Speaker 1: All right.
Speaker 2: Drive with Spans Jackets continues on this beautiful Thursday afternoon
Speaker 2: across the landscape from Salt Lake City, and please to
Speaker 2: welcome in the seventeenth head coach in the history of
Speaker 2: the Utah men's basketball program. Known him a long time,
Speaker 2: thrilled for him, thrilled for his wife and the kids.
Speaker 2: Alex Jensen is our guest on this Thursday afternoon. Al
Speaker 2: Happy Thursday man.
Speaker 3: How you doing.
Speaker 1: I'm doing good. How are you doing sick?
Speaker 3: I'm well, I'm well.
Speaker 2: I was teasing the off air that I thought you
Speaker 2: were contractually obligated to do your first interview with me
Speaker 2: since you landed in the market, but I'm going to
Speaker 2: put that aside because I'm a professional howl.
Speaker 3: We're going to focus on the moment.
Speaker 2: I'm beyond thrilled that this was the decision from the
Speaker 2: administration and that you said yes.
Speaker 3: So congrats.
Speaker 2: Because I haven't had a chance to catch up with you,
Speaker 2: just big picture, what the last few weeks been like
Speaker 2: since the season ended in Dallas. We all know that
Speaker 2: you were doing a lot of work even when you
Speaker 2: were coaching with the MAVs, But since the season ended
Speaker 2: with Dallas, what have the past few weeks been like
Speaker 2: al no, well.
Speaker 1: They've actually the last few weeks were actually a little
Speaker 1: bit better than the previous the previous two weeks before that,
Speaker 1: but it's been it's been good. Like I you know,
Speaker 1: I told you off there as well. I'm trying to
Speaker 1: be diligent. And the advice I've had from other college
Speaker 1: guys and NBA guys that I've talked to is, you know,
Speaker 1: like like take your time, don't be rushed with everything,
Speaker 1: which I've tried to do, which hasn't you know, always
Speaker 1: been easy or you know, easy for those that are
Speaker 1: associated with the program. But no, I'm getting I'm optimistic,
Speaker 1: and uh, I'm excited. I'm excited to build it and
Speaker 1: you know, do what I the way I feel its
Speaker 1: the right way for sure.
Speaker 2: I wonder how you know a lot of reports and
Speaker 2: I've talked to people about this as well. You know
Speaker 2: last time around when there was an opening up here.
Speaker 2: I know that you spoke with Mark Harlan. I know
Speaker 2: there were conversations last time around. What what was the
Speaker 2: difference this time around after the decision was made to
Speaker 2: move on from Craig Smith, who is a great man
Speaker 2: and I think he's a really good coach and has
Speaker 2: a lot of coaching left in his future. But the
Speaker 2: difference this time around you to taking the job was
Speaker 2: what olt.
Speaker 1: It's a great question. I don't know if I could
Speaker 1: put my finger on one thing. I think the you know,
Speaker 1: I think the timing was a lot different, and I think,
Speaker 1: you know, in college basketball changed in that time as well,
Speaker 1: and you know, I just think it was probably I
Speaker 1: would put it on, you know, kind of a place
Speaker 1: where me and my family, you know, I got three
Speaker 1: girls and they're getting older, and you know, there's something
Speaker 1: to be said for the stability of it, and uh,
Speaker 1: you know, I just think it was, you know, kind
Speaker 1: of the timing of everything that it worked out well.
Speaker 1: But again, I think I think personally, like in my
Speaker 1: in my life that you know, I was more of
Speaker 1: a place for if that makes any sense, me and
Speaker 1: my family, it makes.
Speaker 3: A lot of sense. And I'll follow up with this.
Speaker 2: I always believed, and part of me still does, that
Speaker 2: you were going to or eventually could be the head
Speaker 2: coach of an NBA basketball team.
Speaker 3: I mean that maybe that's that's me al right.
Speaker 2: And all of the work you did here with Quinn,
Speaker 2: all of the work you've done throughout the course of
Speaker 2: your life as a coach in college for a minute
Speaker 2: with Rick, and I do want to talk about that.
