The Matt Thomas Show with Ross - Rudy Tomjanovich Joins Matt On A Flashback Friday

Episode Date: December 13, 2019

Former Head Coach of the Two-Time NBA Champion Houston Rockets, Rudy Tomjanovich, joins Matt on a Flashback Friday

Tired of 610? I changed over from the competition. Take another route. Sports Talk 790, your unbiased home for your home teams. Greatest intro music in, well, I know folks in Chicago will say that their intro music was awesome. But I can tell you something right now when I was calling the PA for the championship years in 1994 and 1995, this music got everybody going and still does to this day. It is the Matt Thomas show on Sports Talk 790. Here in Orlando, where tonight the Rockets will be taking on the Orlando Magic.

So it only seems appropriate that it's a flashback Friday and that I'm here getting ready to call the Rockets game with the Orlando Magic. And we are setting up Rudy T right now. Let's get him on him just a second. That one of the greatest sets of moments in Rocket's history happened right here in Central Florida, where the Rockets and Magic play here tonight. And to talk about that and all things about the Houston Rockets is our good friend, one of the nicest human beings, period in sports history. Rudy Tom Janovitch with us here on the Matt Thomas show.

Rudy, it's great hearing your voice. How are things? Hey, Matt, it is a joy to be with you. Hey, I love being here in Orlando because of obviously the second championship run. Now, everybody wants to talk about the miss free throws from Nick, but I'm going to erase that. Give me the most memorable thing for you out of that series besides how we're able to win with Nick Bitson's free throws. Well, I think no disrespect to the great shot that Mario Ellie made in Phoenix.

But I think one of the most underrated plays and shots in our run there was Kenny Smith's shot to get us into over. time and we don't we don't really hear that one about that one that young team who was so talented i think you know listening to some of their feedback afterwards yeah they knew we were champions the year before and that we we really were lucky to even be in that game and after we got that victory, I think it psyched them out a little bit. Did you, look, I've talked to lots of managers and coaches about being up in a series 3-0. Could you, you couldn't sleep any easier because you were always afraid about Orlando kind of creeping back in the series. Or was it just the opposite?

You knew that once you went to Orlando to win those two games, that there wasn't a reason to go back to Orlando because you were going to finish it off at home? Well, you know, you never did overconfident because we saw what we did when other people thought they had us locked up. And, you know, it ain't over until it's over if there's some fat lady saying, and then you can relax. But before then, you've got to keep your focus. I do remember the day after that game, we had our shoot-around. and I know who those guys are, how good the magic were, and our guys were feeling pretty good about themselves.

But here was a team that really beat us up pretty good during the regular season, and we had to have a miracle to win. I got on the guys that said, I don't know who you think you're dealing with, but if we don't stay on top of these guys, they could win the next four games. And we came out and responded real well in game two. And the great Rudy Tom Janovic is with us here on Sports Talks. And any part of Flashback Friday, the Rockets are going to have the ketchup and mustard uniforms on tonight here in Orlando against the magic. Rudy, I happen to have an NBA TV game on in my hotel.

We were somewhere a few weeks ago. And I happened to see Matt Bullard, who was like three or four rooms down for me. He's like, the rockets were on. And there was mid-range shots. There were top of the key. There were left-and-right-elbo shots. There were once in a while there was a three-point shot. Today, when I'm calling a Rockets game now, if I see a mid-range jump shot,

I almost have like a nervous twitch. Can you believe, and maybe the answer is yes, but can you believe how prevalent the three-point shot is, not just with the Rockets, but everybody around the NBA right now in 2019? You're absolutely right. Well, we were on to it back then, and we believed in it, not to the extent that people have taken it. And the organization that has stressed it the most from top to bottom,

from owner to general manager down to the equipment guy, it's we shoot layups and threes. And, you know, mathematically that's putting yourself in the best situation. You know, that's what the analytics is telling us. Well, the analytics. It's taking some people longer, yet taking some people longer to get into it. You know, when I talk to old school guys, you know, I do some mathematical story problems. And they'll always, oh, you got to take that mid-range shot.

