00:00Coach Jim Laranaga is the winningest head coach in the University of Miami men's basketball
00:06history and coach you grew up in New York so I'm guessing your rooting interest for tonight
00:12is the Knicks? No I don't really root for either team but I did grow up in New York I
00:21was a fan
00:21of the Knicks during the Bill Bradley era because when Bill Bradley was at Princeton I modeled part
00:28of my game after him I had really basically three role models Jerry West with the Lakers John
00:34Havlicek with the Celtics and Bill Bradley with the Knicks and the combination of those guys
00:42got me to be a pretty good high school and college player I didn't get to the NBA like those
00:46guys did
00:47though but but you know I think the Knicks probably in trouble I just don't like the matchups that
00:55they have and I like where the Spurs are and the Spurs will be at home tonight I think they're
01:03on a
01:03high I think they're on a mission I think the the Knicks are too so it'll be interesting not these
01:10first two games but how the Knicks play at home because I mean Hollywood row will be there
01:20celebrity row will be packed it'll be everybody in New York that's anybody you're gonna gonna have
01:29front row seats for this matchup well how can the Knicks win the series because they're they're big
01:35underdogs we saw what San Antonio was able to do to the defending champs how do the if you're coaching
01:42the Knicks how do they win this series okay well the first thing they have the right blend of of
01:49uh
01:50players in terms of mentality so you you've got you got uh Jalen Brunson and Bridges and Hart they
01:59they all play together at Villanova they've been together with the Knicks now several years and they
02:04they they really are great combination and and uh you put Carl Anthony Towns with them he gives them
02:14an Ananobi they give them some versatility you know uh Towns can play inside or outside he's
02:21not a point forward or or point center but he is very skillful so but I don't I don't think
02:30they
02:30have enough size Solana who's who's behind uh Carl Anthony Towns that can go in and match up with some
02:38of the size that that San Antonio has so Mitchell Robinson is the Knicks best role and he is gonna
02:46play by the way right he had surgery over the weekend on a pinky and nobody knows why by the
02:53way
02:53nobody knows why and and they did say it didn't happen at practice right didn't have him playing
02:57anything anything to do with basketball yeah how does one injure a pinky coach that when there's
03:03no basketball involved I don't know maybe could he possibly be picking his nose with his pinky
03:10and get it stuck up there somehow but he is cleared to play right well I don't know if he's
03:16cleared to
03:16play I he's playing I saw reports that he's going to play today but coach as as as somebody who
03:25would
03:25be game planning right uh for for a series like this the Knicks haven't played in nine days yeah
03:30they have not played basketball in nine days by the way let's be honest kind of a cakewalk for them
03:35to get to this part uh to this point as well and now they're going up against a team that's
03:39been
03:39battle tested who's coming in hot following an emotional game seven just three four days ago
03:45does that actually matter or is that just narrative stuff that we can talk about
03:50no I I think it definitely matters when you're used to playing like every other day and then all
03:56of a sudden you have a nine day layoff that you know your conditioning your timing your rhythm
04:03all of that can change dramatically now I don't I only think it lasts a short period of time
04:10maybe even just the first quarter but you got to get into the series uh I know everybody after
04:18game one will be talking about the Spurs win oh they're gonna run away it'll be a sweep and stuff
04:23but if the Knicks win everybody be like oh what's wrong with the Spurs no you got to let the
04:29players
04:29get into the series and figure out each other and the coaches have to figure out how to make adjustments
04:35and I said this before I think it's one of the things Eric Spolster has done a magnificent job
04:40back when when LeBron and D D Wade and Chris Bosh were playing they they might lose a game I
04:47think
04:47they lost the first game uh to to uh Kevin Durant and OKC yeah and then they just started moving
04:56moving uh him around they put him in the low post and he got guys in foul trouble then they
05:01switched
05:02uh Kendrick Perkins on him so he went outside and started nailing threes and penetrating and pitching you
05:08you kind of figure out what the other team's strategy is and then how to counteract that with a good
05:15strategy it really is like a chess game and the coaches have a lot of work their staff has a
05:22lot
05:22of work after game one game one is going to be decided who plays well who shoots well but you