Speaker 2: In the moment, I just feel I felt like you
Speaker 2: were gonna end up being a head coach. Did just
Speaker 2: out of curiosity? Did you do some calculations to maybe
Speaker 2: believe that that was not part of your future and
Speaker 2: this was your best chance to have your own team?
Speaker 1: You know? You know what, Spence, There's a common line
Speaker 1: in the NBA they talk about like it's one of
Speaker 1: thirty right, or a GM job or a coaching job.
Speaker 1: And I've always said this, and I still believe it
Speaker 1: to my core, Like I've never I've never approached it
Speaker 1: that way, like like I honestly, I you know, because
Speaker 1: you know, just to be a a head coach. I
Speaker 1: mean there's a lot of a lot of first head
Speaker 1: coaching jobs aren't a great situation. And and I've always
Speaker 1: said this, I don't care if I'm the head coach
Speaker 1: or I just want to be in a you know,
Speaker 1: a good place surrounded by good people, which I wasn't
Speaker 1: with the Jazz for a long time, and just to
Speaker 1: be able to do what I you know, have a
Speaker 1: passion for and I love but like I never, I never, never,
Speaker 1: you know, it was going to take a job just
Speaker 1: because it was a head coaching job, if that makes sense.
Speaker 1: Not that I was, you know, had you know, many
Speaker 1: of those opportunities. But yeah, no, I think it's just
Speaker 1: like with this job this time around. I think it
Speaker 1: was the timing of everything, and I think it a
Speaker 1: lot of it has to do with the people that
Speaker 1: you're going to be doing it.
Speaker 2: With, certainly, certainly, Yeah, yeah, no, that no, it makes
Speaker 2: a lot of sense. It makes a lot of sense.
Speaker 2: And I was just giving you my personal take that
Speaker 2: I thought that that was going to be an opportunity.
Speaker 2: But to your point, a lot of those guys are
Speaker 2: hired to be fired. And when you see a guy
Speaker 2: like Michael Malone lose a job a couple of years
Speaker 2: after getting a ring, and a guy like Taylor Jenkins
Speaker 2: lose a job after being the most successful coach in
Speaker 2: Memphis Grizzly history, I would imagine that even underscores how
Speaker 2: nice it is for you to have a bit of
Speaker 2: a runway and also security, how where you and Natalie
Speaker 2: have roots, right, that had to play into it.
Speaker 1: Oh yeah, one hundred percent. You know, and and Taylor.
Speaker 1: I coached with Taylor and the D League. Phenomenal coach,
Speaker 1: Like he'll get another job. You know, he's one of
Speaker 1: the he's really good. He was always a good team.
Speaker 1: Like if you have that scout, it was it fun
Speaker 1: to do because it was you know, you'd learned. But yeah,
Speaker 1: same thing with with Mike Malone in Denver. And you
Speaker 1: know in the NBA is you know, the Great League,
Speaker 1: and it's, uh, it seems like it's more you know,
Speaker 1: unpredictable and yeah, like the stability, and I think, you know,
Speaker 1: it's interesting because I thought, I I kind of looked
Speaker 1: at you know, college with the nil and everything, and
Speaker 1: I think as time goes on, they'll they'll put more
Speaker 1: like regulations in and I think it could actually kind
Speaker 1: of be a you know, it's a little wild right now,
Speaker 1: but I think it, you know, it could be somewhat
Speaker 1: of a good thing with a little more structure.
Speaker 2: Well, of course, the name Rick Manjaris will always loom
Speaker 2: large around here, and the first time I interviewed both
Speaker 2: coach Criscoviac and coach Smith, I promised them that I
Speaker 2: would not invoke his name in order to not be
Speaker 2: fair to them, because that is an expectation that is
Speaker 2: hard to live up to, and you know, it's It's
Speaker 2: funny all over the years whenever I've interviewed your former
Speaker 2: teammates or anybody close to the program. Obviously you know,
Speaker 2: Britton Johnson's a good friend of mine, and they always
Speaker 2: tell the story that, you know, you were always his
Speaker 2: favorite and you were always the one that he uh,
Speaker 2: you know, trusted.
Speaker 3: I think trust is.
Speaker 2: The word that I land on when it comes to
Speaker 2: my view of the relationship between the two of you.
