
Redshirt sophomore guard Kam O’Connor started playing basketball around the age of 4.
The Lebanon, Ohio, native averaged 14.4 points, 4.3 assists and 4.1 rebounds as a senior in high school.
Coming out of high school, O’Connor played two season at the University of North Carolina Pembroke before transferring to Eastern.
O’Connor chose North Carolina Pembroke because he wanted to be further away from home. After his time there, however, he realized he missed being close by.
In this Q&A, O’Connor talks about why he chose to stick with basketball in a baseball centric family, who his favorite musical artist is and who the funniest person on the team is.
Q: When did you first start playing basketball?
A: “I want to say when I was around 4 years old at the YMCA.”
Q: Is there anyone that inspired you to play basketball?
A: “I would say my dad probably. He would take me to the gym when I was younger, and he would play in a gym league, and I would sit there are watch him play.”
Q: Pancakes or waffles?
A: “Pancakes for sure.”
Q: Do you put anything on your pancakes?
A: “Chocolate chips.”
Q: Who is the greatest basketball player of all time?
A: “LeBron James.”
Q: Why do you think LeBron James is the G.O.A.T.?
A: “He’s the king. He’s my king. He’s a lot of people’s king. Especially being from Ohio, growing up watching LeBron, he was still playing when I wasn’t even born. I grew up watching him rocking LeBron jerseys.”
Q: If you had the power to bring any celebrity on campus, who would it be?
A: “Can I say LeBron? Other than him, probably Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.”
Q: Do you have a favorite NBA team?
A: “I don’t have a favorite team. I just watch wherever LeBron goes. Realistically, I do. I started watching the Cavs, then the Heat, then back to the Cavs, now the Lakers.”
Q: Who on the team are you giving the aux to?
A: “My preference, I’d have to pick Carson [Prost].”
Q: Who’s your favorite musical artist?
A: “Zach Bryan.”
Q: Why did you choose to go to North Carolina-Pembroke?
A: “Honestly, I wanted to get far away from home, I don’t really know why. I wanted to go to the warm weather. I thought it was nice, out of high school, being nine hours away and close to the beach. I ended up wanting to be closer to home.”
Q: Why did you transfer to Eastern?
A: “[North Carolina Pembroke] wasn’t the best area. A lot of off campus stuff forced me out.”
Q: Was basketball your only sport?
A: “No, I played baseball and football growing up too. I played quarterback in football, and I played shortstop and pitched in baseball. I stopped in seventh grade.”
Q: What made you stick with basketball?
A: “Baseball was too slow for me. I enjoy watching it, my dad played in the MLB, my brother played college, my younger brother plays college right now, but I wanted to be different.”
Q: How do you like your steak cooked?
A: “Medium. Got to have some pink in there but not too much.”
Q: Do you think the Earth is round or flat?
A: “Round. Some people have the argument it’s flat, but I’m sticking with round. I don’t think there’s enough evidence.”
Q: There’s a one-point difference. Would you rather have the game-winning shot or the game-winning block?
A: “Shot. I can’t block anything. I probably could, but that’s not my game. If they have me blocking the shot to win the game, something went wrong.”
Q: Do you have any secret talents?
A: “I don’t think so. I get this question a lot, but I don’t think I do.”
Q: When in your life did COVID-19 hit you?
A: “Sophomore year of high school.”
Q: How did COVID-19 affect you?
A: “I spent more time outside. I got into lifting weights with my brother because he came home from college. That’s when I put on 35 pounds of muscle, so it helped me a ton going into my junior year. Then, I did online school my junior year because I wasn’t trying to get quarantined for basketball, so that was different.”
Q: What has been your favorite place you’ve ever been?
A: “I haven’t been anywhere crazy cool. Probably St. Augustine, Florida. My brother just moved down there, and it’s a really nice area.”
Q: What is your favorite memory with the team thus far?
A: “I’d say that Northwestern game. The energy was there, we almost beat them and took the to overtime. It was a fun trip too.”
Q: Who is the funniest person on the team?
A: “I would say NaKyel [Shelton]. He’s pretty funny.”
Q: If you had a walkout song, what would it be?
A: “There’s one song that Morgan Wallen sings called ‘Sunrise,’ and it says something about going back to Cinci[nnati].”
Q: What is your favorite season?
A: “I would say spring. I don’t know how the spring is up here, but I feel like the winter is colder here.”
Q: Knowing everything that you know now, what would you tell 10-year-old you?
A: “Probably would’ve told him to at least play two sports in high school. I feel like playing multiple sports could be fun, but then again, I love basketball and I didn’t really have that love for any other sport.”
Zaria Flippin can be reached at 581-2812 or at zhflippin@eiu.edu.