KU standout just wanted to be the 'next Mark Randall'

It's hard to believe my Where Are They Now? story on former KU great Mark Randall was published 24 years ago in Jayhawk Insider. In the years since, I’ve thought a lot about Mark and what he’s meant to me. Soon after this article was published on Feb. 11, 2000, Mark called me at home at night and left a message on my answering machine that I will never forget. He first thanked me for sending the two issues of Jayhawk Insider to him, and that he was going to send one of the magazines to his dad. Then he humbly said he’s had a lot of articles written about him during his life, but that my story “might have been the best article ever written about me.”

“WOW,” I thought to myself.

I was completely blown away by Mark’s genuine kindness, and he’s been my hero ever since. He was obviously an outstanding player who thrived under new KU coach Roy Williams, who replaced Larry Brown after he left KU in 1988 to become the San Antonio Spurs head coach. Maybe no other player I’ve ever seen in KU basketball history since I began attending games in famed Allen Fieldhouse in 1973 was better at sealing his man in the low post than Mark. He was also a great shooter from 17 feet and in, a great passer (he and teammate Mike Maddow ran the high-low passing game to perfection), could handle the ball, crashed the boards, and ran the floor as well as any big man in the land. He was also as unselfish, tough, and as competitive and great leader as they come. I also loved Mark’s unbridled emotion on the court. I can still remember him pumping his fist after his pivotal basket in the second half of KU’s thrilling comeback win over Arkansas in the Elite Eight in 1991, a game the Jayhawks won and earned Williams his first Final Four berth in just his third season at Kansas.

But as great as Mark Randall was, he is even a better person. Ask anyone who knows the man, the father, and they will tell you the same thing. He’s very personable, extremely kind and gracious, and treats everyone equally. After I got Mark’s phone call that night in February 2000, I immediately emailed him late at night and thanked him so much for his kindness. He replied with an email in the morning, telling me: “You have a gift.” Again, I was so overwhelmed by his words. I’ve had my story on Mark framed at home for many years, along with his quote about my story “might be the best article ever written about me.” If I’m having a bad day, I can look up on my wall and see the article and quote on my wall and get a boost of joy and confidence.

Mark, I can truly say you made an indelible impact on my life, and I will never forget our interview and your extreme kindness. The world needs more people like Mark Christopher Randall, who famed late high school superscout Howard Garfinkel once said “plays every game like it’s for a Michelob Light.” Mark got a big laugh out of that when I first emailed him that quote.

After Randall culminated his stellar and memorable KU career with a supurb 18 point, 10 rebound performance in the NCAA finals against Duke in 1991, which left Blue Devils All-American Christian Laettener exhausted trying to guard Mark, Roy Williams said prior to the next season: “You don’t replace a Mark Randall. He did so much for the team on and off the floor."

Indeed, he did!

 

Here are some honors Mark earned at KU:

1991 NCAA All-Tournament Team

First-Team All-Big Eight 1991

Phillips 66 Academic All-Big Eight 1991

NABC third-team All-American 1990

Naismith Award finalist 1990

Lee Jeans Academic All-Big Eight (3.34 GPA) 1990

AP, UPI second-team All-Big Eight 1990

Dodge NIT MVP 1989

UPI second-team All-Big Eight 1989

BMA Holiday Classic MVP 1988

NBC Player of the Game versus Temple 1988

International Experience:

1990 World Championship (Bronze Medal) Buenos Aires, Argentina

1990 Goodwill Games (Bronze Medal) Seattle, Wash.

1989 World University Games (Gold Medal) Duisburg, West Germany

1987 Beijing National. Tournament (Big Eight Select team)

…

Randall finished his career as KU’s single-season (64.6 percent in 1988-89) and all-time field goal percentage leader (62.0), which both stood for nearly three decades, and sixth all-time leading scorer (1,627) and rebounder (723).

KU standout just wanted to be the ‘next Mark Randall’

By David Garfield

Mark Randall was destined for greatness as a senior at Cherry Creek High School in Englewood, Colo. 

His coach, Mack Calvin, even hailed his star player as the “next Larry Bird.” Randall, who was a McDonald’s All-American and wooed by every major college program in the country, also evoked comparisons from scouts to former Denver Nugget Bobby Jones.

Randall, the former KU basketball standout and current scout for the Nuggets, said he never really felt the pressure of living up to all the hype.

“I was doing my best to be the next Mark Randall,” he said this recent Monday evening from his hotel room in Salt Lake City, just a few hours before leaving to scout the New Mexico State-Utah game. “To be mentioned in the same breath with guys like that, that’s an honor.”

