WEBVTT - The BroadCast: 2/9/2017 - Australia's Andrew Gaze, on Brown's Beginnings, Simmons' Future 0:00:01.040 --> 0:00:04.800 It's time to talk Sixers, Simmons off balance and an 0:00:04.840 --> 0:00:09.000 incredible bank shot is good. Here on the broadcast, the 0:00:09.080 --> 0:00:13.119 official podcast of Sixers dot Com, I Drive Doma. He 0:00:13.160 --> 0:00:16.079 goes in that slabs and oh man, what a play 0:00:16.120 --> 0:00:23.000 by it being. Now here's today's episode. My my, my. 0:00:23.320 --> 0:00:28.040 It is amazing to see and feel just how much 0:00:28.760 --> 0:00:34.000 a city, it's vibe, it's people can change in a 0:00:34.080 --> 0:00:37.720 matter of days. And that is certainly what has happened 0:00:38.360 --> 0:00:42.839 in Philadelphia, the surrounding Delaware Valley sports fans of this 0:00:42.920 --> 0:00:46.680 town all over the place since last we had a 0:00:46.720 --> 0:00:51.280 Friday edition of the broadcast. Brian Seltzer saying hello and 0:00:51.360 --> 0:00:55.080 as always thanks for checking out the podcast. Yes, it 0:00:55.240 --> 0:01:00.240 was a historic moment, unquestionably last Sunday in Minneapols Us 0:01:00.800 --> 0:01:02.880 and the culmination of a couple of days worth a 0:01:02.960 --> 0:01:10.840 celebration taking place on Thursday up broad Streets around Dilworth 0:01:10.920 --> 0:01:13.880 Plaza out onto the Parkway all the way to the 0:01:13.920 --> 0:01:17.480 Art Museum. If you had a chance an opportunity to 0:01:18.000 --> 0:01:21.360 experience the Super Bowl parade, whether it was in person, 0:01:21.959 --> 0:01:27.039 scrolling along with your feeds, streaming, watching the old fashioned 0:01:27.080 --> 0:01:30.280 way on television, hopefully you were able to take away 0:01:31.600 --> 0:01:36.440 some lifelong memories from however, you soaked it in and 0:01:36.640 --> 0:01:41.280 just a joyous experience. It was something and certainly it 0:01:41.360 --> 0:01:44.560 was a long time coming for the Birds and the 0:01:44.720 --> 0:01:49.800 city and the team threw down. As such, it's hard 0:01:49.920 --> 0:01:53.160 not to have the no one likes us, no one 0:01:53.240 --> 0:01:57.640 likes us, no one likes us celebratory song still stuck 0:01:57.680 --> 0:02:02.800 in your head after Thursday. All right, that's probably as 0:02:02.880 --> 0:02:06.720 much jurisdiction as I should have crossing over into football 0:02:06.880 --> 0:02:11.239 talk territory right well, whether it is or it is not. 0:02:12.400 --> 0:02:16.639 Onward we move to some seventy sixers related basketball talk. 0:02:17.240 --> 0:02:19.519 So for this edition of the podcast, we're gonna talk 0:02:19.520 --> 0:02:22.919 with a guy who is intimately familiar with Brett Brown 0:02:23.440 --> 0:02:28.480 and also has great insights on the Simmons family as well. 0:02:28.880 --> 0:02:31.840 This man hails from the first family of basketball in 0:02:31.919 --> 0:02:36.440 Australia and his name is Andrew Gays. Who is Andrew Gays? 0:02:36.600 --> 0:02:38.600 More on that in just a second before we bring 0:02:38.680 --> 0:02:41.080 them on for the interview, But first a reminder that 0:02:41.120 --> 0:02:43.440 to subscribe to the podcast, you can head to our 0:02:43.480 --> 0:02:48.320 SoundCloud feed at SoundCloud dot com backslash Sixers, and you 0:02:48.360 --> 0:02:52.320 can also go to iTunes, Google Play or Stitcher and 0:02:52.800 --> 0:02:56.440 type in Sixers Podcast Network and that should take you 0:02:56.600 --> 0:03:01.040 to US. Andrew Gays is is arguably one of the 0:03:01.040 --> 0:03:05.560 most accomplished Australian basketball players of all time. He's an 0:03:05.520 --> 0:03:09.880 AUSY Basketball Hall of Famer. He is also regarded as 0:03:09.919 --> 0:03:12.679 one of the top international players ever, as one of 0:03:12.720 --> 0:03:16.480 feba's fifty Greatest of all Time and a FEBA Basketball 0:03:16.600 --> 0:03:19.799 Hall of Famer. His father's name is Lindsay Gays. If 0:03:19.840 --> 0:03:24.760 you are deeply in tune with the international basketball