June 20, 2024 • 33 mins
Gerry McNamara, the new head coach at Siena College, joins Brian Sinkoff on the latest episode of "Sound-off with Sinkoff".
They discuss McNamara's career at Syracuse, including winning the national championship as a freshman and his relationship with coach Jim Boeheim. McNamara also talks about his transition into coaching, his experience as a graduate assistant at Syracuse, and his journey to becoming the head coach at Siena. He shares his thoughts on recruiting, the challenges of the transfer portal and NIL, and his goals for the Siena program.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Hello and welcome everybody to Sound Off with Sink
Off.
I am Brian Sink Off here withyou with a very special guest
Really excited to have thisgentleman on with me on Sound
Off, and that is Jerry McNamara,the new head coach at Siena
College.
Jerry, how are you today?
Speaker 2 (00:19):
Brian, I'm doing well .
It's good to see you Long wayfrom our days in scranton pa yes
.
Speaker 1 (00:26):
So uh kind of give everyone the background, I uh,
prior to uh being on in inalbany and then in in norfolk,
virginia, I worked in scranton.
Uh back in 2000, 2001, whichwas jerry's junior season at
Bishop Hannon, covered him inScranton and was actually there,
(00:47):
jerry, on the day you made yourannouncement going to Syracuse.
So we're going to talk aboutSiena, we're going to talk about
, obviously, your Syracusecareer.
But take me back to that time.
That day, as a junior, you makethat announcement to go to
Syracuse, and looking back at itnow how your life has changed
and sort of the trajectory ofyour life since that time, yeah,
(01:11):
I, all these years later, Istill think about that decision.
Speaker 2 (01:16):
just how lucky I was that I chose the right one.
You know, not just for myplaying career and having the
opportunity to go somewherewhere I had a big role and was
able to showcase and play withgreat teammates, but to have the
relationships.
All these years later, mikeHopkins, who recruited me he and
I are as close as we've everbeen.
Coach Boeheim has been amainstay in my life since the
(01:40):
recruitment process and, youknow, gave me another
opportunity professionally.
You know, in my playing days Ifelt like I just physically, you
know, left ankle was destroyed.
I didn't really want to playoverseas and you know, it's just
, it was a.
I knew it back then.
It was the right decision.
I'm grateful for it today thatit was the right decision
(02:02):
because of the relationshipsI've kept and it's given me a
different avenue professionallythat I didn't see.
Coming out of college I neverthought about coaching.
I was always thinking aboutplaying, playing in the NBA and
doing all that.
So just really lucky that I wasrecruited by good people that
are still in my life today.
Speaker 1 (02:21):
Jerry, your freshman year.
Your team was phenomenal.
Carmelo yourself, I mean youjust you had a star-studded cast
.
You win the national title as afreshman.
Carmelo a freshman as well,obviously goes to the league
after that.
Take me back to that time yourfreshman year.
You're you're brand new.
You're handed the startingpoint guard gig at Syracuse and
(02:43):
and you make that run.
Speaker 2 (02:46):
Yeah, special, special group, you know it, just
the evolution of what we became.
I knew we were talented, butjust that year, what we became.
I remember going home forThanksgiving and hanging with
friends and they were asking mea million questions about us and
I was like, yeah, we're prettygood, you know we're okay.
And then by the time I had gonehome for Christmas, I was like,
yeah, we're pretty good, youknow, we're okay.
And then by the time I had gonehome for Christmas, I was like,
(03:08):
we're really good, I thinkwe're very good.
Um, so just, I was really luckythat I was surrounded by the
talent I was when I played atSyracuse and Carmelo was to that
point to this day he's the bestplayer I've ever stepped foot
on a court with and it wasevident right from the start.
Just terrific, you know.
So it was just kind of a fairytale, really a fairy tale year,
(03:31):
because we had we had won astate championship at Bishop
Hannon and I think it was insideof a year I don't even think it
was a full year later that wewon a national championship, or
might have been right outside afull year, where you know,
back-to-back championships, justlike a fairytale type start to
a career.
Speaker 1 (03:51):
You look at what that team did and what you did and
how you.
You, let's face it, yournotoriety, your popularity after
your freshman year and you kindof hinted at it, even going
home was off the charts.
Jerry, how did your life changeafter that freshman year at
Syracuse?
Speaker 2 (04:11):
I was probably more recognized, I'd say, than I had
ever been.
But it didn't.
You know, my life didn't reallychange.
You know I still had the samecircle I always had.
I never changed who I was.
You know I understood that thereason I was being paid
(04:33):
attention to was because of myplay.
So I always kept that at theforefront.
It was about the work that Ihad put in to become a good
player.
That was the reason I wasrecognized in the first place.
So don't stop that process.
That's got to be the main thing.
But you know, I'd say, you know,probably open some doors
professionally because morepeople know you, there's eyes on
(04:54):
your program.
You help draw people, hopefullymore fans, into the Syracuse
program.
And you know, all these yearslater, you know, just to still
be recognized as a collegebasketball player and what I was
able to do in the four years Iplayed, um, you know.
So that's just just a littlebit more visibility in terms of,
uh, more eyes on me.
Uh, you know Scranton hadalready kind of had their eyes
(05:17):
on me because we had some reallygood teams at Bishop Hand when
I played and, you know, drew alot of interest in the state of
PA.
But you know, once I hitSyracuse and hit the national
stage it kind of blew up alittle bit.
Speaker 1 (05:28):
Jerry, what was it like playing for Coach Boeheim?
Obviously a legendary headcoach you mentioned opened a lot
of doors for you and you know,I know, it was an honor to play
for him.
But from your perspective, whatwas that like?
Speaker 2 (05:42):
It was great, you know.
It exceeded anything that Ithought it would be, and mainly
because of how he treated me,especially at the end of my
career when I had a stressfracture in my pelvic bone and
you know I was facing a littlebit of criticism going into the
Big East tournament in 2006.
And he came to bat for me and,you know, stuck up for me, stuck
(06:07):
up for me and then again, youknow, as I started professional
career, he's the one that samething sticks up for me and gives
me an opportunity because hebelieved in me as a player, as a
professional, as a coach.
So he's just been, he's he'sother than my father.
He's been the biggest influenceon my life in terms of, you
know, having an adult man figurein your life, of who could help
(06:27):
guide you.
He opened up doors for me.
That you know.
I started playing basketballbecause I loved it.
It wasn't for anything otherthan that and it's taken me to
places, really, that I neverenvisioned.
I just fell in love with thegame, and Coach Boeheim is a
reason, to be honest, that I'menvisioned.
I just fell in love with thegame, and coach Bayheim is a
reason to, to be honest, thatI'm sitting here today.
(06:48):
He's the one that encouraged meto get back to Syracuse and
start my coaching career.
He thought I'd be good at it,so, uh, I just owe so much of my
life.
I attribute it to, to him beingin it.
Speaker 1 (07:14):
All right, we, we have to talk about your run in
the, uh, big East tournament.
I believe that was your senioryear, right?
If I'm not mistaken.
You a special place in yourheart.
But your run in that, you know,in that tournament is honestly
still talked about today, andI'm showing you a picture of, I
think, the game againstGeorgetown.
(07:35):
What was that like, jerry,because I know watching it as a
fan it was unbelievable, had tobe even more unbelievable for
you playing.
Speaker 2 (07:49):
It was very satisfying for a number of
reasons.
We went in that tournament.
We were on the outside lookingin in terms of the bubble.
We faced Cincinnati in thefirst round and it was kind of a
toss-up.
We had split during the season.
We beat them at their place andthey rocked us at the Dome.
So it was kind of like whoeverwins this eight, nine matchup is
probably in the tournament.
