Episode 241
Brothers in Coaching: The Jones Legacy in College Basketball
Hosts Mike Guidone and Chris Caputo lead an insightful discussion with two distinguished Division 1 basketball coaches, James Jones and Joe Jones, who share their experiences and perspectives on the nuances of coaching at a high level. Central to our dialogue is the significant impact of passion in balancing the demands of coaching with personal life commitments. As both coaches reflect on their journeys, they delve into the importance of familial ties, competition, and the evolution of their coaching philosophies over the years. With the NCAA tournament approaching, they offer valuable insights into the strategies that have led to their respective successes this season. This episode serves as an inspiring testament to the dedication and camaraderie inherent in the world of college basketball.
Show Details:
Hosts Mike Guidone and Chris Caputo begin the show within an atmosphere dense with insights and reflections on the intricate tapestry of college basketball, presented by the two eminent coaches, James and Joe Jones. Their narrative embarks on a profound exploration of their roots, revealing the genesis of their passion for the sport, which blossomed in the vibrant playgrounds of Long Island. Their early experiences, intertwined with familial influences, particularly from their father, sculpted their identities not only as players but also as mentors in the realm of collegiate athletics. As the conversation progresses, we delve into the competitive landscape of the Ivy League, where Coach James highlights Yale's impressive undefeated streak, and Coach Joe articulates the challenges and triumphs of cultivating a basketball program at Boston University. The dynamic interplay between their professional journeys and their shared familial bond creates a rich narrative that resonates with the audience, emphasizing their dedication to fostering young talent and building resilient teams. This segment serves as a poignant reminder of the enduring spirit of competition and the importance of maintaining balance in the demanding world of college sports, as both coaches epitomize the delicate equilibrium between personal life and professional commitment, enriching the discourse with a blend of humor and earnestness that captivates listeners.
Takeaways:
- The podcast emphasizes the importance of maintaining a healthy work-life balance for coaches, especially during the demanding college basketball season.
- Both Coach James and Coach Joe Jones discuss their unique journeys into coaching, highlighting family influence and early experiences in sports.
- They explore the challenges of preparing for back-to-back games in the Ivy League, detailing their structured weekly practice schedule.
- The conversation reflects on the evolution of college basketball, particularly how recruitment strategies have changed with the introduction of the transfer portal.
- The hosts and guests discuss the significance of cultivating a supportive athletic environment at their respective universities to enhance team performance.
- The episode concludes with insights on building strong relationships within coaching, emphasizing mutual respect and collaboration among peers.
Transcript
The views expressed in the following program do not necessarily represent those of the staff, management or owners of wgbb.
Speaker B:Live from the WGBB studios in Merritt, New York, this is Sports Talk New York.
Speaker A: FM: Speaker A:We got an hour of college basketball and some other sports as well.
Speaker A:But basically a fantastic program tonight with two local heroes, two local Division 1 coaches, which we'll get to in just a second.
Speaker A:But before we welcome them, Cappy, welcome back to the program.
Speaker A:How's everything?
Speaker A:And interesting stuff going on in the world of sports.
Speaker C:Yeah, nice to be back with you here.
Speaker C:Here we are in mid February tracking some sports, including college basketball, and hopefully we have some fun tonight.
Speaker A:Yeah, absolutely.
Speaker A:You know, this is the time where, you know, interesting things going on with All Star breaks with both the NBA and the NHL.
Speaker A:We'll probably get to that in the second half hour.
Speaker A:We don't want to bore these coaches with that.
Speaker A:But certainly college basketball heating up, St.
Speaker A:John's big win today in the Garden.
Speaker A:But before all that, we're going to welcome in the first of our brothers, Jones, Coach James Jones from Yale University, Division 1 Men's head basketball coach.
Speaker A:Coach Jones, welcome to the program.
Speaker B:Thank you very much, guys.
Speaker B:Great to be on with you.
Speaker B:And I gotta tell you, it's nice to hear that Long island accent.
Speaker B:I haven't heard it in a while.
Speaker A:Really?
Speaker A:You know what, I gotta tell you, Coach, I've been working on getting rid of it, but I'm proud.
Speaker A:I'm proud that you recognize it.
Speaker A:And I guess there is something to be said for keeping it going.
Speaker A:But welcome to the program.
Speaker A:It's always a pleasure to have you.
Speaker A:And, you know, before we.
Speaker A:You are the older brother, am I correct with that?
Speaker B:I'm one year old, yes, sir.
Speaker A:Okay.
Speaker A:So your younger brother is a little bit late getting to the program, so you're going to have to give him some grief when he calls in.
Speaker B:It's interesting.
Speaker B:We talked about it earlier.
Speaker B:I thought he'd beat me to the punch.
Speaker A:Well, hey, listen, it's all good, but seriously, you're in the middle of a great season.
Speaker A:You know, we spoke last year right before the tournament.
Speaker A:Your resume speaks for itself.
Speaker A:But to have you on during this busy time is really, it's our pleasure.
Speaker A:And, you know, again, a Fantastic start for you.
Speaker A:Undefeated in Ivy League play.
Speaker A:You must be feeling pretty good right now.
Speaker B:It's a happy Sunday.
Speaker B:It's a happy Sunday.
Speaker B:That's all I gotta tell you.
Speaker B:It's a happy Sunday.
Speaker C:That's pretty good.
Speaker C:I mean, after watching a close game Friday night with Penn, seeing you guys get a blowout last night was nice to, you know, put you guys in a big lead.
Speaker C:9, 0.
Speaker C:And the next team having three losses.
Speaker C:It's a pretty good cushion, but nothing to sit on, I imagine.
Speaker B:No, of course not.
Speaker B:And like, you know, over the course of a season, you're going to have games that you're going to have to win that with sometimes.
Speaker B:And we're fortunate that we were able to put on Fright Sight.
Speaker A:Well, we're welcomed also by Coach Joe Jones.
Speaker A:God bless you.
Speaker A:In the background.
Speaker A:I know it is cold and flu season, but we, we appreciate you joining us.
Speaker B:Hope all is well.
Speaker B:Coach Jones, everything is great.
Speaker D:Thanks for having me.
Speaker A:Absolutely.
Speaker A:So this is.
Speaker A:We are, you know, we're thrilled to have the both of you on and to say Coach Jones, it's going to be which one, you know, answers or whatever else.
Speaker A:So we're going to be very respectful in saying Coach James and Coach Joe.
Speaker A:So please, you know, I hope that's okay because you certainly both deserve the moniker of coach before your name.
Speaker A:So we're going to say Coach James and Coach Joe.
Speaker A:Coach Joe, head coach, obviously.
Speaker A:Boston University, Division 1.
Speaker A:Another Long island person, the younger brother.
Speaker A:I would say this before we get going.
Speaker A:Chris and I were having a conversation about this.
Speaker A:If both of you guys are sitting at the table and there's one piece of pizza left, who gets it?
Speaker B:The first one who got the quickest hands.
Speaker C:All right, there you go.
Speaker A:Good.
Speaker A:I thought you were going to say the older brother, but that's great.
Speaker A:Yes.
Speaker A:The quickest hands.
Speaker A:I love it.
Speaker C:So, guys, it's great to have you on the show here.
Speaker C:So again, we're talking with brothers James and Joe Jones, both Division 1 basketball coaches, over 700 wins combined.
Speaker C:Can we just kind of go back to how things started?
Speaker C:Can you talk a little bit about how things started here on Long island for the two of you, either as players or developing into coaches?
Speaker C:We'll start with the older one.
Speaker C:James, you're in charge.
Speaker B:Well, you know, growing up on Long island, you know, all we did was play sports.
Speaker B:And, you know, I look at kids nowadays like, you know, they can't play unless they're in a gym somewhere to work out.
Speaker B:And, you know, we played all Summer long, all winter long, all fall and spring long, out on the courts playing pickup basketball, football, baseball.
Speaker B:But you know, we had an older brother that had a love of basketball and our dad played a lot and he always told us these stories about how good he was and how he used to shoot from 25ft.
