The Olympians: HoopsHD interviews Diana Imhoff about 1960 Olympic gold medalist Darrall Imhoff

Posted on June 30, 2020 by Jon Teitel

The NBA Finals date back to 1947 (when they were known as the Basketball Association of America Finals) and the very 1st NCAA tourney was held in 1939. Olympic basketball competition is even older: it debuted as a demonstration event in 1904 and the men’s version became a medal sport in 1936, with the women finally getting their chance to go for the gold in 1976. The United States has dominated Olympic basketball competition from the start: the men have won 15 gold medals in the 18 tournaments they have participated in during the past 84 years, while the women have won 8 gold medals in the 10 tournaments in which they have competed during the past 44 years. Those of you who were looking forward to the 2020 Olympics opening ceremonies in Tokyo on July 24, 2020 will have to wait an extra 364 days, as the coronavirus caused a postponement until July 23, 2021. Due to the absence of college basketball since mid-March, HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel decided to fill the void by trying to interview as many prior Olympic players/coaches as possible so that you have something to read this summer while not watching the Summer Games. We continue our coverage by chatting with Diana Imhoff about her father Darrall winning an NCAA title in 1959 and a gold medal in 1960. Today marks the 3rd anniversary of Darrall’s passing in 2017 so we are proud to honor his memory.

Your father Darrall was born/raised in California: what made him choose Cal, and how did he feel about beginning his career as a walk-on? He was a forestry major and trained at altitude by playing volleyball, which led to his breakout season: it was unintentional conditioning. He once made a play on defense by pinning the ball against the glass in a game early in his junior season…and the entire crowd went silent because they had never seen anything like that. When his teammates saw that they realized that they might win it all that year. He went to Alhambra High School, where he is now part of their Hall of Fame. He was screwing around in the Alhambra locker room as a junior or senior when he slipped and broke his elbow. Stu Inman was the coach at Orange Coast JC: he asked the Alhambra coach about my dad and was told, “He will not amount to anything”. My grandmother’s sister Vivian was the chair of the Claremont McKenna humanities department and called Cal coach Pete Newell to see if he had any space available in his player dorms…and Pete said that he was not part of the housing office. Vivian then mentioned that her nephew was 6’8”, which gave him the opportunity to get to Cal, where the rowing coach tried to recruit him to his own team. Pete had given away all of the beds so during his 1st year my dad was stuck in a boarding house on a twin-size bed with an orange crate on the end of it. His roommate was Bob Steiner, who later worked as the SID at Cal and in PR for the Lakers, and Ned Averbuck was the benchwarmer who kept track of everything.

He played for Hall of Fame coach Pete Newell: what made Newell such a great coach, and what was the most important thing that your dad ever learned from him? His judgment on athletic ability/team unity was the best. He drilled the fundamentals, which is why he had 5 men on the floor who were all contributing by setting picks/rebounding at both ends of the floor/taking charges. All of his players benefited from that. My dad left Berkeley 3 credits shy of graduating and in his mid-50s he realized that he was the only guy who ever played for Pete who had not graduated. He took some correspondence classes, walked across the stage in his cap/gown, and got his degree. The team would gather for Pete’s birthday every year with their spouses/kids to celebrate him. My grandfather’s birthday was only a few days apart from Pete’s birthday. 1 year I heard Jerry West speak at the Rotary Club in LA about his new book. He mentioned that he had been driving to interview Pete for his book but missed a freeway exit and had to double back. When Jerry finally showed up he was told that Pete had just passed away a few minutes earlier: Jerry wept because he never got a chance to say goodbye to his old coach. I think about what a guru Jerry has become regarding the evaluation of talent in Memphis/Golden State/LA: he wants to go somewhere that he can really make a difference. Jerry needs affirmation about what he does, which is why he left Golden State after they became a dynasty. I am sure that Pete sowed some seeds into Jerry’s eye for talent. I heard John Wooden giving a keynote speech 1 time and gave my card to his assistant: Wooden ended up making room for me at his own table. He said that my dad/Pete kept UCLA out of the Final 4 for so many years and that he would not have had such a great career had Pete not eventually retired: what a humble thing to say!

Take me through the magical 1959 Final 4:
In the Final 4 against Cincinnati he had 22 PTS/16 REB in a 6-PT win: how was he able to get the best of future Olympic teammate Oscar Robertson (who had 19 PTS/19 REB/9 AST)? They walked out to the opening tip and 1 of my dad’s teammates introduced himself to Oscar as if he did not know who he was: I think it really rattled him because there was so much media hype at the time about Oscar. Whichever team has 5 men who will contribute will always win against a team that has 2 stars and 3 role players.

In the title game against West Virginia he scored 10 PTS including the go-ahead basket with 17 seconds left in a 1-PT win (future Olympic teammate West had 28 PTS/11 REB): what did it mean to him to win a title, and how did the family/team/school celebrate? Jerry said that both his best (winning a gold medal) and worst (this game) moments in basketball were a result of Pete Newell. At Pete’s funeral Jerry tore up his notes and spoke from his heart and wept about how Pete was more of a father to him than his own father was. The video I saw of the game showed that my dad tipped in a missed shot with 1 hand to give his team the lead. After my dad passed away his teammate Bill McClintock said that he knew the original shot was going to be off and Bill was going to make the winning basket and get his name in the newspaper headline…but my dad was just scrapping for the rebound. If you look at the photo of the celebration after the game his head is down: he was not basking in the glory but just playing for a coach who he loved. A great coach can get his players to play above their ability and achieve things that they could not ordinarily achieve on their own.

