In the lead up to the 2013/14 NCAA division 1 college basketball season,
Damian Arsenis counts down his pre-season selections to
The Pick and Roll All-Australian First Team in a series that includes interviews with all five players.
Securing a forward position in the pre-season All-Australian First team is reigning Big Sky Freshman of the Year, Venky Jois of Eastern Washington.
#4 | Venky Jois, Eastern Washington
| Position |
Forward |
| Height |
6’7″/ 201cm |
| Weight |
100kg |
| Year |
Sophomore |
| Hometown |
Boronia, VIC |
Venky Jois going up strong – Courtesy of Eastern Washington Athletics
After a stellar junior career in Australia that included MVP
awards won previously by current NBA players Patty Mills and Andrew
Bogut, the 6’7″ Jois landed at Eastern Washington. Despite battling
nagging injuries throughout the season, he went on to exceed almost
everyone’s expectations. Jois missed three games with an ankle injury
mid-season, and despite the setback he would still record a league high 9
double-doubles in averaging 12.3 points, 9 rebounds, 2 assists and 2.4
blocks per game. His 9 rebounds per game ranked him second in the Big
Sky Conference (46th nationally), whilst his 2.4 blocks per game led the
league (33rd nationally) and now has him in 7th place on the Eagle’s
all-time list after just a single season.
With his amazing first year on court exploits and explosive finishing
at the rim, it was hard not to attract any attention. Jois was duly
recognised by being named 2013 Big Sky Conference Freshman of the Year
whilst also receiving an All-Conference honorable mention. Healthy and
injury free, Jois will once again be expected to provide leadership and
maturity alongside his athletic all-round game throughout 2013/14. There
are no limits to just how high this Eagle can soar, and expect nothing
less than an outstanding season from the sophomore forward this season.
The Pick and Roll’s exclusive interview with: Venky Jois
Damian: Just like my own surname, your name is quite
unique. What is your family background and how do you actually
pronounce your surname?
Venky: Even though my mother and I were both born
and raised in Australia, I’m named after my Indian grandfather
Venkatesha. My Dad’s side of the family are all Indian, but over here I
just go by Venky for short. The name Venkatesha is actually a form of
one of the Hindu Gods, Vishnu. My surname is actually pronounced
“Joyce.”
Damian: I am not too familiar with your progression
through the junior basketball ranks, but am aware you won the under 20
Nationals MVP and South East Australia Basketball League (SEABL) Youth
Player of the Year Awards which are amazing achievements (awards won by
current NBA players Andrew Bogut and Patty Mills). Can you tell me what
led to you taking up basketball and fill me in on where you played most
of your junior basketball growing up? Did you face any adversity in
making it to where you now are?
Venky: I loved most sports as a kid but I started
out my junior career at Knox as a top age under 12 player. After not
making any of the top teams with Knox, I moved to Dandenong for my
bottom age under 16 season, and it was only there where I feel they put
me in positions to succeed. Especially when I got a chance to play
SEABL and eventually start on a playoff team as a 17-year-old, winning
accolades like the SEABL Youth Player of the Year award started to put
me on the map both in Australia and in the USA. I committed to Eastern
Washington shortly after winning that award, and after winning MVP of
the Under 20 national team. I also started to get some interest back
home in Australia, being invited to practice with the Melbourne Tigers
and the Australian Boomers squad!
Damian: Sounds like your career really took off from
there! What ambitions did you have as junior basketball player? Was
playing college basketball always high on your list of goals?
Venky: College basketball was definitely something I
set my sights on from the age of 16. After I started to improve and
perform as a junior, I came to the realisation I could make playing in
the NCAA a reality; from there it is definitely something I worked hard
towards and strived for. Along with heading to college, winning a
National championship in juniors along with attaining success with my
SEABL team were my goals. I only managed to achieve two out of those
three goals; we lost to Albury-Wodonga by 2 points in the
SEABL championship game, which just so happened to be the day before I
left for college.
Damian: I guess you had plenty of time to revisit
that narrow loss on the plane. So after all that success, how was it
that you ended up venturing to the USA and a scholarship with Eastern
Washington?
Venky: Playing with Dandenong certainly helped an
enormous amount in providing exposure to the college scene, and ended up
being the contact that helped me land a spot on Eastern Washington’s
roster last year. One of the Dandenong coaches for a junior team told
Jim Hayford from the US about me, and now Hayford is my coach here in
America.
Damian: It’s sometimes all about the right time and
the right place. Moving to another country on the other side of the
world must have been a big change for you. What adjustments did you have
to make?
Venky: It was definitely a big adjustment at first,
but something I do cherish as I believe that it helped me mature as a
person and develop me as a player much faster than I would have if I
stayed home in Australia. I think living on my own, off campus where I
have to cook my own meals and do everything around the house; these were
things I normally took for granted back home. It did take a lot of
getting used to, but now is something I definitely prefer. That’s not to
say I don’t miss my family and friends though; the culture and
lifestyle change couldn’t compare to them and especially come Christmas
time and birthdays - it’s always going to be tough being away from home
at those times.
Damian: After playing in the SEABL, how have you
found playing basketball for a team such as Eastern Washington in the
Big Sky Conference?
Venky: Playing basketball for Eastern Washington was
probably the best decision I could have made in terms of developing
further as a basketball player. In Australia, my game was almost purely
all about transition, finishing, rebounding and slashing. However after
a number of injuries to our point guards, I ended up finding myself
playing the point-forward position in college and therefore an
opportunity to create for others. Despite the injuries I experienced
during my freshman season, I’ve improved tenfold from the player I was
back at home. I am continuing to improve here and I believe much faster
than I would have if I have stayed in Australia to pursue my career.
