TOM's Talks | Jim Lynam

it all is Jimmy Linum. A great high school player, MVP at Saint Joseph's on its basketball team in the early nineteen sixties, a successful coach at his alma mater, seventy six Ers head coach and general manager, many years as an NBA assistant coach, and now the insightful and passionate commentator on NBC Sports Philadelphia's pre and postgame live coverage of the seventy Sixers. I recently spoke with Philly basketball legend coach Jim Lynam coach. Thank you so much.

How's it going? And I know you're hunkering down here during this hiatus. How you've been pretty well? Tom? Thanks? You know, like everybody else, we're in very unusual times, so you make the best be able to see the grand kids from Afar every now and then, Yes, from Afar. You know, basically somebody drops something off, but more through

through zoom or right. We've all become accustomed to this new technology and zoom has been real integral to do everything basically in terms of meetings and conversations with family and work. And I know you just recently did one gym. You work for NBC Sports Philadelphia in the pre and postgame Live and have been a tremendous analyst at this point of your career. But you've done everything and we're

going to touch on that a little bit. But they reached out to you to talk about the Last Dance, the current series on ESPN about Michael Jordan, and I know you're six teams faced him and you did a great job describing that look in that game that you guys wanted the spectrum. But have you enjoyed the series and looking back and watching Jordan in one of his final performances in Chicago. Yeah, my wife and I look forward.

We saw the two episodes last night. Yeah, it brings back obviously a lot of memories, but I think they were in and of themselves. They were They were pretty special times. I mean, you had a front row seat to not just Michael arguably if he's not the greatest, he's right there with whoever one would deem to be the best player to ever play in the NBA. But

the circumstances surrounding it. You know, it was a great theater as well as great basketball, right, And you've been a part of so many stops and so much great basketball throughout your career. As I said, I'm going to take you all the way back to your days at West Catholic High School playing with Herb McGee and your team was one of the great high school basketball teams in Philadelphias, had lifetime relationships with like coach McGee. What do you remember about that time and what should we

know about your high school efforts at West Catholic? Well, Herb and I played together a Jim Boyle I was on that team, who was a dear friend you know, for both Herbs and mine the rest of our lives we passed away. I guess it's over ten years ago now.

Another prominent player was Albanny mc john beck, whose brother played for the Philadelphia A Warders, Ernie Becke, it's a great ten player in the NBA player So we had we were, i'd say, the beneficiaries of great tradition when we were growing up, you know, West Catholic and won a lot of Catholic League titles over the years. I knew a lot of those older players from the various neighborhoods around Southwest Philly. You know, they were always out

are been to mentoring us. So it was like just a good fortune to be able to continue a tradition, to be a part of something that you know, as a young kid growing up, really relished. And then you go to Saint Joe's. You play three years on the varsity, your final season you're the MVP, You make it to the final four, you end up third. You played a four overtime game with Utah. What was that like? I know, the NCAA tournament may not be you know what it was it is now back then, but still a pretty

neat achievement. Only thirty two teams, if the recollection serves me correctly, But that was a real good team. It was my sophomore year at Saint Joe And actually the while they don't have the consolation game anymore. Maybe because of that game. Bobby Knight was getting ready as a player to play his Ohio State team was going to

play Cincinnati for the national title game. And I remember during our game, you know, them coming onto the court like three different times requesting their sweatsuits, and they were sitting under the basket area only to go back, you know each time that there's going to be another overtime. You can see the expression on their faces. So it was somewhat anticlimatic, but you know, for us to get to the final four was a big deal. The only reason I say that because then I T was prominent

at that time too, correct, no question. Yeah, I'd say the two probably rival one another as to the you know, the biggest achievement, although I do think the NCAA probably still had an edge at that time, right, I mean, to get to the final four, that's awesome. That must have been a great experience. And John Halichick, as you mentioned, those buck guys getting ready to come out. Honda was

on that team, correct, Jerry Lucas was, Larry Siegfried. You know, they had a cast of guys who were going to go for one and the great NBA players, but they didn't win. They lost the championship to Cincinnati, you know, which was a really a brutal lost to them. You know, an ind State team, right, and it was Oscar had just finished playing. So you know, teams were like, we're looking forward to get in Cincinnati without Oscar. Well guess what they got them, they said, but they weren't able

