UConn won the NCAA tourney in April and Denver won the NBA Finals in June but there is still 1 more basketball champion to be crowned this summer. The Basketball Tournament (aka the TBT) kicks off on July 19th with 8 regions of 8 teams playing in Dayton/Louisville/Lubbock/Syracuse/West Virginia/Wichita 1/Wichita 2/Xavier. Each region will send 1 team to the quarterfinals, with the championship game taking place during the 1st week of August, and the winning team walking away with $1 million in prize money. HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel will spend the weeks ahead interviewing as many TBT participants as possible. We continue our coverage with Thomas Welsh, who will be playing for Living the Dream after becoming 1 of the best rebounders in UCLA history.
In 2014 you were named a McDonald’s All-American: which of your fellow honorees impressed you the most (Devin Booker/Kelly Oubre Jr./Karl-Anthony Towns/other)? At the time I think it was Jahlil Okafor. His spin move was great and he did many things at a high level.
You played for Team USA at the 2015 FIBA U19 World Championship: what did it mean to you to represent your country, and what did it mean to you to win a gold medal? It is hard to put into words but it was special to wear the U-S-A across my chest. I had a chip on my shoulder after missing the squad the previous year and winning the gold medal was a surreal moment.
You were born/raised in California and received scholarship offers from several Pac-12 schools: what made you choose UCLA? Similar to my TBT teammate Isaac Hamilton, I wanted to be close to home. Family is important to me so it was beyond special to have them attend my home games. I wanted a school that was the perfect combination of academics/athletics…and I got that at UCLA.
You only started 3 games as a freshman but still led the Bruins with 1.1 BPG: what is the secret to blocking shots? There are intangible factors such as reading/reacting when the ball goes up. It helps to be a big guy with a big wingspan, but since I did not get much playing time I put a little more emphasis on those defensive plays. I wanted to find different ways to make an extra impact.
In the 2015 NCAA tourney you had 6 REB/4 BLK in a 1-PT win over SMU when Yanick Moreira was called for goaltending on Bryce Alford’s 3-PT shot with 13 seconds left: where does that rank among the wildest finishes that you have ever been a part of? Definitely the wildest. There was a little controversy and it became a headline that drew a lot of eyeballs. The extension of your season can come down to 1 play and I am glad that it worked out in our favor.
As a senior you averaged a double-double and were named 2nd-team All-Pac-12: what did it mean to you to receive such an outstanding honor? It was special. My dad only played basketball through high school as a 6’2” center but he took a lot of pride after averaging a double-double during his own senior year so I wanted to follow in his footsteps. Being named to any end-of-season list is always a great honor.
Your 1035 career REB ranks #3 in Bruins’ history behind only Kareem Abdul-Jabbar/Bill Walton: how does it feel to be mentioned in the same company as a pair of legendary big men? It is pretty cool! I would have loved to be #1 but just to be mentioned in the same breath as them is special. I like joking about it and will be able to point out to my kids 1 day that their dad was pretty good at basketball.
In the spring of 2018 you were drafted in the 2nd round by Denver: did you see that as a validation of your college career, or the realization of a lifelong dream of reaching the NBA, or other? I knew that day would be a starting point rather than a finish line. It was cool to hear my name called but my approach going in was that there was still a lot of hard work to be done.
You played 11 games for the Nuggets: what is your favorite memory from your short time in the NBA? I just loved the chemistry of that team, which you could see this past season when they won the title. Their stars like Nikola Jokic/Jamal Murray were not just great players but would go out of their way to treat rookies nicely even though we did not get a lot of playing time. I remember playing Mario Kart a lot on our flights and I was Mario Kart MVP: it was a fun crew to be a part of.
You are playing for the Living the Dream team in the TBT: how is the team looking so far, and what will you do with your share of the $1 million prize money if you win it all? The team looks great: the guys are buying in and we have different pockets of chemistry with guys who have played together in the past. We have a very good chance at making a run. The plan for when we win is to give ½ the money to charity. The team was formed in honor of my dad, who passed away a few years ago due to cancer, so we will donate some money for that cause.