Speaker B:So Joe and I grew a love for the game.
Speaker B:But what's interesting for me, I think one of the main reasons I'm a coach now as my profession, is because of Joe.
Speaker B:He got into the business a little bit sooner than I did.
Speaker B:He was a high school coach at Commsward for a bit under my man coach Romeo, who got him started.
Speaker B:And I would go down on occasion, I was living in Connecticut, I would go down on occasion and work with him.
Speaker B:What I think with his seventh and eighth grade team or eighth and ninth grade team, you know, I kind of missed and I cut.
Speaker B:Yeah, and I kind of missed it.
Speaker B:And I had an opportunity to go back to my alma.
Speaker B:Alma mater and coach.
Speaker B:So I was the first one in college basketball.
Speaker B:But because of Joe, he helped me remember my love for this game and kind of got me started in it.
Speaker C:And Joe, how about you?
Speaker C:What made you get into this?
Speaker D:Yeah, I was, you know, so, you know, like James said, we were, you know, like most young kids playing outside, you know, just love being outside and competing and playing sports.
Speaker D:You know, I tell my players all the time now.
Speaker D:I wouldn't trade my childhood for anything.
Speaker D:It was so much fun and so innocent.
Speaker D:But you know, I think the thing that happened with me, I went to a place called Kutcher Sports Academy in the Catskill Mountains when I was 17 years old, the summer before my senior year.
Speaker D:And I was a camp counselor.
Speaker D:It was an all sports camp and it was back before AAU was around.
Speaker D:So most of the kids were high school athletes that would come to the camp.
Speaker D:And there were every gymnastics, rowing, basketball, tennis, softball, you name it.
Speaker D:And I was a counselor for kids, 8, 10 year old kids.
Speaker D:And I was a coach for high school kids during the day.
Speaker D:And that's when I, I can remember the first time I've ever organized my first practice.
Speaker D:It was really, really impactful to me.
Speaker D:And right there I knew I kind of wanted, I wanted to stay around the game after I played, but I wasn't sure.
Speaker D:But I think that's when I really got the bug and ended up becoming a guidance counselor and coaching middle school basketball.
Speaker D:And then my love and my passion for the sport just kind of grew from JD got the varsity job and Then James actually started coaching college before I did.
Speaker D:I was coaching high school, he was coaching college.
Speaker D:And I never thought I'd be a college coach.
Speaker D:I thought I'd be a principal one day, maybe even a superintendent of schools.
Speaker D:Never thought that I would go this route, but my love and passion for the game just grew and had an opportunity to meet Jay Wright, work in Villanova camp, and I think that's when my life really changed.
Speaker D:He was the guy that kind of convinced me that I should give this a shot.
Speaker D:So I became his assistant at.
Speaker D:At Hofstra at a pretty young age, and, you know, kind of the rest is history, but without meeting him, and, you know, I don't know if all this happens for me.
Speaker A:So, you know, obviously we have the opportunity for both of you to answer these questions tonight, which Chris and I have been, you know, going over and really thinking about.
Speaker A:Chris and I have coached together on the Division 2 college level.
Speaker A:I'm a high school girls basketball coach here on Long Island.
Speaker A:And what I'm fascinated to ask both of you is that we obviously have a passion for the game.
Speaker A:We're both teachers as well, and I can vouch for the fact that it can be all consuming, even on a high school level or small college.
Speaker A:How do you balance, guys?
Speaker A:The passion that you have, the time and the energy that it takes and still be able to, you know, to really kind of keep your sanity, because it's.
Speaker A:It's.
Speaker A:It's got to be something that you can.
Speaker A:You can develop over the years, but there's no manual to it, and it really is.
Speaker A:You don't stay in the.
Speaker A:In the game as long as both of you have without passion.
Speaker A:And honestly, like a good.
Speaker A:A good role model or playbook.
Speaker A:You mentioned Coach Wright, but I guess we'll start with Coach James.
Speaker A:How do you balance, you know, everything, especially at this time of year?
Speaker B:Well, you know, it's funny.
Speaker B:I don't really see it that way.
Speaker B:I wake up every morning and I love what I do, right?
Speaker B:And like you said, about five years after I got out of college and was really good at doing that, but I was bored of it and wasn't helping anybody but myself.
Speaker B:I got a chance to go back, get a master's degree and coach at Albany at the same time, and I just fell in love with what I do.
Speaker B:So I wake up every morning loving that.
Speaker B:And, you know, I spent this morning watching tape of my upcoming opponents for this weekend.
Speaker B:Two games that Cornell played and two games that Columbia played, and my wife, who has Become a basketball fan.
Speaker B:She wasn't before we met.
Speaker B:She sat on a couch and she watched the games with me.
Speaker B:ESPN is great, so you can re watch games in the past.
Speaker B:And she sat there and watched and we talked through it.
Speaker B:And you know, we just went to a movie together and watched Captain America, the new one.
Speaker B:So there's ways to do everything you want to in your life.
Speaker B:You just got to be able to take your time and understand what's important from time to time.
Speaker B:You got to have date night every now and again or you're going to have a problem at home if there's not a date night.
Speaker B:But there are enough hours in a day to get everything done as long as you take care of your time.
Speaker B:And you know, I've been fortunate to be able to do that.
Speaker B:And when you're winning, it makes life a lot easier.
Speaker B:And like I said, it's another happy Sunday for me.
Speaker A:Nice.
Speaker A:Well, I can tell you from just a personal standpoint, when I've been married over 25 years and known my wife over 30, and when we first met, she thought a 2, 3 zone was something that you went into Home Depot and tried to get.
Speaker A:That was where you would find the gardening products.
Speaker A:But thankfully, I've been very lucky that that she does.
Speaker A:She'll sit with me and has learned a lot.
Speaker A:But yeah, you have to have that balance for sure.
Speaker A:Coach Joe, as you were up in Boston with your club and your program, you have so many other teams, so many other colleges in that area.
Speaker A:Not that you're fighting for recognition, but I'm sure that again, the balance is a constant challenge as well.
Speaker A:And when you're trying to build a program, when you first got there, how did you balance your time and energy from improving the product on the court to even just getting people to come out to the games?
Speaker D:Yeah, I think the first thing is you've got to have a great staff.
Speaker D:I've worked with some terrific assistant coaches that did a marvelous job.
Speaker D:Our administration at Boston University is outstanding.
Speaker D:Drew Marcello, our athletic director, has created an unbelievable culture around our athletics program.
Speaker D:I love the other student athletes.
Speaker D:I think that's the other thing.
Speaker D:We're as a staff in the program, we are invested in going to games of the other student athletes, getting to know them.
Speaker D:We support each other, you know, and I think our, you know, really, our meteor department does a great job of getting things out regarding our team and making sure we're putting people in the stands.
Speaker D:They do a great job of networking with people on campus to get them out to games.
Speaker D:And also in the community bringing young kids in and clubs and YMCAs and middle school teams come to support as well as families.
Speaker D:So it's a real cool environment.
Speaker D:If you come to a game, there are a lot of families that are 10.
Speaker D:There are a lot of BU people that are 10.
Speaker D:Our moms come back.
Speaker D:It's a really cool place.
Speaker D: gym that seats a little under: Speaker D:So it's an old gym, but it's a pretty loud gym when it gets going.
Speaker D:We just built a new locker room, a new state of the art film room.
Speaker D:It's an amazing area.
Speaker D:And so we get a lot of support from our people.
Speaker D:And you know, it's not just me, it's not just on me to make sure that's happening.
Speaker D:And then, you know, I'd like to comment just on the balance.
Speaker D:I think one thing that helps balance it is if you can recruit the right types of kids and their families.
Speaker D:And I think when you have the right types of kids and they come from good families, it makes the job a whole lot easier.
Speaker D:And then you do have more time to spend with your own family.
Speaker D:I think when I've struggled, it's been more dealing with the off the court stuff that happened.