to take them down, right. So then you get into coaching, and you coach at Fairfield and American University. Two years at Fairfield and I believe five years at American University, and then you come back and you get to Saint Joseph's job, and everybody here in Philadelphia remembers the big upset against the Paul that was at Dayton. The year was nineteen eighty one. You knock off Ray Meyer and Mark Aguire and Tony cost and Brian work are on your team. What do you recollect and what are some

of your memories about that number one? I would say that we had a very good team. You know, I still to this day see a lot of those players. John Smith, Jeff Clark, You mentioned Tony Costner, Brian Warwick. Ronnie McFarland was a freshman on that team from Roman cast like, so we had a lot of very very good players and it was, you know, going to be a good team for a number of years. But yeah, it DePaul was the number one team, number one seed

in the tournament. And ironically LaSalle had played them a game in Philly back then during the Big five pay Day we played doubleheaders and we played first half of that double head or Lasal playing the Taul in the second. So our guys had seen the Paul firsthand. And let's say, I really my brother was at the back court a govery good player, or LaSalle being high school teammate that was on a golf scholarship, Greg Webster, and they gave De Paul all they could handle. Short of winning the game,

I think they lost three. So that kind of we had. Winning our first game against Greyton, we kind of tapped into that Sam was good enough to play three point that we thought we had a shot. So you make it to the Mid East Regional and it was in Bloomington, Indiana. And I told you this before, but I actually went

to those games. We met briefly in the hotel. I can understand why you wouldn't remember that, but I did have a long conversation with Jean Barto because he was the coach of UAB Alabama, Birmingham, Indiana of course, who would go on to the Spectrum and win an eighty one national championship, and Boston College and they were coached by doctor Tom Davis. And if I remember, that was your first game, and right you played BC. Yeah, we BBC really was not a very good game, to be

honest with you, Well, what was the deal? Because I was a college basketball player at the time, and a bunch of us and the older guys from the outside of Chicago, these brothers would always get tickets and we were thinking that Paul would be in there. Wake Forrest was really good. I think Kentucky and Indiana were like holy man. The ticket coach was twelve dollars and fifty cents. Of course I still have the receipt or whatever the ticket.

But Doctor Tom was a huge bounce pass guy. I remember counting like twenty five bounce passes a possession, didn't he do? What was the deal with that? Yeah? It was a good friend and he had a unique style of play. What they did. They he played very fast, like you'd run the ball down the floor usually had a really good guard jump badly. Yeah, they have been on that team, but he had guards Michael Adams small, but they were they were good enough to play in

the NBA. And what they would do they would rush the ball down the court trying to get an early shot, but if they didn't no shot clock back in those days, they would back it out and as you said, they would pass the ball incessantly, you know, time after time to try to get an optimal shooting opportunity. So the game was it was one of the weirdest games I

ever was involved in. To be honest with you, I had no idea, but I'd be talking to like one of my assistants on one side and one on the other, getting two different versions, and I was as confused as they were, like we in good shape or we like big trouble. As it turned down, we made a couple of plays down the stretch at to win the game to get a chance to go against Indiana to go to the Final four back here in Philly at the Spectrum, right, but as State would have it back in those days

in Indiana again, they were a great team. Isaiah Thomas, I'm not sure matter where we played them, right, but I would like to have a shot on anywhere other than their own court right now. Absolutely, what an advantage for them. And I ended up setting for the first games when they played u AB right behind the bench. People get confused, like when you see as Family Hall, it looks real small, but it obviously goes way up. But I was sitting there right behind Bobby Knight, which

was unbelievable. And Isaiah against Alabama Birmingham had like a game. They were saying, you could put it in a cornerstone, tap into it fifty years from now and you know it would still hold up. And you played him in that game which you described a little bit. But what do you remember about that game against Indiana in their building, an assembly hall. Yeah, it wasn't much of a game,

to be honest. Again, they had a number of the NBA talent, Randy Whitman I think was on that team with Isaiah, and the combination of Night, who obviously was one of the premier coaches, great players, and the home board advantage for us to we had to be able to stay close to teams like that have a chance in the game, and we simply weren't able to do it when they played the and you know this just share, but when they ended up playing that national championship game

the following week, it was a Monday night, and that was the day that President ray And had been shot. And by this time, again college basketball players, we were back on campus, and there was some speculation that they weren't going to play the game, and being big hoop hads were like, you gotta play the game, and eventually they did, and Indiana one that championship pretty handily, if I remember, against a pretty good North Carolina team that was really a one of the Bobby Ifel, one of