In the 1960 NCAA title game he scored 8 PTS in a loss to Ohio State (future Olympic teammate Jerry Lucas had 16 PTS/10 REB): what did it mean to him to lose the title game 1 year after winning the title game? I do not think that they took it as individual disappointment: they were just sad to not win another title for Pete. They did not have any delusions of grandeur but I am sure that they were a little disappointed even after the previous year’s triumph. They were a bunch of glass-half-full people so making it to the title game and then losing is not a black mark on your record.

That April he was drafted 3rd overall by the Knicks (behind Robertson/West): did he see that as a validation of his college career, or the realization of a lifelong dream of reaching the NBA, or other? They were all proven players as everyone saw from the Olympics. I think that his salary was comparable to a local schoolteacher’s salary where they lived in Long Island. The financial gain back then was not the same as it is now. I think getting drafted was sort of a surprise and he just figured he would go play pro basketball. It was not his master plan: it was just an option out of left field. He would get outdoors as much as possible during the off-season: he/Jerry would go hunting with Barron Hilton.

That fall he joined Robertson/West/Lucas on team USA at the 1960 Olympics: what did it mean to him to win a gold medal, and how did he feel when that team (featuring 10 future NBA players) was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2010? Jerry and my dad became roommates on the road and eventually best friends. Jerry’s wife actually drove my mom to the hospital before she delivered me and the Wests are my sister’s godparents. My dad was a very patriotic person and confided in us many times that the most important moment of his basketball career was walking in the opening ceremony and carrying the USA flag. When he got his medal and heard the anthem on the podium it meant a great deal to him. He is on the cover of the Rome Olympic yearbook and if you look closely he is walking next to 13-year old swimmer Donna de Varona. I ran into Donna at the Beijing Olympics and she said that my dad and his whole team looked out for her in Rome. When the Vietnam War started he was too big to fit in a military vehicle but went over there as an entertainer with some other pro players to shore up the morale of the troops. He happened to be staying in the same hotel as John Wayne (who was filming “Hondo”) and they would hang out together and play cards. Wayne gave him a letter and asked him to mail it to his 2nd wife Pilar: I later told Pilar’s son Ethan about it! In 1964 Japan hired my dad and some of his Olympic teammates to come coach their players: he would have to duck under ceilings to avoid hitting his head.

On March 2, 1962, he faced the 76ers and had to guard Wilt Chamberlain: did he take it personally when Wilt ended up scoring an NBA-record 100 PTS? I heard my dad tell the story about that game many times. The Knicks had a few guys who were out with the flu (including their regular starting center) so my dad was thrust into the middle of everything. Wilt was basically cherry-picking because Philly wanted to go for the record that night during an exhibition game in Hershey. If you look at the box score my dad fouled out after only 20 minutes so Wilt did not score all of his 100 PTS against my dad. I have a photo on my wall of a game a few years later where my dad fouled Wilt as hard as he could: his feet are so high above Wilt’s feet because he needed his hops to get up into the clouds. There was no 3-second rule back then and Wilt was dunking from the FT line. The next night they played again in Madison Square Garden: my dad fouled out toward the end of the game while holding Wilt to “only” 50 PTS…and got a standing ovation as he walked to the bench!

After getting sold by Detroit to the Lakers after the 1964 season he made the NBA Finals 3 times in 4 years from 1965-1968: was it just a case of bad timing that he kept running into a Celtics dynasty that was in the middle of winning 10 titles in 11 years? Red Auerbach called him later in his career and asked him to join the Celtics. Lakers owner Jack Kent Cooke asked him if he would be willing to be traded to Philly and my dad said no way because his family was settled in LA. Cooke then told him that Philly would pay him twice as much and my dad said “When can we leave?!” My dad turned Red down because he could not stand the thought of wearing Celtic green: he hated them due to the Boston-LA rivalry. It was tough to lose to Boston every single spring. When my dad got to Philly after being traded for Wilt the fans were not sure how it would work out: the Philly players told some crazy road trip stories involving Wilt!

After retiring he became Vice President of Sales & Marketing at the United States Basketball Academy, an internationally-recognized basketball camp in Oregon: how did he get into the business, and how did he like it? My parents were in Portland and the USBA wanted to develop a grassroots basketball academy that fed into the Olympic team. The guys back then did not make enough to take summers off so he would go to Chico, CA, to help out with our family construction business. My dad built a lot of things at the basketball camp and loved his time there.

He passed away in 2017: when people look back at his career, how do you think that he should be remembered the most? He was the most humble person who deflected all of the credit onto the team. He was making sky-hooks/no-look passes before they even had a name. A lot of big men can dominate 1 end of the floor or the other but not both. He was all about the team and always included his teammates in his accolades because he considered them like family. He did a lot of speaking engagement for Christian organizations after retiring and joked that he always asked his mom why she did not wait 10 years for him to be born! His NBA pension was only $50,000: a lot of the older players and their widows all went on to have other jobs. He was regarded by his teammates as a really hard worker. Pete multiplied his work ethic: it was never about his own glory.

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The Olympians: HoopsHD interviews Alan Karpick about 2000 Olympic gold medalist Gene Keady

Posted on June 29, 2020 by Jon Teitel

The NBA Finals date back to 1947 (when they were known as the Basketball Association of America Finals) and the very 1st NCAA tourney was held in 1939. Olympic basketball competition is even older: it debuted as a demonstration event in 1904 and the men’s version became a medal sport in 1936, with the women finally getting their chance to go for the gold in 1976. The United States has dominated Olympic basketball competition from the start: the men have won 15 gold medals in the 18 tournaments they have participated in during the past 84 years, while the women have won 8 gold medals in the 10 tournaments in which they have competed during the past 44 years. Those of you who were looking forward to the 2020 Olympics opening ceremonies in Tokyo on July 24, 2020 will have to wait an extra 364 days, as the coronavirus caused a postponement until July 23, 2021. Due to the absence of college basketball since mid-March, HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel decided to fill the void by trying to interview as many prior Olympic players/coaches as possible so that you have something to read this summer while not watching the Summer Games. We continue our coverage by chatting with Alan Karpick (president/publisher of GoldandBlack.com) about Coach Gene Keady winning a gold medal as an assistant in 2000.

