Hour 1: Pablo Mastroeni talks RSL | David Locke on Utah Jazz & NBA Playoffs | Alex Jensen Looks t…
Good morning DJ and PK. It’s 975 the zone. Welcome in on a Monday morning. What a weekend of sports. What a Sunday of sports. The Winnipeg Jets with the best record in the NHL in a game seven down three to one with two minutes to go. They score with a minute 56 seconds left. They score with three seconds left to tie it. And then they score in double overtime to win four to three. Epic comeback from Winnipeg to get to the second round. They knock out St. Louis. It was redhot coming out at the end of the season to get the eighth spot. Had the long win streak, but they fall in game seven and they fall late in the second overtime. So, that was something. Houston wins game seven or excuse me, uh, Golden State goes to Houston and wins game seven. The Warriors knock out the Rockets. Steph Curry was great late. 14 of his 22 points in the fourth quarter. But man, Buddy Heels shooting. Holy cow. Nine of 11 from three. Shot 80% from the floor, 12 of 15, 33 points, and the Rockets only 89. Jaylen Green, as he went, so went the series. He had four games where he didn’t get to double figures, and they lost all four games. He had three games where he got to double figures. Uh, and granted, two of them were low double figures and then he had a 38-point game, but they won those three games. That was uh that’s a tough one for Houston right there. Warriors are on to the second round to play play Minnesota and Minnesota’s favor to win the series or early the early report from oddsmakers. So, lots of stuff going on. Uh, game one, Donovan Mitchell and the Cavs lose at home to the Pacers. So, there’s that, too. Just a ton of sports this weekend. So much going on. Also happening this weekend, Rails Salt Lake beaten in Vancouver 2 to1. They uh get a Diego Luna penalty late in stoppage time. They were never really going to win that thing. So Vancouver, the best team in the West, wins again. And Ral Salt Lake, who lost three of their four top attacking players, the return Diego Luna, and none of the replacements is is good enough. None of them certainly are as good as the three players they replaced. And it just continues to show. Now, I think the sale, you look at the moves they made, they were all basically lowbudget moves. Some of them may have been smart. Willie Aata after the sale, before the deadline, but they only had a couple days. So, I think they’re going to limp along here, try to stay afloat, and we’ll see what they can do in the summer window. But, this team is uh is lacking in firepower. And they can win, and they have one, but it’s um they got to play really well. There isn’t much room for error. It’s a uh it’s a very narrow narrow window narrow small target they’re shooting at. Uh here’s Pablo Masti after the loss in Vancouver. Just asking about that number nine spot with Agata and uh P kind of swatchman that at half. Yeah. Um you know I think again uh you know I think Ari put in a a good shift. You know we’re still not you know finishing chances in front of goal. um trying to integrate Willie as as quickly as possible. You know, I think he’s um you know, we we he’s been he’s been just trying to find his fitness. Um and so that that’s really the thought is just again a little bit more experience up front. Um hold up play. Um so so that was really the decision, but you know, I thought Ari did a decent job in the first half. Um but but again I think um you know the the idea is to get Willie up to speed as quickly as possible um so that he’s uh in position to start start a game hopefully next week. You’re a little stretched at that right back spot at the moment. Uh what did you think of Justin at that position and the adjustments you guys made uh with being stretched with Vera out as well? Yeah. Um yeah, it’s been we’ve we’ve had a problem in our back line. um a couple injuries obviously Vera um you know Kobe uh Bod being uh red carded from from this game and and so you know I thought um you know I thought Justin did a good job a bit unfortunate on the uh the the the goal you know again the one v one again this team the one thing about this team that makes them who they are is that every every attacking player um they have um is robust physically very good one v one technically sound and and so they’re very hard to defend right and and so um you know I think you know that’s obviously not Justin’s uh preferred position but but I think again um I thought we we we came in half and in a good way and then obviously Phil goes down and and um you know we have to we have to make a sub and at that point you know Noel’s been training really well in that position I thought he did I thought he did a good job. Um, but you know, I think when you’re thin across the back, you got to start, you know, uh, playing the players obviously that you have. Um, and again, I think the the guys did a really good job. Um, this is this they’re the best team in the league for a reason. Um, coming to their place, playing on turf was never going to be easy, but I thought the guys, the whole group really was put forth a committed, spirited performance. Um I think the uh PK that was uh called back via VAR um happened at it was a game state uh you know you know