WEBVTT - #thisleague UNCUT: Chris Finch, Timberwolves head coach! 0:00:00.160 --> 0:00:04.360 Welcome to This League Uncut in the rule of twenty 0:00:04.360 --> 0:00:10.160 four hour NBA News. This is you, Chris Haynes. It's time, 0:00:10.760 --> 0:00:18.800 work's time, It's so time. This League Uncut is underway 0:00:19.040 --> 0:00:24.480 in on fire. This should be a good one. 0:00:25.520 --> 0:00:26.120 Everybody. 0:00:26.400 --> 0:00:31.320 Welcome in to a live edition of the This League 0:00:31.520 --> 0:00:32.680 Uncut Podcast. 0:00:33.400 --> 0:00:37.040 I'm Mark Stein on the end of course Turner Sports. 0:00:37.120 --> 0:00:37.879 Chris Haynes. 0:00:38.520 --> 0:00:42.600 We host the This League Uncut Podcast twice. 0:00:42.280 --> 0:00:45.440 A week, but we don't get to do it like 0:00:45.520 --> 0:00:47.519 this too often. 0:00:47.880 --> 0:00:51.440 Live at All Star Weekend here in Indianapolis on the 0:00:51.560 --> 0:00:54.600 NBA Crossover Stage, and we have a guest of honor 0:00:55.800 --> 0:00:59.360 in about seven eight hours. He'll be coaching the Western 0:00:59.400 --> 0:01:02.040 Conference All Stars from the Minnesota Timberwolves. 0:01:02.680 --> 0:01:05.360 Coach Chris Finch. Good morning, sir. 0:01:05.240 --> 0:01:09.000 Good morning, Thanks for having me on Wells Standing Ovation 0:01:09.160 --> 0:01:09.520 right there. 0:01:11.959 --> 0:01:16.080 Minnesota, thirty nine and sixteen, number one seed in the West. 0:01:16.080 --> 0:01:20.039 You were an eighth seed last season. You're coaching the 0:01:20.080 --> 0:01:23.200 Western Conference All Stars. I'm guessing this is just how 0:01:23.240 --> 0:01:25.880 you drew it up back in October when you guys 0:01:25.880 --> 0:01:29.280 were well in training camp and planning this season out. 0:01:29.319 --> 0:01:31.080 Well, not exactly. We thought we'd be a lot better 0:01:31.120 --> 0:01:33.399 than last year. We figured we could really make a 0:01:33.400 --> 0:01:37.720 push to have a home court playoff spot, and you know, 0:01:37.720 --> 0:01:39.040 at the end of the day, hopefully that's where it 0:01:39.080 --> 0:01:43.120 continues to shake out. But we had a really really 0:01:43.120 --> 0:01:45.120 good start of the season. I think we've jumped out 0:01:45.160 --> 0:01:48.760 seventeen and four, played pretty good basketball since then too, 0:01:49.280 --> 0:01:52.040 to keep our nose in front. But the guys have 0:01:52.080 --> 0:01:55.120 been been great. We've been locked in. Defense has been 0:01:55.120 --> 0:01:58.800 the key. They really enjoy playing with each other. We've 0:01:58.840 --> 0:02:01.640 got good depth, great flaxibility, you know, a lot. We 0:02:01.760 --> 0:02:05.640 have been relatively healthy, you know last year we were not. 0:02:06.880 --> 0:02:10.120 So all the things point in the right direction. And 0:02:10.240 --> 0:02:12.400 then most importantly, you know, when you make the type 0:02:12.400 --> 0:02:14.680 of deal we made last year to bring in Rudy, 0:02:14.800 --> 0:02:17.120 like these things just take time. They just do. I mean, 0:02:17.160 --> 0:02:19.480 it's just set it time and again, you know, Lebron 0:02:19.560 --> 0:02:22.840 goes to Miami, takes them a year, you know, to 0:02:22.919 --> 0:02:25.840 figure it out. There's a lot of things that you've 0:02:25.880 --> 0:02:27.640 got to learn about each other, a lot of roles 0:02:27.680 --> 0:02:30.240 have to adjust, and our guys have done that and 0:02:30.280 --> 0:02:33.760 we've seen that kind of coming slowly. And then, like 0:02:33.800 --> 0:02:36.119 anything else, kind of all comes together at one time. 0:02:36.320 --> 0:02:38.560 When and where in your career was the last time 0:02:38.600 --> 0:02:39.920 you coached an All Star game. 0:02:41.840 --> 0:02:43.919 I G League coached the G League All Star team 0:02:43.960 --> 0:02:45.760 my first year. I think they would have been two 0:02:45.760 --> 0:02:50.280 thousand and ten. Maybe it was in Dallas, Remember they 0:02:50.320 --> 0:02:53.840 had the snowstorm. By the way, the G League All 0:02:53.840 --> 0:02:56.000 Star Game might be the best game here all weekend 0:02:56.520 --> 0:02:59.840 because they all play, because they're all being scouted by 0:02:59.880 --> 0:03:02.840 the front offices who were do stop by, and it 0:03:02.960 --> 0:03:06.000 might be the most competitive game of the entire weekend. 