Keady was a 4-sport athlete at Garden City Junior College (where he was an All-American QB), then played several sports at Kansas State before being drafted by Pittsburgh in the 1958 NFL Draft: how good of an athlete was be back in the day before his career was cut short due to a knee injury? He did not play D-1 basketball but he was great at football and his 1st love was baseball because he was fleet afoot. He was a pretty talented guy.

In 1974 he became an assistant coach to Eddie Sutton at Arkansas, where he recruited the “Triplets” (Ron Brewer/Marvin Delph/Sidney Moncrief) who helped lead the Razorbacks to the 1978 Final 4 before a 5-PT loss to eventual champion Kentucky: what made him such a great recruiter? In those days he was pretty hard-nosed and a basketball lifer. He was very successful at Hutchinson JC and loved to go out on the road and build relationships: that was 1 of his biggest strengths back then.

He was hired as head coach at Purdue in 1980: why did he take the job, and what did the fans/alumni think about him when he arrived? He took the job because he was offered the job. He left Western Kentucky after only 2 years, which was a bit of a surprise, but he was just looking for that next opportunity. He really wanted his big chance even though Al McGuire discouraged him because Bobby Knight kind of controlled recruiting throughout the state of Indiana.

In the 1982 NIT title game he had a 9-PT loss to Bradley: where does that rank among the most devastating losses of his career? He made the NIT Final 4 in 1981 so I would not call it “devastating”. The NCAA tourney had not yet moved to 64 teams back then so it was still important, even though the goal was to make the NCAA tourney.

In the 1996 NCAA tourney #16-seed Western Carolina missed 2 shots in the final 10 seconds of a 2-PT loss: how close did he come to being the 1st #1 seed to ever lose its opening game? It was pretty close! That team had greatly overachieved and was the 1st team since Ohio State to win 3 undisputed Big 10 titles in a row. They were not good enough to run away from people.

Even though he never made a Final 4 he finished his career with a 20-19 record in NCAA tourney play due to pulling off many upsets as a lower-seed: do you think it was a result of his teams playing up/down to the level of their competition, or the fact that he did not bring in as many McDonald’s All-Americans as other big-time programs, or other? They were typically a higher seed and there were times that they struggled. He lost his opening tourney game 3 years in a row from 1984-1986. Not making the Final 4 was a function of not getting a couple of close calls, having Glenn Robinson get injured against Duke in 1994, etc. He was not wildly successful in the postseason but did have more success later in his career.

He made 16 NCAA tourneys during an 18-year stretch from 1983-2000 and is the winningest coach in school history with 493 wins (which is #3 in Big 10 history behind Tom Izzo/Bobby Knight): how was he able to remain so successful/consistent for almost 2 decades? He was a bulldog who put in a lot of hard work to get his players to play hard for him. In his entire career he only had about 3 McDonald’s All-Americans but was known for being an overachiever. He/John Chaney/Norm Stewart are 3 of the greatest coaches to never make the Final 4 but are all well-respected.

He assisted in selecting the 1984/1988 US Olympic teams and won a gold medal as an assistant coach for team USA at the 2000 Olympics: how did he get those jobs, and what did it mean to him to win a gold medal? Fred Schaus discovered him working at an Olympic Festival event in 1979, which is how he got started in USA Basketball. When Knight was head coach in 1984 Keady helped out with evaluations and he coached several international teams over the years. He inched his way up to the opportunity in 2000, which was due to the respect he received based on his college success.

He has an incredible coaching tree including Bruce Weber/Kevin Stallings/Steve Lavin/Matt Painter: how proud is he of all their success, and what made him such a good mentor? I think that it is his proudest accomplishment because many of those guys played for him as well, including Cuonzo Martin. He was a good mentor because he let his assistants do their own jobs. Bruce did a lot of behind-the-scenes work which helped build his foundation as a coach, while Lavin was initially a volunteer assistant before Gene gave him areas of responsibility. He also gave them high expectations but he was a very approachable person. He was not stuck up/pretentious and happy to let others give their feedback.

He was a 6-time national COY from 1984-2000, inducted into the NJCAA Hall of Fame as a player and coach, and inducted into the College Basketball Hall of Fame in 2013: when people look back on his career, how do you think that he should be remembered the most? He has certainly been on the cusp of making the Naismith Hall of Fame because he is a Hall of Fame-level coach. His legacy is pretty secure as a coach’s coach who is very beloved by everyone I can think of. Knight was his archrival and Gene beat Knight more than Knight beat him so the Purdue fans loved him. He had a great deal of success and was a big-time motivator/self-made person. He did not have a silver spoon in his mouth but was a hard worker. He was a grinder/bulldog who other coaches could relate to, and spending 25 years at the same school got people’s attention.

