Speaker 1: It's time for Coffee and Company, fueled by Thornton's on
Speaker 1: Sports Talk seven nine day. Now here's Nick Coffee.
Speaker 2: All right, let's get it started hour number two here
Speaker 2: on a Thursday afternoon, as we come to you live
Speaker 2: from Charlotte to the ACC basketball tip off. Currently Pat
Speaker 2: Kelsey wrap it up his live television segment, I believe,
Speaker 2: I assume that's on the ACC Network Extra, maybe on
Speaker 2: the ACC Network itself, so he will be over here shortly.
Speaker 2: But again we're here for the next couple of hours,
Speaker 2: taking you up until six o'clock, and you know, very
Speaker 2: heavy basketball today on the show as far as just
Speaker 2: you know, us being here and we're gonna talk to
Speaker 2: coach Kelsey coming up in just a minute. But I
Speaker 2: do want to remind you that on Saturday, we've got
Speaker 2: you covered for all your game day coverage for Louisville football.
Speaker 2: Pregame show will start at two thirty with kickoff being
Speaker 2: at three thirty. We'll go for an hour. It's the
Speaker 2: Louisville Football Pregame Show, hosted by my self, Nick Coffee,
Speaker 2: and it is sponsored by Jefferson Animal Hospital as well
Speaker 2: as Pella Windows and Doors of Central Kentucky. And I'm
Speaker 2: anxious isn't the right word. I don't really know what
Speaker 2: word to use to describe sort of how I'm feeling
Speaker 2: about the postgame show. Obviously, you never know what you're
Speaker 2: going to be reacting to until you get a result,
Speaker 2: and with the show starting quite literally as soon as
Speaker 2: the game ends. Sometimes I start those shows kind of
Speaker 2: processing live on air, like you know how I feel.
Speaker 2: Sometimes it's pretty easy, like sometimes you know, these game
Speaker 2: these shows will start, and I knew that Louisville was
Speaker 2: gonna end up winning big because you know, it was
Speaker 2: Jacksonville State, it was Austin p But then you know,
Speaker 2: you have these last two weeks where you're watching it
Speaker 2: till the very end, and you know, I mean, the
Speaker 2: Notre Dame game one was was was really just I
Speaker 2: mean I was almost speechless, just because you still were
Speaker 2: there with a chance to win. You were super close,
Speaker 2: and yet you know, you came up short. And then
Speaker 2: with SMU, even if they would have been able to
Speaker 2: hold on to win, we would have to give them
Speaker 2: some credit for, you know, finding a way to win
Speaker 2: again and being able to overcome the mistakes that they
Speaker 2: had made. But you know, they didn't win, and It
Speaker 2: was just a really disappointing you know. I think we
Speaker 2: went from being kind of stunned frustrated against Notre Dame
Speaker 2: to really disappointed and having to realize that at that
Speaker 2: point in the season that this team has already taken
Speaker 2: some l's that have really adjusted probably what expectations are
Speaker 2: for most fans. And now you've got Virginia where you
Speaker 2: are supposed to win. I mean, let's be real, there's
Speaker 2: really not a ton to gain here. I mean, you do,
Speaker 2: I mean, what you're gaining is you're avoiding a three
Speaker 2: game losing streak, and you are, you know, getting a
Speaker 2: second win in conference play. But you know, it's what
Speaker 2: you're supposed to do. Virginia, make no mistake about it.
Speaker 2: Despite their four and one, despite their four and one start,
Speaker 2: this is still a game that Louisville on paper, is
Speaker 2: supposed to win and should win. And I hope that
Speaker 2: that's the case. But if in fact that's not what
Speaker 2: ends up happening, the post game show will certainly be
Speaker 2: interesting on Saturday, and we'll have it for you again,
Speaker 2: so as soon as it ends, as soon as the
Speaker 2: game is over, we will go live right here on
Speaker 2: Sports Talk seven ninety. It's the Louisville Football postgame Show
Speaker 2: presented by Alex Rwhite, Lawyer's suit Distracted driver dot Com.
Speaker 2: So you know we'll see I mean, are you Are
Speaker 2: you with me on Saturday?
Speaker 3: John? I am with you on Saturday?
Speaker 4: Yes, yeah, I mean it was a very interesting vibe
Speaker 4: last week. And I wasn't with you for the Notre
Speaker 4: Dame game because of Louder than Life. But yeah, I
Speaker 4: can't imagine it being worse than what I was here for.
Speaker 4: But apparently it was based on what you were saying
Speaker 4: it was.
Speaker 2: It was something and hopefully we can we can avoid
Speaker 2: that on Saturday. But joining us now, Coach Kelsey here
Speaker 2: at acc tip off. Yeah, I just grabbed the headset. There,
Speaker 2: We're good to go. It's up coach. How we doing?
Speaker 1: Hey?
Speaker 5: Nick?
Speaker 6: How are you buddy?
Speaker 2: I'm doing well, man. I appreciate you making time for us.
Speaker 2: And then you've got a lot of interviews to be
Speaker 2: doing today. I'll ask just a few of them. Yeah,
Speaker 2: I mean it's NonStop. You go straight from live television
Speaker 2: to hear do you do you?
Speaker 3: And Joy?
Speaker 2: This is a coach? Or does it seem like you
Speaker 2: know work? I'm sure what you do every day is
Speaker 2: a lot of work, but it's probably something you love.
Speaker 2: Is this something you love? You can be honest, Yeah,
Speaker 2: I actually do. Okay, I mean, obviously I believe you.
Speaker 6: At this point of our season, like where we're at,
Speaker 6: like my mind is at the Keeper Center, My mind
Speaker 6: is on recruiting. My mind. You know, there's a lot
Speaker 6: of things going on. So obviously when you prioritize as
Speaker 6: a coach, this might not be the number one thing
Speaker 6: that I would have on my list for today. But
Speaker 6: doing these interviews, selling our program, promoting Louisville basketball, I
Speaker 6: enjoy those things. Well, some coaches may say it's a
Speaker 6: little bit of a necessary evil. I don't feel that way,
Speaker 6: whether it's being on campus and throwing T shirts out
Speaker 6: to students or doing interviews or speaking engagements. I mean,
Speaker 6: I'm a human being and I only have so much
Speaker 6: bandwidth and can't buy, locate and be two places at once.
Speaker 6: But it is aspects of the job that I do enjoy.
Speaker 2: Well, it's good that you because it's very important. I mean,
Speaker 2: those things definitely matter your first year in the ACC.
Speaker 2: I know you guys have had spring meetings and whatnot.
Speaker 2: How familiar are you with the coaches in this league.
Speaker 2: I know, the coaching world is kind of like a fraternity.
Speaker 2: Are you familiar with a lot of these guys everybody?
Speaker 6: Yeah? And I think we have a group of coaches
Speaker 6: that are as good or better than any conference in
Speaker 6: the country. I have the utmost respect for the level
Speaker 6: of programs and coaching in the ACC.
Speaker 2: Now, before we get to your personnel this year, let's
Speaker 2: talk about this schedule. Really challenging in the non conference
Speaker 2: slate and of course a lot of really tough ACC games.
Speaker 2: As a coach, are you someone that wants to have
Speaker 2: a challenging non conference schedule every year, regardless of your personnel.
Speaker 2: Are you somebody that's more so going to, you know,
Speaker 2: schedule based on what you have coming back. I mean,
Speaker 2: it's tough to know what your roster's going to look
Speaker 2: like this day and age. But when you see this
Speaker 2: non conference schedule, I mean a lot of big opportunities,
Speaker 2: but certainly challenging.
