Steve Rivera and Jay Gonzalez. They have their eye on the ball on Tucson
Sports A yet Fox Sports fourteen fifty streaming live on the iHeart Radio app.
Hey, welcome back to win the ball general Fox Sports fourteen fifty. Oh
Steve, you're Jay, and now we have Henry was breaking news his eye
on the ball, breaking news on Fox Sports fourteen to fifty. Next season
will officially be the last season of the NBA on TNP, as the NBA
has signed an eleven year deal with Disney, NBC and Amazon Prime to broadcast
the games. Did so t Well, I'm just reading the statement by TNT
who thinks that Wait a minute, here's here's a statement, because they think
that they because they've matched the They're saying they've matched the Amazon offer so that
contractually they should be able to get what Amazon is allegedly getting. Here's their
statement, we have matched Amazon offer as we have a contract right to do,
and do not believe the NBA can reject it, and doing so,
they are rejecting the many fans who can do yeah all this stuff like we're
great, yeah yeah, but basically saying they say, we think they have
grossly misinterpreted our contractual rights with respect to the twenty twenty five twenty twenty sixth
season and beyond it. We will take appropriate action, probably sue. We
look forward, however, to another great season of the NBA on TNT and
Max including our are iconic inside the NBA. So they're saying that whatever Amazon
is getting that TNT should be able to get that. Yeah. Well,
if that's the case, Charles, that's a bad marriage. Yeah, they're
they're they're fighting, Charles, and in a separate room, Charles is you
know, the disgruntled kid who doesn't want to you know, he wants to
stay, but he doesn't want to stay in Yeah, talking crap about the
parents. So I'm that's funny because I just read this. I said,
Oh, it looks like TNT is staying no. No, they're not so
responding. They're responding to this contract that allegedly has been signed. Ah.
Interesting. You know what from these big companies get do this and guess who
makes all the money The lawyers. Oh yeah, of course the lawyers.
Well no, because they usually have their own lawyers. But anyways, interesting
stuff, Okay, cool. Red Sox manager Alex Korra has agreed on a
three year contract extension for twenty one million dollars with the team. He's still
the big cheater. But okay, the Red Sox, you said, Yeah,
okay, that's why something. They got their butt hat on to him
today. Now the Dodgers swept him. Okay, all right, we're putting
a little limit to the Dodger talk. You didn't get the memo. Ellie
de la Cruz stole his fiftieth base of the season today, and he has
nineteen more stone bases than any other player in the MLB. Yeah, he's
a gazelle a yard today too. He's just he's doing all kinds of crazy
stuff. Yeah, he's he's a different player. There aren't other players like
who I mean, just like there's no other players like show him well in
a different way. I was gonna throw those names at you. Top top
five players today, showy show Hey Dela Cruz, Judge, Aaron Judge,
Paul Skeins. What about the Kansas City short stop Bobby with Jr. Yeah,
yeah, what about you gotta hit the home runs you Oscar? Yeah,
No, he's a good he's a really good player. He's just hot
right now. Who else just you know, you show show he's a different
player. What are you things about him that are different? Aaron Judges missing
Sodo, Mookie bets and he's a good spot Mookie who can play shortstop,
second base, the outfield, hit for power, steel bases, YadA,
YadA. And then he's got a broken hand. But still Aaron Rodgers was
fine for missing two day mini camp last month as he was in Egypt on
vacation. He was in one of those holes that he does therapy, doing
the psychedelic academics stuff. He's crazy, he does this purpose. How did
he get so weird because he wasn't weird like that? Well, because you're
not. When you're young, you're happy to be there. He he he.
I remember he won that Super Bowl and I thought, what a great
guy. You know, he's the kind of guy that you want to win
a super Bowl. He went on Letterman and he was really funny, and
he's and then he just got whack. He's just kind of the smartest guy.
Bad Water in Green Bay or you know, psychedelics man going into the
forest over there. No Love is doing the same thing. What's it up
with the quarterbacks up in Green Bay? Of themselves? Jordan Love hasn't done
squat and he's holding out and thinks he should be the highest quarterback. Right.
It's like far but you know far, but now rogers are now Love
Jordan Love a fifty million dollar quarterback. Come on, no, all right,
come on. The Olympic men's soccer started today and France defeated US.
A read don't know did you see uh soccer? Was it the girls with
the with the the Canada thing with the drone? I guess the I guess
the Canada was getting ready to pay somebody Austria, Australia or somebody, and
they were spying with them with spine on them, with unusual drones with drones.
So they had they fired the Canadian coaches or they quit because they were
they were finding out stuff about their their game plan or something. If you
if you, if you google, you wait the Canada coaches being spied on
the Canada. They were spying on the other team. Canada was spying on
New Zealand with the drones, and they the peer saying, well, that's
weird, what do the drones doing up here? So they did an investigation
found out it was the Canada in Canada and they fired their coaches. Well
that and and then then the equestrian stuff. There's a lot of things going
on before the actual event, you know, there's I don't got to go
through. There's a funny conversation that I heard today about about Michigan and their
their cheating thing from last year, and it was a point that I hadn't
thought of. The fact. Think about the fact that had that not come
out, you know, all the you know, the spying stuff, had
that not come out until after the season was over, after Michigan had won
the national championship, how different it would have been, and how different people
had thought about the Michigan Championship because they would have thought, you want it
because of that, Whereas because it came out when it did, and then
they still won all those games when they allegedly weren't cheating anymore, that people
feel that the championship was way more legitimate than they would have felt if it
would have come out afterwards. People would have thought, oh, you want
it because you cheated, whereas they can say, look, okay, we
got caught, we didn't cheat anymore, and we still won the thing.