0:03:06.320 --> 0:03:09.120 And we only had one day of snow here in Indianapolis, 0:03:09.160 --> 0:03:13.120 but Dallas was NonStop snow and hard, hard for people 0:03:13.120 --> 0:03:13.520 to get to. 0:03:13.760 --> 0:03:16.880 Yeah, I kind of messed up the whole weekend after 0:03:16.919 --> 0:03:18.680 the well I coached in the game, but I don't 0:03:18.720 --> 0:03:20.680 think I left the hotel bar the rest of the weekend. 0:03:20.760 --> 0:03:23.919 So now we're having a good time here in Indianapolis. 0:03:23.919 --> 0:03:27.520 This is not quite the worst All Star weekend for me. 0:03:27.760 --> 0:03:31.520 Was Toronto two thousand. What year was that star sixteen? 0:03:31.560 --> 0:03:34.520 Twenty sixteen? What did the temperature get? 0:03:35.000 --> 0:03:36.400 I don't know what the number was, but it was 0:03:36.480 --> 0:03:37.360 way colder than that. 0:03:37.640 --> 0:03:41.200 Yeah, we didn't step outside, not once. Fitch I have 0:03:41.240 --> 0:03:43.080 to hit you with the hard hitting question right now. 0:03:43.240 --> 0:03:45.880 I just say I was at that All Star Game too, 0:03:46.040 --> 0:03:49.040 worked on behalf the NBA with basketball down borders, and 0:03:49.120 --> 0:03:51.240 I can remember the lake freezing. You could see the 0:03:51.320 --> 0:03:54.440 lake freezing like in one hundred yard segments almost in 0:03:54.480 --> 0:03:55.200 front of our eyes. 0:03:55.360 --> 0:03:57.840 Usually All Star weekend myself, I like to hit up 0:03:57.960 --> 0:04:02.040 all the shoe events, all the parties and what else. 0:04:02.200 --> 0:04:05.040 You know, just all the brunches that's going on. Didn't 0:04:05.120 --> 0:04:07.160 hit not one of them up that that weekend. It 0:04:07.200 --> 0:04:09.320 was that serious offense. You're not getting it out of 0:04:09.320 --> 0:04:14.280 this question, hard hitting question right here. With Lebron James 0:04:14.280 --> 0:04:16.760 not showing up the practice yesterday, are you bringing him 0:04:16.800 --> 0:04:17.559 off the bench tonight? 0:04:18.279 --> 0:04:24.800 Heck? Now, I'm trying to keep my job, So I was. 0:04:24.839 --> 0:04:25.080 I was. 0:04:25.200 --> 0:04:27.839 We were talking a little bit before before we start recording. 0:04:27.880 --> 0:04:30.560 Like I would think for most coaches, like once you 0:04:30.640 --> 0:04:34.440 get that NBA head coaching job that you know on 0:04:34.480 --> 0:04:37.400 the bucket list is to you know, coach an All 0:04:37.400 --> 0:04:39.280 Star Game at one point because that major team is 0:04:39.320 --> 0:04:42.120 having success and has the best record leading up to 0:04:42.160 --> 0:04:45.320 the All Star break. But I would imagine like after 0:04:45.360 --> 0:04:48.240 you get one, as you've seen with the commitments you 0:04:48.600 --> 0:04:52.240 probably have after you get one, you probably want, you know, 0:04:52.279 --> 0:04:54.440 your all star break to yourself after that, Like, what's 0:04:54.520 --> 0:04:55.800 what's been the experience like for you? 0:04:55.880 --> 0:04:59.000 It's been a great experience. I mean it's a lot 0:04:59.040 --> 0:05:02.120 of really kind of cool individual experiences come up and 0:05:02.240 --> 0:05:06.719 just being able to bring you know, friends, family, you know, 0:05:06.760 --> 0:05:09.560 close ones into the event and they all get a 0:05:09.760 --> 0:05:12.520 special experience too. It's and then there's a lot of 0:05:12.520 --> 0:05:15.240 waiting in between, you