While Randall didn’t feel the pressure, he said today’s impressionable young athletes might take being labeled the “the next Vince Carter” or “second coming of Magic Johnson” to heart.  

“I’ll never do that,” Randall said. “That’s something I have thought about extensively. Even though I’m in the profession of scouting talent, I’m going to guard against that... These kids — they need to be the next whoever they are, just like I didn’t want to be the next Larry Bird or Bobby Jones.”

Randall, who admits he patterned his game after Bird and Jones growing up in Colorado, is fortunate that his job with the Nuggets has afforded him the opportunity to come back to Allen Fieldhouse (he’s scouted three games this season), where he’s been able to relive “the best five years of my life.”

“Just sitting there now, and looking in the rafters and see the great names and all the banners up there, and to know you had a hand in a very small part of that, it’s just an awesome thing,” Randall said.

Actually, Randall played more than just a “very small part” in KU basketball history. He is the all-time field-goal percentage leader (62 percent), eighth-leading scorer, and also a member of the 1991 Final Four team (KU lost to Duke in the finals, 72-65).  However, his road to greatness had some bumps in the way as a freshman.

Possessing great athletic skills in high school and a tremendous work ethic, Randall endeared himself to such scouting gurus as Howard Garfinkel (he said Randall “played every game like it’s for a Michelob Light”) and KU coach Larry Brown.  The Jayhawk mentor even commented that “Mark Randall is as good as any prospect we’ve ever signed here. In my mind, he’s the number one prospect in America, and we’re very fortunate to have him.”

And then something very bewildering happened when the 1986-87 season began. Brown publicly questioned Randall’s toughness.

“There were some incidents that happened,” said Randall, preferring not to get specific. “Why he did that I’ll never know.”

After redshirting the 1987-88 championship season, Randall’s career was revived when Roy Williams became the new head coach at Kansas.

“Coach Williams was the best thing to happen to Mark Randall and I’ll say that time and time again,” Randall said. “Having him come in at the time in my career and in my life was just a huge thing.  It was just a joy to play for him.”

Randall, who ran the floor as well as any big man in the country, thrived in Williams’ system and helped lead underdog Kansas to the NCAA championship game in 1991. He had a great swan song in scoring 18 points and grabbing 10 rebounds, but the Jayhawks came up short.

“I’m an emotional guy and I remember running around and balling like a baby,” he said. “My brother (Dave) was in the corner, and I got to hug him. That meant a lot because he was there at Kansas for two years while I was there.”

After being named to the NCAA All-Tournament team, Randall was eventually selected as the 26th pick in the first round by the NBA World Champion Chicago Bulls. Released by the Bulls after Christmas, Randall finished the season in Minnesota. He wound up playing parts of four years in the NBA (Bulls, Timberwolves, Detroit Pistons, and Denver Nuggets), and two years in the CBA.

Cut two weeks into the lockout season last year by the Nuggets, Randall accepted coach Dan Issel’s offer to become a scout.

“I was tired of beating my head against the wall,” Randall said.  

Randall, who loves being a part of the Nuggets organization (the team he idolized growing up) and scouting college players — “Now, I’m on the flip side sitting here looking at kids and saying, ‘Wow, can this guy help us? What does he got that we can become a better team?’” — believes the timing just wasn’t right in his NBA career.

“Larry Bird and Bobby Jones played the game the way it was supposed to be played,” Randall said. “That’s the way I feel like I played he game. I honestly feel that a guy playing the game that way now isn’t appreciated as the guy playing the game back then was...I always said I was born too late. I should have played back then when money wasn’t the big factor, but playing the game for the love of the game.”

A Closer Look at Mark Randall

Years at KU: 1986-1991 (Redshirted 87-88)

Career Notables: KU's career-field goal percentage leader (62 percent) and No. 8 leading scorer... First Team All-Big Eight in 1991 and member of the NCAA All-Tournament team that year.

Education: Randall majored in journalism. Update: Randall received his journalism degree in 2003.

Family: Randall and his wife, Kimberly, have a daughter, Samantha, 1 (she had her first birthday Feb. 4, (Update: Randall has a son, Dylan, who is two years younger than Samantha. I don't know if he has any other children.

Since Leaving KU: Randall played parts of four years in the NBA (Chicago Bulls, Minnesota Timberwolves, Detroit Pistons, and Denver Nuggets) and two years in the CBA.

