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.”

 

A Heartfelt Tribute To Former KU Basketball Head Coach Ted Owens

Ted Owens grew up on a cotton farm in Hollis, Oklahoma, where he was raised by his parents to know right from wrong, to treat people with kindness and deep respect, to always listen to others, to show great empathy, to have profound faith, to have a strong work ethic, to treat people of color on the basis of their character and performance, and to always be a good person.

Owens carried these invaluable life lessons throughout his life, reinforced to him by his Oklahoma Hall of Fame basketball coach, Bruce Drake, and then KU head basketball coach Dick Harp — a man of impeccable values and strong moral fiber —when Owens served as a loyal assistant to Harp as an assistant coach from 1960-64.

In his nearly 91 years on Earth, Owens has learned from these instrumental people in his life and touched and impacted countless people, beginning as head basketball and baseball coach of Cameron Junior College in Lawton, Oklahoma, from 1956-60, and then as a KU assistant for four years before serving as KU head basketball coach for 19 years, still the second-longest tenured coach in the rich Kansas basketball tradition.

After KU, he continued impacting people’s lives as Oral Roberts head coach, Fresno Flames coach, Tel Aviv Maccabi coach, development director and basketball coach at Metro Christian Academy in Tulsa, athletic director at St. Leo University near Tampa, Florida, and all his other jobs and pursuits.

Above all, Owens has been a true loving and consummate family man, devoted to his wife, Michelle, and his children. He has also stayed in close contact with those players he coached decades ago, including many from Cameron and at KU, and those he also mentored like Joey and Stephen Graham, former Oklahoma State basketball players from 2003-05.

Owens’ daughter, Taylor Owens O’Connell, talked about her dad’s love and influence of people in his 2013 book, At The Hang-Up.

“I am beyond blessed to have a father who loves me endlessly. It’s amazing that a little boy from Hollis could grown up to have such an impact on so many lives,” Owens-O’Connell said.

Owens’ former players deeply love him, just as he loved them.

“The most important thing to my dad today is his meaningful relationships with his players. Every July 16 when 7 a.m. hits, Tommie Smith calls to wish him a happy birthday,” Owens’ son, Teddy, said. “Shortly afterward, David Magley will call, or Bud Stallworth, or Roger Morningstar, or Al Lopes. They call every year, never missing his birthday, because he loved them and believed in them. He continues to do so, and anytime they achieve something he always calls me and update me on their success off the court.” 

As soon as he became KU head coach, you knew Owens would be something special—as a person and as a coach.

After Harp resigned under pressure in 1964, the KU players petitioned for the popular Owens to take over the head-coaching job. Owens had great admiration and respect from his players and KU alumni.

“Owens is the best basketball coach I know for talking to high school boys and recruiting them,” a top KU booster said. “He and Jack Mitchell (then-KU football coach) are in a class by themselves in the field. Owens has also had a hand in recruiting most everybody now in the KU basketball program and they like him and respect him a great deal.”

Owens, who coached at Mount Oread 19 years until being fired in 1983, won six Big Eight Conference Championships, eight Big Eight Holiday Tournament titles, one Big Eight Tournament Championship, advanced to the NCAA tournament seven times, and earned Final Four berths in 1971 and 1974. He was named Big Eight Coach of the Year five times and selected as National Coach of the Year in 1978 by Basketball Weekly.

 

Owens, who also coached five All-Americans, ranks as the fourth-winningest coach in Kansas basketball history behind Phog Allen, Bill Self and Roy Williams with a 348-182 (.657) record.

But beyond the wins is the many lives he influenced and impacted. Just listen to former star forward David Magley, who played at KU from 1978-82 and then briefly with the Cleveland Cavaliers as a rookie. Magley and his wife, Evelyn, have always been very close to Owens; they used to babysit Owens’ kids when Magley was in college.

Magley truly admired and loved Owens.

“Of all the lives that Coach Owens has touched over the years, I have to believe that I am the most fortunate,” Magley said in At The Hang-Up.

“He taught me how to compete. He encouraged me and rewarded when I earned it. He showed me how to be a champion with grace.”

Just listen to countless other Jayhawks and coaches, including Riney Lochmann, who played at KU from 1963-66 and then in the ABA.

“The bottom line is that I would run through a brick wall for Coach Owens,” Lochmann said. “I have nothing but great memories from my time there. Kansas has retired many jerseys that hang in the rafters of Allen Fieldhouse. My hope is that Coach Owens will also be honored so his name can hang up in Allen Fieldhouse with the rest of his players.”