Bobby knights better teams. So then you end up matriculating to the NBA. You were an assistant in Portland, you had that year in Los Angeles with the Clippers and that was their first year in Los Angeles, is that correct? Coach? And yeah, when I went to the NBA, Jack Ramsey, you know really who was my mentor from the get go, coached me at Saint Joe's and then giving me a

coaching opportunity that really started me in the profession. But yeah, I was the coach of the Clippers actually for when I got the Clipper job that were in San Diego, hop Sterling, it is inimitable style. He moved the team under cover of darkness, literally one night, moving Vans game onto the San Diego Sports Arena. Whatever they had, they

packed it up and boomed they went north. So yeah, the second year, right, I was a coach up in that the Clippers in those same right, coach, Just going back to doctor Jack Ramsey, because again, you're an icon in fully basketball, so as your friend Jim O'Brien one of our assistant coaches with the Sixers, and obviously doctor Jack was his father in law. And you know with doctor Jack hollin those Miami he games for years and then ESPN Radio. What a man. I mean you mentioned

he's your mentor. I mean, just an incredible person. To talk about doctor Jack Ramsey for a second, Well, yeah, he was really not just a terrific basketball coach obviously, but he was a special guy. He was I think it's fair to say, Tom, you'd have to go pretty far and wide to find someone who was as universally respected both in and out of profession than Jack Ramsey. He just he was down to earth, a normal person.

He was an educator, you know PhD. He actually taught me a couple of classes when I was a student at Saint Johs. But just what impressed me the most I think about him is the way he bent about what he did. You know, it was never about him. He loved the game, He had tremendous respect for it, and he was just a great teacher. Anything he could do to impart, like thought, help whatever to the next person, you know, be a player coach. He was always at the front of the line to do so. More with

Jim wind him coming up. In this time of social distancing, Nova Care Rehabilitation is offering physical therapy from the comfort and safety of your home. Through their new tell a Rehab program, Novacare will virtually bring their services to you so you may heal, build strength, and get back to the things you love. Tell a Rehab let you easily connect with one of Novocare's licensed therapists through web based technology that is Hippo compliant. For more information, visit novacare

dot com. Now back to my chat with Jim Linum. Maybe this is a good spot and I want to get into your time with the Sixerson as a GM and your work now and working with d every now and then. But Philly basketball to somebody that's not from here, how would you describe it? Because to me it's every level of basketball from Cyo, your high school obviously, the colleges, the pro game, the Polestra women's basketball. How would you describe Philly basketball to somebody not from here? I always stay,

I go A to Z is what I say. If you want to talk. I mean, there's obviously a lot of great cities that have a lot of great programs and great players. But if you want the history of the game and you want to go all the way back, Philadelphia is pretty tough to beat in my opinion. I mean, Will Chamberlain is from Philadelphia. The list of great referees in the history of the NBA, the number of them

that are from Philadelphia staggering. The great coaches, the Big Five, and I was never want to say like that Big Five is better than this league or better than that league. You know, it wasn't really a league. It was kind of a you know, an informal like group of teams. But it was unique in a sense that nowhere in America could you have something like that. Played all my home games on Penn's home court as the coach of Saint Joe's. Now, you know, we didn't have the like

an arena like assembly hall out there in Indiana. But I just think that when you look at it from a lot of different perspectives, and you look at the number of great players, look at the number of outstanding coaches, outstanding referees, as you said, from whatever level of basketball you want to describe. You know, I'll just pick one.

You know, like the great Roman Cathway teams over the years, and Speedy Marris, you know who coached just on the collegiate level, but the scholastic level, you know, a career that spanned fifty plus years. I mean, yes, Kr McGee is, you know, my closest friend. But the fact is, I know he's when it's all said and done, he has a chance it's going to be out of here. In Mike Kolschowski, you know, with the greatest number of wins in the history of the sport level at one school.

You know, he went to Style and when we left high school in what nineteen fifty nine, four fifty nine, he never left. He stayed at one school and coach that he played it and coach at that school. So I think when you, you know, you put it all together, a school like Villanova winning three national champions right, I mean that this is a you know, I have great respect for villain Ovis, so I say it in that

in the was complementary terms. But please, this is not the University of Texas or Hamel or you know, some massive physical plant, you know, Catholic School element Philadelphia main line. So I think when you put it all together, you know,

it's an incredible story of basketball success. And you know this, But like when I meet a man said, a doctor and a guy like of your age, and you know, he finds out that I'm in the NBA or whatever, he goes, yeah, but he kind of waxes nostalgic, gets a little misty eyed, and he thinks of those games in the Plestra. Like it's kind of like, I like basketball when basketball was basketball, And he's talking about going to those games at the Palestra, and that captures the