Speaker 6: Yeah. I think when it all was said and done
Speaker 6: and it came out, you looked at it and its totality,
Speaker 6: it was like, holy cow, one of.
Speaker 2: The toughest I've seen at Louisville. Maybe ever sparse non conference.
Speaker 6: It's probably the toughest non conference schedule in the country
Speaker 6: for sure.
Speaker 5: At this point.
Speaker 6: It's the advantage of no choice, is what I like
Speaker 6: to say, is the way to look at it. Yeah,
Speaker 6: and the silver lining would be, you know, obviously we're
Speaker 6: gonna be battle tested by the time we get to
Speaker 6: the guts of the ACC season like no other program
Speaker 6: there sure isn't going to have gonna be any questions
Speaker 6: about any quad one type games or anything like that,
Speaker 6: like there is with some teams when it comes to
Speaker 6: their resume with the NCAA tournament. But I think it's
Speaker 6: obviously very challenging. Our fan base is obviously excited about it,
Speaker 6: and all we can do anything about is tomorrow's practice
Speaker 6: at three pm. So can't worry about the game on
Speaker 6: January something or December something or November something. It's just
Speaker 6: let's just get better tomorrow.
Speaker 2: Coach bet Kelsey's our guest joining us here live at
Speaker 2: the ACC basketball tip off here in Charlotte. Obviously a
Speaker 2: brand new roster for you, and you talked about this
Speaker 2: a few times since you got to Louisville that at Charleston,
Speaker 2: you guys were already having to adjust to the new
Speaker 2: world of losing players to the portal and having to
Speaker 2: go out and fill those spots. Very unique situation here
Speaker 2: where you have really almost an entirely new roster. I
Speaker 2: know you brought some guys with you from Charleston, but
Speaker 2: how has practice men? I know you guys have been
Speaker 2: working out for quite some time, but how is it
Speaker 2: as a coach to know that the majority of the
Speaker 2: guys you're going to be utilizing. You know, I'm sure
Speaker 2: you're acclimated at this point, but these are guys you've
Speaker 2: never coached before.
Speaker 6: Oh yeah, like you said, it's been a while now,
Speaker 6: June fifth now.
Speaker 2: So it doesn't feel new anymore.
Speaker 3: No good.
Speaker 6: And you know I really felt from when we first
Speaker 6: started our workouts in early June, it was a connected group.
Speaker 6: It was a group that picked stuff up very quickly,
Speaker 6: a group that connected off the floor very quickly.
Speaker 2: So and it's a.
Speaker 6: Veteran group, right, They've logged a ton of minutes, they've
Speaker 6: had a lot of success, they've won a lot of
Speaker 6: games at the Division one level, at a high level
Speaker 6: of Division one. And you know, it was an easier
Speaker 6: kind of process than I thought it was going to
Speaker 6: be for the group to come together. The advantage of
Speaker 6: having the ten additional days of practice because of the
Speaker 6: Bahamas trip was very helpful, which allowed us to get
Speaker 6: in mid season mode. For about ten days. We were
Speaker 6: able to play against another opponent, which was nice, even
Speaker 6: though they weren't the best teams in the world. We
Speaker 6: played against two other teams, so our guys were able
Speaker 6: to kind of feel how it is in the game setting.
Speaker 6: We did some preparation, and then you know, the fall
Speaker 6: practices have been awesome in the last two weeks or
Speaker 6: so since full practices start. I love where this team's trending.
Speaker 2: When I look at your personnel and you know I'm
Speaker 2: not in practice every day, I feel like you definitely
Speaker 2: wanted to emphasize shooting, versatility, experience, as you mentioned these
Speaker 2: guys who played a lot of basketball. But what I
Speaker 2: hear more than anything from anybody who has watched you
Speaker 2: guys play, and even watching you playing the Bahamas, is
Speaker 2: the ability to shoot the ball. You know, you got
Speaker 2: to make shots and games. You guys haven't played a
Speaker 2: game yet, But is it crazy to say this could
Speaker 2: be one of the best shooting teams that you've coached
Speaker 2: or the best? I mean, is that a stretch.
Speaker 6: I don't know. I haven't thought of it in that respect.
Speaker 6: You know, I think it's definitely a team that has skill.
Speaker 6: We have a lot of guys on the floor that
Speaker 6: can dribble, pass, and shoot. Whether it's one of the
Speaker 6: best shooting teams I've ever coached, I think it's way,
Speaker 6: way too early to say, but we have a lot
Speaker 6: of people that a lot of guys that can put
Speaker 6: the ball in the basket.
Speaker 2: Obviously, So from a leadership standpoint, You've got a lot
Speaker 2: of guys on this roster that have been leaders elsewhere.
Speaker 2: Is it Is it collective? Are you guys that have
Speaker 2: kind of emerged?
Speaker 6: Yeah, you know, I've been asked that question about leadership,
Speaker 6: and I really think, you know, it comes from a
Speaker 6: lot of guys in different ways. You know, some guys
Speaker 6: are more vocal, some guys are more lead by example guys.
Speaker 6: But we got a team and a roster full of
Speaker 6: guys that are about.
Speaker 3: The right things.
Speaker 6: You know, we talk about elite results, right, which is
Speaker 6: what we want to do. We want to be the
Speaker 6: best version of ourself that we can be, And I
Speaker 6: think it starts with leadership that drives your culture, that
Speaker 6: drives your behavior. And that gets your results. And if
Speaker 6: it's backwards, you got bad leadership, then you're gonna have
Speaker 6: bad culture, you're gonna have bad behavior, and you're gonn
Speaker 6: to get bad results. So they've done nothing but prove
Speaker 6: to me that they're the guys that I thought they were.
Speaker 6: We recruited them by how they've gone about their business.
Speaker 6: My message resonates in the locker room and is echoed
Speaker 6: by our guys, which you know you got great leadership
Speaker 6: when guys are selling your message when they're not around you.
Speaker 2: What's it like to see a group of mostly veterans,
Speaker 2: guys who played a lot of college basketball and one freshman.
Speaker 2: I know you talked about Canai and they're in the
Speaker 2: press conference. That's a that's a very unusual situation to
Speaker 2: see that. But from from what I can gather, it
Speaker 2: seems like he really embraces that as a young guy
Speaker 2: who wants to compete and get better, and it seems
Speaker 2: like the older guys seem to really really you know,
Speaker 2: look after him and try to make him better.
Speaker 6: Yeah, I think like Canai and James, Although James sus
Speaker 6: heck doesn't want to be called a freshman because he's
Speaker 6: not he's a sophomore, but he was a very very
Speaker 6: young freshman last year. So to quote younger guys on
Speaker 6: our team and Canai and James both have kind of
Speaker 6: old souls. They're they're they're very mature for their grade
Speaker 6: level or their age level. Both are extremely mature in
Speaker 6: their approach.
Speaker 3: They're both gym guys.
Speaker 6: They're both high basketball IQ guys. They both love to
Speaker 6: watch film. They ask a lot of questions. They're the
Speaker 6: type of guys you have to tell them something once
Speaker 6: and they got it. I told the story and there
Speaker 6: in the press conference, how can I almost got offend
Speaker 6: it early on when I was kind of, you know,
Speaker 6: holding his hand and saying an eye on this set,
Speaker 6: you need to come here, and he looked at me.
Speaker 6: He's like, come on, coach.
Speaker 3: I got it.
