GREEN BAY – Doug Gottlieb has enjoyed a relatively smooth ride since he was hired as the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay men’s basketball coach in May.
He bought a house in the area.
He constructed almost an entirely new 18-player roster — yes, 18 — that features only five players who were on the team last season.
It’s still early, but so far he’s shown he can pull off doing his national radio show while leading a college basketball program. He sometimes even does media interviews during his segment breaks.
But there was at least one thing he wasn’t prepared for after he landed his first college coaching gig, a part of the job he never really considered.
“How hard it is to turn people down, whether it’s for coaching jobs or recruits,” Gottlieb said. “We have only been turned down by a couple of kids, but we have actually turned down several kids that want to come and we just didn’t have space or it was redundancy and somebody wouldn’t play.
“I like to build people up. I don’t like to cut them down. Telling a kid, ‘Hey, we are not going to offer you,’ that’s really hard. I have so many friends in coaching, ‘Hey, this doesn’t work with this group.’ That’s the hardest part. That’s the surprising part, the one I didn’t necessarily visualize.”
Doug Gottlieb era at UWGB tips off with difficult November schedule
Phoenix fans got their first glimpse of its mostly new team in a 102-73 exhibition win over St. Norbert College at the Kress Center last week, a game in which senior newcomer Anthony Roy scored 46 points and hit 12 3-pointers.
As impressive as it was, it still was against a Division III program. It likely won’t be as easy against some of the teams UWGB soon will face.
It starts at Oklahoma State at 8 p.m. Monday. The home opener is four days later against a St. Thomas team picked to finish fourth in the Summit League.
The Phoenix follows by playing road contests against one of the best teams in the Ohio Valley Conference in Western Illinois and a Big East squad in Providence.
Along with games against SIU-Edwardsville and Evansville, it closes November at Ohio State.
Even if Gottlieb turns out to be a hall of fame coach, it could be a challenging start for the résumé.
UWGB started 4-6 under Sundance Wicks last season — 3-6 if you don’t count a win against NAIA member St. Francis (Illinois) — before it won four straight games on the way to one of the better turnarounds in DI history.
Gottlieb landed some talent during the offseason that would not have seemed possible in the past, including freshman guard and former Oklahoma State recruit Jeremiah Johnson.
But a slow start wouldn’t be shocking again. If it happens, Gottlieb doesn’t believe it will be because of a lack of chemistry for a team that mostly met each other for the first time a few months ago.
“I don’t think it’s that hard,” Gottlieb said. “The hard part is going to be in a couple weeks when some of them aren’t playing. That is when the real challenge is, because they all are a really close group. They are all kind of like brothers now.
“The challenge is getting them to lock in on the idea that we are a one-agenda team. That agenda is winning. But as far as getting kids from all over the world, all over the country, to bond together, it’s actually my specialty.”
The UWGB job feels a bit unique to Gottlieb because of how small the campus is and how often everyone sees each other.
He swears every time he goes grocery shopping at Festival Foods, he runs into at least one of his players doing the same.
They tend to be at the gym or hanging out with each other. So, no, bonding hasn’t been an issue.
It’s just going to be that one-focus agenda Gottlieb wants that could prove vital.
“We live in a society where it’s about now, now, now, now,” Gottlieb said. “One, I have some that are far more experienced, so those are the ones I trust. And two, you can only play five. There is only one basketball.”
UWGB prepares for Oklahoma State
The Phoenix hopes to be close to full strength for the opener against the Cowboys, although veteran guard Foster Wonders remained a question mark earlier this week. The junior is dealing with a foot issue but told Gottlieb he hopes to play.
Former OSU product Isaiah Miranda was at practice this week, but it remains to be seen if the 7-foot-1 center will travel with the team for the game. If he does, it’s a good bet Gottlieb will find at least a few minutes for him.
This also is a big homecoming for Gottlieb. He played three seasons at OSU from 1997 to 2000 and still holds several school records.
He has been passed over by his alma mater for the men’s job in the past, but he has no animosity toward the school.
Gottlieb has nothing negative to say about the athletic department, OSU athletic director Chad Weiberg or OSU men’s coach Steve Lutz and his staff.
Instead, he has nothing but love for them. He knows all about the basketball atmosphere created there and wants his players to experience it.
“I think when I stop and think about it, you get the goosebumps,” Gottlieb said about his return. “There are a lot of emotions. My trajectory as a human being changed when I got to Stillwater. My ex-wife (Angie), we were married for 20 years before we split up. I have three kids. I’m on the Board of Governors. I met my best friends on Earth. Everything I built in broadcasting and coaching is based on my time there.
“I think it’s really important that people understand I’m not playing this game for my own ego or to prove anything. It’s actually out of incredible gratitude. I realize how special my position I currently hold is, and I want to share it with all my friends in Stillwater. Without that time there, I wouldn’t be here.”
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