that game goes to 1-1 the whole the whole the whole game changes um so I think that was a bit unfortunate but again for the guys to stay in there at two in injury time to keep going um that’s what I like and I think when you play against top teams the margins are really really thin And I think on both goals we conceded. There were different decisions that we can that we could have made that led to those moments. Um and and and those are the again those are the areas that we got to get better at and and understanding are we in a compromised shape situation here? Um do do we try to play out of it or do we just move clear our lines? And so the game was was was was lost on on razor thin margins. But I I thought we created enough quality chances to to win the game. Uh just didn’t execute inside the box. Um but but again, I’m really proud of the way the guys put uh the effort that guys put forth, the commitment they put forth. Um and there was some really good good football in between all of that. You mentioned the PK that was called back. Go uh cut in nicely on that. Nearly won the PK. What are you seeing from him? Back-to-back starts. Um, it seems like he’s been a real bright spot in that offense, but not quite able to break through yet. Yeah. No, again, I think Goza is doing all the right things. You know, I think his again, you know, I think having speed on the field gives us a little bit makes us a little bit more dynamic in the attack. I think he stretched their backline well. his 1 v ones going at the defender created uh quite a few good crossing opportunities, especially the one where he played it back post to Alex in the first half was really good. You know, the uh the run that he went on to get the PK, I mean, that’s just that’s that’s that’s top stuff uh from that position. So, you know, I think he’s he’s he’s breaking in the team at a moment where he’s he’s he’s playing with confidence. Um, and and also the the defending that he does on that side is is relentless, you know, and I think that’s really a superpower of his. Um, you know, so I I think he’s he’s he’s he’s right on the cusp of breaking through and and scoring a goal or or setting one up. He’s putting himself in great positions. He’s doing all the right things. Um, but just really proud of of the way he’s he’s come into the team. You know, having been with us in preseason for the last three years, like you never know when the moment’s going to be and he’s really taken advantage of his opportunities and and played really well. Got two of three done on the road, Dallas up next. What do you focus on going into that game? Yeah, again, I think we just focus on on the little things. We’ll go back and review the tape. And like I said, the two goals that we conceded were uh the start of both of those plays were were were were moments where they seem um toothless and then we end up picking the ball out of our net. So it’s really about again with this group is understanding that every re every moment’s important and and when you and in a visual for I think all of us to understand that that we’re engaged in the moment is when you have really good communication whether it’s it’s it’s pointing whether it’s whether it’s talking whether it’s the body shape like every play is and and it’s really when when you concede is when is when you put your guard down you know and so I think we’ll continue to do that. I I think we’re get, you know, we’re we’re creating some really good chances. It’s not always easy on the road. Um but but I think tonight we did a good job of being dangerous. You know, one was one hit off of uh I think Diego Luna in the first half and then you have Alex’s chance in the in late in the half. Uh second half we had a couple good half chances, a PK that was overturned. Um so again, we’re doing enough to to to find the back of the net. It’s just the the the conceding part um is an area that we got to continue to improve. Um so I I would say this week we’re going to focus on ourselves. Obviously look at our opponents, but but really think about um how we can use this game as a springboard to really attack the next game with better understanding um in those moments that that decide games. There’s real Salt Lake head coach Pablo Mastani. Hey, a reminder, get mom the best Mother’s Day gift ever. A mink couture blanket. Save 50% using promo code zone 50 in stores and online at mikotur.com. The best Mother’s Day gift ever. We’re going to take a break. When we come back, David Lock talking hoops. After that, Alex Jensen, the new youth coach. Stay with us. Good morning. DJ and PK proudly presented by our title sponsor, Black Desert Resort, Utah’s premier golf resort. David Lock joined us late in Friday’s show to talk NBA hoops and Utah Jazz. Here’s David Lockach with PK and I. I understand you’re already trying to figure out the draft. If the Jazz get number one, we know what they’re going to do. I think if they get number two, we know what they’re going to do, but I can’t say it 100% cuz Danny A can be unpredictable. Maybe he doesn’t love Harper as much as everybody else seems to love Harper. Have you got that figured out? I don’t have that figured out, but the I’m just going to start watching players, but I did put the top 30 players into kind of my