Just listen to Dave Robisch, the high-scoring forward and All-American who starred at KU from

1968-71.

“Coach Owens is more than a coach. He has been a part of my life since 1967,” Robisch said. “Our relationship has grown stronger over time. I look back now and understand so much more about what went on at KU than I did when I was going through it. He has been there through 42 years of my marriage. He has watched my kids grow up and I have watched his kids grow up. This type of thing does not happen very often. We have a very special friendship that continues to grow as we both get older.”

Just listen to Delvy Lewis, who was a star KU guard and All-Big Eight in 1966.

“I just have nothing but great words to say about Ted Owens as a coach,” Lewis told me in 2003. “He was a gentleman. I just feel badly, because I think he’s kind of gotten a bad rap, as far as perception.  He still has a tremendous winning record. I just hope he gets some credit for what he did, because I think he did a lot more than people realize. To this day, I have the greatest respect for him. He’s just a neat, neat man.”

“I think Riney and I were his favorites on that (great 1965-66 squad, which won the Big Eight title and lost to Texas Western in the Midwest Regional final) team, because he just appreciated the ‘roll up your sleeves and work,’ and that’s pretty much what Riney and I did,” Lewis added. “I hustled and gave it all I had every game. Everybody did. We had a group that pretty much got after it. We were pretty no-nonsense. “

Just listen to Bud Stallworth, who starred at KU from 1969-72 and is another of the five All-Americans (also an Academic All-American) Owens coached at Kansas.

“What I first noticed is that Coach Owens cared about his players beyond just playing sports,” Stallworth said. “He was more like a parent, wanting his players to be more than successful basketball players. He emphasized that we had to be well-rounded on the court and even better better people off the court.”

Just listen to Jo Jo White, still another KU All-American who is enshrined in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.

“Ted is like a second father to me, he and coach (former longtime KU assistant Sam) Miranda,” White said after his jersey retirement at Allen Fieldhouse in 2003. “They were more than just coaches. They were friends to us, they were our confidant. Our relationship continues on, far beyond the KU days.”

White also raved about Owens in www.celtic-nation.com on April 7, 2003, just hours before KU played Syracuse in the national championship game.  

“He was a very astute coach, and a great teacher of the fundamental,” White said. ”He was also politically involved within the college basketball community and well-versed when it came to the issues surrounding the game. Coach Owens contributed greatly to my growth as a basketball player. I enjoyed playing for him and I learned a lot from being a part of his program.”

And then listen to what White said about Owens in At The Hang-Up:

“Coach Owens was always open to sit and talk with individuals about how to be a better player and a better team. He wasn’t concerned about players approaching him to talk about the team. To me, he was a great coach—always sincere, honest and open with all of us. I absolutely adored the man and my time at KU.”

Owens not only had great respect from his former players, but from his peers in the coaching profession. Just ask Washington Wizards head coach Scott Brooks, who played under Owens with the WBL Fresno Flames in 1988.

“Coach Owens is a man of integrity; he is a sincere, honest person who treats everyone with a great deal of respect—which is something that I’ve carried with me throughout my life on and off the basketball floor,” Brooks said. “Coach Owens has had a great impact on me as a person and a coach. To this day, every time Coach Owens is around it seems that a memory is made.”

Just listen to Hall of Fame Kentucky coach John Calipari, who received his first coaching job under Owens as a graduate assistant at KU in 1982.

“He gave me an opportunity to coach at one of the greatest programs,” Calipari said. “Coach Owens has always handled himself with class. Whether we won or lost, he was just a classy, upstanding gentleman, and he did it at a hard place to coach, but a great place to coach. I will always be indebted to him, and Coach Owens knows that.”

Just listen to Hall of Fame coach Larry Brown, who succeeded Owens at KU for five seasons.

“(Owens) told the players he’d been here 23 years, 19 as head coach,” Brown said after the Legends of the Phog exhibition game at Allen Fieldhouse in 2011, during which he and Owens served as honorary head coaches. 

“He was in tears talking to everybody about his love for the school.”

Owens recruited players like Ron Kellogg, Calvin Thompson and Greg Dreiling (Owens coached Kellogg and Thompson for one season), who became vital senior cogs on Brown’s 1986 Final Four team.

“Ted left me with a pretty good group,” Brown said. “I was blessed with a really good team. And the values those kids have because of their relationship with him was pretty neat. He (also) left me with some good coaches. I was fortunate to have Bob Hill, Calipari ... It was a remarkable staff. Ted had a lot to do with this program, and to see his feelings about it is pretty remarkable.”