Currently:  Randall is a scout for the Denver Nuggets and lives in Highlands Ranch, Colo. Update: Randall is Manager of High School Athletics for Denver Public Schools, and lives in Lone Tree, Colo.

Hobbies: competitive golf, family, handyman work.

Favorite KU Memories: “The fans are always going to be at the top of my list.”  Playing in his first and final game (NCAA championship vs. Duke). “Not a lot of seniors know in their career that it will actually be their last game...” The 1989-90 team, which bounced in and out of the No. 1 and 2 spots most of the season.

On the Jayhawks Today: “I think they’re still learning and growing. As long as you can do that now and not towards the end of the season. You got to work the kinks out.”

Dick Harp: "A great man"

Edgar Wolfe with the Kansas Alumni Magazine wrote this beautiful and eloquent profile of KU head coach Dick Harp in the Feb. 1958 issue. Headlined, “The Whole Man: A Day in the Life of Dick Harp,” I included a portion of this in-depth story. This feature gets to the heart of the real Dick Harp, his brilliant basketball mind and impeccable character, someone who former KU forward Bill Brainard called “a great man.” The University of Kansas has been blessed with some extraordinary people, and we cannot ever forget what Richard “Dick” Harp contributed to his alma mater, his players, basketball, and perhaps above all, to society.

...

“Actually, it would be hard to imagine a coach whose players believe in him more than the KU squad believes in Dick Harp. His knowledge of basketball, his power of instant analysis, as if he had six eyes in his head instead of two—those go unquestioned. When I spoke of them once to Bill Brainard, forward during the 1954-56 seasons, it almost seemed that I was being reproved by stating the obvious.

 

“'Not only that,” Bill said quickly. “Dick is a great man.'”

 

"A great man? Can a basketball coach be a great man? His job, as we know, to teach a certain few selected young men to play the game selectively well, for the glory of their college and the delectation of thousands of cash customers. The delectation in the long run depends on winning. It’s strictly winning that makes a coach a great coach. It doesn’t make him a great man.

 

"Only character can do that, and I understood that it was to Dick Harp’s character that Bill Brainard was paying tribute. Some coaches are opportunists and exploiters, perhaps not many, but some. Dick Harp is not one of them. What the experience and honor for playing for Kansas means to and does to his players matters to him supremely. He is concerned with their welfare and (this follows) their conduct. He realizes the influence for good or evil which both he himself as a winning coach and his greatest stars, like Wilt Chamberlain, can have on hero-worshipping youth. He is candid and honest, friendly, and reasonable in his dealings with his players. More typically, it is the appeal to reason which he uses to inspire his players. In doing so, he taps emotion, but he places responsibility where it is best to use it, upon each individual. If the boy responds, he grows. If he can discipline himself, the boy becomes a man.”

Former KU coach Dick Harp revered by his players

KU head coach Dick Harp had just made history in 1957, even if his beloved Jayhawks fell one point short of North Carolina in the NCAA title game, 54-53, in a thrilling three overtimes. Harp was the first coach to ever reach the NCAA finals in his first year as head coach and the fourth first-year coach to earn a berth in the Final Four since the event started in 1939.

In the aftermath of the game, the Lawrence Journal World’s sports editor Earl Morey reported that one North Carolina reporter, basking in the glow of the Tar Heels winning it all, said that Harp will never earn recognition and fame because he isn’t the “flamboyant” and show-off type like UNC’s head coach Frank McGuire and Oklahoma City head man Abe Lemons.

A Chicago reporter countered that argument. He said that Harp had already “earned his place among the best” with his outstanding coaching acumen. He also spoke to Harp’s players, and they all admired him greatly.   

“The boys called him as fine a gentleman as they’d ever seen, a man they’d like to be someday,” the scribe said. “They say he’s a first-class person on or off the court and they respect as much as anyone they’ve ever known. I never saw kids who have so much faith and respect in a guy. They’re almost reverant when they talk about him. It’s amazing for a guy that young (39 this Thursday) to be so respected by a team. And other coaches are the same way toward him. He’s a head coach one year and already coaches are saying he’s earned his place among the best. You got to admit he did a terrific job while on a tremendous hot spot this year. So he loses to Carolina by a point. Kansas is as good as they are. Anybody can see that.”

A representative from America Illustrated, the U.S. magazine printed in Russian for publication in the Soviet Union, echoed those remarks when speaking to the criticism of the North Carolina writer.

