Point Guard

Point Guard

Postby Wayne23 » Mon Dec 21, 2015 4:18 am

Point Guard
(Thanks to PointGuard for the idea of doing a dynasty from multiple perspectives)

April 16, 2020: Office of NJIT A. D. Wes Chino. He is with his assistant, Pete Cummings:

“I don’t know. All that drinking…”

“He hasn’t had a drink in 3 or 4 years-”

“Yeah but once a drunk…”

“Who else do we have? Give him an interview, Boss. At the very least he’d bring us a lot of publicity, probably get us some recruits we’d never get otherwise.”

“Maybe…”

April 18: Home of Zak Zachery. Zak and his wife, Dawn:

“You can do this, Zak. It’s the biggest chance we’ve had in a long time.”

“I know. Jesus, I’m scared.”

“Just be yourself in the interview, hon. No one knows the game better than you.”

“Yeah, but what do I do when they ask me about-”

“Answer all the questions honestly. The drinking is behind you. You beat it- beat it to hell and back.”

“But will they believe it?”

The Story- Outline:

Zak Zachery came to the University of West Virginia as the most highly touted freshman since, well, probably since the man he was most compared to, Magic Johnson.

Zak was known as “White Magic.” 6’ 8” Point Guard, but he could play all five positions, could shoot the lights out, especially from three point range, could pass like no one since Stockton, defend like no one since Bill Russell, rebound- he did it all. The only thing that differentiated him from the original “Magic” was speed. He was way quicker than Johnson was.

He put together a freshman season unparalleled in college hoop history. Hit more threes, and at a higher percentage, than any Division I player ever. Broke the season assist record, had the fifth highest scoring season in NCAA history, finished fourth in the nation in rebounding, third in steals, and 3rd in blocked shots. He was national Freshman of the Year, Player of the Year, Defensive Player of the Year, and NCAA tournament Most Outstanding Player as he led the Mountaineers to their first and only national title.

He then left for the NBA. He was the #1 pick overall, going to the Clippers. His first 20 games were incredible. He was at least as dominating in the NBA as he had been in the NCAA. Then in game 21 he tore both his ACL and MCL, as well as everything else there was to tear, in his left knee. Most of these injuries can be repaired, but after two years and four surgeries, it was clear that his knee injury was not going to be reparable. He would walk with a limp forever unless he got a new knee.

And with or without a knee replacement there was no way he would ever play competitive basketball again.

Money was not an issue. He had managed to get himself a four year guaranteed contract for several million, and his wife, Dawn, was a financial analyst. They were set for life.

They bought a beautiful home on the northern end of the Jersey shore, and lived within their means. Dawn saw to that.

So Zip’s career ended at age 19 ½, and at age 21, when he got the definitive word that there would be no return, he became a professional drunk.

He drank himself into oblivion for the next 4 ½ years. He was seen drunk in public too often, managed to get only one DUI arrest, but got a lot of the very worst kind of publicity.

Somehow the marriage survived- barely. Zak said he never cheated on Dawn, and the evidence seems to back that up. No doubt that helped. But what really helped was that Dawn’s love for, and belief in Zak never wavered, no matter how bad things got.

“One day I woke up next to Dawn, feeling like absolute hell, and said to myself that it had to stop. I got out of bed and found an AA meeting. It changed my life- not in the way you think. That meeting scared me so bad that I told myself I would do ANYTHING not to have to go back there again. AA would get me to quit, I was sure of that, but Jesus, I just couldn’t face those people again, not even once. So I quit drinking. That day. For good. Dawn didn’t believe it at first but it stuck.

“At age 26 I decided it was time to build a life. All I knew was hoops. I went to my old high school coach, Dick Burns, and asked if I could work with his program- for free. He looked at me in ‘that way’ people look at a drunk. Somehow I convinced him to give me a chance. I also coached a kids’ rec league team.

“I had a ball that year, Loved every minute of it. Dawn could see the change, and I was lucky enough that she gave me a chance to rebuild what we had had in our relationship before the knee injury. We’ve been building it ever since and frankly, my relationship with my wife is the best, most important thing that could ever happen to me.

“Anyway, Coach Burns retired that year and convinced the school to give me the job. I held it for two years and was very successful.

“At that point I decided it was time to apply for a head coaching job at a small Division I college. I’m a Jersey guy, born and raised. When I saw that NJIT had an opening for a head coach I applied. I applied to a couple of other schools as well, but this was the job I wanted.”

Dawn Zachery:

“I don’t suppose ours has ever been a ‘typical’ marriage. We met when Zak was 18 and I was 26. He was on his way to the NBA and needed a financial manager to negotiate his contract and then to manage his money. Coach Burns gave him a few names. He chose mine, called me, and we hit it off right away.

“He was just a kid but he wasn’t a kid, really. He knew what he wanted, in basketball, and in life. His plan was to go to the NBA, to avoid the pitfalls like drugs and fast women, to be the best basketball player who ever lived, and to take care of himself in order to do that- exercise, eat right, get plenty of sleep... He made it clear that he wanted a home life, a wife and a family. I didn’t see any wildness at all in him.

“And I liked what I saw. It didn’t occur to me that we would become romantically involved; I was too old for him. But in very little time we found ourselves drawn to one another. We talked through the age thing, the fame thing, everything, at least it seemed that way. And we got married just before the start of the Clippers training camp.

“Everything was great, couldn’t have been better. Then the injury. He was heartbroken, devastated. He stayed positive through all of the surgeries, the consultations, the many failed attempts to reconstruct the knee.

“Then when he got the word that it was hopeless it was like the air went out of him. I don’t think he had ever had more than one drink in a night at any time in his life. That night he got completely, falling down, throwing up drunk. And then proceeded to continue to do so… for a few years.