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The Olympians: HoopsHD interviews 1972 Olympic silver medalist Jim Brewer

Posted on June 28, 2020 by Jon Teitel

The NBA Finals date back to 1947 (when they were known as the Basketball Association of America Finals) and the very 1st NCAA tourney was held in 1939. Olympic basketball competition is even older: it debuted as a demonstration event in 1904 and the men’s version became a medal sport in 1936, with the women finally getting their chance to go for the gold in 1976. The United States has dominated Olympic basketball competition from the start: the men have won 15 gold medals in the 18 tournaments they have participated in during the past 84 years, while the women have won 8 gold medals in the 10 tournaments in which they have competed during the past 44 years. Those of you who were looking forward to the 2020 Olympics opening ceremonies in Tokyo on July 24, 2020 will have to wait an extra 364 days, as the coronavirus caused a postponement until July 23, 2021. Due to the absence of college basketball since mid-March, HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel decided to fill the void by trying to interview as many prior Olympic players/coaches as possible so that you have something to read this summer while not watching the Summer Games. We continue our coverage by chatting with Jim Brewer about being part of the most controversial basketball game in Olympic history and winning an NBA title in 1982. Today marks the 37th anniversary of his nephew Doc Rivers getting picked 31st overall by Atlanta in the 1983 NBA Draft.

You won a state title at Proviso East High School: how good is the basketball scene in the Chicago metro area, and how have the Pirates become 1 of the most successful high school basketball programs in Illinois? We won a title back in 1969 when there was only 1 class of basketball throughout the state before they started breaking it up into Class A/Class AA/etc. It was really rewarding for us because it was a bigger feat than it is today. Coach Tim Millikin built the program after growing up in a rich basketball tradition. We had a lot of players who became coaches themselves and we had a great elementary school “farm system” with players who followed suit, which allowed us to win a few more state titles after that. We were a town of about 26,000 and most of our players came from the Maywood area.

What made you choose Minnesota for college? Coach Millikin produced a lot of solid individual fundamental ballplayers including Al Nuness, who was 1 of the best players to come before me and later helped recruit me to Minnesota. I was very heavily recruited by Illinois: it was close to my home so a lot of my high school friends were there and I could have a lot of family members travel down to watch me play. Al was on the coaching staff of Bill Fitch and Minnesota was a big place where I could get lost in the social scene rather than being in the middle of a city setting. When you have friends around you all the time you might drop what you are doing so that you do not alienate them.

You played for team USA at the 1972 Olympics: what do you remember about Alexander Belov knocking you out of the gold medal game, and who do you blame the most for the controversial loss (Bill Walton for not playing, Hank Iba for using a slow tempo, the Secretary General, the timekeeper, the refs, other)? I think that it was a number of factors that brought us to that moment. We were being criticized leading up to the game. If we won then they would have to take a lot of measures to even the playing field: we were put in a box so that was a factor. Due to the Black September incident the gold medal game was delayed, and once it was finally scheduled the start time was a lot later than our normal time slot. We got off to a bad start and had some interference from outside where Secretary General Jones was telling the refs that they were doing something wrong. I was just all fired-up and was playing okay up to that time. I went up hard for a jump ball and got knocked off balance/hit my head/got knocked out. I was in a daze so it was hard for me to get it together: I still have some memory loss from that game. We had a nice comeback, won it twice, and then the Soviets won it once. You could argue that we were never supposed to be there but that is where we ended up. You can talk about preparation or how we played but for me that was not it. We were successful despite having a player thrown out (Dwight Jones) and several touch fouls called. The game should have been over and we were going to leave the floor but Coach Iba was talked out of it by his 2 assistants. We could have played it under protest but the decision was made by a spectator in the stands rather than someone with authority at the Olympics.

You were an All-American in 1973: how good a basketball player was your teammate Dave Winfield (who later became a Hall of Fame baseball player)? Dave was a raw athlete even though he was not fundamentally sound. He was being looked at by teams in several pro sports but was not even on full-time scholarship during his 1st couple of years on the baseball team. He played a very physical game and helped us win, along with other big guys like 6’9” Ron Behagen. We were so aggressive/physical that we were able to win a lot of games even when we were shorthanded due to some suspensions that left us with a rotation of about 5-7 guys.

That spring you were drafted 2nd overall by Cleveland (1 spot behind Olympic teammate Doug Collins): 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 never really looked past college to be perfectly honest. Now there is so much publicity about playing pro but the attention made it worse for me. I just played to win but when they started talking about money it became anticlimactic and I did not have the same zeal/passion. I certainly followed the NBA and was very relieved after living up to expectations because before then the only expectations I cared about were my own. It took a little but of the fun out of it for me. Cleveland traded away 2 guys (John Johnson/Rick Roberson) to get me so I was put into the situation of having to do more because I was replacing a pair of productive guys and the expectation level was way too high that 1st year. If I joined the team while Johnson/Roberson were still there then we would have had a better squad but it was nobody’s fault: I just had to make some adjustments as a very undersized center. It was a little bit too much for me at that point because we did not have a better framework: you just deal with what you are given. Once we started getting guys to fill in those spots we began to have a better chance to win.

You were named to back-to-back NBA All-Defensive teams in 1976/1977: what is the secret to being a great defender? Passion, which is also the key to rebounding. I had a lot of teammates who took 20 shots/game but I got a lot of time on the floor due to my defense. In the modern era you can work year-round to stay in shape but back then guys would not work on their games during the offseason: they were working on their beer bellies! Guys eventually started to become more conscientious as the landscape was changing. There have also been a lot of rule changes in the game.

In the 1982 NBA Finals with the Lakers you beat Philly in 6 games to clinch the title: what did it mean to you to win a title? That was beautiful! I always liked practicing but enjoyed it more being around that team because we had so much fun both on and off the court. Every time we took the court we felt that we were going to win. There is an accountability that you want as an athlete: we looked in the mirror to make sure that we were doing things right. We gave it everything we had every day and always tried to improve.