At age 82 then, Owens still had a strong competitive fire.

“He wanted to beat my (butt), I can tell you that,” Brown said in reference to the exhibition game, where Owens’ White team tied Brown’s Blue squad, 111-111.

Just listen to KU coach Bill Self, who has endless admiration for Owens.

“He comes back (to Lawrence and KU) all the time,” Self once said. “We take golf trips together every summer. We bunked together in Scotland (in 2009) for a week. I’ve gotten to know coach real well. He’s been really good to me and my family. When you’ve (coached here) 19 years, he’s kind of the coach that sometimes get lost, but he went to two Final fours and won an awful lot of games.”

“I don’t think I’ve ever been around a coach that takes more pride in what his ex-players are doing than what he does,” Self added to the Lawrence Journal-World on July 16, 2019 when Owens turned 90.

“But it’s also easier to do that because he’s older and he’s seen his guys grow up to be 60-year-old grown men.”

“He’s an amazing guy,” Self said.

Even the legendary Hall of Fame UCLA coach John Wooden greatly admired Owens. Wooden won 10 NCAA titles in 12 years, including a record seven straight.

Owens wrote about his friendship with Wooden in his book:

“Toward the end of John Wooden’s unparalleled career at UCLA, Wooden and I had established a strong-enough friendship that we exchanged notes at the beginning of each season. Wooden sent this note to me in his first year of his retirement.”

It was dated on March 2, 1976.

“Thanks Ted,

Keep your chin up. Our profession needs more men like you.”

Sincerely,

John Wooden

One of the highest compliments, indeed, from arguably the greatest coach in basketball history.

As the Journal-World reported in 2019, Owens has taught the “games he loves” at such faraway places as Japan, China, Spain, Italy, Belgium, France, Switzerland, the Philippines, Korea, England and Israel.

During a speech in Oklahoma around that time, which the Journal-World wrote that The Oklahoman's Berry Tramel called “one of the best speeches he had ever heard” and “refers to Owens as a American treasure,” Owens spoke about his life in basketball.

“I had some time to dream while I was hoeing cotton back on that farm in southwest Oklahoma,” Owens said. “But my dreams were never so great as to imagine what I have been privileged to do during my lifetime, playing college basketball for the great Hall of Fame coach Bruce Drake at OU, coaching at the University of Kansas, where James Naismith was the first coach and Phog Allen coached and promoted the game, and to coach in the St. Andrew’s of college basketball, Allen Fieldhouse.”

“I have learned that as a coach, your success will be measured by the productive and successful lives of those young men and women for whom you were responsible,” Owens added with great meaning. “A chaplain at the NCAA Final Four was speaking to the coaches at a Sunday church service (years ago) and he said it best: ‘You should always remember that you are not using young men and young women to win a game but that you are using the game to win young men and young women.’”

Owens, who is enshrined in the KU Athletics Hall of Fame, Cameron University Athletics Hall of Fame, the Kansas Sports Hall of Fame and Oklahoma Sports Hall of  Fame, did just that with young men in his long and storied coaching career. From humble beginnings in Hollis, to playing at OU, coaching at Cameron Junior College, to then getting the biggest break of his life as head coach at KU for 19 years, Owens has touched countless lives beyond measure.

While his KU coaching career ended on a bitter note with his firing in 1983, Owens still revels in returning to Allen Fieldhouse and seeing KU basketball games while catching up with former players and close lifelong friends. He has such fond memories of his time at Mount Oread.

“Coaching in Allen Fieldhouse is like no other experience I have ever encountered,” Owens told Jeff Bollig and Doug Vance in their 2008 book, What IT Means TO Be A Jayhawk.

“Just running out onto the court before the games — and the anticipation of a noise level unknown to most places — was electrifying. Our fans are pretty knowledgeable about basketball and pretty fair about recognizing the great plays of opponents. It isn’t just a game, but an event — the ‘Rock Chalk Chant,’ the pep band, the pompom squad, and the cheerleaders all add significantly to the game. When I go back to games, I can still sing the same songs and chant the same chants as if it were yesterday. That is tradition.

“It is something that stays with you forever. You can walk into a sports apparel store in almost any city and buy a Jayhawk cap. There aren’t any other Jayhawks. It is a unique name with a unique history. I live in Tulsa, and I see people wearing Jayhawk caps and shirts all the time. You can be proud of being a Jayhawk because it represents more than athletic victories. It represents great academics, great tradition, from Dr. Naismith and Dr. Allen and so many great achievements in politics, aerospace, and other professional areas. Being a Jayhawk fills you with pride.