05:29see
05:29in these series what what did the Spurs do so well in the first half against uh against OKC
05:38they they nailed threes yeah and and if you look at what what uh Cleveland did they couldn't make a
05:44shot you know James Harden went like one for seven and two for 13 in the last couple of games
05:52so
05:53who's going to shoot it well tonight who's going to play well tonight okay that's important get off to
05:58a good start get ahead 1-0 in the series but it's more important after the game that coaching staff
06:05getting together and figuring out okay what adjustments do we have to make do we nude and
06:11I wouldn't be surprised you know the Knicks have been terrific defensively I wouldn't be surprised
06:18that they threw some zone in there now now you've been adamant all season long Victor Wembenyama
06:25slow your roll with him he's got to win a championship but you would have to acknowledge
06:31what has he put the NBA on notice at least through this season and the postseason I'm the next superstar
06:39I'm legit I'm the next big thing I would absolutely say 100% yes as long as he stays healthy
06:50and the guy's got all the tools you know it's not just height it's it's size the length of your
06:59arms
07:00how high you jump your vertical and um is he going to get stronger because as he puts on a
07:07little bit
07:07of weight a little bit of strength that adds another dimension to his game uh and of course the NBA
07:14is
07:14backing him to the hilt I mean he's their their new superstar and they're going to promote him and put
07:21him in the best situations you know TV games he'll be featured all next season you know Christmas day
07:28he'll be on you know uh so the guy guy is special you guys said it before I did but
07:37I I felt like
07:39OKC would win that series and then next year if they were able to retain all these guys they're so
07:47young I mean they're like what 20 21 22 24 25 I'm like that that's really hard to win a
07:57championship
07:57with a bunch of college players if they're going to do it now like it's scary what the future holds
08:03for the NBA if these guys can do this yeah I mean it's scary but also the NBA ruined uh
08:09team building
08:10and young team building like this because of the stupid CBA so in five years they'll have to do it
08:16all over again which is what Oklahoma City is going to face now but coach because Wemby's ahead of
08:21the timeline which we all agree with if he wins this title are you are you ready to say he's
08:28better
08:28than Kareem Abdul-Jabbar you keep coming back to something that's so totally irrelevant okay sorry
08:37let me put it this way uh Kareem was the best during his era Wilt Chamberlain was the best in
08:49his era
08:49Larry Bird was the best Michael Jordan was the best Magic Johnson was the best you know Wemby's
08:56going to be the best of this next generation but would have dominated them all in their eras as well
09:02no that's not true no I would have loved to see him go against Kareem and you guys watch Kareem
09:13not shoot any trees you can't shoot anything only shoot one shot the sky hook and do it uh 25
09:22times a
09:23game for five six or seven game series and when Bayama then at after they lose go home and say
09:31I
09:32got to develop a sky hook although if anyone could block the sky hook I think it's Wemby I think
09:38he's
09:38the only one that could get that lane Will Chamberlain blocked it a couple of times he did the sky
09:44hook
09:45Kareem would have needed the outer space hook to get over the top of Victor Wembanyama coach
09:50he's his hands are in the stratosphere they're over the sky how will coach Jim Laranega watch the NBA
09:58finals tonight and throughout the series what's your TV setup at home I turn the TV on and I turn
10:06on
10:06the NBA game I don't know what you're asking do you have do you have an 85 inch or I
10:11have a
10:11Samsung I have a Samsung that I think is uh seven feet eight feet
10:20it's big yeah that sounds like it I don't know how many inches that is well yeah I don't know
10:24well I don't I don't believe in inches you only work in feet yeah yeah yeah I think it's I
10:31think
10:31it's seven seven feet like 84 inches something like that um and you'll sit on the couch the entire
10:38game will you ever lay on the couch you'll lay on the couch popcorn uh maybe one game I don't
10:46think
10:46tonight no you'll just watch the game no snacks no drink no I'll be snacking like crazy oh what
10:53will you snack on I I might have some ice cream might have some Oreos I might have ice cream
10:59and
10:59Oreos I'm all my favorite I I've saved some Girl Scout cookies for this because I I know how much
11:07you like Girl Scout cookies what a way to ruin an NBA finals game I get what what do you
11:12have the
11:12Thin Mints yeah Thin Mints yeah what will you eat the entire sleeve oh yeah for sure that's that's
11:20in the first half will Mrs. Laranega watch the game with you um she might she might she might fall