“Harp made his name this season by doing a great job,” the America Illustrated reporter said. “Wilt Chamberlain is just a sophomore, but just look at how he’s improved under Harp. Guys who saw him the first of the season say there’s no comparison to what he is now, and that’s coaching, brother. Harp doesn’t have to worry about reputation or fame coming his way when he can do a job like he’s done this year. Phil Woolpert of San Fransisco isn’t a popoff guy, either, but he’s done a great job. Maybe recognition or fame will come a little slower since he didn’t play it sensationally, but it’ll come nonetheless. I’d a lot like rather get it that way than the other way.”

Harp actually never sought recognition or fame in life or coaching career; one of his big goals in coaching was to mold his players into fine men with the highest character who would graduate and succeed in their future endeavors. He obviously wanted to win, but had a higher calling and purpose. He developed not only their athletic skills, but also nurtured and mentored them mentally and spiritually. Harp’s values, morals and integrity were peerless in the coaching profession, and above all, with mankind.

Don Pierce, KU sports publicity director at the time, wrote a profile on Harp in the January 1958 issue of Sports Review. Pierce and Harp were close friends, although Harp’s assistant Jerry Waugh (1956-60), said they had an “unusual relationship.” Pierce wrote that “Harp demands three things from his players…1) A belief that the University of Kansas is the finest place on earth; 2) Confidence in and respect of his teammates; 3) The desire to want to play the game and the desire to become as good as his potential will permit.

“A boy much have all three things to be successful,” Harp says.

“…As for Harp, the man, even a stranger cannot help but be impressed with his honesty, sincerity and deep concern for each of his players," Pierce continues. "It is the last item which impresses most. Now and then, he will say…’Maybe we can’t make a real good basketball player out of that boy, but I think we can help him to be a better man.’

“He is so concerned about every facet of even the lowliest substitue’s well-being that a friend once told him, as he fretted over a detail…’Coach, why don’t you leave something for the parents, the Chancellor and the federal government to worry about.’”

Bob Billings, a sophomore on the 1956-57 team, spoke about Harp’s greatness as a man to Steve Bucker and Lyle Niedens in their 2002 book, Portraits of Excellence:: A Heritage of Athletic Achievement at the University of Kansas.

“Dick was very intense,” Billings said. “But he cared an awful lot about his players. He was extremely interested in what they did off the court as well as they they did on the court. Dick really was like a father to me. I have great respect for him.”

So did Monte Johnson, also a sophomore on the 1957 national runner-up KU team. Johnson later became KU athletic director in the 1980s.

“Harp’s character outshone that of most in the profession,” Johnson told Buckner and Niedens. “He was a quality person. In some ways, it wasn’t surprising that he left coaching to go into the FCA (Fellowship of Christian Athletes) because he might have been one of the better people who ever coached.”

A (Tony) Guy to always remember

I first wrote about my all-time favorite Jayhawk Tony Guy in my blog on Feb. 17, 2019, writing about our Where are they Now? interview in 1999 and my dad's friendship with Tony. Here's more good stuff on Tone--in his own words from that 1999 interview at his State Farm office in Kansas City, Mo. Tony, you will always have a special place in my heart…far more than you will ever know. You helped bring my beloved late, forever hero dad and I closer together, and I will always be grateful to you for that. I was an impressionable high school sophomore then when I met you at my parents house the summer of 1982 when you regularly played racquetball with my dad, who sadly passed on March 11, 2021 at age 95. You told me during our interview that it was people like my dad, who treated you as Tony Guy the person, and not Tony Guy, the athlete, that helped make your college experience so special. That meant a lot to me; my dad, myself, and our family treat everyone we meet equally. When we met at your State Farm office in Kansas City, Mo, on that memorable afternoon in 1999, we talked man to man. Maybe no other person I’ve ever interviewed in my long journalism career talked to me the way you did; you spoke about being a good father, a good husband — so more important than your kids don’t know or don’t care about your basketball exploits. You also spoke that society has sports out of perspective, and so much more profound wisdom. While I truly loved watching you play growing up in Lawrence — pure grace in motion —I honestly don’t care if you ever shot a ball threw a hoop. Who you are as a person, as a man — someone of impeccable character, morals, values and integrity, how you graciously treated me as a teenager when I first met you and then again at our wonderful interview in 1999. You are the tremendous man, father and husband your mom, Gertrude, raise you to be — that’s what counts for me. Humble, gracious, and kind. That’s the bigger picture by far! That's the Anthony Guy I remember, and I will always remember! So thank you Tony. I wish you and your family all my best, and hope to connect again with you in the future! You are one of the greatest ambassadors that not only KU basketball, but the University of Kansas has ever seen!