Speaker D:But, you know, knock on wood, you know, we've done a phenomenal job.
Speaker D:We have a terrific, terrific group of young men that play for us.
Speaker D:And you know, when I leave the campus and come home, I'm not worried about what's going on on campus.
Speaker D:Our guys are outstanding student athletes.
Speaker D:Team GPA last semester was a 3.45, which is, which is ridiculous.
Speaker A:Outstanding.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker D:A lot higher than their coaches ever since.
Speaker D:I tell you that.
Speaker C:Well, you're doing a great job.
Speaker C:And I'm sure yesterday, the thrilling double overtime win kind of helps you, especially with that home court and kind of put you in that spot.
Speaker C:And I know for your division, you know, the one thing is that that home court advantage does matter.
Speaker C:So if you, if you play well, you put yourself in a situation where you can play home games.
Speaker C:Can you talk a little bit about kind of what your goal is for the rest of the year?
Speaker C:To put you in that spot?
Speaker D:Yeah, I think what I'm trying to do, I've always tried to do is take the games one game at a time.
Speaker D:I feel like when I have talked about a game being more important because of seeding or my team has never really played as well as you would think, being excited for that.
Speaker D:I think we, we allow that to Overshadow what we need to do.
Speaker D:So really just, you know, one game at a time.
Speaker D:You know, there are times I'm a little mindful of, okay, we need to win this one because it puts us in this place.
Speaker D:But really I'm, you know, I'm so caught up in preparing, trying to have a great.
Speaker D:Preparation, trying to have a great practice.
Speaker D:Yesterday I had no idea if we were home or away and who the opponent was for Wednesday.
Speaker B:Gotcha.
Speaker B:I had no idea.
Speaker D:My players and my staff laughed at me because I thought we were going on the road.
Speaker D:I had no idea who we were even playing.
Speaker D:So, you know, I'm really focused on that and I think for me, that's kind of where I'm hoping my team stays and they don't make one game bigger than the next.
Speaker D:But honestly, they're, you know, when you get down to the last four games of your conference season and home court advantage is important, we've won nine straight at home.
Speaker D:You know, you're hoping that you can get at least one of those playoff games at home.
Speaker D:So without talking about it, I'm hoping that it happens again.
Speaker C:We're talking with James Jones of Yale University and Joe Jones of Boston University, brothers at the Division 1 level.
Speaker A:So, coach James, I wanted to ask you this.
Speaker A:We were going over your schedule before we got on air and in the Ivy League you play a lot of back to backs Fridays and Saturdays.
Speaker A:That's got to present an amazing challenge to try to prepare for two teams in two days and also just how you play your guys and, you know, your rotations and different things.
Speaker A:Can you talk a little bit about that?
Speaker A:How the unique situation that you're in in preparing, you know, two games in two days, pretty much every week?
Speaker B:Well, what's great about it is I'm 60 years old and I've been doing it for 26 straight years.
Speaker A:That's true.
Speaker A:God bless you.
Speaker B:It's old hand for me to do this.
Speaker A:Okay.
Speaker B:It just makes it, it's simple because, you know, I have a way how we prepare.
Speaker B:So the first time that we play our opponents, we'll practice on Monday and we're just going over who we are as Yale.
Speaker B:What, what does Yale need to do to be better?
Speaker B:Whether we need to move the ball more on offense or we need to move have better rotations and tag on defense, whatever it is, we're going to work on that that day.
Speaker B:And then on Tuesday, I'm going to be sneaking in a little bit of our opponents on both opponents that day.
Speaker B:And then on Wednesday, we're going to prepare for Saturday's team, and then on Thursday we're going to prepare for Friday's team.
Speaker B:And then we play that way.
Speaker B:And then we have a walk after.
Speaker B:We hopefully win on Friday, we play on Saturday, we have a walk through and we get more intense on our second opponent.
Speaker B:So it's kind of a way that we've been able to be productive and be quite good at it.
Speaker B:And to be honest with you, I like the way it works because it's kind of a tournament atmosphere that you have every weekend.
Speaker A:Yes.
Speaker B:And if you win, if you win, you can't wait to play again.
Speaker B:And if you lose, you can't wait to play again.
Speaker B:So I like it that way.
Speaker B:It's been broken up a little bit because some of the coaches in the league seem to think it's a little bit harder on the student athlete.
Speaker B:But I like it because it's something that I've done for, you know, like I said, 26 straight years or 24 straight years before it was changed somewhat.
Speaker B:And it's become very easy for me to prepare.
Speaker B:And my staff, I've had.
Speaker B:My staff is tremendous.
Speaker B:Justin Simon played for me here.
Speaker B:Brandon Sherrod played for me.
Speaker B:Justin's been my assistant coach for 15 years.
Speaker B:Mike Kingsley been my coach for 20 years, so.
Speaker B:And Joe was talking about importance of your staff.
Speaker B:And, you know, my life is so much easier because my guys have so much autonomy because they're so good, and I have to keep giving them more and more just to keep them interested in what's going on.
Speaker B:So my life becomes very easy because my assistant coaches do an awful lot and, you know, I get to, you know, be more of a CEO than anything else, just running the program.
Speaker A:Just to follow up quickly on that.
Speaker A:So on Sunday, are you of the mindset that you kind of give your guys just a full day away from the game to get their bodies right and just kind of, you know, maybe concentrate on their studies or are you doing any kind of basketball?
Speaker A:You know, you're sending them film.
Speaker A:What are they doing on a Sunday?
Speaker B:Yeah, you know, the good old NCAA has to give us one day off a week.
Speaker B:And so on Friday, Saturday, we take off Sunday.
Speaker B:I don't really ever see my guys maybe a text going back and forth here and there.
Speaker B:Like Samson Allison, he played through a fever over the weekend, so I text him to find out how he was doing today.
Speaker B:But I hadn't been in contact with anybody else.
Speaker B:But there'll be times when I contact guys to check in on them, see how they're doing.
Speaker B:They'll text me or send me something about, hey coach, what do you think about playing this play or that play?
Speaker B:But you know, they need to be college students.
Speaker B:They need to, you know, rest and study and like on our practice schedule for the year, every time we have a day off I put in the notes, rest and study because that's obviously important for us to do here.
Speaker B:We'll get back at it.
Speaker B:We'll get back at it tomorrow.
Speaker B:And I'm, I'm trying to gauge how much I really want to do given again, we just had games back to back and we're going to have back to back games this next weekend.
Speaker B:We're going to take Tuesday off and then go Wednesday, Thursday, prepare for Friday, Saturday.
Speaker B:So there's just a way of I feel comfortable about doing and preparing my guys to build them for the crescendo that happens over the weekend.
Speaker C:Again, this is Chris Caputo and Mike Cordone talking with James and Joe Jones.
Speaker C: -: Speaker C:If you happen to be from Suffolk county and know these guys and want to give a call in, that would be great.
Speaker C:Pat, one more question for you, James.
Speaker C:And you know we spoke last year in March on selection Sunday about 9:30, you just found out your opponent and you beat the team who is now number one in the nation, Auburn University.
Speaker C:You beat him by two.
Speaker C:And can you talk a little bit about that and kind of how I know everything unfolded crazy, one of the guys had gotten kicked out of the game for Auburn.
Speaker C:But like can you talk about what that game was like for you last year and how you build on that?
Speaker B:Well, okay, this is what I like in playing in the NCAA tournament and winning the game too.
Speaker B:Do you remember when you were five years old and you thought there was a guy in a red suit that would come down and chimney and give you Christmas presents?
Speaker A:I still do remember that.
Speaker B:Remember, remember that innocence and that wonderful feeling that you had?
Speaker C:Sure.
Speaker B:That's what you get for tournament.
Speaker B:And winning is just this wonderful unbelievable feeling that you get once a year.
Speaker B:Like you can only get it once a year.
Speaker B:You can get it there and you get it when you're five years old waiting for your Tonka truck to come to you for Christmas.