11:28asleep watching but she'll she'll be watching for you get annoyed watching the game at all if you see
11:33maybe uh a switch that's driving you crazy if you see a matchup that's driving you crate like do you
11:40watch through a coach's eyes or you just say hey it's the NBA finals I'm just kind of watching and
11:46enjoying when guys make stupid passes or take stupid shots hey there's some ridiculously bad plays
11:54guys who who who who miss a layup and then don't get back on defense because they're busy busy doing
12:02palms up to the ref do you know what palms up is yeah how am I doing I got fouled
12:08come on
12:08that was that was the thing we get back on defense you idiot we love that from Dwayne Wade he's
12:15been
12:15to have his he's been to have his career down here underneath his own basket while the play was
12:20going on in the opposing basket never yeah it's terrible whoever taught them that whoever allowed
12:26them I had a player you guys will not know this name but he was a great junior college player
12:31his
12:32team won the junior college national championship he was named the player uh the national player of the
12:37year his name is is Darren Tarver and and your conference call you got to go to your no no
12:44no I
12:44don't know why my phone rang it shouldn't be on silent so Darren Darren Tarver I sign him he comes
12:52in place for me and in our our our first exhibition game he shoots a layup misses and does the
13:00palms up
13:01and and I immediately take him out we're we're only like a minute into the game you have zero
13:08tolerance for that oh god so he comes out he said why'd you take me out I said you didn't
13:15get back
13:15on defense he said you took me out for that I said yeah in addition you threw your palms up
13:22and said to
13:23referee you got foul which you didn't get foul so get your butt back on defense and Darren I'm telling
13:30you this every time you do that you're getting taken out I don't care what time of the game it
13:36is
13:38I put him back in like at the first tv timeout a minute later he shoots he shoots and misses
13:49a jump shot
13:49tries to go in an offensive rebound he doesn't get the offensive rebound but falls down
13:58I take him out he comes over he comes over to the bench coach why'd you take me out I
14:05said you
14:06didn't get back on defense I felt I fell down I said yeah you shouldn't have fallen down you had
14:11no
14:12reason to fall down you didn't get hit it was a big act uh and I'm not putting up with
14:18that
14:19so a few minutes later I put him back in he starts hustling back on defense he got the message
14:28in our first in our first game he had 30 points and no palms up in our second game he
14:36had 20
14:37and broke his foot and never played again never played again so your your policy was what hey I'll
14:45complain to the reps if I think there was a missed call you just play the game if there's a
14:49missed call
14:49just get back on d I don't want to see anything out of you I tried very hard not to
14:54complain about
14:55the officiating because and I would tell the players this how many times have you complained
15:00and the referee changed the call right and the answer is none I said I will deal with the referees
15:08not
15:09complaining but I will tell them what I saw and I will say say them something to the effect
15:18our guy went to the basket strong I thought he got hit I thought you missed it what do you
15:24think
15:25and and the guy might say yeah I think I missed that or he might say no he was faking
15:30he didn't get he
15:32you were always working the refs but not through an aggressive manner yeah I'm a leader I I'm not
15:39embarrassing them one of the things referees will get you you embarrass them you make them they don't
15:45want to call technical fouls you make them call a technical foul on you they're they're like oh man
15:51that was not good now what they did to me one time you guys know buzz williams the head coach
15:57of
15:58maryland now but he was the head coach of virginia tech early early in the game he threw his coat
16:04and got a technical foul we were up 20 we're crushing them all of a sudden every call is going
16:11his way so I said I said to the ref who was just standing right next to me we like
16:18shooting a free
16:18throw I said do I have to throw my coat and get a technical to get a get a good
16:23call now and the guy
16:24looked at me the next time down the floor I took my jacket off and threw it at my assistants
16:30he
16:30called a tea and we got every call the rest of the game that's a great story coach Jim Laranaga
16:40he
16:40gives us an hour of his time on Wednesdays we always appreciate it I'll text you during the game tonight
16:46yeah please do please do we'll do thank you I'll be coaching I'll be watching I'll see you coach see
16:53you guys
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