson knew a lot of the guys on the team. Most of them grew up playing in summer leagues together and on travel teams. He was never really close friends with them as kids, but they were familiar faces.
"Having played with these people before made it easier to get to know them all better," explained Lawson.
Getting to know one another was not a tough task. As a team, these guys have bonded through basketball, however their friendships have developed off the court as well. Lawson spends almost all of his time with his teammates and he has made some quality friendships in the process. His roommates are Aaron Robinson, Matt Smriga, and Michael Bauer. However, most of the other guys live in the same hall, so they all are in walking distance of each others apartments.
"Since we all live together and play basketball together, we have obviously formed bonds with one another as teammates and as friends," Lawson explained. "We basically all hangout all the time. We have become a closer knit team than past groups." Lawson considers his best friends to be Ben Johnson, Matt Smriga and Jeff Hagen. It is a rarity that these guys are apart. If you see one of them, you most likely will see one following. "Johnson, Smrigs (Smriga), and Hags (Hagen) are my boys," said Lawson. "It nice to have your boys on your team with you."
Matt Smriga is Lawson's teammate and roommate. He considers Brent a very good friend and a good guy. "I would classify Brent as respectful and a great roommate and teammate," explained Smriga. "Brent and I get along really well. I don't have a car so he hooks me up with rides whenever I need them and that is nice of him. We are good friends and we knew each other before being teammates. We played on the same summer team in high school. Brent and I have a lot of fun and we have a similar sense of humor. We can joke about everything, and we spend a lot of time laughing. So that is always a good thing."
But at the same time Lawson says they know how to keep their friendship and basketball separate. They know how to put everything behind them when they get on the court and concentrate on playing basketball.
"When we step on the floor it is different," said Smriga. "At that point we are a basketball team, not a group of friends. But Brent is always supportive of me and that means a lot to me. He tells me when he gives me the ball in the low post he wants me to score. So his encouragement helps me out and I appreciate that."
Lawson believes that having these guys as his teammates, roommates and as friends really helps the team be a true team. It allows them to trust each other. They have faith in each other and that is what will help the team succeed.
"Sometimes you get sick of each other, especially Johnson," Lawson laughed. "But we don't let stuff like that bother us. But it is good at the same time because it forces you to get close to people and it forces us to get to know one another as friends and teammates."
The chemistry of a basketball team is important in order to win. The closeness of the team and the willingness to learn and work together is what is going to lead this team in the right direction. Brent is one of those guys that are willing to do anything for the team. He is there to be a good defender, set screens, make open shots or do whatever his team needs in order to be successful.
"I feel like I am a good team guy," said Lawson. "I have a sense that everyone has their own job to do. Any given game I can come in, whether it is a small role or a large role, and give it my all. I am that guy that does all the odd jobs. I do whatever is needed to win and I bring a lot of intensity in the process."
Lawson is a mechanical engineering major. He has spent a lot of late nights trying to balance his responsibilities as a student-athlete. He hopes to graduate at the end of next year but he is not sure how he wants to use his degree. However, he says that being a student and basketball player here at the University of Minnesota is what is going to lead him in the right direction to live happy life in the future.
Lawson hopes to keep basketball in his life after he leaves the Golden Gopher program. He says he will always be a fan and spectator. In addition, he would like to coach his kids some day and teach them the importance of teamwork and being a team guy just as he has learned here at the University of Minnesota.
"What I have learned and am still learning here will stay with me forever," Lawson expressed. "I see my teammates and me being close for a long time. They are my boys and when you spend a couple of years with these guys everyday, it is hard to just loose touch with them".
Written bu Media Relations Student Assistant Jessica Fleischmann. She welcomes comments at gophers@umn.edu. Being a part of a team is more than just using your athletic abilities and playing basketball. It is more than practicing everyday and winning every game. Being on a team requires one to listen, learn and understand each person that is a part of the program. In order for a team to have success, there needs to be a common bond amongst each person on the team. The Golden Gopher basketball team is making sure every person knows what it takes to be team player.
"I think our team is taking the steps in the right direction in terms of getting along and being a team," stated junior guard Brent Lawson.
Lawson is one of many on the Golden Gopher basketball team that is learning the importance of teamwork. Lawson was born in St. Paul, but moved to Maple Grove, Minnesota as a child and has lived there ever since. As a boy, Lawson used his athletic abilities by playing baseball, basketball and football. Playing sports was always fun for Lawson as a child. He enjoyed playing on team with others that loved to compete just as he does. Throughout high school, he concentrated on basketball, and he knew he wanted to play basketball at the next level.
"When I was younger I knew I wanted to play when I was older," explained Lawson. "Being a part of a travel team and watching college games on television made me realize that I wanted to be apart of a college program."
