Breaking down all the excess als. It's Steve Leverra and Jagan Salmis. This
is I Am the Ball on Fox Sports fourteen th Hey, welcome back to
winning the Ball here Fox Sports fourteen fiftie. I'm Steve. He's Jay got
a guy Jason with breaking news. Your music sucks. Hey, y'all,
you gotta turn on the button. Remember that which one per segue right there?
This one? Yeah, no, hit it. Okay, let's see
it. Well you got Trump the volume two. We got it all right,
I should criticize, okay. Um Arizona Women's Golf head coach Laura Lannello
wash Yeah. Ilanello was selected for the h w GCA's watch List for now
I'm the coach of the Year. Awesome, you know again. You know
she got her team hot at the end of the year. Yeah, you
know they're going to the NC DOUBLEA. So good for them. Yeah.
She's one of our favorites. Yeah, she's been she's fun on the show.
Ye, so yeah. Nick um McQuary has been named one of the
top of twenty five shortstops in the nation as semi finalists for Brooks Wallace Award.
He's a he's a little guy, and he's hit some homers out of
high corporate and I'm like, I don't know that I could hit a golf
ball out of high corporate. I know's he's you know, he's been a
really good player for Arizona. A shortstop and uh yeah one considering the top
shortstops. He's been there for a while, right, who does he I
think he's a senior. Yeah, because he's the long hair. Everybody's kind
of he's been there for a long time. I think, yeah, he's
been you know, kind of like a Hawaiian guy, right, yeah,
yeah. Um, League source confirms Wizard assant coach Um Joseph Blair any of
you for the Bucks head coach position. Um Blair has been with the Sixers,
Timberwolves and Wizards for the past a few seasons. Um. He actually
played college bought here at Arizona and pro ball in Europe. So Jay,
so I covered him for all those years. Rusta soul Judith was his number
one fan. Everywhere whoever he went, Judith was there. He's probably and
I'm just off the top of my head, one of the guys who've come
come the furthest in my time, in my time because Let's remember he was
a heck of a player. I think he even holds the record for a
field goal percentage for in a year career whatever. But at the end of
his career he was academically ineligible ever he had, he got suspended, blah
blah, didn't finish his year. He's come from this, from that to
this where he's there and he's already in the NBA for a long time now,
drafted in the second round, didn't get to play because of politics or
whatever. Had a great career. Um. But I was with somebody,
uh, somebody who's in the NBA. I won't say who because I don't
want to embarrass him, about three years ago, and he said, I
said, what about Joseph player. He says, he's gonna be somebody he's
got he knows he's got it. And I think if you, if you
talk to people who know Joseph, he's got that voice, he's got that
presence, the president. That's the important, the presidence, and he knows
he knows what to say at the right time. He it's it's BS,
but it's not BS. You know what I'm saying. No, And he
has it, and I'm thinking Joseph. He says, yeah, watch and
now I'm watching. Yeah, Well you look at you look at a guy
like Joseph and look in in a position like that. Appearance doesn't matter.
Yeah you're not. Only do you have to know what you're doing. You
have to look like you know what this is your dress? But you do.
But I mean, you look at a guy like Steve Kerr. You
know, he walks in the room, he's you know, he's sixty three
or six whatever, all right, but he's otherwise an unassuming guy. But
yet you see him walking the sidelines. You see his mannerisms, you know,
to put the microphone on him in a huddle. He looks and acts
like a coach. Yeah, and then you see other guys you go,
what the hell is that guy doing coaching? And those are the guys that
get fired, You jump from job ja but somehow they keep getting employed.
But you know, a guy like a guy like Joseph Blair. You can
picture Joseph walking up and down the sideline. Yeah, he's imposing, he's
big, he's six foot ten whatever, dresses you know. Well, yeah,
we know he's only been on the show once. Since I've been been
here. You know, and just a conversation with him, You're like,
how can you not be impressed by this? But right, no, no,
I know there's other things I'd like to say. But he was on
the show a few times with me before you came on the day of the
place. Uh, he won the title in the D League when he was
with the Viper in the back then. I think it was the D he
want with the Vipers. Very just knows how to handle people, right,
and and and who's the number one guy with that? Steve Kerr right handling?
Everyone says, uh did we? We talked about this maybe two weeks
ago with what's his name Jackson Jackson who had the team before, who had
a bunch of good players. Right, Okay, you're the coach, but
if you don't know how to handle a team, what's the point? Yeah,
well that was the conversation. She said, Well, Steve Kurs winning
with all of Mark Jackson's guys, Well, because Mark Jackson didn't win with
those guys. We just see it here, right, you have all the
talent, but you can't do any with it. What's the point? Yeah,
exactly, No, I hear you. And uh, you know,
you just get the sense from Joseph and I don't. That's the only time
I've ever talked Okay, the time we had him on the show, all
those years that he was here, I never really talked him. But um,
you know, you talk to him and you you sense that hit.
This is a guy who's been very busy learning the ropes, knowing the ropes,
just biding his time, you know, working on you know, on
NBA staffs. He did the G League thing, um and just really kind
of he did this almost been very patient and he did the thing with Sean
for a year. I mean, he's still a relatively young man, you
know. So you know, good luck to him. Good luck to him.
