general manager of an NBA franchise and worked every day towards that goal. I started on the business side of basketball and I’ve done just about everything – from business to scouting, player personnel to community outreach – and developed a working knowledge of each area.
Q:
Since you’ve taken over as GM, you’ve revitalized the team and are in the midst of a tight race to make the playoffs this season. What has been the biggest difference moving over from assistant GM to GM?
A:
The biggest difference is you’re responsible for everything. I work with Dave Twardzik on scouting and Brian Hill on coaching, but it comes back to me putting a team on the floor that the community can be proud of. Understanding your role is key – I am the steward of an NBA team that the community and ownership can be proud of. If you do that, everything else will take care of itself.
Q: A:
When you evaluate players, do you draw from your past experience as a player? The first thing I look at is do they play hard. Everything else you can teach. If they come to work hard and play hard, you’ve got a chance. You can’t teach guys to work hard. I like guys who come from winning programs and know how to win – they are going to rise to the top.
I think we have to start talking about the word “championship” in sports – that is what it is about, not me. It’s about being winners – let’s say it out loud. We just have to get our young guys to think about that every day. I started talking about championships the day I got the job and I haven’t stopped. I don’t talk about making the playoffs, because to win the championship, you have to be in playoffs.
Q:
Since you started the Otis Smith Foundation in 1989, you’ve been able to reach out and help a lot of disadvantaged children in Northeast Florida. Now, some 18 years later, you’re still a driving force behind it and its outreach to thousands of kids. You’ve already been able to accomplish a lot of things, but now what are your goals for the Foundation?
A:
It started out with just wanting to help people and that remains the focus of the foundation today. To get people to help themselves and get other people to help them. There are a lot of young people in Jacksonville struggling to make it and we stepped in to help. Education is the key. We have to hang our hat on that. This whole thing is bigger than me. (See sidebar)
Q: A:
Being a native of Jacksonville and a star player here at JU, how much does the University and the basketball program mean to you? You want to see JU back on top, and JU alumni and fans to be back. You want to say that your team is the conference champ and that they have had success after you left. The people in Jacksonville deserve JU basketball to be at the top again.
16 The Wave | Spring 2007
Making a Difference in a Big Way The Otis Smith Kids Foundation was founded in 1989 as a means to improve the quality of life and outlook for the future of deserving Northeast Florida elementary school children. The foundation provides programs and services to hundreds of disadvantaged children each year in the areas of education, life skills development and personal growth. For nearly 18 years, the not-for-profit organization has touched the lives of thousands of Jacksonville-area children, providing opportunities for them to learn, grow and achieve. In 2006, the foundation organized a fundraising event, Big Cats for Kids, replicating the wildly successful Sea Cows for Kids project the foundation sponsored in 2004. More than 50 Big Cats were decorated by participating First Coast artists. The nearly nine-foot long Big Cats were installed in public places throughout Jacksonville and Northeast Florida. In a collaborative effort with The Stellar Group – a design, engineering and construction firm in Jacksonville – faculty and students from JU’s College of Fine Arts, created a Big Cat for the fundraiser. Dana Chapman Tupa, chair of Visual Arts, said more than 20 students helped with the construction worker theme that incorporated clay, paint and glass media on the fiberglass jaguar. The Big Cats will eventually be auctioned off at an event presented by Outback Steakhouse, with all proceeds benefiting education and life-skill initiatives for disadvantaged children in Jacksonville. For more information on the Foundation, please visit www.otissmithfoundation.com.