circuit, 0:03:25.120 --> 0:03:27.800 Lindsay Gays is a name you might know. He is 0:03:28.720 --> 0:03:32.240 an iconic coaching figure in Australia. He's in the Nay 0:03:32.320 --> 0:03:36.560 Smith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and someone who gave 0:03:36.640 --> 0:03:41.080 Brett Brown his very first professional coaching gig. At the time. 0:03:41.160 --> 0:03:45.160 Andrew Gays, who we're talking with, was a player on 0:03:45.200 --> 0:03:47.880 the team when Brett was an assistant, and a few 0:03:47.920 --> 0:03:51.200 years after Brett got to the Melbourne Tigers and began 0:03:51.240 --> 0:03:55.760 as an assistant there, Dave Simmons, Ben Simmons' dad was 0:03:55.800 --> 0:03:58.680 signed by the team and brought on board. So it 0:03:58.840 --> 0:04:01.600 might be very dense and a lot to digest at 0:04:01.640 --> 0:04:04.560 the beginning, but over the course of this conversation we'll 0:04:04.560 --> 0:04:08.440 get into some of those stories and connections more with 0:04:08.640 --> 0:04:12.000 Andrew Gays. So without further ado, we will bring him 0:04:12.000 --> 0:04:15.960 on right now, Andrew, to get things started. Why don't 0:04:15.960 --> 0:04:19.080 you give us some perspective on just how much attention 0:04:19.120 --> 0:04:22.880 the country of Australia is paying to the seventy sixers 0:04:23.120 --> 0:04:26.880 right now, with gentlemen like Brett Brown and Ben Simmons 0:04:26.920 --> 0:04:31.359 involved in the mix. Well, I'll say this, it's a 0:04:31.480 --> 0:04:33.360 lot more than it was a couple of years ago, 0:04:33.440 --> 0:04:37.480 that's for sure, and I guess it's a twofold explanation 0:04:37.640 --> 0:04:40.279 is one is that, of course it's been a great 0:04:41.120 --> 0:04:43.920 turnaround in their form and they've got some getting some 0:04:43.920 --> 0:04:45.920 wins on the board and the way in which they're playing. 0:04:47.080 --> 0:04:49.680 And then, of course, of course the primary reason that 0:04:49.720 --> 0:04:52.799 it's covered so extensively over here right now is because 0:04:52.839 --> 0:04:56.480 of Ben Simmons. He's a young man that grew up 0:04:56.520 --> 0:05:02.080 here in Australia, played with Australian junior teams, time in Melbourne, 0:05:02.120 --> 0:05:05.520 playing for the State of Victoria the national championship. So's 0:05:06.160 --> 0:05:08.400 he's created a bit of a storm over here with 0:05:08.520 --> 0:05:11.039 the way in which he's he's been able to have 0:05:11.120 --> 0:05:13.360 the success during his rookie year, and I dare say 0:05:13.400 --> 0:05:16.760 that that would be a rippling effect right throughout the world, 0:05:16.800 --> 0:05:18.960 given the way in which he's been able to play. 0:05:19.520 --> 0:05:22.040 I mean serious, Although, what are the odds of someone 0:05:22.080 --> 0:05:25.239 who has such deep ties to Australian basketball like Brett 0:05:25.240 --> 0:05:29.200 Brown overseeing the development of perhaps one of the top 0:05:29.320 --> 0:05:32.640 prospects to ever come out of the country. It's crazy, 0:05:32.960 --> 0:05:36.120 it is, And it's one of those things where just 0:05:36.200 --> 0:05:39.120 the fickle hand of fate works in mysterious ways, doesn't it. 0:05:39.160 --> 0:05:44.240 And it was just a great situation where I think 0:05:44.279 --> 0:05:48.040 Brent having spent so many years here in Australia coaching 0:05:48.040 --> 0:05:51.720 our national team at the Olympic Games, and married an 0:05:51.720 --> 0:05:56.360 Australian lady, and has just got a need of an 0:05:56.440 --> 0:06:00.880 understanding of the culture of Australia and Australians. And although 0:06:01.600 --> 0:06:05.679 Ben has Dave Simmons his dad, who also spent many 0:06:05.680 --> 0:06:08.360 many years in Australia and still, as I understand it, 0:06:08.440 --> 0:06:11.839 resides here most of the time here in Australia. In fact, 0:06:12.000 --> 0:06:14.279 although he's born in the United States, I think, given 0:06:14.440 --> 0:06:16.560 right now, I think his dad had probably been