Here's What Mike Woodson Said on A.J. Guyton's Podcast
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – A pair of Indiana legends got together this week for a podcast, when new Indiana coach Mike Woodson sat down for a 47-minute interview with A.J. Guyton.
Here are some of the highlights of the "House of Hoosier'' podcast on the Field of 68 Media Network, with a link below to the full interview on YouTube.
– on growing up in Indianapolis
"I grew up in a family of 12 and I was basically shooting hoops on a tree in the backyard with my brothers. Things started happening for me fairly quickly. My Dad, bless his heart, he worked so hard and he worked himself to death to take care of all his kids. Because of that, all I know is to work.
"The beauty about our family is that we were so close. I've lost two sister and a brother along the way, along with my mother. It's nice to come back full circle now because I was the only one who ever left.''
– on getting a scholarship offer from Bob Knight
"Every kid in the state grew up watching Indiana basketball, and Indiana was on top right then with the 1976 team and the 1975. It's amazing that record still stands today. When he offered me a scholarship, that was the greatest thing that could have ever happened to Mike Woodson. When Coach came knocking, I answered, and he gave me four years of great basketball knowledge.
– on all the talent in Indianapolis
"The talent in Indianapolis was just off the charts. People used to say how good I was, but I always thought there was so much more talent in Indiana. Roger Brown was my idol, and big Mac (George McGinnis), I looked up to him and he's been a lifelong friend. I was playing with all those guys when I was in high school, and that helped me prepare myself.
– on playing for Bill Smith at Broad Ripple
Bill Smith played a major role in my basketball life. He knocked me off my butt in doing all the right things on and off the floor, and then Coach Knight knocked that out of the park later.
– on playing Wayne Radford the first time
"I was in the eighth grade and one of my friends told me he played ball at a park by me. He and I got it on, one on one, and I held my own. I felt like if I could do that, I had a chance. And when I grew from 5-9 to 6-5, things just rapidly started to happen.
– on other recruiting trips
"I had a recruiting trip set up for Purdue, and Coach called me and said, 'what are you doing?' I had never been anywhere, and I was just going to have a good time. He said, 'Mike are you coming to Indiana?' and I said 'absolutely.' He said don't waste those people's time. Why would I play games with Purdue when I knew I was going to IU. I cancelled, signed at IU and the rest is history.''
– favorite place to eat as a player
"It was Bruce's Cafe. It was a little dive on the west side, Miss Pauline and her son and her husband and daughter in law. They had the best pastries, so fresh every day.
– toughest opponents in college
"That had to be Magic (Johnson) and Greg Kelser at Michigan State. We played them out in the Far West Classic and Magic was saying they were going to beat us three times that year. We played in Portland, and they pulled it out in the end, and Magic said, 'OK, I'm up 1-0.' They beat us up there, and he said '2-0' and then in Bloomington, he said '3-0.' They won the NCAA tournament that year and we won the NIT.''
– favorite Indiana players
"Isiah is one of my favorites. When he came in, I'm like who the hell is this kid? but he ran through that (Pan Am Games) camp like he owned the place. Big George has to be at the top. He was a man-child at dominating his position. Wayne Radford, being my best friend for 48 years, was special for me. We never had a hiccup, and he was the guy who jump-started me. Randy Wittman, he was right there as well. And probably (Glen) Grunwald, because a lot of people don't know about him, Grunwald had overtones like Larry, but his knees just wouldn't allow him to play. Hoosier fans never got to see that he could have been a great player.
– on his 1980 team that was so special
"Coming into that season, I had so much at stake as a player. Coach had put that team together after winning the NIT championship and then winning the Pan Am gold medal. Getting little Isiah out of Chicago was the missing piece and we were ranked No. 1. My senior year, we beat them by 20, because we were stacked at every position.
"But I never thought I would go down. And I never thought Randy Wittman would go down (foot). I had great people to get me back in eight weeks after back surgery. We won all six and beat Ohio State for the title in our last home game. The Final Four was in Indianapolis on my birthday, but we weren't able to get there. That was the most disappointing thing for me.''
– on coming home from the NBA
"I've been so driven and had success and failures as a coach. It's a part of the business. You're going to have ups and downs, and I've had my fair share. To be able to coach, to win an NBA title, to win and take my job from me, that's driven me more. To be able to circle back, timing had a lot to do with it.
"Somebody believing in Mike Woodson, that probably meant more to me than anyone. Scott Dolson, he believed in me. President (Michael) McRobbie, he believed in me, a ot of people in my corner all these years. To circle back is a drive come true, but there's a lot of work to be done to get this program back on top. We'll do this thing together.''
Related content
- To watch the full interview on YouTube, CLICK HERE
- To read all about Mike Woodson's 1980 season at Indiana, read Tom Brew and Terry Hutchens' IU basketball book "Missing Banners.'' CLICK HERE
