Durant giving KO Props

[James]

Starts right before the 8:00 minute mark. lots of praise. insanely awkward interview.

 

[tcf15]

Hot damn, that's awesome. Couldn't like this enough. Good find.

 

[FDNY99]

3 of the best players in the NBA...can't get much better than that!!!!

 

[Walker11]

Wow, he said KO changed the entire culture in OKC and that all the guys - Russ, Harden, Green and KD himself wanted to be like KO. That's an unreal compliment.

 

[Inyatkin]

That Bill Simmons, what a natural interviewer. Instead of a follow-up he goes straight to asking him about "the Slim Reaper."

 

[Bryan Lord]

Very rough first half of that interview lol. Pretty much contradicts all the points summons makes. Awesome KO shout out though! So blessed to have that guy.

 

[Palatine]

Wow, if that's not in the first minute of the UConn recruiting piece they are out of their minds. Amazing sound bite!

 

[Fishy]

Aw, s---!

NBA teams are gonna come for him!

 

[Chief00]

Quite frankly, assuming KO's success continues, I think it is a foregone conclusion NBA teams will come after KO. I do think KO is pretty committed to UConn, its just not like any job to him. But that's not to say for a specific good situation and lots of money - he could make a move.

 

[BigErnMcCracken]

The way I look at it, we've got him at least until his daughter goes off to college, so another 5 years or so. After that, who knows? Obviously Kevin loves UConn, loves helping young people become productive adults, so I wouldn't be shocked if he decides that coaching at UConn is his calling. At the same time, the NBA is the NBA and he's incredibly well respected at that level. I'm sure his name's going to come up all the time when jobs open up.

 

[Hi-Low]

Aw, s---!

NBA teams are gonna come for him!

He stays at least through 2015-2016 season, shaping into a nice class...unless we win it all this year then all bets are off . The Knicks would be backing up the Brinks truck to his doorstep. Enjoy him while we can, NY not far from CT and UConn Is NY's team.

 

[NEforceUConn]

I am UCONN.


He is here for at least 5 more years, and will not leave until B1G things happen.

 

[tzznandrew]

NBA teams are obviously going to offer him a lot of money. I think he's being sincere, though, when he says this is his dream job. He wins here, he'll get a lot of money. Maybe not top NBA level money, but a lot of money nonetheless.

 

[Kitaman]

Dream job is not a destination its just the perfect resting place. Ollie does not strike me as one who stays on assignment forever, especially if new and attractive challenges are offered.

From what I've seen of him it ain't about the money, its the strength/merits of the next challenge we need to be concerned with and when. NBA GMs are great salesmen (which Ollie is familiar with) and if the right team (whatever that criteria is to Ollie) comes calling, well..............................................

Lastly Ollie is an NBA person, which probably will factor into things. With him if he prays on it and the answer is NBA, well then its bye bye UConn. Anyway money is probably not the critical factor. His character seems too grounded for that to be the deciding factor.

I'm just getting prepared for that one day in the future.

 

[Catsailor]

Cool, can we make that clip a UCONN PROMO ?

 

[ConnHuskBask]

I don't see Kevin Ollie leaving UConn. As an alum and hand picked successor by Calhoun, I truly believe him when he says this is his dream job and he wants to be here forever.

The NBA has come calling for a lot of great college coaches, but I think a lot of guys love their schools and love their programs.

 

[prankster]

The way I look at it, we've got him at least until his daughter goes off to college, so another 5 years or so. After that, who knows? Obviously Kevin loves UConn, loves helping young people become productive adults, so I wouldn't be shocked if he decides that coaching at UConn is his calling. At the same time, the NBA is the NBA and he's incredibly well respected at that level. I'm sure his name's going to come up all the time when jobs open up.

It all comes down to how someone keeps score in his life.

KO made a pretty good living from the NBA, and he will make more money than he needs, going forward as a UConn coach. So, money to support his lifestyle and family, is fundamentally off the table.

Then it comes down to how he keeps score on the things that are important to him, as a person. He can have a significant impact on the lives of a vast number of kids, coming through UConn, or he can make more money molding the players on an NBA team.

Which is the higher calling, to him?

 

[James]

if he wins a chip then he should try the pros. he could be an elite coach in the nba, who knows. I think hes as good if not better already than scotty brooks.

 

[RichZ]

Stunning! Recommendations just don't come any higher than this.
\

 

[jleves]

I highly doubt that Ollie is hurting for money - he made $20,131,418 in his 13 year career. That's about $1.5 million per year or a little over $30,000 for each game he played in. Sure more is always better but it's not like he's making choices between buying a new car or going on vacation. More like does he fly in private jets or settle for 1st class commercial. And he'll make plenty more money staying at UConn for 20 years.

One really good thing is that he played for so many different teams in the NBA that he probably doesn't have any super strong ties to one team or another. Nothing like what he feels for UConn. I doubt he is going anywhere.

 

[SixRings]

This makes me warm and fuzzy inside.

Amazing how cool KD was through the interview. Simmons just exudes awkward and you figure KD would give him a facial expression or two but instead he calmly answers everything with details. Great guy.

It doesn't take a genius to see that KO is Golden fcucking Grahams. When you have, arguably - with LeBron, the best player in the NBA calling you out and praising you like this, it is going to lead to recruiting like we have never seen before. Funny part is that LeBron is saying the same thing about KO. KO still needs to be able to do the X's and O's but has shown he can hang so far. I never thought JC was a particularly good clipboard coach and he managed 3 NC's.

 

[superjohn]

Well this thread went to hell in a hurry, Ollie isn't going anywhere.

 

[Danzz]

The NBA life is tough with all the constant travel and after 13 years Ollie may have had enough of that.
What an incredible video and recruiting tool. It would be best used by our assistant coaches on the recruiting trail. All these kids have dreams of playing in the NBA and to have their heroes promoting Ollie is invaluable.

 

[tcf15]

When Kevin Ollie says this is his dream job, I believe it. Not just because of his love for UConn, but also for his love and respect for Jim Calhoun. For him to follow in the footsteps of someone he considers to be a father figure must not only be a high honor, but also a great challenge to sustain the excellence that UConn has achieved.

 

[ConnHuskBask]

Let's put it like this, when a man of Kevin Ollie's sstature calls something his dream job, I take it to heart as opposed to, I don't know, the Maryland football head coaching position.