Speaker 2: And that's going to make you feel good, right, Yeah, yeah,
Speaker 2: I love that.
Speaker 6: So you have those older veteran guys that really are
Speaker 6: grizzled veterans, some of them are twenty three, twenty four
Speaker 6: years old, and then you have these younger guys that
Speaker 6: are you know, that have those veteran qualities, which is
Speaker 6: which is a blessing for a coach.
Speaker 2: A couple more questions for you head to your next stop.
Speaker 2: I know you've got a lot of just endless interviews
Speaker 2: going on today. We certainly appreciate you making time for us.
Speaker 2: When it comes to recruiting, I know you can't talk
Speaker 2: about specific recruits, but you know you're in a position
Speaker 2: now where you have the ability to use the portal
Speaker 2: to build your roster. But obviously you're always going to
Speaker 2: recruit high school kids. Have you found yourself maybe a
Speaker 2: rusting when you pull the trigger and say, hey, we
Speaker 2: really want to put all of our focus on this
Speaker 2: this incoming freshman because we think he's that special. I mean,
Speaker 2: maybe it depends on what the class looks like. But
Speaker 2: now that it's there are two different ways to build
Speaker 2: your roster. It wasn't like that a few years ago
Speaker 2: when you were coaching. How have you maybe made any
Speaker 2: adjustments as a coach when it comes to that, Yeah,
Speaker 2: you know.
Speaker 6: I do think like with freshmen, like you can really
Speaker 6: really focus on certain.
Speaker 3: Guys and go all in.
Speaker 6: And if for some reason you would miss on a
Speaker 6: certain kid for whatever reason, whether he picks another school
Speaker 6: or he becomes you know, too expensive, based on kind
Speaker 6: of like the the you know, his nil type stuff.
Speaker 6: Then you know you have that, you know you have
Speaker 6: that safety net by being able to go into the
Speaker 6: portal and you know, add some guys with experience and
Speaker 6: veteran guys that that that can supplement your roster and
Speaker 6: make you older and more mature and things like we
Speaker 6: have this year. So our staff's killing it. I love
Speaker 6: where we're at from a recruiting standpoint. We're on the
Speaker 6: right guys, and how things fall into place over the
Speaker 6: next several months in terms of the freshmen that we're recruiting,
Speaker 6: will dictate, you know, our approach to the portal come apron.
Speaker 2: So I got to ask you this, and I'm sure
Speaker 2: you're not going to give us a direct answer, and
Speaker 2: I understand, But when it comes to lineups and whatnot,
Speaker 2: I mean, how many may have to give me a number,
Speaker 2: But do you feel like there's you know, a variety
Speaker 2: of different combinations you can put on the floor, Maybe
Speaker 2: not to play different styles necessarily, but just you know,
Speaker 2: you've got a roster where I feel like the bulk
Speaker 2: of them in any moment could give you big minutes
Speaker 2: if needed, if the matchup was there, if somebody's out
Speaker 2: or whatnot. I mean when it comes to personnel, like,
Speaker 2: there's a lot you can do.
Speaker 6: I think, so you know, I mentioned experience, you know,
Speaker 6: and I think versatility. Depth and versatility would be another
Speaker 6: word to describe one of the big strengths of our team.
Speaker 6: There are a lot of different kind of you know,
Speaker 6: lineups that we could put together that brings certain to
Speaker 6: the table. I feel really really good going very deep
Speaker 6: into our roster and getting production from from everybody. So
Speaker 6: you know, we're still in that process where over these
Speaker 6: next several weeks, I mean, we still have three and
Speaker 6: a half weeks or so till our first game, official game.
Speaker 6: We have two exhibitions obviously, you know, roles are going
Speaker 6: to continue to be defined as we go through over
Speaker 6: the next three weeks, and we've always been that way.
Speaker 6: We want practice to be cauldron of competition where guys
Speaker 6: are always pushing each other and it'll be interesting to
Speaker 6: see where the pieces fall into place three and a
Speaker 6: half weeks from now.
Speaker 2: Well, coach, I know you got to run to do
Speaker 2: your next interview. I appreciate you making time for us,
Speaker 2: and we'll see you when the season gets rolling. Thanks Nick,
Speaker 2: Thanks coach. All right, that's Pat Kelsey joining us live
Speaker 2: here from acc tip off in Charlotte, as we're just gosh,
Speaker 2: it's crazy to think we're that close to college hoops
Speaker 2: getting started. Man, it's good stuff and good stuff there
Speaker 2: from coach. And if you just now happened to hop
Speaker 2: in the car, you join us a little bit later.
Speaker 2: We'll have this up as a separate podcast a little
Speaker 2: bit later on. But yes, I mean, just when it
Speaker 2: comes to the personnel conversation we had there in regards
Speaker 2: to what he can do, you know, what kind of
Speaker 2: you know, lineups and whatnot. And I don't feel like
Speaker 2: I got the you know, I was gonna ask him
Speaker 2: to tell me essentially who the lineup's like. If I
Speaker 2: wanted to ask, hey, if this was the type of matchup,
Speaker 2: if you're playing this team, what personnel grouping would you
Speaker 2: use this and that? And you know, that would be
Speaker 2: a terrible question, and he probably wouldn't give me the
Speaker 2: answer because he's probably still trying to figure that out.
Speaker 2: He's probably trying to figure out the answer just said question.
Speaker 2: But there's no doubt about it when you look at
Speaker 2: this this group on paper, and you know, when you
Speaker 2: say on paper, it's still it's still indicates that you.
Speaker 2: You have to wait and see how it all works out,
Speaker 2: how it all looks, you know, when it matters when
Speaker 2: you're playing in a real game. But you know, veteran,
Speaker 2: veteran leadership, just veteran presence. You know, that word veteran
Speaker 2: was mentioned quite a bit there during our conversation with
Speaker 2: coach Kelsey, and to me, that makes you not as
Speaker 2: worried about you know, will have to wait and see.
Speaker 2: I mean, some of these guys that have come to
Speaker 2: play for Louisville this year that are on this roster,
Speaker 2: in fact, many of them have had prominent roles with
Speaker 2: really good programs or programs that are considered considered mid majors.
Speaker 2: But you know, one thing that hasn't gotten brought up
Speaker 2: that at least haven't mentioned in a while when talking
Speaker 2: about this roster is that nearly all of them are
Speaker 2: coming from programs that won that that you know, they
Speaker 2: had a winning culture. Maybe it wasn't going to a
Speaker 2: Final four or winning national championships, but they they're used
Speaker 2: to winning, right They that's something they're familiar with, right
Speaker 2: and if that can be the culture in Louisville with
Speaker 2: all these guys by an end, you know, I don't
Speaker 2: think there's as big of a question mark as far
Speaker 2: as how it all works, because I don't think you're
Speaker 2: necessarily questioning the ability of these guys. I think more
Speaker 2: than anything, you'd be questioning, you know, how to make
Speaker 2: the pieces all fit together. And clearly that's what Coach
Speaker 2: Kelsey and his staff have been working on, you know,
Speaker 2: since since he got here, since the roster was put together.
Speaker 2: He was pretty quick to tell. And I think that's
Speaker 2: just kind of his nature of being somebody that very
Speaker 2: high energy, you know. I mean, the guy ever stops working,
Speaker 2: I mean never, and if he does get tired, I
Speaker 2: don't think you'll ever see it. But you know, they
Speaker 2: the majority of this roster's been in place for for
Speaker 2: many many months now and nothing, I don't think anything
Speaker 2: feels new, and that's refreshing to hear, not to go
Speaker 2: back to the previous regime or anything like that. But
Speaker 2: you know, there's little things that like I am excited
Speaker 2: about that I take notice to as a loisvill fan myself,
Speaker 2: that that, you know, makes me feel, you know, pretty
Speaker 2: good about where things are going to be in year one.
