Welcome in too, Behind Kentucky Basketball presented by Fulton Line Curtis Burch. Today
we're going to share a conversation we had with new Kentucky basketball coach John Welsh.
As I mentioned, we are presented by Thornton's. Stop by any lexing
Kenthornton's location and earn five cents off a gallon with your refreshing rewards card.
Now joined on Behind Kentucky Basketball by Kentucky assistant coach John Welsh. Thanks for
joining us, Oh, thanks for having me. It's a question to be
here. I think you got an interesting kind of connection to the program.
Obviously, your son, Riley was a player and then a grad assistant.
So even though you're a new coach, you have a pretty good connection here,
don't you. Yes, I've watched just about every game for the last
four years and attended the SEC tournaments the last four years, so yeah,
I'm very familiar with the program. Big picture, you're big into development.
It's going to be your big roles. What are some new techniques in development
that you've developed over the years that you didn't maybe even know existed when you
first started, If that makes sense, Well, I think I think the
biggest change in player development are the resources and manpower allotted to it. When
I first came into the NBA, it was John, here you go,
here are the players. Now if you look at an NBA game, there's
ten coaches behind the bench. I am so appreciative here with the managers who
have been helping me. And you know, basically the big thing in player
development is you wanted to transfer to a game, and so you know your
workouts have to be game simulations. And so with the help I get here
from the managers and the other coaches, what we do is we set up
game situations and make it as similar to a game for the players as as
it can possibly be. And I think that's the biggest difference. Now what
goes into putting together a workout and the drills that you like, you plan
anything else. You know, you your goal, you have an objective,
and you know, try to figure out, you know, how you're going
to accomplish it. And a big part of it is, you know,
with me, is getting to know the players and seeing what they do well
and what they need to work on. I think, you know, you
know, part of it is not so much as doing drills like it used
to be as more solving problems. Now can you give you an example,
like when you talk about selling problems, well, well, same thing.
You put them in a situation of you know, finishing a layup at the
rim and then we have you know, we have a six to eleven managers
right there, and if they're if you know, why aren't they making it?
You know? Is if I'm guarding them and bumping them is figuring out
what the problem is and finding a solution to it. And a lot of
times it's a player who finds a solution. And I think that's uh the
most organic way that learning takes place. You've been here and what is this?
How many weeks? Two weeks? Two weeks? So how much have
you gotten to know the guys? And how familiar are a couple returners?
I know you've probably you've seen to do no most, I don't know.
We have about seven guys here and scholarship players and the walk ons, and
it's been great for me through the workouts and and even so at the beginning
through camp, we you know, we had satellite camps for I think four
days the first week, so just being around the players at the camp,
it was a great way to form a connection with them. What is the
balance between knowing the player personally and knowing their game and how do those interact
when you're well? I think you need both, you know, because you
know a lot of how you play is who you are, so uh,
you know, the more I can get to know the players, the better.
Do the players yet know your NBA experience, has anybody comed up and
asked you about X player that you trained in the pro? But I think
coach Kalis, you know, that's how he usually leads off everything, So
I think they're aware of it. And but it's you know, I think
to get the players respect, you have to earn it. I don't think
nowadays you get respect from your title. You know, you have to form
a relationship. You know, no matter what your job is, if you're
a school teacher, a police officer, or whatever is, it's it's about
you know. Coach cal constantly say it's about the relationships. Your time in
the NBA, well even before that, when you started out in college.
I mean you've worked with some a bunch of Hall of famers. It's a
crazy I made a list of both coaches and players. What are some of
the lessons that guys like Jerry West, Hubey Brown, George Carl have taught
you that you've kind of taken from them in your coaching career, that it
made you better. You learned something different from from everybody. Uh, from
hughby Brown, it was you know, I just you know, his leadership
ability and ability is like a disciplinary and it was just it was just amazing.
You know. That was one of my first experiences in the NBA and
just watching the way he led the team, and it was a eye opening
experience, you know, because in college I worked for Jerry Tarkanian, who
took a little bit of a different approach. So I say, I think
in coaching, you have to coach to your personnel and if you're not,
you know, genuine to yourself. The players realize that he spent a long
stretch in Denver. They just won the NBA title. How cool is it
to see because I know, you a big amazing I still know some of
the assistant coaches there, and uh, it's just it's just great for Denver.
