An Interview With Craig Ehlo On The 25th Anniversary Of “The Shot”

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In most every historic sporting event, whether it be “The Catch” by Dwight Clark, “The Miracle on Ice” or any number of other events, there is always a side that is not often seen. For “The Catch”, it would be the perspective of Everson Walls, the defender who narrowly missed deflecting the ball, and for the “Miracle on Ice” it would be the thoughts of Soviet goaltender Vladislav Tretiak, who was considered to be one of the best goalies in the world, but wound up being pulled in the middle of their game against the United States.

On this, the 25th anniversary of “The Shot” by Michael Jordan, I thought it would be a good idea to finally release the conversation that I had with the man that was on the other end of it, Craig Ehlo.

Brian Rzeppa: How did you decide on Washington State after coming out of Odessa College?

Craig Ehlo: I had a really good freshman year, I started all 36 games 14.7 ppg and 3.5 rpg, my coach left for Wayland Baptist (still a NAIA school) and offered me a scholarship to go with him. I wanting something bigger, so I decided to go back for my sophomore year. Odessa College was not able to get a coach until late August and that put him in a pickle because we only had 4 players returning. He was able to get 7 players but he had to scrape the bottom of the barrel. This was good for me because I was the go-to man. I averaged 22. 7 ppg grabbed a lot of rebounds and dished out some great dimes, I was rewarded Honorable Mention All-American and played in 3 All-Star games.

I was being sent almost 2-3 letters from schools a week, mostly Texas schools. I was excited because I wanted to stay close to home, UT wanted me, Texas A&M talked to me, and Baylor offered me, the SWC was doing well. Coach Raveling from Washington State saw me play in some games and invited me to come to Pullman on a visit, I went and they were playing UCLA in front of a packed house. That’s what sold me on my decision to go there, I grew up watching UCLA win all those Championships. I had never left Texas and now I was going to a school that traveled the West Coast and play against teams like UCLA, USC, and OSU. My mom was a Baptist and Baylor was a Baptist school and she didn’t like the fact that I would choose a school so far away, when Coach Raveling heard this, he made a special trip to visit her in Lubbock. After his visit, my mom was sold on WSU.

What were your thoughts when you were drafted by the Rockets? Were you expecting to go higher? Or to a different team?

After my Senior year ended, I had no clue that I would be drafted by the NBA. Coach Raveling got me in some camps (Portsmouth, NBA Pre-Camp) I performed well in those and the exposure to GM’s and teams in the NBA. In 1983 the NBA still had 10 rounds, I was working at WSU’s Cougar Cage Camp, when one of our coaches came to inform that I was the 48th player chosen by the Houston Rockets. I was absolutely thrilled because I was going back to Texas. I still had to make the team after, we had a Rookie Camp in July (all 10 players drafted by Houston had to go).

You had to be invited to Training Camp starting in October. I didn’t have any idea Houston or anybody else was interested me and no one every informed me what round I would go in. I got to Training Camp and signed a 1 year deal for $40,000 but no guarantee, I loved the fact that I was drafted Houston and any other team that would have drafted me, 1st round or 10th round. I was in no position to be able to choose, so I would have been happy anywhere. I was gonna get a chance to play in the NBA, getting that chance with Houston or any other team. That made me ecstatic and all I wanting was that chance.

After 3 years with the Rockets, you were waived. What was the time period like between the time you were waived and the day you signed with the Cavs?

This was one of the most difficult things that had ever happened to me, as much of a surprise that I got drafted and actually played 3 years for the Rockets, it was not a surprise to be waived. You see through those 3 years, each year I had no guarantee that I would be on a NBA roster, I had to prove myself each year and I would constantly remind myself that the average length of a NBA player was 3-3.5 years. I didn’t have much of a chance making a roster and not much of a chance to beat the odds and play longer than 3 years, but I just played on a team that when I came was a team rebuilding and had reached the NBA Finals in 3 years. I didn’t have false vision of grandeur but I understood the chemistry it takes for a team to be successful and I didn’t think change would happen but I learned on October 31st that a player like me was expendable.

I performed well in training camp that year and didn’t expect to be cut, I had just got married in June 1985 (still married going on 26 years) and now my future was very unsettling and I was scared. My agent reassured me though that other NBA teams would be calling because I was part of a team that played in the Finals but November went by and no word of any team wanting me. I stayed in Houston and continued to work out and stay in shape, so when a team did call I would be ready. My life off the court was hard because I had no income and had saved a little but not enough to last. Then December went by and same thing, no calls. After Christmas, I was shooting in the Summit (Rockets facility) and Rudy T. came in and was shooting with me and asked me how I was doing and I told him it was hard. He told me a old coach of his was coaching in the CBA (Tom Nissalke) and wanted a player and if I wanted him to call him for me, heck fire…for sure Rudy. He called and I left Houston on December 27th for Jacksonville, time was moving in a snails pace during this whole time but now at least I was playing again and to me that’s exactly what I needed to take my mind off of everything. It was a real answered prayer for me.

