Basketball and everything in between

Every Tuesday morning, the rubbish man comes to my house.  My two year old son gets very excited and wants to help me take out the rubbish.  For some reason he just knows that it is Tuesday and the rubbish has to go out.  His first words every Tuesday morning is ‘Rubbish Man…come today’ and every time I hear him say that, I think of Dusty Rychart – the import for the Wollongong Hawks who needs a new nickname.  The Garbage Man in my opinion is the worst nickname in the NBL!

 

For those who don’t know about Dusty (and if you don’t you must have been under a very large rock for the past couple of years), he is currently an import for the Wollongong Hawks.  He has previously played for the Brisbane Bullets, Adelaide 36ers and Victoria Giants.  He is universally respected around the league for his work ethic and the little things that he brings to the teams that he is a member of.  Before coming to Australia, he attended the University of Minnesota and was a Big Ten All Conference member in 2001-02.  He has a career average of 15.6ppg, 8.7rpg and 1.6apg.

 

It was awesome that he (and the other guys who have done it for us) took some time to participate in this interview.  Hopefully you all enjoy it!

Firstly, the hottest topic in the NBL at the moment – The Sydney Spirit.  What is your take on the whole situation?

I think the whole state of the NBL is hurting at the moment and the Sydney Spirit are at the front of the pack. I feel for the guys on the team as they all have families and mortgages that need to be taken care of.  I wish them nothing but the best and hope they can get through the year

The second hottest topic in the NBL at the moment – The New NBL.  Do you think that the Wollongong Hawks will be a part of it?

 I really don’t know. You hear so many different things through out the year and no one really knows who will stay and who will go. I am sure the new NBL would want to keep the only foundation club in the league. 

I have been an avid reader of your site: d-rych.com since it’s inception.  What were the original thought processes behind the site? 

The whole idea was to inform mostly my family and friends of my basketball travels and life but it evolved into more than friends and family as many supporters of Minnesota Gopher Basketball follow it as does many Australian fans. I get great feedback and love the interaction but would love to get more involved with more interaction on my site with comments and recommendations.  Overall d-rych.com is something that I will look back at in 20 years and be glad that I wrote all those thoughts down.

You played your high school basketball at Grand Rapids High.  Tell us about your high schooling basketball career?  

High school basketball was great for me but coming from a hockey town many didn’t appreciate basketball. I loved it from the start and brought our team to the state tournament for the first time in 75 years which was something special and the school’s All-state first team selection.  It was one of the best times of my life for basketball and helped me get to where I am at today.

After you graduated High School, you went to the University of Minnesota and redshirted a season.  What was the reasoning behind your redshirting?

I redshirted because I was a walk-on and pretty skinny.  The redshirt year would allow me to gain experience playing against NBA playes such as Sam Jacobson, Quincy Lewis and get stronger.  It gave me a chance to adapt to the college game and adjust to life away from home for the first time in my life. I learned a lot that first year and grew from it.

After that you played four more years at UM.  You seemed to put up some pretty good numbers in your senior and junior years.  What was your college career highlight?

Definitely the 1999 NCAA Tourament game Vs. Gonzaga. It was my coming out and I made the most of starting. It was a total rush to be on the national stage like that and putting up numbers like 23-18 was awesome.  That game gave me respect and I was rewarded with a scholarship the next 3 years. 

Any thoughts of going the CBA / NBDL path in the USA at any stage?

The NBDL wasn’t around when I was leaving college but the CBA was. I never thought of playing in those leagues because there isn’t much money.  I love the game of basketball but I was going to play it for nothing I wanted to save money and prepare for after basketball with it. 

You played the first season in Australia for two franchises: Adelaide and Victoria.  Take us through your arrival in Australia and your thoughts on the old Victorian Giants.

I really didn’t know what to expect from Australia. I was so naive about the whole situation and really didn’t know there was a league down here until a week before I flew.  I was a typical American that thought that all Aussies had kangaroos for pets and there were no cities and nothing but outback. I just got on the plane and it was kind of an adventure as I didn’t have expectations. 

The old Giants were something interesting as they were low budget as you could get. Coming from a huge college where we had everything at our finger tips and everything was brand new to old school equipment was a shock.  Plus playing in front of a packed 15,500 every night in the Big Ten to barely getting 1500 was a major shock too. No one sat me down before I left and said professional life is way different than college. I wish someone would have told me all about it but I guess that I something you learn along the way and grow from it.  Then I got released a few weeks before Christmas which really hurt me because I wasn’t playing bad and they didn’t give me any excuses as to why they cut me so still today I don’t have closure on the situation. The owners and coaches both pointed the fingers at each other as who cut me.  Overall it was a blessing in disguise because Adelaide picked me up and I was aloud to play my game under Phil and the rest is history.