Speaker B:So that's the feeling that you had.
Speaker B:And to be able to go out and to beat Baylor where we were huge underdogs now Baylor was probably the number four team in the nation that we beat.
Speaker B:Right.
Speaker B:Probably the number 14 in the nation that we beat.
Speaker B:And it was just a great way of coming together and having an opportunity to be the team that way.
Speaker B:And I was thinking about it beforehand, I wasn't sure what path we would need to take to beat Auburn.
Speaker B:I wasn't sure what path.
Speaker B:And again, the path I was thinking about is not the path we went down, but I'm thankful that we were able to win.
Speaker C:Yeah, very exciting.
Speaker C:And we're hoping that this year you guys are back in the same spot and we can have you Both on for March 16th and, you know, a month from now and kind of do this all again.
Speaker C:It kind of brings me to one other point before we get into.
Speaker C:Back into your relationship together.
Speaker C:You know, I'm watching today, I'm watching Michigan play and, you know, we kind of had texted a little bit, but, you know, one of your players, you know, over seven foot tall, I don't know if we're allowed to use names, but is now playing for Michigan, you know, University of Michigan, and I think it's like a good spot, but how does that make you feel?
Speaker C:I know you guys are nine and, oh, in the league right now, but you kind of have a kid that's playing at another level, and do you feel like you wish you had him there with you or you kind of proud of where the kid is now with two years of eligibility left?
Speaker B:Well, I'll vacillate about having him here with me and then having him playing and wondering where our team would be if he was here or how good we could be if he was here.
Speaker B:I mean, we can't be much better than our league.
Speaker B:We're nine and oh, we can't be better than nine and oh, and then I watch him play and I think he's tremendous.
Speaker B:He's going to get drafted in the first round, and I'm happy for him and his family and, you know, he's a heck of a talent.
Speaker B:And all I can do is, like, I'm a realist and logic dictates what I do.
Speaker B:So spending a lot of time pondering what we would be like if we had Danny does me no good.
Speaker B:So we're pretty good the way we are, and I'm happy for our team and the guys that I have in our program and.
Speaker B:And I'm happy for him.
Speaker B:He's getting an opportunity.
Speaker B:His mother went to Michigan.
Speaker B:That's where he always wanted to go.
Speaker B:So it seems like everybody's happy right now.
Speaker C:Very good.
Speaker C:All right, so you guys faced off when, Joe, you were at Columbia, and James, you were at Yale.
Speaker C:So you guys have had that.
Speaker C:And I know you guys scrimmage in the preseason and you talk and maybe do some stuff, but, you know, what was it like going up against each other?
Speaker C:I'll start with you, Joe.
Speaker C:You know, what was it like at that time?
Speaker C:And again, you're both facing that similar situation of playing on a Friday and a Saturday, so maybe you're preparing for two teams, but going up against your brother's got to be a little bit different.
Speaker C:Yeah.
Speaker D:You know, the first time it occurred, it was a.
Speaker D:It was a major deal.
Speaker D:You know, espn, I mean, New York Times, Sports Illustrated did a story on it.
Speaker D:They actually stayed.
Speaker D:Sports Real Estate stayed with me for two days.
Speaker D:They stayed with James for two days.
Speaker D:It was a three page article in sports.
Speaker D:So it was a big deal when it happened, so it was really exciting.
Speaker D:And then a bunch of our family and friends from our childhood were at the first two games.
Speaker D:So that was a lot of fun.
Speaker D:And then it wasn't so much fun after that.
Speaker D:It was always difficult.
Speaker D:You know, we lost the majority of them, but we were competitive for a bit, but it was always hard when the game was over.
Speaker D:And so, you know, when it got to be like year six, you know, I started to think, man, man, I hope James gets a job, or I hope I get a job so I don't have to do this anymore, you know, and then I was.
Speaker D:Then I left to go to Boston College.
Speaker D:So it worked out.
Speaker D:But, yeah, I thought it was a lot of fun early on, and then until it wasn't, because, you know, James is my.
Speaker D:One of my best, you know, my best friend.
Speaker D:My.
Speaker D:He's my brother.
Speaker D:I love him.
Speaker D:There's no one I have more respect for.
Speaker D:And, you know, and we're both very competitive, so, you know, we.
Speaker D:The cool thing was when it was over, it was over.
Speaker D:And so there was no lingering thoughts of anything other than having compassion if you won and being pissed at your loss.
Speaker D:But it didn't affect our relationship at all.
Speaker D:If anything, it brought us closer together.
Speaker C:And what about for you, James?
Speaker C:What was it like?
Speaker D:Well, I just got to tell you this.
Speaker B:Joe is much more.
Speaker B:He's more like.
Speaker B:Than I am around the world.
Speaker B:Like, everybody likes Joe Jones.
Speaker B:Like, I'll meet somebody that knew Joe from villanova, you know, 25 years ago, and they go, joe Jones.
Speaker B:You know, Joe Jones.
Speaker B:You gotta watch their eyes and see how excited they are just because they know Joe Jones.
Speaker B:And so, you know, Joe's right.
Speaker B:That first game was all the hoopla, the television.
Speaker B:My dad was, like, peacocking all over the place.
Speaker B:My mom was there, our families.
Speaker B:It was great.
Speaker B:And all that kind of stuff.
Speaker B:And again, everything besides the game was wonderful.
Speaker B:The second game that we.
Speaker B:The second game that we played, we played at Columbia.
Speaker B:And Joe's team, he took over a team that wasn't very good.
Speaker B:The place was sold out.
Speaker B:It was the last game of the year.
Speaker B:It was sold out.
Speaker B:And I felt the daggers of all our friends wanting me to lose in my back.
Speaker B:I smoked daggers at the game.
Speaker B:And Joe had a kid on his team, Drovin Kravitz, who made like seven threes in a game.
Speaker B:And they beat us in the final game of the year.
Speaker B:And every time that kid hit a three, Joe would raise his arms and get the crowd pumped up.
Speaker B:And I felt like running down the floor and tackling like we were like kids again.
Speaker B:So there was a lot of wonderful things that go on.
Speaker B:And Joe, like, again, we talk, you know, every day, twice a day, you know, about basketball and our lives.
Speaker B:And he called me up on my way to movies, and we were laughing about another coach earlier today.
Speaker B:So we have this wonderful relationship.
Speaker B:And it.
Speaker B:It got old playing against your brother.
Speaker B:It gets old because wins and losses means your job, your life, your livelihood.
Speaker B:So we didn't want to compete.
Speaker B:And I'm happy that he got out and had a better situation at bu.
Speaker B:In a much better situation at Boston University.
Speaker B:In a much better situation at Boston University now.
Speaker C:So what do you think?
Speaker C:Can we.
Speaker C:Can we put this together?
Speaker C:That it's been a while.
Speaker C:Can we put a non leaguer together next year on a Sunday?
Speaker C:We'll have a show.
Speaker B:No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no.
Speaker B:You sure?
Speaker C:Because when I.
Speaker C:When I asked Joe a couple months ago, he said before he, you know, the two of you no longer are coaching.
Speaker C:Maybe one more time, it would be nice to get together, but maybe you'll have to be in one of those, you know, Bahamas tournaments where you don't play each other in the first round, but you have to play each other in the second round.
Speaker C:Maybe you guys can join the same tournament.
Speaker B:Well, listen, I don't want to put it down on this call.
Speaker B: Our mom died in: Speaker B:That's the only time that I'm playing against my brother, unless we meet the NCAA Tournament.
Speaker B:And that would be wonderful.
Speaker B:I'd be happy to play in this.
Speaker A:Well, hey, no, completely understandable.
Speaker A:And of course, you know, that's a wonderful idea.
Speaker A:And what we love is you're always bringing it back to family.
Speaker A:Obviously, the two of you close, not separated by a lot of years in age.
Speaker A:You are in the same profession at the highest level.
Speaker A:Just amazing stuff.
