 He's a man of many titles me act champion black college basketball champion Olympian Statesman for HBC use and now he adds a title to that TV star North Carolina central head men's basketball coach with Val Moten is going to be part of an upcoming eight episodes series on ESPN Plus, why not us featuring the North Carolina Central Eagles? basketball program and the leader of that program joins us now Hall of Famer Coach with Val Moten coach. We appreciate your time. We know it's busy particularly now that you are a TV star Officially, what is it like to get your sad car, baby? It's crazy. It's grueling. I got a different respect for everybody on loving hip-hop and all those documents I'll tell you that much, but you know, it's been it's been nothing but a blessing to say the least to You know join forces with you know, Chris and Steven a and ESPN and roadside entertainment and All of these brilliant minds have come together For one common goal and that's to shine an authentic and true representation light on HBC use in particularly North Carolina Central men's basketball program. So it's a blessing to say the least How did this just come about because number one you've been you've been speaking about and leading HBC use to National recognition for for some years now Even when we talked last, you know, maybe four or five years ago You were starting to get inquiries from other schools because of the success you had it at your alma mater What made it the best time now to feature the program? You know, you know, you talked about the relationship with Chris Paul and Steven a Smith But what made this best time the time to tell the story not just a central story, but the HBC use story in a lot of ways, you know I just think You know, we're all a product right now of our environment and our environment right now is the state of the United States of America and for so long we've been You know pulling the wool over the eyes of many people trying to pretend that we're this extraordinary Country, which we are but we didn't have issues and that played this and I think now with all the racial injustice and you know Everything that went on within the last year. I just thought it was perfect time and You know, Chris caught me maybe in June, July whenever he was doing the And you probably remember this the black college right representation for shoes in the NBA. Yeah He had called me Dan and you know, I had a conversation with LeBron and his people You know about some more than a vote campaign and all of those things So it was like everything was coming together and Chris said man I got an amazing idea about this documentary and who better to feature and who more successful than your program and I said, okay Let's do it and you know, we agreed to it and you know, we'd later the SP inside on for the deal So it's truly a blessing. I and you know how it is. I just think time and always, you know, it's guys time This guy's you know, and it may not come when we wanted to It's really right on time and that's that sounded like a deacon in the old Baptist church You talked about You know the the profiling and the timing being right You have been always somebody who's used social media not just to promote the program But to really give positive affirmations about manhood About being proud being proud of our ethnicity and our place in this country You even took, you know moments over last year to share personal experiences That you had with police engagement and you and in a way you talked about mental health How it triggered you and brought back some raw emotions about that is that I know you didn't expect it But how how much did you think about what could that mean for your brand? What could that mean, you know for your your basketball identity? Obviously as an HBC graduate, you know, you're you're all you we're all all in to do it Did you ever think about career wise? What could that mean to be so outspoken on some of these issues? Not really. Um, you know, because it's the truth, right? I was talking to the truth. I'm not I'm not here Stirring up anything I'm not here causing controversy. I'm not here on my platform Disrespecting anyone else that don't necessarily agree with me. I'm just trying to shine a light on the truth And God has placed me in this position. I had absolutely zero desire to be a NCAA basketball coach, right? I declined North Carolina Central when I was a High school coach three times a lot of people don't know that I was more comfortable being in high school And so I just think God has bought me to this point because my sole purpose in life is to bring Truth and awareness and take a basketball and use it as a metaphor to educate young men that look like me And just people that look like me and that's who I am. That's what my foundation is all about That's people that knew my grandmother. That's who she was about and so You know when I speak about things I think the most Controversial thing that I spoke about in some people's mind was just the fact that you know black black men and black women Were getting killed in the middle of the street and nobody was saying anything And it was a blind eye and you know, I'm a I'm a historian and I understand like if we truly want to provoke change in this country And we really want equality then it's going to take people that don't look like us to have Don't know how it has because if we could have solved these problems that currently exist We would have done that 400 years ago, right? But it's going to take something else. It's going to take a little more and so I just spoke my truth at the moment because right then it wasn't about me. It wasn't about my job It wasn't about basketball. It was just about life and as a father who has a 11 year old daughter Soon to be 12 and an eight year old son I have to prepare them for this world and it's no basketball game that I can win that would Trump the tragic news of something happening to my child, right? And so we have to create an environment where they don't have to experience the same atrocities that we've experienced And I just think that's what a platform is for instead of Me doing a bussard challenge or a chicken or a silhouette challenge My platform, you know to inspire and bring truth to light because a lot of things and this is you won't believe The amount of calls I received throughout the country from white coaches Saying thank