LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- The second half of Louisville basketball coach Chris Mack's offseason discussion with reporters, including an update on how he's handling self-isolation, what he expects next season from David Johnson, and his reaction to U of L radio analyst Jody Demling's fight against COVID-19.
Q: What kind of challenge, communication-wise, does this present for you in terms of keeping in touch with coaches and players?
MACK: It's just different. You know, it's obviously unique. I'm not used to having staff meetings like we're having this press conference (via videoconference). I'm used to seeing our players in the gym and up in my office and having the opportunity to take them out to lunch. Just the daily interaction. Now it's a FaceTime call. And then you don't see the guys the rest of the day. It would be nothing for me to run into Quinn Slazinski three or four times in a day, whether he was coming out of the weight room or going to see Fred (Hina) in the training room or going out to get shots, or driving across campus. Now it's only initiated if we make a phone call or he makes a phone call. And then you don't really hear from him. It's different. I don't like it, but we're all in this situation together.
Q: Do you feel like there's any positional need that you're willing to address right now and what would that be?
MACK: Well we have one scholarship currently. We can't have more than 12 scholarships this upcoming year, based on all the scholarships the program had to give up before our staff got here. So we're sitting right now, as I count them at 11. We have one scholarship to give and our intent is to try and bring in a guy that can help us in the frontcourt, particularly at the center position.
Q: From a personal standpoint, how are you spending your time, not basketball-related? What's been your routine?
MACK: Yeah, I joked about it the other day. I have a buddy of mine who worked from home and he used to get up in the morning, make himself coffee, put on his work clothes, get in his car and drive around the block and then he actually pulled up to a side door at the house and then worked from home and did the exact opposite when work was over. I used to laugh at him, and now I understand why. Walking around in your shorts and a T-shirt all day doesn't put you in a frame of mind to be productive, in my opinion. So I try to get up every morning and make my Dunkin' Donuts coffee, thankfully we have a Keurig here, and then come to this office. You know, I can show you this office if you like (moves camera around). As you can see, there's nothing in here. So that's what it's looked like for the first two years of our living him. My wife has done a pretty good job of putting some things in here. Got a bunch of stationery and folders and memo pads and stuff we didn't have in here before because I always worked on my couch with my laptop when I watch film. But it's not very conducive when Braden and Lainey and Haley are screaming through the house 24/7. So I close the door, and come in the office and I generally don't leave out except to get something to eat at lunch. And then when I'm done with some of the stuff on my desk here. Other than that, I go out in the side yard and shoot baskets. I wave to Satterfield when he walks around the block. And same with Eric Wood. That's about it.
Q: Your wife said a couple of weeks ago that you were already delirious and not much on home projects. Is that true?
MACK: Delirious? Yes. I didn't realize how active I was. I've always been that way. I can't sit still. And so being forced to sit still, at least in your house following the governor's orders for 14 days, I'm on day five or six. I don't know where I'd go if I was allowed to leave anyway at this point. So it's been very, very weird, for me. As far as home projects, I will have you know that on Saturday, I went around the house and picked all the weeds around our house. That's a big accomplishment for me. Filled up five bags of weeds. It's awesome. I'm excited about it.
Q: For a lot of us, and I'm sure for you, this really hit home when we heard about Jody Demling (in ICU with COVID-19). How did that hit you?
MACK: Oh, it's hard. You know, I know in Jody's profession you're not supposed to get close to coaches, but I knew Jody before I came to Louisville. He had covered my wife when he was at The Courier-Journal, I don't know if you guys know she's from Louisville and played basketball here. And Jody covered her and so that became a friendship when I was at different AAU events and Jody covering Cardinals recruiting. I just got to know him pretty well, and that's obviously blossomed into more of a friendship since I've been here. So it was not an uncommon thing for him to join us at Roosters after a game night. So it's hit hard. It hit our family hard. My kids know Jody. So it became really, really personal. This pandemic that we see covered by 24/7 news stations, social media and all this stuff, it's one thing to know about it, but when you actually find out someone very close to you has it, man it really makes you take a step back and be very appreciative, and offer a lot of prayer to make sure he comes through on the right end of this. So, yeah, it was a shock.
Q: I know you have players who look to play professionally overseas, I was wondering if you could shed some light on your time playing professionally in Europe?
MACK: It was awesome. I really enjoyed my time overseas. It wasn't very long. I think I went over at the end of July, I was in the country of Slovenia, and made it until about December and it was, again, what really cut my college career short didn't let my professional career get off the ground, and that was injuries. I think, unlike some of the guys who go overseas now that come back because they're homesick or they can't stand the international food or whatever the issue is in terms of going overseas, I loved it. It was one of the greatest experiences of my life and had I been able to do it health-wise for more years, I would've done it. But God had other plans, and that led me to coaching and I'm forever grateful, but it was an unbelievable experience. I traveled to a ton of different countries, Bulgaria to Italy to Germany to old Yugoslavia and the different countries that tore apart because of the civil war, it was an incredible experience.
Q: Ryan McMahon spoke about his aspiration to coach. He said he'd had some coaches tell him that's something he should pursue. Have you had that conversation with him and what kind of coach do you think he would be if he decided to go that route?
MACK: Yeah, I never tell anybody, including my own players, what they should be. But he loves the game. It took for me being out of the game as a player for a year or so to realize that I couldn't be without it. That I couldn't really live without being a part of a team. I think Ryan is sort of debating whether he wants to continue playing or get into the business world. But I think Ryan would make an excellent coach. It's about connecting with people. You certainly have to have an understanding of the game. He's been around some terrific coaches, obviously, so I think he would make a fabulous coach if and when he would want to do that. I think a lot of players, they just have to understand that when they give up their playing career, nobody really cares at what level you played when you become a coach. They only care about how can you help me as a player and guide our team. It's not like, I used to play and this is what I used to do. Ryan would be no different. He would have to go into more of a coach mode, and I think that's just a matter of having that experience and gaining it, but I think it would be interesting to see what path Ryan ends up choosing professionally.
Q: If Ryan did go into coaching, and down the road you were to face him, who would Brayden be for?
MACK: That's a hard-hitting question there. It probably depends on how much I discipline Brayden in the days leading up to the game. If today is any indication, he would be rooting for Ryan.
Q: Where would you like to see David and Malik take their games from this year to next.
MACK: For Malik, both of those guys, need to be healthy. I thought Malik was really hitting his stride before unfortunately he went down at Florida State. I thought he was really beginning to assert himself as one of the better frontcourt players in the league. And I would want him to continue to make that same jump. He is a tremendous defensive player. I want his offense to be one that is very versatile. I want him to be just as effective facing the basket and be a guy that can help us on the offensive end maybe more than he has. I think he was starting to feel more confident than he ever has in the low post. Depending on the matchup I'd like him to be a guy that gets up into double figures every, single night. And he should be closer to that rebounding wise. I think David had some tremendous moments as a freshmen. But at he same time he had some freshman-like moments that we're really hoping disappear, and that he works really hard over the summer to correct. He had a lot of turnovers in pick-and-roll situations. He got caught up in the air trying to make a pass. With David's talent level he tried to make a play every time he had the ball. We need him to be just a little bit more patient in picking his spots and knowing when to go and when not to. He's got to improve his shooting, and he's got to be way better defensively as a sophomore than he was as a freshman. Usually the biggest jump you make as a college player is between your freshman and sophomore year. And I have no doubt that all of our freshmen as they grow into sophomores will make a huge jump. But David is going to be leading that charge, being one of our most talented players.
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