Jeff Dunlap had an idea of what he was getting into, taking over and building from scratch a pro basketball franchise in an unknown land.
The idea excited Dunlap, who was a career college guy. But there were reservations, too.
While he’d heard of Newfoundland, the southern Californian wasn’t 100 per cent sure where exactly the Canadian province was located.
And then, of course, there was the National Basketball League of Canada, a relatively new operation that opened in 2011-12.
The NCAA was Dunlap’s comfort zone, the thing he knew best after playing at UCLA and working on coaching staffs at a bunch of other universities, among them Loyola-Chicago, Georgia, Western Michigan, Alabama and his latest stop, North Carolina State.
But in the world of NCAA athletics, which is not unlike pro sports in many ways, coaches are hired to be fired and Dunlap was given his walking papers last spring following six years at NC State.
Little did he think he’d wind up in Newfoundland, where he’s come to embrace the people and the capital city.
Nor did he believe he’d be so satisfied coaching the St. John’s Edge.
“St. John’s has been phenomenal,” he said. “Look at how they’ve taken to us. That’s a wonderful feeling, to be supported and appreciated. And believe me, the appreciation is back at them.”
The expansion squad is among the top teams in the NBL Canada, battling it out with Halifax and London, Ont. as the best in the 10-team operation, having secured a playoff spot weeks ago.
There’s a lot of credit to be shared, starting with hometown hero Carl English, back from a lengthy career overseas to battle for the NBL Canada scoring lead and lead the Edge to the post season.
Locals have latched on to the Edge, making them one of the highest draws in the league. It’s cool to be seen at a basketball game at Mile One.
But perhaps the lion’s share of the credit has to go to 55-year-old Dunlap of North Hollywood, Calif., the architect behind the 22-13 Edge entering tonight’s game in Windsor, Ont.
It was just over a year ago a reeling NC State fired coach Mark Gottfried as the Wolfpack were mired in a six-game losing streak.
Dunlap had been Gottfried’s guy for years, having played for him while the latter was an assistant at UCLA, and later working as an assistant coach for Gottfried at Alabama.
It was Gottfried who had hired Dunlap to run NC State’s basketball operations, so when it was time for Gottfried to be shown the door, guess who was next to go?
Basketball, like any pro/NCAA D1 college sport, is about contacts, and Dunlap has a lot of them. The NC State firing was the third time Dunlap had been axed, and he’s never missed a beat, landing a job the next year.
That trend didn’t change this season, either, and the dots can be connected by way of London, Ont. through Sacramento, Calif.
Kyle Julius coached the Lightning to the NBL Canada championship last season, but opted to take a job in Vietnam this year. Julius was aware the expansion Edge was seeking a coach, and mentioned it to his agent, Brian Brundidge.
The wheels were set in motion.
Brundidge also represents Gene Cross, a college scout for the NBA’s Sacramento Kings.
The idea of talking over a professional basketball team in Newfoundland was floated by Cross, but he was comfortable in his position with Sacramento.
But Cross knew a guy who could be interested. Turns out he and Dunlap had met years ago in Chicago, when Dunlap was with Loyola-Chicago and Cross with Illinois-Chicago.
The two would often bump into each other on recruiting trips, eventually forging a solid friendship, and he knew Dunlap was looking for work.
“I can’t tell you how important relationships are,” Dunlap said.
The St. John’s job is his first head coaching gig since junior college, and he loves being his own boss, calling his own plays, deciding who to put on the court.
“I’m not as nervous,” he said, “about making decisions and then losing as I was about making suggestions as an assistant and not having those suggestions implemented. And then feeling like I failed in some way to get something pushed through.
“I like the fact that I can make the call and either way it goes, I can handle it. That pressure doesn’t bother me.”
While he’s a basketball lifer, Dunlap has had to go through a learning curve, adjusting to the four 12-minute quarters (vs. 20-minute halves in college), and the six fouls in the pro game vs. five in college.
What really is turning Dunlap’s crank, however, is his new role as general manager.
And for a new guy, he’s done a fine job.
When he took over the team after being hired by Glenn Stanford, thanks to the Julius connection, Dunlap rolled up his sleeves and got down to work.
Since the start of the season, the Edge have used 22 players on the active roster, now pared down to the 15, with 12 active.
Molding the Edge into a contender, Dunlap said, is probably his most satisfying accomplishment so far.
“When I got the job, we had nobody,” he said. “And all of a sudden, I’m starting to make calls. I’m talking to my world and the network came together fast … who was available, and who leading this or that.
“Everybody I talked to was giving me character references on guys. I said, ‘Tell me he’s a good person, tell me he’s a team guy, tell me he’s all in.’ That’s what I needed to know.
“Not only did we assemble some guys who can really play, but we assembled some guys who are glue guys, (and) that is part of being successful in sports.
“Everybody wants to play, and some people aren’t playing as much as others and that’s normal. But we don’t have the splintering off of problems that some other teams sometimes have.”
Minor pro basketball is a transient life, with players playing everywhere from Japan to Lithuania, Vietnam to Albania, Israel, Hungary, Turkey, Mexico, Spain and Slovenia, just to name a handful of countries.
Many athletes don’t limit themselves to one league. When the NBL Canada winds up in another month or so, some will head overseas someplace to continue playing, simply because the money isn’t good enough to have an off-season.
“They’re playing all the time, and I’m learning that, too,” Dunlap said. “I’m used to a basketball season and when it’s over, I sit around and watch baseball and relax.”
That could change this summer. He’s told Edge ownership, Irwin Simon and Rob Sabbagh, that he’ll need to get out and scout NBA Summer League games, to get a feel for what’s out there and who may be available.
“You need to have your fishnet out because you want to catch the guys to make your team as strong as you can,” he said.
Dunlap is only on a one-year contract, and he hopes to return next season. But given the success of the Edge so far, he’s probably bolstered his resumé, which might make him attractive to teams overseas next season.
“I don’t know if any coach is really in a position to sit back and command whatever, like you see some of the coaches on TV when they win a championship,” he said. “But what success does is validate your ability to coach the game, validates your network and what you can do as a general manager as far as landing players.
“That’s a good feeling. If for nothing else, it’s good for me to know I can do the job. We’ll see what happens at the end of the year.
“But I’m confident the owners are happy. These guys have been terrific. Irwin is all in, fully committed. Every time I talk to him, it’s, ‘What do you need?’ And if I need something, I get it.
“The two of them together, he and Rob, they want this to be a viable sports enterprise. They want to build a pro sports model that is reputable.”
Robin Short is The Telegram’s Sports Editor. He can be reached by email [email protected]
