Monmouth’s King Rice reflects on the passing of John Chaney

“I heard it right before the game, and I just went up to tell the guys on TV to make sure that they say, from King Rice and the Monmouth basketball program, we send out our condolences to the family.

I mean, what can you say about Coach Chaney? Pioneer, I didn’t know he was such a great player, because he wasn’t playing when I came around, but I did some research. He was a great player, but him as a coach was so incredible to watch what he did at Temple. And even before Temple, I know he was winning a bunch of games, but he came on and I knew about him at Temple, and I got to play against him two times. I know Mark Macon really, really well, and what Coach Chaney did for everybody is great. But what he did for black head coaches — okay, him, show me the guys, but — John Chaney’s one of the main guys. John Thompson, another main guy. Nolan Richardson, Tubby, Clem Haskins, all these guys, but Coach Chaney was one of a kind. And he’d have practice in the morning. When I first became the head coach, we practiced in the morning, and I probably should still do it, but it’s a hard thing to do that early in the morning.

But when I played against him as a senior, I made some free throws. And I always knew Coach Chaney was always nice to me, but I made some free throws down the stretch in ‘91 to go to the Final Four, and about 15 years later, he did an article in USA Today — and like I said, he always treated me great — but he did the article and in the article, they asked him about playing in a Final Four, and he said, ‘Well, my chance to make it was in ‘91, and we shoulda made it! But Carolina’s point guard, King Rice, and he wasn’t the best one (or something like that), made some free throws to make me not go to the Final Four!’ And I was like, ‘Man, Coach Chaney, I thought me and you were tight!’

He just means so much to college basketball. Every black head coach that gets a chance to coach, anywhere in the world, you have to thank someone like John Chaney.”