McDermott, others find success playing for fathers

OMAHA, NEB. (AP) - Theresa McDermott is enjoying the ultimate season for a basketball wife and mom.

Her husband, Greg, is head coach of 13th-ranked Creighton. Her son, Doug, is the headline player for the Bluejays.

“Now I’ve got what I always wanted _ Greg to coach Doug,” she said. “The way it all evolved was perfect.”

Theresa’s joy notwithstanding, fathers coaching their sons can be an albatross for both, especially in a high-profile sport like Division I men’s basketball. Fans, media and teammates watch their every move.

Is dad giving son playing time he wouldn’t get if someone else were his coach? Does son receive preferential treatment? Did son really earn that scholarship or was it a gift from dad?

One thing’s for sure. It’s a lot easier when the son is the best or one of the best players on the team.

At Creighton, Doug McDermott is the third-leading scorer in the country (23.5 ppg) and getting mentioned as a candidate for national player of the year.

At Central Michigan, coach Ernie Ziegler’s son Trey is averaging 16.1 points and 7.0 rebounds to lead his team and rank among the best in the Mid-American Conference.

At Detroit, coach Ray McCallum’s son Ray Jr. is scoring a Horizon League-best 15.6 points.

At UC Davis, coach Jim Les‘ son Tyler has been used mostly as a sixth man but leads the Big West Conference in 3-point shooting (.462), and his 9.9-point average is second on the team.

The fathers and coaches interviewed said that they spoke with other coaches who have gone through the experience before they invited their sons to play for them.

Seems the pros outweighed the cons every time.

“In my mind, overall, our relationship is a lot stronger both as a father-son, coach-player, because we’ve got the two intertwined,” Jim Les said.

There is a long line of fathers who have coached their sons. Among them: “Press” and Pete Maravich at LSU, Al and “Allie” McGuire at Marquette, Dick and Tony Bennett at Wisconsin-Green Bay, Wade and Allan Houston at Tennessee, Bob and Pat Knight at Indiana, Eddie and Sean Sutton at Oklahoma State, Homer and Bryce Drew at Valparaiso, Tubby and Saul Smith at Kentucky.

Greg McDermott had never coached Doug at any level before he and his son arrived together at Creighton last season.

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