Martin finds warmth at Cal after feeling unwanted at Tennessee
— -- BERKELEY, Calif. - After Cal coach Cuonzo Martin blows his whistle to signal a break at a practice in mid-October, the beat builds and the bass thumps against the walls at Haas Pavilion.
Martin, 44, nods his glossy, bald head to Drake's latest hypnotic groove, "Hotline Bling," while he walks to the sideline.
Then, the second-year coach's nod becomes a bob and his lips twist and his neck cranks before he croons his favorite verse.
"I know when that hotline bling!" Martin, a natural baritone, squeals, "that can only mean one thing!"
He's not content with his pitch so he rides the Canadian rapper's wave again.
"I know when that hotline bling!" he sings, this time with more emphasis on that last "bling," "that can only mean one thing!"
"That's what makes Cuonzo the perfect college coach," said former Notre Dame and NBA standout LaPhonso Ellis, who played with Martin on a Lincoln High School (East St. Louis, Ill.) squad that won an Illinois state championship. "He's serious about the things you need to be serious about, but he also has a likeness to him."
Martin is loose these days.
He smiles now like a man who no longer fights through the background static that muddied his time in Knoxville, Tennessee. In 2014, his turbulent three-season tenure at Tennessee ended with a Sweet 16 run. It was the second time since 2008 that the Vols had reached the NCAA tournament's second weekend. Still, that March burst happened after thousands of Vols fans had signed a petition seeking his dismissal and the return of former coach Bruce Pearl. Soon after, Martin left Tennessee and accepted an offer from Cal.
Cal -- a preseason top-25 team after Martin added McDonald's All-Americans Ivan Rabb and Jaylen Brown -- will offer a stage for Martin's next chapter.
His stint at Tennessee threatened to interrupt his career. But Martin has survived far worse than an embittered fan base. Cancer could have killed him. The bullets that flew through his East St. Louis housing project could have killed him.
He's a coach who understands and respects his duties but dismisses the life-or-death tone that's often attached to collegiate sports. He's seen death. That murky chapter in Knoxville was just a basketball problem.
"I think there's a great excitement here at Cal," Martin said. "You can't beat the weather, the culture, the diversity. I mean, you can't beat it. It's a good place. I'm happy and excited. My life is the same every day. One day at a time."
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