Speaker 2: But you know it's more so just because that wasn't
Speaker 2: that wasn't in place previously. All right, all right, we've
Speaker 2: got Chucky Hepburn joining us here on the show. From
Speaker 2: Coach Kelsey to Chucky Hepburn. Chucky, how are we doing? Brother?
Speaker 2: Appreciate you, Appreciate you making time for us. How's this
Speaker 2: day been for you? Man? A lot of talking, a
Speaker 2: lot of probably the same questions. Do you enjoy it
Speaker 2: or do you dread it? You can be honest.
Speaker 7: Yeah, honestly, I've been to two Meedia days already at
Speaker 7: Wisconsin and I've had fun.
Speaker 3: I've had fun today.
Speaker 7: You know, I've had some good laughs, you know, some
Speaker 7: good conversations with people.
Speaker 3: So yeah, I'm excited about this one.
Speaker 2: One of the questions I as coach, I'll ask you.
Speaker 2: You know, you played at Wisconsin the last couple of
Speaker 2: years and now you're here at Louisville taking advantage of
Speaker 2: the portal. But you are with all new players and
Speaker 2: it's not just you're joining a group that was already
Speaker 2: put together. You guys, are most of you all coming
Speaker 2: from from different programs. How do you feel as far
Speaker 2: as how things have gotten acclimated because this is you know,
Speaker 2: the portals made it to where there's a lot of
Speaker 2: movement going on. But this is a different scenario here
Speaker 2: with as many new pieces as you guys have.
Speaker 7: Yeah, you have a great coach of players, coach leading
Speaker 7: the charge, and then you just have a good group
Speaker 7: of guys who just want to win, you know all
Speaker 7: who they care about us winning and taking that next
Speaker 7: step to bringing Louisville basketball back. So when you got
Speaker 7: guys like down the team and who just care about
Speaker 7: winning and want to do whatever it takes to win,
Speaker 7: it's really easy to play with.
Speaker 3: You know, it's fun.
Speaker 7: We went down to the Bahamas and you know, we
Speaker 7: got a little glimpse of what we could actually be,
Speaker 7: and you know, I believe that we're gonna be a
Speaker 7: really good team.
Speaker 2: So when you are running the show, there is the
Speaker 2: point guard. I mean, do you feel as if you've
Speaker 2: got you know, at any moment, anybody on the floor,
Speaker 2: you could find them spotting up and they can. I mean,
Speaker 2: you guys, clearly that's one of the strengths of your
Speaker 2: team is being able to shoot the ball. But as
Speaker 2: somebody who's a facilitator also a shooter yourself, I mean,
Speaker 2: it's got it's gotta be good for you to know that,
Speaker 2: you know, if you can make a play, you can
Speaker 2: probably find one, two, maybe three guys that can knock
Speaker 2: it down at any moment.
Speaker 7: Yeah, that's what that's what's exciting about this team one
Speaker 7: through five.
Speaker 3: You know we could stretch the floor. You know, that's
Speaker 3: what exciting.
Speaker 7: You know, I didn't shoot the best of my last
Speaker 7: year that I shot like thirty two percent, but i
Speaker 7: shot forty percent the year before. And I'm very feeling,
Speaker 7: very confidable about my jump shot this this upcoming year.
Speaker 3: So you know, I've been putting the work we all have.
Speaker 7: You know, we all been putting the word to be
Speaker 7: able to get shots up, and you know, we trust
Speaker 7: each other to be able to knock those shots down.
Speaker 7: So and I trust my guy, my teammates to be
Speaker 7: able to knock the shots down when I find them
Speaker 7: and make plays for them.
Speaker 2: So, you guys have a ton of shooters. I know
Speaker 2: we've said that. It's it's well known that it's going
Speaker 2: to be on the scouting report for every team that
Speaker 2: plays you guys, But who would you say, in practice
Speaker 2: and workouts since you guys have all been together, has
Speaker 2: shot at the best?
Speaker 3: Ran Smith?
Speaker 2: He answered that within I mean, it did not take
Speaker 2: him any time to answer that question at all. Yeah,
Speaker 2: I'm the hype is real. Yeah, I mean the proof
Speaker 2: is there. He was a great shooter Charleston. But everybody
Speaker 2: says Rain Smith.
Speaker 7: Yeah, I'm in the shooting groups. You know, there's times
Speaker 7: he doesn't even miss. You know, he probably goes five
Speaker 7: percent in a shooting workout. And you know, just to
Speaker 7: be able to witness damn like, it makes me better
Speaker 7: as a shooter because I'm witnessing somebody who does the
Speaker 7: same routine, the same thing every time. So it helps
Speaker 7: me be able to get that routine of doing the
Speaker 7: same thing, same, the same thing every time. And you
Speaker 7: know I just gained that that that routine and you
Speaker 7: know it's just the automatic.
Speaker 2: You may have answered that question any quicker than any
Speaker 2: question I've ever asked anybody. But that's what everybody says.
Speaker 2: Rain Smith can fly out.
Speaker 7: Night, but do not sleep on no waterman because he
Speaker 7: can shoot the ball really well too. I believe that's
Speaker 7: some somebody I'm very excited about playing with, you know,
Speaker 7: finding finding him and opening an open opportunity to be
Speaker 7: able to knock that shot down.
Speaker 3: You know, he shoot I think I think.
Speaker 7: Like sixty percent transition last year at BYU from three point.
Speaker 2: So you know that's an easy assist for you, right,
Speaker 2: just get it right there.
Speaker 3: Absolutely. You know, I'm very excited to play with him
Speaker 3: as well.
Speaker 2: Chuckie, Hepburn's joining us here live at the ACC basketball
Speaker 2: tip off, your coach who just joined us you know before,
Speaker 2: because we're getting to know him here as well. He's
Speaker 2: he's new to Louisville, I mean, not really new anymore,
Speaker 2: but high energy, always on, never stops working. That was
Speaker 2: what a lot of folks who have known coach Kelsey
Speaker 2: for many years, those who have covered him, those who
Speaker 2: have played for him. Is that check out? It is
Speaker 2: all that accurate.
Speaker 7: Yeah, what whatever you see about him on social media,
Speaker 7: he's like that in person. He does he sleep no.
Speaker 7: I genuinely do not think he sleeps well. You know,
Speaker 7: he's up up all night watch your film. You know,
Speaker 7: I've heard that when he first got the job here,
Speaker 7: he didn't sleep for a whole week.
Speaker 3: You know, I believe just sleep.
Speaker 7: He was probably just staying in the in the Cubit
Speaker 7: center where we practiced that, you know, just trying to
Speaker 7: find dudes, you know, And that's what he did a
Speaker 7: really good job with that, you know, he hasn't really
Speaker 7: rested a lot. And you know, I bet that the
Speaker 7: Bahama's trip was really good for him because he was
Speaker 7: able to play games. But then after after we got
Speaker 7: done playing, I bet he was able to kind of
Speaker 7: take some time and relax.
Speaker 2: If he ever does get tired, he certainly he certainly
Speaker 2: does not show it. A couple more questions for you,
Speaker 2: Chucky from Omaha, Right, so Omaha, and then you spend
Speaker 2: some time at Wisconsin. How have you adjusted to Louisville
Speaker 2: the city, not only not just the school of the program,
Speaker 2: but what do you make of the derby?