If he doesn't get this job, he will eventually bring through. Well.
Before we move on to another part of this is the word is also
out that Calvin Sampson as a as the interviewed for that job. He's,
uh, you know, I like, I've talked to Calvin more times than
I talked to Joseph Blair, But I like Calvin, Um, is he
a good college coach? Is he? Is he a better college coach?
And he'd be an NBA coach. He did go to the NBA as an
assistant for a while when he got in trouble with the NC double A.
But you know, Calvin said, and he's sixty eight years old, so
he's he's got miles. So we'll see what happens. But it'd be interesting
to see if he I mean, the Bucks are a good franchise, a
really good team, Joseph Blair would not be stepping into a building situation.
They would be They would be expected to be good right away, part of
part of coaching at that level, at any level. I think that Kingsbury's
would this is what he'd write it too in Phoenix. If you don't have
a presence in the room, and if you don't demand, demand, or
get the respect from the players, your toast, your toast. And he
came from college directly to the pro. He almost fell into the job,
right right, He didn't really you know what I'm saying? Yeah? Uh,
And how are you gonna be respected that way? Well again, let's
let's you know, let's go to the Dion Sanders example. Why why is
Deon Sanders getting all the attention that that he's getting for what he's doing in
Colorado months before they've even played a game, Because he has a presidence president
and he's got who he's got his cachet, right right, exactly, all
right. The Arizona men's golf team, uh ended up finishing in eighth place
in the Morgan Hill Regional Tournament. Um, they tied it for eighth place.
Um. The top five teams will be advancing for the championship game.
So that would have been that would have been my question. Did they qualify?
So alright, next run? I guess yeah, yeah, you know,
I think, you know, Jim Anderson's gotten his team to or program
to a point where they expect to, you know, at least get to
the nc you know, get to the national tournament every year. But you
know, they just didn't do They got off to a bad start and ultimately
they finished the fourteen strokes out of qualifying. Mississippi State, Brigham Young,
Florida State, Baylor, and Pepperdine. Well if i'd out of their region,
um and as as uh as um what's your name? You as?
Jason said, they they they finished in eighth place, so they didn't get
there, but you know, I think they're still probably happy with their season.
Yeah. Um. The Arizona Coyotes planned to build a new arena in
Tempe UM as a part of the two point one billion entertainment district. UM.
This was rejected by voters UM yesterday, UM the team plans on the
team said, if you its future will be evaluated by our owners in the
National Hockey League in the coming weeks. A lot of up said people up
in Phoenix on the sports side, you know, if you saw writers and
and people who we follow on social media. You know, but you know
what, UM, you put it up for a vote, you lose,
You take your lumps with it, you know, And that's the way it
is. That's you know, the majority of the people in temped didn't want
it, so they don't get it. It'll be interesting to see what,
uh, you know, what the NHL does, what the Coyotes do.
UM. If you know, there's a lot of there's a lot of been
a lot of discussion today that the Coyotes will will not only leave, but
they'll have to leave Arizona. Well because they don't have an arena. The
plane they're not going to take them back at the Footprint Center. That that
that was a relationship that didn't work very well UM, and they ended up
going to the Hilo River Arena way out there in uh in Glendale, and
now they don't have a place. They're playing in that little arena that a
hockey plays in. That's not a place where an NHL team ought to be
playing. So it'll be interesting to see what happens. The NBA Draft order
was announced yesterday. The top five teams that will be drafting. What are
the Detroit Pistons, Houston Rockets, um Poland Trailblazers, Charlotte Hornet's and San
Antonio Spurs The number one pick. So obviously we all, I think know
who the number one pick will be. Victor one biama U. How do
you guys think? O? There fourteen? Well, let's go to Victor
for a minute, okay, because you know they're they're I mean, they're
annointing this guy as even a better prospect than Lebron Ja Lebron, Michael,
you know all those guys. I'm like, wait a minute, wait a
minute. The guy is with seven five seven four seven five yea like one
hundred and fifty pounds. Yeah, okay, we saw what happened to Jeth
Holme Grin right, you didn't even get to play in this whole scene,
right, you know, there's a physical toll your body takes when you get
into the NBA. And I'm sorry, it's kind of like the Bryce Young
thing and the Kyler Murray thing. How I get that Victor weimbon Yama can
do things as a seven four seven five player that other seven footers can't do.
But what's it? What's the physical told that it's going to be exacted
from him when he starts out there, when he's out there banging around with
yok Yeah, that's because what the hell's gonna happen? Even guys like Yannis
when you came into the league, he was really really good on both sides
of the ball, but he had to you know, bulk up to really
be able to become one of the best players in the league. We saw
up in the chat this past season, Kevin Durrant even had to get a
little bit bigger, right, Like, you know, he's very talented and
both sides of the ball, but that physicality aspect of the game is still
going to a big portion of how he actually performed in the league. My
forms are as big as his, can I don't disagree with you, Jay,
Let me go to the other side of the poll, you have DeAndre
Aden, who's built like a Greek goddess, who can't do any of that
either. But he doesn't have Yeah, I mean yeah, but he's not
he's not he's not losing his you know, he's he's playing. He's not
getting hurt and getting his ass kicked physically. By that, I mean,
you know, getting hurt and stuff like that. He's just not any good,
right, you know, Or I shouldn't say that he doesn't have it.
