WEBVTT 1 00:00:00.080 --> 00:00:03.600 He's the pride of Norwich, Connecticut and an adopted son 2 00:00:03.680 --> 00:00:07.080 of Salt Lake City. After forty years with the Utah Jazz, 3 00:00:07.440 --> 00:00:11.039 there's no one better to talk some hoops. Richard Smitty 4 00:00:11.080 --> 00:00:14.919 Smith is back on the Drive on ESPN seven hundred. 5 00:00:15.560 --> 00:00:17.719 All right, coming up at the end of this segment, 6 00:00:17.960 --> 00:00:21.239 we are giving away one round of golf to Davis Park, 7 00:00:22.120 --> 00:00:24.120 which is a great track up north. 8 00:00:24.199 --> 00:00:25.440 It is the Festival of Teas. 9 00:00:26.000 --> 00:00:28.679 I have tasked Smitty with coming up with a trivia question, 10 00:00:28.839 --> 00:00:33.000 an NBA jazz related, maybe Draft related trivia question that 11 00:00:33.079 --> 00:00:33.520 he's going to. 12 00:00:33.600 --> 00:00:34.759 Drop on you coming up. 13 00:00:34.799 --> 00:00:37.920 We'll call that about twenty minutes from right now, and 14 00:00:38.000 --> 00:00:39.719 the first person to text in the answer, We're going 15 00:00:39.799 --> 00:00:42.840 to send you up to play Davis Park in honor 16 00:00:42.840 --> 00:00:45.399 of our Festival of Teas, brought to you by the UGA. 17 00:00:45.560 --> 00:00:48.679 So stay tuned for that and live in studio. Fresh 18 00:00:48.719 --> 00:00:51.640 off a trip down south where he was watching some 19 00:00:51.679 --> 00:00:54.479 of the world's greatest LPGA golfers play at the Black 20 00:00:54.479 --> 00:00:55.560 Desert Championship. 21 00:00:55.600 --> 00:00:57.640 Is Richard Smith, Smitty? How are you, man? Man? 22 00:00:58.320 --> 00:01:01.000 It was a fun weekend too. It's a great golf 23 00:01:01.560 --> 00:01:04.359 you know you you watch the uh the women in 24 00:01:04.439 --> 00:01:09.760 the LPGA up close, and you recognize quickly how how 25 00:01:10.280 --> 00:01:13.200 precise they are and everything they do when they get 26 00:01:13.239 --> 00:01:15.040 over the ball and they get ready to hit it, 27 00:01:15.519 --> 00:01:19.319 everything is lined up. Everything is just textbook, I mean, 28 00:01:19.359 --> 00:01:22.400 and I mean everybody, every single player. I'm I was 29 00:01:22.480 --> 00:01:27.239 just you know, fascinated by by how uh precise and 30 00:01:27.319 --> 00:01:30.640 distinct they are when they get over the ball. Uh, 31 00:01:30.799 --> 00:01:32.599 you know, whether it's on the tee, in the middle 32 00:01:32.599 --> 00:01:34.799 of the fairway, on the green. It's uh, it was 33 00:01:34.799 --> 00:01:37.200 fun to watch, fun to be a part of course. 34 00:01:36.959 --> 00:01:38.799 In good shape. The highlights. That's awesome. 35 00:01:39.000 --> 00:01:42.680 Course was in great shape. The uh the Black Desert 36 00:01:43.159 --> 00:01:46.239 administrative people down there, they just uh they go all 37 00:01:46.280 --> 00:01:49.799 out to make sure that that that that tournament, the 38 00:01:49.920 --> 00:01:52.519 course is ready to go. And I think the players 39 00:01:52.519 --> 00:01:56.719 loved it. And look the winning score uh by uh 40 00:01:57.640 --> 00:02:00.879 by you was the it was twenty sixth and the 41 00:02:00.920 --> 00:02:04.280 winning score last fall and the PG but Matt McCarty 42 00:02:04.400 --> 00:02:07.519 was was I believe it was twenty five under. And 43 00:02:08.039 --> 00:02:10.280 so the players love it. The players love the course, 44 00:02:10.639 --> 00:02:13.919 and it's a scorable course. You know, it's not there's 45 00:02:13.960 --> 00:02:15.800 a lot of places you can't get in a lot 46 00:02:15.800 --> 00:02:18.400 of trouble. As long as you hit the ball pretty straight. 47 00:02:18.520 --> 00:02:19.879 I mean, you're gonna be rewarded. 48 00:02:21.360 --> 00:02:24.120 Well, I almost broke eighty. There can't. I can't relate 49 00:02:24.120 --> 00:02:27.240 to what the pros do. Is it hard for you 50 00:02:27.280 --> 00:02:29.960 to deal with your newfound celebrity status after coming on 51 00:02:30.000 --> 00:02:31.560 this radio program? 52 00:02:31.639 --> 00:02:32.599 Yeh yeah, this is tough. 