numbers system and analyze them this week. Um, Dylan Harper, I’d be really surprised if anyone passes on him at two, at least numerically. He checks every box, as does Cooper Flag, and then after that, the rest of them don’t check them quite as much. The one thing I would say about this draft class as a whole is in contrast to last year where boy, there were just red flags everywhere, guys wouldn’t touch and problems. I mean, even rookie deer Stephan Castle I still am super concerned with as an NBA player because he his shooting numbers coming into the draft were just terrible and his shooting numbers this year were just terrible. And Ron Holland who was a top 10 pick had just awful awful shooting numbers and he had awful shooting numbers as a rookie. There aren’t that many guys this year that really red flag numerically. That’s really noticeably different. There are about five or six guys who jump off and some of them are because they’re older and their numbers are really good largely because they’re 21 22 playing 18 year olds. Then some others who just, you know, they pop. Cooper and Dylan Harper, Trey Johnson out of Texas pop. Um, and so I think that uh it just seems like it’s a much more like solid class. I’m not sure it’s exceptional. Definitely people feel there’s a massive drop after two and are not as clear on Ace Bailey, but Ace Baileyy’s 610 and can shoot it a little bit and play a little isolation. So, I’m not sure we should be that down on him. Uh, but overall the class what jumped out to me doing the research was, wow, you know, a lot of guys were just fine. Not guys like last year where it just was like, oh man, he’s brutal, he’s brutal, he’s brutal. And that’s what you saw in last year’s draft where there were a lot of questionable and I think still questionable players to where what Collier and Philipski were able to do was so impressive though obviously both have a long way to go still. What’d you come up with Jagor Denim out of BYU. So he’s got some really good uh isolation numbers. He was actually pretty good in transition. Unfortunately his shooting is on the wrong side of history. There has never been in my seven years of research a player with as bad a shooting numbers as he had in college European or GLeague that have ever become average NBA shooters. There’s 18 players, I believe, who’ve had shooting numbers in his range uh over the years. None of them have ever become 36% three-point shooters in the NBA. Let’s get to the NBA playoffs. Uh you are legendary for saying yelling indeed that you hate the freaking Lakers. How happy were you to see you go out in five? How quickly can they fix that? And do they fix it for the long run? And I asked that because the Jazz have the Lakers top pick in 2027 top four protected. So what kind of team they build out here even if LeBron only does one more year and is gone. What time what kind of team are they building around Luca and Luca’s conditioning and all the storylines we’ve heard with them going out in five? Yeah, I mean stunner though I have been really high on Minnesota all year long and have said that all year long I thought Minnesota was the second best team in the west. So the actual if I had picked that series I would have picked Minnesota I think there’s a massive transformation going on in how you build rosters in the NBA and Minnesota has done it correctly. Um, we can get more into that if you want to, but specifically to your question, so surprised to see them go out in five, right? Luca and LeBron going out in five is is certainly surprising. Um, and their just inability to have any offense in the final eight minutes of the game was really stunning. I mean, that was pretty awful. Uh, no attacking at the rim, nothing getting downhill at all offensively. I don’t know if it was fatigue because JJ put them out there for so long or they just didn’t have an offensive system or they just were so or Rudy’s presence so Rudy didn’t even finish one of those seven minutes one of those games. Um or if it was just that they’re so predicated on isolation and Luca did look like he was a step off. He just wasn’t getting shots off where he usually would. Uh but that was the stunner to me. How they rebuilt that I think is going to be interesting. I they’ve got to get a complete roster. Frankly, they just like Jackson Hayes has been there’s a little bit of Laker exceptionalism when they build these teams that I think is absurd where players that were not good in other places they sign and are of course they’re going to be good the minute you put on a Laker uniform. But Jackson Hayes hasn’t been good anywhere. Alex Lenn hasn’t been good anywhere. There were a bunch of guys on that roster that, you know, Dorian Finny Smith had really slid in Dallas in Brooklyn and then they, you know, they just decided, well, if we put him on our roster, it’ll be fine. That they need to stop doing. I think this postseason has really been a breakout and we’ve seen the impending stardom that is awaiting Evan Mobley. Wouldn’t you agree? Uh, let me watch him play a real team. I’m just kidding. You cracked on him last week for being defensive. I think he’s really really good. I think this is I think he’s really really good. I think this next series will be really, you know, these