So there's no uh, what do you call an asterisk or whatever on the
championship. I thought it was a very interesting point that I thought of.
All Right. The WNBA announced a new eleven year media deal today with Disney,
Amazon Prime in NBC for around two point two billion dollars. The Caitlin
Clark effect, man, you know, eleven years, she's gonna hold up.
I guess it'll hold up until she's well, you'd like to think somebody
else. You know, they're already talking about this Page Becker's you know,
a girl from from Yukon that Arizona actually played against several years ago. That
she's like, she's the one that's gonna get all the attention this year,
the whole Caitlyn Clark uh treatment this year. And she would have lested,
but she got her. She got hurt, right right, That's all I
got. All Right, got a couple more so. Uh. The n
C Double A Committee no n C double A coming out of this lawsuit,
you know, the House versus n C double A. Because one of the
issues that they've been talking about was roster limits, and so it looks like
they're going to propose a roster limit of one oh five one hundred and five,
uh from one hundred and twenty, which includes walk ons and stuff like
that, but that you'll be able to give as many scholarships as you want.
It's so increasing the eighty five player scholarship two one hundred, and you
can do one hundred and five or however manue you want, you want to
keep doing eighty five or whatever, but that that the scholarship limit will go
to the one oh five, but the roster limit will drop to one oh
five, and that that's expected to be uh expected to pass. So I
don't see how any universe is going to be well, not any smaller.
And then in baseball, where the scholarship limit had been eleven point seven,
that the roster and scholarship limit will now be thirty four. So again you
know, they're kind of getting rid of the walk ons, is what they're
doing. Everybody's going to get a scholarship, but now are you going to
you know, you're you're not going to have or maybe you just say,
okay, we're gonna you know, you can walk on. We're not giving
you a scholarship, and they or give them a partial Baseball does that they
can give as many scholarships as they want. You know, people down at
the end of the roster, you know they might be getting something, whereas
well, you saw that Arizona men's basketball is only gonna have eleven scholarships on
their roster this year because that's just how we want it. And everyone talks
about depth. I don't really coach as I used depth. You know,
Sean didn't, Lout, didn't, Tommy doesn't. Yeah, and you saw
my story. I start posting something on my Facebook page. If anybody's a
friend of mine and looks at it, Uh, Philip were reaching it.
Uh ended up at you Max Sell. We've talked about that, right,
and he was a little candid about his situation here. Yeah, so let
me get the quote up in my up in my thing. He you know,
he loves it there. They're gonna give him free reign because that's what
he wanted. He wants to shoot and he'll be able to shoot there because
they need somebody like him. And here was the quote I posted, just
end the story. Actually at Arizona and here there's a lot of talented players
and just hard sometimes, you know. Uh, I felt differently. I
felt I definitely could have played at Arizona. But that's a coach's decision and
he's paid for that. That's pretty much it. There you go, and
you could tell, well, he was my breakout guy that we both thought
he was. You know, he won the three point shooting contest. You
saw that he has a lot of talent and who's the other guys? And
you saw that he could have played too, but there's only a certain amount
of time that you could play. And well, again you look at the
roster, who is he gonna play ahead of exact there are some deficiencies,
defensive positions, deficions. So you know, he's I think he's gonna have
a fantastic career because they're gonna let him do what he wants to do.
Here not so much, you know, yeah, I hear you. Yeah.
There was also, Oh, Henry, let me ask you a question,
how old your dad? So kind of our wheelhouse? Do we sound
like gold dudes to a young dude like you because we complain and we you
know, get and you know you're just say older, but I wouldn't say
okay. So when your dad talks about stuff like this, do you say,
like, dad, shut up? Yeah? I see, so you
kinda do right because you're your dad will be cooler when you're thirty. Yeah,
but you know what, that's why because we sound at least when I
was talking about bitching about this and says, I wonder what Henry thinks about
it, he says, God, give me this internship out of here is
like being in the room with my dad. I mean, he was complaining
to me today about Lebron holding the flag. He thinks some other athletes should
do it because someone less known so but that was the reasoning, Yeah,
to give them the honor. Right, Yeah, that's kind of that's a
jet Henry. Mister, Henry, give us a call, Dad, Henry,
Dad, Henry. Yeah, I just want to because because we sound
like we're just kind of old dudes talking about stupid stuff. All right,
here's the one that Steve Arizona's gonna go to a Rose Bowl and soon.
Oh there's a trick to this, there is. The Rose Bowl has requested
and to be left out of the semi final rotation for the college football playoffs.