He's just not as good as you would expect him to be with the
body and stuff that. My point to that is the body really doesn't If
you can play, you can play. Um. I mean, I mean
I haven't seen much of it except for high Yeah. No one puts bad
plays on your head, so you're gonna see the nice thing. Yeah,
So I'm excited. I think that Chet will have a nice career. We
saw Bradley, remember brad brad See, he had a nice career. Wasn't
great, wasn't bad great, but he was he had a lot more than
a cup of coffee seven eight years Um. Right. I think the hype,
like you said, the hype behind him is I think it's too much
like the standards he's being said to without even playing one second in the NBA.
Is I think is going to you know, kind of you know,
hurt his career in the long term, I believe. So, yeah,
we'll see, we'll see. I don't I don't, I don't agree.
I don't agree with Jay's philosophy. Yeah, okay, but I get it.
I get what he's saying, right, Okay. Um, the Blazers
actually intended trade the number one three overall pick in the draft to try and
build a championship team around Damian Lillard. So that again, the Blazers intended
trade throughout number three pick you try and build it to get a bunch of
players, of players, they don't want Damian Lillard to leave, right,
So they're gonna try this again. Who else do they? I mean,
they have have a couple of good players, but no one that's like,
you know, going would really helped them. I think that's what they're drafting,
right exactly. Yeah, So we'll see. I mean, they're just
trying to appease Dame. Basically, they don't want them to, you know,
request for trade and leave. So the mind hurt when C. J.
McColeman to give it their head had a dodge. Yeah, they had
the chances to, um, you know, win a championship. They just
you know, came up short a fortune that one year against the Warriors where
um, I think Kevin Duran was hurt and it was just Dame c J
versus claiming occurred and you know they came up short. They got they got
swept. So yeah, yeah, we'll see. Um. The Champions League
league is finally said for June tenth. It's going to be between Man City
and inter Milan. Um. Yeah, yes, think about that soccer.
They don't okay, Yeah we had the soccer last time. Yeah, okay,
um, so it we really are. Some Phoenix Suns news, Chris
Paul is expected to open up next season as the starting point guard for the
team. According to Chris What's What's today May to May seventeenth. Yeah,
that's what he says on May seventeenth. Yeah, Chris Paul, Okay,
yeah, we'll see. Um do you guys want him to come back as
the starting point guard or do you guys feel like I look, I don't
really care, but I but I think that on the state, I believe
they need to move on. Okay, I really do what we what did
we say all year? All year? At least maybe the last three months.
Phoenix is gonna do well. If if and I said if, I
hate that word, if if Chris Paul stays healthy, and if what's his
name stays stays healthy? Ken if didn't if didn't work out right? Yeah?
If and that's if this if this, if you have to used the
word if, Yeah, you're done exactly and he got hurt and once again,
so I think it would be best for them to move on. But
we'll see what they do. Um James Harden plans to decline his player option
and for this off season and see a four year deal with the six Ers
or some other team if you know they're willing to pay him that. So
would you guys think you I know we talked about it earlier in the show
by him possibly going to Houston, But do you guys think a team will
be willing willing to give him a long term contract? Well, somebody will.
How old is he? Oh, I'm not sure he's gonna be about
thirty eight or two. Somebody'll give it to him. But you know what,
I wouldn't pay James hardy, Hey, we better go. You don't
want it because we're gonna get you. Were running out of time. Yeah,
so let's go. She'll be calling in a couple of minutes, so
we'll have her talk about a lot of things about what it takes to put
on a final four. Yeah right, and she's she's in the middle of
it, so all right, let's take that break. We'll better fact.
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I mean, I heart radio wife. This is I Am the Ball with
Steve Rivera and Jay Gonzalez on Fox Sports fourteen fifty. Hey, welcome back
to O the Ball here on Fox Sports fourteen fifty. I'm Steve Rivera.
He's Jacon's Austen on the phony of Jay Perry, President and CEO of the
Phoenix NCWA Men's Final Four Posts Committee. Jay, how are you doing?
I am fantastic and ready to get to this Men's Final Four party started.
You have about ten months I think is it going to be crazy? Are
you okay? And contemporating it as you go along? How far along are
you we? You know, we've been planning for several months after getting the
bid back in twenty eighteen. But as you said, we've got about three
hundred and twenty five days to go, and so we are pacing well.
But it will it will definitely get to be a fever pitch the closer we
get. Yeah, well, we're talking to off air. You've you've been
You've done this for two super Bowls down in uh or up in Phoenix or
in Glendale. Are there similarities to all of this in terms of the magnitude
of the event? The super Bowl obviously big deal, Final Four huge deal.
