One of my favorite coaches in the NBA is Terry Stotts. It’s not only that I think he’s good coach, but’s there’s a sentimental attachment with me as well from Terry Stott’s college playing days at the University of Oklahoma when I was a college kid.
Terry Stotts was one of the primary cogs of the ’78-79 OU team coached by Dave Bliss which went on to win OU’s first ever Big 8 championship. That team is clearly one of my favorite basketball teams of all-time because of not only winning the Big 8, but they then went to advance to the Sweet 16. This was the first time at OU in my youth these team goals were attained by an OU basketball team. Although, of course in 1947, OU made the national championship game against a Holy Cross team on which Bob Cousy played.
The ’78-79 OU team was a special team for me because they weren’t all that talented, but they played extremely smart basketball and as one as a team. Clearly, an overachiever. OU advanced to the Sweet 16 by defeating legendary Abe Lemons’ Texas Longhorn team. OU was eliminated in the NCAA by none other than one Larry Bird and the Indiana State Sycamores. As we all know…Indiana State went on to play Magic Johnson’s Michigan State Spartans. This was back when mens’ college ball was special.
Coach Dave Bliss had been an assistant at Army and Indiana with Bob Knight before taking the OU job. Consequently, the team had a real Indiana high school feel about it as several kids from Indiana came with Bliss to OU.
I still remember the core players…. Terry Stotts, John McCullough (MVP), Cary Carrabine, Al Beal (Deerfield Beach, Florida), Lester Pace and Raymond ‘Juice’ Whitley.
Stotts was what I would describe as a very heady small forward swing player who was a good shooter and tenacious competitor.
I’d love to have him coach the Thunder at some point. I would think he’d be a guy Clay Bennett would be good with as well.
Stotts earned his bachelors in zoology and MBA from OU. Tell me…he wouldn’t be a fit here. He coached in the CBA and was an assistant on the 2011 iconic Dallas Mavs championship team coached by Rick Carlisle. He clearly paid his dues before getting the Portland job.
Who knows…maybe some day Terry Stotts might coach the Thunder.
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