“Nobody loves their school like Knights love Bellarmine,” Emmy-nominated ESPN college basketball analyst, leadership expert and author Jay Bilas said as he addressed a capacity crowd in Frazier Hall for the Wyatt Lecture on Sept. 6. The free lecture, presented by the Knights Athletics Association and the Wyatt Lecture Series, celebrated Bellarmine’s full membership in NCAA Division I.
Bilas spoke about how the status of NCAA student-athletes has evolved, particularly in relation to their NIL (name, image, likeness) activities; the process of transitioning to D-I; and the transfer portal.
While some things may have changed, the factors that make a successful college athlete really haven’t, Bilas said: “preparation, priorities and gratitude.”
“They are not going to have the same experience as their fellow students. There’s no spring break, no semester abroad. But they get to do things that other students would kill to do,” he said. “For me, it’s never stopped paying off. The things I have learned in competition have helped me immensely in other endeavors.”
Bilas played basketball at Duke University under legendary coach Mike Krzyzewski; was drafted by the NBA’s Dallas Mavericks and played professionally for three years; then returned as an assistant coach at Duke.
He has since become a well-known commentator and analyst on ESPN, where he hosts the network’s popular road show, College Game Day. His 2013 book Toughness: Developing True Strength On and Off the Court, was a New York Times bestseller. He is also a practicing attorney at Moore & Van Allen.
After his speech, Bilas took a few questions, including one the moderator humorously described as potentially controversial: Should Bellarmine’s basketball team dribble more?
His answer was quick: “No!”
“Most of basketball is played without the ball in your hands,” he said. “The best players are accomplishing something before they get the ball.” He referred to former North Carolina Tar Heel Antwan Jamison, who went on to play 16 seasons in the NBA. “He was the quickest player from catch to release,” Bilas said.
During one game, someone used a stopwatch to time how long he held the ball—not counting free throws or inbounds. “At the end of the game, he had 35 points and 15 rebounds, and he had the ball in his hands for 53 seconds in a 40-minute game,” Bilas said. “Tell me how much difference dribbling made in that. Zero.”
The Wyatt Lecture Series at Bellarmine University was created and endowed in 1990 by former Louisville Mayor and Lt. Gov. Wilson W. Wyatt and his wife, Anne D. Wyatt.