his 0:06:17.360 --> 0:06:21.280 mid to late fifties, he probably has spent more time 0:06:21.320 --> 0:06:24.119 in Australia than he has in the United States. So 0:06:24.480 --> 0:06:27.560 I think it really does help with Bean's transition when 0:06:27.560 --> 0:06:32.119 he's got someone providing that tutor, leage and guidance falling 0:06:32.200 --> 0:06:35.680 him through those formative years that understands a little bit 0:06:35.720 --> 0:06:39.000 about his background and where he's come from and what 0:06:39.160 --> 0:06:42.719 makes him kids. You've got plenty of connections yourself to 0:06:43.040 --> 0:06:46.040 this whole thing between Brett and the Simmons's family, but 0:06:46.480 --> 0:06:48.120 at the outset of this chat, I really wanted to 0:06:48.160 --> 0:06:52.760 focus on Brett and his beginnings in coaching. What you 0:06:53.040 --> 0:06:56.680 recall from that period of time, which must have been 0:06:56.680 --> 0:06:58.360 if we're going to put a time stamp on this, 0:06:58.720 --> 0:07:01.359 around the late nineteen eight he's in Melbourne. Does that 0:07:01.520 --> 0:07:03.120 put us at the right place in time for you 0:07:03.200 --> 0:07:07.160 and Brett first cross paths. Yeah. Absolutely, And I remember 0:07:07.360 --> 0:07:12.440 really really vividly because it was following the season I 0:07:12.480 --> 0:07:15.280 had at the University of Seton Hall. I played at 0:07:15.280 --> 0:07:19.200 Seton Hall University in eighty nine season and we hadn't 0:07:19.240 --> 0:07:21.320 had the good fortune to go through to the championship 0:07:21.360 --> 0:07:25.880 game unfortunately. Whilst that one in overtime to Michigan. But 0:07:27.200 --> 0:07:29.960 my dad was the coach of the Melbourne Tigers, and 0:07:30.040 --> 0:07:32.720 I remember when I was at Seton Hall and he's saying, Oh, 0:07:32.760 --> 0:07:34.880 I've got this new young American kid who's going to 0:07:34.880 --> 0:07:38.480 be like an intern type team and work out and 0:07:38.520 --> 0:07:41.720 be part of the coaching staff with the club team. 0:07:42.280 --> 0:07:45.280 And he was coming. And not only was he just 0:07:45.360 --> 0:07:49.080 coming as a guy that was just wanting an opportunity 0:07:49.280 --> 0:07:51.920 and to be a part of our program, but he 0:07:51.960 --> 0:07:54.240 was also coming to work with the team, and he 0:07:54.320 --> 0:07:57.600 was actually starting in doing some marketing for the team, 0:07:57.680 --> 0:08:00.920 selling sponsorships and those types of things as well as coaching. 0:08:01.520 --> 0:08:05.440 So you have this picture in your head that of 0:08:05.800 --> 0:08:09.440 what that guy stereotypically might look like. But I remember 0:08:09.520 --> 0:08:13.200 when I first arrived and there is his kid. He 0:08:13.240 --> 0:08:16.600 looked like he was about seventeen walking around in the 0:08:16.640 --> 0:08:19.320 office and coming to practice and got introduced me. It 0:08:19.400 --> 0:08:24.560 was Brett Brown, and yo, he was He looked very young, 0:08:24.680 --> 0:08:27.680 and then still goes he's probably late pictures as well 0:08:27.760 --> 0:08:30.520 right now, and he still looks like he's thirty. He's 0:08:30.560 --> 0:08:33.559 been blessed with great genetics. But you can imagine when 0:08:33.559 --> 0:08:38.000 he was in his early twenties or amid the early twenties, 0:08:38.040 --> 0:08:40.920 what he looked like and um, but it was it 0:08:41.000 --> 0:08:43.600 was a great experience for him. He's just got this 0:08:43.840 --> 0:08:48.559 infectious personality where UM a really funny guy that had 0:08:49.160 --> 0:08:53.440 a great accument for the game, but more importantly was 0:08:54.040 --> 0:08:56.160 a guy that could bring people together because of his 0:08:56.320 --> 0:09:00.240 humor and his perspective on life and the game. That 0:09:00.800 --> 0:09:03.240 made him a real fun guy to beer and and 0:09:03.520 --> 0:09:06.000 everyone loved him and he was prepared to do all 0:09:06.040 --> 0:09:10.080 the jobs which I get himself to the coaches and 0:09:10.120 --> 0:09:13.640 the players and um. And then fortunately for him, he 0:09:13.800 --> 0:09:16.160 learned a lot and came up through the ranks here 0:09:16.160 --> 0:09:20.959 in Australia through the various coaching leagues and eventually went 0:09:21.000 --> 0:09:24.000 on to come out our our national coach. So we 0:09:24.000 --> 0:09:28.040 we UM really enjoy and love the time that that 0:09:28.160 --> 0:09:30.679 Brett spent here in Australia and what he was able 0:09:30.720 --> 0:09:33.760 to do for Australian basketball really is an amazing story. 