essence of what they remember about Philadelphia. Basketball kind of encapsulates what you're talking about. It had a very local flavor to it. You know, a lot of the teams recruited from the city and you know the suburban areas. So yeah, I think that that the people really did identify with it. Now, again, keep in mind, there were two teams playing doubleheaders, so you know, the big schools with Scott the table. You know, it's a place only seats nine thousand, and you guys need two schools to

sell it out. But it became kind of almost mystic in a sense, you know that in terms of little loyalty and the way that the game's kind of displayed and unfolded, you know, the signs and the just the enthusiasm with respect to one team, you know, trying to outdo the other. The fans were very very much a part of it because kind of integral experience, not just playing on the court, but what went on in the

stands as well. What speaking of enthusiasm, and I'm going to get into your time as the Sixers head coach and with Berkley and and like that and one you told me a fun story one time. We'll get back to that in a sect. But where does your passion and enthusiasm Because you're you're really unique, I mean, and

different people. It manifests itself in different ways. But like the one story that I you know, I could tell a million But when we were in the playoffs, is six has played Detroit and we were at the Palace and they at that time they had Rashid. It would have been after their national, their NBA championship, and you were helping Maurice Cheeks coach the team and you were walking us through the shoot around the players, the team, but you were talking about sheet He on the baseline.

You took your wallet on your back pocket and you was like, o't bet my entire wallet. Just that fiery style, that passion is just emanates. Where does that come from? Where do you where do you get that drive? I don't wait how to answer that. To be honest with you that you know, just as a as a young kid growing up, uh, you know, we played very competitively a lot or whether it was on the corner literally on the corner basket, you know, up on a telephone call.

That's where it started for me. And then as you got older, you know, you got to the schoollyards, but it was always very competitive. I tell the story that when I was a young kid and Wilton was growing up, I used to take the bus up right across the ook high schools a playground called Tustin Playground. It's still there today, and you would have to get there early.

I was. I was like, I would have to sit all day to get in the game at Tustin Playground literally, but I would watch and when you would come into Tustin Playground, the phrase was what's the number? And that meant like, how many games do I have to wait? Verse? Twelve? I mean, and there's twelve eleven groups ahead of you, dude, before you're going to get your shot to play. And Chamberlain would play in those games on an occasion. I would watch. Obviously he would rarely lose, and but when

Will Chamberlain lost at Tuston Playground, he was done. He had to ask what was the number? That was Will Chamberlin. So it was a very very competitive environment. You know, there wasn't the rankings and you know the fluff I caught that there is out there today, you know, as the A three and a half star, as the A four and a half star. It was about you know, going going to the court, throwing the ball up and starting to play. And we figured we knew who could

play and who couldn't. So I guess the seeds of whatever you're referring to in terms of competitiveness, they were playing it early in my life. If you were going to be good, you had to show it, and you had to kind of climb your way up the ladder. And I remember as a young guy like I saying to me, well, you're you know you can, You're good here, but you wait though, you get the West Catholic and

you know it's and each step along the way. When I first got there, you know, it was a little intimidating, like a lot of them said that make them a mistake. You know, Saint jose is a little over your head when I first got there. The fellow I played against every day at Saint josephs an NBA player. He's alive today, Bobby McNeil play for the next for three years, big time player. But playing against him every day, you know, I learned from him. I got a little bit better,

my confidence grew. And then let and behold. The day before we started our sophomore year, Rams coach Ramsey told me I was a start in guard. So I guess it always served me well to like to compete as hard as I could and I never I never had it like faking. I never had any qualms about it. If you want to get involved and something you really, you know, are emotionally involved in, and obviously I was,

and then you give it your all. And what was it like when you became the Sixers' head coach and you had some good teams at Berkley and Jaminski I believe he won the Atlantic Division. That must have been a pretty neat time in your career. Yeah, obviously, again, you know your success as a coach. Tom, you know this as well. We're better than I do all the different teams that you've broadcast and observed. You know, it starts with good players and good players who are good people.

If you have those two ingredients, then you have an opportunity, you know, to have a decent team. And yeah, some of those Philly teams were all my favorite obviously, the chance to coach Charles, who was, you know, one of the all time great NBA players. I don't say that because Charles a friend like one mine. It's stark fact. And if you have a player like him, then you have a chance to have a real good team. And our problem really was that, you know, out in Chicago.

