Joey King stood at his locker after Minnesota's season opener, looking remarkably dispassionate.
The sophomore had just scored 20 points in his first game as a Gopher, after all, and played a major part in rolling past Lehigh.
King shrugged and smiled.
"Never too high, never too low," he said.
It's a sentiment probably learned from his first year of college basketball at Drake. King had five 15-plus point games, but also endured 13 games with three points or fewer to end up averaging 6.9 points per game. In the two games since his 20-point breakout, King has scored nine and 10 points, probably more reasonable expectations for the lanky 6-9 forward.
But even if King isn't lighting up the scoreboard in every outing, his effort is constant. The little things, rather than the big points, are what have impressed coach Richard Pitino early on. As Minnesota heads into its fourth game of the season Tuesday against Coastal Carolina, King already has proven to be a game-changer, night in and night out.
"I love that Joey brings something to the table every single game," said Pitino, who has called King a stat sheet stuffer. "He affects winning. He does a lot of little things that a lot of guys don't do."
King, who played high school ball at Eastview, transferred from Drake in June and became eligible in October when the NCAA granted the Gophers' hardship waiver request. Pitino has played the Eagan native off the bench in all three games so far — starting forward Oto Osenieks at that forward spot — because he sees such production from King regardless of when he comes in.