And then we won that on like afloater at the end of the game.
And you know, then it was like,oh, they're probably not in,
(08:11):
they probably have to beat uconn.
So then we beat uconn and thenthe next night it's like all
right, they're probably squarelyin, but you got georgetown and
we beat georgetown and then youface pitt.
So to you know, really the threebiggest rivals of my career
were literally three nights in arow UConn, georgetown,
pittsburgh, like the three.
You know the league is so goodand that was like the start of
(08:36):
like a peak that hit like aseven, eight year stretch where
the Big East was just so, sogood, so competitive, and it
always has been.
But those years were, thetalent level was through the
roof.
So to beat your three rivalsand three consecutive nights on
your way to a championship.
And we defended, you know, theyear before we won it.
We won it in 2005.
So we won it again in 2006,.
We went back to back.
(08:56):
People don't talk about thatLike that, that's what I was
thinking Like.
We defended our title and thebig East tournament, you know.
Um.
So just a great week in general.
But it was satisfying in termsof.
I said to my dad, right beforethey called my name up to get
the MVP, I said a lot of peopleate their words this week.
And he said you're damn right,they do so.
I just always remember thatmoment with my father.
(09:16):
I felt like I had earned at theend of my career.
People didn't realize I wasgoing through a stress fracture.
I was playing for like 20 games.
I was barely practicing just tobe available for games and you
know, coach stuck up for mebecause we're not going to
divulge that informationpublicly.
And I was going through a lotphysically, you know, then to be
questioned at the end of it ifyou felt like you accomplished
(09:37):
enough to kind of justify yourcareer, to kind of go out that
way I'm just, it was it was verysatisfying.
Speaker 1 (09:47):
You know, there's no secret.
I mean, syracuse has had somegreat players in their history.
You definitely, when you talkSyracuse basketball, especially
in that 2000s era, your name ismentioned.
You're a huge fan favorite inthe Capital Region, as you know
and we're going to talk aboutSiena here in a minute have you
kind of thought about your placein Syracuse, lore, jerry and
(10:13):
just I mean because you're stillgetting recognized and still
being, you know high-fived aboutwhat you did at Syracuse.
Speaker 2 (10:27):
How do you feel about that all these years later?
It hit me when my number wentinto the rafters.
I don't think I've ever thoughtabout my place or my standing
in terms of you know I I thinkcomparison, what do they say?
It's the thief of joy.
You know, like you, I don'twant to be compared to Pearl
Washington or Sherman Douglas.
You know, I just want to be.
If you're in those conversationsand you left your imprint, did
(10:48):
you leave it better than whenyou got there?
You know like, that's the way Ilooked at it, and one of the
things I tell the players that Iwork with for years is the way
you play is a representation ofwho you are, and that's all I
ever tried to do.
I just tried to play the gamewith a certain toughness.
I put winning above everythingelse.
(11:09):
That's how I ever tried to do.
I just tried to play the gamewith a certain toughness.
I put winning above everythingelse.
That's how I judged myself.
I never evaluated myperformance inside the 40
minutes.
I waited until after the game,because I just always felt like
you can handicap yourself if youare too hard on yourself in the
moments because there's anothermoment to be had.
So it's a 40-minute game andyou fight until the end and then
(11:32):
afterward you can get angry atyourself and really critique
yourself and that's how you getbetter.
But when you're inside thelines, you just got to lay it
out there every possession.
So that's really just at theend of the day you want to look
back and just be proud of likeman I left it out there.
You don.
At the end of the day, you wantto look back and just be proud
of like man I left it out there.
(11:53):
Like that's.
You don't ever want to have aregret and that's that's what
I'm most proud about.
I was available every night.
I played 135 straight startsand there was a lot that went
into that.
My body to this day is notright.
You know.
My left ankle needs surgicalrepair.
It's probably what ended mycareer earlier than I
anticipated and um, but Iwouldn't trade it.
You know I wouldn't trade itfor the world.
(12:14):
I just I look back and that'sthe thing I'm most proud about.
So I don't.
I don't compare eras, I don'tcompare teams, I just did.
I do what I needed to do andand help the program become,
hopefully a little bit better.
And you know we played in fourstraight NCAA tournaments in my
tenure.
I'm very proud of that.
Speaker 1 (12:35):
So you, you, you leave basketball.
Yeah, obviously, you talkedabout your injuries
professionally.
Just just I know you wentoverseas and things of that
nature, but let's talk aboutsort of your coaching career.
July of 2009, you're going tobe a graduate assistant
underneath Boeheim.
You didn't have any visions ofcoaching.
(12:56):
You touched on that earlier.
How did that come about?
And then how did that evolve towhere you are right now?
Speaker 2 (13:04):
Yeah, I met him.
So I was there in 2008 for thesixth overtime game, so we
stayed.
My wife and I stayed.
For the next night they went toovertime again and I said we
got to stay for the championship, so we stayed again.
So then I went over to thepregame meeting at the Eastside
Marriott to listen to thepregame meeting with coach and I
(13:26):
hadn't seen him.
My wife had had seen him, so Iwanted to talk to him, say hi to
him.
So then he and I startedtalking.
We were talking about that thatnight's game, what he expected,
how they were going to attack,all that stuff.
And you know, then he startedasking me what do you have next,
this, this and that?
And I was like, ah, you know,I'm kind of in, got selection
(13:48):
Sunday.
They're going to go to Miami.
So I was back in Pennsylvania inbetween jobs it's a two-hour
drive.
I'm like, you know, I said tomy wife I'm going to go watch
them practice, like I'm justgoing to drive up, watch them
practice, no intention at all.
And then like, yeah, it's thecues, like I want to root them
on and be a part of it and seethem.
And we were going to fly tomiami to watch them play,
because I had the time.
(14:08):
So I went up to watch thempractice.
And that's when he kind of hitme with it, like why don't you
come back and be a graduateassistant, get into coaching?
And I was not prepared for it.
I I told them I'd, coach, Idon't think so, like I'll, you
know, I'll think about it, and Ijust kind of put it on the back
burner, um, and then they, theywent into Sweet 16.
I think they lost to BlakeGriffin in Oklahoma.
(14:29):
And a day or two went by and myphone rang and as soon as I saw
the name I was like, oh my gosh, I forgot about the question,
you know.
So I answered the phone and wetalked for a few minutes and he
kind of talked me into it likewhy he thought it would be good
for me.
And you know, on that samephone call I said, coach, you
know what, I think I'm going totake you up on it.
(14:50):
And you know it was one of thebest decisions I made because I
truly loved the developmentprocess and the coaching side of
things.
Speaker 1 (15:01):
It's been a rejuvenation of life that I
needed.
So you're on the bench atSyracuse for a while.
Obviously, you get elevated andthings of that nature and then
the Siena job opens.
And how did that come about interms of you getting in the
position, interviewing and thenultimately getting the gig?
(15:24):
And you were hired as the 19thhead coach in Siena men's
history back in late March ofthis past year.
So how did that come about,jerry?
Speaker 2 (15:30):
the whole hiring process.
Speaker 1 (15:31):
Yeah, just just you know you.
You, sienna, you're at, you'reat syracuse, you're on the bench
.
Were you looking for a head gig?
You know what I mean?
Obviously I know that'sprobably the end game there,
right?
Speaker 2 (15:42):
yeah, I think most people, when they find an
opportunity that they they'reexcited about, I would never
leave Syracuse unless it wassomething that I thought made
sense for myself, for my family.
I was in a staff meeting atSyracuse.
At that point we were alreadyevaluating transfer portal guys.
