New interview with Ben Johnson

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umn99

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I would recommend listening to this almost hour long interview with Ben Johnson. I found it very insightful on how he is going to run his program, what he is looking for in players/recruiting, his assistant coaches, and other topics.

 


umn99 said:
I would recommend listening to this almost hour long interview with Ben Johnson. I found it very insightful on how he is going to run his program, what he is looking for in players/recruiting, his assistant coaches, and other topics.

Click to expand...
How many of our 'fans' will take the time to listen to this instead of frantically typing post after post with the same reasons that they think the sky is falling? I am seriously worried about some of the posters on here!
 

Didn't type every word, but this is the gist of what i found interesting the first half of the interview.

the roster was his first weeks objective:

A: the current roster is my objective first week. Who's on board, who do I need to convince, who do i need to talk to, who do i not have a chance with, who would i like to stay, try to figure that out first because that affects your recruiting. What do i have, what do i need to get? still going on now. First week, this consumed me. When can we talk, start building relationships, talk philosophies, what they want and what my vision is. Map out the direction to go recruiting wise and figure out what holes to fill.

What are some of the things philosophically that you can share with players about your style that would help them convince them to be able to stay to play with you?

A: My style is my core values. Goes back to being a former athlete playing here, asst coach. I let guys know what i stood for, what the program will stand for, that was the base. I looked at it two ways, trust is one core value, they gotta trust themselves as a player, trust the work they put in, trust me over time, trust our staff that we'll put you in the right position, they gotta be guys of integrity. they need to have the right character make up. Competitiveness, I gotta have guys who are naturally competitive, were gonna teach that every day, gotta fight for everything you get. you gotta fight thru the good and bad in order to succeed. there are other values that i have with style of play, but these are my main core values.

Process of evaluation of current roster, what goes into it.


A: you gotta take a deep dive. the foundation is everything, you gotta get the foundation right. you look at analytics, you gotta have good enough players, that are efficient, what does a player do that translates to our style of play. how are they academically, socially, ask about positives negatives of academic advisors, etc. understand who they are, what they are. there are gonna be cases of players who are good enough, but are killing you in the locker room, thats not gonna work. thats big for me. not to say that guys that arent here are like that. we have guys who want to be here, believe in our vision, it will work out and pan out for years to come.

I was able to get lots of intel from people that i trust at the U about the kids. They would tell me, this is the type of kid you need to keep, I leaned on them for the decision making process.

Regarding the interview process. He interviewed for mid major HC jobs the last 3 years. Mentions that he would get 1st year ADs and they wanted to get their first basketball HC hire right, where Mark is a veteran AD and he has made multiples hires. So it's a different process for the ADs based on their experience.

Didn't take it personal when he didn't get a job. He believes demographic fit and budget comes into play during the decision making process.

a friend mentioned he needs to take care of himself/ have someone to talk to, not just be all about the job. It's something he's not doing or doesn't have right now when he talked to his friend. He needs to do that, but hasn't yet. Many top coaches have told him, you can't forget about yourself, you need to take care of your body (reminds me of how i though he looked tired on the IG live)
 

umn99 said:
I would recommend listening to this almost hour long interview with Ben Johnson. I found it very insightful on how he is going to run his program, what he is looking for in players/recruiting, his assistant coaches, and other topics.

Click to expand...
Excellent find! The best indepth interview of him by far. I like what he said and am still glad he is our coach!
 


Comparing actual events and the 12/5/2020 interview.
 



ecoperson said:
How many of our 'fans' will take the time to listen to this instead of frantically typing post after post with the same reasons that they think the sky is falling? I am seriously worried about some of the posters on here!
Click to expand...
This is a nice interview. Ben laid out what he's looking for in recruits and what he expects from players. It sounds like he wants to teach a conceptual, motion offense where players need to read the defense and act based upon what they read. This requires kids who can think on their feet.
I wish the interview had touched on all the players who have left and what his plan is for filling those spots, but overall a nice interview.
I also found his comparison of the Miami Heat to be interesting. I wish they explored that more. Does he like Jimmy Butler type players or was it more than that.
I liked his comparison of Murphy as an undersized kid who just outworked people. I think Ben is looking for those kinds of players.
 
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umn99 said:
I would recommend listening to this almost hour long interview with Ben Johnson. I found it very insightful on how he is going to run his program, what he is looking for in players/recruiting, his assistant coaches, and other topics.

Click to expand...
Thx. This was just posted on 5/12 so all of the discussion about who he keeps on the current roster is current and not from back before more players entered the portal.
 




And another one. Also very good! Smart of Ben to get out there talking in depth about how he wants to build the program and what he is all about.

 

For those who are truly interested in who Ben is, I highly recommend watching/listening to these pieces. The man has a plan. I was extremely impressed by his attention to even the smallest of details. I get what Mark Coyle saw in him. The odds are stacked against Ben right now but I hope that he gets an opportunity to see his plan through.
 

ecoperson said:
For those who are truly interested in who Ben is, I highly recommend watching/listening to these pieces. The man has a plan. I was extremely impressed by his attention to even the smallest of details. I get what Mark Coyle saw in him. The odds are stacked against Ben right now but I hope that he gets an opportunity to see his plan through.
Click to expand...
Absolutely. Listening to these, I understand why they shut down the search after meeting with him. Even the fact that Ben sits down, as we all do, to relax and binge a show on Amazon and takes something from how the training staff approaches injuries and how the Manager deals with the players in a docu-series and behind the scenes look at a season with Manchester City FC. He may not have the HC experience, but he’s been preparing to have a HC job for awhile.
 