“I stay as close (to the program) as I can while living in Tulsa. ... I love to come back every time I can and see my former players and coaches. It is one of the great joys of my life.”

Darnell Valentine emerged as starting point guard in second season with Portland Trail Blazers

Red Auerbach, the legendary Hall of Fame coach of the Boston Celtics and then-Celtics president, thought Darnell Valentine was destined for greatness in the NBA.

Auerbach scouted Valentine at Kansas, and was deeply impressed.

In the Feb. 3, 1979 issue of The Reporter, an Akron, Ohio, newspaper, Josh Watson wrote the following:

“Every pro coach in the NBA knows you got to have a playmaker--without one you don't go too far in the NBA. Kansas Darnell Valentine is not only a great playmaker, he's also a 20 point per game scorer. Red Auerbach likes what he saw of Valentine and thinks Valentine will have a great future in the NBA.

“Auerbach also would like to see Valentine wearing a Boston uniform. Keep your eyes on Darnell Valentine; you are going to hear a lot about this great playmaker out of Kansas.”

Now, entering his second season in the NBA with the Portland Trail Blazers, Valentine was also drawing rave reviews from Portland coach Jack Ramsay. Despite playing limited minutes his rookie year backing up Kelvin Ransey at point guard and averaging just 6.4 points per game on only 41.3 percent shooting (worst percentage on team), Ramsay thought Valentine showed great potential and deemed this former KU All-American for stardom.

"Darnell Valentine may be the best point guard in the NBA, you'll see," Ramsay told Sports Illustrated on Nov. 1, 1982.

With Ransey traded to Dallas after last season for 6-10 center Wayne Cooper and a first-round draft pick in 1985, Valentine had now emerged as the starting point guard for the Blazers. But he had competition from 1982 first-round draft pick Lafayette Lever (11th overall) from Arizona State.

Valentine and Lever had actually battled each other twice in college with Valentine bettering him both times. Valentine scored 16 points to Lever’s 10 in Arizona State’s 73-65 overtime victory over KU on Dec. 29, 1979, while Valentine had 16 points again to Lever’s 9 in KU’s 88-71 upset win over the No. 3 Sun Devils on March 15, 1981 in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.

The Lawrence Journal-World’s Chuck Woodling wrote about the competition between Valentine and Lever while also addressing why Portland dealt Ransey to the Mavericks.

“We traded Ransey because we were 17th in the league in rebounding last year and we needed help on the boards,” a Blazers’ spokesman said. “Mychal Thompson was our leading rebounder last year and Cooper averaged more rebounds per minute than Thompson did.

“We had the 11th pick in the draft and we didn't think there'd be a big guy available then. The reason we traded Ransey--and we really didn't want to--is because we think Lever is better than Kelvin was when he came into the league."

Tony Guy, Valentine’s teammate at KU, was also high on Lever. The two guarded each other last season on Nov. 30, 1981, a 63-62 Jayhawk victory. Lever scored 17, while Guy had 16.

“I think he is a complete ballplayer,” Guy told Woodling. “His strongest asset is he's more conscious of the team than he is of himself, and I think the people in the NBA were impressed by that. In guarding him, I had to be conscious of not relaxing because he has a real good jump shot. And I thought he was a great defensive player."

Despite drafting Lever, the Portland spokesman said the starting point guard position was for Valentine to lose.

“Really, it's up to him,” he said. “Last year Darnell started well, then tailed off. He had foul problems and maybe shot too much. But we think he'll have a better understanding next season. We're still high on Darnell, and the other kid will have to beat him out."

Valentine won the point guard battle and played great before breaking his foot in early January during a game against Indiana. The UPI reported on Jan. 6, 1983:

“The Portland Trail Blazers were clicking on 411 cylinders until point guard Darnell Valentine, sparkplug of their fast break, went down with a foot injury. Valentine, averaging 14.4 points and the third-leading ball thief in the NBA entering Tuesday night's game against Indiana, suffered a stress fracture of the left foot in a second-quarter collision. The second-year dynamo out of Kansas, Valentine who moved into the starting lineup when the Trail Blazers traded away Kelvin Ransey, will be out at least six weeks - at least until Valentine's Day."

"We're going to miss his intensity and his hustle. He seems to fire up the whole team when he makes a steal or lays it up 'through five guys," Thompson said.

