Of course, two days before Syracuse plays Georgetown, John Thompson the Elder has something to say.
One of the pitfalls of having a Hall of Fame father with a radio show is that the father-son advice gets dispensed for everyone to hear. Those listening to the John Thompson Show on local station WTEM this week heard the longtime Georgetown coach suggest that the current team was in need of some "thugs.''
Not criminals or classroom bullies. But guys who can go get some rebounds.
Thompson gave more or less the same advice when he visited practice this week, imploring the players to adopt the kind of get-the-ball attitude that could solve the rebounding woes that have beset the program under John Thompson III.
God, that's gotta be the worst. Your Dad is a local legend, whose standard you will almost certainly never live up to, he has a local radio show where he discusses your job performance and openly criticizes you, and he shows up at practice where he voices his concerns and (probably) garners more respect from the players and university employees. Why did JTIII want this job again?
If you're John Thompson the Lesser, it's probably best in this situation to be firm and direct and seem like a true leader, capable of fixing any problem and correcting all mistakes with ease:
When the subject of rebounding was broached one last time, Thompson III looked at his questioner and said politely: "When you figure it out, let me know.''
Or...that.