Mark Wright – were you a fan?

HELL NO!  Not that much of a fan. I wasn’t the only one that had a problem but I should thank him for letting me go so I could play on in Adelaide. Thanks Mark

You had three and a half good seasons in Adelaide.  What are the Adelaide fans like?

The fans in Adelaide are the best in Australia.  You just get this buzz before home games and when you get 5000+ in the Dome and rolling the atmosphere is electrifying! Wish it was like that everywhere in Australia.

What was your favourite memory during the Adelaide years?  Who were you favourite team mates?

The one thing that sticks out in Adelaide was the game winning shot in Carins and we ran straight from the court to the vans to the hotel and Carins stayed around thinking the game wasn’t over.  I still laugh about that and our Asst coach SJ telling us to hurry out! Haha 

I loved the guys that I played with at Adelaide and keep in touch with most. Guys like Brett Maher, Willie farely, Charles Thomas, Cooper, Oscar Foreman, Justin Wilky, Nick Hambour, Ninja, Paul Rees, Phil and SJ. Great teammates.

After plying your trade with the 36ers, you ended up at the Brisbane Bullets.  How did this come about?

The 36er’s were in financial trouble and only could offer a one year deal and then Brisbane saw that I was on the market and put forth a deal that was too good to refuse and 3 years so it was a no brainer.  It was a move that I don’t regret as I got to win a championship and be part of a team that is arguably the best ever.

In your first season with the Bullets, you won a championship.  What would you say that was the key reason that the Bullets were successful that year?

It was because of great team chemistry. That team had something about it that I can’t explain. The G-Unit which was our bench played a huge role in getting us the ring that year. They came out and won many games for us and challenged us every practice. 

 We have all heard the story about the Bullets going under last year.  When did you find out what was going on and what was your initial reaction?

We were all sitting around in Melbourne for breakfast right before our playoff game vs. Tigers and it was all over the front page of the paper.  As I walked down to breakfast guys looked as if someone died and everyone had a paper and you could say we all had a piece of us die that day.

You played a handful of games for the Brisbane Capitals last year in the QABL.  How was that as an experience playing under Bruce Palmer?

Bruce is a great basketball mind and says some funny stuff.  It was great just to play and get into shape before the NBL. At the time I still didn’t have a team in the NBL to play for so it was kind of a way to stay on the radar of NBL teams

Then all of a sudden you end up in Wollongong.  How did come about?

The Hawks were the only team that were interested in me after the Bullets went under.  So I had no other choice but to play but was happy to be somewhere since 3 teams have went out of the league. 

Wollongong went through a number of imports last season.  What do you think that you bring to the table for the Hawks?

I just bring what I usually bring. Hard work and hustle and if given the opportunity I will produce. 

What are the differences between Joey Wright and Eric Cooks as coaches?

Joey is more intense and in your face than Cookie. Every coach is different but Cookie loves Hawks basketball and the players.  Both are good coaches in their own right.

What are the teams goals for the remainder of the season?

I think the goal is to make the playoffs and stay in the league next season 

I read with interest that you may be becoming an Australian citizen.  Any movement on that issue?

If all goes to plan it should fall into place march 2009 which will be good and allow me to play for a few more years longer than I would if I was an import.

Who would win a 3 point shooting contest – Ron Ratliff or Kevin Brooks?

That is a tough one. I know rat can stroke it but KB was a game winner so I would have to say game winner would be KB but a game of horse would be Rat.

What are your thoughts on the return of a Brisbane franchise to the NBL?

I don’t know. The fans never really got behind us up there until we made the run to the Championship and it just seems as if they aren’t interested up there. Just my thoughts but Brisbane is a great place to live so I would love to see them in the league again.

Is Big Joe as good as he is cracked up to be as a team manager?

Overrated…lol  but the big man is a legend in the league. Everyone knows who he is. He always manages to get on FOX with his subway and Casey and Carfino love talking about the big fella.  Heard he has had some tough times overseas managing and is looking to come back so I am sure someone will demand is services in one way or another.

So there you go.  Hopefully he gets Australian citizenship and is here for years to come