They just want to be a quarterfinal game played on January one, you
know, because they're six bowls right the new year six are rotating and they
get their turn as being a semi final. They want to They just want
to have their game on January one. Stay. They want to stay with
their game on January one. They want to stick to the tradition. So
if they're a quarterfinal game every year, all Arizona's got to do is win
the Big Twelve and they could get into they could be in a quarterfinal game
in the Rose Bowl. That's a better shot than they've had for the last
thirty years. All I have to do is get Christy Brickley to call me.
All I need to do simple the the what's this guy? He's the
what's his name? Laura? Oh, her name Laura Farber, she's a
Rose Bowl Management committee chair just said, quote, we prefer to have a
game on January one. You want to stay who we are. Yees,
they'll be flexible about their starting time, which has been two o'clock, you
know, for the sunset and all that kind of stuff. But that Rich
Clark, the CFP executive doctor, said the big pieces are done, but
there's still some finer details to be worked out. But it looks like the
Rose Bowl will just always be a quarterfinal game that'll be played on January one,
which means Arizona, Arizona's chances of getting in the Rose Bowl are better
than ever. All I saw her, do you say there was YadA YadA,
YadA YadA. And I can touch it. I can touch it.
I can touch it. Maybe I can't. It's right there, stee,
it's right there, touching. I can feel it. I've been sixty five
years. I can feel You're the old lady on Titanic is eighty four years.
I can feel it. Okay, last one, because we've got a
minute, so we got let's get this one. Okay. If I were
to tell you that you could buy Babe Ruth's jersey that he was wearing allegedly
wearing during his called shot, which there's even a debate whether he was calling
the shot, how much would you be willing to pay for that? It's
up for auction right now? What's what's the price? You throw a number?
Thirteen point two million? Yeah? Yeah, what do I know?
And and it's it's there's still be there's still bating on it, and there's
still and and there have been a couple of a couple of places that have
verified, but there's one very respected company that does that verification that said it's
not a match, such a baiting. It's still thirteen points. Save your
money. And what's the point where you gonna put that? I don't know.
Man, You're not gonna hang it in your living room. You can
break in and take it right, you should live in it, does it
clean, dishes the couple of it? All right, we're gonna take a
break right now, We're gonna come back. Scott Thompson. We spend some
time with the US Olympic team and we'll get some of his thoughts as the
Olympics get ready to start and basketball gets ready to get going. Oh excuse
me, so stick around. The Window Depot is more than a windows store.
The Window Depot is a one stoff warehouse with everything you need for your
complete Homer model. Shop the aisles of pre built cabinets in a variety of
colors, granite and courts, countertops, sinks, skylights, and hardware.
To complete your project. Need a custom order, we can help. Our
designers offer free design services and can special order everything you need for your kitchen
or bathroom remodel today. Shop the Window Deepot dot com or find a location
near you. The Window Depot more than a Windows store. Steve Vera here
to talk about Dorato Rock Materials. I needed a lot of gravel for my
driveway, so I called Eric at Dorato Rock. He found out the amount
and color I needed and boom, it was taken care of and at a
great price. How do I know radio commercials work? I heard one of
his on the radio. Rock and Materials provides a wide range of landscaping materials,
including decative rock, boulders, gravel, soil, and sand for residential
and commercial use in the Tucson area. They are locally owned and have been
around for more than fifteen years. Give them a call at five two zero
four zero zero for two three three. Where do you buy exercise equipment?
Arizona Health Arizona Health Arizona Health. Of course, to feel better and look
better, it makes sense to buy your fitness equipment from the people who know
it better than anyone else. At Arizona Health, our goal is to help
you choose the equipment you need to reach your goals, your health and fitness
to serve the best you deserve. Arizona Health the leading edge and exercise equipment
On twenty second just west of Wilmot. Did you know sports cards at memorabilia
are setting record sales last month of nineteen fifty two tops Mickey Mantle SO for
twelve point six million, Lebron James Rookie SO for five point six Also,
collecting cars is a family fun hobby that can be very profitable. If you
want to start a collection or expand your collection, check out Showtime Cards.
They are one of the leading card shops in the country that have served our
local community for twenty five years. They are located on e Speedway. That's
Showtime Cards. At Nova Home Loans, we believe everyone deserves the opportunity to
enjoy the independence that comes with home ownership. Paul Volpi is ready to help
you find an option that best fits your needs. Whether you're a first time
or veteran home buyer or want to get cash out with the refinance. Nova
has a variety of home loan programs to meet your unique situation. Visit volpeteam
dot com that's volpe Team dot com or call five two oh six eight five
six two six Today in MLS three oh eight seven, arizon A BKO nine
two nine four two Equal Housing Opportunity, how to commitment to Lindrix Syncredit rates
and available loan programs or subject to change the numbers. It's award season for
summer sports leagues and time to look at trophies for baseball, softball, volleyball,
and swimming seasons for youth and adult leagues. Summer has arrived and it's
time to replenize your promotional products for your companies. Giveaways keep your employees looking
great in fresh new apparel, polos and caps with your sharp looking logo.
Creative Awards is here to serve your professional and promotional products needs. Visit the
Creative Awards Idea Center at two twenty eight West Drackman Street or visit them online
at Creative awardsaz dot com. Got bugs, termites, bees, or rodents,
Arizona Pest Control will hunt them down. Arizona Pest Control is your complete
desert pest management. Specialist tests can't run or hide from Arizona Pest Control.