53 00:02:32.759 --> 00:02:34.360 I mean, I'm sure people were coming up to you 54 00:02:34.439 --> 00:02:36.120 left and right like, aren't you Smitty from the. 55 00:02:36.159 --> 00:02:40.159 Dry I had that, but but you know, I fortunately 56 00:02:40.199 --> 00:02:42.520 the radio station here is kind enough to send two 57 00:02:42.560 --> 00:02:45.520 bodyguards with me wherever I go, and for that that 58 00:02:45.560 --> 00:02:47.639 takes care of a lot of the crowd issues. 59 00:02:47.680 --> 00:02:48.680 Good good, good, well good. 60 00:02:48.759 --> 00:02:50.680 Great to have you in on a daylight today where 61 00:02:50.719 --> 00:02:54.039 some unexpected news drop that the Utah Jazz and their 62 00:02:54.080 --> 00:02:56.599 head coach Will Hardy have agreed to a contract extension 63 00:02:56.639 --> 00:02:59.560 through twenty thirty one and Smitty, as you know, Will 64 00:02:59.599 --> 00:03:02.360 was hired in twenty twenty two after Quinn left, and 65 00:03:02.360 --> 00:03:05.199 they gave him a five year contract with three guaranteed 66 00:03:05.319 --> 00:03:07.680 years and then two years of team options what they've 67 00:03:07.680 --> 00:03:11.039 already picked which they've already picked up, so prior to today, 68 00:03:11.199 --> 00:03:15.400 he was under contract through twenty twenty six. Now he's 69 00:03:15.479 --> 00:03:17.439 under contract through twenty thirty one. 70 00:03:18.159 --> 00:03:19.080 This is pretty rare. 71 00:03:19.199 --> 00:03:22.159 I mean for a coach, you get a nine year runway, right, 72 00:03:22.240 --> 00:03:24.919 And so I wonder what you make of the decision 73 00:03:24.960 --> 00:03:27.639 of both the Jazz to offer and Will to accept. 74 00:03:27.879 --> 00:03:30.439 Well, first of all, I think the Jazz are smart, 75 00:03:30.840 --> 00:03:34.759 smart because they have a guy in place that they've 76 00:03:34.879 --> 00:03:38.199 worked with now every day for three years. So they've 77 00:03:38.240 --> 00:03:44.319 had obviously an expansive ability to look at, you know, 78 00:03:44.400 --> 00:03:47.280 what they think about him. It's not so much obviously 79 00:03:47.360 --> 00:03:49.879 as we know Spence at the current iteration of the 80 00:03:49.960 --> 00:03:52.800 Jazz on the floor. It's not about the wins and losses. 81 00:03:52.840 --> 00:03:58.479 It's about setting a culture, setting an approach, a philosophy 82 00:03:58.639 --> 00:04:02.479 that you feel you're organization can can wrap its arms 83 00:04:02.520 --> 00:04:05.960 around and it can be part of going forward over 84 00:04:05.960 --> 00:04:10.039 a long term basis. They've obviously looked at that the 85 00:04:10.080 --> 00:04:12.599 last three years and determined that Will Hardy is a 86 00:04:12.639 --> 00:04:15.759 guy they want to they want to work with long term. Uh. 87 00:04:15.800 --> 00:04:18.360 He's a guy that they feel fit what they're trying 88 00:04:18.439 --> 00:04:22.399 to to get accomplished there and uh, and so it's 89 00:04:22.399 --> 00:04:25.600 a great, you know, great idea for them to lock 90 00:04:25.680 --> 00:04:29.279 somebody up like that, uh, that that they feel comfortable with, 91 00:04:29.480 --> 00:04:32.920 that they feel is is doing things the way they 92 00:04:32.959 --> 00:04:36.120 would like them to get done. On the flip side, 93 00:04:36.240 --> 00:04:39.720 for Will Hardy, it gives him, you know obviously not 94 00:04:39.720 --> 00:04:44.839 not just some some some coaching stability uh and longevity, 95 00:04:45.079 --> 00:04:48.240 but allows him the idea that, hey, these guys believe 96 00:04:48.279 --> 00:04:51.480 in me, and so I've got to do whatever I 97 00:04:51.680 --> 00:04:55.480 can to return that faith in that trust by working 98 00:04:55.560 --> 00:04:58.639 hard every day, by trying to get us better, by 99 00:04:58.720 --> 00:05:03.160 trying to get this program back on track the way 100 00:05:03.600 --> 00:05:05.920 we all want it to be. And so it gives 101 00:05:06.000 --> 00:05:09.639 him an inner piece. And it's not just about the 102 00:05:09.920 --> 00:05:12.040 length of the contract and the money and all that 103 00:05:12.120 --> 00:05:15.040 kind of stuff, but it's about the idea that obviously, 104 00:05:15.480 --> 00:05:18.639 the people I work for have this kind of trust 105 00:05:18.680 --> 00:05:21.319 in me, so I have to true the best I 106 00:05:21.439 --> 00:05:24.160 can to return that to them in terms of how 107 00:05:24.199 --> 00:05:25.040 I do my job. 108 00:05:25.319 --> 00:05:28.199 So, Smitdie as you know better than anybody, these coaches 109 00:05:28.240 --> 00:05:30.519 oftentimes are hired to be fired. 