next two series will be interesting because he’s the key to that whole thing. I just don’t think he’s defense play of the year. I think that was a joke. Um, everyone’s just bored of Rudy, but you know, um, but I think, you know, Miami was 10th in the East and about and had a what 13game losing streak there in March. I don’t think they were. I don’t think that was much of a like they they played the role of the Washington Generals beautifully. Have you seen and maybe you just can’t in the first round because they’re so overmatched, but have you seen anything out of Oklahoma City or Cleveland? I mean, we’ve seen Boston do it. So whether they do or they don’t, we know they can because they have, but we haven’t seen that out of the Cavs and Thunder yet. What do you and the first round they’re one seeds they got what they got what they earned which was an easier opening matchup 100%. So, there were two questions I had, one on each. Shay’s isolation in the NBA in the regular season’s amazing. If somebody sees Shay, you know, 30 isolations a night. So, by game three of the series, you’re at the 70th time he’s I isoed, does it somehow lose its efficiency? He was not quite as efficient in that that series as he has been. So, I would say that maybe I did see that. Like I think that’s was a little bit of a concern for Oklahoma City, but let’s be perfectly honest. I’m hoping every second of my breathing life that something goes wrong for Oklahoma City. So I might be biased while watching that. I thought the other thing on Cleveland I was really interested in watching was their ball movement and their pace has been incredible this year. They’re the fastest team into their first action. They’re the quickest team in ending possessions offensively and I was interested to see whether they could maintain that or whether they got bogged down and then maybe specifically Donovan who has been so unselfish all year whether he reverted. They didn’t at all. They look great. M Miami is a top 10 defense during the regular season. They got into their stuff quickly. They had Miami on their heels just like they had everybody all regular season. They got quicker and faster as the series went on. So, that was very impressive. Miami is not a good basketball team and not a playoff caliber basketball team, but that was very impressive. Um, Memphis is much better than Miami, so I’m not sure it’s a fair comparison between the two. But, I would say there’s still a little concern on Oklahoma City in what happens to them offensively when Shay’s isolation slows down. Cleveland showed me everything you’d want to see out of a champion. Isn’t Oklahoma City winning good for the league? You’ve stunned him into silence. Did he drop it? I can be I can be petty and vindictive. Okay, you can be petty and vindictive, but we don’t want big market, warm weather, glamour locations winning all the time. And Oklahoma City is none of those things. as you have made perfectly clear on multiple visits and they’ve largely not completely but largely done this through the draft and then you know smart trade as well all stuff that can be duplicated in Utah or Detroit or Indiana or wherever else. Well, I mean, I think what’s ironic here is all season long the number one conversation in our towns about how awful tanking is and the league’s got to get rid of tanking and tanking is the worst thing you can ever do and it ruins the integrity of the game and it’s bad for chemistry and it’s bad for all right I’ve heard it all year long. Detroit four years added veterans should have advanced to the second round. Houston did it for three years added some veterans afterwards may advance to the second round. Oklahoma City, 2 and 1/2 years, added some veterans, number one seed. Cleveland, three years, added some veterans, number one seed. So, seven of the 16 playoff teams did go through two, three year, four years of tanking and are all now in a way better shape. So, if it’s good for the league, then tanking’s good for the league. Well, stunned in the silence. the I’m petting the It’s the way to go. What else are you going to do? How else you going to do it? You have no other choice. The system forces you to do it. No, right. No, there’s no other choice. Free agency’s dead. And so really what’s going on in the league now, which makes sense, is the two ways you’re acquiring talent is draft picks. There’s really two ways you acquire talent. Draft picks and trading your draft picks. That’s literally what it is now. And if you actually go to the website Tankathon, it’s pretty fascinating because they actually have who owns the pick and then the lo they have who’s in the draft order and then they have the logo next to everybody who actually owns the pick. And if you look, it’s something like the top 12 teams in the draft. 