And yes, it would be a thrill to shoot hoops with you at some point. I regret I never took you up on your offer to do that when we talked at Robinson Gym way back in the summer of 1982. While I've lost my quickness and speed and my jumper isn't what it once was, it would still be very special!

Favorite memory at KU:

“Ironically enough, some of my favorite memories about KU have nothing to do about basketball. And I think that’s the way it ought to be. My favorite memory of KU has to do with a conversation with (sociology professor) Norm Yetman, a surrogate father. We’re extremely close today. My sophomore year (1978-79), we were walking up on campus. Norm said, 'Tony, this is a neat place to go to school. You’re a neat basketball player. And who knows what’s going to happen to you in the future. But I just want you to keep something in mind while you’re at the university. And the thing that you’ll need to always remember is way after you’re gone, KU’s going to continue to have great basketball players and teams. The most important thing you can do for Tony Guy is to get the most of this experience as possible, meaning you need to graduate and you need to get a degree. 

“The thing he was trying to let me know, was that although my name was in the paper and everybody’s telling me how great I am, well, you’re just another basketball player, you’re just another athlete that after four years, no one talks about you. No one remembers what you did on the basketball (court) — all the great things you did on the basketball floor. That’s just the way life is. I think more young people need to have conversations like that so we don’t get caught up on the euphoria that takes place. We need to go to school and get an education. That’s the exchange. If you get a degree, it’s a fair exchange. You better believe it. The more relationships that young people can get plugged into, the better off they’re going to be. That was my most important conversation I had in my four years at the university. Basketball takes care of itself. There’s highs and lows. What young people need to be concerned with is four years is just a short period of time. There’s a lot of life left after college. And what do we with all the time that we have left.”

Most important experience at KU:

“The most important experience I take from KU is the night (teammate and best friend) David Magley took me to a FCA meeting (our senior year). I gave my life over to Christ. That experience (helped me) make it through the Celtics (when Guy was injured and cut after being a second-round draft pick (No. 46 overall). There’s nothing (else) that would have enabled me get through it. He’s been with me every step of the way. …(I speak) a lot on behalf of FCA.”

The games:

“I didn’t care much for the lower echelon team. (Playing) Kentucky, North Carolina, Indiana, K-State, Missouri, Arizona State, that’s what basketball should be about —when you get the upper echelon teams playing against each other. You find out how good a player I was. (When you) play against the best, (that’s an) accurate guage. And that’s what it should be about. The better teams in the country playing against the better teams in the country.” 

“Playing at Rupp arena (against Kentucky as a freshman). I was in awe of the place. We were blowing them out. They had a great backcourt—(Kyle) Macy, (Jay) Schilder. They had unlimited range (and hitting) bombs. They made a comeback with 30 seconds to go (with KU up six points). The last thing in timeout huddle, (Coach Ted Owens) tells us (we have no more timeouts). Mac Stallcup calls a a timeout (and they) score (and win). ”It broke us. I don’t know if we ever recovered from that (loss). (We went) 18-11, (were) ranked number two in Playboy preseason. (We had Paul) Mokeski (7-1 star center), we had a great team. We had the players. I started at forward, (Parade All-American Wilmore) Fowler (was) a guard (with superstar point guard Darnell Valentine).”

Playing against No. 3 Arizona State in the second round of the NCAA Tournament in 1981, Guy’s junior year and best season, when he finally played his true position at shooting guard. He exploded for a career-high 36 points on 13-of-15 shooting and 10-of-12 from the free throw line. KU easily upset the Sun Devils, 88-71, and advanced to the Sweet 16 in New Orleans to play Wichita State.

“All week, we read about how good they were and they were going to blow us out and blow everyone out for that matter. They deserved all the press clippings they received (all four starters had NBA careers in Alton Lister, Fat Lever, Byron Scott and Sam Williams). We were extremely talented, too. While Art Housey didn’t have the skill level as Alton Lister, it wasn’t neccessary. Byron Scott was a great player, Fat lever, Sam Williams. It was just one of those games that whenever I was open, Darnell got me the ball. My teammates got me the ball. I think at that point, it’s kind of neat the first couple of shots you shoot, they go in. My teammates (were) confident (in me). At some point, Darnell was like, ‘Hey, Tone, whenever you’re open it’s going to be there.  And it was.