Speaker 1: Say?
Speaker 7: Yeah, Omaha, alright, Louisville kind of reminds me of Omaha.
Speaker 7: It gives me some Omaha advice a little bit. You know,
Speaker 7: you got Crane downtown. You know, Louisville's right downtown or
Speaker 7: near it. You know, just just like the people are nice,
Speaker 7: you know, very outgoing.
Speaker 3: You know.
Speaker 7: The only thing different is Louisville is very very very
Speaker 7: very passionate about the basketball, very very passionate.
Speaker 3: And I've never seen anything like it.
Speaker 7: And I'm very excited to go play for fans that
Speaker 7: that cherished basketball.
Speaker 2: All Right, I'm not going to put you in a
Speaker 2: tough spot. I was going to ask you, what what
Speaker 2: about Louisville? You know, could they improve on? But I
Speaker 2: won't put you in a tough spot because you're not,
Speaker 2: because you're you know, You're You're you know.
Speaker 3: I'm still trying to But.
Speaker 2: What do you what would you say? Maybe you missed
Speaker 2: most about omahall from or at.
Speaker 3: Home, Omaha, just being around family, you know, makes sense.
Speaker 7: I've missed my family, talk to them about every week,
Speaker 7: So I think that's the only thing i'd say I
Speaker 7: miss you know, yeah, that's only that we Chuckie.
Speaker 2: I appreciate you making time for us. Best of luck
Speaker 2: this season. Thank you, and we'll be seeing you soon.
Speaker 2: Let's get a quick break out of the way. We
Speaker 2: will come back here on the other side and hopefully
Speaker 2: chat with Jevon Hadley. It's coffee and Company fueled by
Speaker 2: Thornton's as we come to you live from Charlotte here
Speaker 2: for the acc tip off. That's right, it's coffee and
Speaker 2: company fueled by Thornton's here on a Sports Talk seven ninety.
Speaker 2: Appreciate you hanging out with us. Don't forget you can
Speaker 2: listen live on the iHeartRadio app also listen live at
Speaker 2: seven ninety Louisville dot com. We're now joined by Javon Hadley,
Speaker 2: one of the members of Pat Kelsey's first team here
Speaker 2: at Louisville, and Javonicus. I'll ask you the same question
Speaker 2: that I've asked Chucky and Coach Kelsey as a player,
Speaker 2: and you could be honest with me. I think both
Speaker 2: those guys were honest, But I don't really know for sure.
Speaker 2: Is this something you enjoy? Do you dread it? Is
Speaker 2: it fun a little? Is it maybe maybe all those
Speaker 2: things combined?
Speaker 5: This is fun?
Speaker 2: Okay.
Speaker 8: I mean that's as genuine as it comes. Just from
Speaker 8: my last year. This is the place that I really
Speaker 8: want to be. I mean after coaches, you know, held
Speaker 8: true to everything that he said on the phone, you know,
Speaker 8: in the when I was in the portal. You know,
Speaker 8: he was the by far the most passionate coach that
Speaker 8: called me most energetic. I mean, I had turned the
Speaker 8: volume down a little bit when he was he was
Speaker 8: calling me like he's trying to do the phone.
Speaker 2: And and he's never off. It's it's it's the same,
Speaker 2: like you know, I've everybody said that as soon as
Speaker 2: he was we knew in Louisville he was going to
Speaker 2: be the guy those who didn't know him had familiarity
Speaker 2: with him. That he's just so high energy and he's
Speaker 2: always on and I don't think he's ever I don't
Speaker 2: think he's ever been off. So is that hard to match? Though?
Speaker 2: As a player, like knowing that, you know, it's a player,
Speaker 2: you got expectations, you gotta you got to bring that
Speaker 2: kind of energy every day.
Speaker 8: Yeah, And I mean that's what comes with the leadership
Speaker 8: a little bit. I mean he's the he's the top leader,
Speaker 8: he's our head coach. But at the same time, it's
Speaker 8: a typically in today's age, you know, the player led
Speaker 8: programs are you know, typically the better ones. But obviously
Speaker 8: we're ran by you know, head coach back Kelsey. And
Speaker 8: he's done a great job with his energy pass it.
Speaker 8: I mean we feed off of it.
Speaker 3: You know.
Speaker 8: I've said that in you almost every interview today. I
Speaker 8: mean we feed off his energy. And that's as true
Speaker 8: as it comes. You know, every day in practice, like
Speaker 8: he's running in the gym, like and then we're all
Speaker 8: running up and down his eye line.
Speaker 5: Now, like we just feed off his energy.
Speaker 2: You may have just answered my next question. But I
Speaker 2: was gonna ask because I saw this in the Bahamas
Speaker 2: with you guys. I feel like you all were a
Speaker 2: reflection of him on the floor, meaning you could think,
Speaker 2: you know, the way you guys were playing, your energy,
Speaker 2: your effort, it was you could look at the guy
Speaker 2: on the sideline and think, Okay, that's clearly where they
Speaker 2: get it from. But that sounds like that's exactly what
Speaker 2: you just said when it comes to the recruitment process
Speaker 2: for you, and I want to talk about your whole
Speaker 2: story here just a minute, but when you were deciding
Speaker 2: where you were going to spend your last year, talk
Speaker 2: me through that process a little bit. You know, you
Speaker 2: were somebody that at least US fans knew Louisville was
Speaker 2: in on. But it seemed to me like it went
Speaker 2: pretty quickly that you your mind was made up pretty
Speaker 2: quickly that you wanted to come play for Pat Kelsey Louisville.
Speaker 6: Yeah.
Speaker 8: I mean the portal is obviously a crazy place to
Speaker 8: be in, especially you know, being the college basketball player.
Speaker 3: Uh.
Speaker 8: You know, you have call you have calls, texts, DMS,
Speaker 8: all types of antytypes of contact they're going to contact
Speaker 8: to you. And it's not just the head coaches, all
Speaker 8: types of coaches. So I mean it's a crazy, crazy experience.
Speaker 8: But like I said on a little bit earlier, I
Speaker 8: mean he was the most by far, the most passionate,
Speaker 8: energetic coach that called me.
Speaker 5: He told me, it's playing.
Speaker 8: He told me to plan for Louisville to you know,
Speaker 8: the revival, to bring Louisville back. And who wouldn't want
Speaker 8: to play for a head coach with that much pass
Speaker 8: and energy and as well as the rest of his
Speaker 8: staff and then just the community in general, Like who
Speaker 8: wouldn't want to bring back a basketball rich history back
Speaker 8: to you know, the revival, back to Louisville.
Speaker 2: So that was a selling point for him throughout the process.
Speaker 5: I would say, So yeah, I mean who wouldn't want
Speaker 5: to play for?
Speaker 2: It's got to make fans feel good because yeah, as
Speaker 2: you likely know, things haven't been as great here lately,
Speaker 2: but still a program with a lot of tradition and
Speaker 2: a lot of resources to have success and here's to
Speaker 2: hope and you guys can can certainly do that this year.
Speaker 2: So I mentioned Javon's story, most people who were super
Speaker 2: excited to see you join this roster and give Pat
Speaker 2: Kelsey a commitment. They went back and watched highlights at Colorado.