“I don’t know how I stayed with him. I really don’t. I guess it was love; I have no other explanation. I kept telling myself this was not a surprise given how invested he was in something that was now irretrievably lost. I told myself he’d get past it. He’d come out of it.

“Finally he did. And ever since, I have never stopped being thankful that I stayed with it.”
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Re: Point Guard

Postby Wayne23 » Mon Dec 21, 2015 4:21 am

The Job Interview

The questions were brutal. Wes Chino and Pete Cummings fired basketball question after basketball question at me. I felt like I handled all of them- scouting, recruiting, assistant coaches, alumni, the press, practices, game situations, big men, guards, the transition game. Then the line of questioning changed.

“Zak, I’ve got to ask-”

“I haven’t had a drink in just over three and a half years. I have no desire to have a drink. I am never tempted to have a drink.”

In the end we agreed to a three year contract. Written in was a clause saying I would be immediately terminated if I was seen drunk in public, or even seen having a single drink in public. That wasn’t anything that worried me in the least.

May 1, 2020 The Newark News, Mike Boss, “The Sports Boss”:

Today NJIT hired a new head coach, the immortal hoops legend Zak “White Magic” Zachery. Shakespeare asks, “What’s in a name?” Apparently a hell of a lot if a burned out alcoholic with no collegiate coaching experience can get a job as a head coach in Division I. WTF is Wes Chino thinking! Assuming he’s thinking at all. From now on the NJIT Highlanders might as well be known as the Higher than a kite landers. I’ll be checking in to see how quickly this idiotic idea crashes and burns. I have 11 days in the office pool.

May 5: GSPN:

“Red Waggins, here on the sporting channel. After a rocky few years the name of Zak Zachery has resurfaced in the sports arena. You remember Zak from his championship season at West Virginia, and for those incredible 20 games he spent in the NBA before a knee injury ended his career. After a couple of years of trying to rebuild the knee it all went down the tubes for Zak and he fell into the bottle about as hard as a person can. He claims he found his way out and straightened up. After he spent three years coaching at the high school level, NJIT A. D. Wes Chino decided to take a chance on ‘White Magic.’”

“Zak Zachery knows the game of basketball. Sure, he had some tough years but here at NJIT we’re convinced that he’s ready, and that he’ll do a great job for us.”

“Time will tell. We have a psychiatrist, Dr. Boyce Sisters, here with us. Dr. Sisters, how will Zachery handle the stress?”

“Well, Red, a recovering alcoholic or drug addict often has to be extremely careful regarding taking on challenges for which he is not psychologically prepared. If the patient moves too quickly, assumes too large a burden, it can often lead to a return to the self-destructive habits that plagued him in the past.”

“So you’re saying Zachery will probably fall back into the bottle, Doctor?”

“Perhaps, but not necessarily. If he is able to remain relatively calm in his approach, and is able to master the high degree of stress which is unavoidable in this profession, if he has a support system- a loving family, supportive friends and co-workers, he may be able to be successful. But it is by no means going to be easy for him.”

“Thank you Dr. Sisters. This is Red Waggins. We’ll be checking in on Zak Zachery as the season progresses.”

May 11: Wes Chino and Pete Cummings

“I have to say I’m impressed with the assistants he was able to get, Pete. Considering that we have practically no money, he did really well. Ray D’Io did a terrific job for years scouting for Rutgers. I can’t believe he talked him out of retirement.

“Same with his #3, Tommy Gunn. Tommy is a terrific bench coach; Seton Hall had him as their #1 for years. I knew he hated retirement so I guess I’m not shocked, but still, great hire! How Zak talked him into taking the #3 job when he’d been a #1 for years, I have no idea.

“Not so sure about his #2. I mean Hardin Sole is a high school coach.”

“Yeah, Wes, but he was at a private school and he recruited from all over the world. Built a terrific program.”

“Well, Pete, we know he can recruit at the high school level. We’ll see how he does here, I guess. Still, Zak is really high on this guy, so we’ll see.”

“And how about this kid camp thing? Great idea or what?”

“Yeah. It’ll cost us a little money but not a hell of a lot. It gives him a chance to see his players since all of them will be hired to work at the camp.”

“And hey, if he gets some decent ball players to attend he might be able to build for the future.”

“Good job buying just the Eastern Gold scouting report. He’s not gonna get many national or international players. Good not to waste money there.”

“Again, we’ll see, but he gets points for trying; I gotta say I love how hard he’s working.”

“Everybody loves him. He already knows everybody’s name, even the office girls and the custodians.”
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Re: Point Guard

Postby Wayne23 » Mon Dec 21, 2015 4:24 am

May 12: Mike Boss, Newark News, “The Sports Boss”:

“Well, we were wrong. Zak Zachery is still at the helm at NJIT and it’s day 12. He made some questionable hires. I mean two retired old geezers and a high school coach? Come on! Keep reading this column for further developments on ‘White Lightning’ Zachery.”

May 13 Assistant Coach Ray D’Io:

I have to say I’m impressed with the kid. He charmed me into coming out of retirement, mostly because I remember what an absolutely incredible player he was. I go back a long way and I never saw a better college player, not Magic, not Bird, not even Jordan. I was a little leery because of all the boozing, but it looks like he beat that.

Anyway, our first staff meeting convinced me I made the right move. He was organized, knew what he wanted to accomplish, and got it done with very little wasted time. Like most people I hate meetings, but this one worked.

It will be great to work with my old pal Tommy Gunn. His school and mine were rivals here in Jersey, and we sat on opposite benches for a long time. We always liked each other. Whenever we’d meet at tournaments, coaches’ conventions- wherever- we wound up sitting together. He’s an old and a dear friend. I think we’ll work great together.