They had a pretty good team too, was we're saying with these so I chose battles with Chicago, and actually, you know we we we had good battles with Detroit.

We actually fared pretty well against Detroit. One of your stories, and let's see you can remember this, but you were telling me this about you were playing the Hawks at the Omni and it got down to the end and if it was a situation where you guys show you you call the play for Barkley and it turned out that you were going for it where you could have

maybe stood pat and gone overtime. And then later you sort of remember that there was a ten thirty flight Eastern Airlines flight that you guys took back to Philadelphia, and by going for it, you'd be able to make the flight. And the guys didn't know all that, and it sounds like you actually thought of that later, but they thought you were gung ho going for it. They loved before it. Barkley made the shot, you made, you won the game, and you made the flight. Do you

remember that story. Yeah, The story was we went was like seconds left in the game. I think we were two dawn and I knew at the time. It was that was the last flight out of Atlantic, and I just said to myself, you know, leap this. I said, we're shooting three and out of here. And no, we did not win the game. Charles actually he put a three halfway down at the buzzer and we lost the game. I think it may have been the first game I was the head coach sware to that, but it was

one of the early games that I coached. But you know, all the players, they told me years later they really admired the fact that I went. I went for the win, and in my mind, no, I went for the plane. I don't want to stay overnight in Atlantic. That's great, all right. So you've also told me the story one of your GM stories. And when Scott Brooks comes through, you know, obviously he pays homage because he wouldn't be in the NBA if you didn't have him on your team.

But the point is that as a general manager, you obviously had to deal with the agents and whatnot, and it must the stories not just for the big you know, big talented players that got big contracts or whatever, but putting a team together. What was that like being the general man? German team, but everything you had to deal with in that regard, I did it for two years kind of was more curiosity to see. I thought I would really enjoy it, but I didn't know if I'd

enjoy it the way I did coaching. And I thought it gave me a little versatility. They were the two main reasons that I did it. But I missed the coaching, you know, very very much. I really wasn't. I don't think meant to be. Like in the office all day long, there was the GM and the front office types. You know, they spend it incredible amounts of time communicating with other people around the league, you know, but watching endless amounts of tape footage, you know, trying to evaluate the players.

It's ironic getting that kind of are on this path, given that the Eagles just had their draft, and I actually spent some time after the fact, you know, looking up the history, the recent history of Hallie Roseman drafts Approchman has some great players, right, But you know, it's a very imprecise science, the draft, and you know, you do the best you can, and it's just philosophies are involved, and really it's I have a great deal of respect

for the people you know, some some are better than others. I always felt that Larry Brown was one of the best. Obviously he's a Hall of Fame coach, but in terms of putting a team together, I always felt that he was one of the best. I kind of jokingly say, now, don't only ask me to coach Larry's team. He's one of the best of putting the team together that he can win with, right. But to know that and to have that ability, that's a real gift. When you speak

about watching tape and everything. It just came to mind. When I first started the Sixers, officers were still at Veteran Stadium, and so this is give or take August or September of nineteen ninety five, and Gene Shoe was still doing some work and I think he might have

worked with Tony Delio. And they had the VHS tapes and they were stacked up and there was big old tapes and Jean put in a tape and I was in there with him and he watched it for like whatever twenty eight seconds and he goes, can't play and that was it. I think exactly what he met can't play done, And I'm like, well, there goes that guy's yeah, right, So I want to get into your time with Marie's

cheeks a little bit. And you know, I know you spent the time in Portland with him, and then the time here in fact that it was the anniversary of when he helped that girls singing the national anthem at the Rose Garden and you were in that picture as well. And I'm just going to jump to this, like everybody has memories of Vegas that probably are more salacious than my minor firkin porkmi is getting forty and three and

in some of the game against Boston. But one of the times, one of the things I love so much about some of the league is seeing guys like yourself. And really it's like the green room of the NBA. Anybody who's anybody in coaching in the front office is there and just walking up to my spot to call the game on like Sixers dot Com or whatever. You were with Maurice, and you guys laugh so hard and so genuine I know you appreciate your friendship with him,

but isn't that rich. Isn't that something that you know to be able to spend that time and he makes you laugh so hard. It's pretty cool to see, right Tom. Obviously I coached Maurice. I had one of the worst days literally of my professional career the day we traded him and work through circumstance, he didn't know we traded him.