Both the opportunities I’ve been given here and the facilities available
to me have allowed me to really improve each and every day, and
hopefully more people will see the work I’ve put in on court and in the
weight room as my career continues.
Damian: In following your career with the Eagles
from Australia, you had a massive freshman season in being named Big Sky
Freshman of the Year. Congratulations on that by the way – a massive
achievement for someone from the land down under! Did the recognition
surprise you and how have you handled all the attention that goes with
it?
Venky: I was really honoured when I received that
award, as there are a number of freshmen that I think will be
spectacular players down the road, and are certainly very tough to play
against even now. Unfortunately though, as a team we didn’t end up
having the season we wanted in order to hold our heads high. Individual
accolades don’t mean too much when your team is not winning, but I think
this upcoming season things will be a lot different and our
expectations are high.
Venky Jois at the line – Courtesy of Eastern Washington Athletics
Damian: How do you describe yourself as a player?
What are your key strengths and what areas of your game do you need to
keep working on?
Venky: At the moment I would describe my game as
being a play maker and rebounder. I’ve worked really hard all spring and
summer improving my shot and think I’ve become a much more complete
player than I was last year. I still recognise that I have a long way to
go in tightening up almost all aspects of my game before I’d be ready
to step onto the floor as a professional. I’ve managed to get by through
using my athleticism and finishing around the rim for most of my
career, but it’s only the last couple of years that I’ve added new
facets to my game that will almost certainly help me moving forward.
Damian: Daniel Hill and you joined fellow Aussie
Jordan Hickert at the Eagles as a freshman, and now Felix von Hofe also
links with the team after an outstanding U19 World Championships. Is
there a growing sense of ‘Aussie’ camaraderie and are the Eagles trying
to replicate the success of Saint Mary’s College in recruiting players
from Australia?
Venky: Definitely! It’s no secret that Eastern
Washington is trying to gain an advantage on other programs by
recruiting internationally; Australia and Germany are the two countries
we have most heavily recruited from. However we also have now added a
Serbian team member in Ognjen Miljkovic - we now have more international
players than Americans on our roster!
Damian: With all the internationals on your roster, what are your expectations for the season ahead both individually and for the team?
Venky: On paper we have a young team again, but I
don’t believe that should have any effect on the way we play this year.
Most of our guys have significant experience from playing last year in
the program, and I really think that with the new additions to the team
we can make some good runs both in the preseason and Big Sky Conference.
Individually it should be an interesting season for me; last year I
came into the season after recuperating from knee surgery, and then fell
down at the end of the season with an ankle injury. I never really felt
100% throughout the course of the entire season. Not only do I
feel much better fitness wise right now, but I am also a much improved
player to last year. I think you can expect a hybrid of posting up and
transition plays to complement the playmaking I was able to
create through on-balls from the wing last year. We still have some work
to do with figuring out how to best integrate our new players into the
line-up, but our guys now know what to expect and have all come back
better, stronger and smarter than last year.
Damian: So with all the on-court action ahead of the
new season sounding promising, I’m also interested to identify what are
you currently studying and where do you see your qualification taking
you for life after basketball?
Venky: I’ll be declaring either a Biology or
pre-medicine major this year so a future in physiotherapy or medicine
would certainly be my goal for life after basketball. I have a passion
for all the major sciences and would love to explore career paths in any
of those subjects.
Damian: Sounds really interesting, but hard
going! Whilst you technically have three more years to go, are you
likely to eventually head home to Australia maybe land an NBL gig, or
will you explore options in the US or Europe?
Venky: I want to play at the highest level I
possibly can in basketball; whether that brings me back home to
Australia, sends me to Europe or even staying in the US. I love to
compete, so I’ll just continue to work hard so that in three years from
now, I can be asked the same question and hopefully have multiple
opportunities to explore. Until that time I’ll be in the gym working as
hard as I can to get bigger, stronger, faster and better than I was the
day before.
Damian: I may just ask you that same question in
three years’ time and compare your answers! Can you share with me your
career highlight to date? What was it and why does it stand out for you?
Venky: To me, my biggest career highlight was more
of a moment than it was an accomplishment. I was playing as a role
player on the under 18 Victorian state team in the national championship
game (which unfortunately we ended up losing at the final buzzer). At
one point in the game I drove baseline in front of what I thought was a
huge crowd at the time, and then dunked it over one of the New South
Wales guys and yelled as loud as I could. However I recall not being
able to hear my own voice because the stadium was so loud it was
deafening! That was the first time I realised basketball was something I
really wanted to do. It was an awe-inspiring moment for me.
Damian: A goose bump moment by the sounds of it – I
wish I had been there to see that. With all that you have accomplished
to date both on and off the court, what do you want to achieve on court
before you eventually retire well down the road?
Venky: I really just want to play. Competing is my
passion and every day I work hard so that one day I might get the
opportunity to be part of something special.
Damian: It’s been great finding out a little bit
more about you and your basketball. However it is always good to finish
up with something memorable. Can you tell me something about you that
you may not have shared with many others before?
Venky: I guess not many people would know that I
come from a family of biologists. My Dad used to work as a veterinarian
and then moved to lecturing and research in nutrition. My eldest sister
will be a Vet too, whilst my youngest sister has almost finished
studying medicine, and my other sister has a PHD in Bio-Med! My Mother
is now doing pharmaceuticals, but I’d definitely like to follow suit and
potentially become a doctor as well at some stage down the road.
Damian: Wow – that’s one smart family you have
there! I was the first and only child in my family to graduate from
university; you will get no pressure from me. I really appreciate your
time in willingness to answer my questions openly. Good luck for the
season ahead and may the Eagles soar!
Venky: Thanks Damian. It’s great to get the support from back home in Australia.
