By
Keith Carmona
Arizona Daily Wildcat
Other than the playing time, how is your role on the team going to be different from the past few years?
I was a player-coach, but now I am a full-time coach, so most of it is going to be the same. Me being a gym-rat, I'll be staying at McKale late every night working guys out and breaking down film like I always have. Now, during the games I get to move up to the front of the bench and exchange my uniform for a jacket and tie.
How much will you miss wearing the Arizona uniform?
That's something that I will always cherish, but since my eventual goal is to someday become a head college coach or an NBA coach, you've got to move to the next step. And that is what I'm doing here - moving to the next step.
Is this going to be the best UA basketball team ever assembled?
On paper, up to this point, yes it is. But you cannot answer that question fairly until April 2, which is the national championship game. If we win the national championship, then absolutely we're the best team in Arizona history. We have the makings for it, but need to work toward that eventual goal.
Does Arizona deserve the preseason No. 1 ranking?
I think we absolutely deserve it because we return everybody and have so much talent. But being No. 1 in the preseason really means nothing to us, the only time we want to be No. 1 is when we wake up the morning following the national championship and see our name atop both polls.
How is senior center Loren Woods' back and weight doing, and will he be ready to go when the season starts?
Loren is doing great. As compared to where he was at this point last year, he is 100 percent better. He has fully recovered (from the back surgery) and is playing awesome with a tremendous work ethic, which is why he is a preseason favorite for one of the players of the year award.
What about senior forward Eugene Edgerson? How is he going to re-emerge in the lineup after redshirting last season?
The role Gene is going to play this year is going to be great because we missed his aggressiveness and the intimidation factor he brings when he steps on the floor. He is a tremendous rebounder and does a lot of the intangibles that will provide us with a defensive edge in every game.
What sort of immediate impact, if any, will Wildcat fans see from freshman guard Travis Hanover and freshman forward Andrew Zahn?
Zahn and Han-O are both really good looking freshmen that are working their tails off right now. Obviously we're in a situation this year where we're loaded with talent, but they are good enough to come in and compete for a regular slot in the rotation.
With your new role on the team, are the players still calling you Josh or is it Coach Pastner now?
The other day, (sophomore point guard) Jason Gardner and (sophomore guard) Gilbert Arenas saw me at Cold Stone and came in yelling, "Coach P! Coach P!" So they make fun of it a little bit and tease me here and there. But it's a fun situation and is something that I really want to do.