We were in like hours and hoursof meetings every day just
(16:06):
watching film on different guysthat we maybe target.
And it hit the Internet, like Iwas in the meeting and my phone
started going, going, going,watch out for for Jerry McNamara
, for Siena.
So that's kind of how itstarted.
But it wasn't until five, fouror five days later that I was
(16:26):
even contacted about it.
Four or five days later that Iwas even contacted about it and
then shortly after that, within48 hours I think, I was on
campus for kind of an interviewand walk through and then it was
a short period of time afterthat that I was actually offered
the position.
So I think it just aligned.
I think it aligned with whatthey were looking for, what I
was looking for if I was goingto leave and to have a chance to
(16:50):
run my own program at a placewith history and incredible fan
support.
That's what makes me so excitedabout this is I understand the
pride of where I'm coming from,like how it makes people feel
when I played at Syracuse, whenwe coached at Syracuse, and this
Siena basketball makes peoplefeel.
When I played at Syracuse, whenwe coached at Syracuse, and
(17:11):
this Siena basketball makespeople feel the same way they
they come out to games, theysupport the program.
This community, communityrallies behind it, it has a
tradition, so those things justkind of matched Catholic
institution Like it.
Just everything about the placeand what they were looking for
and I think who I am and how Ido things.
I think it made sense on theirend and you know this, this
(17:34):
place made a ton of sense on myend.
Speaker 1 (17:37):
You had obviously you guys played here when you went
on the national title run backin 2003.
You knew, you knew the capitalregion a little bit, but what
did you really know about Sienabefore you took the gig?
I know the fan base is ispretty, you know, you know about
the fan base and things of thatnature, but what did you know
about this program before youcame?
Speaker 2 (17:59):
You know as much as you could, I think, from the
outside, you know I was so.
I was so two feet in at Cuseover the last 20 years that I
didn't write, you know.
So my first experience wasprobably when we played here
against them, when we camethrough the building the year
before for the tournament, yeah,and then just over the years
(18:22):
being in central New York yourun into so many people that are
that are graduates or alum ofSiena and you know, again, it
was like the pride thing.
Like everyone, every one ofthem you talk to, there's Siena,
siena, siena.
I love it, I love it, you know.
So.
Then you know the France teamswere probably the first teams
that I was, you know, was oldenough to appreciate those runs
(18:47):
and NCAA tournament.
I think it was Ohio State.
And then guys like Louis Orrwho was here and who was a good
friend.
I know Louis loved it here andyou know, I know Lewis loved it
here.
So just familiarity with peoplethat I know and people that
(19:09):
have come through here that justhad such a love for the place.
Speaker 1 (19:20):
Well, you get the job in late March, early April, and
I know it was feet to the fireand go, go, go, jerry.
How tough was it to sort of?
I mean because, let's face it,you were a little late in the
process, right in terms ofrecruiting and all that.
How tough was it?
Because you fundamentally hadto turn over the entire roster,
you had to hire assistantcoaches.
How hard was that to do in sucha short amount of time?
It's difficult.
Speaker 2 (19:41):
The one thing, the hardest part, was I had a
two-bedroom apartment and BenLee, who I hired, flew in from
Washington and stayed with me,and Ryan Bure, our director of
operations, was staying on anair mattress that my wife
brought up.
So the three of us, we calledit the frat.
(20:03):
We were hanging out out and wegot so much accomplished.
And then coach black and and,and, uh renze, coach onawaku
those guys were coming up whenthey could and we were doing
visits.
So 13 straight days and it wasnine kids over 13 straight days
that we did a visit.
I've likened it to likeGroundhog Day, bill Murray, by
(20:23):
like the 10th day.
I was like doing the same thingover and over, but we were
really efficient.
So, as difficult as it was,like we, we knocked it out in a
short period of time and wetargeted guys that we thought
could help us right away.
That a lot of them.
We did have a relationship withA couple of them we didn't, and
we were just.
You know it was like speeddating.
(20:44):
You know you were reaching out,developing a quick relationship
, telling them who you are,what's your vision I really like
your stuff on film we'd love tohave you up type thing, and we
hit those ones too.
So you know, we went eight forour first eight, the first eight
guys we had on campus committed.
We actually went nine for ourfirst nine, but we lost a guy to
a bigger program, one that Ididn't anticipate recruiting
(21:07):
against, and then we just addedanother commitment in the last
week.
So I think overall we were like10 for 12 or 10 for 13 on
visits or nine for 12.
So somewhere in that range, ifyou've got to fill that many
spots, like it's very, verydifficult if you miss, if you
(21:27):
swing this now you're back tothe drawing board and there's a
lot of coaches that are sittingin my seat right now that don't
have a full roster.
So I just feel really blessedthat we targeted the right guys
and got them to commit.
Speaker 1 (21:39):
Jerry, I know it's early and you haven't seen this
team in action.
I know it's early and youhaven't seen this team in action
.
You probably had some workoutsand things of that nature, but
what can you tell the Siena fansabout this your team coming up
for the new season, based on whoyou've recruited and and your
coaching staff and what you'veput together in such a short
amount of time?
Speaker 2 (21:56):
The thing that I've noticed early is the fight like
the.
They're very competitive andI've brought in high character
kids Like they're all reallygood kids that want to learn,
want to get better.
But anytime that I've doneanything in practice, that is to
a number.
So we're going to play thefirst one to 11.
We're going twos and threes atthe end of practice out of a
(22:18):
certain action that we put inthat day.
The games are always close andit's I've applauded them every
day for it because that tells methat the winning part matters
to them.
So that's the most importantthing now as far as who and what
we become, you know that'sthat's to be determined.
We've got to figure out ways toscore the basketball and we're
(22:42):
going to have to be efficient onthat end.
So that's why we're here thissummer.
So the you know, the first fewweeks I've been really, really
proud of them.
I thought the first week wasjust so high level in terms of,
and then you get that littlehangover in second week like, oh
yeah, the initial high of beingon campus and you know.
So I got on them a little bitfor that second week and it
(23:03):
picked up that last two days ofthat week and so far this week.
Today's our day off and so sofar this week they've been very,
very good, ready to work, andyou know, I'm just I'm grateful
to them.
You know this is my first group, so I'm just I'm really really
grateful to the kids that arehere.
Speaker 1 (23:18):
A couple of questions before I let you go.
What have you found to be?
You were an assistant.
You were on the bench withBoeheim for many, many years,
over a decade.
What have you found to be maybethe biggest challenge, the
biggest reward, since now?
You're the guy.
You've got to delegate right.
You're in charge.
You're the man.
It's on your shoulders.
So what is the biggestchallenge and the biggest
(23:40):
exciting thing about that?
Speaker 2 (23:42):
I think that second part is probably the most
exciting.
That's on me.
You know I like that type ofyou.
Know that motivates me, thatdrives me.
So the product that's on thecourt, you know, the most
important thing to me is thepride thing.
So the product that's on thecourt and I told the players
this you represent the siennacommunity now, so what you do
(24:07):
matters and how you play, andthen the representation piece
matters to me.
So we have to look a certainway, you have to play a certain
way, because the people thatwatch you should be proud of you
.
Um, so we're gonna fight.
You know that that's the mostimportant thing to me.
That's who I was, that's who Iam.
I'd say the most challengingthing has been you don't factor
(24:27):
in everything.
When you get a head coachingjob, you think it's all coaching
you do, and then you know you,you realize there's a heck of a
lot more to it.
You know, in terms ofscheduling, budgeting, um, you
know we had to get I had likesix shoe boxes because we had to
make sure, like immediately,like hey, let's, we've got to
(24:48):
get the summer gear ready forthese guys when they get here.
I want them in siena stuff.