Speaker 2: But talk about as a guy who played for him
Speaker 2: and coach next to him, the expectation that you think
Speaker 2: is realistic and the expectation he set for you as
Speaker 2: a player and a coach, and whether or not that
Speaker 2: is something you kind of use as a north star,
Speaker 2: if that makes sense.
Speaker 1: Yeah, no, no, it was that, you know, I've you know,
Speaker 1: I've reflected on my you know, kind of my progression
Speaker 1: as a coach, and I've been really lucky and to
Speaker 1: start with him, like that's a great you know, not
Speaker 1: to be critical of a lot of younger coaches. I
Speaker 1: was lucky to have him at the beginning because it's
Speaker 1: a great foundation to uh, you know, to kind of
Speaker 1: grow and learn from as opposed, I think the NBA
Speaker 1: is a hard place to to start coaching, to like
Speaker 1: learn the game, if that makes sense. And you look
Speaker 1: at a lot of the great coaches, you know, Phil
Speaker 1: Jackson and and uh George carl and I think even
Speaker 1: Van Gundhi, Like you know, this always interesting to see
Speaker 1: where they started. But you know, being able to play
Speaker 1: for coach mcjerius and coach with them, I got to see,
Speaker 1: you know, two different sides. And you know, the best
Speaker 1: thing I got from him, well, the first thing is
Speaker 1: when people asked about, you know, the thing you took
Speaker 1: from Like I always say this, like he ruins the
Speaker 1: game for you in a lot of ways, because you
Speaker 1: can't watch a game with that without critiquing it and
Speaker 1: seeing what everybody's doing wrong. So it's kind of interesting.
Speaker 1: But at the same time, the one thing that that
Speaker 1: to this day that I think that he was remarkable
Speaker 1: at was like he was like we had long practices
Speaker 1: when I first got here, but like he coached every
Speaker 1: even if he was eating a hamburger or in the
Speaker 1: middle of it, he was still he was one hundred
Speaker 1: percent there coaching and intent and seeing everything, and you
Speaker 1: know it Spence. Not to get long winded here, but
Speaker 1: like I've never been never played football, never been around it.
Speaker 1: But when we were in Dallas, Bill Belichick came and
Speaker 1: talked to us. I've listened to Mike Tomlin and I
Speaker 1: love those guys, and they always talk about like just
Speaker 1: grinding week to week. And it always reminded me of
Speaker 1: the jerious because whether it was a preseason game or
Speaker 1: an NCAA tournament game like it was, it was always
Speaker 1: he never talked about we want to make the tournament,
Speaker 1: we want to win the league. It was always the
Speaker 1: next game, right, like getting better and then then everything
Speaker 1: else will take care of itself. So that was like
Speaker 1: a good thing too for me. And it's you know,
Speaker 1: it's what I'm going to try to do, but you know,
Speaker 1: expectations like he set the standard and and again I'm
Speaker 1: and you know he uh, you know, it was a
Speaker 1: different time in college than it is now. But no,
Speaker 1: like that's the I'm gonna take a lot of the
Speaker 1: things that he taught me and start to do him
Speaker 1: in my own way. And I think that's a big
Speaker 1: mistake some people make. I'm not going to try to
Speaker 1: be him. I think I did that early on in
Speaker 1: my coaching career. But yeah, no, he's he's the standard
Speaker 1: bearer and that's what you know, kind of everybody from
Speaker 1: since then, and you know after me will be kind
Speaker 1: of be compared to. But you know, I look at
Speaker 1: it as it a good thing because a lot of
Speaker 1: people remember those days, and when we talk to recruits
Speaker 1: now we can talk about it, and they might be
Speaker 1: too young to remember it, but you know, their agent
Speaker 1: or their coach or they will remembering. It gives us
Speaker 1: some credibility, so.
Speaker 2: You reference earlier al how college basketball has changed. And
Speaker 2: I wonder ultimately the bottom line is whether you're Utah
Speaker 2: or BYU or Southern Illinois, doesn't matter who you are.