They use only the latest and most technologically advanced methods of pest elimination available,
which minimizes the effects on the environment. Let Arizona Pest Control get rid of
your bad bugs, termites, bees, or rodents. Serving Tucson and Southern
Arizona since nineteen forty seven. Go to azpest dot com to schedule your free
evaluation Today. Three Live Honey, iHeartRadio app. This is Eye on the
Ball with Steve Rivera and Jacob Salez Hot Fox Sports fourteen fifteen. Hey,
welcome back tying the ball here Fox Sports fourteen fifty on Steve, He's Jay.
Now we have a former U of A basketball coach, Scott Thompson now
one of the great guys, a friend of the show, Hawaii coach.
I'm doing fun. You've been all over the place and just recently or recently
in Vegas, see you guys. Steve Kerr, how was that? Well,
it was nice. It was nice. He invited me up to watch
the USA team practice and and so I was there the first couple of days,
and it's you know, I've had the experience of being a USA coach
years ago and knowing Steve and knowing the staff and so forth. It was
just fun to watch because there's so much talent. Let me ask you something,
because you know, when you when you see the career that he's had
both as a player and then now as a coach. And I's a coaching
the Olympic team. When you were coaching he was like, you know,
a little you know, wet behind the years kind of kid. When you
when you got to deal with him over here at Arizona, did you see
something that made you think, you know, he's going to be really good
at all these things? Was there anything that you could sense then to what
to where he's gotten today? You mean with having eight rings being a definite
Hall of Famer, Uh, definitely not. But the success he's had,
I mean, I mean, look at what he's accomplished is staggering. And
uh yeah, I mean you talk about a guy that they're not many like
him, where there's no one like him, and so yeah, I I
we you know you could. You didn't know that at the time, but
he's always been kind of a special guy. Well. The funny thing is,
and I've said this a number of times on this show and in the
books I've written, Harvey Harvey Mason says, part of the success of the
teams back in the day was they played their ass off, not only for
Loot, but they didn't want to disappoint Lut and they didn't want to disappoint
Steve. That's interesting, That's that's an interesting call. Steve just he was
kind of this natural leader and he was, yeah, he was. But
you know when his first few years he was a you know, he was
a good shooter and that kind of thing. But it wasn't until that and
and again I talked about this a lot when he blew out his knee on
that USA team I was part of, and and the doc told him he
may never play again. And then he came back that that his red shirt
senior year. He was just really mature and uh and he was Ludelson's perfect
type player. He was a perfect player for Loodoles and style system. You
know what's interesting is that, So I'm up there watching practice and mood always
had the first fifteen minutes of practice going through you know, these various drills
and pivots and different things, three lines at the end of the court,
getting up and down the court slowly and going through these different things. Well
guess what they did at the practice that I was watching. Steve still does
those on each of his practices that goes three lines and the players going through
different change of directions and pivots and things like that. And it's really interesting
to see that. Well it would because you know, these guys can do
this stuff in their sleep, right, but yet he feels that it's important
to still have them do that. It's an interesting approach. Uh And and
I guess it works, right, I agree. I mean, yeah,
it's worked on on all levels. Uh. You know, I don't know
what Popovich did and and some of these other coaches that he had coached with,
but he still has some of that Loodolfsen Uh you know, the what
the whatever lot Loot had which I used when I was coaching and and so
forth. So it was really a special thing. So I won't ask you
how old you are, but I know you're older than me and maybe Jay's
age. But for someone like you, do you even get giddy when you're
out watching them? Or what's your thoughts when you're going to watch them?
Watch? Watch watch cool guys. Here's here's I'm I'm a Steve, my
biggest supporter, and I'm want to support Steve again because of recruiting him.
And like I said, I was there the first one to his room the
night his father was assassinated, and I was to carry him off the floor
in Madrid when he blew out his knee. So I've kind of been there
various times. The thing that I view this team, this team has so
much talent, and everybody looks at the team like, Okay, you know
what, They're just going to waltz in and blow everybody away. And I
just think there's a whole lot of pressure. And I feel for Steve because
he's going to be the coach of a team that's supposed to be the gold
medal and if they win, well you're supposed to win. If they don't,
everybody's going to blame him, right, And so that that's what I
see when I'm out there watching this practice. I thought Lebron was excellent.
He was being a real leader, but and I think you have all these
egos, Steve and his staff have to manage those right, and the chemistry
is going to be so important. But there's so many things that Steve they
have to handle. Like he's kind of trying to coach the referees how to
be like international referees because these referees have not been NBA referees. They're international
referees, so they're going to call things a little bit different and having where
the guys have to be able to accommodate to that, both mentally and ego
wise, so they're just a lot of different things. Is the is the
international game still like what it was back when you were with that World championship?