You've got to take that mid-range shot. Yeah. And statistically, it doesn't, you know, it doesn't. you know, it doesn't pay off. Well, now it certainly is for the most part, because I think everybody's using analytics in one way or the other. You came up, not only as a player, but you worked as a scout as an assistant coach.

We're not seeing a whole lot of that in today's NBA, for that matter, college basketball. How much did that time kind of developing your style help you as a head football coach? And would you have been the same if you'd have gone right from, say, broadcaster or assistant general manager to a head coach? I mean, did that time behind the scenes help develop the way you became a head coach? Matt, it was the greatest training that I could go into.

I was so blessed that first Bell Harris, then Don Cheney and Bill Fitch. They gave me that opportunity to advance scout. So I got to see everybody's offense and learn what everybody. everybody's running, watch how they're defending, and then I got to also go out and evaluate college stuff. So to me, it was the makings of my career right there. I was really, really blessed to have those opportunities. Visiting with Rudy Tom Jonovich here on the Matt Thomas show, part of a flashback Friday. For folks that don't get to hear you that often, you should be on more with this, but what have you been doing since retirement? I know we saw you a couple of years

ago in Los Angeles and you looked well and you felt like you were traveling one end of the country to the other. What has Rudy been doing the last handful of years? Well, I have moved back to Texas and I'm really excited about that. I am in Austin, Texas, great city, and just a wonderful place. It's close to Houston too. So you guys will be seeing me. After New Year's, I'll be coming in a lot more to check out, you know, another great rocket team. And, you know, they've had some ups and down so far, but it takes some time, you know, to get chemistry. And you got to say, boy, the rockets really know how to acquire players and, you know, getting Westbrook, you know, they've had Tracy. They've had all these other players. So I would not count them out with

Harden, Harden, Westbrook, and really the other guys are very important to, and they know their roles, their spot-up guys, their three-point shooters, wonderful center. That was a great traffic in Capella, and, you know, they got a heck of a team. Well, I hope we get to see some games coming up after the first of the year.

Let me ask you this. you're talking about adding players. You added during your career as a coach with Dream, you had Clyde Drexer come to town, you had Scotty Pippen come to town, you had Charles Barkley come to town. How long were the adjustment periods? Now obviously with Clyde, you got a championship out of it.

You didn't with the other two guys, but did it take a long time? Did you spend a lot of time waiting for them to gel? Or did you know that because they were just so good that ultimately they were going to play at the level that you expected them to be? Well, you know, with those veteran

guys, their games were already defined. And the reason that we made those phrases, we had, you know, a phenomenal player and a came Elijah one, a once in a lifetime player.

And he was carrying such a physical and emotional no load, we had to get more offensive players that take the load off of him, especially after that New York series where they had like five or six guys where they could tag team him and just pound on them. And it was a big concern.

And then luckily, the next year we got Clyde and later adding Charles, we felt we could, you know, spread out that. spread out the responsibility offensively. I really think one of the most well-rounded teams we had was when we had, we also added Eddie Johnson. Right. And we had that team with Kevin Willis coming in, having a tremendous year, because Charles and a team both got hurt.

And then we had the unfortunate. injury with Charles Barclay. But I thought we were on our way to beating Utah again. And, you know, I thought that we had plenty of talent to win the championship, but it just shows you do have to have some good luck, too. No question. Staying healthy as a part of it. Well, Rudy is great hearing your voice.

I hope Boston's treating you well. I hope that Otisthorpe is buying you rounds of golf whenever you ask of it. And we look forward to seeing you inside Totis Center a lot coming up next year. for the time as always. Yeah, good to be with you, and I have seen Otis, and I'm so proud of the guy. He's one of the most well-like guys in this area, and it's just a pleasure to be around him.

That's great. Thank you, friend. Really appreciate it. Great hearing your voice, as always. That's the great Rudy, Tom Johnovich, with us here on the Sports Talk 790. I could just talk basketball with him for hours and hours. Great storyteller, and just more importantly, a better person. And we don't have enough enough of that in college, in pro sports.

with coaches. And he was a true gem and we was such an honor to work with him for those times in the mid-90s and still be able to call on him once in a while for a part of our flashback Friday, which is tonight against the magic here in Orlando.