As Lawson got older, he discovered that basketball was more serious than it was as a little boy. But that did not stop him from wanting to play. He attended St. Francis his freshman year of college, a small school right outside of Pittsburgh. He played in 26 games and started in 21 of them. He was sixth on the team in scoring as a freshman. Lawson thought St. Francis was the perfect fit for him but did not realize how hard it is to be so far from home.
"I decided to go to school there because I was really impressed on my visit," Lawson said. "I liked the players and the coach, and I thought I would like a smaller school. But I did not like it as much as I thought I would."
Lawson came back to Minnesota for his sophomore year of college. He wanted to be closer to home and try to play for a big time program. Every kid growing up in Minnesota dreams of being a Golden Gopher basketball player and playing in Williams Arena day in and day out. Lawson is one of 12 Minnesotans on the Gophers that is living out their childhood dream as a Gopher basketball player.
"Coming back to Minnesota was best for me," Lawson expressed. "I just like to compete. The toughness of the game makes me a stronger person. I enjoy going out there day in and day out and trying to win."
Although Lawson was only at St. Francis for a year he believes he learned some valuable lessons and had an overall good experience. His coach at St. Francis was pretty hard on them. So Lawson learned about toughness and teamwork. He learned how to do things that you don't want to do even though you know you have to.
Lawson's transition from St. Francis to Minnesota was not as hard as one may think. Before coming to the University of Minnesota, Lawson knew a lot of the guys on the team. Most of them grew up playing in summer leagues together and on travel teams. He was never really close friends with them as kids, but they were familiar faces.
"Having played with these people before made it easier to get to know them all better," explained Lawson.
Getting to know one another was not a tough task. As a team, these guys have bonded through basketball, however their friendships have developed off the court as well. Lawson spends almost all of his time with his teammates and he has made some quality friendships in the process. His roommates are Aaron Robinson, Matt Smriga, and Michael Bauer. However, most of the other guys live in the same hall, so they all are in walking distance of each others apartments.
"Since we all live together and play basketball together, we have obviously formed bonds with one another as teammates and as friends," Lawson explained. "We basically all hangout all the time. We have become a closer knit team than past groups." Lawson considers his best friends to be Ben Johnson, Matt Smriga and Jeff Hagen. It is a rarity that these guys are apart. If you see one of them, you most likely will see one following. "Johnson, Smrigs (Smriga), and Hags (Hagen) are my boys," said Lawson. "It nice to have your boys on your team with you."
Matt Smriga is Lawson's teammate and roommate. He considers Brent a very good friend and a good guy. "I would classify Brent as respectful and a great roommate and teammate," explained Smriga. "Brent and I get along really well. I don't have a car so he hooks me up with rides whenever I need them and that is nice of him. We are good friends and we knew each other before being teammates. We played on the same summer team in high school. Brent and I have a lot of fun and we have a similar sense of humor. We can joke about everything, and we spend a lot of time laughing. So that is always a good thing."
But at the same time Lawson says they know how to keep their friendship and basketball separate. They know how to put everything behind them when they get on the court and concentrate on playing basketball.
"When we step on the floor it is different," said Smriga. "At that point we are a basketball team, not a group of friends. But Brent is always supportive of me and that means a lot to me. He tells me when he gives me the ball in the low post he wants me to score. So his encouragement helps me out and I appreciate that."
Lawson believes that having these guys as his teammates, roommates and as friends really helps the team be a true team. It allows them to trust each other. They have faith in each other and that is what will help the team succeed.
"Sometimes you get sick of each other, especially Johnson," Lawson laughed. "But we don't let stuff like that bother us. But it is good at the same time because it forces you to get close to people and it forces us to get to know one another as friends and teammates."
The chemistry of a basketball team is important in order to win. The closeness of the team and the willingness to learn and work together is what is going to lead this team in the right direction. Brent is one of those guys that are willing to do anything for the team. He is there to be a good defender, set screens, make open shots or do whatever his team needs in order to be successful.
"I feel like I am a good team guy," said Lawson. "I have a sense that everyone has their own job to do. Any given game I can come in, whether it is a small role or a large role, and give it my all. I am that guy that does all the odd jobs. I do whatever is needed to win and I bring a lot of intensity in the process."
Lawson is a mechanical engineering major. He has spent a lot of late nights trying to balance his responsibilities as a student-athlete. He hopes to graduate at the end of next year but he is not sure how he wants to use his degree. However, he says that being a student and basketball player here at the University of Minnesota is what is going to lead him in the right direction to live happy life in the future.
Lawson hopes to keep basketball in his life after he leaves the Golden Gopher program. He says he will always be a fan and spectator. In addition, he would like to coach his kids some day and teach them the importance of teamwork and being a team guy just as he has learned here at the University of Minnesota.
"What I have learned and am still learning here will stay with me forever," Lawson expressed. "I see my teammates and me being close for a long time. They are my boys and when you spend a couple of years with these guys everyday, it is hard to just loose touch with them".
Written bu Media Relations Student Assistant Jessica Fleischmann. She welcomes comments at gophers@umn.edu.