I know this thirty years ago, forty years ago almost, but has
the is the game still kind of the same or has it changed? Here's
here's here's my views on this is that I think international game is because all
these international teams and these players, these players have grown up playing soccer and
so internationally, these guys, you know, we're taught at a young age
soccer and soccer is basically, you know, moving without the ball, playing
as a team. One guy can't win in soccer. You've got to have
a strong team. So you've got to make your teammates better. And I
think international teams that's their foundation is playing like that. I think American basketball
has unfortunately gotten to where it's one on one, you give me the ball,
I'll make some moves and I'll take I'll take it from here type basketball,
individual basketball, and I think that's where the difference. In answer to
your question, that's where the difference is that the American teams have to play
really good defense and have to play together, and I think that's one of
the biggest challenges is you got all these guys out there, and you know
what, they got to meld together and play together. And that's the part
that's not easy to do in a three week span. So in nineteen ninety
I don't know where you were, probably of coaching in Rice or somewhere,
but I remember going to a thing in Phoenix with coaches. Talked to Lude,
talked to the Cincinnati coach. I've mentioned this a few times on the
show Who Got Fired at West Virginia Huggin Huggins, those guys, thank you
guys, and they were and you might have been part of this, going
to overseas to Europe, coaching the guys up in Europe and teaching them how
to play basketball, and look what they've created. Yeah. No, but
I think I think television and I again, since since that time, shoot,
and I go all the way back to the seventy two Olympics, when
all of a sudden, people will start saying, you know what, we've
got to start playing our professional teams are professional players. And it didn't happen
untill ninety two, but as our television and there was so it went around
the world and then these tours, just like you're talking about Steve, where
the coaches were going out and doing clinics and teaching and so forth around the
world. The whole world started getting better and better, and and then these
players started getting are really really good. There's some kind of story I saw
today. Back in ninety two, there were there may have been I'm going
to throw a number at you, ten, ten or twelve NBA players from
from overs back in the day with Dream Team, right, so they had
no really big competition although they were really good. Now there's like under sixty
Europeans in the NBA, so that the times have changed. Yeah, and
it's gonna get and it's gonna get better and better. I mean, it's
gonna get more and more again because these players come and they play well together,
and they're it's a different and they're not just one on one players,
and so it's a I mean, you're exactly right. I mean, the
NBA is gonna change because it's a worldwide game. Yeah, and and and
it has I mean, as much as we want to think that you know,
this team that's that Steve kurrz got has got, you know, should
win the gold medal, that they've got everybody's got NBA players now and it
and it's you know, look, I'm usually in France, right They've got
Victor Web and Yama, Rudy Gobert and I don't know who else. You
know, Australia is good, Canada is good. All these teams are so
good. I think we need to temper ourselves, don't you think? I
think so too. But the thing, and I know Steve is good,
is we used to be able to have down games and still win, right,
she used to have off games and still win. You can't do that
anymore. And and that's the part that's the dangerous thing, because if you
don't come ready to play, and you don't have guys playing together. And
again, I look at Steve's situation, and you know he's trying to decide,
Okay, am I gonna substitute or am I gonna play platoon system,
you know where you play your five and then the new five comes in and
and things like that. All those things are gonna it's gonna it's just gonna
be really interesting to see how how he's going to be able to do that.
Yeah, yeah, no question. In fact, they've struggled a little,
at least by our naked over the last week or so. It's funny
we had Steve on maybe six or seven weeks ago, maybe in two months
ago. I joked with him, you know, I've always wanted to be
Steve Kirk for a weekend. And then I said to myself, No,
that's a lot of best to deal with with, you know, Draymond and
all the other guys, and now this because every decision you make is probably
the wrong one. Well, you know, when you're at that level he
is, yes, I mean, he's so well respected, but he's supposed
to make these you know, just magically make all these right decisions. But
you were right. How would you like to manage Draymond? I mean I
was at the Scenic Sun's game the last December when Draymond got kicked out for
throwing that elbow or whatever. After the game, I talked with Steve and
and he was saying, hey, you know what, it's a great day.
You know, I'm a coach in the NBA, and just trying to
be as positive and as he could be and so forth, in a difficult
situation. I know, and so and not. You know, Steve's one
of those you just learned not to make too big of a situation out of
anything, right, except that he talked about them disco disco, turn off
that music. I love love real quick. We've been talking about this for
a while, this whole ninety minutes of the show. Tell him about the
Stoops things. Yeah, so Scott so Mark Stoops. Uh. He's coach
at Kentucky, coached assistant coach here for a number of years with his brother
Mike. He was complaining at SEC media day today, but how hard it
is, and it's tough, and all I do is have to raise money.
I hardly get to coach. And he's just griping about what had football
coaches have to do now? And then the kicker he's making nine million dollars
a year doing it, and so people are like all over him saying,
look, you you're making nine million bucks a year. Suck it up.
I mean, I mean, I get it. It's hard to be a
coach now with all the other stuff you got to do, But you know
the money's there. Is there for a reason, right, Yeah. Well,
I think the biggest thing in this is college and this is for another
conversation, but college sports has changed this last year so much A year from
now, it's going to be so much change. I mean, these changes
are happening to where now the game has gone beyond just coaching and used to
recruit, well, now it is fundraising and and doing all of the nil
stuff and all of the I mean, it's the college coaches. It's it's
so much better. And this is my view, so much it's easier being
a pro coach than college now because college has added so many other things where
you've got to worry about all kinds of other things as opposed to just coaching.