“(One of) funniest things, Arizona State scored. (It was the) left side of court (and) I was dribbling after pass from Darnell, a step inside the (free throw line). “I’m in the air and I thought to myself, ‘Tony, you’re on national TV,  you’re about to fall flat on your face in front of millions of people. What were you thinking about?' I’m in the air thinking about all this stuff and I just keep going, and going, and thinking I’m going to get to the bucket. And I get to the bucket, and the place just goes off. It just goes off. My best friend, David Magley. He said, ‘Tone, you’re the only brother I ever met in my life that can’t dunk.’ That was the physically proudest moment on the court. I didn’t have a lot of dunks in my career. I jumped from at least from the dotted line. At the (season-ending) banquet, everybody still went off. Everybody still couldn’t believe it.

“Magley has the tape (of that game). Every time I ask him about it, he says, ‘I don’t know where that tape is.” l (should) call KU (and have them) make another one. It was a lot of fun. I always dreamed about having a game like that. I guess that’s a zone. Everything I did, I felt at ease with it. I felt comfortable. ‘Yes, this was the right decision’ I only took 15 shots, not an exhorbitant (amount of) shots. I made most of them. It couldn’t have come at a better time. That’s what I was about; I was about wanting to perform well against the better teams.”

KU jelling at end of season:

“(We were) starting to play really well as a team. The only bad thing is that only seven players played. Booty Neal (reserve guard and long-range bomber) could really play. He could flat out play. The one thing I like about Roy Williams is that when you’re wearing a Kansas uniform, the chances are you’re going to get a chance to play. And I think that’s the way it’s supposed to be.”

Playing against North Carolina at Charlotte, N.C., on Nov. 28, 1981, the first game of the season in Guy’s senior year, one of the first ESPN nationally televised games. UNC featured a promising star but relatively unknown freshman at that time named Mike Jordan, who started in his debut college game and defended Guy. KU played ‘Carolina close, but lost 74-67.

“Mike’s a freshman; we did not know much about him. We were more concerned about (James) Worthy, (Sam) Perkins, (Jimmy) Black. Mike was guarding me. I had a real good first half. I remember I was at the free throw line, and I remember Worthy yelling over to Mike,‘Hey, don’t go for his ball fakes.' He was really coaching Mike on how to defend me and how to guard me. (At one point in the game), a shot went up. I didn’t know where Jordan was. No box out. (I jump) to grab the rebound, all of a sudden I feel someone’s body on me. I look up and there’s a long arm up in the air. He went to dunk it and missed. I said to myself, ‘Tony, don’t ever lose track of where that guy is again.’ I thought, ‘My goodness, who is this guy?’ I was up about to grab the ball when I saw this outreached arm.”

On that 13-14 team in 1981-82 during Guy's senior year, which played without a true point guard after All-American Darnell Valentine graduated the previous year. Guy and Magley had to carry the offensive load without much of a supporting cast. Kansas lost eight of its last nine games.

“I played point guard for a while. That was probably one of the least talented teams to ever play at the University of Kansas. (I was) Playboy preseason All-American.”

On his preseason injury before senior year:

“I remember as if it was yesterday. It was my senior year. ...  (I couldn’t jump off) one leg my entire senior year. I had a sleeve on left leg; it was a serious leg injury. I injured leg in preseason conditioning. I went to coach (Ted Owens and told him I was in) pretty bad shape (and could use some time off). (Owens said), “We’re a young team, (we’re) dependent upon leadership, we need example for youngsters. (I participated in) preseason conditioning program. I shouldn’t have. A calcium deposit developed in leg; at night, I couldn’t sleep (it was) between fibula and tibia. All season I was in so much pain. Nobody knew it. A lot of guys would be bitter. (I could have redshirted). I played, that’s what team athletics is all about, making sacrifices. My senior year, (I had) my worse year, worse time. (I could have went) hardship after junior year. Portland had the 16th pick (and wanted to draft me) behind Darnell if I wanted to come out. I said, ‘No, I didn’t want to come come (out). The lesson is that things don’t always work out the way we ‘d like them to or the way we’d play for them to work out. That’s pretty much what life is about. Very seldom does things go the way we want them to. But life goes on ...For all that basketball has given me, it didn’t owe me anything at that time and it doesn’t owe me anything now. (Portland) called Darnell (and said), ‘we got the 15th and 16th picks in the first round (in 1981 NBA Draft). We’re going to use one of them on you. ‘Is Tony interested in coming out? Check with Tony.’ The thought of going hardship never even crossed my mind. As a kid, (we could) not afford it to go to college. If basketball works out, (I could get a) scholarship, and then you get the degree. That’s all it was about. It wasn’t about trying to be rich and famous. It was about going to school and getting a degree. The quality of life that I have today, there is no doubt in my mind that had I played in the NBA, the quality of my life wouldn’t have been richer than what it is today. Things normally work out for the best.”

