Former Cav Derek Anderson Talks Michael Jordan, University Of Kentucky And More

The Cleveland Cavaliers selected Derek Anderson in the lottery. It was he who came out with the wealth. Highlighted by a shoe deal with Michael Jordan and a wealth of experience.

Derek Anderson, who the Cleveland Cavaliers drafted with the 13th pick in the 1997 NBA Draft, appeared on Brandon “Scoop B” Robinson’s Scoop B Radio Overtime Podcast, and discussed the time that he convinced Michael Jordan to make the Air Jordan XI’s a low-cut shoe.

At the time, Anderson was one of the first Jordan Brand ambassadors.

For those that don’t know, Jordan first wore the Air Jordan XI’s after he came back from his first retirement to face the Orlando Magic in the Eastern Conference Semi-Finals. The Magic had two young All-Stars in Shaquille O’Neal and Anfernee “Penny” Hardaway and that series was a perfect setting to put his newly designed sneakers on display.

Fans associate the Air Jordan XI’s with the Chicago Bulls 72-10 season, Jordan’s comeback after retirement and Jordan changing his number from number 45 back to 23.

You can look at a look at initial commercial for the Air Jordan XI’s below:

In getting Jordan to make the XI’s a low-top, Anderson recounted this conversation he had with the NBA legend:

"“I was sitting in the office with Michael Jordan. We were all sitting at the table. I was used to playing in low cuts, so I told him, ‘Can’t we cut these shoes off? He looked at me and was like: ‘What?’ And I was like: ‘I just wanna cut that shoe off, I like these in a low-cut. He said: ‘Let’s try it.’ We tried it and we came up with a low-cut shoe and I’ve been wearing low-cut ever since.”"

Easy, right?

One wonders if it was as easy for Anderson, notorious for highlight-reel dunks, to posterize notable NBA players like Dikembe Mutombo, Horace Grant and Charles Barkley.

In any case, it wasn’t quite so easy for Anderson to dunk of New York Knicks legend Patrick Ewing. When it came to dunking on Ewing, this is what Anderson had to say on Scoop B Radio:

"“I was trying to dunk on Patrick Ewing,” Anderson said on Scoop B Radio. “I always see him trying to box out. I was growing up seeing him blocking everybody’s dunks. I see Dikembe do it but once I got Dikembe my rookie year, I was good. But I always tried to dunk on Patrick Ewing  because Jordan did it. Remember when Jordan baseline dunked on him? I always wanted to get one like that.”"

He never did.

Anderson, who graduated from the University of Kentucky after transferring from Ohio State University, also discussed how he felt about the University of Kentucky’s top prospects, De’Aaron Fox and Malik Monk:

"“I think if Monk ever plays defense he would be [a signficant player]. But I think right now Fox is the key one. So Fox is the point guard. It’s a point guard driven league. If he continues to work on his jump shot and goes full speed like he is doing I think he will be a significant player.”"

Monk and Fox, who were just bounced out of the Elite Eight after deja vu-like shot from Luke Maye of the University of North Carolina sent them back home and likely, to the NBA Draft, are two of the top prospects in the entire draft.

Monk is a sensational scorer and Fox is as explosive as they come when you talk about point guards. For what it’s worth, I believe a combo guard like Monk could do wonders for a team like the Philadelphia 76ers beside Ben Simmons, Richaun Holmes, Dario Saric and Joel Embiid. Meanwhile Fox, who isn’t a great perimeter shooter, could find himself fitting best with a team that already has shooters lined up along the perimeter. A team like the Dallas Mavericks for instance.

While discussing them, Anderson took the time to speak on AAU basketball, and perhaps mirrored a Twitter rant by LeBron James along the way:

"“I think what that is something that the AAU coaches just let their players do anything instead of teach them and train them. So now they don’t have any discipline. You look at that one kid who had 92 points, but he didn’t come past half court like half the time. Do you think our coaches would let us do that? No. He would have been all over us ‘Get back on defense play hard.’ But now there are so many coaches that let players be good so he can get a name and I think that is the issue with AAU. If they just roll the balls out and say: ‘who ever is talented go do it.’ And I think that is where AAU is failing us. The coaches aren’t demanding excellence. Therefore there is none.”"

Here is what James said, in a tweet storm aggregated by ESPN’s Rachel Nichol’s:

Seems to me like the two are on the same page, right?

It’s interesting to say the least but nowadays, the most developed prospects seem to be the great or pretty good players and European players with no in-between. In recent years, high-profile picks like Brandon Ingram, Kris Dunn and others haven’t been developed as they should perhaps because they haven’t been pushed to develop like they should.

The last piece of Anderson’s interview will also be the last part of this piece, readers. Some of you are players, some of you are aspiring to be players and others may find this to be relevant anyways:

"“I think everyone’s upbringing is different. I wasn’t looking at basketball as my ending success.  I knew that I was going to retire one day and everybody was like why are you planning on retiring. My rookie year I was like I am going to retire in ten years. They were like why would you say that and I was like you never know how long my body is going to last. I had two torn ACLs, so I was thinking if I could get a couple of dollars, let me see if I can make it work and see if I can keep my life situated. So, to me, I think your upbringing determines that. A lot guys play basketball their whole life and never do nothing else growing up with both parents and then do nothing else. They can’t live with their parents forever and then they realize all their money is about to leave in a few years [and think] what am I gonna do. So I am thinking it’s about upbringing and who you put around you. Some mentors, some people who are in business. The people you put around you are what you are going to become anyway.”"

In sum, think about the big picture and choose the people you put in your circle wisely. They don’t just reflect the person you are. They can become the person you are.

Related Story: LeBron James And Jay-Z's Beef With DeShawn Stevenson

What did you think of Derek Anderson’s interview? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section or Twitter @KJG_NBA.