The kid, Hardin Sole, is full of enthusiasm. I think that alone will get kids to want to come here. He has a tough job though. Recruiting to this school won’t be easy at first. We don’t have a lot to offer. Coach Zachery addressed that at the meeting. He said we need to sell our future. We’re here to build a top notch program and the first couple years of recruits will be the ones who build the foundation. Might work, I guess. But we need to win in the first two years. That’s what will bring kids here.

May 14 Tommy Gunn, Assistant Coach

Zachery knows what he wants. We’ll run Princeton and on Triangle on offense against the zone, and I like his man to man offense, and then we’ll go about 50% man, 50% 2-3 on D. We won’t press a lot. All of that works for me.

What works better is that he seems good with people. He listens. He’s no pushover though. He’s the boss, and it shows. Still, people like him. I think we’ll build something special here. I’m glad to be in at the beginning. And working with my old buddy Ray D’Io is a bonus. We go back a long way.

May 15: Chloe Wasps, Executive Assistant to the A. D., NJIT:

“We all just love Coach Zachery. He’s been here just two weeks and he feels like family already. He knows my little Anesta just loves ballet and he asks about it.
Our Mr. Moppe, the custodian, has a sick wife, and the Coach never fails to check to see is she getting better. He’s just a living doll!”

May 17 Barry Meenotte, P. R. for NJIT sports:

That drunken bum Zachery won’t get any help from me. The job should have gone to Fred Krueger. Freddie had been #1 assistant here for five years. It’s a damn shame to pass him over. I don’t blame him for quitting when it happened. He’s my best friend, has been for years. Any good publicity Zachery gets won’t come from this office.

May 19 Jess Kidden, head soccer coach, NJIT:

I HATE this kind of thing. I fought like hell to work my way up to head coach. Zachery makes a big name for himself and that gets him a job in no time, despite the fact that he drank away most of the time since he quit playing. It’s not right!

May 20 May Knot, assistant publisher, The Newark News (Father owns the paper):

Zak Zachery dumped me for that tramp he married. We’d been going together for three years until she came along. I am THRILLED that I’m in a position to make him pay!

May 23 GSPN:

“Red Waggins here with Jim Beam, Head Coach of the Knicks.

“Coach, we’ve talked about the Knicks. Now let’s shift. What do you think about Zak Zachery getting the job at NJIT?”

“I couldn’t be happier for Zak. I never saw anyone who could do what he did with a basketball. He was truly unbelievable. But the real truth about him is that he worked at it. I mean really worked. He got to be the best because he had a lot of natural talent, of course, but he did everything he could to maximize that talent. If he has that kind of work ethic as a coach, and I have no doubt he will, he’ll be a big success.”

“What about the drinking?”

“Look, Red, everybody has ups and downs in life. Zak was devastated when his career ended so suddenly, and so early. I have no doubt he saw himself breaking every record in the NBA book, and with his talent I believe he would have done it. Having that taken away from him had to just destroy him. It’s no surprise he lost control of himself for a while. But he got past it. And I believe he’s completely past it. He happens to be married to an incredible woman. Dawn stuck with him through the worst, and now she’ll support him as he climbs the ladder, and I have no doubt he WILL climb the ladder.”

June 1 Dawn Zachery:

Zak’s doing just a terrific job. Everyone at NJIT seems to love him. He’s handling the pressure really well so far.

June 6 Jess Kidden Head soccer coach, NJIT:

I’m keeping the pressure on the A. D. to get me press and money. We won the conference last year, and we’ve been the only successful team here for years. I don’t want that ink and money going to the basketball program. Fortunately, Barry Meenotte, our P. R. guy here, is on my side.

June 12 May Knot, assistant publisher, The Newark Times:

Mike Boss keeps writing negative articles on Zachery, and I keep praising him for those articles. I want to bring this guy DOWN!
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Re: Point Guard

Postby Wayne23 » Mon Dec 21, 2015 12:55 pm

June 26 Hardin Sole, recruiting assistant:

We have 5 scholarships. We probably need bigs more than guards but Zak and I agree that we want the five best players we can get. We’ll worry about positions later.
We’re looking at 21 players, most from here in Jersey.

June 27 Zak Zachery, thoughts

It’s been wonderful. It’s so great to feel like I’m doing something useful, something I’m good at and can be successful at. I know the real test is winning games, and who knows how that will go while we build the program. But all Wes Chino asked was that we not finish last in conference. That happened in each of the last three years here, and in 6 of the past 8 seasons. But I’m determined it won’t happen this year.

The pressure has not been a problem. Dawn tries to keep me balanced. She knows I’ll be working at least 12 hours most days, but she helps me to not make it 15 or 18.
We watch a video, or go out to eat, or go into NYC to watch a show or something when she thinks I need that. She quit her job when I got hired here, thinking that I would need her. She’s right, I do. There was so much travelling involved in her financial management job. She represented entertainers and athletes, really high profile people with LOTS of money. She’ll probably go back to that once things get settled, but for now, I need her by my side, and fortunately, she sees that. I don’t deserve this woman, but I hope she never figures that out.

We talk about starting a family. She’s 37, so the biological clock is running. But now is not the time.

July 17 WNRK radio, Newark, New Jersey:

“Jim Dandy, here on Jim Dandy Sports. We have Coach Zak Zachery with us tonight. How’s the new job, Coach?”

“I’m loving it, Jim. The pace is pretty hectic, but it’s a dream come true, coaching here at NJIT.”

“But this is not what you envisioned yourself doing at age 29.”

“No Jim, it isn’t. But things happen. Given the circumstances, there’s nowhere I’d rather be, nothing I’d rather be doing.”

“Talk about what it was like. You were on a path to be a hall of fame pro hoops player; some say maybe the best ever. And then the knee fell apart. It must have been devastating.”