You played 9 seasons in the NBA and then 3 more in Italy: what was the biggest difference between basketball in the US and basketball overseas? Italy had 40-minute games that were very intense: it was like being in a semi-pro league with a bunch of teenage fans who were basketball nuts. They were very enthusiastic so it was validating: the American guys like me played the whole game and they expected us to move mountains. I really enjoyed my 3 years there and it really prepared me for my post-basketball life, as I had a lot of time to think about the future.

In 2007 you were named as 1 of the 100 Legends of the Illinois High School Association Boys Basketball Tournament: what did it mean to you to receive such an outstanding honor? That was great. The tourney had existed long before I played in it so we had all of this history but if you do not commemorate it then it will be lost. It was very rewarding to be at the ceremony and meet the other players. To be a part of that was a real honor and very satisfying for me.

Your nephew is Doc Rivers and your great nephew is Austin Rivers: who is the best athlete in the family? I think that we are all great athletes. I was 1 of the fastest players on the Lakers…even if the other guys do not agree with that!

Are there any thoughts you would like to share about everything that has been going on in our country recently (George Floyd/protests/police/other)? I think it is sad that someone had to die for us to look at reforming law enforcement behavior that is sworn to protect/serve. I have been chosen to be part of our local fire/police commission and am just starting out. My brother Grady Rivers (Doc’s dad) was a policeman and had a military background. There is a trust factor that has been breached and when you are wondering whose story to believe (such as a false report) there is a need to address/correct it. Now that we understand what Colin Kaepernick was doing when protesting the treatment of people by law enforcement, we need to do what is right and listen to what is happening. We have been hearing about police brutality for many years before Colin, but now that we have cell phones with cameras we can see pictures of what is going on. It is kind of sad that this is where we are at but if we do nothing else but look at police candidates and make the police accountable when something happens rather than sweeping it under the rug, then we will be in a better position. The crime must fit the punishment.

For more info about the 1972 US Olympic team check out “Stolen Glory” by Mike Brewster and Taps Gallagher at: www.amazon.com/Stolen-Glory-Mike-Brewster/dp/1882383796

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The Olympians: HoopsHD interviews 1972 Olympic silver medalist Kevin Joyce

Posted on June 27, 2020 by Jon Teitel

The NBA Finals date back to 1947 (when they were known as the Basketball Association of America Finals) and the very 1st NCAA tourney was held in 1939. Olympic basketball competition is even older: it debuted as a demonstration event in 1904 and the men’s version became a medal sport in 1936, with the women finally getting their chance to go for the gold in 1976. The United States has dominated Olympic basketball competition from the start: the men have won 15 gold medals in the 18 tournaments they have participated in during the past 84 years, while the women have won 8 gold medals in the 10 tournaments in which they have competed during the past 44 years. Those of you who were looking forward to the 2020 Olympics opening ceremonies in Tokyo on July 24, 2020 will have to wait an extra 364 days, as the coronavirus caused a postponement until July 23, 2021. Due to the absence of college basketball since mid-March, HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel decided to fill the void by trying to interview as many prior Olympic players/coaches as possible so that you have something to read this summer while not watching the Summer Games. We continue our coverage by chatting with Kevin Joyce about making a game-winning shot in the 1972 NCAA tourney and playing in the most controversial basketball game in Olympic history. Today is Kevin’s 69th birthday so let us be the 1st to wish him a happy 1!

(photo credit: patch dot com)

You were born/raised in New York and went to high school at Archbishop Molloy: what was it like to be at a school with so much basketball talent including future national COY Jim Larranaga (2 years ahead of you) and future NBA All-Star Brian Winters (1 year behind you)? It was a very good school and we had a legendary coach in Jack Curran, who should be in the Hall of Fame. I went to Catholic school my whole life and my family was friends with Frank Rienzo, who was the track coach and later hired John Thompson as the athletic director at Georgetown. It was a great experience to play there.

You played for Hall of Fame coach Frank McGuire at South Carolina: what made him such a great coach, and what was the most important thing that you ever learned from him? He was a different kind of coach then Mr. Curran. I ended up having some free reign to expand my game, especially as a freshman, since we were not allowed to play on the varsity back then. Our freshman coach was Donnie Walsh, who was an assistant to McGuire. He let me bring the ball up on every possession so that I could learn how to play in the backcourt, which helped me a lot. We had a lot of talent on that team. Curran had played for McGuire at St. John’s so it was an easy transition, especially with guys like John Roche/Tom Owens. Brian followed me there the following year and it was a good fit for everybody.

In the 1971 ACC tourney title game you tapped the ball to Owens in the final seconds for the game-winning layup in a 1-PT win over North Carolina: how were you able to out-jump 6’10” Lee Dedmon, and what was the feeling like in your locker room afterward? It was a great win for us. I had just come back after having a blood clot in my left leg. That play would probably not happen today due to the possession arrow but I was always a good 2-footed jumper and played against big guys in high school like Len Elmore at Power Memorial. Tom was open because nobody expected me to win the tip! It was probably the biggest win in state history up to that point.

In the 1972 NCAA tourney you scored 12 PTS including the game-winning shot in the final seconds of a 2-PT win over Temple: did you think that the shot was going in, and where does that game rank among the highlights of your career? Bobby Carver was my teammate in high school/college and knew that I was usually the guy to take the last-second shot. McGuire’s rule was to make our move to the basket with 7 seconds left so that we would have time to get an offensive rebound if we missed the shot. Temple coach Harry Litwack had his team stay back in a zone defense: Bobby told me to just make it so I let it fly and it went in. I had confidence in myself to take the last shot and always wanted the ball in that situation.

