Around this time three years ago, CJ Gettys was just finishing his lone season at Rutgers. After graduating from UNC-Wilmington in 2016 with a degree in Recreation Sports Leadership, the 7-foot center saw an opportunity in Piscataway as a graduate transfer.

Meanwhile, Rutgers was coming off a 7-25 season, winning only one Big Ten game. That prompted a parting of ways with head coach Eddie Jordan and paved the way for the hire of Stony Brook head coach Steve Pikiell. As a head coach, Pikiell was known as a program builder and a relentless worker. All of a sudden, he had a huge task in front of him to reinvigorate Rutgers basketball and bring it back to respectability.

Gettys was part of Pikiell's first team at Rutgers and while his Rutgers team may not have experienced a great amount of success in his one year on the banks, he is now seen as one of the individuals who laid the groundwork for what Rutgers has been able to accomplish this season. Gettys spoke with Scarlet Nation about what has enabled Pikiell to lead Rutgers to a 20-11 breakout season.

“Coach Pikiell is fantastic at what he does and players truly buy into his system,” Gettys told Scarlet Nation. “I know a lot of players, current and former, that will go to war for him every day of the week (myself included). The Rutgers basketball success doesn’t shock me and they will continue to grow.”

While Rutgers went 15-18 during Gettys one year on the banks, the growth of the program was evident. The Scarlet Knights won their first road game in conference play at Penn State and also won their first Big Ten Tournament game over Ohio State.

Gettys earned an opportunity to play for two seasons with the Cheshire Jets in the United Kingdom following graduating in 2017 and is currently in-season with the Newcastle Eagles, who also play in the UK's top-tier British Basketball League. The 7-foot center is leading the team, averaging 24.7 points and 13.2 rebounds per game.

In the summer, Gettys plays pick-up with current and former Rutgers players. Pikiell encourages former players to come back and play with the current squad and Gettys spoke about what he saw from the team over the summer.

“We all played pickup over the summer together,” Gettys said. “I saw the growth of the team firsthand this summer and knew big things were to come. I have a relationship with all of them. Extremely proud of all they have accomplished this year and it’s not over.”

Gettys was at the RAC for Rutgers’ lone home loss against Michigan, but he came away super impressed with the atmosphere.

“The RAC is absolutely insane nowadays. Small but scary. That’s the only way to put it,” Gettys said.

While he is still playing basketball, Gettys has started to think about what life might be like once he isn’t playing anymore. He doesn’t want to venture too far away from the game, though.

“After basketball, I would love to coach. Getting an opportunity to work under coach Pikiell would be my dream scenario.”