I mean, and they're a fun team to watch. They're very easy
team to like. So and uh, you know, they played played team
basketball so I was very happy for him, and they got Jamal Murray player
as well, you know, obviously played a big role in that. I
think he's a perfect compliment to Yoka's just because you know it as good as
the offense is that everyone's bogs down in a moment and Jamal can create his
offense and himself. Yeah, and that's I think the perfect fit. Yeah,
we saw that here in his year in Lexington, that's for sure.
Some of the other guys want to touch on that you coach a guy DeMarcus
Cousins. Yeah, it seems like you had a really strong relationship. He's
talked to some reporters and had things to say when you were hired. What
is your relationship with DeMarcus. I actually was in Taiwan training players and working
with a pro team, and I heard rumors he may go over there,
and this was, you know, months ago, and that was the last
time I spoke with them. And I had a lot of respect for DeMarcus
because when I went to Sacramento, I got there and he was training in
Las Vegas, and you know, they sent me to Las Vegas to hang
out and he was training an impact and in the offseason. He plays basketball
every day and I heard different things about de Marcus and it was like just
amazing the dedication to the game that he had. He really loves basketball and
it's just you know, it was just a pleasure with him. Is just
finding ways because he was so versatible to use him offensively. It's literally the
year in Sacramento. I think it was one of his better years. And
you know, you know at the g average about you know, twenty six,
twenty seven points a game, and it was it was fun to watch.
He had a connection to some other Kentucky guys too, specifically on that
team right because it was both Willie Colli Stunt and well Willie. Willie another
one ended up one of my favorites. Spent a lot of time with Willie,
and Willie would would get me in trouble because he worked with another coach,
but afterwards he'd always seek me out. And same thing that you know,
the management's office oversee the court and they always said I was working Willie
too much and pushing on and said it's not me. Willie's you know,
coming to me and asked to work. And he'd want to join in the
workouts with the guards, and so another one that I think, you know,
really had a passion for the game. And then I think that the
NBA experience is interesting because we mentioned Rondo there as well. Yeah, you're
probably not in that stage of his career developing him a lot, are you,
because he's Well, that's what people don't quite realize. Like I coached
in college for like fifteen years before I went to the NBA, and uh,
you know, Rondo was in a contract. You're in Sacramento. His
family wasn't there. My family wasn't there. They stayed in Denver, I
think my son's senior year of high school. And every night, you know,
Rondo would come back about nine o'clock and you know, his trainer within
ourself and three of us would be in the gym from about nine o'clock to
eleven eleven thirty every night, and so we're doing one on one stuff.
This trainer and I would take turns guarding him. And like people don't realize.
They don't think Rondo is a good shooter, like and drills, Rondo
is a great shop. Just the amount of time they put in on a
day to day basis and by the time they're thirty two thirty three. They're
they're so skilled in shooting, passing, tripling the basketball. So even a
veteran like like Rondo. I spent a lot of time with him, and
uh, like I said, he you know, was you know a student
of the game. And your first thing you mentioned anybody is you know,
they mentioned how smart he is. So did you talk to any of those
guys I have? I asked yesterday for his number. If anyone has this
number, they can give it to me. Another one I had was Patrick
Patrick Patterson the Clippers and just what a pro. Uh, you know,
his role there. Sometimes he played thirty minutes, sometimes he wouldn't play,
but it's work ethic never changed. Had a great impact on the team and
a great ability to you know, he became a great three point shooter later
in his career. Yeah. And and just you know, just a class
you know, pros pro. You mentioned working at out some players in Taiwan.
You haven't, I guess you know you when was your last year?
It was with the Clippers in the yes, when with Doc Robers. Yeah,
with so that that Since then, what have you been doing. I've
trained different players, I've coached in Mexico, U tried to make you know,
coaching and some adventures kind of put them together and trained different NBA players
and what is the well, what's coaching in Mexico Taiwan? Like where where
all did you travel? And did you have any funny? I loved it.
I enjoyed being in Mexico and coaching. Uh. And we had seven
Americans on the team Jaalen Tate in Arkansas, Smith from Arizona, so it's
good players. And in Taiwan, I was just kind of consulted with the
new Taipei Kings or in the finals right now. Uh and and train you
know, different different players as well. So it was a good experience.
Broadly speaking, in development, what are kind of your philosophies if that makes
sense, what are your goals? Like I said, it's just you.
