We measure the success of a coach in wins and losses, postseason appearances, Sweet 16s and Elite Eights. Those readily available numbers are easy to digest, parse and analyze.
The impact of a coach is much harder to quantify. Attendance at alumni events is a good indicator. But how often these days do coaches last long enough to where they’re at the same place when their players return?
Michael Lev is a senior writer/columnist for the Arizona Daily Star, Tucson.com and The Wildcaster.
In the case of third-year Arizona men’s basketball coach Tommy Lloyd, who’s about to lead the Wildcats into the NCAA Tournament, I would offer these figures: 600 words; 3 minutes, 13 seconds.
Such was the duration of a lovely, heartfelt testimonial from Lloyd about senior center Oumar Ballo — more than double the length, at least in words, of the Gettysburg Address.
The more Lloyd spoke, the more you could tell how much Ballo means to him. It became abundantly clear that this isn’t a typical player-coach relationship; more like young man and father figure.
We’ll delve into what Lloyd said — and what it means — shortly. But first: The precursor — what Ballo said about Lloyd.
Oumar Ballo, left, stands at center court with his family and Wildcats coach Tommy Lloyd during the UA’s Senior Day ceremony at McKale Center on March 2.
During the Senior Day ceremony following Arizona’s final regular-season home game, Lloyd and five of his players addressed the crowd. Caleb Love passed the microphone to Ballo. He thanked Tucson for giving him a “second chance” and a “new beginning.” He then thanked Lloyd, who was standing a few feet away on the McKale Center court.
“This is the guy who trusted me when no one did, when no one believed in me,” Ballo said. “He saw something in me. I’m forever grateful for him and his family for what they have done for me. They impacted my life in a really good way, not only as a basketball player but most importantly as a human being.”
Simple and direct. Warm and sincere.
Lloyd’s loyalty
Lloyd first recruited Ballo to Gonzaga, at a point in time when everyone believed in the big man from Mali. He had established himself as a Shaq-like presence in international youth basketball, a four-star recruit at worst. His final college choices were Arizona, Baylor and Gonzaga — college basketball royalty.
It wasn’t easy for Oumar Ballo, right, at Gonzaga, even though he had Tommy Lloyd as an advocate. Ballo sat out his first season and didn’t play much during his second, putting him in a “funk,” Lloyd said.
Even though he had spent his formative years in academies far from home — the Canary Islands and Mexico City — Spokane, Washington, felt like a foreign land to Ballo. Making the transition even tougher: He barely played for the Bulldogs.
Ballo sat out his freshman season after the NCAA ruled him an “academic redshirt.” The following year, he averaged just 6.3 minutes in 24 games.
“It was hard,” Ballo said by phone Tuesday from the team hotel in Salt Lake City, where Arizona faces Long Beach State on Thursday. “Everything is different. The game’s different, the rules are different, people, food, culture. It’s a lot.”
Lloyd became Arizona’s head coach in April 2021, and Ballo followed him to Tucson. We’ll let Lloyd pick it up from here.
“When you recruit somebody … you try to be honest with them,” Lloyd said. “I try to be pretty honest and tell them, ‘OK, I love you, I’m excited to coach you, but this is going to be hard. This is going to be maybe one of the hardest things you ever did.’
Arizona coach Tommy Lloyd and center Oumar Ballo have a special relationship that extends beyond basketball. “I’ve always felt like I’m responsible for Oumar,” says Lloyd, who recruited Ballo to Gonzaga and brought him to Tucson.
“When it gets hard, what do you and I have? Am I going to flip the page and just go to the next guy and everything becomes transactional? Or: If you believe in us, I’m gonna believe in you. And I’m not going to quit on you until you quit on us.
“I’ve always felt like I’m responsible for Oumar. He doesn’t have a dad. His family’s in Africa. His mom doesn’t speak what we would consider a common world language; she speaks an African dialect.
“Imagine him coming all the way over here, goes to Gonzaga, he’s some big-time recruit, and struggled. He struggled, and we were really good. There wasn’t a spot for him to play, and he got in a funk.
“There were certain people telling me that I shouldn’t bring him down here when I got the job. I didn’t even consider that. I was like, ‘Oumar is my responsibility. I don’t know if he’s gonna make it or not make it, but I know this: If he fails, it’s going to be on my watch.’ ”
Not much is publicly known about Ballo’s family and upbringing; it’s a subject he rarely has talked about in media interviews and one he declined to discuss with the Star.
Lloyd’s words and actions say a lot, though. He easily could have deemed Ballo a bust and moved on. Coaches give up on players as often as players switch schools of their own volition. But Lloyd felt an obligation to help Ballo achieve his potential. Ballo knew exactly where he was going to go — and whom he was going to play for — when he entered the transfer portal.
“Nowadays, it’s not easy to find someone who’s loyal and only wants the best for you,” Ballo said. “And if you find those people, you gotta stick around with them.
“He didn’t hide anything from me. He was honest from the beginning. He didn’t lie one time to me. It’s hard to find people like that. Because sometimes people just tell you what you want to hear and not what you need to hear. He was that guy that always (would) tell me what I need to hear.”
It was rough at first. Ballo wasn’t in tip-top shape when he arrived in Tucson.
After watching Ballo work out, assistant coach Jack Murphy asked Lloyd: “You sure on this one?”
Lloyd was sure.
“And then,” he recalled, “we rolled up our sleeves and we got to work.”
Paying it forward
In his first season at Arizona, 2021-22, Ballo served as the backup to Christian Koloko. Ballo played more minutes and provided more production than he had at Gonzaga. More important, another relationship was formed.
“Oumar didn’t know Christian Koloko, and those two became best friends,” Lloyd said. “They competed against each other in practice every day; they became each other’s biggest supporters. I think that really helped Oumar. … And I think it set a great precedent in our program.”
Consider that another impact that can’t be precisely calculated: Under Lloyd’s guidance, Koloko helped bring along Ballo. And now Ballo is paying it forward. He encourages Motiejus Krivas and Dylan Anderson as much as Koloko encouraged him.
“He was a brother to me. No hate,” Ballo said. “You need to have a pure heart to do something like that. To see him supporting me, rooting for me, was a life-changing experience. And that’s what I’m doing with Mo and Dylan.”
Ex-Wildcat Christian Koloko, left, passed the baton to fellow big man Oumar Ballo, who’s paying it forward by supporting his backups.
Lloyd turned out to be right about Ballo as a baller. In 2022-23, he was named the Pac-12’s Most Improved Player and was a first-team all-conference selection. He put up almost identical numbers this season and has been particularly effective in February and March, averaging 14.3 points, 11.8 rebounds and 2.0 blocks per game while shooting 75.8% from the floor. He’s had a double-double in 12 of 13 games.
That’s the basketball part. Easy to measure, easy to see.
The bonds built along the way? Unquantifiable. Unbreakable. Priceless.
“I always think these players are my responsibility,” Lloyd said. “I know they may not always feel that, or their families may not always realize that. It doesn’t always work out perfect, either. Let’s be honest there too.
“But I think if you approach it like that — and you keep it pure and genuine — that more good things are gonna happen than not.
“I’m thankful for everything Oumar has given me and this program. But more importantly, I’m thankful (for) what Oumar has done to set himself up for the next steps in his life.”
VIDEO: With an introduction from coach Tommy Lloyd, Arizona men's basketball seniors Grant Weitman, Keshad Johnson, Caleb Love, Oumar Ballo and Pelle Larsson speak to fans in McKale Center Saturday on Senior Day following the Wildcats' win over Oregon in the final home game of the 2023-24 season. (Courtesy Arizona Athletics)
