Q&A: Blakeney's coach denies Nike influence

University of Louisville coach Rick Pitino criticized the influence of shoe companies on travel club basketball and recruiting on Thursday during a news conference to discuss the upcoming season. Pitino's comments came a few weeks after the Cardinals, who are outfitted by Adidas, lost an 11-day-old recruiting commitment from five-star Orlando shooting guard Antonio Blakeney, who played for top Nike-sponsored club Each 1 Teach 1. Pitino made no mention of individual players by name on Thursday, but over the past month it has been speculated by fans and media that Blakeney's withdrawn commitment was due to the influence of his Nike club.

E1T1 coach Steven Reece, in a Sept. 25 interview, with The Courier-Journal, denied that shoe affiliation had any impact on Blakeney's decision to "decommit" from the Cards. Here is the full transcript of that interview with Reece, who is also an assistant coach for Blakeney's Oak Ridge High School team.

From your perspective, what was the reason Antonio decided to pull back from his commitment to Louisville?

To be honest, I don't even have a perspective on it. I'm not sure. In my case, it really don't matter because they're not recruiting him anymore. I think highly of the Louisville program and its coaching staff as well as the city and fans, but I don't want to talk about Louisville. It's in the past.

I respect that, but there has been so much said, speculated, tweeted that his AAU team, you, I guess, specifically, Nike had maybe encouraged him or influenced him to reopen his recruitment. Can you speak to that, or do you have any reaction to that?

On my side, I always wanted him from Day 1 to visit multiple schools — just like I would want my son to — because they have a chance to really judge it. If you go to every school and like every single school, then how do you know what school is really the school for you? That's kind of my take on that. It's not whether it's Louisville, whether it was Honolulu University, I would want him to visit different schools so he can see which school was really the best fit for him. If it was (something determined) on the AAU side, and we didn't really like the Louisville feel then would you think he would have chose (to visit) Louisville three or four times? No. He's not from the area, so you don't really just grow up a Card fan or a Cincinnati fan without being in the area. I thought it was the right fit, the style of play was similar to our style of play and Rick Pitino is an excellent coach. From my standpoint — I don't know about anyone else — I just encourage all my players to visit other schools to have something to judge it off of, no matter what shoe brand it is or whatever it is, just the school that caters to your style of play.

Q & A continues after this video in which Rick Pitino talks shoe companies

My understanding was kind of that Antonio just kind of put it on Twitter that first night that he'd committed. Did that surprise you that he did that?

Yeah, it surprised me, but it didn't surprise me at the same time. It was shocking that he made it soon, but I can understand that he loved the visit there.

Then in the day after that or days after that, did you encourage him to take some more visits, or was that his decision?

Nobody kind of like encouraged him. He knew where we stood, where I stood, his mom, where I stood from Day One about the visits. I tell my kids back before Louisville even knew he was, when you go to college, look at your choices, take your visits.

So you and his mom both kind of had wanted him to take some more visits even before he committed?

Yes, before he committed, but his mom was very supportive of his decision. So if you put that in your paper, make sure you put that she was very supportive of his decision. She loved the city of Louisville. It was nothing that they did wrong. From my take, since ninth grade, before Antonio was Antonio (the elite prospect), I always told the boys to take their visits and have something to judge it off of. It wasn't about Louisville or nothing like that. It definitely wasn't about that.

What do you make of how so many people have said it was related to shoe companies and things like that? What was your reaction to all that being spread over the last couple weeks?

I really didn't have a reaction to it. Yeah, if you're going to be student-athletes and go to a school like a Louisville, a Kentucky, a North Carolina, top-echelon schools, you can't worry about what people are talking about. If you worry about that, you're never going to successful at those schools anyway.

You all have maybe the best team in all of Nike EYBL. Do you guys, do you like it when your players go to Nike schools?

To be honest, I laughed at the situation because I never really cared about the shoe brand thing. That was my first time coaching on the Nike EYBL circuit. Nike does a good job. All the shoe brands do a good job. I happen to be coaching on the Nike circuit. I'm just a coach. I'm not the director of the organization. I don't go to no directors meeting; I don't talk to those guys. All I care about it is the 10 guys that I coach. That's it.