Speaker A:And fellas, before we let you go, just one last thing to kind of wrap it up as you head towards March and the NCAA Tournament, College Invitational, all the postseason tournaments that there are right now.
Speaker A:I would assume that, of course, the NCAA tournament is kind of the holy grail, but any kind of, you know, postseason tournament at this point is, I imagine, is good for your program.
Speaker A:When you get to that point, when it's, I mean, you're constantly preparing anyway during the week.
Speaker A:But when you get towards that postseason time, do you have a few minutes to even talk to each other?
Speaker A:Just to kind of bounce ideas off.
Speaker B:Each other all the time?
Speaker A:Okay.
Speaker D:Of course we talk.
Speaker D:We talk all the time.
Speaker D:I probably ask him more than he ever asked me.
Speaker D:He's won a lot more than I have.
Speaker D:But I'm always running things by him, asking him, you know, what about this?
Speaker D:What about that?
Speaker D:He watches my team play, I watch his teams play.
Speaker D:That's been very, that's been pretty cool to kind of go through this, you know, this, you know, life with your brother as a, as a coach for this long.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker A:That's got to be, I would think, probably a great thing to have because you, I'm sure you're self scouting, but then you have your brother who can kind of give you, you know, all sorts of ideas and what they see.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:The best, the best thing about it for me is that, you know, I'll go someplace recruiting and may not have talked to Joe that day.
Speaker B:And he's in the gym.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker B:And, you know, and it's just a happenstance.
Speaker B:You get a chance to spend time with your brother and it's great sharing this crazy business of college basketball.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker C:And you guys, you know, you somewhat look alike.
Speaker C:Do you ever get.
Speaker C:Did somebody ever confuse you when you go somewhere?
Speaker B:We look more alike now that we've gotten older, you know, he's gotten better looking.
Speaker C:Yeah.
Speaker A:More handsome.
Speaker B:Joe's always been a better looking brother.
Speaker B:Trust me.
Speaker B:He's always been a better looking brother.
Speaker C:Any situation where maybe a recruit came up to you thinking Boston University was recruiting him and it was really Yale there.
Speaker B:I'm certain we've had some of those opportunities and, like, parents come to our office and it's interesting.
Speaker B:They'll be on the east coast and they'll go visit BU and Yale on the same trip and it kind of freaks them out a little bit.
Speaker B:Everybody thinks we're twins, and for the life of me, I don't see how anybody thinks we're twins.
Speaker C:Well, we appreciate you guys coming on.
Speaker C:It's been fun.
Speaker C:And I know this time of year kind of changes things.
Speaker C:You guys have to, you know, prepare for the next game or the next game.
Speaker C:And, you know, we're really excited for the both of you.
Speaker C:And, you know, we're following the teams and hoping that you guys can pull it off again.
Speaker C:And, you know, if you make it back to the NCAA tournament, you're definitely going to have to come back on and preview with us.
Speaker C:So I really appreciate the time that you guys have given us.
Speaker C:And, you know, you guys are definitely people that, you know, coaches that people should look up to.
Speaker C:You guys have done it the right way and you've been there and stayed at the same place for a long time.
Speaker C:And I think that says wonders.
Speaker C:So we appreciate that.
Speaker B:Thanks for having us guys.
Speaker B:All the best to you guys.
Speaker A:Absolutely.
Speaker A:Same two coaches.
Speaker A:Go get them.
Speaker A:And all the best as we go down the stretch.
Speaker A:That was coach.
Speaker A:Absolutely.
Speaker A:Coach Joe Jones from Boston University, Coach James Jones from Yale University, two Long island guys, two brothers and just wonderful people to have on.
Speaker A:We're going to take a quick break and we'll be Back on in 1 minute at WGBB Sports Talk New York.
Speaker B:You're listening to Sports Talk New York.
Speaker A:Tune in every Sunday night at 8pm.
Speaker B: FM and: Speaker B:You're listening to Sports Talk New York on Long Island's wgb.
Speaker B:And now back to the show.
Speaker A:And welcome back to the second half of Long Island's WGB Sports Talk New York.
Speaker A:Again, this is Mike Goudone joined by my co host, Chris Cappy Caputo.
Speaker A:And Cap, just wonderful job getting Coach Jones and Coach Jones on again.
Speaker A:Very inspiring, you know, for us as basketball coaches and teachers, but also just for anybody who wants to, you know, get into the business from both Long island guys work their way up.
Speaker A:Very intelligent background, both.
Speaker A:I mean, when you're talking Boston University and Yale, I Mean academically, I wish we had another hour.
Speaker A:That's got to be something to try to get guys in who can handle even the course loaded at places like that.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker C:And I think you have to recruit the right athlete.
Speaker C:And you know, I talked to Joe earlier in the year about bu and it's known as like a hockey school, but he's kind of built up the best he can, what he's got there.
Speaker C:Now he hasn't been hit with the transfer portal in the nil as much as now James has at Yale.
Speaker C:I mean they had a seven footer that's now playing for Michigan.
Speaker A:But you notice, I mean, he answered the question perfectly.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker A:Which I didn't feel back to the kid.
Speaker A:Yeah, but that's gotta, I mean not, not that he was not telling the truth, but behind the scenes that's just got to be a killer when you're trying to have the season that you had like, you know, nine, zero right now, people are vultures.
Speaker A:They're coming after his players, I'm sure.
Speaker C:Speaking with him in March, I was like, okay, they're going to go out there and give it their best shot.
Speaker C:And they were down seven at the half and it, you know, made a crazy run in the second half and beat Auburn to make it to the next round.
Speaker C:And you know, he just put a lot of faith into his players and kind of put them in situations where they can feel good.
Speaker C:And now you look at them this year, they've gone out and played tough schedule.
Speaker C:They've gone to Purdue, they've played, you know, teams out in the Midwest, they went all the way out to the West Coast.
Speaker C:They've, they've put themselves in situations where now they've faced some tough teams and at nine and oh, in the league, you know, they're now in a situation where, you know, they're the favorite to win the Ivy League.
Speaker C:And if you win your league, actually the top four teams make the Ivy League playoff and if they win that, then they make the NCAA tournament.
Speaker C:But they've gone out and played some, some tough teams.
Speaker C:They went to Minnesota.
Speaker A:Yeah, we're both looking at the same thing.
Speaker A:Lost to Minnesota by three, lost to Purdue by eight.
Speaker A:I mean that's, that's just wild.
Speaker C:And then they went down to Texas, played a couple of teams down there, you know, and BU has played some, some tough competition too.
Speaker C:And they went out to the west coast and played ucla, you know, came back and played some, some tough games here.
Speaker C:So like they're battle tested, but these guys kind of know what they need to do.
Speaker C:And it was nice to hear, you know, because you and I coach together and, and I think we were both on the same mind frame.
Speaker C:When you get to this time in the year you played everybody one second time through, I think the practices need to get shorter.
Speaker A:Yes.
Speaker C:And you're focusing on certain things.
Speaker C:You got to do situations, you got to make sure people are in the right spots at the right time.
Speaker C:Maybe put a couple of new plays in and then that's it.
Speaker C:You know, practices that might have been two hours and have down to 75 minutes.
Speaker C:Absolutely.
Speaker C:And you're getting them out and they're rested.
Speaker C:What basically they told us is you can't give these kids too much information whether it be about the, the game itself or where they need to be in two weeks in order to make that spot.
Speaker C:I thought that was good.
Speaker A:It was fantastic.
Speaker A:And I can't imagine what it's like preparing for back to back games every week.
Speaker A:I mean that, that's an amazing skill that, that, you know, certainly James Jones has perfected.
Speaker C:Yes.
Speaker C:And that's, that's, it was when he was talking about that's crazy.
Speaker C:It was like, wow, he's right.
Speaker C:He's done this for 25 years.
Speaker C:And so Monday is Yale, Tuesday is their opponent.
Speaker C:Wednesday they talk about the Saturday game, Thursday they talk about the Friday game and you have a walkthrough after the Friday game and boom, there it is.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker A:And I travel too.