You've got a lot of other things on your plate. So, I
mean, I know what you exactly what you're saying. He is being paid
all this money and whatever. He's basically saying, you know what, it's
just a harder job than it used to be. And so without questions,
and then we hear that Texas Tech Picture is going to be paid one million
dollars a little over one million dollars in il deal and it's just starting.
And again, who do you think is going to have the better teams?
The ones that have big nil money are the ones don't, right? And
and then is that how college sports is supposed to be. How well,
how would you have handled how would you You're a mild mannered guy, you're
a good coach, but I know you're probably glad you're out of it,
But how would you have handled this stuff? You got a minute? No,
no, you know what it is. You're gonna see lots more turnover,
lots more turnover of coaches just because there's going to be left patients with
with coaches and and so forth. And uh, I you here, you'd
have to be able to have here's what's happening with college coaches. They're becoming,
uh where you're kind of the CEO of of a organization and you've got
to have your fundraising going on, you've got to have your recruiting going on.
You've got to have dealing with the university. I mean, how about
that. Yeah, I mean that's a whole another because the university, you're
part of the university. So you've got academics, and you've got Title nine,
and you've got all these different things that you have to deal with.
It's part of the university that regular. I mean, if you're an NBA
or NFL, you don't have to deal with you don't have to deal with
fundraising. You don't have to deal with all these other things and having your
players be academically ineligible. But when was the last time you heard somebody being
academically ineligible? You don't hear about it anymore. But at the end of
the day, Scott will leave you with this. Every month, there's a
check for one point two million dollars. Everyone, I've got my little violin
out break. Thanks coach, Yeah, thanks coach. Okay, appreciate it,
Scott, thank you, great to visit what you got here. Thank
you, mam, thank you. Hey, I just got the word to
have your said you guys. Unfortunately have been interrupted a couple of times because
of thunderstorm mornings, flash floods there. We had no windows here, so
we have enough idea what's going on. We're going to go out to My
car is still on its four wheels. I hope my roof is holding though,
exactly all right, we'll take our last break, we'll come back.
It's our last break of the week, So this is our last show of
the week. So if you want to get in and talk about any of
this stuff, now's the time. Five two zero four one six seventy four
forty We're going to have about twelve thirteen minutes to talk about whatever you want
to talk about, and again last one of the week, so I'll stick
around. If you're an Arizona men's basketball fan, you know it's been successful
for nearly forty years. Now take a look back at the Ludelsen era in
my new book, Lessons from Loot. It was a labor of love through
the eyes of twenty five former players, coaches, and friends to give insight
to the coach and the man who led them, competed against them, and
inspired them. Twenty five chapters for his twenty five years as Arizona's beloved coach.
Lessons from Newton is an insight to how he built the program into a
national powerhouse. What one email me a Steve dot RIVERA ninety five at gmail
dot com. Hi, this is formal. While get Leman huntly with Arizona
Health, Imagine how home GM can change your health, your comfort, and
your time. Arizona Health is everything you need to transform your personal space and
your life. We off a complete line of cardio machines, multi gyms,
and freeway equipment. I'll certify fitness experts and technicians will set you out with
the right equipment and training to get you started to keep you going. Visit
our shureroom today at twenty second in Wilmot, Arizona Health the lead edge and
exercise equipment. What's your goal a new career or career advancement? How about
transferring to a four year college. Pema Community College can help you make Someday
today and reach your goals affordably on your schedule. With over one hundred programs
to choose from and financial aid available, it's time to earn the degree or
certificate you need to prepare for the career you want. PIMA offers free career
exploration classes so you can choose the field that's right for you. Learn how
at Pima dot edu slash Someday. Ready to save but not sure where to
begin? Take the Pyramid Federal Credit Union ten thousand dollars Saving Challenge and we'll
guide you along the way. Save five hundred dollars over six months as a
member, and you could win big what your savings grow to help you reach
goals like buying a car, owning a home, and more. Visit Pyramid
FCU dot com Slash ten k challenge to get started. Today, bed Really
Insured and CUA. Do you want to be part of a winning team?
A Team Security is looking for friendly, outgoing event security guards and event staff
to be a part of our team. We've been providing our outstanding services to
some of Arizona's biggest sporting events and concerts for over twenty years. We want
you to join the Action eighteam Off is a fun and exciting opportunity to work
in the sports and entertainment industry, with flexible schedules that are perfect for those
looking for a part time job or a second income. Come be a part
of a winning team the A team apply online today at a Team security dot
net breaking down all the exes at alls. It's Steve Lamara and Jagen Salvins.
This is I on the Ball on Fox Sports fourteen fifty. Hey,
welcome back, joining the ball hero Fox Sports fourteen fifty. I'm Steve here,
Jay. We have Henry with us, thirteen minutes left for the week.
You want to call us please due five two o six five two four
one six thirty four forty. I was gonna give you a sell them.
Don't call me. Don't call you. You know, I was, you
know, thinking about Scott Thompson. The question I asked him about Steve Curling,
What what did you see? Right? Uh? And I get you're
not going to see that he's going to be a six treme NBA champion,
you know, coach and all that stuff, But there are certain things you
had to see, no question, right. And I remember, you know,
I tell you that. You know, the first year I covered basketball
was eighty six eighty seven season, which was the year that he sat.
