Rip City Magazine: You're back with the team, but in a different role, that of an assistant coach. How did this all come about?
Gary Grant: My last couple of years in the NBA I was more like a player/coach anyway. Over the last couple of summers I've just been working with former Blazer assistant Tim Grgurich, working a lot of camps, trying to get my mind right to be a coach. My dream came true when Portland gave me a call. Maurice Cheeks saw me working a lot of different camps this summer and it all paid off for me. I'm happy to be taking advantage of it.
Rip City: You had 13 years as a player in the NBA. When did you start thinking that you might want to try life as a coach?
Grant: I've always wanted to be a coach, even when I was back playing at the University of Michigan. Playing the game was always my first love. While at Michigan I helped my coach Bill Frieder with different things. I always loved being around the coaches and helping them. Now that it is here for me, I just have to take advantage of it. I'm trying to learn as much as I can. I'm learning from the way Maurice prepares for games.
Rip City: Since you're just 37 years old, it seems like you can relate very well to the players since it wasn't that long ago that you were a player yourself.
Grant: Yeah. I've played against most of the guys we have here, and scored on everybody in that locker room (laughing). When I say things I think they tend to listen because they know I've been there. I can see it on their faces that they're paying attention and they're trying to learn. That's really all a coach can ask for.
Rip City: What coaches that you played for had the biggest impact on the kind of coach that you want to be?
Grant: I can go all the way back to Bill Frieder, at Michigan. He coached an up-tempo style of game that I loved. He was a drill-happy coach. He loved to make us work on the fundamentals. I played for Larry Brown when I was with the Clippers, and he's a master of the offensive game. He always got his players to buy into the same system. I've taken pieces from all the coaches I've played for and now I'm trying to put it to work for me.
Rip City: What do you see as your role on this Blazers' coaching staff?
Grant: Right now I'm really working on player development. Helping them work on their skills. I make sure they get a ton of shots up during drills and keep their conditioning up. Then I try to get some kind of input during the coaches meetings. I offer what I see, and what I think we could be doing better. I'm learning the x's and o's, and am trying to learn from Mo. I'm learning how to draw up different plays for the different situations in games. I'm just mostly a listener now, and not much of a speaker yet. That will come for me in time. This is a great learning opportunity for me. I'm just a sponge now absorbing all of this great information from these great basketball minds. Coach Cheeks and all of our assistants are great teachers, and even though I'm now an assistant coach, I'm also a student in this new job.
Rip City: Do you believe Maurice Cheeks has what it takes to be a successful head coach in the NBA for a long time to come?
Grant: I do. He's a player's coach. He gets along with all the guys, and treats them like men. All he wants you to do is give it to him on the floor as best you can. I think all of the players respect him for that. When I was in high school Maurice was my favorite player, and it's an honor now working for him. I feel very fortunate to have been given this honor.
Rip City: You were a player on some very good teams in the NBA, including the last Clippers club to make the playoffs. How good can this Blazers team be this season?
Grant: I think if we continue to work, work, work, and I know we're going to do that, we can't do anything but get better. You can throw all the talent out the window. If this team plays together, shares the ball, and gets along on the floor, we can win the championship. The line between making the playoffs and winning the title is pretty thin really. Our goal has to be to win the championship. I've got a lot of confidence in this group of guys and I feel good about our chances this year.
Rip City: Your forte in the NBA, and even going back to you college days at Michigan, was that of a strong defensive player. Do you think young players these days take defense as seriously as they should?
Grant: No, I don't think so. You have a handful of guys out there who really work hard on the defensive end. All the young guys in the league should watch Gary Payton and the job he does on the defensive end of the floor. They should watch how he gets down and dirty on both ends of the floor. If guys can start playing defense with that mentality, that defense wins games, we'll be a lot better off.
Rip City: You've often joked with Mike Rice and me that you'd love to go back to your alma mater and help resurrect that basketball program there. Is that your ultimate goal, to be the head coach at Michigan, or do you want to run an NBA team?
Grant: Whatever comes first, really. I just know I've got to put my time in at this and learn. I will work as hard as I can before practice, during, and after. I'm learning from all of our assistant coaches, and of course from Mo. I'm just going to keep listening to everything and storing it in the back of my head. Whatever coaching challenge lies ahead for me, I'll be ready to take it on.
Rip City: Does the game look any different to you watching from the sidelines as an assistant versus when you were out there as a player?
Grant: No, there's no real difference for me. I can see a lot more sitting on the bench now watching plays develop and things like that. That's been a good experience for me. I enjoy watching a team trying to accomplish something together out on the floor. I've been able to see that while on the bench as an assistant coach. It's a pretty sight to see when you run it right.
Rip City: You played in Portland long enough to know the great fan support the Blazers have always enjoyed. Winning a title here would be a very special thing to be a part of I would think.
Grant: No question. I still hear so many people talking about the '77 team. This is a great opportunity for us here. The guys are getting older and wiser, and have to realize what an opportunity this is.
