Gophers' Elijah Hawkins is 'all about winning'
Gophers men’s basketball coach Ben Johnson wasn’t sure what he was getting when Howard transfer point guard Elijah Hawkins committed to Minnesota.
Recruitments out of the transfer portal are a whirlwind. When coaches are recruiting players out of high school, they’ll have months or years to learn about the player. Portal recruitments are fast, typically lasting just a couple of weeks.
Johnson said that requires coaches to rely on a lot of outside information, such as the player’s previous coaches or others close to them. In the case of Hawkins, everyone Johnson asked about him echoed a similar message.
“Everybody kept telling me that dude’s a winner. I mean every single person from high school to junior high to AAU coaches to coaches at Howard, I mean, it was unanimous,” Johnson said.
It turns out the intel Johnson gathered was pretty good. Johnson is now experiencing Hawkins' winning mentality first hand as he's become a leader for the U. That in part comes by example. Hawkins always finds a way to get his teammates involved — he set the Gophers' single-season assists record in Saturday's 75-70 home victory over Penn State, surpassing Marcus Carr's previous program-best mark of 207 set during the 2019-20 season.
The record now stands at 211 assists, and Hawkins still has two regular-season games to add to the total. More on the front of Hawkins’ mind on Saturday than the feat, however, was the victory.
“It’s a credit to him that he’s been doing what we ask, you know, he wants to be coached. He wants to win at the end of the day, doesn’t care about numbers,” Johnson said. “I think the assists is cool, and he’ll appreciate that down the line, but I know that kid’s all about winning. That’s all he cares about.”
It's clear Hawkins winning mentality and skillset have been crucial for a Gophers team that's won more Big Ten games this season (9) than the previous two combined (6). Entering Wednesday's home game against Indiana, Hawkins is fifth on the team in scoring at 9.5 points per game, and his mark of 7.5 assists per game is a number good for second best in the entire nation.
That production is not just credit to Hawkins' winning mentality, but also his ability to develop throughout the season. Johnson didn't close games with Hawkins on the floor earlier in the year, leaving him on the bench for some of the most important minutes in tight early-season games.
That’s a stark contrast from now. In the Gophers’ last five games, Hawkins hasn’t played less than 37 minutes. He’s played a full 40 minutes thrice.
“I play him way too many minutes, he just never seems to get tired,” Johnson said.
Parker Fox, who was on the receiving end of Hawkins' record assist, which came during a 10-0 Gophers run Saturday that helped them erase a 23-point first-half deficit in the victory, said Hawkins is the type of player you like to play with.
"Whether it's an unselfish pass when he could take the shot or throwing a lob or creating something for somebody else, it's just the way he kind of approaches the game and plays," Fox said. "It's so fun to be a part of it."
There's no question that Hawkins, a junior, has been a driving force of the Gophers success this season. There's excitement within the program that something special could be building. Minnesota athletic director Mark Coyle recently said the Gophers will be a preseason top-25 team if they can retain their core next season, which frankly, really isn't much of a stretch.
Hawkins told reporters on Tuesday that he hasn't made a decision yet on next season, his focus being on the present. But after Saturday's win, Johnson hinted at what kind of a player Hawkins could be next season after a year in the program.
"I just think he's playing 'the right way' for us in how we play," Johnson said. "And I just thought he's done a great job just maturing as the year's gone on. He's gotten better with his finishes, he's getting a little bit better with his midrange and those two things he can work on in the spring and summer.
"He could be dynamite, dynamite next year."
Minnesota guard Elijah Hawkins (0) drives the ball past Illinois guard Terrence Shannon Jr. (0) during the second half at State Farm Center in Champaign, Ill., on Feb. 28, 2024.
Ron Johnson / USA TODAY Sports