Speaker 2: Obviously you had a big impact for them there, but
Speaker 2: they may not know that that was your third stop
Speaker 2: in college. So was it junior college then North Northeastern? Yeah, yeah,
Speaker 2: so you basically did a bounce back of JUCO. So
Speaker 2: let's just go back to when you were at Northeastern
Speaker 2: for a year and you were deciding to go the
Speaker 2: JUCO round. Imagine telling you then that you'd be in
Speaker 2: this position. I mean, it's it's a journey for.
Speaker 5: You, right Yeah.
Speaker 8: I don't know what I would if I would have
Speaker 8: known that, if I'll be here right now. I don't
Speaker 8: know about a smile. I don't know, like what to
Speaker 8: expect if I do, right, Yeah.
Speaker 5: I would have it.
Speaker 8: Yeah, But at the same time, I mean Northeastern coming
Speaker 8: out of high school, being highly recruited, you know, one
Speaker 8: of the best ending the state. One of those type
Speaker 8: of guys to go to Northeastern and have it not
Speaker 8: work out for you, you know, whatever whatever the turns may be.
Speaker 5: You know, older guys COVID you know, eligibility like whatever
Speaker 5: it may be.
Speaker 8: You know, just having that the growth and maturity is
Speaker 8: what I kind of just wanted to deprive myself on
Speaker 8: to know that I wasn't ready for the Division one
Speaker 8: level ultimately, and to go to, you know, a junior
Speaker 8: college and learn about myself and grow and mature and
Speaker 8: grind and you know, junior college is a grind.
Speaker 5: It's not for the week. It's not for the week
Speaker 5: at all.
Speaker 2: And you got to get comfortable being uncomfortable, right right, And.
Speaker 8: That's that's literally what hey coach steel like tell me
Speaker 8: to this day, Like, you have to be uncomfortable being uncomfortable.
Speaker 2: Where do you think you you know, did you or
Speaker 2: you somebody that broke through a little later than maybe others.
Speaker 2: Obviously you were a highly recruited guy coming out of Minneapolis,
Speaker 2: played with some great players. But where do you feel
Speaker 2: like you kind of took off throughout this journey to
Speaker 2: where obviously you were making a big impact in the
Speaker 2: Pac twelve for Colorado and now you know you're you're
Speaker 2: gonna have a big role here at Louisville. Was there
Speaker 2: a certain moment post your first stop at at at
Speaker 2: Northeastern that you feel like you really kind of blossomed
Speaker 2: into being the player you are today.
Speaker 8: Yeah, I was a junior college honestly, that's that's where
Speaker 8: that's really where I found myself and you know, kind
Speaker 8: of just became like a different like animal.
Speaker 2: Like you had to live in the gym, right else
Speaker 2: to do?
Speaker 8: There's nothing else to do literally in Iowa. You know,
Speaker 8: not no knock on Iowa at all.
Speaker 2: Shout Indian Hills.
Speaker 8: Yes, out of Indian Hills Community College. Yeah, that's no
Speaker 8: knock at all.
Speaker 2: But yeah, yeah, So when it comes to all of
Speaker 2: your new teammates here, it sounds like everybody's gott acclimated
Speaker 2: with each other pretty well when it comes to like lineups,
Speaker 2: and Coach Kelsey's obviously not gonna give me any kind
Speaker 2: of an insight into what what you guys are gonna do.
Speaker 2: From personality point, he's probably still trying to figure out
Speaker 2: You guys got a lot of practice before you get
Speaker 2: to your actual game. But is it safe to say
Speaker 2: that when it comes to like different groupings you could
Speaker 2: see on the floor, like it seems like it's almost endless,
Speaker 2: like you guys could play a lot of different styles
Speaker 2: with a lot of different players, for sure.
Speaker 8: I mean a lot of people are going to look
Speaker 8: at our roster and now see a traditional five man either.
Speaker 5: I mean, we have a lot of fours, threes, two ones.
Speaker 2: But we don't have a traditional the bulb of the
Speaker 2: rosters could all be either two through four. It seems like.
Speaker 3: Yeah.
Speaker 8: So, I mean we have a lot of depth. And
Speaker 8: that's one of the things that coach Causey has prided
Speaker 8: you know, recruitment on is having a lot of depth.
Speaker 8: You got to be deep to make a deep run
Speaker 8: in the tournament.
Speaker 2: So with you as a player, I feel like just
Speaker 2: looking at you know, your career at Colorado specifically, you
Speaker 2: were somebody that did a little bit of everything. Is
Speaker 2: that is that safe to say? Kind of a jack
Speaker 2: of all trades, somebody who can you know, if you
Speaker 2: need me to go get a boards, I'll go do it.
Speaker 2: You need me to be more of a factor scoring,
Speaker 2: I can do it.
Speaker 3: You know.
Speaker 2: Obviously defense is something you're you're big on. I mean
Speaker 2: it's my assessment fair as far as your game, yes.
Speaker 8: Sir, Yeah, I mean anything to coach asks me to do,
Speaker 8: I'm gonna go out there and you know, try to my
Speaker 8: best to do it. Like like you said, tells me
Speaker 8: to go grab ten boys, I'm gonna go out there
Speaker 8: and you know, take them from everybody. You know, I'm
Speaker 8: just that type of guy, and you know, that's what
Speaker 8: I probe myself wanted. I know that, you know, people
Speaker 8: that I've trusted closely. I told me, like, that's what
Speaker 8: That's what it takes to be professional. And that's what
Speaker 8: I want to do when I grow up, is be
Speaker 8: a professional. You know, whether no matter where that that's at,
Speaker 8: I want to be professional my aspect of the game.
Speaker 2: Shavon Hadley's our guests joining us here on Sports Talk
Speaker 2: seven ninety So. Born in Minneapolis, had a few stops
Speaker 2: before you ended up here in Louisville. What let's go
Speaker 2: back in time. If somebody mentioned Louisville, Kentucky to you,
Speaker 2: not even just basketball the program, when you were you know,
Speaker 2: eighteen years old, what would it come to mind for you?
Speaker 2: Did you have any familiarity with the city at all.
Speaker 2: I would say that Kentucky Derby makes sense, that's what
Speaker 2: we're known for.
Speaker 8: Yeah, I would say that for sir. But I mean
Speaker 8: also the you know, the red history of basketball. I mean,
Speaker 8: when I was younger, Louisville was also like obviously one
Speaker 8: of the you know, the top the top dogs, and
Speaker 8: you know, right there along when you know, do Kentucky
Speaker 8: the other blue bloods.
Speaker 5: So I mean, just like having I don't know what.
Speaker 8: I would if I had told myself that I'll be
Speaker 8: at Louisville, you know, one of the arguably the blue bloods, Like,
Speaker 8: I don't know what I would do, honestly.
Speaker 2: All right, more question for you. So when it comes
Speaker 2: to being out in front of the fans at Louisville
Speaker 2: Live this past week, I mean, that's just a little
Speaker 2: bit of what you're gonna see when you guys are
Speaker 2: I mean, you guys get a couple of really big
Speaker 2: home games in the early slate of the season. Is
Speaker 2: that some of you guys talk about as teammates as
Speaker 2: far as just understanding that, you know, you've got a
Speaker 2: chance to play in front of a big crowd and
Speaker 2: a fan base that is so hungry for Louisville basketball
Speaker 2: to get to get back to where they belong. I'm
Speaker 2: assuming that excites you and your teammates this year.
Speaker 5: Yeah, for sure.
Speaker 8: I Mean we all come from different winning programs, but
Speaker 8: nothing like the KS the Young Center. I mean, it's
Speaker 8: a you walk into gym, you walk in that arena,
Speaker 8: and you see you know, you look up and it's
Speaker 8: never ending, like there's gonna be twenty two thousand in there.
