Season preview: HoopsHD interviews Colgate assistant coach Dave Klatsky

Posted on September 14, 2021 by Jon Teitel

We are keeping our fingers crossed in the hope that we can return to a “normal” version of college basketball this fall: fans in the stands, announcers without masks, etc. Nobody knows exactly what is going to happen but we will try to restore some order with season previews featuring the best players/coaches in the country. We continue our coverage with Colgate assistant coach Dave Klatsky. HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel got to chat with Coach Klatsky about his own podcast and his expectations for this season.

You played at Penn for Coach Fran Dunphy: what made him such a great coach, and what was the most important thing that you ever learned from him? He is a legend! A lot of what we do at Colgate comes directly from him: we have 3 alumni on our staff (including Matt Langel/Mike Jordan) and have each taken nuggets from him. He had a great ability to motivate his players to be their best without being degrading: we wanted to do well for him and the team.

As a sophomore in 2001 you set a school record with 162 AST: what is the key to being a good PG? We think about that often. I think it involves more than just passing: you need to be a leader on the court and an extension of your coach. You need to get your teammates involved while also realizing that sometimes the right decision is to score. If you can make good decisions then you will be a good PG.

You played in 3 NCAA tourneys during your 4 years of college: what is the biggest adjustment that mid-major schools have to make when facing a power-conference school in March? There is not 1 specific thing: a lot of it depends on who you are playing. When Colgate played Tennessee in 2019 I thought that taking a lot of threes would be our big advantage and give us the best chance to win a game, although even good-shooting teams can have bad-shooting games. When we played Arkansas last March it was a little different and we just decided to play our game, which worked well until they woke up. If we played the Razorbacks 10 times then I do not think we would need to change up too much to have a chance to win. As a mid-major you need to figure out where on the spectrum your chances lie and then decide whether to make it a high-variance game.

Your only regular season loss last year was by 2 PTS to Army: how close did you come to going undefeated? I think the loss helped us, as crazy as that sounds. After the loss it was so easy to get the guys focused for every single game. The previous afternoon we had beaten Army by 44 PTS so our guys got a little too comfortable. You never know what is going to happen. We were pretty close but I do not know if we would have been that close had we been able to beat Army.

Last year your team was #3 in the nation with 40.3 3P% and #1 in the nation with 26.4 3P% allowed: what role does the 3-PT line play in your team’s philosophy on both offense/defense? It is instrumental in both. On offense we want to get great shots so we spread the court and allow for drives/kicks or drives/scores. We do not have a specific # of threes that we are trying to shoot: we are going to get our shot, which is the best shot possible (ideally a layup/dunk). We are a really good 3-PT shooting team because we have really good shooters and take really good shots. If you shoot threes then you better have guys who can make them! On defense we know that open threes are statistically valuable so we try to limit catch-and-shoot threes and force our opponents to take the toughest shots possible all of the time. We are not too focused on the 26.4% # because we had big leads in a few games and our opponents took a lot of threes due to circumstances. I hope we can replicate it this year…but am not banking on it.

In the 2021 NCAA tourney you lost to Arkansas: what did your team learn from that loss that you think will help them this year? We came into that game super-confident and jumped on them (the Raiders led 33-19 late in the 1st half). What our guys learned is that things can quickly change: Arkansas forced us into 22 turnovers, which is unheard of for us. We tried to prepare our guys but you cannot replicate that type of pressure in practice and we did not play any teams all year who did that to us.

You host a podcast called “Stat Chat” (https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/statchat-dishing-it-w-dklats/id1228435713) where you discuss how different programs use advanced statistics: why are they so important, and what are some of your favorites? My mind works in numbers and I also love basketball. The numbers can validate a lot of your intuition or can disprove what your eyes are seeing, both of which can help you become a better team. I am obsessed with shot selection as well as rebounding on both ends. We have learned who should be taking which shots and that we should be crashing the boards more because we get a lot of points off of offensive rebounds. My favorite podcasts are the ones that go into detail on those things.