To find out like that we trade him. I'm going to say, one o'clock in the afternoon he finds out, ironically from Michael Barkan news truck out in front of his house, you know, with a microphone in his face. Through it all, Yeah, Maurice and I have a I would say, a unique friendship after going through all that. Then he hires me back to be his assistant both

important and in Philly. But I would say that would be an indication of what I cherish most about what I've been able to do, you know, over the course of my working lifetime, it's always been about the people for me. Yeah, I enjoy the games I mentally and the competitiveness of it. But the special relationships that you build for long periods of time, you know, through thick and thin. I mean, you know, you experience it's a

lot of highs what you experience lows. Also in this profession, you're in a long enough right but it's really about the people that that that's you know, what sustains over over the long haul. And you know, my relationship with Maurice would just be you know, one of those examples, right, I would agree, well said. And one of the relationships that as part of your basketball life is your daughter D has been a reporter for a number of years.

You guys are able to do some things. I still do some games periodically with her with the Bluecoats in the G League. But how cool is that to be able to you know, over the years at different times, I was be able to work with your daughter and then as a father to see her in your field and excel the way she hasn't and had a career like this that she has. I call that bonus coverage.

Tom uh, you know, just another kind of one of the good fortunes, one of the many good fortunes that we experience, myself and my family, you know, D being a part of it and being able to share some of this, you know with her because it's her passion and my wife is a big part of it. Also. She never played, She didn't really have a strong interest until we met, but once she got interested in it, you know, she she has a great field. She I really have gone a lot of what I called big

picture stuff from my wife over the years. So to be able to share with you know, my family, the whole environment, the whole experience, you know, that's been very special. Also, that's great. Um. And then I don't know if it was d or yourself, but you're like a man genius, right you You're able to hardly maybe genius is stretch it,

but you're you're really go at numbers right. Well, yeah, I have a map degree, and I think the analytics you know, something I always in my own way, you know, paid attention to and certainly respect what they do with today's world coach. Last thing, and I so appreciate your time. But all this in the game, like like a basketball wifer. And you mentioned the friendships and the relationships. Uh, what

a gift the game has been. It's been it's been your life, as you said, going all the way back to those games on the playgrounds just just down the street from your house. Yeah. I never planned it, a true story. I really uh taken a job, a computer job with the government, and I needed a part time courst work. I had to finish in Saint Joe's and I need to. I was getting married in September and I didn't have a part time job that like fit in with my schedule. I had some opportunities, but nothing

that I really wanted to do and fit. So my wife and I were sitting in my Beyonce at the time, we weren't married yet. We were sitting on the beach in Ocean City, New Jersey. Fella's name was father John Dugan, who was an athletic director at Lansdale Catholic High School and he was the center ten years older than me

at Saint Joe. I know him casually. He's walking the beach and as he kind of got to where our blanket was, he took a left hand turn and came straight to the blanket and we made small talk for you know, maybe thirty seconds a minute, and he said, I hear you're looking for a job, a part time job. I said, yeah, so I'm looking for a coach. And I remember my mom went like, what does that have to do with that I need a job. This guy's looking for a coach, right. Well, long story short, that's

how it started. I called Ramsey and told him and I says, is that the weirdest thing? And he paused for a second. He said, what so weird about that? He said, if you if you'd like to do it, so I think you'd do a good job. And I'd never thought about coaching, ever coached the day in my life. And it's the way it thinks, Tom. It's a good indication of you know, when somebody takes a shot and like steps out on one's behalf right. And you know, father John Dugan, he didn't know me real well. He

saw me as a player. He saw qualities in me that he thought translated I'd like to have that guy around our young guys teaching them basketball. And that started, you know, it was what was a journey for me that I couldn't be ever a dream. Well, you're one of the great guys to have around, As I said, I so much appreciate your time and getting to know you and visit with you at the games and watch

you on TV when you're doing your pregame show. I have a television monitor obviously, and I was like, dang, I wish I could be listed. I'd be getting inside stuff right now. I have a chance. Well that's another facet of it, and those people I still use say

Comcast and be see Sports Philly. But you know, the young people down there do a phenomenal job supporting us, you know, whether it's Amy Fidel or Michael Barkin, Mark Jackson and myself now, but yeah, it's something I really I appreciate that opportunity because it keeps me close to the game and around the people. You know that I really enjoy spending time. Right well, coach, thank you so much, Be well, take care and I can't thank you enough

for the time, my pleasure time. Thanks for listening to Tom's talks with me Tom McGinnis on the seventy six Ers podcast network. Check for new episodes every weekend.