110 00:05:30.759 --> 00:05:30.920 Right. 111 00:05:31.079 --> 00:05:35.879 This is a profession and an industry with tremendous volatility, 112 00:05:36.519 --> 00:05:39.439 and oftentimes a new owner comes in and it's like 113 00:05:40.120 --> 00:05:42.920 if you buy the house, you're gonna put your own furniture. 114 00:05:42.959 --> 00:05:45.079 In if you buy the house, you want to remodel it, 115 00:05:45.160 --> 00:05:47.839 so it's what you want it to be because it's 116 00:05:47.839 --> 00:05:53.399 yours now. So I get Will Hardy jumping at the 117 00:05:53.439 --> 00:05:56.600 opportunity to essentially, like I said, have a nine year 118 00:05:56.720 --> 00:05:59.120 runway between the day he took the job and the 119 00:05:59.199 --> 00:06:02.519 day is contract expires. Now, does it mean that he's 120 00:06:02.519 --> 00:06:04.040 going to be here for nine years, No, we know 121 00:06:04.079 --> 00:06:06.240 the deal. I mean he could be fired tomorrow and 122 00:06:06.279 --> 00:06:10.560 who knows what's going to happen. So and certainly this 123 00:06:10.680 --> 00:06:13.480 year with a coaching cycle, Taylor Jenkins losing his job 124 00:06:13.519 --> 00:06:15.920 after doing a great job in Memphis, Michael Malone wins 125 00:06:15.920 --> 00:06:18.800 a championship two years ago, and that's not enough to 126 00:06:18.879 --> 00:06:22.079 allow him to keep his job and coaching a team 127 00:06:22.120 --> 00:06:23.959 that was and still is in the playoffs and was 128 00:06:24.000 --> 00:06:24.360 really good. 129 00:06:24.360 --> 00:06:25.959 It's a wild. 130 00:06:25.720 --> 00:06:29.000 Industry, and I get it that if your will, you 131 00:06:29.079 --> 00:06:31.040 jump at the opportunity to do it because you have 132 00:06:31.079 --> 00:06:34.319 security in a space where there really isn't security even 133 00:06:34.360 --> 00:06:36.800 for some of the greatest that we've seen. But is 134 00:06:36.879 --> 00:06:39.240 this a risk for Will because and you know, I 135 00:06:39.319 --> 00:06:42.680 keep talking about this twenty one years since the Charlotte 136 00:06:42.680 --> 00:06:45.920 Hornets have won a playoff series twenty one year since 137 00:06:45.920 --> 00:06:49.040 the Kings have won the playoff a playoff series. The 138 00:06:49.120 --> 00:06:51.600 Detroit Pistons, who once upon a time were a great, 139 00:06:51.639 --> 00:06:53.480 great team back in the day, have not won a 140 00:06:53.480 --> 00:06:56.199 home playoff game since two thousand and eight. You were 141 00:06:56.279 --> 00:06:59.399 part of several front offices that were able to pivot 142 00:06:59.480 --> 00:07:02.199 quickly to get back to competitiveness. 143 00:07:02.680 --> 00:07:03.560 They're not close. 144 00:07:04.240 --> 00:07:07.199 And whenever I talk about any of these really long 145 00:07:07.240 --> 00:07:10.879 playoff droughts, it's a reminder to our community how lucky 146 00:07:10.920 --> 00:07:14.600 we've been about how quickly front offices that you were 147 00:07:14.639 --> 00:07:16.839 a part of were able to pivot to get us back. 148 00:07:17.720 --> 00:07:19.839 If we're honest and we're looking at the Jazz roster 149 00:07:19.879 --> 00:07:21.920 and we juxtaposed it to the teams in the Western 150 00:07:21.920 --> 00:07:26.199 Conference playoffs, they're simply not close. With the talent that 151 00:07:26.560 --> 00:07:29.240 Will has in the locker room. Is this a risk 152 00:07:29.360 --> 00:07:31.360 for Will to decide he wants to sign on for 153 00:07:31.439 --> 00:07:34.120 this long term project with no guarantees that you've got 154 00:07:34.439 --> 00:07:36.600 the talent that you need to compete heading this way 155 00:07:36.600 --> 00:07:37.279 anytime soon? 156 00:07:37.680 --> 00:07:40.319 Yeah, I would. I would push back on that spence. 