0:09:34.120 --> 0:09:37.439 Um was the New England accent as strong with Brett 0:09:37.440 --> 0:09:42.800 back then as it is now. Well, I think he's 0:09:42.840 --> 0:09:46.280 feeling good at the decking and I think that he 0:09:46.400 --> 0:09:51.400 tried to tried to jump into the Australian accent pretty quickly. Um, 0:09:51.800 --> 0:09:55.719 but just so he felt part of it. But um, 0:09:55.840 --> 0:09:58.480 but yeah, to me it was it was one of 0:09:58.480 --> 0:10:02.360 those ones where you have this understanding of what a 0:10:02.400 --> 0:10:05.040 New England accent was. But it was like this butcher 0:10:05.120 --> 0:10:08.920 view in England accent because he was, um, it's been 0:10:08.960 --> 0:10:12.360 a little bit of Australian terminally around and and I 0:10:12.400 --> 0:10:15.480 guess trying to embrace the Australian culture and probably most 0:10:15.520 --> 0:10:21.120 importantly trying to be understood, he adopted a bit of 0:10:21.600 --> 0:10:24.559 the Australian lingo and a bit of Australian accent as well. 0:10:24.640 --> 0:10:26.480 So it was all over the place a little bit there. 0:10:27.000 --> 0:10:30.640 And was the mop top rag top hair do as 0:10:30.679 --> 0:10:32.800 prominent than as some of the pictures. I'm just you know, 0:10:32.800 --> 0:10:34.120 I was going back and looking at some of the 0:10:34.160 --> 0:10:36.920 pictures of his days at Boston University. That is a 0:10:36.960 --> 0:10:41.960 distinct quaff of hair that it is a good, healthy 0:10:42.080 --> 0:10:44.480 hit of the hair. But it was a bull fawn. 0:10:44.920 --> 0:10:48.920 This fawn had rolling around and he did it looked 0:10:48.920 --> 0:10:51.640 like you'd had a firm or something goes through it. 0:10:52.040 --> 0:10:54.640 But but I guess back in those days, you know 0:10:54.679 --> 0:10:56.440 what it's like when you're looking back on so we 0:10:56.480 --> 0:10:58.720 didn't sort of thinking of the of it at the time. 0:10:58.720 --> 0:11:01.400 He had sort of a month going on with a 0:11:01.400 --> 0:11:04.640 bit longer at the back and all the curly costs 0:11:04.720 --> 0:11:07.320 on the front. We didn't sort of think too much 0:11:07.320 --> 0:11:09.520 of it. But obviously when you look back on it now, 0:11:09.600 --> 0:11:11.959 it's I'm not sure you could pull that looks off 0:11:11.960 --> 0:11:16.200 these days, between yourself a feeble hall of famer and 0:11:16.520 --> 0:11:19.080 your dad a Hall of Famer himself, you guys have 0:11:19.160 --> 0:11:21.520 done so much for the sport in Australia and it's 0:11:21.520 --> 0:11:24.640 something that Brett talks about a lot when he's discussing 0:11:24.679 --> 0:11:27.800 his coaching influences, whether it's to Dad, Lindsay or someone 0:11:27.840 --> 0:11:30.760 like Rick Pattino or his own father or Greg Popovich, 0:11:31.240 --> 0:11:33.719 citing different things he took along the way from each 0:11:33.720 --> 0:11:37.079 of those experiences. How did he originally connect with your 0:11:37.160 --> 0:11:41.839 dad for that very first coaching opportunity with the Melbourne Tigers. Well, 0:11:41.880 --> 0:11:44.319 I think it was just one of those ran situations 0:11:44.400 --> 0:11:47.680 in that he came. He was originally working and I 0:11:47.760 --> 0:11:50.840 believe he was working for eighteen and T selling telephones 0:11:51.400 --> 0:11:55.560 right more telephone services, and then what happened was he 0:11:55.559 --> 0:11:58.640 had this passion for