We are less than 5 days away from the tip-off of the new college basketball season, which means that we have plenty of time to start preparing for the action ahead. We will do so via a series of season previews featuring the best players/coaches in the country. HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel continues our coverage with Auburn assistant coach Corey Williams, who talked about winning the NIT with his son last April and his expectations for this season.
Take me through your 2 Sweet 16 appearances as a player at Oklahoma State:
In the 1991 Sweet 16 against Temple, you scored 17 PTS including an apparent game-winning jump shot from the top of the key with 2 seconds left in regulation, but the referees said you stepped on the line, and you ended up losing by 9 PTS in OT: where does that rank among the most devastating losses of your career? Very high, and maybe #1. I remember it distinctly: Byron Houston was the stud on our team so the play was designed for him, but he could not get open so the ball came to me. When I made the shot, I thought that I would end up on “1 Shining Moment”, but they reviewed it and said my toe was on the line. Every time I see Ted Valentine (1 of the referees that night), I remind him that he screwed us!
In the 1992 Sweet 16 against Michigan, you scored 25 PTS in a 3-PT loss: what was it like to face the legendary “Fab 5”? They had an unbelievable young team, but we had a senior class with a lot of experience. I had to guard Jalen Rose, which was a big test for me. The game was in Rupp Arena, and our coach Eddie Sutton was back in Kentucky where he had been their head coach, so I knew what it meant to him. It was a battle of 2 good teams, but not all of our pieces showed up that night.
Take me though the TWO(!) leagues that drafted you in the spring of 1992:
In April of 1992 you were selected by Kansas City in the NFL Draft despite not playing football since the 8th grade: were you surprised, and how close did you come to signing with them? I will give you an idea of how surprised I was: when the draft was going on I was asleep! My brother was with me in my dorm, and I gave him instructions that no matter who called I was not in because I was resting that day. Someone called and my brother told him I was not in…but when the caller said he was Chiefs coach Marty Schottenheimer, my brother woke me up. Marty asked if I was interested in playing for him, and when I said yes, he said he would call back after he drafted me. I called my mom and told her to turn on ESPN because I was going to get drafted: she thought I was lying! That year our football team went 0-10-1, so when people asked me how we did I would say, “Oh, 10 and 1!” Marty was a big Kansas basketball fan, and when he saw me play against the Jayhawks, he thought that he could convert me to a DB because I was very fast: I ran a 4.28 40-yard dash.
In June of 1992 you were selected 33rd overall by 2-time-defending champ Chicago in the NBA Draft (8 spots ahead of Popeye Jones): did you see that as a validation of all your hard work, or the realization of a lifelong dream, or other? It was a dream that I had even though I did not play the game to get drafted: I played basketball because I loved it and always gave 110%. The other part of it is that Michael Jordan was my favorite player, so it was an easy decision to join the GOAT.
You won an NBA title in 1993 during your 1 year with the Bulls: what is your favorite memory from that “3-Peat” season? After we won the title Michael was at the podium and said he was looking for “Pee Wee”, which was the nickname they gave me. He thought enough to mention me even though I was the last guy on the bench: I replay that in my mind all the time.
You spent 6 years as head coach at Stetson from 2013-2019: what is the biggest difference between being a head coach and being an assistant coach? There is a lot on your plate so you must juggle a lot of basketballs. Everything comes back to the head coach so you must take the bullets. I was a family coach, but you must also be a leader and feel secure in what you believe. If you love the guys on your team, then they will run through a wall for you. I was in it for the right reason and they knew that I cared: I still get text messages from some of my former players.
You have as impressive a list of coaching mentors as anyone I have seen, including Eddie Sutton/Phil Jackson/Bill Self/Leonard Hamilton/Eric Musselman/Bruce Pearl: is there a most important piece of advice from 1 of them that has helped you the most either on/off the court? Leonard gave me some great advice: do not let anybody outwork you. He was a genius in recruiting, and his players love him to this day. Eddie taught me discipline: it was his way or the highway. He would call me on my birthday and sing “Happy Birthday” to me because he cared so much! Bill was a player’s coach: we knew even back when he was an assistant that he was going to be great because he knew the game and could relate to people. Nolan Richardson also had a profound impact on my life: he won titles on so many different levels, but his main prerequisite was that someone had to be tough, regardless of whether they were a 5-star player.
Last April in the NIT title game as an assistant to Steven Pearl at Auburn you had a 6-PT OT win over Tulsa: how special was it to win a title with your son CJ on the roster, and what do you think your team learned from that remarkable run that will help them this year? It was 1 of my crowning moments to have CJ on the roster so I am eternally grateful that Bruce/Steve Pearl let me coach my son. What people do not realize at this level is how hard it is to get guys to play in the NIT when the standard/goal is to make the NCAA tourney. I talked to Coach Hamilton right before the title game and he told me to tell them to play their butts off because how many times do you get to finish a season by winning a championship?
Not only did you have a brutal exhibition schedule this month including neutral site games against Florida State/Alabama, but your non-conference schedule later this year includes games against Arizona/Clemson/Wisconsin as well as a trip to the Players Era 8 in Vegas: is there any 1 game that you feel will be your biggest test or that you are most excited about? I used to want to win by double-digits…but 1 thing I learned as a head coach was that it does not matter how many points you win by. Every game is important so we cannot look past anybody and we must be at a high level for every opponent. Arizona is always a good team, but we think we have some pieces to compete with anyone in the country. I try not to look too far ahead: I am just concentrating on our next game.
What are your goals for the upcoming season, and what are your expectations for the upcoming season? The goal is always to improve every day, get to the NCAA tourney, and compete for a championship. That is the standard that Steve has set for our players, so we must play together and show a level of toughness if we want to cut down some nets.
