ATLANTIC COAST CONFERENCE BASKETBALL TIPOFF MEDIA DAY

October 12, 2021

Mike Brey

Prentiss Hubb

Nate Laszewski

Notre Dame Fighting Irish

Press Conference

Q. Coach, these last 18 months have been challenging, interesting. What have you learned about yourself? What have you learned about the team, not just on the court but obviously off the court, having to play a season that was so unique?

MIKE BREY: You know, I think I speak for all the ACC coaches that we had a season, that we had each other on a daily basis. Was therapy, quite frankly. We were talking last night about how we practiced in masks, which is a little unusual, because it was hard to read your players, and they probably couldn't read me all the time. I had to pull my mask down to make sure they knew when I was mad or not.

But that we had a season and we had each other. Even in our own little bubble in the practice facility, I think was key to everyone's mental health, including the coaches.

Now, we were disappointed we didn't have a chance to play in the NCAA Tournament. We strive for that next year. But the togetherness of -- we played 26 games and we didn't have a pause. That is a heck of a year for us. I don't know how we did it, but we got through it.

We're excited about having some people in the stands this year.

Q. Let's get this out of the way: An ACC without Roy, soon without K. You've been in enough of these meetings to know the kind of water those guys draw. What's it going to be like in this league without one of them now and without two of them next year?

MIKE BREY: I couldn't wait to get them out of the league. (Laughter). I've been waiting, man. Get out. Get out.

Of course spending time on Tobacco Road obviously on Mike's staff in the '80s and '90s and seeing the dynamic shift like it did in the spring within like, what, a month of each other, I think, they both -- I can relate to how powerful that is.

I do think those programs aren't going to really go anywhere. I think they've done a great job with their head coaching hires. For me, though, Mike, and even Roy -- obviously I worked with Mike. Roy became a really good friend and a mentor to -- I was like that next generation of guys.

I will miss Roy this year because there's a personality about him, as you all know, that kind of keeps you smiling.

It is a power shift, and the rest of us are not complaining at all.

Q. Can you talk a little bit about just sort of your fondest memories you have with Coach K?

MIKE BREY: I was there eight seasons with Mike. We went to six Final Fours. That shouldn't happen, right? I was amazingly spoiled.

He also hired me when I was a high school coach. I'm always indebted to him for taking a chance on a guy and letting me grow and understand and train me to be a head coach. I felt very ready when in 1995 when I went to Delaware.

Now, you know, he's a good friend and we can drink good wine together on the road together in the summer. Even though I'll miss him, I didn't see him on the recruiting trail, I do hope that -- and I think he will stay engaged in college basketball moving forward.

He has been such a wise and valued ambassador and statesman for our game, and I think we're going to still need that from him.

Q. I wanted to elaborate a little bit on that last part. I know when Krzyzewski announced his retirement you joked about college basketball needing czar, and Krzyzewski was the guy for that. Have you had any conversations with him about it? Can you give us a little insight into that?

MIKE BREY: Well, let's be honest about Mike K. Hasn't he really been the czar for 25 years? I mean, we're all trying to get a little bit of czarism, and he doesn't give us any piece of the pie. That's how great a competitor he is.

Now I think now with time, more time, it's one of the reasons I got involved with the NABC, he was an inspiration when I was his assistant.

I think he'll stay involved because he really, as you know, cares about the game, and he'll have more time to do it.

Q. There's a lot of conversation about what's going to happen with the NCAA with the governance structure, but coaches don't seem to have a whole lot of say in the matter. How problematic is that?

MIKE BREY: Yeah, I think there's going to be a lot on Craig Robinson, the executive director of the NABC moving forward to try and help coaches get a voice. I went through my role with the NABC Board and president, and quite frankly I was a little exhausted that we talked through a lot of things but we never could move the needle much.

I feel like it's the next wave of coaches as of Craig Robinson -- obviously the NCAA is going through kind of a constitutional convention as we speak.

In the midst of that, I am confident that Craig can get coaches at the table a little bit more moving forward, and Mike K, that he would have a little more time to do that. I'm hopeful of that.

Q. You've got two guys that have developed over the course of their career, Prentiss Hubb being one of the better point guards in the country. How has he developed from the time that he came in as a freshman to this point now coming in as a senior as one of the better point guards there is?

MIKE BREY: You know, you look at Prentiss and certainly Nate, these two guys, they've been joined at the hip for a while. We invested in them as freshmen and played them a lot of minutes. We took our punches because of it, but we felt we were going to get return, and I'm really excited about this senior year, specifically Prentiss has just gotten stronger, older and really with my point guards, my veteran point guards, I can start a sentence and he finishes it. Or the other way around sometimes since he's played so much.

But I've really valued his leadership, and he's been a warrior for us. He's been available. He doesn't miss practice. I will miss these guys.

We've done a lot together over the last four years.

Q. Just name, image and likeness and how you've seen it develop and kind of what your questions still are and for each of you, as well.

MIKE BREY: Well, why don't you guys start with it because they've dove into it a little bit. They just made some money on a basketball camp they ran. What did you make, $600? You take me to lunch on the way back today? Go ahead.

PRENTISS HUBB: Well, a little bit about that. I think for me especially, it hasn't been like a main focus for me so far. Coach and all the coaches have been saying like all that name, image and likeness things will happen if you play good, so we've just got to -- I think we've got to more focus on getting those wins and playing to the best of our ability so that people will want to do sponsorships and partnerships with us.

NATE LASZEWSKI: Yeah, definitely what Prentiss said. Just playing well gets your name out there more, be more availability for you. But I think with the camp we ran with a couple of our teammates it was really awesome being able to interact with the community and use NIL in that kind of aspect was really fun for us.

MIKE BREY: July 1st the rule changed over so I had our -- to each athletic department now has an NIL staff, rightfully so, come in and the present to these guys, because there's so much out there on social media, deals being done.

At the end of the day one of the gentleman on the staff said, You know, fellas, it's real simple. If you win, and for us if we play in March in the NCAA Tournament, I bet you're NIL value goes up. It keeps coming back to that.

But we've been very aggressive at Notre Dame, and it's been new to me, and I have a very open mind, and I want all of them to get what they can get.

In a lot of ways, this camp that they ran and some of the things we've done, it's almost like taking another class. It's very educational. I know everybody just sees the money and is that right and is it going to screw up the locker room. It's very educational to do a deal and have to be responsible for it.

I think there's a lot of good out of it.

Q. You mentioned your relationship with Roy; I wanted to ask you about the flipside of that coin. What is it going to be like to see Hubert Davis down the sideline from you, a guy who you basically scouted and coached against him?

MIKE BREY: Yeah, I just remember him being in my gym on College Gameday and a commentator. But he always used to talk about coaching, and I think looking down it will be very different. There's no question about it.

But I think he's really a gifted young coach. He's paid his dues. He certainly gets it. I think the first mark of Hubert Davis's good moves was what he did with his staff. Very impressed with what he did with his staff.

Next year when you look down at Durham and in Chapel Hill and two different guys, it's going to be different, but like I said, I'm ready to deal with those guys right now than those other two.