When when you compare the two events, where are they similar and where
are they very different? There are a lot of similarities because the reason Arizona
to host major events like a super Bowl and a Men's Final four and then
a women's Final four coming up in twenty twenty six is because they do create
so much economic impact and community impact throughout the state and really to put us
on the map, you know, in terms of right there's global exposure and
put us on the map as a world class destination. So those are the
same. Some of the differences are as you know, the Men's Final Four
is four teams and two competition dates, you know, a Saturday and a
Monday next April sixth and eight, and so it does have a different flavor
at the collegiate level, and so it's kind of fun to embrace that as
we get a little bit closer. So how do you know, having been
to the two Super Bowls and now this, how do you know if you've
done a good job? And I know that's kind of a weird question,
but less complaints, a lot of praise. How do you know what you
did? But that's exactly it. So as you know, people are not
afraid to give feedback, and so I'm to show actually, you know,
you know what I'm talking about. So we get a lot of qualitative feedback
you know, before the event, during the planning stage in the case of
Super Bowl, from the NFL or in the case of the Men's Final Four
from the NC Double A, and then after the fact, you know,
really coming out of Super Bowl, there was just such high praise for how
the state operated, how all the events went, how public safety was handled.
We really just from start to finish there was so much positive feedback.
That's kind of part one, and then part two is we do a lot
of measurement. You know, we create and have an economic impact study.
We measure, you know, in the number of CEOs that came to Arizona
and are they going to bring their business here? So there's a lot of
metrics that go into it as well. And it was a it was a
record breaking super Bowl and worked see the same for the Men's Final Four.
Okay, so back when you did the first super Bowl that was twenty fifteen,
you said, yeah, the first one. When you stepped into that
job, at what point or was there a point where you thought, Holy
Kyle, this is way bigger than I can get my arms around. How
do you manage that thought process for you to not get overwhelmed by what has
to be done to put on, say a super Bowl. We're a final
four? Sure? A great question. And it's so funny because when it
hit me is when I was doing a sight visit in twenty thirteen to the
Super Bowl in New Orleans, and I saw all of the ancillary events that
were taking place, and then we went into the stadium and the game was
happening, and you know, midway through the lights went out. Oh I
remember that. Yeah, and so I am thinking to myself, we have
to keep the lights on too, something that had never occurred to me.
So that definitely spent a message right of how you need to have your backup
in your contingencies. And so from there, I mean the beauty of it
was the chairman of the board is the president of Salt River Project, which
is an our company. So it all worked out when we got to Arizona
in twenty fifteen. But then from there, you just take this enormous project
plan and you just approach it in fite size pieces, right day by day,
month by month. And what it takes is all the support from around
Arizona. You know, whether it's elected officials, it's business leaders, it's
tribal leaders, it's media. I mean, it's it's a team effort to
host one of these major events. So don't hang up the phone on just
give me a leeway on this question. So did you did you participate or
help out in seventeen with the final four there? And I go this question
for this reason, Glendale has grown so much since then it has that great
area with the casino now a lot of things to do. In seventeen,
the final four was separated, it would there downtown or there places where in
Orleans like you were San Antonio, it's all in one place. Is there
a chance to do that maybe in one place in Phoenix or in Glendale.
What we love about these major events, and I'm not going to hang up
on you, sow, what we love is that Arizona has so many great
communities and they each have a different personality, right whether it's Tucson, or
its Phoenix, or it's Gustal or it's Glendale. And so what we love
is really introducing our visitors as well as our locals to all those different communities.
And so while it may feel like they're separated, it does allow us
to really move people around and let them experience the entire state, you know,
before the event and after the event, and the Grand Canyon and the
Catalina Mountains, whatever it is. I mean, we love showcasing all of
that with these major events. So so when you've got as you mentioned,
you've got four teams coming in, they'll be here for you know, close
to a week. Um, where does is there like a line drawn between
what you as the host committee does in preparation for all of this and then
what's firmly in the hands of the NC Double A and what they do and
how they run or who runs the actual show. I'll just say I worked.
I worked at the Final four. I work at NC Double A tournaments
all the time as a volunteers, and I'll be up for this when Doug
Tamara is a good friend of mine. But I see the operation behind the
scenes and how put together it is, right, it's it's well organized,
and but there's there's a There has to be a point where what the host
committee does and all the work it does in terms of you know, events
and stuff like that, and then what the NC Double A does to actually
do the games. Is there a line? There is there? Just you
guys work together on all of it. You know what we work together on
all of it. I mean it's highly integrated between the host Committee, the
NCAA and then the host university is Arizona State, right, And we'll come
back to the universities in a minute. And so we have been, as
they said, planning for months. We have monthly meetings with the ncuble A,
they come to town and we you know, go through the project plan,
if you will, and the timelines, and we do divide and conquer,
right because ultimately the NCAA and Arizona State, I mean, they run
the game operations the day of the game on the court, right, they
are experts at that, right. The host committee doesn't need to be involved
in that, okay. But frankly, everything else leading up to it,
whether it's the fan fest at the Phoenix Convention Center, or it's how do
we bring in the visiting teams, you know, the airport logistics, the
buses, I mean, all those things we worked together on. Got it,
got it? Okay? All right? So you were down in Tucson
to speak to a group. So if you're going to highlight the rest of
the state, I'm sure Tucson is going to be highlighted as well, exactly.