157 00:07:40.360 --> 00:07:42.959 I don't if you're a coach and you're getting offered 158 00:07:43.720 --> 00:07:48.680 a multi year contract extension with any organization you're you're 159 00:07:48.680 --> 00:07:52.600 going to take that primarily because as I mentioned I'm 160 00:07:52.600 --> 00:07:57.040 minute ago, it's two things. One, you're you're getting that 161 00:07:57.639 --> 00:08:01.279 kind of support from the people you're to that we 162 00:08:01.519 --> 00:08:04.759 like you, we believe in how you're doing it. You 163 00:08:04.959 --> 00:08:07.759 keep on doing what you're doing and we're behind you 164 00:08:07.839 --> 00:08:11.759 and we're giving you this kind of support to make 165 00:08:11.800 --> 00:08:15.240 that happen. And then the other part is as a coach, 166 00:08:15.600 --> 00:08:18.120 you want to be in a position where you can 167 00:08:18.199 --> 00:08:21.759 show that you can improve the situation you're in. You 168 00:08:21.800 --> 00:08:25.519 can get a team better, you can get players better, 169 00:08:26.000 --> 00:08:30.959 and the stability it brings and the confidence it brings 170 00:08:31.000 --> 00:08:34.559 to someone is really something that you have to take 171 00:08:34.600 --> 00:08:38.240 in large measure. There's a smaller part of it, Spence, 172 00:08:38.279 --> 00:08:42.039 that nobody ever talks about, which is simply that there's 173 00:08:42.080 --> 00:08:46.039 a real world issue to this, and that is that 174 00:08:46.200 --> 00:08:48.480 if you're a will hardy and you're in a position 175 00:08:48.639 --> 00:08:52.480 like that, you have a house payment to make, you 176 00:08:52.639 --> 00:08:56.360 have children to feed, you have a family to take 177 00:08:56.360 --> 00:08:58.919 care of. So you know, when if you get an 178 00:08:58.919 --> 00:09:02.080 opportunity to to sign a deal like this to be 179 00:09:02.159 --> 00:09:04.360 able to be part of something that you believe in, 180 00:09:04.840 --> 00:09:08.159 that you think has a chance to improve with your 181 00:09:08.279 --> 00:09:12.960 input in your leadership, and the organization is saying, hey, yeah, 182 00:09:13.000 --> 00:09:17.679 you're our guy. This isn't some what I call sometimes 183 00:09:17.679 --> 00:09:21.720 spence a fake extension where the guy got an extra 184 00:09:21.879 --> 00:09:25.559 year put on his contract because he had a good season, 185 00:09:25.799 --> 00:09:28.360 which we see a lot of times in professional sports. 186 00:09:28.600 --> 00:09:31.399 The organization went out and said, we're gonna give you 187 00:09:31.480 --> 00:09:35.480 this extension for another six years, you know, which is 188 00:09:35.559 --> 00:09:39.759 a long time for someone who quite frankly hasn't had 189 00:09:39.840 --> 00:09:42.559 a winning record. You can say we haven't had the players, 190 00:09:42.559 --> 00:09:45.279 he hasn't been able to do that, Okay, But obviously 191 00:09:45.320 --> 00:09:49.039 they believe in his approach and his philosophy enough to 192 00:09:49.120 --> 00:09:52.480 say the wins and the lack of wins to this 193 00:09:52.519 --> 00:09:55.840 point really doesn't matter. We believe in how you do 194 00:09:55.960 --> 00:09:59.159 your stuff. We've been around you for three years. We 195 00:09:59.279 --> 00:10:01.679 know that you're the kind of guy that we want 196 00:10:01.759 --> 00:10:05.720 leading our group going forward. And all of that is symbiotic. 197 00:10:06.039 --> 00:10:09.600 You know, they help you, you help them. Everybody's in 198 00:10:09.679 --> 00:10:12.879 it together, and it's a big it's a big moment 199 00:10:12.919 --> 00:10:15.600 for the organization to all be on the same page 200 00:10:15.600 --> 00:10:16.679 in that regard. 201 00:10:16.679 --> 00:10:19.200 With Greg Popovich stepping down, and I do want to 202 00:10:19.200 --> 00:10:21.360 get to that in a moment. Eric Spolster is the 203 00:10:21.440 --> 00:10:25.200 longest tenured coach in pro basketball seventeen years in Miami, 204 00:10:25.879 --> 00:10:30.720 Steve Kerr eleven years in Golden State. The third longest 205 00:10:30.720 --> 00:10:34.480 tenured coach is Tom Thibodeaux with the New York Knicks. 