By ADAM ZAGORIA
NEW YORK — RJ Luis isn’t exactly sure how he fractured his left hand during St. John’s open practice on Oct. 1, but he’s trying to make the most of the time he’s out.
“I don’t even remember, I think the ball jammed my finger,” the 6-foot-7 Luis told ZAGSBLOG during media day on Tuesday. “I’m not sure, I don’t remember.
“But there’s a fracture, I can’t really do too much to it, I just gotta let it heal and rest. I’m just sitting down trying to learn as much as I could, all the details. They got me on the bike [and] running a little bit to maintain.”
The injury — first reported by ZAGSBLOG — was initially set to sideline the UMass transfer 6-8 weeks. He now estimates he will be out another 3-6 weeks, and head coach Rick Pitino said he could return sometime during the Charleston Classic Nov. 16-19.
“Like Pitino said, 3-6 weeks,” Luis said. “I have another appointment next week to see how everything’s going.”
Sophomore guard Cruz Davis, an Iona transfer, is also out with a broken hand, Pitino said at media day.
“I think they’ll both be ready for Charleston,” Pitino said of Luis and Davis.
Luis, a Miami native, chose the Red Storm over Louisville and Texas A&M back in May. He was named to the Atlantic 10 All-Rookie Team after averaging 11.5 points and 4.6 rebounds on 46% shooting and 36% from deep as a freshman. “Late bloomer, going to be terrific,” one Big East assistant coach said. “RJ is a multidimensional player who can play three positions,” said Pitino when Luis transferred. “We are excited to have RJ in our program. He has an incredible desire to reach his potential and we will do everything possible to make that happen.” Luis is among 12 new players, including 10 transfers, who signed on to play for Pitino and are now learning how to jell together ahead of Saturday’s scrimmage with Rutgers at Carnesecca Arena. The season starts for real on Nov. 7 against Stony Brook. “Off the court we mesh perfectly fine, we have a great group of guys,” Luis said.. “Chemistry-wise everybody’s fine, everybody meshes with each other, we don’t have specific little cliques, we all chill together. “I feel like when Pitino says meshing it’s more about on the court, 14 new guys, we don’t really know how everybody plays, what somebody likes to do, their spots, so it’s more about reps in practice. “We’re kind of tired playing each other in practice, I feel like Rutgers is going to be a good test for us to see where we’re at as a team.” Pitino talked about bringing the winning culture back at St. John’s, and Luis feels the Red Storm can be a team New York City rallies around this winter and going forward. “I feel like New York is missing that one team,” said Luis, a Miami Heat fan. “The Knicks is ehh…I love the Heat. “It would just be great to give back to the city.” Follow Adam Zagoria on Twitter Follow ZAGSBLOGHoops on Instagram And Like ZAGS on Facebook.@StJohnsBBall G RJ Luis suffered a fractured hand at the scrimmage and is out 6-8 weeks, per source
— Adam Zagoria (@AdamZagoria) October 3, 2023
The 6-foot-7 wing averaged 11.5 ppg and 4.6 rpg as a freshman at UMass