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SanDiegoGopherFan said:
Didn't type every word, but this is the gist of what i found interesting the first half of the interview.

the roster was his first weeks objective:

A: the current roster is my objective first week. Who's on board, who do I need to convince, who do i need to talk to, who do i not have a chance with, who would i like to stay, try to figure that out first because that affects your recruiting. What do i have, what do i need to get? still going on now. First week, this consumed me. When can we talk, start building relationships, talk philosophies, what they want and what my vision is. Map out the direction to go recruiting wise and figure out what holes to fill.

What are some of the things philosophically that you can share with players about your style that would help them convince them to be able to stay to play with you?

A: My style is my core values. Goes back to being a former athlete playing here, asst coach. I let guys know what i stood for, what the program will stand for, that was the base. I looked at it two ways, trust is one core value, they gotta trust themselves as a player, trust the work they put in, trust me over time, trust our staff that we'll put you in the right position, they gotta be guys of integrity. they need to have the right character make up. Competitiveness, I gotta have guys who are naturally competitive, were gonna teach that every day, gotta fight for everything you get. you gotta fight thru the good and bad in order to succeed. there are other values that i have with style of play, but these are my main core values.

Process of evaluation of current roster, what goes into it.


A: you gotta take a deep dive. the foundation is everything, you gotta get the foundation right. you look at analytics, you gotta have good enough players, that are efficient, what does a player do that translates to our style of play. how are they academically, socially, ask about positives negatives of academic advisors, etc. understand who they are, what they are. there are gonna be cases of players who are good enough, but are killing you in the locker room, thats not gonna work. thats big for me. not to say that guys that arent here are like that. we have guys who want to be here, believe in our vision, it will work out and pan out for years to come.

I was able to get lots of intel from people that i trust at the U about the kids. They would tell me, this is the type of kid you need to keep, I leaned on them for the decision making process.

Regarding the interview process. He interviewed for mid major HC jobs the last 3 years. Mentions that he would get 1st year ADs and they wanted to get their first basketball HC hire right, where Mark is a veteran AD and he has made multiples hires. So it's a different process for the ADs based on their experience.

Didn't take it personal when he didn't get a job. He believes demographic fit and budget comes into play during the decision making process.

a friend mentioned he needs to take care of himself/ have someone to talk to, not just be all about the job. It's something he's not doing or doesn't have right now when he talked to his friend. He needs to do that, but hasn't yet. Many top coaches have told him, you can't forget about yourself, you need to take care of your body (reminds me of how i though he looked tired on the IG live)
Click to expand...
Did him seem tired?
 

He doesn't have the sense of humor of Pitino, but he does have the candor IMO.

I like how he continually stresses his core values and relationships, and even admits that he knows that kind of talk can be a gimmick or coach speak. I think it comes off as genuine and will play well for the families of recruits. He sounds like somebody that you would want to trust to develop your son for 1-4 years.
 

eker0016 said:
He doesn't have the sense of humor of Pitino, but he does have the candor IMO.

I like how he continually stresses his core values and relationships, and even admits that he knows that kind of talk can be a gimmick or coach speak. I think it comes off as genuine and will play well for the families of recruits. He sounds like somebody that you would want to trust to develop your son for 1-4 years.
Click to expand...

Yes, he comes across as very genuine. We'll see how that works with recruits. I think he might be the type that can tell right away if someone is not interested, so he'll probably move fairly quickly.

I wonder how many offers he'll put out there per year on average.
 

PMWinSTP said:
Did him seem tired?
Click to expand...

Others didn't think so, but compared to his opening presser plus 2 subsequent videos for UofM, the IG one he looked like he needed some sleep.

He admits at one point that he hasn't been taking care of himself so far, prioritizing the job 1st, which is noble, but that catches up and I think when you're recruiting, image/energy can matter to some recruits
 

SanDiegoGopherFan said:
Others didn't think so, but compared to his opening presser plus 2 subsequent videos for UofM, the IG one he looked like he needed some sleep.

He admits at one point that he hasn't been taking care of himself so far, prioritizing the job 1st, which is noble, but that catches up and I think when you're recruiting, image/energy can matter to some recruits
Click to expand...
Tired? Sure. I can see it. But you used the terms unprofessional and shabby. Not the same as tired.
 

umn99 said:
Tired? Sure. I can see it. But you used the terms unprofessional and shabby. Not the same as tired.
Click to expand...

I did after others wanted me to expand.

I don't think a coach who polarized the fan base and has lost all but 1 or 2 players from the previous regime should go on IG live (a UofM promoted event) without shaving or having his hair cut.

If he was Tom Izzo, or an established coach, who cares, but when you're trying to win over parts of the fan base, how you present yourself matters.
 


SanDiegoGopherFan said:
I did after others wanted me to expand.

I don't think a coach who polarized the fan base and has lost all but 1 or 2 players from the previous regime should go on IG live (a UofM promoted event) without shaving or having his hair cut.

If he was Tom Izzo, or an established coach, who cares, but when you're trying to win over parts of the fan base, how you present yourself matters.
Click to expand...
Let's be honest, there are a handful of pissed off people on the GH who are butthurt (you being one of them) who are desperate to polarize this hire. But the majority of people aren't acting like chicken little.
You want to be chicken little...fine, but that doesn't mean the fan-base is polarized. It just means you're bent sideways.
 



SanDiegoGopherFan said:
I did after others wanted me to expand.

I don't think a coach who polarized the fan base and has lost all but 1 or 2 players from the previous regime should go on IG live (a UofM promoted event) without shaving or having his hair cut.

If he was Tom Izzo, or an established coach, who cares, but when you're trying to win over parts of the fan base, how you present yourself matters.
Click to expand...
Good grief, take a break.
 


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