you now. How can I help because I was blind to the fact I was just coaching my team. I didn't realize when I went to my vacation in Santa ruba Or wherever I'm going that marie's got to go right back to this hood and when they identify him They tell they calling in the walkie-talkie saying he's a wide receiver at such and such program Or he's hard at such and such program. They're saying I got a six-four black man Going west on Martin Luther King Avenue and that's right. And so that's the reality. So it became an educational tool behind the scenes that many people didn't know and We got a lot of donations off of that North Carolina Central Like it was just crazy. I just spoke my truth at the moment and I just think You know the truth will set you free Do you think coaches have a particular responsibility in this because you're seeing more and more coaches black and white Talk about these issues and I had a chance to talk to John Calipari a few months ago And he just came out and said he's like everything me and my family have is because of black men That's that's telling for me like so do coaches because of who plays for you guys Because where are you coaching what you do? Do you feel like there's a heavier weight for coaches to be the spokespersons of social justice or at least equity? I don't even look at it as a heavier weight. You know, I spoke with Cal me and Cal are good friends And he was one of the coaches I spoke with he was like that you shoot you was a hundred percent right Right if I said like, you know, just think about it coaches have generated Generational wealth for their kids kids because Like George Floyd in our made Aubrey and Sandra Blaine Could run a football or shoot a basketball Like we're not that good of coaches right Not that good of coaches like let's let's let's stop with all of that and that's fine I'm not mad at anyone create generational wealth for themselves or their families. That's what it's all about But when someone is getting killed and slaughtered in the middle of the streets right Unarmed an unarmed black man An unarmed black woman where you can't even land your house no more and they're kicking down the door killing you Nobody gonna say anything about this What are we gonna say but we can post Everything associated with the culture right we can post all the latest dances all the latest challenges every challenge You see is a black challenge. It's it's it derives from our culture So we're very much aware. So I just felt like there was a culpability that needed to be Brought to everyone in my business. I was challenging everyone because we know our influence. Trust me Many coaches are the highest paid employee in that state in their respective states, right? We see the commercials. We we know we know There's a lot of coaches that get up to $50,000 for speaking engagements That's influence, right? So take that same platform that you have And speak to those same people who may not understand or may may be completely numb to it and educate them And you may save a life or two Let me shift gears real quick Because and I just want to double back on something because I think it's important to this conversation about equity and opportunity You you've had chances to go. Um, and I think you've been very upfront and saying Yeah, I appreciate it But I kind of want to be here and I feel like that was kind of the precursor To a lot of athletes, you know, a lot of coaches deon sanders Saying let's go to hbc us. Let's go to hbc us. Let's go to hbcu Did you did you ever feel That you were doing something novel or was it just hey, this is a label molten thing. I want to I went here I'm having a good time. I'm being successful. I'm building the program I want to be here or did you know like I'm on the cusp of something if one of us kind of stays home A lot of us will follow the model. Yeah, I wish I I wish I would tell you that I was that smart I know it would make for great But I wasn't man everything that I've done in my life has really been Um, I credit just god using it as a vessel right and and knowing that I need it For my life, right? So people don't understand that 90 percent of the things I say and do derive from me Living in those experiences, right? I still have friends and family that's in those predicaments And I understand the challenges the one thing I learned about being in the projects That it really taught me it taught me what happiness was right because I never had money All right, and so I found out what true happiness was and most people if you ask them what is happiness or what is success They'll start naming all superficial things money How's this clothes cause et cetera et cetera. Well, I know that's not true happiness So a lot of people don't know this my first coaching job was a middle school job And I chose a middle school job that paid $225 a month for three months 675 a year Over a $85,000 assistant job at Delaware State with my former coach, right? So I've never done anything for money never in my life, right? Never I couldn't be on the block and watch them rolling dice and jumping that game I would have lost everything. I just ain't never been that type of dude And so now in North Carolina Central when I was hired I was the lowest paid coach in the country And all I ever wanted was the opportunity and I I know what my true happiness is. I know what my true purpose in life is and You know, there's been some jobs that you know, I did entertain I think I owed that to my family But I turned down a million dollar job, right to North Carolina Central and so I'm saying all this to say like money Money has never been the source of drive for me because if money is the ultimate Determinant for you a determining factor for you. It would never ends. It's a it's a hamster wheel, right? If one million dollars few you then two million dollars to get you It's never ending, right? It's I never thought I was what I was doing Intuitions and for me listening to my intuitions is like listening to guys whispers and so, you know When you when you know, you know, you know the band And so I've remained at North Carolina Central since and you know, it's been a blessing Let's let's focus on actual basketball product now, um, you know in the midst of cove it, you know Positions on whether we should play or not play being school not being school aside And you talk about some of the challenges