Why Quadir Copeland Could Be the Spark NC State Needs
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RALEIGH — Shortly before NC State was set to begin officially practicing in the weeks before the 2025-26 season, head coach Will Wade was asked about McNeese transfer Quadir Copeland and his progress. After spending a season together in Lake Charles, Louisiana, Wade knows Copeland better than anyone on the team other than fellow McNeese transfer Alyn Breed.
"This time last year, he was hardly even in the rotation at McNeese. And now he's firmly in our rotation and going to play a major, major role and have a lot of responsibility for our team and our program," Wade said Monday.
The oversized guard showed tremendous grit during Wade and McNeese's run to the NCAA Tournament in 2025. Copeland couldn't pass up another opportunity to play for Wade, and that meant coming to the City of Oaks to run with the Wolfpack. Luckily for the guard, it's not his first time facing ACC competition.
ACC Roots
Before joining Wade's project at McNeese, Copeland spent two seasons with the Syracuse Orange. He played in 52 games with the team from Central New York, earning valuable ACC experience... and a reputation across the conference as a defensive pest. Even Wade knew Copeland would have to win over the Wolfpack fans after his antics with the Orange.
"He's one of those guys our fans are going to love. I know they didn't love him when he was at Syracuse, but you love him when he's with you. You love him when he's with you, and he's with us, and he's excited about being here," Wade said.
He took great strides in his sophomore year in the orange jerseys. He bumped his scoring average from 2.1 to 9.6 points per game and averaged 1.5 steals and 4.6 rebounds, also major improvements from his freshman totals. Copeland still yearned for a larger role and ended up moving on and finding his perfect match in the portal.
Bonding with Wade
Throughout his career, Wade has been known as a high-energy coach, demanding constant effort on both ends from his players. His chaotic system at McNeese, which emphasized high-pressure defense and transition offense, was a perfect fit for Copeland as a player. Even so, it took some time for the duo to become as tight as they are now.
"We had ups and downs at the beginning, but I feel like that's every relationship. Now, I feel like our relationship is like this (crossed his fingers) and we're locked," Copeland said. "It's been amazing being able to trust his process and see his vision and him also being able to see my vision on things. It's been a great connection so far."
Wade placed more and more trust on Copeland over the course of the season at McNeese and he became one of the nation's most underrated playmakers. In just under 22 minutes per game, Copeland averaged 4.5 assists per game, another huge statistical leap from his time with Syracuse.
Playing With an Edge
Part of the powerful relationship between Wade and Copeland stems from the fact that both have fire when they step onto the court. The coach had already proclaimed that the ACC needed to watch out for NC State before the team even played a game. However, Copeland's fire requires extinguishing at times, something Wade knows well.
"You'd rather tell somebody 'Whoa' than 'Go.' I'd rather back somebody up than get them going. Certainly, there's a fine line. I look at it like it's a volcano. It builds up, but you just can't have it overflow, can't have it explode," Wade said. "We want to encourage him to be himself and we don't want to take away from him being himself."
Quadir Copeland is officially heading to NC State with Will Wade, the McNeese coaching staff and Alyn Breed, here are some highlights from his one season with the Cowboys: https://t.co/rUhb9oFeWf pic.twitter.com/ZX4GwjHtyO
— Matthew Travis (@MatthewJTravis_) April 4, 2025
Copeland is aware of the reputation he's earned across the ACC and college basketball. That's where he leans on his teammates to rein him in when he needs to be more controlled.
"I feel like I definitely lose my focus. My team helps me stay together, but everybody lets me be myself," Copeland said. "They know that's me. They know I'm creative, I'm hyper, I try to be a little goofy at times and bring everybody up. But, they let me be myself and coach allows me to be myself and it all works out because I know when to lock and when to flip a switch."
As for settling any old ACC scores, Copeland said he's ready to face his old Syracuse team during the season. If the veteran guard brings his trademark edge and playmaking, NC State could be in a great position to not only beat his old team but also many other ACC teams as well.
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Tucker Sennett graduated summa cum laude with a B.A. in Sports Journalism from the esteemed Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Arizona State University. A former basketball player, he has gained valuable experience working at Cronkite News and brings a deep passion for sports and reporting to his role as the NC State Wolfpack Beat Writer On SI.
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