2021 conference POY Jordan Burns has graduated but you return each of your other top-7 scorers: how crucial will all of that experience be to your team’s success this year? Really crucial. So far in the preseason it has been like no year we have ever had because we are basically returning our entire team. It is only September but it feels like we are already a well-oiled team that is really motivated/prepared. It could be a really special year if the guys can figure out their roles and do their jobs. That being said, we are not the only team who returns a deep roster so everyone across the country will be better. I do not know the exact numbers but you are essentially replacing something like 400 freshmen with 400 5th-year seniors so the overall talent pool means that there will be games played at a very high level.

Your wife Abby was a 1st-team All-Big East field hockey player at Providence: who is the best athlete in the family? You are trying to get me in trouble so I will not answer that 1: the people who know us best know the truth!

What are your goals for this season, and what are your expectations for this season? Our goal every year is to win the Patriot League and get back to the NCAA tourney. You always have to think big and have lofty goals to be a mid-major team like Loyola-Chicago: they were a joy to watch and even won a pair of games in the NCAA tourney.

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Happy Birthday!: HoopsHD interviews VMI legend Reggie Williams

Posted on September 14, 2021 by Jon Teitel

The list of players who have led D-1 in scoring in multiple seasons contains some very familiar names: Oscar Robertson, Pete Maravich, etc. The most recent player to do so was Reggie Williams, who led the nation with 28.1 PPG in 2007 and 27.8 PPG in 2008. He graduated from VMI as the all-time D-1 career scoring leader in the history of the Commonwealth of Virginia with 2526 PTS, then spent a decade playing pro basketball in the NBA and overseas. HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel got to chat with Reggie about being a great scorer and playing in the pros. Today is Reggie’s 35th birthday so let us be the 1st to wish him a happy 1!

You led your team in scoring during each of your 4 years at VMI: how were you able to come in and contribute as a freshman, and how were you able to dominate throughout the rest of your college career? As a freshman my original coach (Bart Bellairs) said that I would be a focal point of the offense so I was able to get a lot of confidence early in my career. When our new coach (Duggar Baucom) took over during my sophomore year my confidence just continued to grow.

In 2006 you scored a school-record 45 PTS in only 24 minutes against Virginia Intermont in a 156-95 win (the team ended up setting 24 school records that night, including most points [156] and most steals [35] in a single game): was it just 1 of those scenarios where every shot you put up seemed to go in because you were “in the zone”? I made a few threes (4-9 3PM) but I actually recall shooting a lot of layups during that game because we pressed a lot (he ended up making 18-26 FG).

What are your memories of the 2007 Big South tourney final (you had 13 PTS/9 REB while playing all 40 minutes but missed a 30-foot shot at the buzzer in a 3-PT loss to Winthrop)? It was the 1st time that I truly felt the college basketball atmosphere that I had previously seen on TV. It was a big-time rivalry and I remember the floor literally shaking beneath my feet.

You led all of D-1 in scoring in 2007 (28.1 PPG) and 2008 (27.8 PPG): did you feel like you were 1 of the best players in the country? Yes, but I just felt that I was under the radar due to playing in a smaller school/conference.

In 2008 you graduated as the leading scorer in school and conference history: did you realize at the time how prolific a player you were? No: I just tried to play my best and I think that I exceeded the expectations of many people.

2 of your former teammates (twins Chavis/Travis Holmes) are also ranked in the top-5 of the school’s all-time scoring list: how on earth were the 3 of you able to score so many points while playing on the same team? We shared the ball very well. If I was making shots then they would get me the ball. If 1 of the twins were hot then they would get the shot instead.

You spent several years playing in the NBA/D-League/overseas: how does pro basketball compare to college basketball? It is definitely different in that you cannot take a single night off. Sometimes the college schedule gives a team an easy game, but on any given night in the D-League you could be playing against a guy who just got sent down from the NBA or a guy who was a star in college.

You were named to the 2010 D-League All-Star team: what does it mean to you to receive such an outstanding honor? It means a lot to me. I had been working very hard so it showed that my hard work paid off and that I needed to continue working hard.

When people look back on your career, how do you want to be remembered the most? I am known as a scorer but I want to be known as a good rebounder and passer and all of the other things that go with being a good all-around player.

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Happy Birthday!: HoopsHD interviews former Coastal Carolina coach Russ Bergman

Posted on September 13, 2021 by Jon Teitel

When you spend a lot of time in the world of college basketball you bump into a lot of notable names. Russ Bergman is 1 such person: he was a college roommate of Pete Maravich at LSU, was an assistant coach at Appalachian State under Pete’s father Press, and faced Bobby Knight in the NCAA tourney. HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel got to chat with Russ about both of the Maravich men and becoming an NBA scout. Today is Russ’ 74th birthday so let us be the 1st to wish him a happy 1!