11 of the 12 all owned their own pick. And then starting at 13, I think there’s only three teams between 13 and 30 that own their own pick anymore. You’re right. So if you’re trying to win, you trade your picks to get talent. And if you’re not in that stage, you’re acquiring other people’s picks. And that’s actually all the transactions there are in the league right now. And I noticed that the second round picks, which they have some value, but I don’t think they even have the value they used to have, most of those picks have been moved. So, yeah. Right. If you’re if you’re heading for the lottery, you hold on to your pick and otherwise you’re moving it. Right. And so, if you know you’re in that stage, you exaggerate it. Well, should we trade for Damian Lillard? No. I say yes. Why? Because Milwaukee is desperate. You try to take his contract for the next two years while we’re still in developmental stage. depending who you send with it, you get two or three first round draft picks out of taking his contract to keep Milwaukee alive because they have no other play they can make other than to trade Lillard who’s not going to play next year and who is maybe not going to play the year after. You take his 50 million each year, it doesn’t impact us because we’re still in developmental stage and you go garner two or three first round picks out of the deal. Are you sending them players back in this deal? Well, you have to you have to send them $50 million worth of players. So, it depends on what players you send probably how many picks you’re asking for. Okay. All right. Well, we will ponder that and we will think about that over the next week and we will talk to you again next week. David, you know, you guys are the best. I’m going to take pictures next to your statues to the legends in the business. I wonder if people will ask me if I know you. No. Do you know David James? I think once you hang up this phone, you have talked about us for the last time until you pick up the phone to talk to us in another week. Uh, probably not true, but you know, you’re the best. All right, there’s David Lock. We’re going to take a break. When we come back, Alex Jensen is talking Utah basketball. A reminder, don’t miss your chance to win big every week on the zone. This week on Win Ticket Wednesday, you can win tickets to Eric Church and Free the Machine Tour October 23rd at the Delta Center. Find your tickets on Sege Geeks starting on Friday, May 9th at 10:00 with special pre-sale starting on Tuesday. Listen to the zone all day Wednesday for your chance to win. Alex Jensen next. Stay with us. DJPK, it’s 975 The Zone. And we are joined once again by Alex Jensen. Alex, good morning. Who says you can’t go home again? Look at you. Yeah. No, it’s it’s it’s happened twice now. I just was saying I I I uh didn’t think I’d ever come back and then Ty Corbin called me and I came back for 10 years and then I left and then came back. Can’t get away. Did you think you were coming back the second time? is I got to say I always thought somehow you would end up there. I don’t know if you remember this. You but your last game with the Jazz when we knew you were leaving I loitered out there to get you but you doubled down or there was something there some story I got about pregame meeting and changes and tell DJ say hi but I just can’t make it out and I thought even then I thought somehow some way he’s going to end up back here. You know what the funny thing is? I did come out later and you were gone much later. Much later. Sorry. But but yes, I do remember. But no, I I never uh I never really thought I would, you know, like it was uh you know, I played there. I had a lot of good years playing here and and uh anyway, like I serious I thought more than once that I wasn’t I wouldn’t come back to Utah, but it’s it’s a it’s a good thing. Yeah, it sure is. Yeah, I would agree with that. that you know when the job came open I had heard immediately that you were the favorite and it was be a matter of if you wanted the job and then we’ve all been around a long time and we know a lot of the same people and I talked to those people not all of them obviously but several of them that said you talked to them about the job and Chris Hill was on our air the other day and he acknowledged that you talked to him so the point I’m making is that you just didn’t say oh yeah sure this will be on you apparently did a lot of research and talked to a lot of different people to make sure that it was the best position for you and the right move to take this job. So what all did you look at in terms of why you should take it? Ultimately you did and you had to have your reasons. Yeah. you know, you when I when I uh started to think about it seriously, I knew I knew that if I that if I was going to come like like I wasn’t going to come thinking I was going to go somewhere else. So like yeah, I I talked to I probably overdid it. I talked to a lot of people cuz I wanted to make sure uh you know that it was something that that that me and my family were committed to and I felt that way. And you know that’s the I think in a world of in coaching where I think a lot of coaches are they kind of spend a lot of time thinking about their next job instead of doing their current job you know and that’s you know I’ve never tried to do that. I’ve never like searched for jobs and I’ve been fortunate enough that they they’ve come to me but yeah I just wanted to be sure because if I did it I it wasn’t going to be a a launching pad to anything else. it was going to be where I was going to, you know, hopefully be for a long time. I think that’s, you know, Chris Chris, you know, Chris knew it. Chris had been here for a long time. There’s a lot of, you know, I talked