This is what I want, so wedesigned all that.
So we're doing that at the fratduring visits till like midnight
, and then you're getting up at7 30 in the morning to go have
breakfast with the recruit who'sstill on campus.
So, right, you know, just nodifferent than coming in as a
freshman being a head coach.
Um, everything is timemanagement.
(25:11):
It is, it's, it's.
Can you manage your time to getthe most production out of your
day?
And, um, it's gotten easier asI've gone, because we've started
to chip away at the things thatwe thought needed to be
addressed when we first got thejob.
Speaker 1 (25:24):
Jerry, a question that I mean I'm I'm just such a
huge college basketball fan.
I've been for many, many years.
One thing I find and I knowthis is challenging, especially
in those mid-majors is sort ofthe NIL, the transfer portal.
And you know, recruiting isprobably so different for you
now than it was even when youwere in college.
(25:46):
You know, you're right, you'relooking at other programs,
you're looking at JUCOs, you'relooking at transfers.
This is very different.
So how are you going to dealand how have you been dealing
with sort of the NIL andtransferring and just kind of
utter chaos controlled chaos, Iguess, in college basketball?
Speaker 2 (26:06):
Yeah, the thing that bothers me is a lot of these
acquisitions are transactionaland you know I've said this.
When it stops becoming aboutrelationships for me, I need to
get out.
I'm not going to do it anymore,like I will step away from
coaching at some point if itstops being about the
relationships I build withpeople.
(26:28):
So that's still going to be atthe forefront of how I recruit.
Now retention is more difficult, because your best player is
just that you see theenvironment.
Your best player is just aslikely to leave as the kid
that's not playing you don'tknow.
Your best player is just aslikely to leave as the kid
that's not playing you don'tknow.
And that's the biggest issue Ihave with all of this.
It's not the transfer rule,it's not the NIL, it's the
(26:53):
unlimited transfer rule.
That's the biggest issue I havewith this, that we've just
opened it up completely.
So there's no.
I mean we used to have time off,like May and April.
May, june, used to be adecompression phase for coaches.
Now it's our most stressfultime.
They've had to move recruitingweekends because coaches weren't
(27:17):
able to go on the road andrecruit because they needed to
fill a roster, so they weregoing in the transfer portal,
they'd have two kids on campusand now you can't go to the
recruiting event on the weekendbecause the most important thing
is having a roster and andthat's just it's.
It's become, it's just becomevery difficult and and you know
I could complain about it, butat least the guy on in the next
(27:39):
program over is dealing with thesame thing.
So to me, retention is going tomatter.
Do I recruit kids?
Do Do I treat them right?
Do I develop those realrelationships with them?
And if I do right by them andtreat them like men, with
respect and maturity, but stillcoach them, you're probably
still going to be in a bettersituation at the end to retain
(27:59):
them because you've developed areal relationship.
So I'm going to do my best notto make this thing transactional
.
The good thing about Sienna iswe do have support, we do have a
collective, so we do have helpbecause you need it.
I'd be lying to you to say ifthe conversation it has to be
about the relationship, but atthe end of the day, the way I
(28:20):
look at it is, you still have todo your best to take care of
these kids and every one of them.
It's not just one guy, two guys.
I don't think that's the model.
So you know, I might do it alittle bit differently, but I'm
still going to keep it about therelationship that's got to be
at the forefront.
Speaker 1 (28:34):
Obviously your resources and you know the
community, syracuse versus Sienait's, you know, a little bit of
apples to oranges, but I'm sureyou relish that challenge,
right?
I mean, you're not in a powerfive here at Siena, but you do
have the arena, the community,the media, as you know.
I mean the media, it'sphenomenal here.
(28:57):
It's a big market, jerry.
I mean you know this.
So kind of contrast Sienaversus Syracuse.
In that regard it just this isdifferent, for you.
Speaker 2 (29:06):
Yeah, it's just different.
You know, that's all it is.
I just look at it as it's justdifferent.
This is.
You know, the great thing hereis like the facilities are
awesome.
You know, the playing venue isincredible, the practice
facility is great.
You know, I think there's somethings that you know.
I'm not going to divulge herebecause I don't want to give my
secrets away, but that I canenhance while I'm here, you know
(29:28):
.
But the, you know it is applesand oranges.
I mean the reality of it isPower Five.
You know ACC, you have morewithin what you're getting back
from the conference financially.
It just is what it is.
You know.
My thing is can you maintain acompetitive balance within your
league?
You don't want to get blown outof the water of what X, y and Z
(29:50):
schools can do to you.
You've got to be on acompetitive playing field to be
in the running for the samecaliber of talent a player.
So you've got to match thosecertain things.
I feel like we do.
We do as well as anybody inthis league and we can remain
competitive.
And you know, I think thebiggest thing is your best
recruiters are your players, youknow.
(30:12):
So the my reputation as a coachat Syracuse grew through the
guys I worked with because Icould go out and recruit the
next kid.
Cole Swider told me the story.
He called Joe Gerard and waslike hey, man, tell me the truth
.
How different is gmac when,when I, when I get on campus and
joe's like nah, man, like he'sthis, he's literally the same
dude that's recruiting you like.
I'm not lying, like.
So you know if it'll help youin recruiting, if you get it
(30:36):
rolling and the guys that playfor you like yo, I, I really
like playing for this guy.
He does right by us, he puts usin the right position.
So if I could do those things,you know everything.
It's the most important thing.
Everything starts to elevate.
Speaker 1 (30:47):
I'm going to show you a picture in my last question
for you.
We're going to go old school.
Look at this.
Yeah, we're going back to thebishop, bishop hannon days right
love, love that.
And jerry, I I can justpersonally my personal anecdote
about you.
I remember I it was such a joycovering you in high school.
(31:08):
I mean you, your team, and youknow I'll be honest with you.
Sometimes I looked at thatlayup line in some of those
tournaments you guys played inand I was like there is no way
bishop hannon is winning thisgame and you guys were like a
well-oiled machine, obviouslycredit to you.
But look at this picture andyou can tell the a well-oiled
machine, obviously credit to you.
But look at this picture andyou can tell the 17 year old
(31:29):
jerry mcnamara anything.
What are you telling that kidright there?
Speaker 2 (31:33):
make more shots in the second half.
That's halftime.
I had 41 and a half and Ididn't.
I didn't shoot a great in thesecond half, but but but about
life, like about life, not thatevent you know, just keep doing
it the way you're doing it.
You know you're you're.
You're getting recognition fora reason.
Keep the main thing, the mainthing, which is the work.
(31:54):
Put your head down.
Stay loyal to the people thatgot you here, that love you.
Keep your circle tight withyour friends.
Put yourself in the rightsituations.
(32:17):
Don't get around the wrongpeople.
Not everybody has the same bestintentions for you.
Um, and I've done that, youknow.
Um, so I'd, I'd tell myselfyou're doing it the right way.
Do right by people.
Uh, you know, just continue totry to be humble.
And you know I was kind of.
You know I separated from, likecollege.
I was very quiet.
I went back to the apartment,like I just was focused on, you
know, just trying to get it donethere.
(32:38):
And you know, just keep tryingto do it the right way.
Speaker 1 (32:42):
I would tell them Well, I want to thank you so
much for joining me.
We go back 25 years at thispoint.
I'm glad we were able to catchup again.
One thing I like about youyou're a genuine guy.
I think Sienna hit a home runon your hire.
I want to say that to youpersonally.
Thank you, I really wish younothing but luck and success and
(33:03):
again, thanks for joining me.
Jerry, my pleasure.
Thank you, brian, appreciateyou.