In 1965 you graduated from Lincolnwood High School as the all-time leading scorer in school history: how good a player were you back in the day? I felt that LSU was a good choice for me because I wanted to be in the SEC and I fell in love with the Tigers during 1 of my official visits.

You went to college at LSU where you played/roomed with Hall of Famer Pete Maravich: what was it like to play with Pete, and what was it like to live with him? I only roomed with him on the road but we had a lot of fun. He was a great guy and we got along well together: he just tried to be 1 of the guys. You knew that the defenses were focused on trying to stop him so on a 3-on-2 break you just had to prepare for 1 of his spectacular passes because they were going to key on him.

After college you played professionally for the Decatur Bullets in the CBA: what did you learn from that experience, and what was the biggest difference between college basketball and pro basketball? Everything is just a little bit faster: you have more time to think on the college level but you just have to react as a pro. I also learned that when you take the ball to the hole you had better see the opening of the red sea otherwise you will get slapped pretty good…so I did a lot of work on my 15-footer!

In 1972 you became an assistant coach at Appalachian State under your former college coach Press Maravich: what made Press such a great coach, and what was the most important thing you ever learned from him? Coach Maravich had a love for the game because he had played in college and in the pros and paid a lot of attention to the history of the game. He would quote guys like Clair Bee and Bruce Drake. I went to a clinic once to try and learn from other coaches: Coach Maravich would look at my notes and tell me about the person who originally came up with the strategies! He was a dedicated Xs and Os coach who spent a lot of time trying to come up with new offenses to combat various defenses. He also worked on box-and-1 and triangle-and-2 defenses to give our players better opportunities to win. I learned so much from him: he taught me that I could better execute a play if I tweaked it to my own needs. He helped my career by making me an Xs and Os junkie. He would stay up until 3AM drawing up different plays to show me in the morning.

In the 1991 NCAA tourney as head coach at Coastal Carolina Brad Penny scored 34 PTS/13-15 FG in a 10-PT loss to #2-seed Indiana: how close did you come to pulling off the upset? I have fond memories of that game because it is the 1 that put our school on the map. We previously had some good wins but we almost upset the Hoosiers as a #15-seed after making a great comeback. Penny was just unstoppable in the 2nd half: CBS picked up the game and showed it coast-to-coast. I got calls afterward from people who I had not heard from in a long time. Coach Bobby Knight later invited me to spend some time hunting with him: when you prepare to coach against someone like him it educates you and makes you a better coach.

In the 1993 NCAA tourney Juwan Howard had 16 PTS/10 REB in a win by #1-seed Michigan: what are your memories of the Fab 5? I came up with a junk defense to use my best defender against Ray Jackson because he was not quite as strong of a scorer as the other 4 starters. It totally backfired because Jackson hit a lot of shots early and we never got on track. They showed us just how good they were.

In 1994 you admitted breaking some NCAA rules after seeing the movie “Blue Chips”: why did the film have such a powerful impact on you, and how prevalent do you think violations are in today’s NCAA? I have been away from the college game for almost 3 decades so I do not really know what is going on in the recruiting wars today. Some of the violations that were hung on our staff back then are actually legal today. Hindsight is 20-20 but I wish that I would not have made any comments because too many people took it the wrong way. We had done some things wrong but there were some things that I was unaware of. However, as captain of the ship I was responsible for them in the end.

You later became coach/director of basketball operations for the Oklahoma City Calvary and won a CBA title in 1997: how were you able to get back into coaching, and what did it mean to you to win the title? I was very fortunate after resigning under heat in 1994 and not having to miss a beat by joining the CBA. I had no idea that the CBA had players at such a high level: I helped 28 guys get called up to the NBA (such as Voshon Lenard/Damon Jones). They are highly-motivated athletes because they want to get to the NBA in the worst way…but some of them go to Europe for the money. It was like juggling 7 basketballs as I tried to keep a competitive team on the floor because once you got a good team together the best players would soon head to the NBA. It makes it challenging to be a coach, especially because your playoff seed is based on how many quarters you won, which is how they have started scoring the NBA Summer League. Even if you are down by 20 PTS in the 4th quarter the fans will stick around to see if you can win the quarter!