“I describe it as having my heart broken, Jim. All my life I had aimed for just one thing, worked for it every day since I was maybe 8 years old, and that thing was taken from me. As everyone knows I didn’t react very well, and I did some things I’m not proud of. But now I realize how incredibly lucky I am. First and foremost I have a wife who stayed with me through all of it, for which I will be eternally grateful, and second, I’ve been fortunate enough to make a new start. I don’t plan to squander this opportunity.”

“And the alcohol problem?”

“Jim, I can honestly say that I never think about having a drink. I don’t even want one.”

“And when things get tough? As the head coach of one of the weakest programs in Division I there are bound to be some tough times ahead. Will the frustrations lead you back to the bottle?”

“Not a chance, Jim. I understand that this is a project; it’s going to take some time. I truly believe that with the fantastic staff I’ve compiled, and with the great support I have from both the athletic department and the university in general, we’re going to build a successful program. I’ll be fine.”

“You didn’t handle pressure too well last time, Coach.”

“And I’ve learned from all of that. Nothing on earth will drag me down to that level again.”

“So, enough darkness. What’s on the bright side?”

“Tomorrow! And all of the tomorrows. We’re recruiting right now, and Hardin Sole, my recruiter, is doing a great job. I think people will be pleasantly surprised by the caliber of kids we land.

“We’re planning for the season. My bench coach, Tommy Gunn, has given me some great ideas as we plan what we’ll run on offense, how we’ll play D, what we’ll do in transition, our substitution patterns- all of it. What a find he was!

“And speaking of finds, is there a better scout in the East than my #1, Ray D’Io? We’re already going over game tapes of our conference opponents from last season. Ray is breaking down what they like to do, who they go to in critical moments- all of it.”

“Sounds like you’re pretty busy.”

“Oh yeah. It’s a double full time job. But man is it fun! There’s also scheduling. Wes Chino, Pete Cummings and I are trying to put together a season. We don’t want too many tough opponents this season. We want wins because wins will get kids to come here. We will want challenges later, but not yet.”

“So cupcakes for dessert.”

“Well, (laughs) we’ve been dessert for a lot of people over the past few years. We want to change that.”

“Coach, what about balance? You know what they say about all work and no play.”

“My wife Dawn is my treasure. She keeps a close eye on me. When she thinks I’m working too many hours she lets me know and we go to dinner, or to a show, just take a night off. As I said before, she’s the best thing in my life.”

“Coach, there are a lot of people in Jersey rooting for you. All the best.”

“Thanks Jim.”

July 29 Al Moppe, custodian, NJIT athletic department

Coach Zachery is a hell of a man. He don’t know me from Adam, but he found out right away that my Martha is sickly, breast cancer. Ain’t a day he don’t ask about her.
He even sent her flowers a couple times when she was having chemo. I’d do anything for that guy.

Oh, he found out I played here, shooting guard, about 20 years ago. He’s all the time saying, “Suit up, Al! We need shooters!”

August 10 Hardin Sole:

Recruiting is a challenge. I don’t have anything to sell but hopes, dreams, and most of all, Zak’s fame as a superstar player. I think we’ll be at this right until April, but eventually we’ll get some good guys to give us a chance, and come here. We’ll probably make some offers later in the month.

August 15 Dawn Zachery

Zach needed a break so I made him take the weekend off. I know he snuck down to his office a couple of times, but not for long. We had a great weekend, went to see that new comedy on Broadway; Nathan Lane is as terrific as ever. We had dinner at a nice little place in the East Village that I’d been wanting us to try forever. It was perfect.

Then Saturday we just watched a film at home, and called for Chinese. That was fun, too.

Yesterday was unseasonably cool, just a beautiful Sunday. We went for a walk. Zak has to be careful, but he can walk as long as the pace is reasonable. He uses his treadmill most days because a smooth surface is better for that knee. But I knew this trail that was pretty smooth. It was nice, peaceful.

By evening he was back to work, on the phone, on the computer- all of it. But I think I managed to get him away for a couple of days, and that recharged his batteries!

August 21 Hardin Sole:

We offered to a PG, 2 SFs, 2 PFs. We want guards, but we think we have an outside shot at these guys. Believe me, we won’t get all five. I’d be happy to land two, maybe even one of them.

September 4 Zak:

Hardin and I are working like crazy on recruiting, calling, texting, visiting. Nothing yet, but it all heats up right now.

September 6 Marcia Long, NJIT President:

I am sick of being asked about Zak Zachery. Do not misunderstand, I am behind Coach Zachery all the way; I truly believe he will do a wonderful job here. But heavens, I have a university to run. The basketball program isn’t exactly at the top of my priority list. Given what it has been for the seven years that I have been here as President, it isn’t really anywhere near the top of the list. Will the Coach change that? Nothing succeeds like success. If he manages to be successful that will only help NJIT.
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Re: Point Guard

Postby Wayne23 » Mon Dec 21, 2015 4:55 pm

September 18 Zak:

We hope we’re making some progress with recruits but it’s a struggle.

We’ve put together a schedule. 4 at home, 5 on the road before conference play starts. All 1 to 1 ½ star teams.

September 25 Hardin Sole:

We lost a guy we thought we really had a shot at. We think we’re close with two others.

October 2 Hardin:

We lost two more we thought we had a shot at.

Tommy Gunn:

First day of practice. Kris Brew is our best player. He’s an SF but we’re very thin inside so he’ll probably back up our PF and C. Ben Gore, a guard, and Buzz Joss, a PF, also look good. It’s early, of course.

We’re picked to finish 9th in the 10 team American East Conference.

October 16 Zak:

I am getting frustrated regarding recruiting. We knew it would be tough and is it ever! Oh well, just keep at it. That’s all we can do.
Wes Chino, NJIT A. D.:

I had a talk with our P. R. guy, Barry Meenotte. I was a little upset about how little press the release of our schedule got, and I told him so. His answer was not helpful. I’m not sure what’s going on with Barry. He’s always done a great job for Jess Kidden and the soccer program. I’ll keep an eye on this and tell Pete Cummings to do the same.

