The Matt Thomas Show with Ross - Former Rockets Assistant John Lucas Talks NBA & his John Lucas Golf Classic

Episode Date: June 16, 2026

Former Rockets Assistant John Lucas Talks NBA & his John Lucas Golf Classic 

Right now, let's say how to my friend, former Rockets assistant, one of the greatest NBA players in my mind of all time, and a better human being than a basketball player. Luke is with us here, John Lucas on the Matt Thomas Show at Ross. Luke, how are things, my friend? How are you, Matt? Very good. I'm listening to you talk.

Almost sound like you know what you're talking about. I do know what I'm talking about. First of all, how is your son? I've always felt like I've known more than you. I never want to say that to publicly. How is your son doing? He just finished his first year at Miami. How are things down in South Florida?

He did very well last year. He took over a team and gutted it and replaced everybody. And he went to the second round of the 32 in the NCAA, with most wins in school history. And he had a very, very successful year. And, you know, John won the championship with the ACEs, my older son. So last year, I'm the worst coach in the house now. I was going to say, thank God the mother took care of the business.

handle all the coaching acumen in that family. That is for sure. As I said before, you're a great basketball player, but a better human being. Who's back there talking? Tell them to shut up for me. I got to talk to you. Tell me quiet. Whoever's back there? No, I was out going, now you can talk. Oh, very good. You've got this golf tournament coming up. First of all, tell us the date, tell us the time, tell us where it's at, and then give us the reason that you put an all the thing together. Well, it's June 23rd at the golf tournament is at Memorial Park, and it starts at 8 a.m. We have a lot of basketball players and a lot of people, and it's for the John Lucas Foundation. And the foundation is to help kids further education, help them with on and off the court problems,

mental health, all sorts of issues that go on that in basketball, like basketball is really the catch to continue to educate them about becoming better people, better citizens, and playing last year. For the last six years, Matt, we've gotten everybody at college scholarships and a lot of growth for them into the basketball world. And actually, a couple that are now going to be in the pros. That's outstanding. John LucasFoundation.org is the website. If you want to take a look at that, John LucasFoundation.org for more details on the golf tournament itself.

And you said you got a lot of basketball players. Normally Calvin Samson's. our best golfer but for this year he's not going to be able to be there he's going to the draft well he's got the hookah's got two players two players two players came throughout one that came somewhat throughout program in kingston fleming yeah good chance to be very good i really liked him as a player the other one is christina and i think kevin has done a a great great job and continue but he won't be there we got a lot of other land year Penny Hardaway was there. We have a lot of rocket players that are coming. Your TV

counterpart is coming Ryan Holland. He's terrible golfer. Terrible terrible terrible golfer. Awful. And we're coming out and before it's over we want to get you out there. Well the problem is this is you and a fellow ex-Rocket make fun of my lack of pale skin or my abundance of it and the size of my head. In fact Eric Gordon just texted me the other day and was concerned by my head size, which is really rude of him to do that. But that's not here nor there. John LucasFoundation.org for more details on the big event coming up, and we'll tell you more about that again, moving along.

You have been involved in youth basketball. When did you first start teaching the youth? Were you still active or you just got out of the business? No, I'm still. When I came to Houston in 1976, that year a guy named Moses Bologne, he and I went to school together. went down to Fondy Rec and started working. So you know, I played tennis.

And so I put a tennis lesson on a basketball court. And from that point of all, I was always teaching them about passing it on and always found that was a way to help my coaching skills as well as my recovery, Matt, because you get to meet so many different people and get so many different perspectives as to try to help them get better. I've always thought that coaching was four things. You know, it was counseling, and then it became to be out. You got to counsel them some.

You became a mentor. You began to be a mentor and telling them right for wrong and moving on. Then the other third part of coaching was education, teaching them how to play, where to be, how to be on the court. And the biggest piece as in life is how do I have positive confrontation to make you get better. I want to get better as a basketball player and as a person. So I've tried to

apply those things in my daily living and in my recovery and then what we try to do with the kids in the foundation. That's amazing and I'm so happy that you're still so active in this and you're involved in the youth. The reason why I asked you about when you first got started, can you give me

the all-John Lucas team that people that are listening to show right now would recognize that you saw as say 11, 12, 13-year-olds and either grew up to be NBA players or are still doing it right now as we speak. Well, I'd tell you something that I worked with. And Sally, when I was the coach,

I had a kid named Kobe Bryant. He would be washed. And in Cleveland, I had a young man by the name of LeBron James. And then here in Houston, there's another one by the kid named Shelton Henderson. I consider it to be there. Sebastian Williams.