Lever replaced Valentine as starter and played very well. According to the 1984 Pro Basketball Handbook, “Played good defense and showed he’s a future leader by running the offense.”

Lever played in 81 games with 45 starts, averaging 7.8 points, a team-high 426 assists (5.3 apg), 1.9 steals and 2.8 rebounds in 24.9 minutes per game, while shooting 43.1 percent from the field.

As for Valentine?

He nearly doubled his scoring average from his rookie season to 12.5 points while third on the team with 293 assists (team-high 6.2 per game), first with 2.1 steals, and 2.5 rebounds in just 47 games (36 starts), while shooting 45.4 percent from the floor and 79.3 percent at the charity stripe, also improvements on his rookie year.

The Pro Basketball Handbook reported that Valentine “became the No. 1 point guard when Kelvin Ransey was traded to Dallas. Promptly spent 35 games on the shelf with a foot injury...Is not a real offensive threat and his jumper could use a lot of work. But plays defense like he means it.

“He’s a fierce competitor,” Ramsay said. “He never stops. He’s never going to be outplayed.”

Portland finished the season at 46-36 — a four-game improvement over last season — and fourth place in the Pacific Division.

Entering the playoffs, Valentine started over Lever and raised his game to another level, helping the Blazers beat Seattle 2-0 in the first round before the Lakers and Magic Johnson beat Portland 4-1 in the Western Conference semifinals.

Valentine played seven games in the playoffs, averaging 12.1`points, 8.7 assists and 1.4 steals in 29.3 minutes per game, while shooting 42.5 percent from the field and 76.2 percent at the free throw line. He set a franchise-tying record with 15 assists in a Game 2 loss to the Lakers, while dishing 14 assists in a Game 3 OT loss to L.A. He also recorded game highs in the playoffs of 18 points, four steals and 38 minutes.

Lever, meanwhile, averaged 6.0 points, 4.4 assists and 1.0 steals in 19.1 minutes per game in the playoffs, while shooting 45.2 percent from the field and 80.0 percent at the charity stripe.

But with Lever’s emergence when Valentine was injured, it looked like a heated competition for the starting point guard spot entering the offseason.

The Pro Basketball Handbook thought Lever might have the edge:

“Lafayette Lever is one of the best young point guards in the league, leaping into the void as a rookie when Darnell Valentine went down with a leg injury. Lever may actually have stepped ahead of Valentine now on the depth chart.”

While that remained to be seen, Valentine was already drawing great praise from Ramsay, Thompson and others around the league for his outstanding defense and tenacious work ethic.

Just listen to David Magley, Valentine’s former teammate at Kansas who played briefly in his rookie season in 1982-83 with the Cleveland Cavaliers.

“I gained even greater respect for Darnell,” Magley told the Journal-World after the Cavs released him. “I respected Darnell at KU because he worked so hard. He’s kept it up in the NBA. Darnell is so devoted. A lot of NBA players just don’t show the intensity he does.”

Tony Guy is my all-time favorite Jayhawk

Tony attacking the goal off the dribble

My Dad awaiting to attack the ball!

Former KU standout Tony Guy is definitely my all-time favorite Jayhawk. And I’m not talking about just what I remember about his basketball exploits. As good as player as he was (and I thought Tony was a great one), he is even a better person. More than any other KU basketball player, I believe Tony Guy has made the most profound impact on my life.

I first met Tony on a memorable afternoon at my parents’ house in the summer of 1982, after he had graduated from KU and was preparing for the NBA Draft. 

But first some background.

Tony’s KU sponsor family was the Pucketts, who lived two houses down the street from us in Lawrence. Tony would often shoot baskets in their driveway, and one day, my dad approached Tony and they developed a friendship. My dad and Tony played racquetball many times that summer at Robinson Gym, across the street from Allen Fieldhouse, where Tony created his hardwood magic for four years. I remember my dad driving me and Tony to one of their games in his old little white volkswagen with Tony’s 6-6 frame cramped in the front seat. I watched them play, and even got in a few points with Tony one game, finding it quite difficult to have much success against him since he was so tall and had great reach.

After the game, Tony invited me to shoot hoops with him sometime. In one of my life’s deepest regrets, I never took him up on that offer. I was a very quiet, shy and introverted teenager and just never went over to t the Puckett house and shot baskets with him. That would have been a thrill of mine if I did take Tony up on his offer.