Speaker 2: You have to have the financial resources, the economic ecosystem
Speaker 2: in place to make sure that you can pay these
Speaker 2: players to play for you. I mean, there's no other
Speaker 2: way to put it.
Speaker 3: At this point.
Speaker 2: The people you say transfer portal, I call it free agency.
Speaker 2: And we're moving closer to the house of the NCAA
Speaker 2: settlement you guys are at. We'll have some more guardrails
Speaker 2: in place, and hopefully that brings a little bit of stability.
Speaker 2: But I would imagine now I don't want to speak
Speaker 2: for you, and I'm not leading the witness, but you
Speaker 2: would not have taken this job if there weren't promises
Speaker 2: in place that you would have the bankroll that you
Speaker 2: need to stay competitive with your peers.
Speaker 3: Is that fair to say?
Speaker 1: Yeah, yeah, yeah, obviously, you know those are questions I asked.
Speaker 1: But you know, playing being from here and coming from here,
Speaker 1: like you know, I'm aware of that. You know, the
Speaker 1: university is very capable of providing those resources. And talking
Speaker 1: to a lot of my college coaching friends, like they
Speaker 1: all talk about it, you got it, like it's funny.
Speaker 1: You got to get money and got to get money.
Speaker 1: But when I was going through the process of taking
Speaker 1: the job, and even after I took it, I think
Speaker 1: I kind of like it. Maybe I'm naive and trying
Speaker 1: to be too optimistic mystic, but I like the position
Speaker 1: that University of Utah is in. You know, they're smaller
Speaker 1: schools that you have success, you have no chance at
Speaker 1: keeping a player, And at the same time, like I
Speaker 1: don't right now, I don't want to be I don't
Speaker 1: want to get in a bidding war and you know,
Speaker 1: pay a single player like a ton of money because
Speaker 1: I think it's you know, coming from the NBA, Like
Speaker 1: you see the problems that that can cause. But I think,
Speaker 1: you know, like we're I don't want to say a
Speaker 1: middle ground, but we've got you know, good resources and
Speaker 1: you know, getting kids that you know, money is always
Speaker 1: part of it. Like you'd be lying to yourself if
Speaker 1: you said it wasn't about the money, but also you
Speaker 1: know kids that see the opportunity here. So yeah, like
Speaker 1: it's uh, it's very it's transactional as the word a
Speaker 1: lot of people in the NBA are they used now,
Speaker 1: which is kind of a you know, I think college
Speaker 1: is getting used to it and it's it's turning professional
Speaker 1: for sure.
Speaker 2: So that leads me to some questions about your staff
Speaker 2: and players out with our remaining time that I'll set
Speaker 2: you loose. And you know, there isn't a bigger indicator
Speaker 2: as far as the changing landscape of collegiate athletics and
Speaker 2: college hoops than the fact that everyone's hired a general manager.
Speaker 2: And you know me, I've been around pro basketball my
Speaker 2: entire life. It as a basketball sikoh myself. I knew
Speaker 2: exactly who Wes Wilcox was when I heard the news,
Speaker 2: and I know who Wes is. I don't know him personally,
Speaker 2: but you know I was at the OKC Jazz game
Speaker 2: with Scott Leyden recently and Scott he's been doing some
Speaker 2: work for the King, so he's been working with Wes.
Speaker 3: And he's a bright guy. I mean, you know this,
Speaker 3: you've known him forever.
Speaker 2: What ultimately led you to landing on Wes Wilcox as
Speaker 2: your general manager?
Speaker 1: Well, you know when I seriously started thinking of taking
Speaker 1: the job, and I when I had the job, like
Speaker 1: my mind and I told everybody like like it's my
Speaker 1: mind just went so it just screamed a GM. And uh,
Speaker 1: it's hard for a coach to negotiate the money with
Speaker 1: the player and then try to coach him during the season.
Speaker 1: But but a GM. And I and I wanted somebody.
Speaker 1: I didn't want to a former coach, but I want
Speaker 1: My mind just went to the NBA of somebody that's
Speaker 1: that that's what they want to do, that's what they've done.