All right, it's Jerry McNamaraand this is SoundOff with
Syncoff, sponsored by theSyncoff Realty Group, full
service real estate brokerage inthe capital region of New York.
Make sure to like, share,subscribe.
You know what to do.
Thanks for watching the podcast.
I appreciate you.
Let's go, saints.
Hello and welcome everybody to Sound Off with Sink
Off.
I am Brian Sink Off here withyou with a very special guest
Really excited to have thisgentleman on with me on Sound
Off, and that is Jerry McNamara,the new head coach at Siena
College.
Jerry, how are you today?
Speaker 2 (00:19):
Brian, I'm doing well .
It's good to see you Long wayfrom our days in scranton pa yes
.
Speaker 1 (00:26):
So uh kind of give everyone the background, I uh,
prior to uh being on in inalbany and then in in norfolk,
virginia, I worked in scranton.
Uh back in 2000, 2001, whichwas jerry's junior season at
Bishop Hannon, covered him inScranton and was actually there,
(00:47):
jerry, on the day you made yourannouncement going to Syracuse.
So we're going to talk aboutSiena, we're going to talk about
, obviously, your Syracusecareer.
But take me back to that time.
That day, as a junior, you makethat announcement to go to
Syracuse, and looking back at itnow how your life has changed
and sort of the trajectory ofyour life since that time, yeah,
(01:11):
I, all these years later, Istill think about that decision.
Speaker 2 (01:16):
just how lucky I was that I chose the right one.
You know, not just for myplaying career and having the
opportunity to go somewherewhere I had a big role and was
able to showcase and play withgreat teammates, but to have the
relationships.
All these years later, mikeHopkins, who recruited me he and
I are as close as we've everbeen.
Coach Boeheim has been amainstay in my life since the
(01:40):
recruitment process and, youknow, gave me another
opportunity professionally.
You know, in my playing days Ifelt like I just physically, you
know, left ankle was destroyed.
I didn't really want to playoverseas and you know, it's just
, it was a.
I knew it back then.
It was the right decision.
I'm grateful for it today thatit was the right decision
(02:02):
because of the relationshipsI've kept and it's given me a
different avenue professionallythat I didn't see.
Coming out of college I neverthought about coaching.
I was always thinking aboutplaying, playing in the NBA and
doing all that.
So just really lucky that I wasrecruited by good people that
are still in my life today.
Speaker 1 (02:21):
Jerry, your freshman year.
Your team was phenomenal.
Carmelo yourself, I mean youjust you had a star-studded cast
.
You win the national title as afreshman.
Carmelo a freshman as well,obviously goes to the league
after that.
Take me back to that time yourfreshman year.
You're you're brand new.
You're handed the startingpoint guard gig at Syracuse and
(02:43):
and you make that run.
Speaker 2 (02:46):
Yeah, special, special group, you know it, just
the evolution of what we became.
I knew we were talented, butjust that year, what we became.
I remember going home forThanksgiving and hanging with
friends and they were asking mea million questions about us and
I was like, yeah, we're prettygood, you know we're okay.
And then by the time I had gonehome for Christmas, I was like,
yeah, we're pretty good, youknow, we're okay.
And then by the time I had gonehome for Christmas, I was like,
(03:08):
we're really good, I thinkwe're very good.
Um, so just, I was really luckythat I was surrounded by the
talent I was when I played atSyracuse and Carmelo was to that
point to this day he's the bestplayer I've ever stepped foot
on a court with and it wasevident right from the start.
Just terrific, you know.
So it was just kind of a fairytale, really a fairy tale year,
(03:31):
because we had we had won astate championship at Bishop
Hannon and I think it was insideof a year I don't even think it
was a full year later that wewon a national championship, or
might have been right outside afull year, where you know,
back-to-back championships, justlike a fairytale type start to
a career.
Speaker 1 (03:51):
You look at what that team did and what you did and
how you.
You, let's face it, yournotoriety, your popularity after
your freshman year and you kindof hinted at it, even going
home was off the charts.
Jerry, how did your life changeafter that freshman year at
Syracuse?
Speaker 2 (04:11):
I was probably more recognized, I'd say, than I had
ever been.
But it didn't.
You know, my life didn't reallychange.
You know I still had the samecircle I always had.
I never changed who I was.
You know I understood that thereason I was being paid
(04:33):
attention to was because of myplay.
So I always kept that at theforefront.
It was about the work that Ihad put in to become a good
player.
That was the reason I wasrecognized in the first place.
So don't stop that process.
That's got to be the main thing.
But you know, I'd say, you know,probably open some doors
professionally because morepeople know you, there's eyes on
(04:54):
your program.
You help draw people, hopefullymore fans, into the Syracuse
program.
And you know, all these yearslater, you know, just to still
be recognized as a collegebasketball player and what I was
able to do in the four years Iplayed, um, you know.
So that's just just a littlebit more visibility in terms of,
uh, more eyes on me.
Uh, you know Scranton hadalready kind of had their eyes
(05:17):
on me because we had some reallygood teams at Bishop Hand when
I played and, you know, drew alot of interest in the state of
PA.
But you know, once I hitSyracuse and hit the national
stage it kind of blew up alittle bit.
Speaker 1 (05:28):
Jerry, what was it like playing for Coach Boeheim?
Obviously a legendary headcoach you mentioned opened a lot
of doors for you and you know,I know, it was an honor to play
for him.
But from your perspective, whatwas that like?
Speaker 2 (05:42):
It was great, you know.
It exceeded anything that Ithought it would be, and mainly
because of how he treated me,especially at the end of my
career when I had a stressfracture in my pelvic bone and
you know I was facing a littlebit of criticism going into the
Big East tournament in 2006.
And he came to bat for me and,you know, stuck up for me, stuck
(06:07):
up for me and then again, youknow, as I started professional
career, he's the one that samething sticks up for me and gives
me an opportunity because hebelieved in me as a player, as a
professional, as a coach.
So he's just been, he's he'sother than my father.
He's been the biggest influenceon my life in terms of, you
know, having an adult man figurein your life, of who could help
(06:27):
guide you.
He opened up doors for me.
That you know.
I started playing basketballbecause I loved it.
It wasn't for anything otherthan that and it's taken me to
places, really, that I neverenvisioned.
I just fell in love with thegame, and Coach Boeheim is a
reason, to be honest, that I'menvisioned.
I just fell in love with thegame, and coach Bayheim is a
reason to, to be honest, thatI'm sitting here today.
(06:48):
He's the one that encouraged meto get back to Syracuse and
start my coaching career.
He thought I'd be good at it,so, uh, I just owe so much of my
life.
I attribute it to, to him beingin it.
Speaker 1 (07:14):
All right, we, we have to talk about your run in
the, uh, big East tournament.
I believe that was your senioryear, right?
If I'm not mistaken.
You a special place in yourheart.
But your run in that, you know,in that tournament is honestly
still talked about today, andI'm showing you a picture of, I
think, the game againstGeorgetown.
(07:35):
What was that like, jerry,because I know watching it as a
fan it was unbelievable, had tobe even more unbelievable for
you playing.
Speaker 2 (07:49):
It was very satisfying for a number of
reasons.
We went in that tournament.
We were on the outside lookingin in terms of the bubble.
We faced Cincinnati in thefirst round and it was kind of a
toss-up.
We had split during the season.
We beat them at their place andthey rocked us at the Dome.
So it was kind of like whoeverwins this eight, nine matchup is
probably in the tournament.
And then we won that on like afloater at the end of the game.
And you know, then it was like,oh, they're probably not in,
(08:11):
they probably have to beat uconn.
So then we beat uconn and thenthe next night it's like all
right, they're probably squarelyin, but you got georgetown and
we beat georgetown and then youface pitt.