Guy’s “consistency” and more on his serious injury:

“I was consistent over (my) career. I had been playing out of position first two years (at small forward) until junior year. (There was) no coincidence (when I played big guard), once everyone saw that I could not only play guard, but I could defend guards as well, it was pretty obvious that I was a pretty good player. I could guard just about anyone on the perimeter. (I was) unique, 6-6, defend on the perimeter. (I could move my feet) and play guard. (There was) a question mark (if I could) score. (Team-high and career-high 15.8 points per game in 1980-81, Guy’s junior season) and Sweet 16 team). There was never a doubt in my mind that I could play in the NBA.

 

(...There was a) pickup game before season,” Guy added about he got hurt. (I was) dribbling the ball. I shot the ball better than ever, (I was in) weight room (and) physically peak shape. Tim Banks (was) running up from behind to steal the ball — slipped, fell and his knee hit the back of my leg. (It was a) deep bruise. In the middle of preseason conditioning program,I was running around (Memorial) stadium, (it turned) turned into calcium deposit. (There were) serious problems. I literally couldn’t jump off left foot (for whole season). I couldn’t elevate.”

On the Boston Celtics camp and playing in the CBA and Switzerland:

“Probably the lowest moment of my life. Up until that point in time, I achieved and accomplished everythiing I set out to do. Playing in the NBA was important, the next step, validate that I was continue to grow and improve as an athlete and a basketball player. I couldn’t move (because of leg injury). Nobody knew. Even on one leg, Danny Ainge couldn’t score or defend me. He was starting for the Celtics. I thought to myself, ‘What could I be doing if I was healthy; (they) didn’t see half the player I really was...If I was at 100 percent (and they said), ‘You ain’t good enough, that’s fine but to be at 25-30 percent, when I knew I was good enough to play in the NBA, never had experienced dissapointment of that magnitude. I never once talked about my injury, no excuses. Life goes on. I got cut. (I then played in the ) CBA. (I was with) Maine (and) traded to Wyoming for one year. I felt injury was getting better. I played extremely well. The following year, (I played in) Switzerland. The best year of my life. I had gotten married the day before I left. By far, the best year of my life. I wouldn’t trade it for anything.The reason being, my wife and I had the foundation for our marriage that will last a lifetime. And that was important. Only place I know of, postcards don’t do it justice, even the best postcards. I was still hurt, never recovered from that injury. I had a great year in Switzerland, (developed) more leg strength. I still had pain, but not as severe. I played 1983 in CBA and1984 in Switzerland.”

(After returning home from Switzerland), “a couple of months went by and I talked to my agent. He called and said, ‘The team loved you, but same money.’ I talked to my wife. I’m thinking, ‘A lot of guys spent playing in CBA or over in Europe. They come back after having done that after eight, nine years, still need to get a job.’ She said, ‘Hey, why don’t we just get started on our lives after basketball.’” (I told my agent), ‘Thanks, but no thanks.’”

Working at State Farm and lessons shared

In 1987, Guy began working for State Farm in Kansas City, Mo., as a insurance agent. He’s been there ever since.

“I think every thing I stand for, this company is about. It’s a neat feeling to be working for a corporation who you think values the same things you value. Just taking care of people’s needs is important.. (They’re) dependent on me to have a certain skill level as it relates to being the guy that handles their insurance needs. Almost like being a coach. I have two staff, own little team. I’m in the office and out. I schedule my own, speak when I where I want to. … Most importantly, it allows me the flexibility and the time to spend with my wife and kids. I have three wonderful kids, wonderful wife. My wife is a full-time homemaker, it’s a neat home with the kids. I’m having more fun now than I’ve  ever had in my entire life. 

“I guess the lesson I share with younger guys playing, ‘there’s a lot of life left after basketball. The bottom line is all that matters is ultimately, what type of fathers we become and what type of husbands we become, because those are the most important roles we have in this lifetime is my role as a father and my role as a husband. To be quite honest, my kids don’t know or do they care about any of my basketball exploits. And that’s the way it ought to be. But they do care if I’m a good father and a good husband. … KU is an important time (but) it’s not the most important thing. ... Society, it’s out of perspective...out of whack.