October 18 Barry Meenotte and Jess Kidden:

“Yeah, Jess, he’s giving me some sh*t about not doing enough for the basketball program.”

“Throw him a bone, Barry. Nothing big, just a little something to let him think you’re trying. Hey, thanks for that great article on Sunday’s game. I really like how you talked about us working so hard. Thanks for not focusing on the score.”

“Well, 3-0 isn’t something I’m going to focus on when we get the 0 part.”

November 6 Zak:

Well, we played our two exhibition games, one home, one away. We learned a lot. Ray, Tommy, Hardin, and I had some long meetings going deep into the night, in order to try to come up with a lineup. There’s a little good news, and a lot of bad news.

First the good news, junior center Joe Mily hadn’t shown us a great deal in practice. He really stepped up during the exhibition games. He’ll start inside. Junior Ken Horn will be the other starter inside. These two will probably shift between PF and C about equally. Senior Kris Brew, who we thought might be our best player, didn’t look anywhere close to that in the games. But he’s our third best rebounder. He’ll start at SF and back up at 4 and 5. Senior Buzz Joss was disappointing inside. He’ll back up at SF and PF.

The big surprise at guard was junior Brad Crew. He’ll start at SG and play a little PG. Three guards, junior Ben Gore, soph Kip Camp, and frosh Gabe Raff will get the rest of the minutes.

This is not a strong team but let’s see what develops. It will be interesting to see what lineup changes we try as the season moves along.

Tommy Gunn:

Man, this team is a mess. 2 guys who can play, one other one who can sort of play, one other who can almost play, and 4 who know the ball is round. After that? Pinochle players. It’s gonna be a long season. And if recruiting doesn’t pick up it won’t get better next year. Oh well, I knew this was a project.

Ray D’Io: I think we’ll be okay. No world beaters here, but we’ve got a couple of good inside players, a real outside shooter, and a few guys who seem decent. The competition at this level is not that strong. I’ll bet we win about half our games and finish between 4th and 6th in our conference.

Hardin Sole: I like what I see. We’re gonna be fine. Now to get some kids to commit!

November 15 Dawn:

Zak didn’t sleep a wink last night. Neither did I. We open this evening at Chicago ST. I decided to go on this first road trip. I probably know more about Chicago ST then some of their players do. It’s all Zak has talked about for the past couple of days.

I hope we can start with a win, but at the very least I hope we play decent ball.
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Re: Point Guard

Postby Wayne23 » Mon Dec 21, 2015 6:05 pm

November 16 Zak:

62-64 at Chicago ST. So close! They beat us inside, not with rebounding, we were even in that stat. They scored 26 in the paint and we scored 4. Aside from that the stats were pretty even. Brad Crew led us with 14, and fellow guard Ben Gore had 12. Joe Mily had 11. We didn’t get as much from our bench as they did either. But it was inside D that did it.

Tommy Gunn:

They beat us inside. Zak should have collapsed in with a 2-3, and left the man to man, but he alternated the two defenses right until the end. I suggested the change but he didn’t listen. I’ll have a private talk with him. Rookie mistake, he’ll learn.

November 17 Zak:

Tommy thinks we should have gone more with the 2-3, especially late. I looked at the game tape about 10 times, and he’s right. He says he suggested it but in the heat of the moment I either didn’t hear him or it didn’t register. We made a pretty good comeback. We were down 13 with 5 ½ left. Hm, 2-3…

November 18 Wes Chino, A. D., with his assistant Pete Cummings:

“We need to find some money in the budget.”

“Why?”

“That damned P. R. guy Barry Meenotte. I don’t know WTF is going on but he’s not doing a thing for Zak and the team. I want to hire an assistant for basketball.”

“Can we come up with the money?”

“I’m going to speak with Marcia Long. I think she’ll help.”

“The Pres.? Didn’t think like she was big on hoops.”

“Oh she is, just not as big as we are. Maybe we can get that guy from the Trenton Times to do it part time.”

November 18 Dawn:

Home debut with UIC. It was thrilling to be there. We won! 48-42. We led most of the way but never by much. Zak said we lost our first game inside. Tonight we probably won inside. We had 30 rebounds and held them to 22. We didn’t do much scoring inside but scoring was weird. No one got more than 8 points for us, but 9 players scored. I’d say Kris Brew probably had our best game, 7 and 7, and very good D.

Tommy Gunn:

I’ll say this for the kid, he learns. It was a sloppy game with not a lot of scoring, but when they did score it was probably gonna be inside. He stayed with alternating defenses but when the last media time out came, at 2:33, with us up 42-40, he spoke to me before talking with the team.

“What do you think, Tommy? Go strictly 2-3 the rest of the way?”

“I’d try it. We still have 3 time outs. We can change back if we need to. Their last three buckets were inside, plus 2 free throws on a foul on a layup; it just makes sense.”

“Thanks.”

“We went out and played the 2-3, and we outscored them 6-2 for the rest of the way to bring it home. Like I said, the kid listens.”

November 19 Staff meeting: Ray D’Io:

Lots of discussion about strategy, minutes, changes… Zak finally said that they would re-evaluate after one or two more games. He wanted to stay with the lineup a little longer. Too much change too soon could be disruptive and confusing. I agree. Tommy kind of pushed for change but he agreed, in the end. Same discussion regarding man to man vs. 2-3. Tommy wants us to go more 2-3, maybe all 2-3; Zak wants to stay 50-50 for now. Tommy is coming on a little strong. I know he’s just trying to help but I may need to talk with him, get him to tone it down. Zak needs a little time, and he needs to screw up. He’s the type who will analyze his mistakes and learn from them.