So to you know, really the threebiggest rivals of my career
were literally three nights in arow UConn, georgetown,
pittsburgh, like the three.
You know the league is so goodand that was like the start of
(08:36):
like a peak that hit like aseven, eight year stretch where
the Big East was just so, sogood, so competitive, and it
always has been.
But those years were, thetalent level was through the
roof.
So to beat your three rivalsand three consecutive nights on
your way to a championship.
And we defended, you know, theyear before we won it.
We won it in 2005.
So we won it again in 2006,.
We went back to back.
(08:56):
People don't talk about thatLike that, that's what I was
thinking Like.
We defended our title and thebig East tournament, you know.
Um.
So just a great week in general.
But it was satisfying in termsof.
I said to my dad, right beforethey called my name up to get
the MVP, I said a lot of peopleate their words this week.
And he said you're damn right,they do so.
I just always remember thatmoment with my father.
(09:16):
I felt like I had earned at theend of my career.
People didn't realize I wasgoing through a stress fracture.
I was playing for like 20 games.
I was barely practicing just tobe available for games and you
know, coach stuck up for mebecause we're not going to
divulge that informationpublicly.
And I was going through a lotphysically, you know, then to be
questioned at the end of it ifyou felt like you accomplished
(09:37):
enough to kind of justify yourcareer, to kind of go out that
way I'm just, it was it was verysatisfying.
Speaker 1 (09:47):
You know, there's no secret.
I mean, syracuse has had somegreat players in their history.
You definitely, when you talkSyracuse basketball, especially
in that 2000s era, your name ismentioned.
You're a huge fan favorite inthe Capital Region, as you know
and we're going to talk aboutSiena here in a minute have you
kind of thought about your placein Syracuse, lore, jerry and
(10:13):
just I mean because you're stillgetting recognized and still
being, you know high-fived aboutwhat you did at Syracuse.
Speaker 2 (10:27):
How do you feel about that all these years later?
It hit me when my number wentinto the rafters.
I don't think I've ever thoughtabout my place or my standing
in terms of you know I I thinkcomparison, what do they say?
It's the thief of joy.
You know, like you, I don'twant to be compared to Pearl
Washington or Sherman Douglas.
You know, I just want to be.
If you're in those conversationsand you left your imprint, did
(10:48):
you leave it better than whenyou got there?
You know like, that's the way Ilooked at it, and one of the
things I tell the players that Iwork with for years is the way
you play is a representation ofwho you are, and that's all I
ever tried to do.
I just tried to play the gamewith a certain toughness.
I put winning above everythingelse.
(11:09):
That's how I ever tried to do.
I just tried to play the gamewith a certain toughness.
I put winning above everythingelse.
That's how I judged myself.
I never evaluated myperformance inside the 40
minutes.
I waited until after the game,because I just always felt like
you can handicap yourself if youare too hard on yourself in the
moments because there's anothermoment to be had.
So it's a 40-minute game andyou fight until the end and then
(11:32):
afterward you can get angry atyourself and really critique
yourself and that's how you getbetter.
But when you're inside thelines, you just got to lay it
out there every possession.
So that's really just at theend of the day you want to look
back and just be proud of likeman I left it out there.
You don.
At the end of the day, you wantto look back and just be proud
of like man I left it out there.
(11:53):
Like that's.
You don't ever want to have aregret and that's that's what
I'm most proud about.
I was available every night.
I played 135 straight startsand there was a lot that went
into that.
My body to this day is notright.
You know.
My left ankle needs surgicalrepair.
It's probably what ended mycareer earlier than I
anticipated and um, but Iwouldn't trade it.
You know I wouldn't trade itfor the world.
(12:14):
I just I look back and that'sthe thing I'm most proud about.
So I don't.
I don't compare eras, I don'tcompare teams, I just did.
I do what I needed to do andand help the program become,
hopefully a little bit better.
And you know we played in fourstraight NCAA tournaments in my
tenure.
I'm very proud of that.
Speaker 1 (12:35):
So you, you, you leave basketball.
Yeah, obviously, you talkedabout your injuries
professionally.
Just just I know you wentoverseas and things of that
nature, but let's talk aboutsort of your coaching career.
July of 2009, you're going tobe a graduate assistant
underneath Boeheim.
You didn't have any visions ofcoaching.
(12:56):
You touched on that earlier.
How did that come about?
And then how did that evolve towhere you are right now?
Speaker 2 (13:04):
Yeah, I met him.
So I was there in 2008 for thesixth overtime game, so we
stayed.
My wife and I stayed.
For the next night they went toovertime again and I said we
got to stay for the championship, so we stayed again.
So then I went over to thepregame meeting at the Eastside
Marriott to listen to thepregame meeting with coach and I
(13:26):
hadn't seen him.
My wife had had seen him, so Iwanted to talk to him, say hi to
him.
So then he and I startedtalking.
We were talking about that thatnight's game, what he expected,
how they were going to attack,all that stuff.
And you know, then he startedasking me what do you have next,
this, this and that?
And I was like, ah, you know,I'm kind of in, got selection
(13:48):
Sunday.
They're going to go to Miami.
So I was back in Pennsylvania inbetween jobs it's a two-hour
drive.
I'm like, you know, I said tomy wife I'm going to go watch
them practice, like I'm justgoing to drive up, watch them
practice, no intention at all.
And then like, yeah, it's thecues, like I want to root them
on and be a part of it and seethem.
And we were going to fly tomiami to watch them play,
because I had the time.
(14:08):
So I went up to watch thempractice.
And that's when he kind of hitme with it, like why don't you
come back and be a graduateassistant, get into coaching?
And I was not prepared for it.
I I told them I'd, coach, Idon't think so, like I'll, you
know, I'll think about it, and Ijust kind of put it on the back
burner, um, and then they, theywent into Sweet 16.
I think they lost to BlakeGriffin in Oklahoma.
(14:29):
And a day or two went by and myphone rang and as soon as I saw
the name I was like, oh my gosh, I forgot about the question,
you know.
So I answered the phone and wetalked for a few minutes and he
kind of talked me into it likewhy he thought it would be good
for me.
And you know, on that samephone call I said, coach, you
know what, I think I'm going totake you up on it.
(14:50):
And you know it was one of thebest decisions I made because I
truly loved the developmentprocess and the coaching side of
things.
Speaker 1 (15:01):
It's been a rejuvenation of life that I
needed.
So you're on the bench atSyracuse for a while.
Obviously, you get elevated andthings of that nature and then
the Siena job opens.
And how did that come about interms of you getting in the
position, interviewing and thenultimately getting the gig?
(15:24):
And you were hired as the 19thhead coach in Siena men's
history back in late March ofthis past year.
So how did that come about,jerry?
Speaker 2 (15:30):
the whole hiring process.
Speaker 1 (15:31):
Yeah, just just you know you.
You, sienna, you're at, you'reat syracuse, you're on the bench
.
Were you looking for a head gig?
You know what I mean?
Obviously I know that'sprobably the end game there,
right?
Speaker 2 (15:42):
yeah, I think most people, when they find an
opportunity that they they'reexcited about, I would never
leave Syracuse unless it wassomething that I thought made
sense for myself, for my family.
I was in a staff meeting atSyracuse.
At that point we were alreadyevaluating transfer portal guys.
We were in like hours and hoursof meetings every day just
(16:06):
watching film on different guysthat we maybe target.
And it hit the Internet, like Iwas in the meeting and my phone
started going, going, going,watch out for for Jerry McNamara
, for Siena.
So that's kind of how itstarted.
But it wasn't until five, fouror five days later that I was
(16:26):
even contacted about it.