know, the next, the next things 0:05:15.240 --> 0:05:19.680 that happen. But it it I've enjoyed the downtime. You know, 0:05:19.800 --> 0:05:22.279 I took a nap yesterday. I never do that, sleep 0:05:22.400 --> 0:05:25.200 in for a while today. I never do that. The 0:05:25.240 --> 0:05:27.680 mental break is from the grind of the season is 0:05:27.760 --> 0:05:30.000 just as important as the physical. You know, a lot 0:05:30.000 --> 0:05:32.000 of people would like to get get away, go to 0:05:32.040 --> 0:05:34.560 the beach, wherever they go. You know, I think we 0:05:34.640 --> 0:05:37.040 get in trouble and these if we take these things 0:05:37.040 --> 0:05:39.440 for granted, you know, and I think we get in 0:05:39.480 --> 0:05:42.240 trouble if we you know, if we don't really try 0:05:42.279 --> 0:05:44.599 to enjoy them. So yeah, next year we're assured that 0:05:44.640 --> 0:05:48.120 we can't be here regardless. But you know, as long 0:05:48.120 --> 0:05:50.159 as the great thing about being here is it means 0:05:50.160 --> 0:05:53.080 your team's playing really, really well, and that's the most important. 0:05:54.320 --> 0:05:57.640 You made a bit of a Twitter splash yesterday with 0:05:57.720 --> 0:06:02.400 your reaction to Anthony Edwards leftfty three's. In practice, they 0:06:02.400 --> 0:06:05.280 did not go well in the skills competition. What are 0:06:05.279 --> 0:06:08.440 the chances that you're gonna let him hoist a lefty 0:06:08.440 --> 0:06:09.560 three tonight in this game? 0:06:09.760 --> 0:06:10.960 Can you stop him if. 0:06:10.800 --> 0:06:13.640 He said he's shooting lefty all game. 0:06:14.120 --> 0:06:16.159 Yeah, We're gonna have a conversation about that, I think, 0:06:17.080 --> 0:06:19.800 in the spirit of heightening the competition around the game, 0:06:19.839 --> 0:06:22.280 which I know the league is really pushing everyone to do. 0:06:23.760 --> 0:06:25.919 We we need to get him to shoot right handed. 0:06:25.960 --> 0:06:27.800 But he has a he's a left handed player. He 0:06:27.839 --> 0:06:30.240 likes to attack left handed, he likes to finish left handed. 0:06:31.279 --> 0:06:34.240 He might be and you know, even unbeknownst to him 0:06:34.320 --> 0:06:37.640 left handed, he shoots a pretty well left handed. And 0:06:37.680 --> 0:06:39.640 he's been pushing me to want to shoot one in 0:06:39.720 --> 0:06:43.800 a game, a real game. Yeah, And so I said, okay, 0:06:43.800 --> 0:06:46.320 if you make if you make three out of five, 0:06:46.680 --> 0:06:48.760 you know you can do that. And he made four 0:06:48.800 --> 0:06:51.919 out of five. So, but do you know, Anthony's has 0:06:51.960 --> 0:06:54.240 got got an incredible amount of confidence. Thinks he can 0:06:54.279 --> 0:06:56.000 do whatever he puts his mind to, and most of 0:06:56.000 --> 0:06:56.640 the times he can't. 0:06:57.800 --> 0:07:00.839 Well, when you think about Anthony Edward, we were talking 0:07:00.880 --> 0:07:04.960 about him potential super left handed jump shots. Let's talk 0:07:04.960 --> 0:07:07.520 about the competition level of the All Star Game, Like, 0:07:08.080 --> 0:07:11.680 do you feel as an obligation to get the guys 0:07:11.680 --> 0:07:13.560 to play harder? What has been the message for you 0:07:13.720 --> 0:07:15.080 with the team going into this game. 0:07:15.200 --> 0:07:17.600 Yeah, I do feel an obligation that we put on 0:07:17.640 --> 0:07:22.240 the most the most competitive show we can. I know 0:07:22.320 --> 0:07:26.200 the league is really pushing the players, and uh, you know, 0:07:26.240 --> 0:07:28.920 we had a meeting with the league a week or 0:07:28.920 --> 0:07:30.800 so ago where they went through some of the points 0:07:30.840 --> 0:07:33.520 of emphasis of the weekend, and that was certainly one 0:07:33.640 --> 0:07:35.720 is they kind of bringing the competition back. I think 0:07:35.800 --> 0:07:37.520 one of the reasons they went back to East