Next up on our list of Olympic memories is Johnny Bach, who led a very full life before he passed away last January at age 91. After playing for the Celtics he became head coach at his alma mater of Fordham for 18 years before spending another decade as head coach at Penn State. In the summer of 1972 he was named an assistant under Hank Iba for team USA and made it all the way to the gold medal game before losing 1 of the most controversial games in the history of the sport. He later joined the Chicago Bulls as an assistant coach in 1986 and was on the sideline for 3 straight titles from 1991-1993. Jon Teitel got to chat with Coach Bach a few years ago about all of his amazing accomplishments and presents the previously unpublished interview below for the very 1st time. We send our condolences to all of Johnny’s family/friends on their loss, and if you would like to learn more about the 1972 Olympic team we recommend the book “Stolen Glory” by Mike Brewster and Donald “Taps” Gallagher: www.amazon.com/Stolen-Glory-Soviet-Olympic-Basketball-ebook/dp/B008P0IROI
In 1948 you were selected by Boston in the BAA draft and played 24 games for them: what is your favorite memory from your time with the Celtics? Just getting together with some old pros like Mel Riebe who are long forgotten but were a big part of the NBA. We had an energetic college coach (Hall of Famer Doggie Julian) and like many people he had some good moments and bad moments. He was succeeded by Red Auerbach. It was a new experience for me after serving in the Navy. There were only 8 teams back then and we mostly took the train/bus: we only flew once.
In 1950 you became 1 of the nation’s youngest head coaches when you got hired by Fordham: what was it like to compete against John Wooden in an effort to recruit high school star Lew Alcindor? We had no chance! I later talked to Kareem and realized that he had a number of offers and had made his decision much earlier than I thought. I asked him why he chose UCLA: he said that it was because 1 of his heroes (Jackie Robinson) went there. His family guarded him really well.
What are your memories of the 1954 NCAA tourney (future Hall of Famer Tom Gola scored 28 PTS in a 2-PT OT win by eventual champion La Salle)? I will never forget that game. We played them as well as anyone that year. I remember saying how we wanted to keep everyone in front of us but we got beat on a backdoor play after we had the game won. It was a bitter blow and a huge disappointment but we resolved to never get beat on backdoor plays again.
In the 1968 NIT you had a 1-PT loss to eventual champion Dayton after Frank McLaughlin missed a 25-footer at the buzzer: did you think the shot was going in? We played a very fine game at Madison Square Garden. I watched Frank play for 4 years at Fordham Prep: he was a good student and all-city shooter. He just missed the shot: it was not as painful as some of our earlier losses.
In 1969 you left Fordham to become coach at Penn State, joining your fellow Brown alum Joe Paterno: what made Paterno such a great coach, and what made him such a good friend? Joe and I both played for Coach Rip Engle: I played basketball while Joe played football. Rip was 1 of my idols as a coach and I loved playing for him. He had a great heart and was so happy when we won. Money was tight at Fordham, especially for the athletic program.
You served as an assistant coach under Hank Iba for team USA at the 1972 Olympics in Munich: how devastating was the infamous 1-PT loss to the USSR in the gold medal game, and what was the feeling like in your locker room afterward? Don Haskins had already been selected as 1 assistant but Coach Iba insisted to the selection committee that I be his 2nd assistant. I had done a little scouting of the USSR. I was lucky to learn from coaching legends such as Joe Lapchick/Pete Newell. The loss is still burned into my heart and the agony is still there. We all met up for the 40th anniversary a few summers ago and we still felt like we were robbed. I delivered the message from FIBA Secretary General Dr. Jones at the scorer’s table that we had been asked to either put our team back on the floor or forfeit the gold medal: Iba said that we would not lose the gold while sitting on our asses! Haskins was vehement that we should walk away and go back to the locker room. It is my most bitter memory in basketball: the game was won and then they got another chance…and then another chance.
In 1986 you joined the Chicago Bulls as an assistant and ended up winning 3 straight titles under Phil Jackson from 1991-1993: what made Jackson such a great coach, and what was the most important thing you ever learned from him? He was a different animal who approached coaching in a far different way. He had good coaching mentors in Bill Fitch/Red Holzman. He saw a lot but would not react to it. For example, I would tell him to call a timeout if the other team made a nice run but he would say that our team would be unable to learn how to deal with the situation if we did that. He would bring in the most celebrated people to talk to us like Jerry Garcia/Bill Bradley. He was unique, which is why they kept offering him millions to come back!
In Game 3 of the 1994 Eastern Conference Finals Scottie Pippen refused to re-enter the game with 1.8 seconds left because Jackson would not run the final play for him, so rookie Toni Kukoc ended up making the game-winning 23-foot fade-away jumper at the buzzer: where does that rank among the most clutch shots that you ever saw, and did you feel that Pippen deserved to be forgiven? I felt we would be making a great mistake to say that Pippen was not fit to play for us. I was sent to tell him to go back onto the floor, but he told me to put someone else in. It was a terrible mistake on his part but I still talked to him more than almost any other player on that team.
Take me through a few of Michael Jordan’s best plays:
In Game 2 of the 1991 Finals Jordan famously switched hands in mid-air on a drive to the hoop: where did that rank among the most amazing plays that you have ever seen? From the time he arrived he would do that in practice. Nothing he did surprised me: he was the hardest worker I have ever seen and the meanest competitor even in practice. I recall many a time when I would tell him to lay off a rookie like Pete Myers and he would say, “I have to play tomorrow night and he doesn’t!” Phil was the master of motivation: he often had Michael practice with the 2nd team against the rest of the starters. Phil was able to reach Michael in a way most people could not have. The losing team in the scrimmage would have to run and Michael hated to do that.
In Game 1 of the 1992 Finals he scored 35 PTS in the 1st half (including a then-record six 3-PT shots): was it just 1 of those scenarios where every shot he put up seemed to go in because he was “in the zone”? You can see the look in his eyes when he looked into the cameras, implying that he just could not miss. Phil would have us get rid of the money from the fines that had been collected by putting it on the ground and saying, “shoot for it”. Michael won the money a lot of times: that is just who he is. I was fortunate to be around him as a coach. I edited a lot of tape in my day and would occasionally add scenes from movies like “An Officer and a Gentleman”: Michael loved that.
He invited you to his Hall of Fame induction dinner in 2009 and then decided to pay for everything himself (airfare/hotel/etc.): what was Jordan like off the court, and what did that gesture mean to you? He did some of the kindest things I have ever seen, such as meeting with every terminally ill kid whose last wish was to meet Jordan. He would bring them into the locker room and have them sit with our team on the bench. He is an easily misunderstood guy who does a lot of things that people do not hear about. I could not afford to attend the dinner so he just sent me the tickets out of the blue.
After retiring in 2006 you became a volunteer assistant for the varsity team at Fenwick High School working with coach John Quinn (the brother of Illinois governor Pat Quinn): how do you like the gig, and what is the biggest difference between coaching high school kids vs. coaching NBA players? There is a huge talent difference and sometimes a huge attitude difference as well. When you have a kid taking 8 classes a day you really have to push them in order to have a do-or-die attitude in practice. I am always on them for not practicing hard enough and not studying hard enough for their exams: I enjoy yelling at them!