coaching, and he also he's got 0:11:58.640 --> 0:12:03.040 this emphibis soonality and he wanted to travel the world 0:12:03.040 --> 0:12:06.120 and see different places. And he stumbled on a job 0:12:06.360 --> 0:12:08.760 in New Zealand in fact, and New Zealand is a 0:12:08.800 --> 0:12:11.960 different country to Australia, and I wanted to take any 0:12:12.000 --> 0:12:15.560 of the granted here. And he coached in the New 0:12:15.640 --> 0:12:19.560 Zealand League. And the way he described it, he said 0:12:19.600 --> 0:12:22.280 he had no idea what he was doing and he 0:12:22.320 --> 0:12:26.400 was learning on the job and he said, well, all 0:12:26.400 --> 0:12:28.200 he could do is he made him the fittest team 0:12:28.200 --> 0:12:30.600 he's possibly could And I think he looked back on 0:12:30.679 --> 0:12:33.199 that time and said, well it was great for him, 0:12:33.240 --> 0:12:35.199 but perhaps not great for the team that he was coaching. 0:12:35.600 --> 0:12:38.559 But he had that experience there and then was looking 0:12:38.600 --> 0:12:44.200 to continue that journey that he was on. And almost randomly, 0:12:44.280 --> 0:12:48.720 I believe, is that he came to and called basically 0:12:48.800 --> 0:12:52.000 out of the blue, cold Coin was able to get 0:12:52.040 --> 0:12:54.200 onto my dad, and I think he'd made a few 0:12:54.240 --> 0:12:57.720 calls to various peoples. Was really the only one that 0:12:58.160 --> 0:13:01.680 listened to him and was the pack years ago, because 0:13:02.080 --> 0:13:05.679 as you can imagine, he's a lot of ambitious people 0:13:05.800 --> 0:13:08.000 that's coming from the States or various parts of the 0:13:08.000 --> 0:13:10.880 world looking for opportunity in Australia being a great country 0:13:10.880 --> 0:13:14.680 to live that those those types of requests are made 0:13:14.760 --> 0:13:18.199 quite regularly and he was probably one of many, but 0:13:18.360 --> 0:13:23.600 for whatever reason, he and my dad listened to him. 0:13:23.640 --> 0:13:27.200 And I think a little sidebar to that was that 0:13:27.320 --> 0:13:30.559 another player that was from the city of Melbourne. His 0:13:30.640 --> 0:13:34.160 name was David Stiff, and David Stiff was playing for 0:13:34.440 --> 0:13:38.880 Brett's dad in at Boston University, and I think I 0:13:38.920 --> 0:13:41.280 think that that's where the connection and the names that 0:13:41.320 --> 0:13:43.800 were being banned around and being in the NBL, that's 0:13:43.800 --> 0:13:47.640 how it all sort of fell into place for how 0:13:47.679 --> 0:13:51.000 he gained an opportunity. It's really like the farther you 0:13:51.040 --> 0:13:53.720 go on, the bigger the world seems at times, the 0:13:53.800 --> 0:13:56.720 smaller it actually is. It's nuts just how within the 0:13:56.760 --> 0:13:59.640 fraternity there can be all those connections. So you were 0:14:00.000 --> 0:14:02.360 playing for Melbourne for your dad at the time when 0:14:02.360 --> 0:14:05.520 Brett joined the coaching staff, and you mentioned that maybe 0:14:05.600 --> 0:14:09.360 the tasks and responsibilities that Brett had initially were not 0:14:09.440 --> 0:14:12.839 of the very much distinguished variety. Do you remember any 0:14:12.880 --> 0:14:17.200 specific Do you remember any of the specific things that 0:14:17.280 --> 0:14:21.960 he had to do. That's probably the most straw of it. 0:14:22.360 --> 0:14:25.600 But but now spot on and oh absolutely, Then, like 0:14:25.720 --> 0:14:32.160 I said, he's um job description was very much beyond 0:14:32.240 --> 0:14:34.480 just coaching. He was there from a mocking cent. He 0:14:34.560 --> 0:14:36.520 was the greatest solisment I think the club's ever had 0:14:37.560 --> 0:14:41.880 inality taught. I mean he could sell snow to the iskumos. 