Hardin Sole: We decided to go easy on recruiting. It looks more and more like not much will happen until after SAT scores come out. I’ll keep texting and talking with players, and we’ll add to and take from the list, but we need to save our money.
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Re: Point Guard

Postby Wayne23 » Tue Dec 22, 2015 12:17 am

November 22 Dawn:

I stayed home but NJIT TV carries all of the road games so I was able to watch. We took an early lead and were ahead all the way. It was so much fun!

Ray D’Io: The guys played well. +18 Points in the Paint! I’d say Zak was right to stay with the lineup. Doesn’t mean we’ll stay with it forever but tonight it worked. We won inside again but we made some key shots outside. 14, 4, 4 for Brad Crew. He fouled out, but it was late, and the game was already decided. 11, 7, 3 for Kris Brew.
He’s playing well right now at 3 and 4. Our inside starters, Mily and Horn, combined for 22 and 11, and they shut down the other team’s big guys. I think they’re learning our system. Zak alternated man and 2-3, trying to vary the pattern so the other team couldn’t be sure which D we’d be in at a given time. It worked, and they looked confused at times. We shot 50%, which is terrific!

November 23 Wes Chino and Zak:

“Zak, you’ve got your own part time P. R. guy, Mark Thyme from the Trenton Times. You two seem to get along and he’s been good to the program. He’ll be around a couple a day most days but you’ll need to do a lot of it by text and phone. I think he’ll give your program the boost it needs.”

“Awesome news! Thanks, Wes.”

November 24 Barry Meenotte and Jess Kidden

“You heard what Chino did, Jess?”

“I heard. Bastard!”

November 25 Mike Boss, Newark News:

There’s a lot to be said for a soft schedule. Coach Zak “White Russian” Zachery has had cupcakes for dessert three times now, and he ate them twice. Conference play will probably give him indigestion, not to mention driving him to drink. That’s a mighty short drive for the coach.

November 25 Tommy Gunn:

48-55. Terrible ball handling and awful shooting did it. 0-5 for both Crew and Camp, and 1-7 for Horn. How the hell can an inside player go 1-7! Here again, rookie mistakes: 1. Buzz Joss, our #3 big guy was hot. He played 17 minutes. Horn was cold. He played 32. If those minutes had been reversed we might have won. 2. Joe Mily was the only guy with a hot hand. He didn’t get near enough touches. 3. Raff was playing better than Camp and Gore. He needed to get more minutes. Look, there’s a lot to keep track of as a head coach, and Zak will learn. But for now he should be leaning on me and Ray a LOT more. +15 RBs, but -11 TOs.

Dawn:

Zak was up all night. Losses really kill him. He analyzed and re-analyzed, and over-analyzed everything. He worried that Tommy Gunn was giving him too much advice, and then that he should listen more to Tommy. He worried more because Ray D’Io told Tommy in no uncertain terms to back off, to let Zak run the show. We both know that Tommy and Ray go way back, and that they both speak their minds, and get upset with each other but then get over it, but Zak’s head is spinning.

We’re 2-2. That’s not bad considering that we don’t have much talent and we’re still finding our way.

November 26 Dawn and Zak: (Life changing experience)

“Zak, I’m not sure how to say this…”

“What’s wrong, hon? Is it me?”

“No, nothing’s wrong. It’s not that. No worries. You know I had lunch with Sheila today.”

“Oh, that’s right. How was that?”

“That’s the thing. You remember I told you that after college Sheila went to work with troubled kids.”

“Yep. You guys were roommates. She wanted to save the world, you wanted high finance. I remember.”

“Well, we talked about you, us, at lunch, and then we started talking about her work. It was fascinating and heartbreaking to listen to her. When it was time to go I asked if I could go with her, meet some of the kids. She said there were confidentiality issues so I’d have to promise to not say anything about specific kids. No problem. Zak, it was … it was… Okay, there are no words. Zak, I need to do something.”

“Huh? About what?”

“About these kids.”

“Okay… but… what?”

“Well, we need to think about that. I want to do something big, something real, something meaningful.”

“Sure, Dawn, but I don’t think I’m quite following you on this.”

“Zak, we have a boatload of money, more than we could ever possibly need.”

“Okay, that’s true.”

“Money isn’t that important.”

“Unless you don’t have enough.”

“Exactly!”

“So…”

“So, let’s spend some of our money.”

“To help these kids. Sure, but how?”

“Well, that’s the thing. I don’t know yet. I DO know I want to work with these kids. I’m thinking sell this house, buy something with lots of land, run an orphanage, or maybe an emergency placement service, something, I don’t know. Something that provides care to the kids who need it most.”

“First, I support you- I always support you. Second, but I’m not quitting coaching.”

“I know that. I wouldn’t ask that.”

“Third, we could buy a place and then in 3-4 years, I get a chance to move up- we’ve talked about that. You know that’s the plan.”

“That’s the only thing that concerns me.”

“Look, think it through. I think it’s a great idea. No question there are lots of kids we could help, and the team could maybe be part of it. Let’s see what we can do. Do some research. And maybe, whatever we do, we aim to make it self-sufficient, and when we move, we leave an operation that can run without you, then start up a new one wherever we go next. I have no idea about reimbursement from the state or any of that stuff, but there has to be a way, especially if we’re willing to spend some of our own money. Hell, you’ve probably got more than I have. You represented some guys who made hundreds of millions.”

“You really don’t know how much I’m worth, do you?”

“I never cared.”

“Too funny. Okay, let’s just say I’m worth at least three times what you’re worth.’

“Jesus!”

“I’ll start doing home-”

“Hey! You might need to go back to school for this, get some kind of degree.”

