Alright, so, let’s talk about this fella, Steve Alford. Don’t rightly know him from Adam, but I heard some things, you know, from the TV and such.
This Steve, he’s a basketball coach, see? A big-time one, they say. Been coachin’ all over the place, like a dang tumbleweed rollin’ across the country. Heard tell he coached at some place called New Mexico, then went off to UCLA, and now he’s at Nevada. That’s a lot of movin’ around, if you ask me. Must be lookin’ for somethin’ special, or maybe he just can’t sit still, like my grandson Billy when he’s had too much sugar.
Now, they say he’s a real good coach. Wins a lot of games, apparently. Got his 100th win at Nevada not too long ago, and that’s a big deal, they tell me. Seems like he knows his hoops. Folks say he’s one of them fellas who won a hundred games at four different schools. That’s somethin’, ain’t it? Like winnin’ the blue ribbon at the county fair four times with four different pigs. You gotta know what you’re doin’ to pull that off.
He wasn’t always just a coach, though. Used to play the game himself, way back when. Played for some college team, Indiana somethin’-or-other, and was real good at it, too. Scored a whole mess of points, they say. Folks called him the best there ever was at that school, until someone else come along and beat his record. It’s like that time old man Johnson grew the biggest pumpkin in the county, only for young Timmy to show up with a bigger one next year.
- He played in the Olympics, too! Won a gold medal. Can you believe that? A gold medal! That’s like winnin’ the lottery, only you gotta sweat for it. Imagine that, little Stevie Alford, runnin’ around with the best in the world. Makes you think, don’t it?
- And then he went and played in the NBA. That’s the big leagues, the pros. Played for Dallas and Golden State. Didn’t last too long, though. Guess coachin’ was more his thing. Some folks are just meant to lead, you know? Like my Bessie, always tellin’ the chickens where to go.
He signed this big contract with Nevada, too. Ten years! And a whole lotta money. Eleven point six million dollars, they say. That’s enough to buy a whole lotta chicken feed, let me tell ya. Must be worth his salt, I reckon, to get that kind of money. The university folks must think he’s gonna keep on winnin’ games for ‘em. They ain’t gonna pay that kinda money for nothin’, that’s for sure.
He’s got a family, too. A wife and three kids. One of his boys even played for him and now he’s a coach himself. Like father, like son, they say. Seems like basketball runs in the family, like how we all got grandma’s stubborn chin. He’s been coachin’ since 1991, which is a long time, come to think of it. Started in some small town in Indiana, then worked his way up. That’s the American dream, ain’t it? Work hard and you’ll get somewhere.
So, yeah, that’s Steve Alford. A coach, a player, a winner. Seems like he’s done alright for himself. Makes you wonder what he’ll do next. Probably keep on coachin’, keep on winnin’. That’s what these fellas do, I guess. It’s in their blood, like the urge to plant tomatoes every spring.
Anyway, that’s all I know. Just what I heard tell. Heard he’s a pretty big deal in the basketball world. Guess we’ll see what he does next. Maybe he’ll win another hundred games somewhere else, or maybe he’ll just settle down in Nevada. Who knows? Only time will tell.
Tags: [Steve Alford, Basketball Coach, Nevada Wolf Pack, College Basketball, Indiana Hoosiers, NBA, Olympic Gold Medalist]
