Long ready to lead GMU men’s basketball

For the past two years Cam Long has waited for his turn to take charge of the George Mason men's basketball team.

He did everything he could in the meantime to make sure he was prepared.

He talked with the upperclassmen constantly. He took over as the starting point guard. He became the team's leader in multiple statistical categories.

And, during the offseason, Long worked as a college counselor at the Chris Paul CP3 Elite Guard Camp in North Carolina, an invitation-only event for the top high school and collegiate point guards.

The camp allowed him to hone his skills as a No. 1 guard and learn from some of the best in the country at the college and pro levels.

Mainly, Long learned in Winston-Salem the value of open communication.

"That's the one thing I noticed: Regardless of where you are—offense, defense, or just anywhere," he said, "everyone needs to talk."

Long, who was named a preseason first-team All-Colonial Athletic Association player this year, brought that lesson to his teammates in Fairfax, and he's enjoying his new role guiding the team with the lone senior, Louis Birdsong.

The 2007 Freedom High School grad said he never felt he could really assume the reins of leadership while playing in the shadows of last year's seniors Darryl Monroe, Dre Smith and John Vaughan, despite scoring a team-best 11.7 points per game and dishing 3.2 assists a night, another a team-high.

Long asserted himself more each game and led or tied for the team lead in scoring nine times. He even recorded a 24-point outburst at rival Virginia Commonwealth in January.

"He's being more vocal," Birdsong said, "encouraging the guys, trying to lead by example."

But leadership is more than just coordinating the offense and keeping people in the right spots on defense.

"I'm being a leader off the court, making sure everyone is doing the right things, not getting themselves in trouble," Long said. "That's real important. If you don't have that leadership, or the right things to do off the court, you can't do anything right on the court."

Considering that the Patriots have seven freshmen—one of the country's most highly-touted recruiting classes among mid-majors—and four sophomores on the roster, the development of the next crop of talent will be one of Long's most important jobs on the Patriot Center hardwood this year.

"He understands what it's like to be a freshman, and I'm sure he's really working hard with those guys to progress their games to the point that they can contribute early in the season," Mason head coach Jim Larranaga said.

"He's also a patient player. This is a real test for him to not only be able to play well himself, not only help the other players on the team play well, but also have the patience to know there will be mistakes made and we won't play as well as we'd like."

Mason, because of its inexperience, was picked fourth in the conference's preseason poll, behind Old Dominion, Northeastern and VCU.

"We're definitely young," Long said, "but we're very talented. If [the freshmen] are willing to learn, we'll be very good. We're very capable of beating a lot of teams and surprising a lot of people."

Larranaga, entering his 13th season with the Patriots, has compared Long to former VCU star Eric Maynor in terms of development from freshman year to sophomore and junior seasons.

In addition, Long has been likened to Folarin Campbell—who Larranaga called the "Face of Mason basketball"—because of their similar builds, athletic ability and versatility.

Long posted two double-doubles and led the team in rebounding seven times last year in addition to a 40.4 percent shooting average from behind the 3-point line.

"Cam is a huge key because not only is he an all-conference player," Larranaga said, "he's a go-to guy. He probably surprised himself about becoming our leading scorer as the point guard. I was surprised.

"He's a 6-foot-4, legitimate, long-armed, athletic point guard who weighs 190 pounds," Larranaga continued. "That's an NBA, pro-type point guard."

Long, as evidenced by his preseason honor, has garnered respect around the league, as well.

"I thought he had a great brand of quiet leadership," Northeastern head coach Bill Coen said. "He has a great court presence and really had a terrific understanding of not only his game, but his teammates' games."

Before committing to George Mason, Long was recruited by Old Dominion coming out of high school.

Blaine Taylor, the Monarchs' coach is just as impressed with Long currently as he was when the guard was a prep star.

"I think he's talented enough to be considered one of the better players in the league," Taylor said. "On a night-to-night basis, I don't think Cam or Mason think his abilities are overshadowed by anybody."

Taylor added that it's not talent alone that Long possesses, but the ability to put it to use when the team needs him the most.

"Everybody scores [against] bad teams," Taylor said. "You score [against] good teams in good games, you're legit. Cam has made plays at the right times when they were close and that's what I value more."

Staff writer Joe Conroy may be reached at 703-878-8047.