I mean, Tucson is such an important community to us. Obviously,
Wildcat Country is going strong in Tucson and we today I was down with the
Tucson Metro Chamber, so it's over. You know, a few hundred businesses
in Tucson and they were having their business summit in Expo and so I got
to speak to them about major events and why we do them for the state
and how it really accelerates our business growth and our resident growth. And obviously
it's a big giant commercial for Old War. And we also want to make
sure that the U of A is involved, right U of A, GCU
n AU. We want all of our Division one schools to be involved in
showcase. As I said the state. So, so, what was your
message to the business folks down here, Amy, What are you asking them
to do or what would you like to see them do to participate in some
form or another in the Final four and just be a big part of it.
What was your message to them? Sure, I think first and foremost,
we want fans to be involved and come to all these ancillary events that
we create surrounding the games on Saturday and Monday. So we want fandom to
be energized and excited about participating in the men's Final four next year and then
the women's Final four and twenty six. So first and foremost fandom. We
have a lot of volunteers that come from around the state to work the events
and the games, and so we'd love to have people volunteer. We also
get businesses involved in a number of different ways. We have one business program
that is for diversely owned businesses and they get the opportunity to bid on contract
associated with events around Super Bowl and the Final Four and sponsorship, and we
include nonprofits. So it's really a matter of, you know, figuring out
how people want to plug in. So this is not a question for me,
but one of our listeners says, how crazy is that going to be
when Arizona's at the Final four? Diction. Of course, they're very hopeful,
They're always open. Do you know what we should be hopeful? I
mean, I think that it would be fantastic, right, I mean Arizona
has one one championship with Loot at the helm Um, so you know,
anything possible based on what we saw at the Final four in Houston, I
think so, yeah, very true. Fantastic, Yeah, very true.
Well, and I think I actually the last one here. I think fans
were incredibly disappointed because there's a field that Arizona should have been at that Final
four and weren't. So but right when you mentioned a few things, and
it's like I'm trying to wrap my head around everything that has to take,
Like you just talked about things like security and traffic in those kinds of things.
I mean, how again, how do you pull all that together?
You say, you have a project plan and are there just a lot of
people that are that take those things and run with them or how does that
work to get all these aspects of running this type of event together? Yeah?
Sure, yeah, sure, it's a great it's a great point.
And so I have a full time staff that's now working on this at the
Host Committee. And so think of us as really the you know, hub
of the of the wheel. And then there's spokes around the state and around
the valley that you know, we have a public safety spoke, we have
a hotel spoke, we have a media spoke, we have a marketing spoke,
and then we incorporate, um, you know, the subject matter experts
if you will, from around Arizona, and then that's who we tap the
NCAA into throughout the planning process. An as, So, what's the next
step, Like I said, you have about ten months, you said,
three hundred some days left before the event. What's the priorities now? And
I think Andy send me a note about tickets deadlines coming up? Yes,
and so we do want to make sure that our locals have an opportunity for
tickets, and so there's a ticket application process that ends the end of this
month, so May three first, and so we are directing everyone to go
to Phoenix Final four dot com and the ticket application process and it just like
click on that and you can sign up for tickets and then the NCAA does
a random drawing and so folks will know if they're selected by early fall to
get the tickets. And you know, obviously we want to make sure that
as many locals get a chance at this as possible. So it's Phoenix Final
four dot com. I think in the past, if I'm correct, they
had to find a pay in advance and if they didn't get it to get
refunded or is that wrong? That's exactly right. So you pay two hundred
or fifty dollars per ticket and you can, you know, put in for
up to four tickets and then there's a twenty five dollar processing fee and so
you get fully refunded if you don't get the tickets, minus the handling fee.
And if you do get the tickets, then you're they're yours. Didn't
you get charged? Okay, Okay, what are you looking most forward to
with this? You again, you've done Super Bowl, so you're not going
to be like intimidated or probably in awe. But when you do, you
know, when the final four comes around, you know what are you look
looking most forward to? As as as as it's unfolding. So I love
how Arizona shines on the global stage. And so when all of our local
stakeholders come together and I mentioned you know, many of them earlier, and
work together and just roll up the red carpet for our visitors and for our
locals, and people come to Arizona and they just have such a great time
and great memories around sport and around you know, the game of college basketball.
I mean, there's just nothing better than that, and people will remember
it forever. Like that's kind of part one. And then all those positive
impacts that we get to create here on Arizona around these major events. It's
it's really meaningful, and it accelerates things that we wanted to do otherwise for
our state. Right whether it's updating or airport or um remodeling hotels or you
know, whatever it might be. It accelerates all those business initiatives. Super
super Jay. Well, thanks for joining us. We'll hope to talk to
you again as we get closer. This is exciting Steve and Jay. I
appreciate you having us on and we look forward to talking more about the men's
final four. Great, right, great to hear for you. Thank you,
Andy. Uh, take care, it's uh, it's about we got
to take a break real quick. But interesting stuff. I mean, you're
going to be cover, You're gonna be doing it. I usually go to
it, so, um, well there's some nuts stories, but I just
you know, there's since we both experienced, let's let's just talk about that
a little bit after the rig. Okay, yeah, right, go very
bad. If you're an Arizona men's basketball fan, you know it's been successful
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Security dot Net. This is I on the Ball with Steve Rivera and Jay
Gonzalez on Fox Sports fourteen fifteen. Subscribe now to the podcast on the iHeart
Radio Whip just surgeony I on the Ball. Hey, welcome back to twenty
on the Ball, Hero Sports fourteens to the Earth. Steve Tuesday, Jason
with us today seventeen minutes. Give us a call five two old four one
six seventy four forty. Uh you wanted to continue the conversation. We have
a couple of breaking news too, Yeah, you want to go to the
breaking news? First? Um, we didn't talk about the UA recruit.