Four or five days later that Iwas even contacted about it and
then shortly after that, within48 hours I think, I was on
campus for kind of an interviewand walk through and then it was
a short period of time afterthat that I was actually offered
the position.
So I think it just aligned.
I think it aligned with whatthey were looking for, what I
was looking for if I was goingto leave and to have a chance to
(16:50):
run my own program at a placewith history and incredible fan
support.
That's what makes me so excitedabout this is I understand the
pride of where I'm coming from,like how it makes people feel
when I played at Syracuse, whenwe coached at Syracuse, and this
Siena basketball makes peoplefeel.
When I played at Syracuse, whenwe coached at Syracuse, and
(17:11):
this Siena basketball makespeople feel the same way they
they come out to games, theysupport the program.
This community, communityrallies behind it, it has a
tradition, so those things justkind of matched Catholic
institution Like it.
Just everything about the placeand what they were looking for
and I think who I am and how Ido things.
I think it made sense on theirend and you know this, this
(17:34):
place made a ton of sense on myend.
Speaker 1 (17:37):
You had obviously you guys played here when you went
on the national title run backin 2003.
You knew, you knew the capitalregion a little bit, but what
did you really know about Sienabefore you took the gig?
I know the fan base is ispretty, you know, you know about
the fan base and things of thatnature, but what did you know
about this program before youcame?
Speaker 2 (17:59):
You know as much as you could, I think, from the
outside, you know I was so.
I was so two feet in at Cuseover the last 20 years that I
didn't write, you know.
So my first experience wasprobably when we played here
against them, when we camethrough the building the year
before for the tournament, yeah,and then just over the years
(18:22):
being in central New York yourun into so many people that are
that are graduates or alum ofSiena and you know, again, it
was like the pride thing.
Like everyone, every one ofthem you talk to, there's Siena,
siena, siena.
I love it, I love it, you know.
So.
Then you know the France teamswere probably the first teams
that I was, you know, was oldenough to appreciate those runs
(18:47):
and NCAA tournament.
I think it was Ohio State.
And then guys like Louis Orrwho was here and who was a good
friend.
I know Louis loved it here andyou know, I know Lewis loved it
here.
So just familiarity with peoplethat I know and people that
(19:09):
have come through here that justhad such a love for the place.
Speaker 1 (19:20):
Well, you get the job in late March, early April, and
I know it was feet to the fireand go, go, go, jerry.
How tough was it to sort of?
I mean because, let's face it,you were a little late in the
process, right in terms ofrecruiting and all that.
How tough was it?
Because you fundamentally hadto turn over the entire roster,
you had to hire assistantcoaches.
How hard was that to do in sucha short amount of time?
It's difficult.
Speaker 2 (19:41):
The one thing, the hardest part, was I had a
two-bedroom apartment and BenLee, who I hired, flew in from
Washington and stayed with me,and Ryan Bure, our director of
operations, was staying on anair mattress that my wife
brought up.
So the three of us, we calledit the frat.
(20:03):
We were hanging out out and wegot so much accomplished.
And then coach black and and,and, uh renze, coach onawaku
those guys were coming up whenthey could and we were doing
visits.
So 13 straight days and it wasnine kids over 13 straight days
that we did a visit.
I've likened it to likeGroundhog Day, bill Murray, by
(20:23):
like the 10th day.
I was like doing the same thingover and over, but we were
really efficient.
So, as difficult as it was,like we, we knocked it out in a
short period of time and wetargeted guys that we thought
could help us right away.
That a lot of them.
We did have a relationship withA couple of them we didn't, and
we were just.
You know it was like speeddating.
(20:44):
You know you were reaching out,developing a quick relationship
, telling them who you are,what's your vision I really like
your stuff on film we'd love tohave you up type thing, and we
hit those ones too.
So you know, we went eight forour first eight, the first eight
guys we had on campus committed.
We actually went nine for ourfirst nine, but we lost a guy to
a bigger program, one that Ididn't anticipate recruiting
(21:07):
against, and then we just addedanother commitment in the last
week.
So I think overall we were like10 for 12 or 10 for 13 on
visits or nine for 12.
So somewhere in that range, ifyou've got to fill that many
spots, like it's very, verydifficult if you miss, if you
(21:27):
swing this now you're back tothe drawing board and there's a
lot of coaches that are sittingin my seat right now that don't
have a full roster.
So I just feel really blessedthat we targeted the right guys
and got them to commit.
Speaker 1 (21:39):
Jerry, I know it's early and you haven't seen this
team in action.
I know it's early and youhaven't seen this team in action
.
You probably had some workoutsand things of that nature, but
what can you tell the Siena fansabout this your team coming up
for the new season, based on whoyou've recruited and and your
coaching staff and what you'veput together in such a short
amount of time?
Speaker 2 (21:56):
The thing that I've noticed early is the fight like
the.
They're very competitive andI've brought in high character
kids Like they're all reallygood kids that want to learn,
want to get better.
But anytime that I've doneanything in practice, that is to
a number.
So we're going to play thefirst one to 11.
We're going twos and threes atthe end of practice out of a
(22:18):
certain action that we put inthat day.
The games are always close andit's I've applauded them every
day for it because that tells methat the winning part matters
to them.
So that's the most importantthing now as far as who and what
we become, you know that'sthat's to be determined.
We've got to figure out ways toscore the basketball and we're
(22:42):
going to have to be efficient onthat end.
So that's why we're here thissummer.
So the you know, the first fewweeks I've been really, really
proud of them.
I thought the first week wasjust so high level in terms of,
and then you get that littlehangover in second week like, oh
yeah, the initial high of beingon campus and you know.
So I got on them a little bitfor that second week and it
(23:03):
picked up that last two days ofthat week and so far this week.
Today's our day off and so sofar this week they've been very,
very good, ready to work, andyou know, I'm just I'm grateful
to them.
You know this is my first group, so I'm just I'm really really
grateful to the kids that arehere.
Speaker 1 (23:18):
A couple of questions before I let you go.
What have you found to be?
You were an assistant.
You were on the bench withBoeheim for many, many years,
over a decade.
What have you found to be maybethe biggest challenge, the
biggest reward, since now?
You're the guy.
You've got to delegate right.
You're in charge.
You're the man.
It's on your shoulders.
So what is the biggestchallenge and the biggest
(23:40):
exciting thing about that?
Speaker 2 (23:42):
I think that second part is probably the most
exciting.
That's on me.
You know I like that type ofyou.
Know that motivates me, thatdrives me.
So the product that's on thecourt, you know, the most
important thing to me is thepride thing.
So the product that's on thecourt and I told the players
this you represent the siennacommunity now, so what you do
(24:07):
matters and how you play, andthen the representation piece
matters to me.
So we have to look a certainway, you have to play a certain
way, because the people thatwatch you should be proud of you
.
Um, so we're gonna fight.
You know that that's the mostimportant thing to me.
That's who I was, that's who Iam.
I'd say the most challengingthing has been you don't factor
(24:27):
in everything.
When you get a head coachingjob, you think it's all coaching
you do, and then you know you,you realize there's a heck of a
lot more to it.
You know, in terms ofscheduling, budgeting, um, you
know we had to get I had likesix shoe boxes because we had to
make sure, like immediately,like hey, let's, we've got to
(24:48):
get the summer gear ready forthese guys when they get here.
I want them in siena stuff.
This is what I want, so wedesigned all that.
So we're doing that at the fratduring visits till like midnight
, and then you're getting up at7 30 in the morning to go have
breakfast with the recruit who'sstill on campus.
So, right, you know, just nodifferent than coming in as a
freshman being a head coach.