0:14:41.920 --> 0:14:46.400 I mean he's just got that why about him that 0:14:46.600 --> 0:14:51.640 he's very engaging, really lockable and um, I guess he's 0:14:51.680 --> 0:14:55.400 experiences selling telephones for right and tail telephone services held 0:14:55.440 --> 0:14:58.440 him in good stay in that regard and he um 0:14:58.720 --> 0:15:02.960 he was at but as far um where we practice 0:15:03.000 --> 0:15:06.880 that there was this old Ricky Army warehouse storage facility 0:15:06.920 --> 0:15:10.160 that have been converted into a basketball facility, and that 0:15:10.320 --> 0:15:13.880 there was possible was rats. And I mean before each 0:15:13.880 --> 0:15:16.920 training extension, he literally had to go mop the plossom, 0:15:17.320 --> 0:15:20.240 we up and possum threw off the floor, and then 0:15:20.560 --> 0:15:23.480 we would respet the floors and and do all those 0:15:23.520 --> 0:15:26.720 types of things before we before we could even start practice. 0:15:26.760 --> 0:15:29.320 And I think there was charged with a lot of 0:15:29.320 --> 0:15:32.920 those types of tasks. But as a guy who was 0:15:32.960 --> 0:15:36.120 looking for an opportunity. The thing about Bread is that 0:15:36.720 --> 0:15:40.560 he's sort of die and and he's happy to get 0:15:40.600 --> 0:15:44.880 his hands dirty, and it didn't fade him anything interesting 0:15:45.560 --> 0:15:49.280 this experience. He was always extraordinarily grateful for the opportunities 0:15:49.280 --> 0:15:51.640 to his getting and the chance to live in another 0:15:51.680 --> 0:15:55.720 country and learn about the game of basketball and at 0:15:55.720 --> 0:15:58.600 a relatively high level as well. I think that he 0:15:58.680 --> 0:16:01.640 just felt privileged to was happy to do anything. I 0:16:01.720 --> 0:16:04.560 guess you learn a lot about a man's fortitude when 0:16:04.600 --> 0:16:08.240 he has put to the task of cleaning up possum waste, 0:16:08.520 --> 0:16:10.600 that sort of thing just for the sake of a job. 0:16:11.360 --> 0:16:13.400 So for some of us who might not be as 0:16:13.640 --> 0:16:17.280 informed with what your dad was doing at the time 0:16:17.320 --> 0:16:21.720 and some of the basketball philosophies that were a part 0:16:21.720 --> 0:16:24.280 of his coaching style, what were some of the things 0:16:24.320 --> 0:16:27.080 that your dad was all about, And maybe even now 0:16:27.120 --> 0:16:29.720 as you look back and you've seen Brett evolve over 0:16:29.760 --> 0:16:32.480 the course of his coaching career, that you draw some 0:16:32.560 --> 0:16:38.200 parallels between. Well. I think that it was really an 0:16:38.240 --> 0:16:42.200 eye opener for Brett because in our situation, you're dealing 0:16:42.240 --> 0:16:46.040 with guys and the age rains in our team at 0:16:46.040 --> 0:16:48.920 the time, age from say seventeen year olds all the 0:16:48.960 --> 0:16:51.480 way up to thirty four year old, so you had 0:16:51.520 --> 0:16:55.600 this real diversity, and the coaching style of my dad, 0:16:55.640 --> 0:16:58.800 I think was vastly different to that over stereotypically what 0:16:58.840 --> 0:17:02.560 you see in college where it's it's very dictatorial, it's 0:17:02.720 --> 0:17:06.520 very my way on the highway, and the coach really 0:17:06.560 --> 0:17:10.040 had this authoritarian approach on the team, and which is 0:17:10.200 --> 0:17:13.800 understandable when you're talking about kids seventeen to twenty one, 0:17:13.880 --> 0:17:16.240 that type of age age group, you can understand why 0:17:16.560 --> 0:17:19.879 as part of the teaching they were pretty dogmatic in 0:17:19.920 --> 0:17:21.920 the way they go about it. I think it was 0:17:21.960 --> 0:17:24.919 an eye openness for him because the relate the player 0:17:25.080 --> 0:17:29.560 coach relationship was so vastly different. The players being able 0:17:29.600 --> 0:17:33.880 to contribute and have input into assistance in running suggestions 0:17:33.920 --> 0:17:37.399 on how in which the game would be played. And 0:17:37.440 --> 0:17:42.320 I think that my dad had a way of really 0:17:42.359 --> 0:17:44.760 being able to put some rules in place. But I 0:17:44.800 --> 0:17:47.919 guess guided discovery would be the best way that I 0:17:47.960 --> 0:17:50.399 would just