West 0:07:37.560 --> 0:07:40.880 is to hopefully it would infuse some natural rivalry between 0:07:41.520 --> 0:07:45.600 the game, within the game, between the players. But at 0:07:45.600 --> 0:07:46.640 the end of the day, it's going to come down 0:07:46.680 --> 0:07:49.520 to the players willingness to do it. Traditionally, and when 0:07:49.520 --> 0:07:52.080 we were growing up, you know, these games would kind 0:07:52.080 --> 0:07:56.480 of grow into a competitive, uh you know, competition. The 0:07:56.520 --> 0:07:59.640 fourth quarters would probably be you know, more like a 0:07:59.680 --> 0:08:03.960 regular NBA game. So yeah, I think there's a little 0:08:04.000 --> 0:08:06.200 bit of anxiety about how this is going to go tonight. 0:08:06.240 --> 0:08:08.320 I think if people will be honest with themselves, but 0:08:09.120 --> 0:08:12.160 I'm hopeful that the guys, you know, bring it and compete. 0:08:12.720 --> 0:08:15.920 What realistically, as a coach, can you say to these 0:08:15.960 --> 0:08:21.120 guys in terms of defense, what kind of defensive messaging 0:08:21.160 --> 0:08:23.280 will there be pregame or during a timeout? 0:08:23.360 --> 0:08:25.960 What do you think you can really I. 0:08:25.840 --> 0:08:29.040 Mean, I mean, you just you're gonna you can tell 0:08:29.080 --> 0:08:30.280 them to try to play some defense. 0:08:30.360 --> 0:08:30.480 You know. 0:08:30.640 --> 0:08:33.320 It's I mean, it's we're not going to be scheme based. 0:08:33.520 --> 0:08:35.440 You know, we're not going to be out there with 0:08:35.520 --> 0:08:38.120 any kind of great philosophy. Just comes down to their 0:08:38.240 --> 0:08:41.160 level of individual competitiveness. You know, you don't want it 0:08:41.200 --> 0:08:43.840 to get to the point where it's too cool to 0:08:43.880 --> 0:08:46.679 play defense, you know, where everything's too cool you don't 0:08:46.679 --> 0:08:48.560 want to try. People would feel like it's you know, 0:08:48.559 --> 0:08:53.560 it's not cool to try hard, and I don't think 0:08:53.760 --> 0:08:56.360 that looks good or feels good for anybody. I'm sure 0:08:56.400 --> 0:09:00.319 in the beginning there'll be a lot of like feeling 0:09:00.360 --> 0:09:04.120 it out, and then somebody's gonna have to set the tone, 0:09:04.480 --> 0:09:05.599 you know, So the player are gonna have to go 0:09:05.640 --> 0:09:08.160 out set the tone offensively and defensively, and that'll wake 0:09:08.240 --> 0:09:09.720 up the rest of the troops. 0:09:09.760 --> 0:09:13.520 I'm sure defense has been such a big part of 0:09:13.559 --> 0:09:17.200 your success with the Wolves this season. I'm sure you're 0:09:17.360 --> 0:09:20.080 thrilled to have two of your own players on the 0:09:20.080 --> 0:09:22.800 Western Conference All Stars, but Rudy Gobert is not here. 0:09:22.880 --> 0:09:24.880 I thought Rudy Gobert should have been an All Star. 0:09:25.600 --> 0:09:27.680 How hard do you think he's taking it that he 0:09:28.080 --> 0:09:31.000 did not get selected, because you guys have the number 0:09:31.000 --> 0:09:33.320 one d in the league, top ranked defense, and he's 0:09:33.360 --> 0:09:34.199 obviously a huge part. 0:09:34.320 --> 0:09:39.679 Yeah, we thought he was deserving him an All Star nomination. 0:09:39.800 --> 0:09:43.320 For sure. He was disappointed. We were disappointed for him, 0:09:43.960 --> 0:09:45.800 but in true Rudy style, you know, he's used it 0:09:45.840 --> 0:09:47.760 as great motivation and he's played some of his best 0:09:47.800 --> 0:09:53.160 basketball ever in the last several weeks since being snubbed, 0:09:53.200 --> 0:09:56.360 so to speak. So for us, you know, we're kind 0:09:56.360 --> 0:09:59.000 of happy that he's on a beach somewhere, just. 0:09:58.960 --> 0:10:02.040 Relaxing and seething somewhere, seething and. 0:10:01.960 --> 0:10:05.040 Relaxing, fueling up for what's going to be a heck 0:10:05.080 --> 0:10:07.360 of a stretch run. I know he's got his his 0:10:07.679 --> 0:10:10.240 you know, his site set on bigger and better things 0:10:10.240 --> 0:10:13.199 for him and us, and that's what's most important. 