“I guess I might. Crap! I want to start helping now. Okay, I’ll look into all of this.”
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Re: Point Guard

Postby Wayne23 » Tue Dec 22, 2015 11:49 am

November 30 Ray D’Io

54-53 over High Point here. Up 13 with 7:22 to play and we almost blew it. We had been taking good care of the ball to that point, 9 TOs. We committed 9 more in the last 7:22. High Point reacted well to our shifting defenses and found the open player either inside or outside. Fortunately, we had just enough to hang on. Brad Crew hit a 15 footer with less than a second left for the win. Crew had 15, 3, 3, and Horn had 10, 6, 6, 2 for probably his best game so far. We were +5 in rebounding and we shot a little better.

Guard Gabe Raff broke a toe. Out for about 2 months.

Tommy Gunn:

Joe Mily has been a disappointment while Buzz Joss has been getting it done. Joss will start, at least for now. Ray D’Io convinced me that I was coming on too strong with Zak. I thought about it and he’s right, so I backed off. I offer suggestions, but mostly I wait to be asked. And Zak DOES ask. It’s working out way better this way.

December 3 Zak:

65-60 at North Alabama. We were down 10 with 11:44 to play. Joe Mily was hot, Buzz Joss wasn’t. I played Mily for most of the rest of the game and he responded, finishing with 13 and 8. 13, 4 for Horn who seems to be getting it together. Our guards had foul trouble but we survived that. We shot 47.8%, they shot 37.3%.

December 7 Tommy Gunn:

80-71 over Morgan ST here. I’m impressed. The kid is definitely learning. We were down 14 about midway through the 1st half. He didn’t panic. They were stronger inside and they were killing us there. He called a time out and did two things- after talking with me. First, he went to all 2-3, to slow down their inside offense. Second, he put in some plays- screens, picks, other stuff, to free up our outside shooters. Fortunately they were hot, especially Brad Crew, but Camp and Crew, too. And even smarter, when they started to adjust he had us go inside often enough to not let them key on the outside shooters. It all worked, and from that point on it was our game. When they adjusted we adjusted. When we needed a hoop we got it. We finally took the lead with about 8 minutes left and stretched it as many as 11. The kid did real good.

26, 5, 2 for Crew, 13, 4, 3 for Camp, 14, 4, 2, 2 for Horn. +7 rebounds.

Now we hit the road for 4 out of 5, 5 out of 7. That might make things a little rougher.

May Knot and Mike Boss, Newark Times:

“Okay, Mike, so you’re going to cover the NJIT game at LIU. You pay a guy to throw a shot of whiskey in his face as he makes his way to the postgame press conference. Then we can write a story about him falling off the wagon. Make sure whoever you pay off is a nobody, and make sure it doesn’t come back to us.”
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Re: Point Guard

Postby Wayne23 » Tue Dec 22, 2015 11:59 am

December 13 Zak:

What a night! We lost 59-72 at LIU, but that wasn’t the worst of it. First the game. They jumped out to an early lead; it got to 16. We weren’t able to get it under 10 at any point in the first half, and it was 15 at the half. The second half wasn’t much better. We got it down to 6 a couple of times, 5 once, but that was as close as we got.

They shot 61.4%, mostly outside. Part of that was because they were quicker and got open shots, but the other part was that their shooters were on fire all night long.

They were just the better team tonight. Brad Crew had 14 at guard and Horn had 12, 6, 2 in the middle. Joe Mily did a great job from the bench, 13 and 7. Maybe he’s the kind of guy who does better as a sixth man than as a starter. We’ll see.

But the really interesting things happened after the game. Mily, Crew, and I were walking through the tunnel, on our way to the postgame press conference, when a guy came out of nowhere and threw something at me. I ducked, thought it was water, but then I smelled it- whiskey. I got it right away. This was an attempt to ruin me, to make it look like I’d been drinking. I asked the boys to stay with me while I called Wes Chino. Fortunately he picked up. I explained what had happened, had both Mily and Crew verify it for him. He told me to go to the press conference right away, and to explain it and have the guys tell their version. If I didn’t show up it would look even worse.

That’s what we did. Most of the media seemed to believe us but a few didn’t. When we got back to the locker room I called everyone together and explained again.

Then I called Dawn and told her the story.

My concern is long term. What if this happens again? What if it’s the first of many attacks of this type, all designed to bring me down?

12/14 Mike Boss The Newark News Mike Boss “The Sports Boss”:

Turning to basketball, I’ve heard some **** and bull stories in my time but none as full of bull extract and cockamamie nonsense as the one I heard at the LIU-NJIT postgame press conference last night. NJIT head coach Zak Zachery came into the conference staggering and reeking of whiskey. He came up with a story about a mystery man attacking him by throwing whiskey at him and then running away. Yeah, right. Zachery was slurring his words during the press conference. He’s back on the sauce.

Wes Chino and President Marcia Long:

“You need to suspend him pending an investigation, Wes.”

“Marcia, this is an obvious set up.”

“I think it is. The boys who were with him are adamant in supporting his version of what happened. But do it. Speak to the assistant coaches and players who were in the locker room, both before and after the press conference- the team doctor, too. Speak to some of the reporters-”

“Not Mike Boss!”

“No, it’s clear Boss is out to get him.”

Zak:

I’m suspended, with pay. I guess I get it but it is completely unfair.

December 17 Wes Chino Press Conference:

“Ladies and gentlemen. We’ve conducted a thorough investigation, spoken with everyone who was in the locker room that night. We asked them to describe Coach Zachery’s demeanor and conduct both before and after the press conference. Everyone is telling us the same story. He reeked of whiskey when he got back from the press conference BUT he was completely logical, completely coherent, did not act inebriated in any way. We spoke with seven of the nine media representatives who were at the press conference including a photographer and a TV camera operator. All seven said the same thing. In short, everyone with whom we spoke was in agreement. Coach Zachery reeked of whiskey, but he showed no other signs of inebriation. Joe Mily and Brad Crew are willing to swear, under oath, that a man threw whiskey on the Coach. As a matter of fact Mily’s uniform jersey seems to have been splashed and it too smells of whiskey; we think that in itself is all the proof required to show that the Coach’s story is the truth.