That summer you played for team USA at the Olympics: what did it mean to you to represent your country, and who do you blame the most for the controversial loss in the gold medal game (Bill Walton for not playing, Hank Iba for using a slow tempo, the Secretary General, the timekeeper, the refs, other)? Growing up I was always enamored with the Olympic ideal: I read “The Jim Thorpe Story” and always wanted to be an Olympian. I was a rising senior so I fell right into their time frame and worked hard to prepare to play in the best shape of my life at altitude at Colorado Springs for the Olympic Trials. As a kid I wrote down for a school assignment that I wanted to become a pro baseball player and an Olympian: my mother later dug up that paper! We were fast and had good shooters and could run/press but Coach Iba had a philosophy that had been successful in the past. I do not think that any 1 person on our team/staff is to blame. It was unheard of for a guy to come out of the stands and put time back on the clock so I blame Secretary General William Jones alone. The game was not decided until the following day after our official protest: I have a picture at home of myself at a press conference with Howard Cosell/Frank Gifford when they told me about the decision. We decided not to accept the silver medals and have stuck by it to this day.

In 1973 you were named an All-American: what did it mean to you to receive such an outstanding honor? The big award that every kid wanted to win back then was a Parade All-American like Lew Alcindor, which drove me to do all of the hard work it took to get there.

In the spring of 1973 you were drafted 11th overall by Golden State (11 spots ahead of George McGinnis): what did it mean to you to get drafted, and why did you decide to join the ABA instead? Everyone wants to get drafted and making the Olympic team helped my own draft status. The draft did not have the pomp and circumstance that it does now: I just got a call from my agent after it happened! 1st round picks back then got no-cut contracts but Golden State refused to give me 1. I got picked by San Antonio in the ABA draft and they traded my rights to the defending champs in Indiana so I just decided to sign with them that fall. I enjoyed playing for Coach Slick Leonard and with guys like Roger Brown/Freddie Lewis: I had no regrets.

Take me through the 1975 ABA playoffs as a player for Indiana:
In Game 3 of the semifinals vs. Denver, McGinnis had 32 PTS/21 REB/14 AST in a 6-PT win and in Game 7 he had 40 PTS/23 REB in an 8-PT road win: did McGinnis just put the entire team on his back for the whole series, and how were you able to win 3 straight road games against a team that had lost only 2 home games during the regular season? George was an unbelievable player who had the ability to put the whole team on his back. It was a tough series against guys like David Thompson at altitude so it was a great accomplishment for us.

In the Finals you lost to Kentucky: how close did you come to beating a team with such legends as Artis Gilmore/Dan Issel? Artis was great: I ended up joining the Colonels the following year. They also had Louie Dampier/Bird Averitt. Playing in the Finals is something that you dream of but we knew that the ABA would be folding at some point. I was later traded to San Diego…but they folded 3 months later.

After joining Kentucky the following season you met Denver in the semifinals: how weird was it to play without a visible scoreboard/clock, and when you found Dampier open in the final seconds did you think that he released his potential game-tying 3 before the clock struck zero? I have no idea why the scoreboard was not working: they had a decent arena.

What have you been up to since retiring from basketball, and what do you hope to do in the future? After I got hurt I returned to South Carolina as an assistant for Frank for 4 years. I did not like the recruiting aspect so I ended up working on Wall Street for 35 years as an institutional sales trader until things went sour in 2008. If you look at the New York Stock Exchange there are hardly any people there now due to all of the computers. I spent some time at a golf course/ski resort and lived in Long Island before moving to Utah to be closer to some of my kids. My wife is a ski instructor at Deer Valley and all 3 of my brothers were golf professionals. I turn 69 this month and am getting up there.

For more info about the 1972 US Olympic team check out “Stolen Glory” by Mike Brewster and Taps Gallagher at: www.amazon.com/Stolen-Glory-Mike-Brewster/dp/1882383796

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The Olympians: HoopsHD interviews Heidi VanDerveer about 1996 Olympic gold medalist Tara VanDerveer

Posted on June 26, 2020 by Jon Teitel

The NBA Finals date back to 1947 (when they were known as the Basketball Association of America Finals) and the very 1st NCAA tourney was held in 1939. Olympic basketball competition is even older: it debuted as a demonstration event in 1904 and the men’s version became a medal sport in 1936, with the women finally getting their chance to go for the gold in 1976. The United States has dominated Olympic basketball competition from the start: the men have won 15 gold medals in the 18 tournaments they have participated in during the past 84 years, while the women have won 8 gold medals in the 10 tournaments in which they have competed during the past 44 years. Those of you who were looking forward to the 2020 Olympics opening ceremonies in Tokyo on July 24, 2020 will have to wait an extra 364 days, as the coronavirus caused a postponement until July 23, 2021. Due to the absence of college basketball since mid-March, HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel decided to fill the void by trying to interview as many prior Olympic players/coaches as possible so that you have something to read this summer while not watching the Summer Games. We continue our coverage by chatting with UCSD head coach Heidi VanDerveer about her older sister Tara winning a pair of NCAA titles in the early 1990s and a gold medal in 1996. Today is Tara’s birthday so let us be the 1st to wish her a happy 1!

When Tara was shooting baskets at your neighbor’s house growing up your father allegedly told her, “Basketball will not take you anywhere: come inside and do your algebra”, and when Stanford tried to hire her away from Ohio State in 1985 he told her that she was crazy to take the job and that, “You will be unemployed and coming home to live with us in 3 months”: what kind of relationship did they have, and did he finally come around? Our parents have always been supportive of all of us. At the time you want something better for your children so my dad was living in the reality that there were very few opportunities for women and thought that she would be better off as a lawyer. Ohio State was on the tipping point of competing for titles year in and year out while Stanford was a lower-tier program. He supported us wholeheartedly.