0:10:14.080 --> 0:10:16.679 Coach I've heard in other years prior. I don't know 0:10:16.679 --> 0:10:19.880 if it's happened to you, but I'll ask, But there 0:10:19.880 --> 0:10:23.120 have been times where other coaches where they have their 0:10:23.160 --> 0:10:26.800 players participate in the All Star Games, they'll actually contact 0:10:27.000 --> 0:10:29.200 the coach that's coaching that game and tell them, hey, 0:10:29.520 --> 0:10:33.080 don't play my guy to like leave Malone. Has any 0:10:33.120 --> 0:10:35.920 coaches contacted you about playing time? 0:10:36.160 --> 0:10:38.840 That has not happened, you know, but the players have 0:10:38.920 --> 0:10:41.719 been pretty you know, pretty open and about what they 0:10:41.760 --> 0:10:43.400 want to do. You know, we kind of checked in 0:10:43.440 --> 0:10:45.440 where you know, how you're feeling, you know, what's your 0:10:45.440 --> 0:10:49.000 body like, where you're at, you know, And so they've 0:10:49.000 --> 0:10:51.200 given us a gauge where they think that they'd like 0:10:51.240 --> 0:10:53.120 to play. Who wants to play the most? Oh, no, 0:10:53.160 --> 0:10:56.480 I guess this is these are private conversations. You'll know 0:10:56.559 --> 0:10:59.600 in a few hours. Yeah, you'll know in a few hours. 0:11:00.080 --> 0:11:03.559 If he played Lebron like forty minutes today. How with 0:11:03.760 --> 0:11:04.240 Darth Ham. 0:11:04.760 --> 0:11:07.480 I think I think Lebron's going to tell me, but 0:11:08.240 --> 0:11:10.920 how much you wanted to play? Yeah, probably right there. 0:11:19.080 --> 0:11:23.000 I'd like to go back many, many years because I 0:11:23.080 --> 0:11:27.880 was fortunate to meet you. I think it's almost twenty 0:11:27.920 --> 0:11:31.520 five years ago now. You were coaching the Sheffield Sharks 0:11:31.559 --> 0:11:35.600 in England. After playing for the Sheffield Sharks, Nick Nurse 0:11:35.720 --> 0:11:39.160 was coaching the Manchester Giants. I love to tell people 0:11:39.200 --> 0:11:40.959 that I discovered the both of you, but. 0:11:40.920 --> 0:11:42.520 That's really kind of an exaggeration. 0:11:42.640 --> 0:11:46.000 Our mutual friend Ian Whittle a journalist in England at 0:11:46.000 --> 0:11:48.680 the time. He was really the only journalist in England, 0:11:48.720 --> 0:11:51.719 or pretty much the only journalist who was covering basketball, 0:11:51.720 --> 0:11:54.240 and he introduced me to both you guys now and 0:11:54.280 --> 0:11:56.080 I didn't ask too many questions because I was just 0:11:56.640 --> 0:11:58.640 getting to meet the both of you. But had I 0:11:58.720 --> 0:12:01.160 really put the full court press on you back in 0:12:01.240 --> 0:12:04.760 nineteen ninety nine, what would you have said was your 0:12:05.040 --> 0:12:08.120 vision for your career? What were you hoping to accomplish 0:12:08.120 --> 0:12:08.960 at that point? 0:12:09.320 --> 0:12:12.120 Well, I think you know my I just thought I'd 0:12:12.160 --> 0:12:15.600 come back and be coaching in college, probably in small colleges. 0:12:15.679 --> 0:12:18.600 You know, that's always been my background. We grew up 0:12:18.640 --> 0:12:21.679 in a small college environment. I didn't have a big network, 0:12:21.720 --> 0:12:25.400 certainly in Division one. I didn't have any real network 0:12:25.440 --> 0:12:28.480 into the NBA at that point in time. I mean, 0:12:29.120 --> 0:12:33.319 I was just focused. I was so young then, probably 0:12:33.360 --> 0:12:36.680 around you know, around about thirty the beginning of my career, 0:12:36.920 --> 0:12:40.040 just trying to you know, win the British Basketball League 0:12:40.080 --> 0:12:44.760 every every single season and then go from there. And 0:12:44.960 --> 0:12:49.160 that's really it. I did have a few kind of 0:12:49.200 --> 0:12:51.959 things happened in my career, like things that didn't happen. Actually, 0:12:52.040 --> 0:12:55.360 I had a high school job back in Reading, Pennsylvania. 