describe it. As far as the way in 0:17:50.400 --> 0:17:53.359 which he interacted with the players, he wasn't a yellower 0:17:53.400 --> 0:17:57.240 and a screamer. He wasn't you know. He'd get emotional time, 0:17:57.359 --> 0:18:02.200 but nothing like what hysterio typically see at college, particularly 0:18:02.280 --> 0:18:05.640 for Brad who played for Vic Prittino, who I think 0:18:06.040 --> 0:18:08.560 there's no doubt his coaching genius, but it's fair to 0:18:08.600 --> 0:18:12.320 say that he's pretty animated and h I had a 0:18:12.359 --> 0:18:15.280 way about him that that left you with no uncertain 0:18:15.359 --> 0:18:19.399 terms about his style. So it was, uh, you know, 0:18:19.440 --> 0:18:22.399 it was vastly different. I think that lioss of Os 0:18:22.480 --> 0:18:25.239 and the style of playing. Sure, that was different, but 0:18:25.280 --> 0:18:28.560 that's different everywhere around the world, and you're going to 0:18:28.640 --> 0:18:31.760 pick that up and learn that. But I think that 0:18:31.800 --> 0:18:35.240 the probably the greatest lessons that he learned were beyond 0:18:35.280 --> 0:18:38.640 the exs and ozs, with just the interaction, the divenor 0:18:39.000 --> 0:18:42.879 the relationship building how in which there are other ways 0:18:43.320 --> 0:18:47.760 to get outcomes out of players rather than just demanding, 0:18:48.200 --> 0:18:50.760 being dictatorial and saying, well, this is it. It's black 0:18:50.760 --> 0:18:53.400 and white, there's only one way to do it. So 0:18:53.440 --> 0:18:55.359 I think that that was probably a big part of 0:18:55.400 --> 0:18:59.680 his learning experiences. I think hopefully I'm remembering this correctly. 0:19:00.040 --> 0:19:02.679 At Brett has said from Rick Pettino he learned a 0:19:02.680 --> 0:19:06.120 lot about the importance of fitness and being in the 0:19:06.119 --> 0:19:09.639 best shape of your life, and from Greg Popovich a 0:19:09.680 --> 0:19:12.120 lot about defense and I'm pretty sure he said from 0:19:12.160 --> 0:19:16.199 your dad there were some more offensive schematic influences that 0:19:16.280 --> 0:19:18.280 he took. Is that true? What what was your dad 0:19:18.560 --> 0:19:23.320 doing back then? Yeah, well, we we ran a lot 0:19:23.320 --> 0:19:25.919 of the shuffle it's called and I mean I can 0:19:25.960 --> 0:19:27.560 go into details that I don't want to avoid you 0:19:27.640 --> 0:19:29.520 with what that means. But it's a lot of carting, 0:19:29.680 --> 0:19:32.880 cutting and passing, a lot of cutting and passing and 0:19:33.400 --> 0:19:38.520 perhaps compared to the modern game, significant list action with 0:19:38.720 --> 0:19:41.080 the ball, a lot of action without the ball. It 0:19:41.160 --> 0:19:44.199 had some action with the ball, but there was this 0:19:44.960 --> 0:19:46.720 I think it took him a while to get his 0:19:46.800 --> 0:19:49.840 hit around exactly what was going on, because it's not 0:19:50.119 --> 0:19:54.480 it wasn't necessarily a himple black and white. This is 0:19:54.480 --> 0:19:56.800 how you do things. There was his action with his 0:19:56.920 --> 0:20:01.359 cutting and screening and timing and red reacting within the 0:20:01.520 --> 0:20:07.240 within the confines of a specific structure that it takes 0:20:07.280 --> 0:20:10.720 a lot of time to learn and it's not easy 0:20:10.800 --> 0:20:13.720 to understand. And when you're a coach and you're trying 0:20:13.760 --> 0:20:17.200 to remember there are times when you swit the team 0:20:17.240 --> 0:20:19.399 up either end you'll be going far or no. And 0:20:19.440 --> 0:20:22.040 he'd have one in and a lot of times the 0:20:22.119 --> 0:20:24.920 players that have to help him through. He ever basically understanding, 0:20:25.000 --> 0:20:27.919 but when it got to the certain or third um 0:20:28.160 --> 0:20:30.800 series of the of the actions that we're having, it 0:20:30.960 --> 0:20:34.240 can get a little confusing. So it was um, yeah, 0:20:34.320 --> 0:20:37.120 I think that that he embraced a lot of that 