Speaker 8: You know, we appreciate and you know, we appreciate everyone
Speaker 8: that comes out, you know, and everybody that supports us,
Speaker 8: because none of that would happen without any of the
Speaker 8: support that we have from everybody. But at the same time,
Speaker 8: we know that like we have to perform at the
Speaker 8: same time for you guys to come and watch and
Speaker 8: enjoy your so so we understand the role that it
Speaker 8: comes with that as well.
Speaker 6: Well.
Speaker 2: Javon, I appreciate you making time for us.
Speaker 5: Thank you.
Speaker 2: Y know, it's a very busy day, a lot of talking,
Speaker 2: but certainly appreciate you making time. Of course, that's the
Speaker 2: luckless season that Jevon Hadley joining us here live at
Speaker 2: acc tip off here in Charlotte. Some good stuff there,
Speaker 2: and we need to go ahead and get our actually
Speaker 2: we got a little bit of time, but we have
Speaker 2: to go to uh to our last break here in
Speaker 2: the four o'clock hour, and yeah, a very heavy basketball
Speaker 2: hour here, which is awesome. I know, uh, you know,
Speaker 2: for me as a fan myself, you know, I can
Speaker 2: just tell you first and I'm sure it came across
Speaker 2: when talking to both Chucky and Javon. Obviously, you know
Speaker 2: Coach Kelsey, you know these everybody's got a job to do.
Speaker 2: But with Coach Kelsey, I feel like he's more as
Speaker 2: you could expect, focused on, you know, making sure his
Speaker 2: guys are ready to play, making sure that this team
Speaker 2: comes out and they that they're competitive and they win games.
Speaker 2: That's that's that's the name of the game. That is
Speaker 2: the job. But with those two players specifically, you know,
Speaker 2: as somebody who has been a Louisville basketball fan my
Speaker 2: whole life, I've covered the team and I was telling
Speaker 2: Javon this during during the break there, and you know,
Speaker 2: first of all, him calling me sir makes me feel old,
Speaker 2: but like you know, that's that that happens now, he's
Speaker 2: an old he's an old guy in college basketball and
Speaker 2: he calls me sir. But you know, I was telling
Speaker 2: him just how long I've been, you know, covering the team,
Speaker 2: and you know that I've been a fan my whole life,
Speaker 2: and you know, to see that these guys are happy
Speaker 2: to be here, not just because you know of an
Speaker 2: anil deal. And I'm sure that was a factor of
Speaker 2: him getting here, getting in them here. Trust me, I'm
Speaker 2: not trying to say that that doesn't matter at all,
Speaker 2: but like they, you know, louis basketball has gone through
Speaker 2: a really rough stretch. And you know, really after Patino,
Speaker 2: there was a few years there where things were in
Speaker 2: a good place and then that quickly kind of started
Speaker 2: to fade a little bit, and then there was a
Speaker 2: global pandemic. In fact, really the global pandemic is when
Speaker 2: it kind of all started. But you know, since then
Speaker 2: we're talking, I mean, this will be the fifth season
Speaker 2: since that, since all since all that happened, and Louisville
Speaker 2: basketball has been in a you know, we all know.
Speaker 2: I don't need to tell you, and I hate saying
Speaker 2: it over and over, but it's just true. Louisvill basketball
Speaker 2: has been in a really rough spot, a place that
Speaker 2: we never thought we'd be in. And yet these guys,
Speaker 2: you know, they're here not only because you know, they
Speaker 2: value Louisville the brand and what it. You know, what
Speaker 2: you get when you were a part of a program
Speaker 2: like this, but they are energized on bringing this fan
Speaker 2: base kind of back to life, and they already are
Speaker 2: as far as you know, being excited showing up to
Speaker 2: events like Louisville Live, supporting with nil. I mean that
Speaker 2: matters in a major way, and clearly fans have done that,
Speaker 2: and you know these guys appreciate it. But you know,
Speaker 2: I don't know, just I'm kind of in my feels
Speaker 2: a little bit here as a fan because you know,
Speaker 2: it'll be a different level when you actually watch this
Speaker 2: team play in real games against really good opponents. I mean,
Speaker 2: I'm not even I can't even give you any kind
Speaker 2: of a of a feel for what I expect to
Speaker 2: happen when they play Tennessee in their second regular season game.
Speaker 2: But if they are able to win that, again easier
Speaker 2: said than done. Can you imagine what this fan base
Speaker 2: is going to be like when it comes to basketball,
Speaker 2: because yes, as we all know, winning games like that,
Speaker 2: I mean, had Tennessee's a top twenty, top fifteen caliber teams,
Speaker 2: So I don't care who you are, those are always
Speaker 2: viewed as good, solid wins that have value, even if
Speaker 2: it's what you're supposed to do, even if you are
Speaker 2: the favorite. So that's where we once were, but we
Speaker 2: have been We've not been that in a long time,
Speaker 2: and we have been in fact, I feel like a
Speaker 2: billion miles away from that. So that adds to The
Speaker 2: excitement for me doesn't mean I'm like, if Loleiville makes
Speaker 2: the tournament this year, I mean I'm gonna be It'll
Speaker 2: probably be the most excited I've ever been about Louisville
Speaker 2: making making UNSTAA tournament. And it won't mean that that's
Speaker 2: the new expectation and that's just the bar and that's
Speaker 2: what we do. But you know, the recency does in
Speaker 2: fact matter, and I think we all know it. Some
Speaker 2: are afraid to say it. I don't hear it as much,
Speaker 2: but I remember, you know, I think it was the
Speaker 2: sadder Field era or even the beginning of Mac Like
Speaker 2: when when when Chris Mack in his first year. You know,
Speaker 2: they were kind of going through you know, it was
Speaker 2: I think they were head of schedule. But if you remember,
Speaker 2: they beat Michigan State tom Mezo, they went and beat
Speaker 2: North Carolina on the road, gave Roy Williams his worst
Speaker 2: loss ever at a game in the Dean Dome. You know,
Speaker 2: those are things that always, you know, feel great as
Speaker 2: a basketball fan when your team can do it, and
Speaker 2: you're not totally stunned when you do it overall, but
Speaker 2: because it was new, because you you know it, I'm
Speaker 2: just rambling here. But I was traumatized by the last
Speaker 2: two years, as every other fan was. So there's gonna
Speaker 2: be little things that I'm probably just gonna have to
Speaker 2: at times hit pause. Maybe John, you maybe we can
Speaker 2: come up with some kind of like sound bite that's
Speaker 2: like the warning where Nick is losing his mind because
Speaker 2: you know, they covered the spread against one of the
Speaker 2: worst teams in the country. But those are the small
Speaker 2: victories we didn't used to have, John.
Speaker 4: Yeah, And did I know you just interviewed all three
Speaker 4: of those guys, Pat Kelsey and the two players. But
Speaker 4: was this the first time since the hiring of Pat
Speaker 4: Kelsey that all this really felt real to you?
Speaker 2: Oh?
Speaker 4: Yeah, moving into this new basketball regime.