206 00:10:34.799 --> 00:10:35.279 Five years. 207 00:10:35.360 --> 00:10:35.799 Here we go. 208 00:10:36.480 --> 00:10:37.879 So if Will coaches through the. 209 00:10:37.919 --> 00:10:39.679 End of his contract, and it's nine years, it would 210 00:10:39.720 --> 00:10:41.840 make him the third longest tenured coach as we currently 211 00:10:41.840 --> 00:10:44.639 sit here. And that underscores your point, doesn't. 212 00:10:44.399 --> 00:10:46.159 It if you get there right, If you get to 213 00:10:46.159 --> 00:10:49.600 that right. I mean, so Tibbs is the third longest 214 00:10:49.639 --> 00:10:54.960 tenured five years. That just there's thirty teams in the league, spense, 215 00:10:55.320 --> 00:10:59.279 So you're talking about the third longest tenured guy. There's 216 00:10:59.360 --> 00:11:03.440 another to twenty seven teams that are after him who 217 00:11:03.440 --> 00:11:06.679 have had coaches less than five years. I mean, come on, 218 00:11:07.279 --> 00:11:10.600 how do you expect to gain any traction? How do 219 00:11:10.639 --> 00:11:14.919 you expect to have any stability in your organization to 220 00:11:15.000 --> 00:11:18.799 be able to build upon something when you just keep 221 00:11:18.879 --> 00:11:23.120 stopping and starting, stopping and starting hiring a guy, firing 222 00:11:23.120 --> 00:11:26.559 a guy, changing general managers, changing the head coach. Like 223 00:11:27.440 --> 00:11:29.840 that's why you see a lot of these organizations can 224 00:11:29.919 --> 00:11:34.039 never get anything going because they don't have the patients. 225 00:11:34.480 --> 00:11:37.759 They don't have the foresight to be able to see 226 00:11:37.799 --> 00:11:40.840 that if you get something in place that you think 227 00:11:40.960 --> 00:11:44.360 makes sense for you, that you want to keep that 228 00:11:44.519 --> 00:11:47.919 in place over an extended period of time so you 229 00:11:48.080 --> 00:11:51.840 have some longevity, so you have an ability to get 230 00:11:52.200 --> 00:11:56.559 some traction, to get some footing to see what's going on. Obviously, 231 00:11:56.600 --> 00:12:01.559 the Jazz front office led by Danny Ainge justin Zanik, 232 00:12:01.600 --> 00:12:04.480 and then their ownership of course with Ryan and Ashley Smith, 233 00:12:04.519 --> 00:12:07.000 have looked at it and said, we want will Hardy 234 00:12:07.080 --> 00:12:10.000 to be here long term. That's the only way we 235 00:12:10.080 --> 00:12:13.840 can put some stakes in the ground and and continue 236 00:12:13.919 --> 00:12:18.120 to drive this thing brick by brick by brick, and 237 00:12:18.120 --> 00:12:19.879 and that's the commitment they made today. 238 00:12:20.120 --> 00:12:21.799 I'm not even gonna ask you to guess who the 239 00:12:21.840 --> 00:12:25.039 fourth longest tenured coach is if you want to go ahead, 240 00:12:25.080 --> 00:12:29.240 but you would have how about Tyler? Tyler is fifth 241 00:12:29.639 --> 00:12:32.600 the fourth day, It's not he's sixth. 242 00:12:32.759 --> 00:12:36.480 Okay, I'm in the I'm in the vicinity, right hold on, 243 00:12:36.960 --> 00:12:38.840 let me let me scan it quickly. 244 00:12:38.960 --> 00:12:40.720 It blew my mind when I read it quick because 245 00:12:40.960 --> 00:12:49.080 I feel like he was hired yesterday. Quickly, Chris Finch, 246 00:12:49.120 --> 00:12:52.559 it's Billy Donovan. It's Billy donald I feel like they 247 00:12:52.679 --> 00:12:54.600 hired him last week. Yeah, yeah, I see. 248 00:12:54.600 --> 00:12:58.399 And Billy's had you know, they've had uneven results, right, 249 00:12:58.519 --> 00:13:01.480 They've had uneven results. And they've had a team that 250 00:13:01.519 --> 00:13:03.720 they put together a few years ago that they thought, 251 00:13:04.360 --> 00:13:07.360 you know, you know, it could be sustainable with a 252 00:13:07.440 --> 00:13:11.440 Lionzo Ball and and and Uh and zach Lavine and 253 00:13:11.440 --> 00:13:14.279 and uh and the big Kid and they just you know, 254 00:13:14.320 --> 00:13:17.519 they couldn't get any you know, they were okay but 255 00:13:17.679 --> 00:13:20.799 not great. But they they've stayed in that gray area. See, 256 00:13:20.879 --> 00:13:23.320 And that's that's what the killer thing is in the 257 00:13:23.440 --> 00:13:26.600 NBA spence is if you're an organization, if you're an owner, 258 00:13:27.080 --> 00:13:29.519 you know, we always would would say, you want to 259 00:13:29.559 --> 00:13:33.519 be one of the top five teams, or if you 260 00:13:33.600 --> 00:13:36.200 can't be that, you want to be one of the 261 00:13:36.240 --> 00:13:40.279 bottom five teams to have a chance to improve your 262 00:13:40.600 --> 00:13:44.240 your situation going forward. If you're one of the middle 263 00:13:44.679 --> 00:13:48.480 twenty teams, it doesn't make any sense. You're not You're 264 00:13:48.480 --> 00:13:51.919 not going anywhere. That's what's happened to this point with 265 00:13:52.039 --> 00:13:55.919 the Chicago Bulls. They've they've they've gone with Billy so 266 00:13:55.960 --> 00:13:58.240 far because he's proven that he's a winner both in 267 00:13:58.320 --> 00:14:02.120 college and in his days. That a case, but you 268 00:14:02.679 --> 00:14:05.799 have to have some stability, you have to believe in 269 00:14:05.879 --> 00:14:09.000 what you've got set up in order to give yourself 270 00:14:09.000 --> 00:14:15.120 a chance long term to have some sustained level of success. 271 00:14:15.600 --> 00:14:19.360 They haven't had it in Chicago, but obviously to this 272 00:14:19.440 --> 00:14:22.559 point they've stuck by their guns and part of it's 273 00:14:22.600 --> 00:14:25.799 their roster thing that they've started to remake also in 274 00:14:25.840 --> 00:14:26.559 this last year. 275 00:14:26.720 --> 00:14:29.480 So speaking of Greg Popovich, we heard from coach pop 276 00:14:29.519 --> 00:14:32.480 today for the first time since November of twenty twenty four, 277 00:14:33.200 --> 00:14:36.559 and I gotta say it kind of made me a 278 00:14:36.600 --> 00:14:37.200 little sad. 279 00:14:37.279 --> 00:14:39.519 And you know, I'm old. 280 00:14:39.399 --> 00:14:44.879 Enough now to have seen people and coaches that I 281 00:14:45.039 --> 00:14:48.799 loved and respected in this league age. I can remember 282 00:14:48.799 --> 00:14:50.639 the first time I saw Jerry after I heard that 283 00:14:50.679 --> 00:14:53.159 he wasn't well, and Jerry and his wife Tammy were 284 00:14:53.159 --> 00:14:54.960 good enough to invite me to a playoff game and 285 00:14:55.000 --> 00:14:58.080 I sat with them, and it just makes you sad, 286 00:14:58.159 --> 00:15:00.639 you know, when you see Jerry Sloan, who you used 287 00:15:00.679 --> 00:15:04.879 to being that demonstrative leader, just kind of age and 288 00:15:04.879 --> 00:15:07.919 not look like the way that he did. And seeing 289 00:15:07.960 --> 00:15:09.919 Coach Pop today kind of made me sad. You know, 290 00:15:10.000 --> 00:15:12.320 he spoke very softly. You could tell he's been through 291 00:15:13.519 --> 00:15:16.000 helen back and he lost his bride a couple of 292 00:15:16.080 --> 00:15:18.639 years ago, his wife of you know, I think forty 293 00:15:18.720 --> 00:15:22.120 fifty years passed, and obviously he's had the stroke that 294 00:15:22.600 --> 00:15:25.559 clearly has had a detrimental effect on him. I wonder, 295 00:15:25.600 --> 00:15:27.960 Smittye if you could put some color and context into 296 00:15:28.240 --> 00:15:31.039 a conversation that's happened over the years a number of 297 00:15:31.039 --> 00:15:33.960 different times, which is the synergistic approach between the San 298 00:15:34.000 --> 00:15:37.559 Antonio Spurs and the Utah Jazz and how Greg Popovich 299 00:15:37.600 --> 00:15:40.120 has spoken often about how he wanted to use Coach 300 00:15:40.200 --> 00:15:43.159 Loan as a model. There was this great clip that 301 00:15:43.279 --> 00:15:47.519 was going around after Pop broke Coach Sloan's record for 302 00:15:47.679 --> 00:15:50.919 wins with an individual team. A reporter asked, I know 303 00:15:51.000 --> 00:15:53.440 that wins and losses aren't everything to you, but