We continue our 2016-17 season preview interview series with Hofstra assistant coach Craig “Speedy” Claxton. 20 years ago this month Hofstra was beginning the 1996-1997 school year with an undersized PG and a head coach coming off back-to-back 18-loss seasons. 20 years later the PG (Claxton) is a trusted member of the staff for an NIT team that was 2 PTS away from knocking off the eventual NIT champs (GW) and the coach (Jay Wright) is a national champion. Speedy comes from a basketball family: his sister Lisa played at St. John’s and his brother Michael played at Villanova. He was a 2-time conference POY at Hofstra before being drafted 20th overall by Philly in the 2000 NBA Draft, and after being traded to San Antonio he won an NBA title in 2003. He has given back to his alma mater by donating money to help build their arena, which is only part of the reason that his #10 was retired by the Pride in 2009 and he was inducted into the school’s Hall of Fame in 2011. HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel got to chat with Coach Claxton about his nifty nickname and helping his team win the 2000 America East conference tourney.
Your nickname is “Speedy”: how did you get the nickname, and how do you like it? I was in the 8th grade and 1 of the coaches I used to play against did not really know my name so he just referred to me as “the speedy kid”. I ended up going to high school with a few of his players and they called me “Speedy”.
You played at Christ the King High School in Queens, where 1 of your teammates was Lamar Odom: how good was Odom back then, and could you tell at the time that he was going to become a star? I always knew that he was something special. He came in at 6’1” before shooting up to 6”8 but still maintained his guard skills.
You were a 2-time conference POY at Hofstra: what did it mean to you to win such outstanding honors? It was special to win it as a sophomore because I was so young. I fell off a bit as a junior but got it back as a senior after working hard the previous summer.
You had 24 PTS/8 AST in a 7-PT win over Delaware in the 2000 America East tourney title game at home for the school’s 1st trip to the NCAA tourney since 1977: how big a deal was it to make it to the tourney, and how did it feel to stand on the scorer’s table and watch all the fans storm the court? It was a huge win for us. I actually re-watched it a couple of years ago: it is probably the most memorable moment of my entire basketball career (even over winning an NBA title!). We finally saw everything come to light after putting in a lot of hard work.
What are your memories of the 2000 NCAA tourney (you had 20 PTS/7 AST in a loss to Oklahoma State, who was led by 30 PTS from Desmond Mason)? I think that some of my teammates were just happy to get to the tourney: we struggled coming out of the gate but played them even after that.
You were selected 20th overall in the 2000 draft by Philadelphia: did you see that as a validation of your college career, or the realization of a lifelong dream of reaching the NBA, or other? It meant a great deal to me, like a weight was lifted off of my shoulders. It made all of my hard work pay off and was also a dream come true. I wish that everyone could experience getting drafted because it was great.
Take me through the 2003 NBA playoffs with the Spurs:
Stephon Marbury made a game-winning 3-PT shot for Phoenix at the buzzer in Game 1 of the 1st round: did you think that his shot was going in, and how were you able to bounce back to win the series in 6 games? I did not think it was going in: after it did I knew that it was going to be a long series because they played us so well during the regular season. We just kind of took over from that point: we also lost Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals to Dallas.
The Lakers nearly overcame a 25-PT deficit in Game 5 of the Western Conference Semifinals before Robert Horry’s potential game-winning 3-PT shot went in and out: do you think you would have lost the series if that shot went in? You never know but thank God it did not go in because it would have been a heartbreaker.
Finals MVP Tim Duncan was 2 BLK shy of a quadruple-double in the Game 6 finale: where does that performance rank among the best that you have ever seen, and what did it mean to you to win the title? That performance was spectacular: I really did not appreciate how good Tim was until I played with him in his prime. It was exciting to win the title. It is nice to watch the Finals on TV but to be on the court and help your team win was like a dream: I almost had to pinch myself.
Your sister Lisa played basketball for St. John’s and your brother Michael (aka M. Buckets) played for Villanova: who is the best athlete in the family, and do you credit at least some of your success to genetics? My dad was a hell of a soccer/cricket player growing up but I think that I am the best athlete. I had another sister who went to Hofstra so we definitely had an athletic family.
Since retiring you have worked as an NBA scout and as an assistant coach at your alma mater: which job did you enjoy more, and what do you hope to do in the future? I scouted for 3 years and met a lot of front office people to see what that part of the game is about, but I always looked forward to becoming an assistant coach.