In 2000 you became a scout for the Utah Jazz: how did you like being a scout, and do you think that you will ever return to the NBA? Ever since 1997 I have been trying to get onto an NBA bench, but I was naïve at that time and thought that the most important thing was to know what you were doing. Once you get there it is about what you know…but until you get there it is about who you know because it is such a tight fraternity. I really liked the advance scouting where you go over all the plays of your upcoming opponent and the individual characteristics of all their players. As far as scouting college players and where to draft them, it was very challenging because I missed bench coaching too much, which is why I returned to the CBA in 2004.

You later coached a pro basketball team abroad: why did you decide to go overseas, and what was the basketball culture like compared to in the US? When I got overseas the thing that impressed me the most was how coachable the European players were. American players receive better fundamental coaching because here the coaches are more advanced from 1st grade through high school: the best coaches in Europe are found at the senior level. I also like having 10-minute quarters, 8-second over-and-back violations, etc. The only thing that is really difficult is that you do not have as many timeouts during games so you had better do a good job of coaching them up in practice.

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Happy Birthday!: HoopsHD interviews former Florida A&M player and coach Clemon Johnson

Posted on September 12, 2021 by Jon Teitel

1 reason that mid-majors have a hard time competing with the big boys is due to their lack of big men, but the Rattlers could board with the best of them in the 1970s after recruiting Clemon Johnson. The 6’10”, 240-pound center had almost 1500 career REB in college, then became a top-25 draft pick and spent a decade in the NBA, joining the 76ers just in time to win a title in 1983. In 2011 he returned to his alma mater as head coach and spent 3 years on the sideline. HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel got to chat with Clemon about being a great rebounder and winning an NBA title. Today is Clemon’s 65th birthday so let us be the 1st to wish him a happy 1!

Why did you choose to attend Florida A&M? At the time there were not many major D-1 programs that were fully-integrated. I had a few West Coast offers but the FAMU campus was across the street from me in Tallahassee.

You still hold school records for most rebounds in a game (25) and a career (1494): did you realize at the time how prolific a player you were, and what is your secret for rebounding? I did not realize it until my senior year: I wish they had kept track of blocked shots because I would have had that record too! It is just about positioning and chasing it down, like Dennis Rodman did. You need to have the desire and eagerness, which I did because I wanted to be the best.

You earned a B.S. in Economics and later a Master’s in Physical Education: what value do you place on education, and how have your 2 degrees helped your career? The B.S. degree came about as a promise I made to my father. I had about 16 more hours to go before I could graduate, but after I went to the NBA I did not think I needed it because I was a grown man who was making money. However, my dad kept asking me over and over why I did not have my degree, so I just finally told him that I would do it. When I talk to young kids today I explain to them that even if they are good enough to go pro and make a lot of money, 1 bad investment can cost you all of it. I decided to continue with my education if I did not get another coaching job, so that is why I got my masters.

In the summer of 1978 you were drafted in the 2nd round by Portland (8 spots behind your future NBA teammate Mo Cheeks), which you allegedly learned when a sportswriter called to ask you about it while you were mowing the lawn at your mother’s house: is that true, and what did it feel like to learn that you were drafted? It was a true story! You have to remember that this was in the 1970s: the draft was about 13-14 rounds back then and nobody had told me in advance that I was going to get drafted. I will never forget it: the writer’s name was Barry Cooper. I knew I still had to go out and compete for the job so I tried not to get overly excited, but I was totally pleased and immediately called everyone that I knew.

In 1983 you joined Philadelphia in midseason and stuck around to win an NBA title as your team went 12-1 in its 3 playoff series: what did it mean to you to win the title, and what was the reaction like in Philly? I understand what people mean when they say how important it is to get a ring: it symbolized that I was part of the best team in the world. The city went crazy and I went crazy along with them. My normal summer routine was to go out and start training once the season was over, but the celebration that summer never stopped and it cut into my practice/training time. I went back to Florida but still had to make a ton of appearances down there. In the playoffs I caught myself out on the floor just standing around and watching Dr. J and Moses Malone: I just tried to get out of their way so they could do their thing. Dr. J pulled me aside the next day and told me to just go out there and play basketball because he would let me know if I got in the way. The playoffs give you a whole different heartbeat: it is racing because it is as they say: “win or go home”.