0:12:55.520 --> 0:12:59.240 Is that I didn't get I was offered the job 0:12:59.280 --> 0:13:00.880 and then the kind of get away from me for 0:13:00.920 --> 0:13:02.839 political reasons at the last moment before I was even 0:13:02.840 --> 0:13:05.000 allowed to start. It's a long story, but it's not important. 0:13:05.040 --> 0:13:11.800 And then I had another really tiny job offer finalists 0:13:11.800 --> 0:13:14.120 for a job a small school in upstate New York, 0:13:15.679 --> 0:13:17.120 and I would have had to take a massive pay 0:13:17.120 --> 0:13:19.560 cut to do it, but I just an effort to 0:13:19.559 --> 0:13:22.360 get home. I just wanted to get home. And neither 0:13:22.400 --> 0:13:24.319 of those things happened for me, And had they happened, 0:13:24.320 --> 0:13:25.640 I wouldn't be sitting here, you know, I would be 0:13:25.640 --> 0:13:29.120 either high school coach teaching in Pennsylvania or I'd be, 0:13:29.400 --> 0:13:32.480 you know, on some small college career path right now 0:13:32.600 --> 0:13:36.680 or whatever. But when those things didn't turn out for me, 0:13:36.840 --> 0:13:39.440 I thought, what am I doing? Like, I'm I'm I'm 0:13:39.440 --> 0:13:40.920 on a good path here in Europe. I need to 0:13:41.040 --> 0:13:44.600 like maximize this opportunity, and I switched gears. I was like, Okay, 0:13:44.600 --> 0:13:46.080 I want to get to I want to get out 0:13:46.080 --> 0:13:47.679 to the bigger and better leagues. And when I went 0:13:47.720 --> 0:13:49.960 to Germany, I want to eventually get to Spain. I 0:13:49.960 --> 0:13:52.400 want to get to these top level countries. So that's 0:13:52.400 --> 0:13:55.200 why I set my sights on and when I did that, 0:13:55.760 --> 0:14:00.000 everything changed for me. Went to Germany but got fine. 0:14:00.679 --> 0:14:03.560 That had to rebuild my career in Belgium, and that 0:14:03.720 --> 0:14:06.600 was actually kind of the blessing in disguise because the 0:14:06.640 --> 0:14:08.280 team there had a lot of money. We were able 0:14:08.320 --> 0:14:10.240 to play in the European leagues. We did well in 0:14:10.280 --> 0:14:13.400 European leagues, and then it started to snowball from there. 0:14:14.080 --> 0:14:17.000 And what do you think got you on the NBA radar? 0:14:17.679 --> 0:14:20.760 Well, I know sam Hinkey got me on the NBA radar. 0:14:22.800 --> 0:14:26.880 They were when they launched their their D League in 0:14:26.960 --> 0:14:30.040 the initiative of Rio Grand they were taking over basketball operations, 0:14:30.120 --> 0:14:36.040 basically implementing the baseball model, and they just wanted somebody 0:14:36.280 --> 0:14:38.480 that had a totally different profile from what they were 0:14:38.480 --> 0:14:41.360 looking for. And unbeknownst to me at the time, they 0:14:41.400 --> 0:14:44.240 wanted somebody who played fast, inefficient basketball, which we were 0:14:44.240 --> 0:14:47.960 doing in Europe, not because we were more smart or 0:14:48.080 --> 0:14:50.080 ahead of the curve, just because these were the types 0:14:50.120 --> 0:14:52.360 of players I could afford, you know, guys who could 0:14:52.400 --> 0:14:55.200 shoot threes, undersized centers that we played fast. You know, 0:14:55.200 --> 0:14:57.720 I couldn't afford to compete in the European leagues against 0:14:58.040 --> 0:15:00.400 these big centers and his more rugged teams because we 0:15:00.400 --> 0:15:03.480 didn't have that type of money. So we built these 0:15:03.520 --> 0:15:06.720 fast teams that shoot shot a lot of threes. And 0:15:07.400 --> 0:15:10.160 they started looking for somebody, and my name kept coming up. 0:15:10.560 --> 0:15:12.960 And Sam Hinkey has a philosophy that he here's