You became a very productive player in your years with the Cavs, and you were on very productive teams. Why do you think that this team was so successful?

The Cavs from 1980-1986 were known as the Cadavers of the league and when I was in Houston, Coach Fitch would always say, ‘I’ll trade you to Cleveland, that’s where the Dinosaurs go to die’. But luck was on their side, the league stepped up and gave the Gordon’s a fighting chance to rebuild Cleveland. They hired Wayne Embry as GM and Lenny Wilkens as the coach…2 class acts, solid people. They used the 1st pick to draft Brad Daugherty and the 4th pick to take Ron Harper but then made the deal of the century to get Mark Price with the 25th pick, the Cavs were starting from scratch and they knew they were gonna have a couple of tough seasons but they were willing to make that sacrifice. The season before they drafted John Hot Rod Williams, who had to sit out the season, so they had their starters in place but they were all rookies.

They built from the ground up from the coaching staff to the players and changed the whole roster. Wayne Embry pulled off another blockbuster the next year and traded for Larry Nance, the reason was he needed a veteran to blend in and lead these young players and he got a high character person with great leadership qualities, plus very talented. They had a blueprint they followed by building a team with character and not a bunch of characters. We played team basketball, there could be a different leading scorer in any given game, the nucleus was in place and 1-8 players were put together knowing that they could play together, that’s why our teams were so successful.

In one of the most memorable plays in NBA history, Michael Jordan’s “Shot on Ehlo” has been replayed over and over. What was it like to guard Jordan? And what were your thoughts after “The Shot”?

It was a thrill, my father was the biggest influence in my life and he always told me ‘Son, you are the best player out there and the only way you can get better is to play the best’. Well, I got to do that and do it a lot, Cleveland and Chicago were in the same division, so I had the opportunity to play Chicago 6 times a year. The first few times, I was in awe of standing across from him but the more we played them, the more comfortable I got, it was exciting and thrilling but not because it was Craig Ehlo against Michael Jordan but it was the rivalry between the Cavs and the Bulls. I would not trade that moment for anything, I was able to make the shot that put the Cavs up 100-99, with 3 seconds left, we had to stop the Bulls and yes we knew Michael would take the shot. Did it turn out the way I wanted it to? No, but I did my very best to try to stop him, no player would ever not want to be in that position, that’s why you play. All the days in the driveway at home winning games with a last second shot, FT, or steal, I never lost one of the games. You never practiced losing them but you cherished that moment that you would get that opportunity.

How did you decide to become an analyst for Gonzaga?

I had just moved my family from Seattle to Spokane after retiring in 1997, the Zags were starting to win and being in Spokane, it was the hot ticket. I took a job coaching a local high school (Rogers) in Spokane and I started going to their practices to learn from their staff, they were very gracious in letting me in, my teams started going to their team camps, so I developed a great relationship with them. The gym they played in was really small (less than 4000), the Zags had just made the run to the Elite Eight and everybody wanted to see them play but couldn’t.

The local TV Station, KHQ-6, decided to put the games on TV. They decided on a 2 man booth but wanted to add a 3rd on the sideline and someone from their staff suggested me, my duties at high school were only coaching the team, I was not a teacher but a out of building coach, so I left the Rogers job and took up being the sideline reporter for the Zags, Fox over in Seattle partnered with Q-6 to put the games on over on the west side and that led me to being teamed with Kevin Calabro calling the Sonics games for 2 years, which prepared me for calling the Zag games with Greg Heister, I was in heaven. The whole time I did the Sonics, I traveled back and forth from Spokane to Seattle, now I was able to do a TV gig at home with my family in Spokane.

Do you hope to be a head coach at an NCAA program? Or even at the NBA level?

I believe that it would be a dream come true, if I could ever get a head job at the collegiate level or at the level I played at the NBA, but like many things, you have to pay your dues. I’ve seen it all the great coaches I’ve played for, the reward of putting something together and turning it into something special, being a positive influence in a young mans life, that’s rewarding. Yes, is the answer to your question, I want that to happen.

Any closing comments for your fans around the world?

I have nothing to add but basketball has been part of my life forever, it is the fabric of my being. I think all sports build many things in your life that can help you be the best and be successful.

Given that this interview was from a few months ago, it was before Ehlo faced all of the legal troubles that he is currently facing. While I’ll leave it up to you to inquire about those if you so choose, I can only hope for the best for him, and hope that he gets things in order. By all accounts (and just from the time that I spent talking to him) he is a great guy.

Thanks for reading.