0:20:37.200 --> 0:20:41.119 and it's interesting. I mean watching some of the stuff 0:20:41.160 --> 0:20:44.879 that he's done as a coach now that um, you know, 0:20:45.320 --> 0:20:47.840 it's not necessarily similar to what we do, but there 0:20:47.880 --> 0:20:50.879 are certain actions that are in the game that I 0:20:50.960 --> 0:20:52.720 look at and go on, there's a third option or 0:20:52.800 --> 0:20:56.320 there's a reverse, and he's trying to run this kind 0:20:56.320 --> 0:20:59.000 of similarity to what we were doing back then to 0:20:59.119 --> 0:21:02.040 what he's doing now. It is interesting because there is 0:21:02.040 --> 0:21:05.200 a lot of movement with the Sixers now, even as 0:21:05.240 --> 0:21:08.399 far as the pace when they get into half court sets, 0:21:08.400 --> 0:21:11.399 and most of all, it's just like it seems philosophically 0:21:11.400 --> 0:21:13.000 one of the things that he says all the time 0:21:13.080 --> 0:21:15.280 is that the pass is king, So it sounds like 0:21:15.280 --> 0:21:17.840 maybe that was something that he took from that experience. 0:21:17.960 --> 0:21:21.520 It's interesting, oh, for sure, for sure. And I think 0:21:21.520 --> 0:21:27.400 that it's the game is a lot of people trying 0:21:27.440 --> 0:21:29.600 to repeat what others do and they have success with 0:21:29.800 --> 0:21:32.000 and I think that it does have some trends, and 0:21:32.240 --> 0:21:34.280 I think that fortunately, that is a bit of a 0:21:34.320 --> 0:21:36.640 trend that we're seeing now. You see it with the Spurs, 0:21:36.640 --> 0:21:38.960 you see with some of the Boston action that they do, 0:21:39.880 --> 0:21:43.000 certainly with what Brett's trying to do, where there's a 0:21:43.000 --> 0:21:45.800 bit more passing and cutting and a bit more coordination 0:21:45.880 --> 0:21:48.359 between the guys rather than just saying we'll roll the 0:21:48.440 --> 0:21:50.800 balls out, will get in a rumball and let tell 0:21:50.840 --> 0:21:54.720 and prevail. I think it's a far better game to watch, 0:21:54.840 --> 0:21:58.240 and when the players embrace it, it's a beautiful game 0:21:58.280 --> 0:22:01.320 to be part of. And I think that's what san 0:22:01.359 --> 0:22:05.880 Antonio certainly had a big input on and what they're 0:22:05.960 --> 0:22:09.960 doing over the last eighteen to fifteen years. And of course, 0:22:10.000 --> 0:22:12.399 with Brett being a part of that program for so long, 0:22:12.840 --> 0:22:16.040 I'm sure that he's taken inspiration for some of the 0:22:16.080 --> 0:22:19.280 things that were happening there as well. So I think 0:22:19.320 --> 0:22:22.240 we were fortunate into the game that that that's happening, 0:22:22.280 --> 0:22:25.680 because the other stuff can get a little stale. Let's 0:22:25.680 --> 0:22:27.560 talk about you and Brett for a moment. You guys 0:22:27.560 --> 0:22:30.560 aren't too far apart in terms of age, did you guys? 0:22:30.560 --> 0:22:33.640 Because of that become close when he was an assistant. 0:22:33.720 --> 0:22:38.120 You were still playing for Melbourne at the time. Yeah. Absolutely. 0:22:38.200 --> 0:22:42.159 You know, we still communicate when he comes back to 0:22:42.200 --> 0:22:45.720 Australia in the offseason. We always catch up and he 0:22:45.760 --> 0:22:49.280 comes to visit visit my dad and we try and 0:22:49.320 --> 0:22:51.159 catch up. When I was over there at the Summer 0:22:51.200 --> 0:22:52.920 League looking at some players, I got to spend a 0:22:52.960 --> 0:22:55.679 little bit of time with him there. We we we 0:22:55.760 --> 0:22:59.920 communicate via text and still keeps some some contact there. 0:23:00.040 --> 0:23:04.480 And yeah, he's a good friend. I know him well. 0:23:04.520 --> 0:23:08.200 I know his family and he is a terrific lady 0:23:08.280 --> 0:23:10.360 and he's done a great job with his family. So 0:23:10.960 --> 0:23:14.199 it's um, it's one that that my dad. When my 0:23:14.280 --> 0:23:17.320 dad got inducted into the Name Smith Hall of Fame, 0:23:17.560 --> 0:23:20.280