Once a Star of College Basketball, Kevin Ollie Is Now Disrupting It
After a year on campus, Ollie is no longer a star. It took a lot of time for him to find his place in the college game, to find a home. And for the first time in a long time, he and his wife are thinking about where their family will live now that he’s moved away.
He’s still going to work, because, really, that’s his No. 1 job. He’s still going to help his family build a home, because, really, that’s still his No. 1 job. But there are a lot of things about him that he says he misses.
I sat down with Ollie recently to talk about how he’s become a real man since leaving West Virginia in 2013 and the real changes he’s seeing in his sport.
I’m sure you’re a little surprised to receive this interview request. How did you feel when you heard it?
It was flattering, just the fact that people wanted to get in touch with me. I’ve been on the Internet a long time now and a lot of the stuff they’re talking about is about people I’ve never met.
But they want to know about your new deal and your new family and what kind of basketball life is like for you now. What’s your take on that?
My take is I love my job and I love my family and it’s been a struggle for them to get through the first year, and it is now a struggle to get through the second year and even the third year. I have to adjust to not being as busy as I used to be. The college basketball season is six months long. From the time I leave to the time I come back home to Laredo, Texas, is a year.
And I’m coming back from the NBA.