Um, everything is timemanagement.
(25:11):
It is, it's, it's.
Can you manage your time to getthe most production out of your
day?
And, um, it's gotten easier asI've gone, because we've started
to chip away at the things thatwe thought needed to be
addressed when we first got thejob.
Speaker 1 (25:24):
Jerry, a question that I mean I'm I'm just such a
huge college basketball fan.
I've been for many, many years.
One thing I find and I knowthis is challenging, especially
in those mid-majors is sort ofthe NIL, the transfer portal.
And you know, recruiting isprobably so different for you
now than it was even when youwere in college.
(25:46):
You know, you're right, you'relooking at other programs,
you're looking at JUCOs, you'relooking at transfers.
This is very different.
So how are you going to dealand how have you been dealing
with sort of the NIL andtransferring and just kind of
utter chaos controlled chaos, Iguess, in college basketball?
Speaker 2 (26:06):
Yeah, the thing that bothers me is a lot of these
acquisitions are transactionaland you know I've said this.
When it stops becoming aboutrelationships for me, I need to
get out.
I'm not going to do it anymore,like I will step away from
coaching at some point if itstops being about the
relationships I build withpeople.
(26:28):
So that's still going to be atthe forefront of how I recruit.
Now retention is more difficult, because your best player is
just that you see theenvironment.
Your best player is just aslikely to leave as the kid
that's not playing you don'tknow.
Your best player is just aslikely to leave as the kid
that's not playing you don'tknow.
And that's the biggest issue Ihave with all of this.
It's not the transfer rule,it's not the NIL, it's the
(26:53):
unlimited transfer rule.
That's the biggest issue I havewith this, that we've just
opened it up completely.
So there's no.
I mean we used to have time off,like May and April.
May, june, used to be adecompression phase for coaches.
Now it's our most stressfultime.
They've had to move recruitingweekends because coaches weren't
(27:17):
able to go on the road andrecruit because they needed to
fill a roster, so they weregoing in the transfer portal,
they'd have two kids on campusand now you can't go to the
recruiting event on the weekendbecause the most important thing
is having a roster and andthat's just it's.
It's become, it's just becomevery difficult and and you know
I could complain about it, butat least the guy on in the next
(27:39):
program over is dealing with thesame thing.
So to me, retention is going tomatter.
Do I recruit kids?
Do Do I treat them right?
Do I develop those realrelationships with them?
And if I do right by them andtreat them like men, with
respect and maturity, but stillcoach them, you're probably
still going to be in a bettersituation at the end to retain
(27:59):
them because you've developed areal relationship.
So I'm going to do my best notto make this thing transactional
.
The good thing about Sienna iswe do have support, we do have a
collective, so we do have helpbecause you need it.
I'd be lying to you to say ifthe conversation it has to be
about the relationship, but atthe end of the day, the way I
(28:20):
look at it is, you still have todo your best to take care of
these kids and every one of them.
It's not just one guy, two guys.
I don't think that's the model.
So you know, I might do it alittle bit differently, but I'm
still going to keep it about therelationship that's got to be
at the forefront.
Speaker 1 (28:34):
Obviously your resources and you know the
community, syracuse versus Sienait's, you know, a little bit of
apples to oranges, but I'm sureyou relish that challenge,
right?
I mean, you're not in a powerfive here at Siena, but you do
have the arena, the community,the media, as you know.
I mean the media, it'sphenomenal here.
(28:57):
It's a big market, jerry.
I mean you know this.
So kind of contrast Sienaversus Syracuse.
In that regard it just this isdifferent, for you.
Speaker 2 (29:06):
Yeah, it's just different.
You know, that's all it is.
I just look at it as it's justdifferent.
This is.
You know, the great thing hereis like the facilities are
awesome.
You know, the playing venue isincredible, the practice
facility is great.
You know, I think there's somethings that you know.
I'm not going to divulge herebecause I don't want to give my
secrets away, but that I canenhance while I'm here, you know
(29:28):
.
But the, you know it is applesand oranges.
I mean the reality of it isPower Five.
You know ACC, you have morewithin what you're getting back
from the conference financially.
It just is what it is.
You know.
My thing is can you maintain acompetitive balance within your
league?
You don't want to get blown outof the water of what X, y and Z
(29:50):
schools can do to you.
You've got to be on acompetitive playing field to be
in the running for the samecaliber of talent a player.
So you've got to match thosecertain things.
I feel like we do.
We do as well as anybody inthis league and we can remain
competitive.
And you know, I think thebiggest thing is your best
recruiters are your players, youknow.
(30:12):
So the my reputation as a coachat Syracuse grew through the
guys I worked with because Icould go out and recruit the
next kid.
Cole Swider told me the story.
He called Joe Gerard and waslike hey, man, tell me the truth
.
How different is gmac when,when I, when I get on campus and
joe's like nah, man, like he'sthis, he's literally the same
dude that's recruiting you like.
I'm not lying, like.
So you know if it'll help youin recruiting, if you get it
(30:36):
rolling and the guys that playfor you like yo, I, I really
like playing for this guy.
He does right by us, he puts usin the right position.
So if I could do those things,you know everything.
It's the most important thing.
Everything starts to elevate.
Speaker 1 (30:47):
I'm going to show you a picture in my last question
for you.
We're going to go old school.
Look at this.
Yeah, we're going back to thebishop, bishop hannon days right
love, love that.
And jerry, I I can justpersonally my personal anecdote
about you.
I remember I it was such a joycovering you in high school.
(31:08):
I mean you, your team, and youknow I'll be honest with you.
Sometimes I looked at thatlayup line in some of those
tournaments you guys played inand I was like there is no way
bishop hannon is winning thisgame and you guys were like a
well-oiled machine, obviouslycredit to you.
But look at this picture andyou can tell the a well-oiled
machine, obviously credit to you.
But look at this picture andyou can tell the 17 year old
(31:29):
jerry mcnamara anything.
What are you telling that kidright there?
Speaker 2 (31:33):
make more shots in the second half.
That's halftime.
I had 41 and a half and Ididn't.
I didn't shoot a great in thesecond half, but but but about
life, like about life, not thatevent you know, just keep doing
it the way you're doing it.
You know you're you're.
You're getting recognition fora reason.
Keep the main thing, the mainthing, which is the work.
(31:54):
Put your head down.
Stay loyal to the people thatgot you here, that love you.
Keep your circle tight withyour friends.
Put yourself in the rightsituations.
(32:17):
Don't get around the wrongpeople.
Not everybody has the same bestintentions for you.
Um, and I've done that, youknow.
Um, so I'd, I'd tell myselfyou're doing it the right way.
Do right by people.
Uh, you know, just continue totry to be humble.
And you know I was kind of.
You know I separated from, likecollege.
I was very quiet.
I went back to the apartment,like I just was focused on, you
know, just trying to get it donethere.
(32:38):
And you know, just keep tryingto do it the right way.
Speaker 1 (32:42):
I would tell them Well, I want to thank you so
much for joining me.
We go back 25 years at thispoint.
I'm glad we were able to catchup again.
One thing I like about youyou're a genuine guy.
I think Sienna hit a home runon your hire.
I want to say that to youpersonally.
Thank you, I really wish younothing but luck and success and
(33:03):
again, thanks for joining me.
Jerry, my pleasure.
Thank you, brian, appreciateyou.
All right, it's Jerry McNamaraand this is SoundOff with
Syncoff, sponsored by theSyncoff Realty Group, full
service real estate brokerage inthe capital region of New York.
Make sure to like, share,subscribe.
You know what to do.
Thanks for watching the podcast.
I appreciate you.
Let's go, saints.
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