For every dad, it's a dream to be able to coach your son at the highest level. I've been his coach from day one, since God put him on this earth. I'll always be his coach. |
He was born to be a point guard. I always told him when he was 14, 15 that he was better than when I was 14 or 15. The only difference is, I've told him, he was a guard and I was a forward. |
He was pretty bad (with a stomach problem) plus his ankle was pretty sore. But the bottom line is the team pulled together to win a championship. |
He's been raised around basketball since he was conceived. The only thing we've asked of Billy is to continue to nurture and teach him to become the best possible basketball player he can possibly be. Coach Donovan and his coaching staff are doing a remarkable job. I couldn't have put him in a better hand that Coach Donovan. |
I knew it would be a special class for Coach Donovan and Florida. We looked at the type of character that he recruited for his team. As soon as they met each other on campus the first day, they hit it off very well. We sensed that as parents. By the second day of us dropping them off at school for good, we knew that they had a great chemistry for themselves. |
I tried to convince him to let me miss a couple of days of school. It wasn't happening. |
If he wins, Billy will be in a class with all the great coaches who coached this game, not only currently but in the past. To do it at 40 is remarkable. |
It's a dream come true from a dad's standpoint. Every dad wants this for their son. |
That's every player's dream — to get to the Final Four. The excitement, the atmosphere — that's what you play college basketball for. |
There's nothing tough (about basketball. All I have to do is remind him how I was brought up and how I was raised in Brooklyn, N.Y., around the peer pressure and everything. This is nothing compared to that. Everything he's learned in that aspect it's just toughened him up even more to face this kind of good adversity. |
This year, everyone is on the same page. There's not hidden agendas. Their agenda is for the success of the team. Every last one of those guys is happy for the next guy to be successful. |
What's good about this is they're setting an example for other teams. There's no superstars, they work hard and are willing to self sacrifice. |