She ended up taking the job at Stanford and won 2 NCAA titles during her 1st 7 years on the Farm (in 1990 and 1992): what did it mean to her to win a pair of titles? She was happier for the players who had taken a chance on her, specifically Jennifer Azzi. You have to share your vision with your players and have them buy into it: it is gratifying when it actually becomes a reality.

In 1995 she began a year-long sabbatical as head coach of team USA and went 52-0 in pre-Olympic play against various college/national teams leading up to the 1996 Olympics: what did it mean to her to win a gold medal, and where do you think that team ranks among the greatest in the history of the sport? They did not win a gold medal in 1992 so there was a little pressure to win 1 in 1996. USA Basketball realized what they had to do so she absorbed that pressure and was focused on the task at hand every single day, which allowed her to be so successful. The game has evolved so it is hard to compare the greatest of all-time but for their time they were the best. I think a player like 5-time Olympian Teresa Edwards just had amazing talent that would translate to today.

In the 1998 NCAA tourney she had a 4-PT home loss to #16-seed Harvard: was she embarrassed to become the 1st #1 seed to lose to a #16 seed or was it simply a case of bad timing with 2 star players (Kristin Folkl/Vanessa Nygaard) both missing the game after tearing their left knee ACLs the previous week? She probably did take it personally even though she lost her 2 best players. It was a perfect storm in that Harvard was better than a #16 seed: I recruited Allison Feaster when I was at South Carolina and just look at her almost 2-decades-long pro career. I would not say “embarrassed” but rather disappointed at what could have been. Kristin was 1 of the best players in the country: I later coached her in the WNBA. Vanessa also made the WNBA. It also made her stronger/better and she realized that you can only control what you can control.

In the 2009 NCAA tourney Jayne Appel had 16 REB and scored a school-record 46 PTS (which remains the 3rd-highest point total in NCAA tourney history), while outscoring the entire Iowa State team by herself in the 1st half (27-25): was it just 1 of those scenarios where every shot she put up seemed to go in because she was “in the zone”? That might have been part of it: I was at that game. Jayne was making shots right at the rim: it was like a Mikan layup drill! Stanford had really good shooters so they spread Iowa State out and there was no double-teaming the 6’4” Jayne at the rim.

In the 2010 NCAA tourney title game the Cardinal set a record for fewest FTs attempted in an NCAA tourney game with 4 in a 6-PT loss to UConn: were the Huskies just that good or were the refs just that…less than good? Every game has a winner and loser and once you get to the Final 4 anyone can win it. That being said, 4 FTs is not a lot.

She made 5 straight Final 4s from 2008-2012 and 12 straight Sweet 16s from 2008-2019: has it reached a point where your family refuses to make any special plans in March because you know that you will always be busy watching your sister work her magic, and how did everyone feel after the NCAA tourney got canceled last March due to the coronavirus? When you look at their run it has only been bettered by UConn. Our mom is spoiled and lives in Colorado and cheers for the Buffs…unless they play Stanford. We would invite her to a Sweet 16 or Elite 8 but she would decline because she wanted to hold out for the Final 4! It was disappointing for everyone to have the tourney canceled last March, especially the top seeds: there were probably 8-10 teams who could have won it this year. Just the way it happened was wild: you are playing 1 minute and then going home the next minute. That has not set in yet and probably never will for Tara and another 8-10 elite teams.

She is a 4-time national COY who was inducted into the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame in 2002 and was inducted into the Naismith Hall of Fame in 2011: what makes her such a great coach, and where do those rank among the highlights of her career? Her ability to evolve over the decades. She has always had a vision/plan, both at Stanford and with team USA, and the only reason it does not work is if you opponent has a better team/plan. She gets a lot of honors and is probably in 10 Halls of Fame. When you are coaching players you get into a rhythm but after they graduate she looks back and see how their success carried over into their lives. Just look at what all of her assistant coaches have done.

You are part of her amazing coaching tree, which includes Jennifer Azzi/Charmin Smith/Charli Turner Thorne: what makes her such a good mentor, and how proud is she of the success of all her former players/assistants? She is extremely proud. Our basketball community is not very big so to have her group be so successful is amazing. As a mentor she gives you a job description but if there are some things that you are really good at then she will let you do those things. If there are things you are not as good at then she will help you and then give you other challenges later on. Some people get pigeonholed into being great at coaching defense or recruiting but the more versatile you are the better off you will be.

In 2017 she joined Pat Summitt/Mike Krzyzewski as the only D-1 coaches with 1000 career wins and she is currently 4 wins away from passing Summitt as the winningest women’s coach ever: when people look back on her career, how do you think that she should be remembered the most? Women’s basketball has evolved so much over the past 40 years. I worked for a great coach in Pat and there have been so many other great coaches like Jody Conradt/Cathy Rush. She just wants the game to continue to grow and she loves supporting the game via clinics or picking up the phone. Cal is her archrival yet she will be a guest speaker for Charmin at postgame booster club events: Nick Saban would never do that for Auburn! There will be a debate between her/Pat/Geno Auriemma but she does not care about that. She worked with a lot of great players/coaches and there is a unique environment at Stanford where they have been great for 30+ years.