and in another respect Somebody any opportunities that may have come about because of what we're dealing with with the virus Stopping and starting obviously is not a good thing But have there been opportunities where your players have learned something new about communication learned something new about self-reflection Where what are some of the good and bad things that you that the average person may not see about trying to run a d1 program? um You know, there's always a gift in the curse. There's always a civil lining in the crowd in the cloud despite how brutal things may be at this at this current time Um, you know, I think our guys have learned A plethora of lessons, right? But the thing with young people, they don't really get it until they're out of the situation, right? A little older and now they can reflect back and say and draw from those previous experiences um It goes back to the thing for me the old adage that Mike Tyson would say everybody has a plan Got a plan to get hitting the mouth It was crazy to hear because here we are in march preparing everybody across the country preparing for covid Oh, they gonna knock over that. Yeah, they got an incredible game plan and it sounded really good on paper and on zoom, but Once you got hit in the mouth with it now, how are you gonna respond and our guys went absolutely Stir crazy, right because they discovered the true meaning of quarantine right and The second the first and second day the first two days in their quarantine they they just lost they they were never comfortable And accustomed to being somewhere by themselves not coming out not having any human interaction Right, so they had to spend that time for 14 days as soon as they got out We had to go to our and play a basketball game, right? I'm prepared out of shape lack of conditioning. We couldn't even make it up the floor Then we had to play the following night against southern. So it was a back-to-back We couldn't even make it up the floor against them. They had we stopped the game eight times Now it's cold The time we get back we got four guys that's not feeling with right And so you already have to assume it's kovat, right? And so we got to keep them away for three or four days Well after they're tested we find out it's a headcoat, right? But on saturday, we played coast to carolina No, we got to go play north carolina. I'm sorry No practice on national tv. We end up losing about six Put the pressure on them or now I don't even know how we're doing all of this stuff. So I think one of the positives that our guys can take away from this is Life is going to throw you some curveballs And regardless of what kind of curveball it throws You have to adjust And that's that's just life because the true college experience is an insulated experience, right? And you you kind of leave college thinking you grown you think you ready for life and then that curveball hits you So hopefully they can apply that and then the second You know doing this quarantine you really figure out a lot about yourself. I got a a different of mine who's been incarcerated since he was 14 to 15 years old and You know, we we talk um at the beginning of this kovat and One of the things he told me and I was like wow, this is crazy He's incarcerated with some of the biggest baddest and toughest guys on earth and The way to break those guys down And you want to punish them is not through physical punishment Right, they'll handle any of that they they want all the smoke when it comes to that They don't want any of the problems And you are able to break them down by Putting them in solitary confinement Or isolating them or putting them in a hole, right? And it just just goes to show like as humans It's human nature to want to interact with people Right way to break the biggest baddest and toughest guys down is to isolate them Right from from society and now here goes my basketball team being isolated We're not the biggest baddest and toughest guys at all Right, you know, we're just good good good good young man. Yeah, hoping young man And that's why they were going crazy and I understood it. I thought get off the phone with him And so, you know, it's we got to do what we have to do. It's been a mess, right and You know far as i'm concerned this season has an asterisk by it. It's just crazy. Some of the stories I've ever believed um, we had so many False positives we had a referee have a false positive one day, you know, like so when that happens it just puts you on hold Yeah, I mentioned we didn't play for 49 days. Yeah That's the only way to get better basketball is to play basketball and we had You know, uh hiatus to say the least and so, you know, hopefully we can get back on track and right now I'm just going to play anybody or anywhere at any time man because we just need basketball games to get to this Minimal number of 13 as they say and and that's the last question I'm gonna leave off with with so much success and so much exposure And you've had guys, you know matriculate through and out of the program and do well in life And they're getting started on their lives and doing and doing exceptional things Basketball is still the catalyst for that and we don't know when that's going to get back to normal So to speak if if if there is a normal in the short term How do you kind of plan? Your program your career your scheduling Around so much that is unknown. Is it even possible or do you just roll with the punches? I think you have to have a game plan in place, but you have to expect the unexpected, right? And so with us nothing has went according to schedule, right? We got to trust this thing is going to be You know back to normalcy one day, you know, I don't believe it's going to become back to normal until 23 Because I'm seeing on this internet and in these nightclubs They didn't get the memo that we got like there ain't no cove it universities are just a byproduct of the lack of attention that society has paid To cove it, right? Oh until we get this thing on the raps man. You know how it is everybody Some people think it's a conspiracy. Some people think it's propaganda. Some people think they can't be touched You know, you have all of that and until we get this thing on one accord I don't know what normalcy looks like. So I try to always prepare my guys to expect the unexpected and You know just deal and roll with the punches as they go