My late and forever hero dad, Goody, arguably the most popular, beloved and legendary professor in KU School of Social Welfare history, was a great racquetball player and 57 years old at the time he played the 22-year-old Guy in all those games. My dad, a wily veteran racquetball player who loved the game and would win tournaments into his 60s against college students, had the experience over Tony and he would usually beat the former Jayhawk star. Tony obviously was so much more athletic, quicker and faster than my dad, but my father was a master at positioning on the court and knew where to get the best angles to hit the ball off the wall. 

But as my dad recalls, the more they kept playing, Tony really improved his racquetball and started beating my dad some games. My dad said Tony was the perfect gentleman on the court, mild mannered, didn’t get upset or anything. He basically played racquetball the way he played hoops at KU -- poised, calm, and always in control of his emotions.

I’ll never forget the first day I met Tony. One day my friend and I came to my parents’ house and saw Tony’s car in the driveway. I got really nervous since I was about to meet my childhood hero, that stage in my life during the summer after my sophomore year of high school, when Tony and his fellow teammate David Magley would be my last two KU basketball heroes. I was getting older and would soon no longer idolize these great future Jayhawks I saw play.

But at that time, I viewed Tony as somewhat larger than life and I was giddy with anticipation of meeting him. When I stepped inside my home, Tony did not disappoint. He got up from the chair, warmly said hello and began to talk about how racquetball was helping his lateral quickness, and how he was running five miles daily preparing for the NBA Draft. Tony was pure class, genuine, humble and full of grace. He met all of my expectations and more of what my childhood hero would be like.

Because of Tony Guy, he helped bring my dad and I closer together and I’m forever grateful to him for that. My dad and I would often talk about his racquetball games with Tony, giving me the full scoop. And I will never forget that magical and priceless moment when I hugged my dad inside Allen Fieldhouse for the first and only time in the Phog during a thrilling overtime game against Kentucky on Dec. 12, 1981, a great team that KU could never beat.

I was standing up, turned to my left towards my dad, and gave my father a huge, tight embrace. I wanted to hold onto that hug forever; I didn’t want to ever let go. I’ll remember that feeling forever.

All because of Tony Guy.

Tony had just hit a key jumper from the top of the key in overtime, maybe tying the game or giving KU a lead. The crowd went completely wild and I was full of chills; I just acted spontaneously and hugged my dad after that shot swished through the net.

Unfortunately, KU lost to Kentucky that cold December night, 77-74, but the memories of embracing my dad after Tony’s thrilling shot remain as rich, emotional, and clear as ever.

In 1999, 17 years after Tony played his last game at Allen Fieldhouse and was drafted in the second round by the Boston Celtics, I drove up to Kansas City to his State Farm office to interview my childhood hero for a Where Are They Now? interview for Jayhawk Insider Magazine. I immediately showed Tony a picture of my dad. Tony remembered my dad quite well. He said it was people like my dad, sociology professor Norm Yetman, and others he met at KU who cared about him as Tony Guy the person and not Tony Guy the basketball player, that made his college years so special. The interview lasted nearly an hour with Tony talking to me about his favorite KU memories, of battling Magic Johnson and then Michael Jordan during Jordan’s first college game at North Carolina, and about the importance of being a good father to his kids, a good husband, and how vital it is for today’s parents to be there for their kids, to be good role models for them. No other KU athlete or former athlete had talked to me the way Tony did that magical afternoon. That's what made him all the more special in my eyes.

It was a wonderful and very meaningful man-to-man, heart-to-heart talk between us. I was no longer the impressionable teenager wowed by Tony’s basketball skills, but a 33-year-old man with a completely different perspective on life. I greatly appreciated Tony opening up and sharing his private thoughts with me. And as it turns out, his favorite memory during his KU years involved a defining conversation he had with Yetman, a talk that changed Tony’s life. I told Tony that Norm had been my adviser at KU and helped me with my 82-page honors thesis my senior year about racial participation and integration in KU basketball history.

A small world, indeed.

Before I ever met him, Tony Guy was always one of my all-time favorite KU players. But just from knowing him a little bit in the the summer of 1982 and meeting and talking to him again in 1999, and seeing what a great, genuine, and caring person, father and husband he is, I can now say that Tony Guy is, without a doubt, my all-time favorite Jayhawk.

So here is that Where Are They Now? story I wrote on Tony in 1999 for Jayhawk Insider. I added some additional information for this story I wrote 20 years ago. I have such fond memories of the time Tony spent with me for that interview. It’s been said the greatest gift someone can give you is their time and knowledge, and Tony gave me both.