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The Olympians: HoopsHD interviews David Grim about 2000 Olympic gold medalist Allan Houston

Posted on June 25, 2020 by Jon Teitel

The NBA Finals date back to 1947 (when they were known as the Basketball Association of America Finals) and the very 1st NCAA tourney was held in 1939. Olympic basketball competition is even older: it debuted as a demonstration event in 1904 and the men’s version became a medal sport in 1936, with the women finally getting their chance to go for the gold in 1976. The United States has dominated Olympic basketball competition from the start: the men have won 15 gold medals in the 18 tournaments they have participated in during the past 84 years, while the women have won 8 gold medals in the 10 tournaments in which they have competed during the past 44 years. Those of you who were looking forward to the 2020 Olympics opening ceremonies in Tokyo on July 24, 2020 will have to wait an extra 364 days, as the coronavirus caused a postponement until July 23, 2021. Due to the absence of college basketball since mid-March, HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel decided to fill the void by trying to interview as many prior Olympic players/coaches as possible so that you have something to read this summer while not watching the Summer Games. We continue our coverage by chatting with former Tennessee associate SID David Grim about Allan Houston winning a gold medal in 2000. Today marks the 21st anniversary of Allan scoring 15 PTS for the Knicks in Game 5 of the 1999 NBA Finals vs. San Antonio.

 (photo credit: Bud Ford)

In 1989 at Ballard High School in Louisville Allan was named a McDonald’s All-American: what made him choose Tennessee, and how did he like playing for his father Wade (the 1st African-American head coach in Tennessee history)? He had signed with Louisville in November of his senior year during the early signing period because his dad was an assistant there. Wade was hired at Tennessee in early April and Louisville reluctantly gave Allan his release. The process was not really finalized until he enrolled in August: it was a long summer to get through the NCAA eligibility committee. Allan was probably the most decorated incoming freshman that we ever had. Our office was in the old arena where Ernie Grunfeld/Bernard King played: Allan was in there all the time shooting baskets and after watching him I began to think that he would shatter the school’s scoring record.

In 1992 he was 1 of 8 college players chosen for the USA Basketball Development Team, and on June 24th of that year he had a 62-54 win over the Dream Team, but Development Team coach Mike Krzyzewski later said that Dream Team coach Chuck Daly “threw the game” (through such tactics as intentionally limiting Michael Jordan’s minutes and making unusual substitutions) to teach the NBA players that they were not unbeatable: how on earth did the Development Team pull off the upset, and how pissed were the pro players?! I do not know how pissed they were but it certainly got their attention. Allan was a big part of that: the Dream Team actually lost by 22 PTS! Chuck Daly told them to turn off the scoreboard so the media would not see it: his players were in a state of shock. The next day the NBA guys drilled them but it remains the only game ever lost by the greatest basketball team ever.

He was a 2-time All-American: what did it mean to him to receive such outstanding honors? It meant a lot to him because he was 1 of the best in his class, which included his friend Shaquille O’Neal. He always played for team USA in international competition. He certainly should have made the 1st team and it was also disappointing that he never got to play in the NCAA tourney.

He graduated as the SEC’s all-time leader with 346 career 3PM, remains the all-time leading scorer in school history with 2801 career PTS, and is the #2 scorer in SEC history to Pete Maravich: what was the key to his scoring ability? He was just a pure shooter and the focal point of our offense even while leading the team in AST during each of his 1st 3 years. He could catch-and-shoot but could also create his own shot and drive to the basket. He was our big gun and got plenty of shots, which we needed him to do.

He averaged 36 MPG, started all 128 games during his college career, and never missed a single game: how crucial was his endurance/stamina to his success? He was in tip-top condition and continued to get stronger as he got older. He probably would not have stayed for 4 years if his dad was not the coach: he always wanted to do well to help his father and I think that there was a lot of pressure there.

In 1993 he was drafted 11th overall by Detroit (3 spots behind Vin Baker): did he see that as a validation of his college career, or the realization of a lifelong dream of reaching the NBA, or other? I would say a little of both. It was always his goal to play in the NBA. He grew up in Louisville and wanted to play for his dad there but we are glad that he came to Knoxville.

In the decisive Game 5 of the 1999 Eastern Conference 1st round as a player for the Knicks he made a running one-hander off the rim/backboard with 0.8 seconds left in a 1-PT win at #1 seed Miami: what are your memories of 1 of the most-famous shots in franchise history? I followed the Knicks while he was there but do not remember that specific game.

He played for team USA at the 2000 Olympics: what did it mean to him to represent his country, and what did it mean to him to win a gold medal? Both of those things meant a lot to him and are just another in his long series of accomplishments. He had talent/hard work so it must have been very gratifying. He was always a great kid to be around and was the hardest worker.

In 2003 he led the NBA with 91.9 FT% and his 86.3 career FT% remains top-40 all-time: what was his secret for being a great FT shooter? There is no secret: he was a great shooter to start with and took a lot of pride in practicing his FTs. He played PG for us as a freshman and anytime we had a lead the opponent was in big trouble down the stretch because he would go to the line and not miss. 1 of his most memorable FTs here was an intentional miss. We were trailing Kentucky by 3 at home late in the game and he had a pair of FTs. He made the 1st 1, missed the 2nd 1 on purpose, and we ended up getting the rebound/getting fouled while making a shot/making the FT: it was a great moment that ironically came from a missed FT!

In 2007 he was named an SEC Legend, in 2009 he was selected to the UT Basketball All-Century Team, and in 2018 he was inducted into the Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame: when people look back on his career, how do you think that he should be remembered the most? He is obviously on the Mount Rushmore of Tennessee basketball players and is 1 of the best all-around players that we have ever had. I hope we do not lose sight of everything he did, which will probably not happen because his jersey is up in the rafters.

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