Yeah, okay, but he was on all the trips. Yeah, you
know, he was a practice, He was around all the time. I
feel like that year of him sitting on the bench and watching all this and
watching this team, which was very immature team, I'll just put it that
way. First of all, I just looked up the rash. There was
one senior on it and it was Bruce Fraser. Okay, so he didn't
you know, he didn't play a ton, but all the guys who played,
none of them were were seniors. And him, I think him sitting
on the bench may have helped set him up for what he's doing now because
he got to watch from the sidelines. He got to watch Luke coach,
and he got to watch coach a team that was had a lot of issues.
Yeah, you know, well this may be stupid, but I think
we've said this before. Had he not gotten hurt, the trajectory of the
better about squall would totally be different. It would be totally different. Yeah,
But that that year, you know, that was the team that you
know, Sean Elliott was a Fred was a sophomore, Anthony Cook was a
sophomore, Kenny Lofton was a sophomore. You know, guys like Joe Turner,
you know was Joe Turner was a junior. Craig McMillan was, you
know, was a junior. That team it came together that year during that
time, and Steve was there and I think he was a big part of
that and and may have done a lot of things that a coach would have
done. You know, I've told you the story that you know, the
time they got the hell beat out of him at U C l A.
And after the game, I ran into him in the elevator and it was
just me and him and and uh and they just were awful. They were
just awful. And I said, Steve, what the hell something like that
like, and he was just he was just pissed. He was mad that
they had played the way they played and and he he that was where he
reference and Pete Williams and said, this team needs somebody like a Pete Williams
who gets on the court and just plays mad. And and he was seeing
those things right as a as a college well he was. He was in
his fourth year of concert. He was a college senior. But he was
seeing those things that to me, as I think about it later, those
are the kinds of things that I think are wife. Steve has been so
good in his career, both as a player in the Cup. Well,
he what makes him special. He's a people person. He understand understands them.
He understands them, and he's dynamic with their personality. He knows how
to deal with Come on, you have to be you have to be free
to deal with the teams that he's coached. Yeah. Right. It's funny
about four or five years ago, I was with a group of people and
the guy says, well, I could do it because I could coach do
what Steve's doing. Look at all the talent it is. It doesn't work
that way. It doesn't work that you have to deal with the Beagles you
have to deal with the egos and make sure everyone's happy or tried to right.
And here's the here's the kind of a weird example. Okay too,
because on the one hand, he was the he was the grown up on
the team in nineteen eighty eight, he was the grow He and Craig mcpill
were like the two norths. Craig said four words, right, so he
really you know, well, Craig was sort of a lead by example kind
of guy. He wasn't a raw rock guy. He you know, he
never he never talked Steve for the example I was gonna use. And this
was the year before. We were on the plane too, and we used
to fly with the team in these flight commercials. We would fly with them.
We were on the flight to to they played at Illinois in January of
that year, long flight from Tucson to there. And on the one hand,
he was sort of the grown up in the room. But on the
other hand, there were times when he was a kid just like the rest
of them. And I think that's where players maybe got a little bit of
a respect for him, an attachment to him, because on the one and
they felt like he was one of them, but on the other hand,
as you said, you know, Harvey Mason said, we didn't want to
disappoint him, So he was at on the one hand, you know,
one of them, but on the other hand, the father figure in the
show. I think different stages of his career. Two. I don't know
if you remember this, but Eddie and Eddie h Pete uh talked about him
seeing him because they were he came on the scene and he was they're playing
in the gym blah blah blah, and the ball rolled on the sidelines.
He was not playing with the guys yet. He just come on to the
campus. He got them and it was like on on the side side of
the sideline out he picked it up and he shot it. Of course it
went in from not not a short disk right and and Pete still remembers that,
saying, and that's the guy we saw for the rest of his career,
just a guy who can shoot the shots. And Thompson says it perfectly.
He was. He was perfect for for for lout, for loot and
the funny stuff. I know you haven't read my book. You up when
he was when he was being recruited, Bobby and and Luke went to go
see him, right, yeah, because I had that part. It was
and so what did she say, You're gonna get this guy? The guy
can't play it. He's just not good enough. Short, his shot was
awkward, he was gonna get it blocked or whatever, and they brought him
in. The rest is history, and the rest is history. And then
you know, again, six NBA Championships or five five rings rings as a
player, and then total and then a bunch of the coach. But yeah,
you know, so there are times when you do see that. But
he was you know again, he was a kid, right, he was.