to teammates and yeah, you know, a lot of people. You did your homework for sure. So, I talked I talked to one of your teammates, somebody I I talked to, you know, occasionally. It’s not like I hadn’t talked to him since they played or anything. And there had been a lot of frustration around the program. There had been a lot of frustration, fairly or unfairly, with Mark Harlon. And I’d heard it. I’d heard it firsthand. And so subsequently when the job comes open, this ex- teammate of yours is saying, “I want Alex. All of my ex- teammates want Alex. There is so much momentum for Alex.” I’m like, “But you bashed the program and Mark to him. What’s he he’s in Texas? He’s busy. And now you’ve got to go.” and he looked at me and he like dropped his head like it’s like you know you catch the you know the dog eating food off the kitchen table right he goes I know we got to we got to clean that up we got to and so you and Mark don’t know each other everybody else knows both of you and you’d had some interaction I guess the last time the job was open but not a lot and I thought Mark was honest if you knew what to listen for in the press conference the day you were introduced he said we had to get to know each other we had to go to breakfast I bet you both had a lot of questions question about each other because of stuff you’ve been told, not because of necessarily your firsthand experience. So, what did you guys have to work out that you took the job? No, you know, 100% because, you know, that’s something that, you know, the head coach and the athletic director, you know, going to work together in a lot of things and and both are going to rely on each other for it to be successful. But, you know, you know, one of the thing it’s funny cuz throughout the process and since I’ve been back like the memories have been coming back to me. I need I need to write them all down because uh but you know you know when one big thing was uh you know President Randall I was on the phone with him and uh and I told them like it reminded me when when coach Majaras took the job and you had Chase Peterson and Chris Hill you there wasn’t as many people but they were uh they were committed to the program and and President Randall like it reminded me of that time when Majaras was here but you know like he’s he’s kind of like similar to the question And I will ask myself like he’s not and I told him that you know in our conversation I said you I just want to be sure because you know like you I don’t imagine you’re planning on you know using this to go somewhere else you know this is your job and you care about the university and like that’s your only only goal. So, you know, and again, yeah, it’s the, you know, the president, the university, the commitment to the the program and and with, like I said with Mark, yeah, like if everybody’s aligned, that’s when it worked. And that’s, you know, one of the things that, you know, I was careful to make sure of and, you know, it’s got to be, you know, a place that, you know, fertile for success. and you the changing landscape with uh the NIL and football and but you know no at the at the end of the day I felt everybody was committed and good and it was a a place that I you know growing up here and playing there I I think I had a good idea of how to be successful and and uh yeah it was it was a whole process and it’s the same thing when I picked my staff members you know you got to be careful and uh pick the right ones because everybody’s got to be on the same page alignment the word I think I keep coming up with the last month or so. Then tell us about this NIL situation. You know, you recruited Fun Majeras at St. Louis and obviously you were a recruitable athlete when you’re coming out of high school. So, you know about how to recruit, but the difference is the money situation now. uh what’s it going to be like for Utah and how do you expect to be able to uh negotiate and maneuver around the world of NIL which is relatively new and certainly brand new to you? You know, it’s interesting because I thought I thought um you know, I think there’ll be a lot more rule changes and I think eventually it’ll get in a better place where there’s more like regulation where the you know, it’s evened out. But um you know in a funny way like at the beginning I thought in some ways it could make it better cuz at the same time I knew at the beginning before I took a job now I’ve learned a lot like it it’s the NIL and the portal is a wild world and I’m still learning but the one thing I I uh felt clear about was at the at the same time like money money’s a big part of it but I still wanted whether it was money or not like I wanted I didn’t want to go chase after guys and be the highest bidder cuz I think that if a kid comes, number one reason being we paid him the most, that doesn’t work out for either side usually. But, you know, like I I figured, you know, we had enough funds to be competitive where we get those kids where um they could see it was someplace they could come and get better and succeed. And, you know, I think it’s it’s worked out to to an extent so far, if that makes sense. Like, I kind of looked at the money is almost kind of like a filter. I think the University of Utah’s in a good place, you know, far