Who’s got next?
Craig Robinson says he has yet to pose that question to his brother-in-law, President Barack Obama.
“We’ve never played one-on-one, and that’s probably a tribute to his judgment,” Robinson said. “Because playing one-on-one against me, you know … he’s a good pickup basketball player, but he would be biting off a little more than he can chew.”
The 6-foot-1-inch Obama used to launch left-handed fadeaway jumpers at Punahou High School in Hawaii, where he wore No. 23 and was known as “Barry O’Bomber.”
“We would just never play one-on-one,” Robinson said. “He has played my son (15-year-old Avery) one-on-one, but we’ve always played together or against each other five-on-five.”
The 6-6 Robinson was a two-time Ivy League Player of the Year at Princeton. He was drafted by the Philadelphia 76ers in 1983 and wound up playing professionally for two years in Europe.
Robinson, 46, has carved out an impressive niche after graduating with a degree in sociology and then earning a master’s in business administration at the University of Chicago. The Mt. Carmel High School alum, who once served as vice president of Continental Bank and Morgan Stanley, was an assistant at Northwestern before becoming the head coach at Brown and now Oregon State.
“I think the world of (NU coach) Bill Carmody, and I certainly wouldn’t be coaching if it weren’t for him,” Robinson said.
Oregon State lost in the first round of the Pac-10 tournament after going 13-17 in Robinson’s first year as coach of the Beavers, who were winless in the conference the previous season. He was named U.S. Basketball Writers Association District IX Coach of the Year.
“Certainly the notoriety from being on the campaign trail and then having (Obama) win the election and having my sister (Michelle) and family move to the White House … there has been an incredible amount of focus on what I do and what I have been doing,” Robinson said.
Asked if he has a unique way to communicate with his sister and Obama at the White House, Robinson, deferring to security issues, replied, “No comment.”
“I talk to them probably about once a week. I’ll probably get out there more now that the season is over. I stay in touch with my mom (Marian, who also lives in the White House) all the time. Everything else is pretty much the same, other than my sister is the first lady.”
Even Robinson’s daily security has become top secret.
“I can’t comment on security,” he said. “I had some notoriety because of the fact I’m a college coach, but the sort of walking-around daily anonymity has kind of gone by the wayside because my sister and I look very much alike and people usually figure that out quickly, especially when you have her on the cover of magazines everywhere.”
Perhaps Obama could attend an Oregon State game, as he did when the Bulls traveled to Washington.
“Given how the Bulls played after they stopped by the White House, I might not want (Obama) to come to my game,” Robinson joked. “This year, obviously, he couldn’t do it because he was just so busy. I’m sure at some point, if he can get to one of our games it will be by us playing in D.C. or by him being in the Northwest. I expect my sister to be at a game or two before too long.”
So how does Robinson address the president?
“I call Barack ‘Mr. President’ and I call my sister ‘the first lady'” Robinson said. “And I enjoy calling them that, even though they don’t want me to be so formal.”
Obama has called for a playoff system for major college football. Would he also favor expanding the NCAA basketball tournament?
“We haven’t talked about the NCAA tournament at all,” Robinson said. “I think that’s because it’s such a good tournament as it is.”
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fmitchell@tribune.com