He was Henry's age. Holy cow. Yeah, well all our careers
genery compared to her, you know. But but I think one of the
things that that again talking about what you saw, is that he I don't
think he's ever and when he's come on the show even he's ever thought of
himself as this figure. Right. He's a normal dude. Yeah, he
he's a normal dude. He's a bob down, he's he's a dirt bags
dude. Yeah, he's just you know, I've told you about the day
that I did sort of my preseason. It was about the season about to
start. We did my Okay, he's a senior. He's leading the team,
Hadi YadA, and so he did the all encompassing thing. I got
to go spend an afternoon with him. But I picked him up at McHale
after a practice, and he had a bike. He had this beat up
bike that he rode to practice. And you know, he didn't have a
fancy car and you know all this stuff. He had this beat up bike
that he rode to practice. He lived over there in what he used to
be in elementary school on Park and Speedway behind the circle k there and there's
okay there now there's a it used to be a school and now and they
made it into apartments and that's where he lived with Bruce Fraser, and he
would ride from there to campus every day. And and that day we threw
his bike in the back of my car and I gave him a ride and
we went and got a sandwich and went to his apartment. But he was
just kind of like, I'm just a guy, you know. Well here's
I think I said this on the show too while back. How do you
know? They asked me, how do you know the kids are how they
are? If you have good parents? If you have good parents, you're
good kids. You have good kids, you raised good kids. He was
obviously one of those, one of those. Luke was one of those because
Susy and Bill did great jobs with their kids. They're not they're not ego
driven there, They're just people. Sean Elliott, Sean and and and his
parents just guys. The influence that his mom had on him, all that,
all those times, right right, right right, and that's why those
are those guys. And then you have other guys who are paying the next
who don't give a crap and have egos and whatever. And I've met those
guys too, We've we've met all of them. And it was actually at
the end of Luton's career the demise of because the times had changed, you
got older, and there are guys that kind of tested him, the tested
him, right, The Steve Kurz and the L's were fewer and far between.
Now we're talking about talent, you're talking about the type of people were
you know, because of you know, the way you know, aau Ball
and all that stuff developed. Yeah, said, those kids just came up
and nobody ever told them other other than you're great, and that's all they
ever heard. That's part of the problem because they get here and they have
to kind of be reprogrammed. You're not in you're in the system. And
it doesn't surprise me that Steve uses some of those methods of loot. It's
fascinating to me that he's got you know, Kevin Durant and and Lebron and
out there and he's doing you know, dribbling drills and those kinds of things,
and that they're doing it. Yeah, right, that they're doing it
and don't and don't seem to have a problem doing it well, you know,
because they they listen to the coach. Sure, sure, you know,
I mean, does Katie really want to do that stuff? But if
all the other guys are doing it and the press, you know, there's
the peer pressure to do that and be a team player. That's what he
gets these guys to do. One of the things about him too, you
know, he had his camp here, very bright dude. By the end
the boy and I did those stories where he had like a hundred kids by
the end the first day, he would know the first names of all the
kids. I mean, come on, we have a hard time remember yesterday's
no he he still knows my son Adams. Yeah, and Probaly would see
him like that, you know Adam. And then when I covered him in
ninety seven when he hit the game six shot, did a big story.
Talking to Margo, he's kind of tight and he's made all the study.
He still never cast those checks he was he wasn't spending that money he was
making with the US because he had money. Yeah, he had money.
I was not using that money, right. She said, Oh, that's
just who he is, and she dated him since college. Yeah, yeah,
no, yeah, it's it's it's yeah, he's a fascinating story.
I mean, he really is well continues to be. Yeah. I mean
today, who's more famous than him in Arizona Lums, nobody, nobody a
second Yeah, yeah, Uni Fish, Jenny Finch, Sean Sean all baffort
used to be not anymore. Yeah, it's Steve's kerr. No, it's
not you say you you say to somebody just friend for you say name me
an athlete from Arizona today today? Today? Yeah, you say today,
nameing somebody you know that went an athlete or somebody in sports that went to
Ari Zone. Who was it? And yeah, you're right, Steve Carr
is going to be the top of the list, They might say, somebody
like uh, Mike Baby, Sean Elliott. Yeah, yeah, but not
today. Back in the day it was so Jenny Richard. Richard might be
another one because he's so visible on in media, but it's probably Steve Richard.
Maybe even pinched now baffort used to be completed. He was in there
winning the triple crowns. No, yeah, it's it's it's Teddy Bruski,
Teddy Bruski. Yeah, gronk, gronk, those kind of five ish because
you're still out there a good show. We put together something. We bitched
a lot in the First Tower. We didn't bitch Mark Steuth's bitching and we're
talking. Yeah, we were bitching about Mark Steuth's bitching. Okay, yeah,
thank it's Mark top of Let's get through the first Tower. Thanks Henry
for not making us look old. A million dollars to pitch softball. Steve
I asked to who's our intrin history, Bryan, how old's old? How's
old? What's old to you? Seventy oh, look at that listening to
the show yesterday, No, seventy he said, seventy two. Because some
people I thought, maybe say fifty, that's me. I know those people,
seventy years old. Seventy old. Okay, we're not there. My
three brothers are all day. We're not there yet. I was making fun
of day, and I was realizing all three of my older brothers have handicap
plates. Oh really yeah, and that's scary. Next, I don't want
to have one. I don't want to once you get parking close to the
any one of those, any one of those, they're all we've got canes
and stuff. It's like, man, thank you, Henry, thank you
for today. Henry. Hey, nice job, Henry. Appreciate it.
All right, last show of the week. We're not going to be here
tomorrow and Friday. I'll be back with the show on Monday. Steve will
still be out, but he'll be here Tuesday. We'll have a Crepit press
conference with Brent Brennant on Tuesday, so we'll see what he's got to say
as they get started with practice. So we will see you on Monday.
Thanks for being here.