Kevin Harlan Interview

Oh it's strange because we live in is obvious and we haven't gotten to every single way our world is been affected sports world that is on the coronavirus outbreak but one that we learned this week the national sports media Association annual Hall of Fame weekend.

The awards we get. It's been canceled this year in June so the winners in 2019 are going to be recognized in 2021.

Dave Goren does a great job with that in the can recognize even more winners in 2021 so I wanted to pass that along as we welcome in for the second time the national sports media associations national sportscaster of the year Kevin Harlan that you might know from Turner sports CBSSports and Westwood One Kevin.

We haven't talked in a while and I been thinking about you. The last few months in the way of some of the sports that you cover and in the last few months Kobe Bryant he passes you used to be the voice of the Kansas City Chiefs. He had a chance to broadcast their first Super Bowl when and it was an amazing game to watch not come back, then you have marched bad this getting canceled.

You were gonna get assigned one of the regions as you've been assigned to the last handful of years. Greensboro would be playing right now is one of the tournament sites in our backyard and Tom Brady who you've covered for a long time.

It's officially announced today. He's a Tampa Bay Buccaneers now that people have been kinda compressed to their homes for the last week or so, have you had time to process the first nearly 3 months of this year yet will judge agreed to be on what you know you know it. I think it happened so fast I'm sure look back and like you can rental authors due to those different events looked American for cash. I can't believe all that happened three months. But sure enough it and immediately expend edible what is happening just with this coronavirus and how it's affected every company in the country.

Every person in the country and around the world so so that is obviously been big headlines in the following format but to think that just a few short weeks ago we were in a sense of of of elation with the with the great Super Bowl he saw on the beer think a pretty thrilling ride in the March madness run for these different teams and in the wake of Kobe Bryant. No passing just been so much that is happened is like when when so much happens so fast in the condensed amount of time really doesn't have that that kind of moment where you can reflect and really kind of process it individually because here comes the next thing around the corner at the Super Bowl and the net goes away and you're trying to figure that out in a couple weeks later you get the terms and now you find out that I can happen. Conference lies in the NCAA tournament. So I don't know that that any of it. Really, you know you I guess you suggest we should learn to expect the unexpected return know this is been a very this matter. While riders and the first of the year and one that I and a lot of ways hope we never repeat again losing her person so young and so dynamic is Kobe and of course his daughter and the method course which is just completely wrecked havoc on people's financial foundation in health and and it's it's just been a very tumultuous couple months you have been on the call for so many great assignments over the decades. But what makes marks, specifically special to you. You can have the unknown little talked about under publicized team or player you know come out and and just doing incredible job with their particular game and matchup and then move on call off a miracle and move on and and and just absolute return and set up an there's so much clarity in college basketball right now that I'm convinced we would've seen multiple upsets in and moves by teams and players that we've not really zeroed in on this this college basketball season. II think to in particular one going back to 1999 Weaver State beat North Carolina and then just as shocking as it was a threat against the 14 I believe, and then mount back in the early 2000's length, the number one overall seed Kansas was beaten by Northern Ireland nine seed and we will happily repair genes and 1514" shocking surprises and and and help Virginia affected a couple years ago in 116 metrics assembly with with Hanan and and just you. You never think you're going to see him probably really don't expect them and then it's your job as a broadcaster to be on top of him and make sure that you grasped everything that is happening in unfolding right before your eyes. Sometimes that can become a challenge if you don't have proper context and focus and everything else is necessary to bring that story in and make it make it seem real that that's that's the charge in front of broadcasters and reporters to make sure they got those kinds of tools in their toolbox to make all that happen, it's Kevin Harlan with this year on sports outside a year ago during the month of March we were talking about Zion at Duke and you said this is a guy who so good. There's good to be free agents that want to join him and we saw that we saw JJ Reddick second, I want to be a part of what New Orleans is building with David Griffin and Alvin gentry and then right before the start of the year we learned Zion's hurt and is good to be out for a handful of weeks that then turned into a couple of months and you said the conversation in MBA circles was he was a little bit too heavy. But then we see how great he's been in the last month and 1/2 of play before things got suspended so give me a sense behind-the-scenes how the conversation has changed about what Zion is versus what he was perceived to be going at well I think everyone knew it was going to be great. That was part of our conversation yesterday and knew that he would he would be you know a very special player but the way the MBA looks of their players and athletes.

Overall his body is not ready for it doesn't.

It kind of the optics are not good and he just built different debts if he is just is just the differently billed kid and and so do not regret but it looks like he's able to perform stride for stride with the best players out there and you have a skill set that someone that looks like him don't like him really is not had before, so this becomes outlier in terms of of what he can do now.

I still think there are people around the league feel that he needs to atone his body, and I think when you only understand is what 1920 years old. He still just is not is not really even a man yet, just crawling into what he's going to become. And sometimes people are so quick to make these judgments at the time that we talked. That was the thought, you know you said now couple of injuries that people probably could point to well is too heavy. He's got it you got it you gotta fix his body, but he's come back in before the week was suspended. It was putting up numbers that people are hoping that a guy that was drafted that I would do is done and that we know the effect is that on the team is really not broken through, but we know there's far more competitive and now they are certainly a team that you would pay attention to appear on your upcoming schedule games so I think that for Zion know he's probably right where he is because of of what he has done the mentality he possesses.

But I still think there are many people in the league feel that were just seeing the beginning because when he does grow into what his body was meant to be that that you'll be even a better place, but this is just Canada, the appetizer of what what is to be in if you can stay healthy. I think people caught his long-term success. Obviously, to his health.

Thus it gets back to a discussion on his way is there is any to help and Adam Alvin gentry, the coach of the pelicans is been I think he's very comfortable with what he sees in the organization was comfortable with what they have and I know that is just 20 years old and that you know he's he's not even close to what the end product is going to be sliced. I think that that that he probably is surprise some with how quickly his come out of the gates after missing so much time and and good was the effect he had on his team what he could do against the best players in the league and now they're salivating about what he is going to be once he becomes militant, when Kevin Garnet was in the end vinaigrette. He was 17 and he was in 20 he was thought to be way to thin and an end far too skinny to be a force well in his first year he was showing things that had the people saying what to say now about buying wait till wait till late till and and so I think we both saw what happened. Garnet grew into his body filled out a little bit and added the body that that you would have is a grown adult and I think people are kind of feeling the same way, maybe a little bit reversed and what it would have more lean and and chiseled design. Williams and again look like and and and been twilight. More importantly an end.

And so that that becomes a constant conversation and enjoys running the league for five years until he is in his mid-20s late 20s and and does have the body of an adult, Kevin Harlan, I really do appreciate your time and we look forward to seeing you hopefully during the Panthers football season, but if not we'll see after the NSA may national award ceremony next summer in 2021.

Thank you so much for the time. Thanks, Josh. Stay in touch.

Always great to be out of your migrant data that's Kevin Harlan from Turner sports Westwood one and the when I forget CBS sports on the NFL television wise so Robert Walsh when I think about great voices adds the first thing I think of it that tandem that they have. You have Kevin Harlan on one of the MBA Thursday night games and you got Marv Albert on the other. I don't think it's as good as Outlook.

We just heard Kevin Harlan's voice.

We don't have Marv Albert in studio right now but we do have Aaron who has a very limited Marv Albert impression Aaron far away Dallas Slough where the hell did that come from. I've been told something about cam Newton some things that are interesting. The last 48 hours of things that might be surprising to you about cam Newton and his market as he might become a free agent very soon. In the words of Jordan Rodrigue, who covers the Panthers very closely. I will tell you some of the things I've learned. Next on the drive