something 0:15:13.240 --> 0:15:17.680 from more than one person, he investigates it and whether 0:15:17.680 --> 0:15:20.840 it be a book, a movie, some sort of Ted talk, 0:15:20.920 --> 0:15:24.080 whatever it might be. You know, he's like, Okay, what's 0:15:24.120 --> 0:15:26.600 going on here? So he reached out to me after 0:15:26.680 --> 0:15:30.080 summer league. I was guest coach. Donnie Nelson was kind 0:15:30.160 --> 0:15:31.920 enough with one of a few contacts because he's so 0:15:32.360 --> 0:15:35.280 prevalent in Europe, and his scouting had invited me to 0:15:35.280 --> 0:15:37.400 be a guest coach with the Dallas Mavericks and at 0:15:37.400 --> 0:15:41.320 Summer League that year, Sam reached out and explained what 0:15:41.360 --> 0:15:43.520 they were looking for and asked if I would be interested, 0:15:44.200 --> 0:15:46.960 and I said sure. So that's that's kind of how 0:15:47.000 --> 0:15:52.000 it all happened. And so Sam, Darryl mory Gerson rosis 0:15:52.440 --> 0:15:56.560 you know those that triumpherent was really kind of the 0:15:56.600 --> 0:15:57.840 crew that brought me to the league. 0:15:57.960 --> 0:16:00.280 And now almost twenty years later, you're coaching the West 0:16:00.280 --> 0:16:03.400 All Stars and you're a tipsy and defense first coach. 0:16:03.520 --> 0:16:04.080 What happened to? 0:16:04.800 --> 0:16:07.560 What happened? I've always liked defense, just you know, somehow 0:16:07.600 --> 0:16:10.680 along the way, I got tabbed to being an offensive guy. 0:16:10.760 --> 0:16:12.480 That's what they wanted me to do in Houston. When 0:16:12.480 --> 0:16:14.640 I went there, they said, Okay, we're gonna go to 0:16:14.640 --> 0:16:17.000 the G League. We're gonna tinker around with this stuff, 0:16:17.880 --> 0:16:19.640 and we're gonna see what we can do and how 0:16:19.680 --> 0:16:24.520 far we can push the envelope offensively down there. And 0:16:24.640 --> 0:16:25.880 it was one of the things that kind of like 0:16:26.080 --> 0:16:28.200 gave me pause before I took the job, because I 0:16:28.200 --> 0:16:30.720 thought it was like, it's still gonna be a circus act. 0:16:30.760 --> 0:16:32.120 You know, it's what kind of I want to play 0:16:32.400 --> 0:16:35.400 basketball coach, and I don't want to just do crazy things? 0:16:35.400 --> 0:16:39.240 So now are in yeah, crazy things? I mean, look out, 0:16:39.280 --> 0:16:44.120 the game's revolutionized, and you know everybody kind of plays 0:16:44.120 --> 0:16:46.040 that way. But when we first made it to the league, 0:16:46.040 --> 0:16:50.000 probably only eight ten teams were playing with pace, you know, 0:16:50.160 --> 0:16:53.720 valuing shot selection. And then you know, once Golden State 0:16:53.840 --> 0:16:57.840 kind of hit their stride, everything just exploded from there. 0:16:57.960 --> 0:17:01.080 So You've been around a bunch of head coaches and 0:17:01.400 --> 0:17:04.879 I'm curious your perspective on this. You know, you have 0:17:04.960 --> 0:17:07.080 coaches that are great at x's and o's, You've got 0:17:07.080 --> 0:17:09.680 coaches that are great at communicating. You've got great coaches 0:17:09.680 --> 0:17:13.080 that aren't great at communicating. But when you're coaching the 0:17:13.200 --> 0:17:17.439 NBA level, what is the balance that you think that 0:17:17.520 --> 0:17:20.200 you have to have in order to be successful in 0:17:20.359 --> 0:17:23.960 like commanding the respect of the locker room, not losing guys, 0:17:24.160 --> 0:17:27.320 and being efficient? Like, what are what are the features 0:17:27.359 --> 0:17:27.920 you need to have? 0:17:28.240 --> 0:17:30.320 I would say for me, it's seventy thirty. You have 0:17:30.440 --> 0:17:33.959 the seventy thirty seventy in the man management, you know, 0:17:34.160 --> 0:17:38.280 just the relationship with the players, controlling the environment, managing 0:17:38.280 --> 0:17:42.080 the staff, holding everybody