...

Tony Guy doesn’t hesitate when asked about the most favorite memory of his Kansas basketball career. Ironically, he talks not of his 36-point explosion against Arizona State in the 1981 NCAA Tournament. Instead, Guy recalls a conversation he had with his sociology professor Norm Yetman, which changed his life forever.

Guy, just a sophomore at the time, was walking with Yetman on campus one day when the professor gave his student some worldly advice.

“He said, ‘Tony, this is a neat place to got to school. You’re a neat basketball player. And who knows what’s going to happen to you in the future. 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.’"

Guy, who views Yetman as a “surrogate father,” thinks about their conversation daily now 20 years later.

“What Norm was trying to tell me was that ‘a lot of people you’re going to come into 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. Tony Guy the person will carry you much further than Tony Guy the basketball player ever will.’”

Guy then smiled and laughed and said Yetman told him lightheartedly: "I've seen you play. You can't jump."

Guy has had a very rich and fulfilling life since graduating from KU in 1982 with a degree in personnel administration and earning Academic All-Big Eight honors. After being drafted by the Boston Celtics in the second round of the NBA Draft, Guy was released and spent a year in the CBA. He then married and played professionally in Switzerland for one season.

Guy, who had never fully recovered from a preseason leg injury his senior year at KU, decided to retire from basketball and enter the job force. He worked on his master’s degree in educational administration at UMKC and served as the assistant men’s basketball coach. He was then offered a job as an insurance agent at State Farm in 1987. Guy has been with the company ever since.

Suddenly, the telephone rings in Guy’s downtown Kansas City office.

“Good afternoon. State Farm. Tony speaking.”

After a few minutes, Guy smiles and congratulates his client. It seemed the gentleman had just gotten married and called Guy to add his wife as a driver on their car insurance. Guy said he receives great satisfaction helping others develop peace of mind.  

“I think everything I stand for, this company is about,” Guy said. “It’s a neat feeling to be working for a corporation who values the same things you value. Just taking care of people’s needs is important.”

Away from the office, Guy keeps busy sharing quality time with his three kids and wife, as well as playing golf and doing speaking engagements on behalf of Fellowship of Christian Athletes.

“I’m having more fun now than I’ve ever had in my entire life,” he said. “I guess the lesson I try to share with the younger guys playing is there’s a lot of life left after basketball. The bottom line is all that matters is, ultimately, what type of fathers and husbands we become. ...To be quite honest, my kids don’t know nor 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.”

 

Guy could certainly tell his children about his many basketball exploits in college. However, Feb. 4, 1979 wasn't exactly one of his better days. Guy now recalls this game against Michigan State his freshman season, when he had the dubious honor of guarding Magic Johnson.

“Magic was so overwhelming that I said to myself, ‘What am I doing out here?’ He was just truly incredible.”

Guy learned from the experience against Magic and developed into a Playboy Preseason All-American selection his senior year. KU’s first game that season happened to be against North Carolina and some freshman guard named Michael "Mike" Jordan on Nov. 28, 1981. Just as Magic did to Guy over two years earlier, the Towson, Md., native and former McDonald’s All-American took Jordan to school with his wide array of playground moves.

“I had a real good first half,” Guy said. “I remember I was at the free-throw line and (James) Worthy  was yelling over to Mike: ‘Hey, don’t go for his ball fakes.’ He was really coaching Mike on how to defend and guard me.”

Unfortunately, KU lost that game and finished the season 13-16, one year after reaching the NCAA Sweet 16. Guy played in pain the whole year after developing a calcium deposit in his left leg during preseason conditioning. He hurt so much he couldn’t sleep at nights.

“Nobody knew it,” Guy says now about the injury. 

Guy, who would have been the 16th selection in the 1981 NBA Draft by the Portland Trailblazers had he gone pro after his junior year (Portland told KU teammate Darnell Valentine they wanted to take him and Guy with their 15th and 16th picks), said he never thought about leaving school early.

“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,” Guy said. “Things normally work out for the best.”

A Closer Look at Tony Guy

Years at KU: 1978-1982

Education: BGS, 1982. Personnel Administration

Career Notables: School’s No. 5 all-time leading scorer after leaving KU. Now No. 23 (1,488 points)... Preseason Playboy All-American his senior year...Scored career-high 36 points in leading KU past No. 2 ranked Arizona State in the 1981 NCAA Tournament (13-15 from the field while earning NBC Player of the Game)...Academic All-Big Eight in 1982...Second-team All-Big Eight 1980-81...Co-captain 1980-81 and 1981-82...Co-winner of Phog Allen MVP team award in 1981 and 1982...Led KU in scoring his junior year at 15.8 ppg and in assists (103) his senior year...Team-high free throw percentage in 1980 (78.5) and 1981 (77.6)...No. 10 in career starts (115 out of 117 games) and tied for No. 12 in consecutive starts (72).