Gerald Green. I could go on there. There's a lot of kids there. I hate to do that, but Kobe and LeBron would be the two biggest. And then Moses, Moses and I were together in college

for one day before we went to the pros. So I've been doing this. There's been a lot of kids that have developed. I did the NBA top 100 camp. I have my own camps that have some of the best players that come in, which is a little different than the foundation. Because we work with others in there.

And then I also started the drug program for all four major sports. Ladies and gentlemen, John Lucas has the big tournament coming up, and we'll give you the dates again in just a minute. But I want to give you a phone number if you all can write this down and just put it down. 713-982-8500. 7-1-3-9-8-8-8500 for the John Lucas Golf Classic. A little big-picture stuff for you.

You are now a connoisseur of basketball, no matter what the sport time of your... areas, whether it's college or pros. What's your take of San Antonio? Did they get caught up in just being young? Is there sometimes an experience of you have to understand the NBA failures before you really get to ultimately taste a big prize? And if that's not the case, what did New York do to all of a sudden jump, everybody?

Was it just making the coaching change? Was it something else that was done? Well, you know, well, one of the things is a different voice and then matchups make the series. So the Knicks were able to put towns out on the floor, and then they had shooting in the corners that made it harder for San Antonio to be able to guard. And then Jason Hart, McBride, Abanovy, and Jay Lamontica could guard the perimeters of Castle,

offer, and so they became nullified. Then you had to make a decision, which it happens from time. You have a veteran like Dern Fox, who is the guy that is supposed to be, but you have a young kid on the bench who's playing so well that there becomes subtle pressure mentally as to looking over your shoulder. And I thought that that was part. And then it was exposed as you're young that Wembe didn't have a go-to move at the end. He was playing on all instincts.

He's got to get stronger. if San Antonio is to go for they've got to get a little more beef up front to help them the big rebound that Mitchell Robinson got at the end for the kickout. So I still watch a lot of basketball,

still involved with it. And I thought those things were issues. Spurs, OKC, and the Rockets are going to be around for a while. It's going to be interesting. I don't want to hear that. You know that it's a voice of the Rockets. I don't want to hear that at all. Let me ask you about Wemby for just a second.

is the number one thing he needs to do is learn a little post-up game back to the basket or is it just going to be let the body mature himself into a way that he'd be most comfortable on the floor. Where do you see his next progression? Did you, okay, let's bring it down really quickly. A team had a go-to move, right? You knew when the game got tight what he was going to do. The Dream Shake, yeah.

Kevin Durrance pull-ups. Kevin Durant's pull-up. It's a lot of what he's going to do at the end. of the games. You know what most people are going to do. He has a variety of moves and not one that his go-to, that everybody knows he's going to be what he's going to do. That makes sense. It does.

So you have to have a go-to move for him. What that is based on his size would be, I don't know, maybe that would be a hook or something, but he's not physically big enough to be down there. Because if you notice the playoffs were a lot more physical than the regular season. No question about that. And he's got, and he's got to get something that I would think,

and, you know, I'm big on player the thumb. He's got to get something where he faces up where people can't touch him. You know, everybody, he starts dribbling with his back, and the physicality takes up. Once you face up in the NBA, they can't touch you. So that would put his dribble and make him a live thread on the end. And something that I'd always thought, Remember when Yal Ming played here?

Oh, yeah. I always thought that we should have where Yal Mian dove in the post opposite of Grady so that it gave him a greater his right hand to drive and Yomene his right hand for the hook. So things like that would be something they'll do and they'll get back. And if it's funny, Mitch Johnson, the coach and Spurs, John Johnson, I was his rookie when I came to the Rockets in 76. Dang, you are old. God, how old are you now?

Are you looking in your late 70s? Are you an 80-year range yet? No, no, I'm a spring chicken. Don't be trying to keep me playing. That's true. That's true. All right. Hey, all right, let's remind the folks again.

It is on June 23rd, one week from today. You better have better weather than you got today. I can tell you that for damn sure. 8 o'clock in the morning. I sure hope so. John Lucas Golf Classic Mental Health, Substance, Abuse, prevention scholarships, raising funds for healthy living, john Lucasorganization.org for all the details. John, I hope it's a big success.

It's always good to hear your voice. And I'm going to southwest Louisiana after the shows over today. Just going to let me get a little heads up on that. I enjoy it. Thanks for everything, Matt. We hope to have people come out and support. All right. Thank you. I'll pass it along, my friend.

Thank you very much.