“No one thinks character counts, but character does count and it always will.  No matter how much hypocrisy exists in the system, character does count. Ultimately, my mom raised me to be good husband and father; she never once called and asked how basketball is going. In the final analysis, (basketball) is a vehicle to get a college education, vehicle to be a productive member of society. We treat it as if it’s everything to me. ‘Without it, I’m nobody. I can’t do anything.” 

Guy thinks about that defining conversation with Yetman his sophomore year in his “daily life.”

“What Norm was trying to tell me was, “Tony, a lot of people you’re going to come in contact with are going to like you because you’re Tony Guy, the basketball player. I just want you to know that I care about you because you’re Tony Guy, the person. I just want you to know that Tony Guy the person will carry you much further than Tony Guy the basketball player ever will.” Guy now laughs when adding what Yetman then said, ‘I’ve been watching you. You don’t jump very high.’ I was fortunate to have a mom, Gertrude, she kept myself grounded. …(When I) speak, (I) share (about) society today. Michael Jordan retired, the world still turning. If we don’t somehow find a way to bring young people up in such a way that they become people--men and women of integrity--of high character--this place isn’t going to last much longer … unless we start having better fathers and better mothers. It’s going to collapse. It’s going to collapse. …“What (matter is what) type of adults we become.”

Guarding Magic Johnson, a sophomore sensation point guard at Michigan State, when Guy was a freshman on Feb. 4, 1979 at East Lansing, Mich. MSU blew KU out, 85-61.

“(My) freshman year, (it was both a) high light and low light (of having the) dubious honor of having to guard Magic Johnson. I realized I was OK, but I was just an average basketball player. Magic was so overwhelming that I said to myself, ‘What am I doing out here. He was just truly incredible, truly amazing. Those experiences shape your own perspectives as a player. Having to guard (Magic) was a nightmare. That was bloody.” 

On Roy Williams and the Jayhawks:

“I think that those kids play with an enthusiasm and togetherness that is unparallelled. We didn’t have it when I played. There is more of a one for all and all for one attitude. (There’s a) togetherness that Roy’s teams have that we did not have. Those guys generally care for another one. They’ll do any things for one another. These guys graduate. (They) are class acts. They’re not goofing off. They’re going to class. The positives far outweigh the negatives. … A great coach, and a great guy. (He’s) not perfect, but nobody is.”

Guy’s passions:

“Golf is my new passion, and my kids. My family is my passion. Faith, obviously. Those things are what keeps me going. …I love golf.” 

High-School All-American and Super Prep Stats

Tony made his mark in high school at Loyola in Towson, Md, and one of the country’s most highly recruited prep stars. He was a McDonald’s All-American (KU’s second one in history behind Darnell Valentine), Parade All-American, Street & Smith Yearbook All-American, and Basketball Weekly and Scholastic Magazine All-American.

Guy was a second-team Parade All-American, along with future Hall of Famer James Worthy. Mark Aguirre, a third-team selection, was a future No. 1 overall NBA Draft pick by the Dallas Mavericks.  KU teammate and best friend David Magley was a fourth-team Parade All-American. Guy and Aguirre were also members of the 1978 McDonald’s All-American team.

A three-time all-league selection and three-year starter at Loyola, Guy helped lead the Dons to a 78-19 record during that time. Loyola went 27-6 his first year as a sophomore, then 26-4 and 25-9 his senior year. The Dons ranked No. 2 in the state in final polls both his sophomore and junior seasons. Guy, who lead the team in scoring, rebounding and assists his senior year, averaging 22.9 points,11.1 rebounds and 3.6 assists per game. In league games, Tony averaged 26.5 points,10.0 rebounds and 5.1 assists.

Guy also led Loyola in scoring (15.4 ppg) and assists (154) his junior year, while second on squad in rebounding (9.0 rpg). He culminated his magical career with 1,499 points in 89 games (16.8 ppg). He also had 881 career rebounds (9.9 rpg) and 341 assists (3.8 apg). He connected on better than 50 percent of his field goal attempts last two seasons, while shooting 50.6 percent from the field during his career. He was also a career 77.0 free throw shooter. 

Tony scored a career-high 38 points his senior year and grabbed a career-best 18 boards his junior and senior seasons. Above all, he was a winner and team player. Loyola won the Catholic League Tournament all three years, while Guy served as team captain his senior year.

Tony sums it up:

“(I was) extremely fortunate in my career. I started from day one and played every game. I had a great career. The university and coach Owens and the players were extremely kind to me.”