from the highest spenders, but at the same time, I think, you know, if we have a good young kid, there’s resources there to keep him instead of losing him to the highest, you know, bitter bidder from a big conference the next year. That makes sense. Yeah. You feel a non-stop series of question about Majaras and the glory days and return to glory. It’s just not, you know, you get that all the time. and and you did an interview uh with Scotty and Hans here and you said something about hey I’m not going to match Majaras, you know, I’m going to accept defeat on that thing, you know, and it’s two words that really probably hit harder than you meant when you said them. Um but I it made me go back and look at what happened every year, you know, and people remember Majera’s final four national title game. That was one year out of 15. You know, there’s two you you know, you probably won’t do that. Maybe you will, but you probably won’t. But you probably also won’t take two or three years off. and Majaras did everything in between with first round exits, second round exits, missing the tournament. To me, the immediate goal is Utah needs to get back to the tournament where they’re in it more often than not. I mean, that’s the first thing. Do you feel like that goal is is reachable and is reachable fairly quickly? Yeah. You know, you know, I probably probably misspoke a little bit there because I I guess in my mind I was think like replicating what Majaras did. The you know, the tournament, you know, they ran into we ran into Kentucky a lot, but you know, I think it was 10 years straight where we won the conference, you know, and conferences have changed and they’re more in the Big 12 is there’s a lot of good teams. But no, no, I think Utah’s I think when I left the university playing, I think we were ninth all-time winningest program. and and the success there’s been success for for decades. So there’s no question I wouldn’t have taken the job if I didn’t think that that we could be successful and win. And you know, it’s funny because I’ve I’ I’ve never played football or been around football, but I’ve been able to listen to a a few like NFL coaches talk and the thing and it kind of reminded me of Majaras because um like Bill Bich came and spoke with us in Dallas and we just gone to the finals and he talked about you know the f you know forget about last year that’s that’s you know this was in the fall so that’s that’s you know uh 4 months ago, you know, forget about the finals this year. That’s so far away. Like, and I think football, it’s just every week you’re grinding. You’re grinding. And Majaras, that’s the one thing that I that I learned from him. Whether it was a preseason game or the final four, he approached it the same. And he didn’t he never talked about, okay, we got to win two of these next three. It was one game at a time, one day at a time, and then all the other stuff takes care of itself, you And obviously you want to play in the tournament, you want to be successful, you want to be competitive, but like like I I really am, you know, against, you know, telling the team or fans like, you know what, that’s our goal to make the tournament. I mean, obviously that is that is a goal, but the goal will be to, you know, fill a roster, get them enrolled in school, and then day by day being good, like not thinking too far in the future that if and that’s uh but you know, it it definitely there’s no reason why we can’t. You have extensive experience in the professional ranks, the minor league. I think you called it the D-League or something. I think it was the D-League when you when you were coaching. It’s a G-League now and obviously many years as an assistant at at the NBA. So, you could speak to what it takes to be an NBA player. How much will you sell that and use that as a recruiting tool? You know, it’s it’s it just naturally comes off like I like that’s um you know, players, recruits will have questions about my style of play and and you know, I’m not necessarily selling the NBA, but like that’s what I’ve done for the last 13 years. like the players I’ve worked with and you know that’s what I you know I talk about it just because it’s natural because you know we’ll recruit a player that reminds me of a of a team I coached at Utah or Dallas or even when I was in Cleveland as a D-League coach and I I think it sells and I think it’s actually uh um uh and again along with the the the staff I think it resonates with kids that um you know because that’s what I’ve done for the last 13 years. done coached summer league done pre-draft workouts and you know I see the mistakes that players make and try to you know they try to showcase their weaknesses that prove their strength instead of showing their strength you know like a for instance like a two guard you know everybody says he’s too small and needs to play point and he’ll make the mistake of trying to prove to everybody’s a point guard and just be a disaster or a you know a big guy everybody will tell him he needs to shoot threes so then he’ll try to prove that in summer league or instead of doing what made him good and got him there. So, I think it resonates and that’s what I’ve done. So, I think I think you know the players that we talked to they they can