Speaker C:Is not easy.
Speaker A:No, no.
Speaker A:And I was going to say, you know, as coaches, we together we played some back to backs at times.
Speaker A:But it, I would think that after a while it's almost that you either accept it and thrive with it or it kills you because you have to say, hey, look, we're going into two games.
Speaker A:We've done all the prep we can and we just got to let it fly now.
Speaker C:And sometimes you're playing Friday, Sunday you get the one day in between.
Speaker C:It depends.
Speaker C:But that's NCAA tournament style.
Speaker C:You know, you got to be ready to play Thursday and one of your assistant coaches is getting you ready for that second game.
Speaker C:And it's a lot of prep, but I like the fact that they said, hey, we're going to go out to a movie, we're going to watch something on tv.
Speaker C:You got to have that downtime.
Speaker C:And the kids are going to be studying today and really they're just going to get a text from me saying, hey, are you okay?
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker C:So it is interesting, great conversation.
Speaker C:And I appreciated that this time of Year.
Speaker C:It's a lot of fun.
Speaker A:Now, not to shift gears negatively, but I wanted to bring up.
Speaker A:Just quickly, tonight is the NBA All Star game.
Speaker C:Okay.
Speaker B:No LeBron.
Speaker A:No LeBron yet, which I believe he.
Speaker A:Now he's not playing because he said his foot's hurting.
Speaker A:Whatever.
Speaker A:But I believe this is the first one he's ever missed in 21 years.
Speaker A:All right?
Speaker A:So you can't kill the guy about.
Speaker C:That, but.
Speaker A:Here'S where I want to go with this.
Speaker A:So we just talked to two fantastic Division 1 college coaches.
Speaker A:Division 1 college basketball at the highest level has turned into kind of like the Wild West.
Speaker A:And, you know, it's a different roster every year and different things, but it's still.
Speaker A:It's college basketball, and there's nothing like the NCAA tournament.
Speaker A:The NBA, to me, as a basketball fan, is almost becoming unwatchable.
Speaker A:And now you have the.
Speaker C:Which was also said by one of their players, Draymond Green.
Speaker A:Yes.
Speaker A:Which, you know, he still cashes.
Speaker C:Take it from where it's coming from.
Speaker C:Yep.
Speaker A:He still catches.
Speaker A:But now here's the format they went with this year, and I'm kind of vamping on this, but three teams, right.
Speaker A:So they have the rising stars as one team.
Speaker C:Yep.
Speaker A:Then there's Team Chuck, which is Charles Barkley.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:He picked.
Speaker A:Or.
Speaker A:Or the team was picked for him, whatever you want to say.
Speaker A:And Kenny Smith.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:So we're talking about three team kind of a mini tournament.
Speaker A:I believe the winning.
Speaker A:Each player on the winning team gets 125 grand.
Speaker A:Something like.
Speaker A:Which is, you know.
Speaker C:Yeah, 125 grand.
Speaker C:Right.
Speaker A:But I mean, do you.
Speaker A:And it's a game to 40.
Speaker A:And I give the NBA credit.
Speaker C:That's because there was 200 points scored last year by a team.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker C:You know, what do you do with it?
Speaker C:I mean, it's not a game.
Speaker A:It's.
Speaker C:Who can throw more alley oops and hit three pointers?
Speaker A:See, and it is kind of a.
Speaker A:It's a difficult concept here because now, you know, you and I are.
Speaker A:I'm older than you, you know, not.
Speaker A:Not by a ton.
Speaker A:But I'm old enough to.
Speaker A:Where I.
Speaker A:When I started first watching basketball, the.
Speaker A:The ESPN and that, you know, TNN and all that stuff, they were not carrying games.
Speaker A:They weren't even around.
Speaker A: So let's say I'm watching in: Speaker A:At those times, it was really entertaining.
Speaker A:To watch and to see guys that maybe I saw once or twice a year when they came to play the Nets or the Knicks and it was lucky enough to see him and they really went after it.
Speaker D:Yeah.
Speaker A:So there was a lot to it.
Speaker A:Now, I mean, you can just jump on your phone and you can watch a 10 minute.
Speaker C:Anything.
Speaker A:Any.
Speaker A:Absolutely.
Speaker A:And you know, jerseys and the NBA store and whatever else.
Speaker A:So I don't know what the answer is in terms of.
Speaker A:I think you could format the heck out of this thing and it's just not going to make a difference.
Speaker C:No, I mean, I think the most exciting thing was always for me the slam dunk contest and watching some of that crazy stuff, which, you know, a guy who's not Even in the NBA, Mac McClung has won it now three times.
Speaker C:He's made $300,000 in the slam dunk contest, but only $146,000 as an NBA player.
Speaker C:So I think you're just watching just to see what crazy thing is going to happen next.
Speaker C:And you got three teams.
Speaker C:I think there's a fourth team of Team Candace, the Rising Stars.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker C:But here's the thing.
Speaker C:If you're going to make, I think you had said what, $125,000 if you win and 50,000 if you come in second and 25,000 if you come in third.
Speaker C:What's the big deal?
Speaker A:Yeah, to these guys.
Speaker C:These guys are making millions.
Speaker A:Yeah, that's chump change.
Speaker C:So the difference between 50,000, like I'm just going to go out there and either not play hard or I'm just going to try and slam dunk the whole time.
Speaker C:And you know, the NBA is just in a really bad spot because I don't think that anybody wants to do this anymore.
Speaker A:Someone had come up with an interesting concept.
Speaker A:I'm trying to remember who it is, but they were saying to do a us versus the world kind of.
Speaker A:There's enough guys now where, you know, there are going to be some players who are not going to make all star teams because of if you did that format.
Speaker A:Now that's tricky because of incentives and different things in people's contracts, I guess.
Speaker A:So very difficult to do.
Speaker A:But I'm almost thinking they have to come up with something to where it's an international game or the NBA, top NBA guys against somebody to just generate some interest.
Speaker A:We're looking right now at.
Speaker A:At hockey and talk about a completely different scenario.
Speaker A:This is one of the greatest things I've ever seen, you know, because the NHL All Star game was Getting tired, too.
Speaker A:But, you know, I think they're going back to it next year.
Speaker A:But you have different.
Speaker A:I'm not.
Speaker A:Was it four different teams, I guess.
Speaker C:Oh, yeah, four teams.
Speaker A:Four, right.
Speaker A:And I mean, these guys, nine seconds into a game, they're throwing haymakers.
Speaker C:Three fights in nine seconds now.
Speaker A:I mean, talk about it.
Speaker A:Polar opposite.
Speaker C:Well, I think originally people thought that the hockey was going to be a bust.
Speaker C:Like.
Speaker C:Like nobody's going to be into this.
Speaker C:Who cares?
Speaker C:And then, you know, people are booing the national anthem.
Speaker C:And now it's like, I'm sticking up for.
Speaker C:I'm gonna stand for my anthem, and I'm gonna, you know, or even guys, you know, that are from other countries, we're gonna stand for the American national anthem, whatever it might be.
Speaker A:Yep.
Speaker C:And I think it just picked up a head of steam and now the Americans are trying to win the whole thing.
Speaker A:Yes.
Speaker A:And I guess that's kind of where I'm going with.
Speaker A:If they could figure out some way with NBA to make it, you know, country playing like a mini Olympics.
Speaker A:I don't know if that's possible, but.
Speaker C:It'S almost like when the MLB decided, you know, this time it counts.
Speaker C:If you win, the American League is going to host.
Speaker C:If you lose, the National League is going to host the World Series.
Speaker C:But I don't think you can put that stuff on there and say that something of importance is going to come out of an All Star Game.
Speaker C:I don't think that that should ever.
Speaker C:I don't think you should ever say, you know, the guys who are on the east are going to host the NHL, you know, have seven game, the seventh game of the NHL finals at their place.
Speaker C:I just don't think that that works.