Do you know if the program director wanted Antonio to go to a Nike school?

No, not at all. We've got kids going everywhere. (E1T1 2014 player) Trayon Reed originally signed with Maryland. (E1T1 2014 player) Kobe Eubanks originally signed with Baylor. You've got to go where the kids fit, not the shoe brand. Shoe brands come into play if that kid is successful (and makes it as a pro) and he wants to sit down and pick which shoe company as far as endorsements. But as far as college, you've got to go where you can be successful, and I think that's where we're getting things twisted. This kid is 17 years old. … Maybe I'm not doing a good job. (laughing) Maybe I should be sitting down with the Nike people and seeing if he should be going to an all-Nike school. I don't get caught up in that stuff.

So for the record, the fact that Antonio played for a Nike AAU program — a great Nike AAU program — did that have any impact on the fact that he decommitted from what is basically a top Adidas school?

I don't think so. That's a question you might want to ask Antonio. … Like I said about Rick Pitino, I played (at Kentucky State) under Winston Bennett (one of Pitino's former assistants). Coach Pitino does a great job. Louisville is not the only school that sat down and recruited Antonio. They did a great job. Mike Balado did a great job recruiting him, and other colleges have done a great job recruiting him as well. Shoe companies? I guess that's something that brings ratings up, so you guys have to talk about it. But we're not getting involved in that conversation about shoe companies and shoe deals.

Has Antonio ever said anything like, 'I just really like Nike. I like what Nike EYBL has done for me and I want to make them happy.' Has he ever said anything like that, like people have speculated may have occurred?

No, I don't think that. Andrew Wiggins was the No. 1 Nike kid in the EYBL, and he went to Kansas (an Adidas school) and signed with Adidas (for his professional apparel contract). Cliff Alexander was a Nike kid. He went to Kansas. Antonio is not the No. 1 kid in the country, you know what I mean? You're talking about the No. 14 kid in the country. So if they're not going to make Andrew Wiggins go to a Nike school, why do you think they're going to make Antonio Blakeney? Just think about that. I think everything is getting blown out of perspective. I'm pretty intelligent — I have a master's degree — and I don't think the kid is really involved in what school has a shoe deal or is with what shoe company. I mean, Jordan Brand is Jordan Brand, and he didn't pick a Jordan school, and that's all that kids really want to wear is Jordans. If you look at our high school, we're not even a Nike high school at Oak Ridge. We're not even a Nike high school. We don't have a Nike contract. When we're playing, that kid's wearing Adidas, you've got kids (with) Nike. We don't even have a contract with nobody. So if I had that much involvement in Nike, we'd be dressed down in Nike.

What do you make that you have been brought into this issue of Antonio's decommitment so much? Has that bothered you the last couple weeks?

I mean, I was brought into it because I've been with Antonio before you even knew who Antonio was. Before Rick or anybody knew who Antonio was, I have been with them. I can't control what I have been brought into (in the media). I feel like there's nothing about the position I've played. I was his coach, mentor. I'm the one in the gym with him shooting jump shots and working on his jumper. I mean, I understand where they're coming from, but it's my job as a mentor for the kid to tell the kid to make the right decision, not to make a decision, just make the right decision. That's the role I've always played before you even knew who he was. Antonio wasn't the No. 14 kid in the nation in ninth grade or 10th grade. This was his first time going to all these big camps, this year. For a lot of people to start caring and loving Antonio now, that's more funny to me than throwing me into it because they don't really know who the kid really is. Louisville stopped recruiting him. I thought Louisville still had a heck of a chance of getting the kid, but I think Coach Pitino is arguably one of the greatest coaches to ever coach the game of basketball. No matter what he thinks about the situation that happened, that (opinion of him) will never change. My perspective of Louisville basketball is as one of the elite programs, and when I say elite, I'm talking about top five programs. And I think he is one of the elite coaches, and that will never change.

Did you have a conversation with Coach Pitino after Antonio decommitted?