Family: Wife, Jerri, and three kids (daughters: Courtney, 13 and Morgan, 5, and son, Clay, 5).

Since Leaving KU: Guy spent one year in the CBA with Maine and Wyoming before playing professionally in Switzerland in 1984. He then worked on his master’s degree at UMKC and served as assistant men’s basketball coach before being hired by State Farm in 1987.

Currently: Guy is an agent for State Farm.

Hobbies: Golf and spending time with his family.

Favorite KU Memories: Guy, who wasn’t known for his vertical leap, relives the time he dunked the ball from just inside the free-throw line against Arizona State in the 1981 NCAA Tournament. “I’m in the air and I thought to myself, ‘Tone, you’re on national TV, and you’re about to fall flat on your face in front of millions of people. ... 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.”

On the Jayhawks Today: “I think that those kids play with an enthusiasm and togetherness that is unparalleled. We didn’t have it when I played. There is more of a one for all and all for one attitude.”

More about Tony Guy

I believe Tony Guy is one of the greatest and most underrated players in KU history. If not for playing injured his entire senior season, the lean 6-6, 200-pound Guy would have ranked higher in the school record books. Still, he finished his magical and illustrious career as the fifth-leading scorer in KU history (now No. 23). And Guy sits just outside the top 20 in career assists with 327 and just outside the top 12 in steals with 161.

His best year came his junior season in 1980-81, when he helped lead KU to the Sweet 16. Guy, who was finally moved to his natural position at shooting guard, averaged a career-high 15.8 ppg and shot a deadly 53.7 percent from the field. Guy and All-American Darnell Valentine formed one of the nation’s best backcourts, and they complemented each other exceptionally well. Valentine was the feared and master penetrator, while Guy was a sharp shooter from 20-feet out who could also create his own shot. I absolutely loved Tony’s lean-in jumper and all his ball fakes. Except for leaping ability, Tony had no weakness on the court. He could simply do it all--pass, dribble, defend and shoot. He was quick and could drive to the basket, as consistent and steady as they come on the court. Amazingly, he started all but two games of his four-year career. He was just a pure joy to watch and brightened my childhood immensely.

Guy ranks tied for third in KU annals with most steals in a game (with nine other Jayhawks, including Valentine and Danny Manning) with seven against K-State on Feb. 17, 1979. Those seven steals are also tied for second for most steals in a conference game.

Guy arrived at KU in 1978 as only KU’s second McDonald’s All-American behind Valentine. Tony, who was a unanimous high school All-American, had a legendary prep career at Loyola High School in Towson, Md., where he helped lead his team to three straight Baltimore Catholic League tournament titles (1976-78) Guy, who teamed with Baltimore’s first McDonald’s All-American Pete Budko (he went to North Carolina to play for coach Dean Smith), was Baltimore’s second McDonald’s All-American and is still his high school’s all-time leading scorer with 1,499 points.

A three-year starter for the Dons, Guy’s teams during that time went an impressive 78-19. Loyola ranked No. 2 in the state in final polls both his sophomore and junior years. Guy, the team captain his senior season, led Loyola in scoring (22.9 ppg), rebounding (11.1 rpg) and assists (3.6 apg) his senior year with a career-high 39 points that season and career rebounding high of 18 both his junior and senior seasons.

Guy earned the prestigious honor of being named to the BCL’s first Hall of Fame class on May 19, 2011.

On pressboxonline.com, here is what Keith Mills said about Guy at that time.

“One year after Budko arrived at Loyola, he was joined by Tony Guy, the magnificent 6-foot-6 do-it-all swingman, who scored 1,499 points during his four-year career and was also named to the BCL all-tournament team three years in a row.”

"Tony would be the prototype in the game today," former Calvert Hall coach Mark Amatucci once said. "If he wanted to stay outside, he could. If he wanted to go inside, he could. He could shoot from 20-25 feet and he could also go right by you. He was a fantastic player."

And most and far more important, a truly “fantastic” human being.

Tony, thanks eternally for the memories -- both on and especially off the court. You will aways have a special place in my heart!