What are your memories of Game 7 of the 1986 Eastern Conference Semifinals (you lost to Milwaukee by 1 PT when Dr. J missed a short jumper with 3 seconds left)? I became close friends with Milwaukee’s Alton Lister: he was just wearing us out. We went to the money man: I thought Dr. J’s shot was going in but it just did not fall. The whole year was a struggle: Moses missed the playoffs due to an eye injury.

You averaged 5.4 PPG/4.6 RPG during your 10-year NBA career: how satisfied are you with your career? I have to be pleased with it because the numbers are what they are. I was given an opportunity and did the best I could to be a role player. I keep trying to explain that to the young kids: I was never a star but I hung around for a decade and won a ring by being part of a team.

After retiring from the NBA, you played professionally in Italy for 5 years: what did you learn from this experience, and how did it compare to the NBA? I learned that Micheal Ray Richardson is a comedian! He is a great guy…but I got into more altercations following Mike because he hated to lose. Mike and I felt like the refs in Italy were not giving us a fair shake. I thought it was an outstanding league and a great opportunity for guys who cannot make it in the NBA to continue their career.

After retiring from professional basketball you became a high school coach in Gaston County (winning 7 district titles in 8 years), and then a college coach at Alaska-Fairbanks and your alma mater: what is the biggest difference between coaching college players vs. high school players? It is similar off the court in terms of making sure the guys go to class and do their work. The basketball IQ of the college players is not necessarily higher but their athleticism definitely is. The key is to find a formula that allows your players to be effective.

Your son Chad played basketball at Pitt: what was it like to have him follow in your large footsteps? I thought that if he was more of an extrovert then he would have been a better player, but instead he shied away from the spotlight. I was an introvert as well but I felt like the basketball court was my domain. I could care less if he follows in my footsteps: I just want to push him without discouraging him. At 6’5” he was a center in high school but a guard in college, so he had to learn a whole new set of skills. He would like to pursue a coaching career and I am hopeful that 1 day he will be my assistant coach on the collegiate level. We can sit around and break a game down over the phone: we are both on the same page because we both have a high basketball IQ.

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Happy Birthday!: HoopsHD interviews former Fairfield star AJ Wynder

Posted on September 11, 2021 by Jon Teitel

It cannot be easy to be a native New Yorker whose birthday falls on September 11th…but that is AJ Wynder’s lot in life. Born on 9/11/64 in the Bronx, he helped lead Fairfield to back-to-back NCAA tourney appearances in 1986/1987. He spent almost a decade in the CBA but got to live the NBA dream by playing 6 games with the Celtics in 1991. He won a silver medal at the 1995 Pan Am Games and later became a super-successful head coach at Nassau Community College. HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel got to chat with AJ about a near-death experience and being a great 3-PT shooter. Today is AJ’s 57th birthday so while we understand that it is a somber day let us be the 1st to wish him a happy 1!

You played at St. Agnes High School on Long Island, where 1 of your teammates was future Florida coach Billy Donovan: what was Donovan like as a teammate, and did you ever think he would have the success he has had as both a player/coach? He was a gym rat and a hard worker so I always knew that he would be a successful player. A lot had to do with the fact that he was a bit pudgy, but after getting to Providence and seeing Rick Pitino take over he became “Billy the Kid”. He was a very unselfish player: I was the 2-guard while he was the PG.

In 1982 you started your career at UMass, but you injured your knee after only 2 games and almost died after being stabbed by a woman’s jealous boyfriend, then decided to transfer to Fairfield: how close did you come to dying? I believe my blood pressure was 40 over 0 but I was never unconscious. By the grace of God I am still here so I just take it day by day and make the best of it as a coach.

In the 1986 NCAA tourney your team had a 1st-year head coach and a school-record 24 wins: how close did you come to beating Illinois? It was a tough game: we were right there for 30 minutes before their depth took over. They had a couple of pros on that team including Ken Norman. I had always dreamed of playing in the tourney as a kid and we just hoped that we could pull off a Cinderella-type upset.