Oh yeah, I guess we should do that. And then the Kleb love
thing. Right, so we go past real quick, a couple of these
things. Um. First of all, uh again U, it was announced
on social media that uh, Tommy Lloyd has another another commitment from another overseas
player. His name. I don't know if you should even try to say
it? Go ahead? Did you do with it? Um? I can't
find I posted? Hold on it's um it's uh Polis Polius Paulius Maurus m
U R A U S K A S. Yeah, he's he's a six
foot kid six foot eight kid out of also out of Lithuania. Um so
another another year old guy again. You know, you see some responses to
this when he's not getting enough American guy, YadA, YadA, YadA.
You know, a while back he groupist that he wasn't getting any guys,
and now that he is, and you're still unhappy, So get the hell
out of here. Just unhappy people will always be unhappy people, exactly.
And then word is out that Caleb loved and Michigan point guard I'm not mission.
The North Carolina point guard who went in the transfer portal committed to Michigan
is now not going to Michigan and he's back in the port You wouldn't know
what the reason why no admissions. Oh they wouldn't let him in. So's
there's yeah, so I don't know if he'll be allowed to get in here,
right right right? So so anyways, um so there's there's those couple
of things. Um, this just came up, and we'll talk about final
fours and stuff like that. This just came up though. Um. Jason
Sheer posted this answer to a question by Dave Hekey. I don't know where
this question right, I don't know if it's an interview he did or that
somebody did. But it was a question to Dave, and it said,
and what are your hopes for your conference as you move into the new phase?
And he said, I'm sure to say it because it might change tomorrow,
but we're faced with a new and ever changing world in conference alignments,
adjustments will have to be made, but I know that we will land in
a very good spot, certainly the hope. And who knows, whenever you
print, the result may be different than the hope. But would like to
be with the PAC twelve and continue the great tradition of the conference. But
if not, there will be a new landscape and a new opportunity for the
University of Arizona. I mean it's about hope. We've been hearing right that,
you know, and I think that's sort of been the hope of everybody.
If you're not going to the PAC twelve, you better have a you
better have a plan B. And it sounds like they might have. Let's
take this call, oh cost back? Yeah, yeah, give us a
call back. We'll we'll try we'll try and grab it before um. Anyways,
um we're in there. Does it say that they're going to the Big
twelve, doesn't Somebody who's respond said, Oh, so, I guess we're
going to the Big twelve. Those who are unhappy will always remain unhappy.
Those who don't listen will always not listen. Oh my gosh, All right
again I get I get so frustrated with the people on social media. Get
out. Let's take this. How you're on the air and night in the
ball. Yeah, this is out on Phoenix. How are you guys doing
good? All? How are you? I'm all right, I you know,
I haven't called for a while, but yeah, I've been watching,
you know, seeing from me pulling all these kids from bliss Awnia, and
I'm not sure what to think he's doing because I don't know if any of
them can play these big guys. You know. It's kind of a little
head scratching, to be honest. Yeah, So you you're not believing in
Tommy not not in his recruiting. It's it's there's there's a word that starts
was asked and ends with kay that I'm thinking about when it comes to it
right now, because I'm just being impressed by, you know, so a
few of them players. Yeah, but these his strategy to get big guys.
That's like they're gonna sit on the bench forever. I just don't understand.
So there's gins and ends. Can I buy a vowel? Could I
do? Uh? Well? Did you shrure to me asking did you trust
Sean when he was doing his recruiting? Oh? He I woke it.
We gotta give him the devil his due. Literally, his was out standing
most of the time. He had a lot of you know, and that's
what Tommy won with Tommy one with Shawn's likes. So he's home guys,
he's getting I'm I'm not sure he's faster. Is he ever gonna do anything?
He's sent as a rail. It looks like, you know, sorry,
but he's kind of let me ask you are you? Are you not?
Uh? Are you? How can I say this? Are you not
aware? Because you've never seen them play, you don't know who they are,
and you saw the other guys, So you feel more comfortable or you
Yeah, you feel more comfortable. Yeah, you know they got more you
know. It's just like, uh, I know he was after the guy
for the kid from San Dieo State that they didn't get who looked really good.