Speaker 1: And you know Wes was you know he hired me
Speaker 1: in Cleveland. Is the D League coach. I mean one
Speaker 1: of the guys that I had asked to ask, you know,
Speaker 1: for advice, you know, different situations in my career. And
Speaker 1: I when I first approached him about asking, you know,
Speaker 1: any maybe younger guys he knew and you know, there
Speaker 1: was a little interest there. Then it grew and I
Speaker 1: didn't think I would get somebody as a seasoned and
Speaker 1: as good as West, But yeah, that that that's it's
Speaker 1: been huge and I think I think more colleges will
Speaker 1: go that way. But I think there's the distinction between
Speaker 1: somebody who's done that, who's built rosters, balanced robsters, negotiated contracts.
Speaker 1: It's a huge and it's made it that much easier
Speaker 1: for us now. But and again, it's a great a partnership,
Speaker 1: you know between coaching the pernoples, like you're together but separate,
Speaker 1: like you know, throughout this whole year, that's what he's
Speaker 1: going to be doing. Well, you know, I'll be coaching
Speaker 1: the team. We'll talk basketball, Frost, but like that's that's
Speaker 1: his job, and then I have my job. That makes sense.
Speaker 2: It does, it does, and you know, like I said, dynamic, bright,
Speaker 2: guy who's really good with numbers.
Speaker 3: It was a great move.
Speaker 2: So let's talk about your the first assistant coach you hired,
Speaker 2: Raphael Chillius.
Speaker 3: I had heard the name.
Speaker 2: I've had several guests on over the course of the
Speaker 2: past I guess a couple of months now since the
Speaker 2: hiring came down, and this was another move that a
Speaker 2: lot of people applauded. Tell me, why Al you landed on.
Speaker 2: Coach Chill is your first assistant coach?
Speaker 1: You know, you know, I got to meet Coach Chill
Speaker 1: because we coached in the summer together. We took college teams,
Speaker 1: so we spent time on the bus, became friends, and
Speaker 1: he was actually a he was a out for the
Speaker 1: Grizzlies this year. I had an extensive college experience, but
Speaker 1: first just a good person and a guy that just
Speaker 1: lives it like he's one of the scouts, and you
Speaker 1: know this spense that when the door is open to
Speaker 1: the arena, he's waiting to get in, and he's down
Speaker 1: there an hour and a half before, just watching everything.
Speaker 1: And you know, it's funny. We were playing in Boston
Speaker 1: and he was scouting when the rumors started about me,
Speaker 1: and we went to dinner and he brought it up
Speaker 1: and expressed interest in coming, which and at that time
Speaker 1: I wasn't I don't think I was really deep into
Speaker 1: thinking about taking it. But and that, you know, I'm
Speaker 1: grateful that he did that he wanted to be here,
Speaker 1: and you know that's that's the one thing I think
Speaker 1: that that's hit me since you know, my staff has
Speaker 1: been here and we talked about with the players, like,
Speaker 1: you know, I had a good job, Wes definitely had
Speaker 1: a good job. Chill, Raphael Chill had a great job,
Speaker 1: and like, we're here because we want to be here,
Speaker 1: not because we do, not because of money. But I
Speaker 1: think it's rubbed up on a recruiting But yet Chill
Speaker 1: coach Phil, who he's often everybody calls him, knows everybody
Speaker 1: and could take multiple college jobs every year. So I'm
Speaker 1: flattered and we're lucky to have him.
Speaker 2: I wanted to ask you because you referenced meeting some
Speaker 2: football coaches in your time down in Dallas, and I
Speaker 2: understand a football coach here in Salt Lake City. You
Speaker 2: hopped on the phone with a football coach here in
Speaker 2: Salt Lake prior to taking the job, and he had
Speaker 2: a conversation with coach Wit.
Speaker 3: With Kyle Whittingham.
Speaker 2: I wonder if you could provide a little context on
Speaker 2: why you decided to talk to Kyle, what he told you,
Speaker 2: and how that ultimately helped you decide you wanted to
Speaker 2: move the family here and coach the utes.