No, I haven't had a conversation with Coach Pitino. I'm pretty sure, it's just like anybody else decommitting, it's a big blow. It's a big blow to any school, but Antonio isn't the only kid who has ever decommitted, and he won't be the last. I don't think nothing of the situation now at all. I just think that once they said they weren't recruiting him, they had to move on. It doesn't change my perspective on Louisville basketball. … I'm just like any other parent who would want there kid to have choices, to at least see another school, no matter what shoe brand it is, to just SEE another school.

Did you advise him to reopen his recruitment then?

Not at all, not at all. Once he made his choice, nobody really advised him or said anything negative. I mean he knew (where I stood). We've been together since the beginning of ninth grade, and from Day 1, I've told all the guys to take your visits, take at least one or two visits to have something to compare it off of.

So when you saw him the next day or that night after he committed, what did you say to him?

Yeah, I know that day, that morning at school. I'm not with Antonio because of basketball. My job is to keep developing him as a person. He's a great kid, a great kid. So no matter what decision he makes, I'm going to be with him, regardless. This is just one milestone in his whole lifespan that he's going to go through.

From being a Nike EYBL coach, just in general, what do you get out of it? What's it do for you personally?

Me personally, I haven't received anything but the same things all the players get. I'm a high school basketball coach here with no Nike deal. That says a lot right there. (laugh)

So you are an assistant coach at Oak Ridge? And Alex Jackson is the head coach, correct?

I'm an assistant coach at Oak Ridge. Yes, he's the head coach.

How long have you been with E1T1?

I've been there, this is going on four years. I've been there three. I've had Antonio since ninth grade when he played on the 16U team with me. He played on the 16's for two years with me. You've got to think; this kid only played on the EYBL circuit for one year.

From your perspective on it, do kids that play in the EYBL, do they get loyal to a brand or anything like that?

To be honest with you, I think highly of all three grassroots programs, and what I say is you should play on one of the three circuits (Nike, Adidas or Under Armour) because of the exposure. So whether it's Adidas, you get the opportunity to go to Adidas Nations. You look at Jaylen Brown (a five-star player who plays on the Adidas circuit). And whether it's Under Armour, they have grassroots. And right now Nike is the No. 1 grassroots. I mean numbers don't lie. Look at the kids that are going to college, just based off their (club) teams, the teams sending kids to college. My team has 10 Division I guys. None of those guys were ranked in the country when I got them besides (top-ranked) Ben Simmons.

The teams that are coming to see Antonio or will are LSU, Kentucky…

North Carolina State, Indiana, St. John's. It's a variety of schools.

Of the ones he's seen so far have all been Nike schools. Is that just a coincidence?

To be honest with you, Louisville had been in the lead for the longest for Antonio. We had never had any other home visits or anything prior to him committing. Those are just the schools that were recruiting him the longest and the most.

How do you think Antonio would deal with the scrutiny of going to Kentucky — Louisville's rival — after he's had a decommitment from Louisville?

I don't think Antonio cares to be honest with you. I mean, everybody kind of puts it that way — you've got Louisville and Kentucky — but Antonio don't care. He didn't grow up in that. He just started watching college basketball. He don't really care about the rivalry. He's aware of a rivalry, but he's not picked a school or anything based off a rivalry. He's picking it based off of Antonio and what's the best situation for him.

Where did you play with Winston Bennett?

Kentucky State University in Frankfort.

Oh, you went to (school in) Kentucky?

Yeah, that's why I laugh when you guys be like 'Is that you that deterred him from going to Louisville?' I played in Kentucky at Kentucky State. That's one of the reasons he started liking Louisville because he's been down there so much.

Where are you from?

Cincinnati.

So that's a reason why he's visited here several times and got interested in them, because you're from this area?

I'm from (that) area. We happened to go to John Lucas camp in Louisville. That was the first time we saw the campus. We came up two days early. We came up for AAU Nationals in Louisville. That's why he's seen it so much.

Do you still talk to Coach Bennett?

Yeah, that's my guy.

What did he have to say about Antonio decommitting from Coach Pitino?

Oh, no, no, we haven't talked about that. Me and Coach Bennett haven't talked about it. That was never a recruiting tool. But I grew up looking up to Coach Pitino because of Winston Bennett. I had never met him before that. Coach Bennett had just spoken so high of Coach Pitino, and we all just looked up to Coach Pitino because of how hard we worked at Kentucky State.