Would have been great, and you have a uniform. But unfortunately didn't
get what kind of I thought you're players that they're They don't pan out a
lot, and even Tabella's who had a lot offense, at least had an
offensive game. I mean, he is a lot of parts of hit game
that we're never there. So I'm just always skeptical. You know, some
of the guys had gone Baggy got like if he gets another SA bonus,
that's a different store. But I don't know about the ones he's pulling in
right now. Yeah, well you did you do you know for a fact
the San Diego Kid is not coming. I didn't see that. I thought
he was announcing that we heard on Saturday. Oh I thought I saw somebody
because I thought because they got this, they keeping these I hear, like,
I thought these are the consolation Croc didn't get this kid. I didn't.
I haven't seen that a sort something. You know, you read Twitter,
and sometimes you don't know what's the truth and what's the uh you know
what's not not true? San Diego Kid comes in Saturday, or we'll make
it Saturday. So oh god, they need him, Oh they need him
so bad. So we'll see what happens. I don't. I don't um
I understand what you're saying. Because you haven't seen these guys. You don't
know how good they are, whether they're skinny or fat or whatever, or
fast or slower. Well, we'll see when we see. But I you
don't know the unknown, you don't know what. You don't know, so
pretty much that's true. It's just you know the first the results, like
I said, because Vaster came in so hyped up and then he I mean
he did, he did it, looked like he did it. He's the
project, you know, maybe, and that's what project not good, and
he is. I think he's gonna be fantastic. I think all these so
called projects that you you labeled are going to be fine down the road.
I know we're into immediate satisfaction, and I'm not here to alibi coach Tommy
Lloyd, but I think that you'll be okay with what he has. What
okay means I do not know? Right Well, that makes him feel better.
I appreciate that. I think he kind of was hurt by coming in
with so much talent and winning so much, and now he's kind of it's
like if he doesn't have that. Everyone's gonna say, you know, he's
he couldn't he's kind a little bit how fun it's a double or to win
that much in initial how I used to be a car salesman. One day,
one month, I sold seven cars. He told me send sel ten.
The next they said self fifteen. The next I got out of the
business. You understand what I'm saying. Well, I might have to read
your blu Please do you put out another. I'm looking forward to thank you
all. Thanks for the call. Appreciate you listening. You know, if
he's not how it is, that's where we are, you know, because
you got you got guy like al who liked Sean Miller's recruiting. And I
didn't want to you know, I'm happy that he called, but I wanted
to say, so did you like when these guys would come in here for
a year and leave didn't show and yeah, and so you know, I
mean, it's a matter of what, you know, what matters to you.
You don't want to piss off the guests. I didn't want to piss
off the guests. I really didn't. I have some apply for you.
I know you're I know you're wondering. You know what happened to me,
But you know, what do you do? But you know it's well,
we don't know though, right, I don't know. But we think Henry
Weiser is going to be good. I think but he certainly he showed flashes
of it last year. But you know he didn't play because he wasn't doing
what Tommy needed him to do to be able to play, you know.
And and it was the same situe with the Dama ball. Who's now gone?
All right, high, you're on the air and on the ball.
How's it going today? What's up? Ryan? Well? Just calling about
you know, the recruiting thing. Um, you know. The one thing
and I've said past is one good thing about the European players. Okay,
they don't have the ego like the American players. And everybody complains if you
get why aren't we getting five star players? And one of the problems you
get the five star players they're gone in the year. Yeah. One good
thing about the European players. Most of them stay two three years and you're
able to develop them right right, And then you know, and it's also
everybody says, well, Sean Miller had all these guys, Well, Sean
Miller didn't win with these guys. Exactly. You're gonna write the tale of
my book, my next exactly. That's what we've been talking about. How
are you gonna make these people happy? You? You? You set the
example perfectly. You get you get good talent to jump the ship, you
get them. I'm gonna stay here longer you cry about it. I mean,
at some point there's a medium here. Yeah, making everybody happy thing
too. I was reading today about that kid who went from Michigan to Kansas.
Yeah. Well, he's the first person I've seen admit that he went
for the n i OL money. Yeah, yeah, yeah, and he
did, and you know he did you know, Yeah, that's kind of
that underground thing. Yeah. Well, you know. And also to the
kid who went from Carolina to Michigan who didn't qualify grade wise, you know,
um, well that's not so, that's not surprising that he got to
play with Carolina and not have to go to school. They are pretty good
about giving away freeze free diplomas, sen letters to our coloradoe to us.
He's not lying. No, he's not lying. He does evidence. He's
not lying. You're not lying, right? Well, no, I mean
when what's her name? When they got in trouble, that guy said,
I got a degree. I didn't even know how to read after four years
exactly all right, right, but you know, and they said, well
it's available to every student. I don't think that was, but it was,
yeah, exactly. Okay, Hey, Bran, thanks the whole bunch.
Man, appreciate it. You got about six minutes. All good points.
I mean, and they'll make some good points too. And look,
the knock on the European guys, and particularly the guys that that you know
that uh Tommy Lawrders brought in is that they're not tough enough. You know
what they're saying, Well, you got it, you know, because they're
they're more finesse kind of players. But you know they you know, they
had they played with the beauty of the game. Wait a second, So
Sean brought in guys who were tough enough to well, you're right, you're
right, I don't remember. Maybe prepare them. Okay, we had five
to ten years, twelve years. We've got one guy, Solomon Hill is
tough guy. That was That was that was that was when you were a
young son. That was a Sean that was a lout time of type of
sean thing. Yeah, okay, so but he was a finesse guy too.