and the ones that we were have been able to sign can see that and uh you know and I tell him this too. I said I’m not going to have I’m been delivered. I’m not going to have a large staff because nothing you know bothers me more than when you see eight coaches standing up on the bench yelling something out. And uh and I tell them this like the the player development coaches, it’s always been an interesting term to me because I tell them uh I’m a head coach, but I’m a player development coach. Like like if I don’t go in the gym with you and work with you on whatever it might be, like it’s hard for me to coach you in a game or practice. But that was a great lesson I learned in the in the the D-League. I always refer to it as the D-League because that’s what it was when I was there. But, you know, we’d go I’d go pick up guys because they didn’t have cars and we’d go to the gym and shoot and then it was, you know, we’d sweat equity. Then it was easier to coach them during games or practices. There was a recipe for recruits for a long time at the University of Utah, and you were right in the middle of it. There were a lot of really good players from Utah. There were a decent number of uh players from the West Coast and then an occasional foreign player. other people have deviated from that and never been able to recapture the success. I wonder how much you want to go back to that. And I wonder how much you think in this era of constant transfers, maybe you really can’t go back to that and you’re going to have to just recruit nationally and and try to make the culture piece of this work. What do you think? You know, that’s you know, that’s something I’m learning learning more every day because the pool’s huge. You have you have uh you have your portal which is big. you have high school kids and then I think well it’s actually already started but um with the money the European things exploded and uh you know and I think it’s changed a little bit from my day I I still think um Utah’s always had success with the one or two local kids you know and I think that’s uh I think that’s still a big part of what we want to do but um just with the kids that we we’ve signed to this point like like it’s it’s it’s with the NIL, it’s it’s opened it up, you know, cuz the money’s involved and it being staying close to home is not as important, I think, to players. Yeah. But yeah, the pool the pool is huge now and it’s and it’s you got to, you know, hopefully we can pull from all of it because you have to be, you know, the portal is a huge part of it. I think that’s where a lot of teams spend their time. But the high school kid, I think one where um they believe in the development. I think that’s something that could like stabilize your roster and the team so it’s not a changeover every year. And then obviously the European thing. And uh so it’s kind of a balance, but I think I think the type of player that that we’re trying to get is is the same type of player, whether it’s high school, a transfer, or a European kid. You won’t fill it out to the degree that the other guy did. But will you wear a sweater on game day? You know what? I won’t wear a white one. But one of the But one of the best things about co was the change from the suit to the more casual attire. I agree 100%. I never understood the suit makes packing a lot easier. I totally believe that. You don’t have to think Yeah. You don’t have to think if your tie matches or it’s great, right? You know, I guess the good news is they built that uh new practice facility and the new offices because I imagine if you had to walk into the exact same room that Rick was in and sit in the exact same chair behind the same desk. That would really that that might freak you out. That might freak you out. Oh, hey, believe me, the flashbacks have have been coming back. You know what? But but but I’m I’m grateful for the experience I had. Yeah, I I might in fact that they keep coming back to my mind because you know I’ve been up around campus but I haven’t spent much this much time but yeah there still there’s still flash flashbacks from the hybrid gym and a lot of memories. But no, the the practice facility is great. The facilities are great. The campus is beautiful and the kids we have that come they can uh they feel it. But the practice facilities is as good as you know a lot of NBA places. Well, Alex, we appreciate the time. We could probably keep you for another hour and a half, two hours, but that doesn’t really work for the radio show and it doesn’t work for you because you got stuff to do. But we appreciate you uh giving up a few minutes because people are very excited to have you back. I seriously have not been texted by a youth fan about you returning since yesterday. It was yesterday. So, there you go. Oh, good. Good. I’ll forward mine to you, but as soon as I hang up, I’ll I’ll probably have a a great story come to mind. There you go. Well, we appreciate the time, Alex, and when the season rolls around, we will talk to you again. Thanks for coming on. All right. Thanks, guys. When we come back, what is trending? The headlines are right around the corner.
Hour one of DJ & PK for May 5, 2025:
• Pablo Mastroeni, Real Salt Lake
• David Locke, SEG Media
• Alex Jensen, Utah Men’s Basketball