Speaker C:But just try to make it the best that it's going to be.
Speaker C:I just don't think it's ever going to be a game.
Speaker C:So let's see, let's see, let's see what happens if people like this.
Speaker C:But I think it's just for show.
Speaker A:Yeah, it is.
Speaker A:And I'm glad I'm not the person in charge of marketing.
Speaker A:I mean, they.
Speaker A:The NBA, they're going to get viewers.
Speaker A:I mean, viewership is down.
Speaker A:I don't even really think they care so much about what the viewership is.
Speaker A:And I'm making air quotes right now, you know, for the live event.
Speaker A:It's all about streaming and tomorrow and.
Speaker A:And all that kind of stuff.
Speaker A:And it, you know, also, I'd love to know, you know, I know one or two people in the industry.
Speaker A:I'd love to know if the, if the All Star Game where it's held really has any kind of super.
Speaker A:Well, it's got to have an economic impact, I would assume, on the area where it is.
Speaker A:But like the say there's 20,000 seats for this game today.
Speaker A:How many, how many of those seats are up for grabs to people who.
Speaker A:Joe.
Speaker C:And it's in Oakland.
Speaker C:So you're going to get Golden State fans.
Speaker C:I'm not sure.
Speaker A: Yeah, it's probably: Speaker C:If you have an opinion, you want to talk about hockey, NBA, college basketball, you can call in.
Speaker C:We'll take your call, chat with you a little bit about the world of sports.
Speaker A:Now it is almost 50 degrees outside and tomorrow it's going to be back down in the 30s and we're looking for snow Thursday.
Speaker A:But we're going to fire up the hot stove just a little bit.
Speaker C:Okay.
Speaker A:Because you know what?
Speaker A:Today, what was you, I know you were excited, as was I to watch one Mr.
Speaker A:Juan Soto emerge, emerge out of the orange and blue.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:Take the sleeve of plastic right off the moon bat and, and just strut his stuff out for a little batting practice.
Speaker A:I mean, we had talked a couple weeks ago about what was going to happen with Pete Alonso, you know, now.
Speaker C:Right after the show, right?
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker A:Which is pretty wild.
Speaker A:You know, maybe he was listening to.
Speaker C:The program, kind of had the same thing with Soto.
Speaker C:I was on the air and then boom, right after that, Soto signed.
Speaker C:So it seems like a Sunday night thing.
Speaker A:Yes, it is with these guys sign.
Speaker A:These guys are getting a little nervous, you know, come Sunday night.
Speaker A:But lots of excitement with the Mets, you know, and the Yankees, I mean, they're coming off a World Series appearance.
Speaker A:Let's take the Mets first.
Speaker A:So as anything, if you could, if you could put on your GM hat right now and make one more addition to this team.
Speaker A:Not even, let's not even say players, position wise.
Speaker A:I mean, I'm guessing you're going to go with some pitching starter, bullpen guy.
Speaker C:What would you like, position wise?
Speaker C:I wouldn't change anything.
Speaker C:If anything, I would probably try to trade stalling Marte and, and, you know, let somebody else play.
Speaker C:I'm actually into the young kids playing, but I don't think Acuna is going to make the opening day roster.
Speaker C:And even with the Mets, as far as guys who make the opening day roster, it's not necessarily who they want on the team.
Speaker C:It's guys who have options are going to have to go down to the minors.
Speaker C:But I think, you know, maybe they can go after another starting pitcher just to make sure.
Speaker C:I'm not a big, you know, I'm okay with Dylan Cease, but I'm not like, okay now.
Speaker C:They signed another starter, so they're going to get rid of him.
Speaker C:I would take Michael King over Dylan Cease, but I don't think they need that much more.
Speaker C:Here's what they need.
Speaker C:They need Kodai Senga to be a number one.
Speaker A:Yes.
Speaker C:You know, they need David Peters last year.
Speaker C:They need Sharminiah to use that change in his motion to eat up innings.
Speaker C:And then they're going to have to get things out of their bullpen that maybe they didn't get in the past.
Speaker C:You know, I think Jose Bhutto has now been told you're going to be a reliever.
Speaker C:They'll probably send McGill down to the minors, so he'll be that seventh guy in case they need.
Speaker C:But I think the Mets will go with a six man rotation for a while.
Speaker A:It's funny with the Yankees, what do they have?
Speaker A:They have an extra starting pitcher who.
Speaker C:Doesn'T want to be a reliever.
Speaker A:But it's very difficult for me to talk about.
Speaker A:We're talking about Marcus Stroman, Patchog Medford, if I believe right.
Speaker A:He's from, from out there.
Speaker A:Has been a Met, you know, not for too long, has been on the Yankees.
Speaker A:Here's a guy that I really wanted to like and boy, does he make it difficult on himself.
Speaker A:He comes late, he decrees.
Speaker A:He's not going to be anything in the bullpen.
Speaker C:I mean, dude, I'm a starter, I'm not a reliever.
Speaker A:He's a lot of things.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker C:And that's the mindset.
Speaker C:And I think he's trying to get traded.
Speaker C:It's not going to happen.
Speaker C:And I think he's going to wind up having to make a decision, you know, but he doesn't have to be there until the 22nd officially, so I imagine he's going to take his time.
Speaker C:Giancarlo Stanton is now being told might not make it for opening days.
Speaker C:He's having some injuries, you know, in his big muscles that he's got there.
Speaker C:And you know, the Yankees are going to have some injuries to start the season and I think it'll be interesting to see how much is thrown on Garrett Cole to start the season if he's going to have to, you know, pick up the slack and maybe they go with a shorter rotation where he pitches a little bit more early to get them on track.
Speaker C:I think the Red Sox going out and signing Bregman is a big deal.
Speaker C:It's going to put them in a spot where they're going to compete with the Yankees, and I think the American League is going to be tough.
Speaker C:But honestly, Mike, you could talk about all this stuff.
Speaker C:To me, the offseason is about A, Juan Soto going to the Mets, and B, the Los Angeles Dodgers can get any player they want at any time.
Speaker A:Absolutely.
Speaker C:It's ridiculous.
Speaker C:It's just like, who is next?
Speaker C:How many players are on their roster?
Speaker A:It makes me think, too, how did the Mets ever get Kode Sanga?
Speaker A:I mean, you know, anybody from Japan or that part of the world, they're signing with LA or, you know, maybe Seattle.
Speaker A:The fact that we even got him is an amazing stat.
Speaker A:But, yeah, you're right.
Speaker A:They could literally go out and hand pick anybody.
Speaker A:Do you think now there's a luxury tax and there's three levels and four levels.
Speaker A:Do you think there's got to be some kind of.
Speaker C:There are talks right now about a salary cap.
Speaker C:They're definitely talking about it, but I just think it would take so much for the players to give into that.
Speaker C:You know, if you're a player and you can make $50 million a year, why are you gonna give in to some type of agreement where they don't allow you to do that?
Speaker C:So I think it's gonna take a lot for baseball to actually put in some type of cap.
Speaker C:Because if you're gonna put in a cap, I think you have to put in a basement, too.
Speaker C:They're gonna have to spend a certain amount of money.
Speaker C:You know, because you're giving money right now, there's revenue sharing.
Speaker C:So if you're giving money to the Pirates or the Royals or, you know, one of the teams that doesn't spend money, they're going to have to spend a certain amount.
Speaker A:Exactly.
Speaker A:Well, and I think along with your other point, you know, you can talk about all this stuff right now.
Speaker A:Here we, you know, on February 16th, the off season, the biggest story, Soto and the Dodgers.
Speaker A:But more than anything, it's health.
Speaker C:Oh, yeah.
Speaker A:You know, a month from now.
Speaker A:Who said.
Speaker A:You brought up Stanton.
Speaker A:Had no idea that he was nursing an injury.
Speaker A:There was a big story earlier in the week about Anthony Rendone, who's.
Speaker C:Oh, please.
Speaker C:He's done.
Speaker C:He's going to retire.