You want what you do in developmental transfer to a game. That's basically the
end all and be all of it. You know, It's like it's it's
if you're working with players and it doesn't show up in the game, you
know, then you know, I don't think you're accomplishing your goal. What
have you seen major I mean there have been major changes in basketball as a
whole in your in your career since you started. What are what are some
things that you focus on now in training that weren't as biggest emphasis when you
started. Well, I think one of the biggest changes is, you know,
it's positionless basketball. It's you know, teams are playing five out offensively,
teams are playing faster, so you know, the you know, big
part of training is you know, training skill more shooting, IQ, passing,
h you know before it was a little bit more athleticism, playing with
bigger players, getting the ball inside. How much inside has Riley given you
in the transition to Yeah, no, and he's helped quite a bit with
it. And you know he uh, you know, just in all areas,
you know, from just where things are to to you know, uh,
the coaches everything, it's it's it's it's it's made it much easier transition,
just getting me set up on my computer and different things. You haven't
got any of his emails or anything. With the having a young roster,
a bunch of incoming freshmen, how exciting is that for you from a developmental
piece, you kind of get to shape these guys throughout this season. Yes,
players are are very advanced like the players were getting right now they've been
in the spotlights and you know they've been freshmen in high school and I've been
again just amazed with their ability. You know, our players we have are
very talented, you know, So it's it's it's been fun working with him.
I do want to take a minute and kind of we talked about the
Hall of Fame coaches you worked with, Jocho, were with a bunch of
players like Carmelo Anthony for many years. What was what was that like a
great score? You know, it's I had him younger in his career and
uh, you know, just you know, it was just a player that
you know, again that creates your offense. You couldn't guard him one on
one, so you know, we'd get the ball inside to him and it
would always cause two players to go to him, and he created for others.
So you know, it's basically the hubbub our offense and get score in
so many different ways. And then Marcus Camby was on that team. He
was well, again, very high IQ player, great passer. I think
he was defensive player the Year for US the year in Denver. So you
you fixed all the things coach kel got wrong when he was at Massachusetts another
one, Marcus one of one of the smartest players I've coached. Well,
what do you take do you how much do you learn from players? Oh,
immensely, especially at the NBA level. Of the difference coaching in the
NBA is you're you're coaching a Chauncey Bill Upsets, you know played for you
know five Hall of Fame coaches himself, and you know Larry Brown and et
cetera. So it's the schematic knowledge of NBA players is much higher than college
players. And you know, that's one of the biggest differences as well in
that in that career when we talked about the nuggets of things, you were
on some staffs that went through some transitions. We're talking about Carmelo him being
traded out, Alan iverson coming in. I mean, those are very different
dynamics you go through. What lessons do you learn from that when they're kind
of is a new roster you deal with because now, obviously as a new
coach you're dealing with a completely Yeah, I think that this I've been fortunate
and I don't know. I think ago sixteen of eighteen years I made the
playoffs here and I don't think my first year, we didn't make it one
year in Sacramento. Is I find when your your teams are successful, you
just kind of figure your team mode coach colleague and say, you know,
you go in there thinking these ten things are important, this is what you're
gonna do. When you figure out eight of them don't work and then these
two when you add three, it's is you know, players change, injuries.
Is the teams are able to figure it out. And sometimes an injury
makes your team better. Sometimes it hurts you. So when when you when
you figure out what works for your team, Uh, that's usually when you
have a good year. Is there a good example? Last one question for
you that you can think of that you draw on recently, You draw on
from the fact that it happened. You know this year you thought you were
going to be this particularly with one of those teams, and you ended up
being completely something different. Uh. Just your one thing was with DeMarcus and
Sacramento. You know it's like we when we're in Denver, we kind of
played you know, quote quote modern basketball. Then we played very fast space
the court you know, led the NBA in scoring. Uh, and we
just like to base an attack and and Sacramento that that didn't really work for
us is we were trying to get it and players are getting each other's way.
And we just figured out with the Marcus, if he did a you
know, DHO or set up pick and roll and and they iced it threw
it back, he was unstoppable. Any basic action with him in it couldn't
be guarded. And that was much better than spacing for us. And once
we figured that out, Marcus took off and our team did much better.
So I think, you know, a big part of coaching is just noticing
what works and what doesn't work. I look forward to watching you guys find
out what we're experience for this upcoming team, and you got to do that
pretty soon when you make that trip to candidate. Yeah quick. Thank you
very much,