you 304 00:15:53.519 --> 00:15:57.039 did break Jerry Sloan's record, and Greg paused and said, 305 00:15:57.600 --> 00:15:59.799 I'm not in his league and I never will be. 306 00:16:00.200 --> 00:16:03.679 There was always this reverent respect between coach Popovich and 307 00:16:03.720 --> 00:16:05.480 coach Sloan. You got a front row seat. I wonder 308 00:16:05.519 --> 00:16:07.039 if you could provide some context to that. 309 00:16:07.320 --> 00:16:10.000 Yeah, well, you know, Pop would always say that. You know, 310 00:16:10.120 --> 00:16:14.240 early on, remember in the early nineties, Greg Popovich was 311 00:16:14.320 --> 00:16:17.480 the general manager of the San Antonio Spurs. He had 312 00:16:17.519 --> 00:16:20.240 Bob Hill as his coach. They decided to make a 313 00:16:20.360 --> 00:16:25.159 change ownership did in the mid nineties, and they put 314 00:16:26.200 --> 00:16:29.360 Pop in the coaching seat for the time being, and 315 00:16:29.399 --> 00:16:32.480 he stayed there for, you know, for what seemed like forever. 316 00:16:33.519 --> 00:16:36.399 They also, let's let's let's call it the way it is. 317 00:16:36.919 --> 00:16:39.399 You know, you can be a good coach and and uh, 318 00:16:39.440 --> 00:16:42.639 and I've heard many coaches, you know, say this along 319 00:16:42.679 --> 00:16:45.320 the way, you know, whether they want to take credit 320 00:16:45.440 --> 00:16:48.120 or not. But you know, what makes a good coach 321 00:16:48.600 --> 00:16:52.960 is good players. And Pop had the good fortune of 322 00:16:52.960 --> 00:16:55.399 of coming in right at the time when he had 323 00:16:55.480 --> 00:16:59.559 David Robinson in his prime. Uh. They the ping pong 324 00:16:59.600 --> 00:17:02.960 balls that year fell their way. They got Tim Duncan, 325 00:17:03.039 --> 00:17:05.400 happened to be in the draft that year. It just 326 00:17:05.440 --> 00:17:08.039 happened to be the year that David Robinson missed seventy 327 00:17:08.119 --> 00:17:12.319 games during the season, and they go back. Yeah, and 328 00:17:12.359 --> 00:17:15.559 they and and so they they they got in the 329 00:17:16.359 --> 00:17:18.359 lottery and they ended up put the number one pick 330 00:17:18.400 --> 00:17:20.759 in that year in that draft just happened to be 331 00:17:20.920 --> 00:17:24.000 Tim Duncan. So now they got Tim Duncan. And then 332 00:17:24.039 --> 00:17:26.799 they they they got lucky, uh, you know, with the 333 00:17:26.839 --> 00:17:30.079 monogenobiley pick, which was late in the second round. You know, 334 00:17:30.160 --> 00:17:32.920 he was he was playing in Italy and uh, and 335 00:17:32.960 --> 00:17:35.200 they they took him as as kind of a lark 336 00:17:35.240 --> 00:17:38.039 and hopefully that they could get him over at some point, 337 00:17:38.039 --> 00:17:40.759 which they did. And then they took Tony Parker, who 338 00:17:41.279 --> 00:17:44.640 everybody thought could be a decent player, didn't know if 339 00:17:44.640 --> 00:17:46.759 he could be a point guard at the NBA level 340 00:17:46.880 --> 00:17:49.799 or not, if he was an undersized two. And he 341 00:17:49.880 --> 00:17:52.559 came in with that group and again, suspence, it's not 342 00:17:52.720 --> 00:17:55.839 just about you as an individual, but all the players 343 00:17:55.880 --> 00:17:58.599 that you're you're with and and how you how you 344 00:17:58.920 --> 00:18:01.119 call us with each other, and how you work with 345 00:18:01.160 --> 00:18:04.160 each other. And Tony Parker was the beneficiary of playing 346 00:18:04.200 --> 00:18:07.519 with three other Hall of Fame level guys as it 347 00:18:07.559 --> 00:18:11.119 turned out, and they had the terrific run that they did. 348 00:18:11.960 --> 00:18:15.799 But coach Coach Pop was always very a complimentary of 349 00:18:16.039 --> 00:18:19.799 of of Jerry Sloan and always talked in during the 350 00:18:19.920 --> 00:18:22.880 nineties while the Jazz were running the show. The Jazz 351 00:18:22.920 --> 00:18:25.599 didn't win a championship. They played for two of them 352 00:18:25.640 --> 00:18:28.839 in the finals. But also during the decade of the 353 00:18:28.920 --> 00:18:31.400 nineties spent a lot of people either don't know or 354 00:18:31.519 --> 00:18:34.559 forgotten the fact that the Jazz won more games in 355 00:18:34.599 --> 00:18:38.200 the nineties than any team in the NBA. They won more, 356 00:18:39.000 --> 00:18:41.640 they won more games in the Chicago Bulls, they won 357 00:18:41.680 --> 00:18:44.599 more than the Lakers, they won more than they won 358 00:18:44.640 --> 00:18:47.559 more games than anybody. Okay, they were they were a 359 00:18:47.599 --> 00:18:51.720 competitive team, and the championship level team for a lot 360 00:18:51.759 --> 00:18:55.240 of years didn't work out. Had a couple of you know, 361 00:18:55.680 --> 00:18:58.680 last minute shots by a guy named Jordan that that 362 00:18:58.759 --> 00:19:01.319 won a couple of finals games. Okay, that's the way 363 00:19:01.359 --> 00:19:05.839 it goes. But Pop always said during that time, we're 364 00:19:05.920 --> 00:19:10.559 trying to emulate our franchise after the Utah Jazz, the 365 00:19:10.640 --> 00:19:14.240 way they conduct themselves, the way that they're coached, the 366 00:19:14.279 --> 00:19:17.839 way their front office runs their business, all of those 367 00:19:17.960 --> 00:19:21.160 kinds of things, which was always a very nice compliment, 368 00:19:21.599 --> 00:19:25.319 and and he continued to say that whenever the opportunity 369 00:19:25.359 --> 00:19:28.759 would come up, even after they were winning multiple championships, 370 00:19:28.799 --> 00:19:31.200 to say, well, we're just I remember I remember talking 371 00:19:31.240 --> 00:19:33.640 to Sam Presty one time at a game we were 372 00:19:33.640 --> 00:19:36.319 both scouting down in Phoenix when when Sam was with 373 00:19:36.400 --> 00:19:41.039 the San Antonio front office before he went to Seattle, 374 00:19:41.079 --> 00:19:44.799 and that became okay, see thunder, and I remember him 375 00:19:44.839 --> 00:19:47.160 saying to me, well, Smiddy, we're just We're just trying 376 00:19:47.200 --> 00:19:49.279 to be like you guys. We're trying to figure out 377 00:19:49.359 --> 00:19:51.480 how to Jazz do it and and and do it 378 00:19:51.519 --> 00:19:55.000 the same way. And you know, which is the ultimate 379 00:19:55.079 --> 00:19:58.000 compliment when when someone is saying they're trying to do 380 00:19:58.079 --> 00:20:01.599 things away, your organization does. But the Jazz had that 381 00:20:03.200 --> 00:20:07.160 kind of reputation all during the Miller ownership because of 382 00:20:07.200 --> 00:20:11.440 the way things were handled, especially with Jerry being at 383 00:20:11.480 --> 00:20:15.480 the forefront, and of course the Laden's running the office 384 00:20:15.559 --> 00:20:18.799 in the nineties and then Kevin O'Connor in the two 385 00:20:18.880 --> 00:20:23.079 thousands and Dennis Lindsay and the twenty tens, and you know, 386 00:20:23.200 --> 00:20:26.480 had such a great run. But you have to part 387 00:20:26.519 --> 00:20:28.480 of it is you have to have the players. You 388 00:20:28.519 --> 00:20:31.319 have to have good players to be able to compete. 389 00:20:31.359 --> 00:20:34.839 That's the main thing. But behind that you have to 390 00:20:34.920 --> 00:20:39.720 have some level of stability and some continuity to what 391 00:20:39.759 --> 00:20:46.200 you're trying to do. And the announcement today that the 392 00:20:46.279 --> 00:20:52.119 Jazz have given Will Hardy this long extension that says 393 00:20:52.200 --> 00:20:54.559 we want him to be the guy leading us on 394 00:20:54.599 --> 00:21:00.000 the floor and giving us that kind of continuity and stability. 395 00:21:00.000 --> 00:21:02.839 He says a lot about what they think of Will 396 00:21:03.240 --> 00:21:06.400 and also what they think about how they're trying to 397 00:21:06.440 --> 00:21:08.720 conduct their business long term. 398 00:21:08.839 --> 00:21:10.960 All right, Smitty, you're ready to drop a trivia question. 399 00:21:11.000 --> 00:21:13.480 I'm gonna do my read, and while I'm doing my read, 400 00:21:13.519 --> 00:21:15.400 I want you to come up with a good jazz 401 00:21:15.720 --> 00:21:17.240