accountable. You know, the x'es and 0:17:42.080 --> 0:17:46.120 o's part is probably thirty percent for me. Staffs are 0:17:46.160 --> 0:17:48.520 so big now that we can have so many guys 0:17:49.960 --> 0:17:52.159 specialized in all the x's and o's. You know, we 0:17:52.200 --> 0:17:54.720 have offensive defensive guys, we have special teams guys, we 0:17:54.760 --> 0:17:57.880 have player development guys. I have a staff broken down 0:17:57.920 --> 0:18:01.919 into transition coach, a pick and roll coach, almost like 0:18:02.000 --> 0:18:05.600 football model, right, And I like that because it gives 0:18:05.640 --> 0:18:11.360 those guys like overview, accountability, ownership over something, empowers them 0:18:11.400 --> 0:18:13.360 in that space. Then it's easy for me to hold 0:18:13.359 --> 0:18:15.960 them accountable. Hey, you're supposed to be in charge of this, 0:18:16.080 --> 0:18:18.960 we're not good enough at that. And then I just 0:18:19.040 --> 0:18:21.920 can kind of like check in with the players and 0:18:22.359 --> 0:18:24.840 make sure that the mood is right and you know, 0:18:25.760 --> 0:18:28.119 manage the roster and deal with the front office and 0:18:28.160 --> 0:18:32.040 all that stuff. And then come meeting time, we sit 0:18:32.119 --> 0:18:34.840 down and we all lay it out on the table, 0:18:34.840 --> 0:18:37.159 and of course it's my job to make the final decisions. 0:18:38.040 --> 0:18:40.920 But I got a great staff. Trust them implicitly, but yeah, 0:18:41.119 --> 0:18:43.600 if they're not really good at the ex'es and o's part, 0:18:43.920 --> 0:18:45.840 I can't be really good at all the other things. 0:18:45.880 --> 0:18:48.600 And these jobs right now are so big. They're way 0:18:48.640 --> 0:18:50.959 more about leadership than they are about basketball. 0:18:51.200 --> 0:18:52.160 Is that something you learn. 0:18:52.600 --> 0:18:56.119 One of my first encounters with Greg Popovich, I was 0:18:56.119 --> 0:18:59.320 coaching one of his young kind of draft picks for 0:18:59.400 --> 0:19:04.440 the national team in Great Britain, Ryan Richards. Yeah, and 0:19:04.720 --> 0:19:07.920 he could. He had come over and had to watch 0:19:08.200 --> 0:19:10.760 a tournament in London. You might have actually been there. 0:19:11.800 --> 0:19:15.240 France was there in Spain. It was twenty eleven, summer 0:19:15.280 --> 0:19:17.520 before the Olympics, and I had a tiny little interaction 0:19:17.560 --> 0:19:19.360 with him talking about Ryan and when we were talking 0:19:19.359 --> 0:19:23.160 about the jobs, and he said that to me, he said, 0:19:23.160 --> 0:19:25.640 the job is way more about leadership than it's about basketball. 0:19:25.640 --> 0:19:29.160 And it always stuck with me and then just being 0:19:29.240 --> 0:19:32.000 on you know, being in it. He's one hundred percent right. 0:19:32.320 --> 0:19:36.159 Wow, I'm glad you brought up the Olympics because just 0:19:36.400 --> 0:19:39.800 what was that like? Obviously you were an American. Nick 0:19:39.880 --> 0:19:41.800 Nurse was on your staff. You guys are Americans, but 0:19:41.840 --> 0:19:44.959 you had been in England for so long to coach 0:19:45.680 --> 0:19:49.919 Great Britain in the Olympics in London, lou All, Dang, 0:19:50.080 --> 0:19:52.040 just what are your thoughts when you just think back 0:19:52.080 --> 0:19:53.600 on that whole experience. 0:19:53.119 --> 0:19:56.120 Well, it's not too dissimilar to this weekend, this experience. 0:19:56.160 --> 0:19:58.159 You know, I've never in my wildest dreams thought it 0:19:58.160 --> 0:20:01.439 would have happen. You know, with our history, Nick and 0:20:01.440 --> 0:20:03.400 I are, our history of the England is a huge 0:20:03.440 --> 0:20:07.840 affinity for basketball there and obviously, you know, our most 0:20:07.920 --> 0:20:12.359 formative years were there. We feel kind of almost like citizens, 0:20:12.560 --> 0:20:15.920