“Our conclusion is that this was a set up. Someone is out to destroy Coach Zachery’s reputation.

“Here’s the university response, as approved by President Long and the NJIT Board of Regents: First, Coach Zachery is reinstated as of this moment. There is no loss of pay, no loss of benefits, no reprimand, no punitive action of any sort. Second, our team physician will now bring blood drawing equipment on every road trip, and will have it at hand for home games and practices; the physician is not present at practices but the team trainer is licensed in phlebotomy. If a repeat incident occurs a blood draw on the Coach will be done immediately, and it will be brought to the nearest hospital for analysis. Third, we don’t have any idea how extensive, how widespread, how serious this plot against the coach is. For his own protection we have advised him to never go anywhere unaccompanied during road trips, and to the extent possible, to have someone with him whenever he is here on campus. This is disruptive and inconvenient, but we want to protect the coach against any possible repetition of this scurrilous attack. Finally, if there is a repeat incident and no one is available to draw blood, Coach Zachery will immediately get his blood drawn and analyzed at the nearest facility available for that purpose.

“I will not take questions. Thank you all for coming”

Zak:

I was really touched by the support from the athletic department, and the university as a whole. A large group of students were outside of the athletic center both before and after the press conference, carrying signs, chanting support, wearing tee shirts with my picture embossed on the front. Dawn and I were both deeply, deeply moved, and we feel honored.

December 18 Mike Boss The Newark News “The Sports Boss”

Let’s write first about the NJIT whitewash of their alcoholic coach. A. D. Wes Chino held a “press conference” yesterday- how can it be a press conference when questions from the press are not allowed? Chino completely exonerated his lush of a coach, blaming this “mystery man” for the whiskey smell. Someone in the athletic department managed to put splashes of whiskey on Joe Mily’s jersey to corroborate their obviously fictitious cover up- nice touch! Chino ended the press conference by saying he would accept purchase offers on a famous bridge in Brooklyn.

Zak, Wes, Pete:

“Zak, I feel like this has got to be coming from The Newark News. We know that Assistant Publisher May Knot is angry with you because of the way your relationship with her ended-”

“That was more than ten years ago!”

“Never underestimate the rage of a spurned woman. She’s got Mike Boss tearing you up practically every day in his sports column. It wouldn’t surprise me if he found someone to throw that whiskey at you.”

“Could be but it will be impossible to prove.”

“Maybe so. We’ll do what we can. You’ll probably run into more trouble like this.”

“Great!”
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Re: Point Guard

Postby Wayne23 » Tue Dec 22, 2015 12:31 pm

December 19 Dawn and Zak:

“Hon, I know you have a lot on your mind, but I wanted to tell you about what I’ve learned, you know, about helping kids.”

“Oh, good. Tell me.”

“Turns out I’ll need to get a Master’s, a combined Psychology/Social Work Master’s. It will take some time. It’s too late to apply and be accepted for spring semester but I can take two courses, and if they accept me, they’ll count. After that it’s a full two years with course work, internship, and Master’s thesis.”

“Where?”

“This program is at NYU.”

“So you’ll be commuting into the city.”

“Yes, I will.”

“Go for it! If this will give you the kind of flexibility to do what you want to do I’m all for it.”

“I knew you’d support me, Zak, but it’s great to hear.”

“Any clearer idea about what you want to do?”

“Actually, I’m probably more confused about that than I was before I started doing the research but this program will lead me in the directions that will help me make a decision. Zak, there’s one more thing…”

“Go ahead.”

“How much do you want us to have kids of our own?”

“I guess I sort of assumed we would, but I don’t know. Where are you going with this?”

“It seems to me that we could have one or two of our own kids or we could help lots of kids who really need help… but probably not both…”

“Take the courses. Apply to the program. Let’s see what happens. If it turns out to be what you want, that will make the decision for us. If it doesn’t, maybe we can try to have our own kids at that point. You need to live a life that fulfills you.”

“You’re amazing, Zak!”

December 20 Ray D’Io:

66-55 at Stetson. A win on the road is always great! This one stayed close for about 30 minutes. Then we went on an 11-2 run, and we never looked back. We shot 48.8%, and we held them to 31%. 14, 11, 2 for SF/PF Kris Brew, 13, 6, 5, 2 for Ken Horn in the middle, 10, 7 for Joe Mily from the bench. He is loving this sixth man thing. Both Crew and Camp were in foul trouble all night, but Ben Gore did a great job of spelling them, and when we put Brew at guard he responded well. We had too many TOs, but +14 RBs overcame that.

Wes Chino and Zak:

“6-3 in pre-conference play. I’m impressed.”

“And we’re still finding ourselves. I think we’ll get better. And remember, Gabe Raff is still out. He helps us when he gets back.”

“When?”

“We think end of January, beginning of February.”

“Keep doing what you’re doing, Zak!”

December 25 Zak and Dawn:

We had a great Christmas. I got Dawn school supplies, NYU clothing, coffee cups- all kinds of stuff like that. I also bought her books by authors she likes, and, of course, jewelry. Any husband who doesn’t buy jewelry for all the important occasions is an idiot. She got me that new coaching book by Coach K, lots of clothes- I’m awful at clothes, if she didn’t dress me I’d look like the hick I really am. She knows how crazy I am about a couple of obscure bluesmen. She found some really obscure stuff, some of it on vinyl.

Most important, we were together. We cooked a meal together and just relaxed and forgot about the world. We’re lucky to have held onto our love through everything that’s happened, and there’s nothing like time alone together.

Conference play starts this week. Can’t wait.
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