In the 1987 MAAC tourney title game your team trailed by 18 PTS with 13 minutes left in regulation but you scored 16 PTS including a jumper at the end of regulation to send the game into OT en route to a 3-PT win over Iona: where does that rank among the highlights of your career? I have very fond memories of that game because it put us into the NCAA tourney. We had a few down moments during the year, including my best teammate breaking his hand and another teammate having his mother pass away. I will always remember my shot to send it to OT. We were a small school but it seemed like we had 200,000 people cheering us on that night! 

What are your memories of the 1987 NCAA tourney in Indianapolis (after telling a reporter that all you had to do was stop Steve Alford and Daryl Thomas, you scored 15 PTS in a loss to eventual-champion Indiana)? They were a bulldozer that rolled right over us. They had been upset by Cleveland State in 1986 so Coach Bob Knight made sure that would not happen again in 1987. To lose to the eventual champions is nothing to be upset about. I am really close with Keith Smart today after we played together in the CBA, even though I did not know him at all back then. There was a capacity crowd at the Hoosier Dome and I remember hearing a huge cheer when Knight walked out of the tunnel because Hoosier Nation loved him. It was just part of the journey and a great experience for me.

In 1990 you played 6 games for the Celtics: were you thrilled to realize your dream of making it to the NBA, or disappointed that you only played 6 games, or something in between? During the course of my time I was excited but I was also trying to compete and work hard. It was not until after it was over that I was able to reflect on it. I did not just want to be there: I wanted to play and make a name for myself. It was a job, not just a fairy tale, but I am not bitter about it.

You played 10 seasons in the CBA before retiring with the 2nd-most steals and 3rd-most assists in CBA history: how did the CBA compare to the NBA? The 1 thing I say is that we never had a night off. You never knew which NBA scouts were in the stands and the competition was pretty grueling. It is a fine line between the CBA and NBA and we would face guys like John Starks/Mario Elie. I remember reading about Chris Childs getting a 6-year/$24 million contract: I played against him several times. The travel was the biggest difference: the Celtics were a 1st-class organization. The CBA helped prepare me for what I am doing now so I would not trade it for anything.

You spent 2 of those 10 years as a player/assistant coach with the Tri City Chinooks: why did you decide to accept the double-duty, and how were you able to make it work? My great friend Calvin Duncan and I had played together in Cedar Rapids. When he took over as head coach in Tri City he decided to make me his assistant due to my basketball IQ and leadership as a PG. I felt that if I took that position then the NBA would not be looking to call me up, but Calvin made me realize that it would ultimately improve my resume.

As a member of Team USA at the 1995 Pan American Games in Argentina, the host nation’s Diego Osella made a game-winning layup with 1 second left to beat your team in the opening game, then they beat you again in the final to win the gold medal, but you set a USA Basketball record for 3-PT accuracy that still stands (8-12 3PM): what is your secret for 3-PT shooting, and did Argentina just have your number that spring? Argentina has the most loyal fans that I have ever seen in international competition. Their fans sing “ole, ole, ole, ole” for the entire game: I could barely hear myself think! We called ourselves “Team Nightmare” because we were just a bunch of NBA wanna-bes rather than the Hall of Famers who played for the “Dream Team”. I remember some great CBA players like Alphonso Ford who turned down the chance to play for the US because they were worried that they would miss their chance to get called up to the NBA, but when they gave me an invite it took me about 1 second to say yes. I was never a great shooter but if they left me open then I would take it. I got to represent my country and win a silver medal, which is very special to me, but our goal was to win a gold medal.

In 1997 you became head coach at Nassau Community College, where you have never had a losing record: how have you been able to have so much success as a coach? All successful coaches have good players. We do not give out scholarships or have dorms, so at a D-3 JUCO school I just sell my players on the opportunity of ending up at a 4-year school. I have been fortunate to have kids who work hard and execute our style of basketball by getting up and down the court and playing tough defense. We do not take anything for granted and try to win every time that we step onto the floor. My ultimate goal is to win a regional/national title. I do not know if a 4-year school would be for me: I like the security/stability I have here after chasing the dream as a player and living out of a suitcase for a decade. I am happy for Billy…but when much is given much is required. I am happy for all the millions that he makes but I am not envious: we went in 2 different directions and people still respect me for what I have done. I just want to do everything in my power to be the best coach I can be and give my players the tools to be successful in life.