Speaker 2: Absolutely, I mean I felt good about things really since
Speaker 2: you know, he he couldn't have done better in his
Speaker 2: presser when he got the job as far as not
Speaker 2: you know, as far as just delivering and bringing the
Speaker 2: energy that was infectious. But also and I think this
Speaker 2: really mattered. I mean I shouldn't say I wasn't going
Speaker 2: in saying, hey, he better do this, he better do this,
Speaker 2: he better say that. But I will tell you him
Speaker 2: reading the room was a big deal to me as
Speaker 2: far as understanding, like, hey, I'm aware that you know
Speaker 2: they were talking to Dusty May. You know, he's aware
Speaker 2: that Scott Drew was somebody that fans were clamoring for
Speaker 2: and he he didn't run from that. He he leaned
Speaker 2: into it. And you know that that made it seem
Speaker 2: as if, Okay, this guy is very appreciative of the
Speaker 2: job that he has and he's either going to win
Speaker 2: here and have a lot of success or he's going
Speaker 2: to die trying. This is not going to be somebody
Speaker 2: that isn't going to give it. I mean, he's he's
Speaker 2: not comfortable right, meaning like he's he's constantly working, and
Speaker 2: with him having this job at Louisville, I mean, it's
Speaker 2: a big step up from where he was. So that
Speaker 2: was a good sign for me. And then it comes
Speaker 2: down to can you assemble that, you know, can you
Speaker 2: go get players, because that matters just as much as anything,
Speaker 2: and you know, on paper and from what I saw
Speaker 2: in the Bahamas, he did that. He went out and
Speaker 2: put together a team that I think fans are justified
Speaker 2: and being really really excited about. I know, I'm a
Speaker 2: broken record because you do have to kind of wait
Speaker 2: and see what it looks like whenever you do get
Speaker 2: into real games. But as I talked about a little
Speaker 2: bit earlier, although that is certainly still the case, it's
Speaker 2: I just don't have as much worry about you ended
Speaker 2: up finding out that all these guys are not what
Speaker 2: you thought they were, because again, the majority of them
Speaker 2: have played a lot of college basketball, some of them
Speaker 2: at a really high level. I mean Chucky, Hepburn, who
Speaker 2: we just talked to. I mean John, you're familiar with him.
Speaker 2: He was a Wisconsin for a couple of years, and
Speaker 2: you know he was a big factor in what they did.
Speaker 2: So you know, I'm not sitting there thinking, Okay, we'll
Speaker 2: see if this guy's any good. I think we know
Speaker 2: he's good and we know what he's good at. So again,
Speaker 2: it all working together, putting the puzzle pieces together. That's
Speaker 2: part of the challenge. But you know, I think many
Speaker 2: coaches have shown they can do that, and I think
Speaker 2: coach Kelsey it seems confident that he's going to be
Speaker 2: able to do it as well. All right, let's get
Speaker 2: to our last break here in the four o'clock hour.
Speaker 2: Don't forget we're taking you up until six o'clock. Live
Speaker 2: here at the acc tip off here in Charlotte on
Speaker 2: Sports Talk seven ninety. Final segment here in the four
Speaker 2: o'clock hour Coffee and Company fueled by Thornton's on Sports
Speaker 2: Talk seven ninety. You know, from from what I've gathered,
Speaker 2: and I know it's still you know, a big, a
Speaker 2: big talking point nationally. Is this this hurricane Milton is
Speaker 2: you know, one of the worst we've ever seen. Uh,
Speaker 2: it certainly sounds like. But I have I have found
Speaker 2: myself all over this story of the guy that they're
Speaker 2: referring to as Lieutenant Dan who really blew up on
Speaker 2: TikTok because he lives on a boat. Uh and he
Speaker 2: you know, in the water, and he's in Tampa, and
Speaker 2: he has ignored multiple warnings from the Tampa police to
Speaker 2: leave his vessel, all while a category for storm remains
Speaker 2: on track to you know, smash where he is. I
Speaker 2: mean just I mean it's they're they're they're telling people
Speaker 2: to evacuate you know, the region, and this guy won't
Speaker 2: leave the water in Tampa, which is you know, is crazy.
Speaker 2: But he goes by Lieutenant Dan his real name is
Speaker 2: Joseph Melanowski, and he's told people he's gonna he's gonna
Speaker 2: stay on his sailboat. Uh and and he he apparently
Speaker 2: this is this is where it made TMZ here recently,
Speaker 2: because he yeah, let me back up just a second.
Speaker 3: Here.
Speaker 2: It all started on TikTok. There's a guy named Tampa Terrence,
Speaker 2: who is a big TikToker, who is the one who
Speaker 2: randomly just decided to, you know, figure out who this
Speaker 2: guys walk up on him and interview him. And of course,
Speaker 2: you know, Lieutenant Dan delivered. I mean, he's got he's
Speaker 2: got one leg, he's he's you know, he's he's I mean, looks.
Speaker 2: We'll put it this way. I'm gonna try to be
Speaker 2: as politically correct and respectful as possible. He looks like
Speaker 2: he's lived a life, if you if you know what
Speaker 2: I'm saying. But the chief of Tampa Police, Lee Burkhall,
Speaker 2: apparently told a representative I guess at TMZ that they
Speaker 2: that they told him that that that they he said
Speaker 2: he was going to leave. But then people who are
Speaker 2: following as this on their own, I guess you know
Speaker 2: these independent uh you know, journalists or whatever. I mean,
Speaker 2: they're not really journalists, they're just TikTokers. They they're you know,
Speaker 2: they're getting out on the water themselves before this big
Speaker 2: storm hits and going out there to see if he's
Speaker 2: still there, and sure enough, this is the video that's
Speaker 2: probably it's probably get more views on TikTok than any
Speaker 2: video that has been published in the last two days
Speaker 2: because here you are. You see this boat just kind
Speaker 2: of like, you know, when the storm hadn't really picked
Speaker 2: up yet as of when they were getting this video,
Speaker 2: and he's kind of, you know, the boat's kind of
Speaker 2: like wavering. They're going out there to see is he
Speaker 2: still there? Is he still out there? And sure enough,
Speaker 2: he just pops up out of the boat and you know,
Speaker 2: won't leave. So I don't know where it is now,
Speaker 2: but apparently Tampa police have have you know, have said
Speaker 2: that if he does not leave, then they'll have to
Speaker 2: come back and forcibly remove him and you know, make
Speaker 2: him evacuate, which then it turned into where do they
Speaker 2: actually have the legal right to do that? Which I don't.
Speaker 2: I don't think they do, not that I'm an expert
Speaker 2: on any of that, but it's just been fascinating. You know,
Speaker 2: there's gonna be probably a lot of really tragic stories
Speaker 2: unfortunately when it comes to what this storm does. But
Speaker 2: this story about this dude in his boat who goes
Speaker 2: by Lieutenant Dan, who has one leg that won't leave
Speaker 2: his vessel despite a Category four hurricane coming his way,
Speaker 2: I mean, is it kind of sick twisted to say
Speaker 2: that that's entertained me? Probably? I mean, the dude's got
Speaker 2: some resiliency, Yeah, he certainly does. So shout out to
Speaker 2: Lieutenant Dana. I hope he's safe, and in fact, I
Speaker 2: hope he leaves. But if he doesn't, it's certainly gonna
Speaker 2: be something people. Actually, if he doesn't and we never
Speaker 2: see him again, I think we just kind of know
Speaker 2: what happened, which is awful, but it's his choice, all right.
Speaker 2: We got another hour to go. Stick with us, we'll
Speaker 2: finish strong.
Speaker 6: Here.
Speaker 2: As they're turning off all the lights, it looks like
Speaker 2: the party's over for them, not for us, though we're
Speaker 2: still still rolling along here. It's coffee and company fuel
Speaker 2: about Thornton's right here on Sports Talk seven ninety