Speaker 1: You know, I you know, I've known Kyle, you know
Speaker 1: since my freshman year when he when he worked here
Speaker 1: with his dad, and obviously i've you know, watched or admired
Speaker 1: what he's done and and mostly, you know, the opportunity
Speaker 1: arises again, like I'd like to talk to him, because
Speaker 1: that's what you know, we're trying to do on the
Speaker 1: basketball side, replicate what he's done, because he's built an
Speaker 1: amazing program and he's done a great job, and he's
Speaker 1: you know, and I respect him. And that's why I
Speaker 1: respect a lot of football guys because usually in football,
Speaker 1: you start and you work your way up, you know,
Speaker 1: the NBA, a lot of guys, you know, you skip steps.
Speaker 1: But no, like he's I you know, every chance I get,
Speaker 1: he's a guy that I would approach with advice because
Speaker 1: not only has he been and I've been in and out,
Speaker 1: but he's been around it, and uh, like I said,
Speaker 1: just admire what he's done, and and uh, you know
Speaker 1: somebody that'll is every chance I get try to you know,
Speaker 1: learn from and get some advice from, you know, the
Speaker 1: challenges and obviously, you know, talking about the challenges and uh,
Speaker 1: you know the good and bad of it all, which
Speaker 1: which comes everywhere you go. But you know he's uh,
Speaker 1: and again he's been here for what thirty years and
Speaker 1: put the programs come a long way in thirty years.
Speaker 2: It sure has al How does it land with you
Speaker 2: when I say next year in marks a decade since
Speaker 2: the last NC Double A Tournament appearance for Utah men's basketball.
Speaker 1: You know it's it's uh, you know, I think all
Speaker 1: of us got you know, we were spoiled and got
Speaker 1: used to the success. There's no reason you know why
Speaker 1: it can't be there, But you know, the I don't know.
Speaker 1: I think it's and again, obviously that's something that you
Speaker 1: want to do every year. But you know, just the
Speaker 1: way Majeri's taught me and listening to a lot of
Speaker 1: football guys like you know, like you just do your
Speaker 1: do what you're supposed to do every day and that
Speaker 1: will all take care of itself. I mean, obviously it's
Speaker 1: something that we want and everybody else wants us to get.
Speaker 1: And I think it just starts, you know, in the summer,
Speaker 1: and just like what we do today, you know, instead
Speaker 1: of talking about it every day, that's our goal that's
Speaker 1: our goal. Whereas we have our you know, your goal
Speaker 1: about our daily business and have our goals and accomplish
Speaker 1: what we need to like, that'll that'll eventually happen. But yeah,
Speaker 1: I don't think that's something that anybody, you know, ten, fifteen,
Speaker 1: twenty years ago, whatever of predicted have a you know,
Speaker 1: a ten year drought from the NCAA tournament.
Speaker 2: Obviously as your reference, that's a goal that you want
Speaker 2: to achieve every single year. As you know, al you
Speaker 2: are playing in one of, if not the best college
Speaker 2: basketball conferences in America. That was probably the SEC a
Speaker 2: year ago, but it might be the Big Twelve next year.
Speaker 2: And I continue to try just to temper expectations because
Speaker 2: you just started the job and you've got a group
Speaker 2: of a bunch of new players. But what would you
Speaker 2: say to the Utah fan base chomping at the bid
Speaker 2: for success and tournament appearances and such that they should
Speaker 2: expect year one from you and your staff in the
Speaker 2: Big Twelve.
Speaker 1: You know, it's just like with the you know, I
Speaker 1: mentioned it took my time. I wanted a GM. I'm
Speaker 1: trying to be really deliberate with how I go about
Speaker 1: it and not get rushed with my staff and the team,
Speaker 1: and that you know, there's a specific you know, once
Speaker 1: I hired West, Bill and I and UH and Eric, like,
Speaker 1: we have our criteria for players. But I would say
Speaker 1: this that going after guys that that want to be here,
Speaker 1: that want to get better, and you know, not necessarily
Speaker 1: you know, to make the most money. I mean, obviously
Speaker 1: that's part of it, but you know, I would sell
Speaker 1: fans and everybody else. There's a particular type of player
Speaker 1: that we went out after, and I think we got,
Speaker 1: you know, first, guys that compete, Guys that that love
Speaker 1: the game and like to play. And that might seem
Speaker 1: like a simple thing and you think everybody does it,
Speaker 1: but you know the hardest thing for a coach is
Speaker 1: when you have a player that doesn't care about it
Speaker 1: as much as you do. And UH and I think
Speaker 1: we've done a really good job with those guys, Guys
Speaker 1: that compete, love to play. And then after that we
Speaker 1: go into the you know, the physical attributes. But no,
Speaker 1: I'm I'm actually looking really I'm getting excited to be
Speaker 1: able to coach these guys and to see where we go.
