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Do you encourage your boys to play?
Not that they need much encouragement to play, but yes I do encourage them to be active in sports. They have grown up around the sport of basketball, so naturally they want to shoot hoops. I encourage them to try other sports as well. They really enjoy it. I have coached Chasen for the past 4 years in AAU. Creed told me the other day he wants me to be his coach, so now I am an assistant soccer coach. Everyday when I come home CJ makes it a point to show me he has improved on dribbling a basketball. I love it!

What can children learn from organized sports and from basketball in particular?
I believe that sports teach our kids about the importance of self-sacrifice and discipline. Our kids learn that to be successful in sports they have to work together to accomplish your goals. The old saying goes "there is no I in team." Basketball in particular requires them to thinks as a group. They learn how to communicate with one another on the court. Any breakdown in communication or selfish play and the team is put at a disadvantage, but when they do communicate and show the discipline to work on their skills and practice hard they are rewarded with success. Not necessarily winning, but the feeling of being part of something bigger than themselves.

What's the best thing about being retired from professional basketball?
The best thing about being retired from basketball is setting my own schedule. I am starting to realize how valuable time is. I have missed so much time with my Michelle and the boys over the years because of the traveling. And I can't get that time back. Now I am on family time. I get to bath my boys and get them ready for bed, wake them up in the morning and get them dressed for school. Saturday morning soccer games, middle school basketball games, school functions, date nights with Michelle and going to visit our parents with the boys are things I get to more frequently now that I'm not playing. I used to take it (time) for granted. I have learned to guard my time like a precious gem. It is too short and too valuable.

Is there anything you miss?
I miss being around my teammates. We all had to leave our families on road trips and go through tough training camps fighting through the pain of fatigue and injury. I miss conversing with the guys sitting in the locker room or on the plane. That created a bond and a brotherhood that can't be described in words.

Tell me about your role with Arkansas Baptist College. Why did you want to get involved with their basketball program?
I am an assistant coach. Coach Rip allows his assistants to have a lot of freedom. My main job is to coach our big men, but Coach Rip has given me the opportunity to run practice from time to time. That really impressed me about Coach, not that I wasn't impressed with him already. This was my first year and he allowed me to put in plays for our offense and make substitutions during games. We (assistants) couldn't ask to work under a better coach.
Our record is not reflective of our progress as a program. It was hard for me to take the losses at first, but I learned that it's not always about wins and losses as a coach. We are building a program and you are going to take your share of losses at first, but progress is what you look for as a coach. Our guys have made progress that can't be measured by wins and losses. They have learned to work hard and what it means to compete on the court. The beauty is that they can use those skills later in life. I am so proud of this group of young men. That's why I wanted to be a part of the program. I have a testimony that these young men need to hear. They can do more in life than they ever thought and our (coaches) job is to equip them with the skills necessary to succeed.

If you could only teach your boys one "life lesson," what would it be?
I want my boys to learn to give. It seems that today it's all about take, take, take. Or what I have and you don't. "What's in it for me?" I don't hate too many things, but that kind of attitude gets under my skin. My family and I have been blessed. And I really believe that we should give to others as it has been given to us. As a child many people gave their time, money and prayers to allow me the opportunity to play basketball. As a result of their giving and God's grace I was blessed to live my dream of playing in the NBA. I want my boys to understand that our family was blessed by others who gave of themselves to help a little boy achieve his dream. We have to honor them and the Lord by helping others achieve their dreams by giving our prayers, time and money. It's not ours in the first place. It belongs to God.
After Chasen was born, I had 2 Timothy 2:3 tattooed on my right arm as reminder to "Train up a child in the way he should go, so that when he is old he will not part from it". I enjoy training my boys for sport, but I prefer that they become good soldiers of Christ first. I learned that from my mom and dad.