He was a smart guy played in the league. You know what I'm
saying, right, Arizona's got a history of not correct be tough enough.
This is just not a one coach there. I mean, you know,
when you think about the remember the Lout's first couple of tournament teams that got
blasted by by Charles Barkley and right, and just beat the hell out of
them physically. And I've said historically they're not They're not a tough group.
They're basketball playing. Yeah, exactly. All right. Hey, so going
back to you know, the final four stuff, I think you know you've
been behind the scenes of a million of them because you've covered up however many
you know, four or five hundred of them right now, and uh,
you know, and I've worked a few, worked the NC double A ternams
and stuff. I don't I don't know that anybody realizes how much work,
how much working well without questions, and how much work it entails. And
it was funny because I've worked a number of regionals, first and second rounds,
but I had not worked a final four until the last one. In
Phoenix, and the step up in the amount of stuff that has to be
done and that they have to take care of, and then the the staff
that they bring to do those things. People would be shocked as to what
it takes you put on a Final four. That's why I asked the question,
you know, where's the dividing line between what a host committee does?
You know what the NC double A does. She mentioned the host schools that
you know, Arizona State is the whole school. I mentioned Doug Tamara who's
their sports information director. He's in charge of the media operation. And I
remember UM at one of at one of the previous UH it used to be
that you had to host a regional the year before you host the Final four,
sort of as a dry run. And the regional that that they hosted
at the Cardinal Stadium the year before UH seventeen the Final four. Mark Brand
who was he was the sports information guy. The notebook he had to carry
for just the media operation, it was literally six inches there and he was
hauling that thing around. I felt like, dude, you need a backpack
or a cart when you think about when you think about that, it was
just that piece of it and now how you know you have to with the
way the magnitude of the event. Now you know there's seventy thousand people you
know at these uh the Final four, Now it's a twenty five or thirty
thousand. No, that's like there's not a wedding anymore or birthday party.
So the one thing the question I tried to be nice with and kind of
funny with was the was the location right? And you've been to? Well,
you went to this. I've been to eighteen of them, and the
one in New York was horrible because the game was played in New Jersey.
We had to get in the bus. People in New York didn't give a
crap about the final four. We uh. Places where you have to go
centralize San Antonio, New Orleans, the one in Charlotte, the one in
the Indie all place, one big party, the one in Phoenix people.
The one complaint I heard was downtown they had the fan fast by all the
concerts. And then in Glendale they get in your car and then have you
taken that trip to get across town? Yeah, it ain't. It ain't
easy. It's like an hour to get across town. So you can enjoy
walk around and see this thing. Can That's that's my only That's why I
asked the question. Well, like like I think I said before, you
know, I work in that four I drove home after the after after each
day. Sure, I just went home because it was going to take me
as long to get to hotel in the middle of Phoenix exactly. I just
you know, high tailed it out of there. And and and to this
day, I kind of feel like we missed a lot of of the event
because we came home and we're not you know, we're not part of it.
And what we're gonna do it differently this year. Um, but uh,
you know, I'm looking forward to it. But that that that's a
tough that's a tough deal, uh, you know, for it to be
as separated as it is. And her answer was a good one. They
want to kind of share the wealth and everything going around. But for the
fans, the fact that well, the fact of the matter is they don't
have the facilities out in Glendale. True, that's they need to have to
be able to do all this stuff. True, but have you been out
there? But the state it's plenty of room, and the new casino and
just the sin so so many things going on out there, you think,
But I get it. I get it. The thing about the travel,
like you said, it just as as long as it takes you to get
from downtown to two, it's almost an amount of time it takes you downtown
to get to Glendale because of the traffic. Yeah, no doubt so.
So it's a great event. Oh, it's a fantastic event. Yeah,
being fans all over the from all over. Yeah, wouldn't it be cool
that Arizona plan event. And we thought we thought that was going to happen,
and was it twenty seventeen seventeen, we thought that was gonna happen.
I remember being I was angry, you know, because I worked the regional
in San Jose when it was lost to Xavier. I'm literally on the court,
yeah, and I I wanted I wanted to go beat up Alonzo Trier
on the court right there. Wait a sec. Okay, they get by
the game, They're not getting there. In the end, they were not
going to beat Gunzagging right and to the to l to the point that we
kind of wanted to make with all that Gunzaga team was a bunch of twenty
four year olds a bunch of men, a bunch of men that we're gonna
beat the hell out of Larry marking In and Alonzo Trier and Raley Alkins.
We're all to twelve year olds, right, you know what? That's high
sort of um? What's the right word? Came to Griffs with the fact
that they didn't get there was that a I don't know if they would have
beaten Gonzaga day, Yeah, it would have been a heck of a game,
but who knows. A good show today, good show today, fun.
Thank you Jay Perry for joining us. And John Pronan, let's go
buy a piece of his team. He would like a horse, right like
the horse? Okay, tomorrow, back tomorrow. Dave hk will be be
joining us tomorrow, and I think I think we've got John Wilmer so we
can talk some Pack twelve stuff. Be sure to come back tomorrow