Speaker 1: And that's the fun part about is I don't think
Speaker 1: I could even anticipate how things will turn out, but
Speaker 1: I am optimistic and we have a good group of
Speaker 1: players and coaches.
Speaker 2: All Right, I'll before I say you lose, because I
Speaker 2: know we're up against it here, and I would love
Speaker 2: at some point to bring you in studio maybe to
Speaker 2: talk about all these young men individually, but we just
Speaker 2: don't have time to do that. And we have a
Speaker 2: Utah basketball community and fan base curious about this roster
Speaker 2: full of new faces outside of Keanu Kianda Daz who
Speaker 2: we all saw play you at a hell of an
Speaker 2: end of the year last season. So I'm going to
Speaker 2: give you the space with whatever direction you want to
Speaker 2: go as far as talking about a couple of these
Speaker 2: new players so our fan base can kind of get
Speaker 2: to know this roster a little bit.
Speaker 1: Okay, Yeah, yeah, No. It's funny because I would, you know,
Speaker 1: I was finishing up in Dallas, I had a game,
Speaker 1: and then I would after the game, I'd call a
Speaker 1: coach still in West would be up in my office
Speaker 1: going through a roster, and I tell him I apologize,
Speaker 1: and I feel bad, like I just took three hours
Speaker 1: off and watched the game while you guys are making
Speaker 1: the calls but I mean I often having lived as
Speaker 1: a coach real quick, like I wanted to point guard.
Speaker 1: You know, we were we were hurting Dallas and even
Speaker 1: after the game, I'd say, okay, point guard, we need
Speaker 1: a point guard. But you know, Terrence Brown is one
Speaker 1: of the first guys we signed out of Fairley Dickinson
Speaker 1: did from Minnesota, and uh, and I just you know,
Speaker 1: he loves that he's in Vegas working out now, but
Speaker 1: he's one guy. And then when we got uh, after that,
Speaker 1: we got Elijah Choppa Moore from from Syracuse. He's originally
Speaker 1: from the Bronx. And uh, you know, you know, I
Speaker 1: think the one thing we actually have James the Conquo
Speaker 1: who's actually originally from London who played Acklan last year,
Speaker 1: Jackai Howard from Auburn, Don McHenry and Babycrfey are coming
Speaker 1: from West Virginia, and Sadhu Trairi who's from the Bronx
Speaker 1: that's coming from Iowa. It's kind of kind of dawned
Speaker 1: on me that they're kind of I don't know, the
Speaker 1: last time you were a few tah teams had two
Speaker 1: kids from the Bronx or you know, Boston, London. So
Speaker 1: it's actually and you know, Keanu is a local kid.
Speaker 1: But I think it's again, I feel like they have
Speaker 1: all those traits. They like to compete, they like to play,
Speaker 1: and they want to get better. So anyway, yeah, I'd
Speaker 1: love to come in sometime too, Spence, and we could,
Speaker 1: we could spend more time with each one of them,
Speaker 1: because it's a good group I think.
Speaker 2: Well, Like I said, I'm thrilled that this was the
Speaker 2: decision made by the administration. I'm thrilled that you'd say that.
Speaker 2: You said yes. You know, my family are big fans
Speaker 2: of the Jensen family and big fans of you, and
Speaker 2: big fans of your bride and your girls too.
Speaker 3: So thrilled to have you on the ground.
Speaker 2: If we can ever do anything for you as your
Speaker 2: broadcast partner, please reach out.
Speaker 1: Okay, I will thank Spence likewise, all right.
Speaker 2: Alex Jensen, seventeenth head coach and you TA men's basketball history,
Speaker 2: joined the program on this Thursday. I'm courteus to our
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