Speaker A:Yeah, he's made.
Speaker A:I don't know.
Speaker A:I wish I had in front of me, but he.
Speaker A:I think he's played a handful of games and made $145 million out for the Angels.
Speaker A:I mean, it's just.
Speaker A:It's crazy.
Speaker C:Yeah.
Speaker C:And even to hear the Mets say, oh, well, since January, Kodai Senga has been, you know, pitching fine with no.
Speaker C:No pain or whatever.
Speaker C:I'm like, well, what happened between November and January?
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker C:Tell me more.
Speaker C:Did he take time off?
Speaker C:Because that's what they do when, you know, he's back in Japan, or was there something wrong?
Speaker C:And, you know, when he came back, he really wasn't himself.
Speaker C:You know, I don't want to know that.
Speaker C:At some point something came up and now he's not ready like it was last year.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker A:Because last year was a surprise, too.
Speaker A:I mean, it's right.
Speaker A:He came in, nobody knew that there was anything going on.
Speaker A:I mean, they do a great job.
Speaker A:Major league organizations are keeping this stuff quiet.
Speaker C:Yeah.
Speaker C:But I like the Mets with their, you know, they have their academy down in Florida and they got these guys in the.
Speaker C:In the pitching university that they have down there, and I think it works really well.
Speaker C:I'm expecting a lot from them.
Speaker C:But you got to also understand that even in their division, they're probably the third best team.
Speaker C:Knowing that you still have the Phillies there and knowing that, you know, there's teams out there like the Braves that.
Speaker C:That just keep finding new ways to win.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker A:It seems no matter who they lose, they just retool and kind of go from there.
Speaker A:But, yeah, it's going to.
Speaker A:It's exciting.
Speaker A:It's a wonderful time.
Speaker A:You know, for me, I haven't seen any kind of spring training baseball in quite some time because this is always.
Speaker A:This week is.
Speaker A:You know, I've been lucky enough to have my teams, my basketball teams in the playoffs, so I don't get a lot of leverage to go down there.
Speaker A:But what could be better than in the middle of a potential snowstorm this week?
Speaker A:If you're a baseball fan down in 80 degrees, just watching guys throw and hit and getting autographs.
Speaker C:And if you were down there, some kid from Long island was the first one to get a.
Speaker C:Oh, I saw that from Soto today.
Speaker C:So that's nice.
Speaker C:If you're down there and you're enjoying it, that's the best time.
Speaker C:They'll start up games next week.
Speaker C:You can watch some of them on tv.
Speaker C:I think it's a great time of year.
Speaker C:You know, Mike, though, for me, I have watched a lot of college basketball, a lot of college basketball.
Speaker A:I admittedly have not.
Speaker C:Interesting.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker A:Not for any other reason that you got stuff.
Speaker A:Well, yeah, it just hasn't worked out this year for me with my practice schedule and different family things that I have.
Speaker A:And I don't know if it's age or whatever else.
Speaker A:I mean, I've been coaching basketball now for over 30 years and when I get home from practice, I kind of just want to decompress from a game.
Speaker A:Not that I don't like watching basketball, but there's just.
Speaker A:There's a ton of it on.
Speaker A:Yeah, that's for sure.
Speaker A:I mean, even the women's game today, UConn blew out South Carolina.
Speaker C:Some freshman scored 55 points for Vanderbilt.
Speaker C:She set a new record.
Speaker C:So, yeah, you could watch whatever you want.
Speaker C:You got espn.
Speaker C:You, you got like last night I was watching Princeton play at, you know, at 9, 8 o'clock, 9 o'clock at night.
Speaker C:I was watching.
Speaker C:For me, I've become a big Alabama fan.
Speaker C:The guy used to be a math teacher, Nate Oates.
Speaker C:And to watch them against Auburn looks really good for a team that lost to to Yale and the NCAAs last year.
Speaker C:They look really good this year and it's just a lot of fun to watch some of those games.
Speaker C:But then I'll also watch Memphis and Wichita State, like it doesn't matter to me.
Speaker A:It's just.
Speaker C:I'm trying to get a new play.
Speaker C:Not that I'm coaching right now.
Speaker C:I'm trying to get a new play.
Speaker C:I'm watching some of the stuff that Pitino runs.
Speaker C:These guys are doing curls and double curls and then they're open one time, the guy chases them, he pops back out.
Speaker C:It's just so much fun to watch the level that these guys are at.
Speaker C:So I'm going to give you one thing.
Speaker C:St.
Speaker C:John's is good.
Speaker A:Yes.
Speaker C:And I have to give a lot of the credit to Pitino.
Speaker C:Those guys play hard.
Speaker A:They do.
Speaker C:Defensively, they play hard.
Speaker C:One of the best defensive teams, I would say out there, they're not a great shooting team.
Speaker A:No.
Speaker C:But I do think.
Speaker C:And they get a get away with a lot of hand checks and stuff like that.
Speaker C:But they play really hard and I think they're going to be tough because now they're two games above anybody else in the big E.
Speaker C:So I think come time, big biggie semis that Friday night at the garden, St.
Speaker C:John's is going to be in that semifinal.
Speaker A:It's an interesting mix because you talk about a team that is so good defensively and then on the offensive end is not a great shooting team.
Speaker A:But like any Rick Pitino team, they take a ton of threes.
Speaker C:And he does a good job with his bench.
Speaker C:He gets those guys in, which is really tough because some of those teams really only don't play six, seven guys.
Speaker C:He's playing eight, nine guys.
Speaker C:And, you know, Richmond is good.
Speaker C:I like RJ Lewis.
Speaker C:You know, they got Ejafor the big guy in the middle.
Speaker C:They've got some good players.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker A:But when St.
Speaker A:John's is relevant, it's totally different.
Speaker A:It's great.
Speaker A:And, you know, Seton hall has been struggling, but they had a huge win against UConn the other day.
Speaker C:Gary Cohen on the call.
Speaker A:And I believe, you know, Danny Hurley, head coach at UConn, has become.
Speaker A:I think he's embracing the new Bobby Knight Persona.
Speaker A:Good Lord, does he love it.
Speaker C:Yeah.
Speaker C:And that'll be interesting to see, because next week, it's a sellout at Madison Square Garden noontime on Sunday against the Johnny's.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker C:So I think it'll be interesting to see how kind of things play out.
Speaker C:You know, next time we're on, we'll probably be closer to the NCAA Tournament.
Speaker C:We could talk a little bit about that, but should be exciting.
Speaker C:You know, I think there's a lot of good teams out there, and we'll see how it goes.
Speaker A:Definitely.
Speaker A:And just one final thought before we wrap up.
Speaker A:You know, we were talking to the Jones brothers about, you know, both of us being coaches and just having that passion and loving what you do.
Speaker A:And, you know, with my team, with my Locust Valley Girls, we're playing this week in the second round of the tournament against wanta really, really good team.
Speaker A:And you find something.
Speaker A:I'm just excited, man.
Speaker C:Find something.
Speaker A:I'm excited.
Speaker C:I love this time of year.
Speaker A:Yeah, it's the best.
Speaker A:And you know what?
Speaker A:I'd rather be doing that then.
Speaker A:Thank you.
Speaker A:Then I guess watching baseball down in Port St.
Speaker A:Lucie.
Speaker A:But one of these days, anybody else.
Speaker C:Out there looking for something to do the end of March, look up Littlest angels, littlest angel walk 5k.
Speaker C:I'm getting myself in shape for it.
Speaker A:Thanks.
Speaker A:I appreciate that very much.
Speaker A:Again, thanks to Joe Jones, James Jones, Brian Graves.
Speaker A:Behind the glass, Chris Caputo.
Speaker A:Great as always.
Speaker A:We'll see in a couple of weeks.
Speaker A:And stay warm, everybody.
Speaker A:And watch that snow coming.
Speaker A:The views expressed in the previous program did not necessarily represent those of the.
Speaker B:Staff, management, or owners of wgbb.