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Season preview: HoopsHD interviews Florida State SR F Malik Osborne

Posted on September 10, 2021 by Jon Teitel

We are keeping our fingers crossed in the hope that we can return to a “normal” version of college basketball this fall: fans in the stands, announcers without masks, etc. Nobody knows exactly what is going to happen but we will try to restore some order with season previews featuring the best players/coaches in the country. We continue our coverage with Florida State SR F Malik Osborne. HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel got to chat with Malik about making the Sweet 16 last March and his expectations for this season.

You began your college career at Rice: why did you decide to transfer, and what made you choose Florida State? Rice was a great program but I wanted to challenge myself by going to a Power 5 conference to see how I matched up with the top talent in the country. Assistant coach Dennis Gates (who is now head coach at Cleveland State) offered me a scholarship to FSU and I had a lot of family in Florida and the weather was warm so it seemed like it was almost meant to be.

You play for Coach Leonard Hamilton: what makes him such a great coach, and what is the most important thing that you have learned from him so far? He is relatable and understands his players and puts us 1st: he is the most selfless coach that I have ever had and if we ever have an issue then he will talk directly to us to see where we are coming from. It feels more like a family: we handle our business on the court but remain tight-knit off the court. I learned that you get out what you put in: I have taken that attitude by putting in a lot of time and being an open book to the younger guys on the team.

Last winter you joined FSU’s Anti-Racism, Diversity & Inclusion Task Force: what have you been able to accomplish so far? We have accomplished a lot. We have held some very intense discussions about racial issues on campus, such as changing the names of a building or removing a statue. We looked into the details of some things with racial backgrounds and then banded together to make some changes.

In the 2021 Sweet 16 you scored 12 PTS/4-7 3PM in a loss to Michigan: what did you learn from that loss that will help you this year? I learned that chemistry is so important, especially during times of adversity. We were up in the Midwest (Indianapolis) and there were a lot of Michigan fans and we got rattled a bit and tried to do our own thing. Looking back on it now I think that is what helped teams like Baylor/Gonzaga make it to the title game. It is tough to come together during COVID because after a game we would just go back to our own rooms.

Your FT shooting increased from 59% as a sophomore to 84% as a junior: how were you able to improve so much in only 1 year? After shooting 59% I knew that I was better than that so I put in a lot of work on my mechanics/rhythm and found something that was very comfortable. I just calmed myself down and shot thousands of FTs, which helped settle me down during games and become a better FT shooter. Even after shooting 84% I know there is still more room to improve.

You earned your bachelor’s degree in Social Science last April and are currently working on a 2nd bachelor’s degree in Humanities with a concentration in Communications: how do you balance your work on the court with your work in the classroom? The academic people at FSU have helped me a lot. I received some tutoring and made sure to do my homework in advance because time management is essential. You need to have discipline because it will pay off in the long run. If you take care of things in advance then it will give you more time to get into the gym or rest your body.

You have a brutal non-conference schedule this year (including Florida/Purdue/South Carolina and possibly Missouri): which of these games do you feel will present your biggest test? We played Purdue a couple of years ago and they gave us a run for our money (the Boilermakers lost by 3 PTS in OT) but they are all challenging opponents. Even the mid-major teams will challenge us mentally. We know that we will get everyone’s best shot but we will be up for the challenge all year long.

You lost each of your top-4 scorers from last year (Scottie Barnes/MJ Walker/RaiQuan Gray/Balsa Koprivica): how will you try to replace all of that offense? We will just play our normal game and push the ball in transition. Even after losing all those scorers we still have a few veterans left on the team including myself. Everyone has a certain role and nobody will try to do too much because the entire coaching staff has put us in positions to be successful. The main focus is to stick to the game plan and trust our staff.

Your father James played football at Iowa State and your mother Tina ran track in college: who is the best athlete in the family? You are trying to get me in trouble! I would love to say me…but my mom is a stallion who killed it on the track so between the 2 of them I will say my mom.

What are your goals for this season and what are your expectations for this season? I definitely plan on winning our conference and getting back to March Madness. We want to win as many games as possible: we have a young team but are willing to learn and give our maximum effort each time. I think that we can win the ACC tourney and hopefully make the Final 4, but we need to keep it all in perspective and just take it 1 game at a time.

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