S4E2: A Ball State Basketball Player Reflects Back on His Sweet 16 Experience (Paris McCurdy, BSU Director of Community Diversity Initiatives)

Paris McCurdy is a graduate who played a pivotal role in Ball State's own March Madness Cinderella Story. Paris was a senior for the Cardinals when he and his teammates won the MAC Championship and went on to compete in the Sweet 16 of the NCAA tournament.

As our basketball teams prepare to kick off another season of play, Paris reflects on his memories of that remarkable ’89-’90 season and about the valuable role he played in getting the Cardinals to the Sweet 16. He also talks about his career playing professional basketball in Europe and his current role as our University's director of community diversity initiatives. 

Finally, looking back on his own days as a Ball State student, Paris shares his pride in the changes that have since transpired on our campus, from the facilities to the demographics of our freshman class. 

If you enjoy this episode, please leave a review to support the show. 

Transcript

[GEOFF MEARNS]

Hello, I'm Geoff Mearns, and I have the good fortune to serve as the president here at Ball State University. Today's guest on my podcast is a graduate who played a pivotal role in Ball State's own March Madness Cinderella Story. Paris McCurdy was a senior for the Cardinals when, as a starter on the 89-90 men's basketball team, he and his teammates won the MAC Championship and went on to compete in the Sweet 16 of the NCAA tournament.

As our basketball teams prepare to kick off another season of play, I'm going to ask Paris about his memories of that remarkable season and about the valuable role he played in getting the Cardinals to the Sweet 16. We'll also talk about Paris's career playing professional basketball in Europe and his current role as our university's director of community diversity initiatives.

So, Paris, welcome to the podcast.

[PARIS MCCURDY]

Thank you, Prez. Glad to be here with you.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

It's always good to be with you, P. So I look forward to talking to you more about your playing days as a cardinal and then continue to play thereafter. But first, I want to start where I start with all of my guests. I want to hear more about your family and where you grew up. Tell us a little bit about your background.

[PARIS MCCURDY]

Well, as you well know, I'm from Detroit. Dad was a truck driver, entrepreneur. Mother worked for the Board of Education and she was a school bus driver. I'm one of seven.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

And where are you in that order?

[PARIS MCCURDY]

Number five.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

Okay, so—

[PARIS MCCURDY]

Two older brothers. Two older sisters and 2 younger sisters. So from that, you know, I learned everything not to do.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

(laughs) Watching what they did?

[PARIS MCCURDY]

Watching everything that they did, my older siblings. Yep. So there's a four year spread between the next oldest and then they're stair steps going up. And, you know, I heard everything that, that I shouldn't be doing. And all I wanted to do was, you know, pretty much make my folks happy. My parents.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

Make your parents proud of you.

[PARIS MCCURDY]

Yeah, make them proud. And, so it was. It was. It was a challenge growing up in a city. Of course, as you well know, big city, any inner city is going to be a lot of challenges with all the options of, mischief that you're able to get involved with.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

All those distractions.

[PARIS MCCURDY]

100%. And, I really knew that, education and schooling was important. So my dad had said to my, one of my older brothers, he told him, Paris is going to graduate high school before you do. And so I always kept that in my head. And I actually did. He never even finished high school.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

So it was a source of motivation?

[PARIS MCCURDY]

It was. Absolutely. And so it was something that I was striving for simply because my dad had said that. So it was kind of an unsaid challenge, basically.. And, I just kind of moved in a way to, to try to at least achieve graduating high school.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

And try to tune out those distractions and focus on graduating, but also playing some sports, I understand.

[PARIS MCCURDY]

So, yeah, I did, I had a chance to play sports. One of the things that got me really interested in playing sports was how my dad used to yell for Muhammad Ali and the Pittsburgh Steelers. So, you know, my thing was I wanted to do something in sports. So I remember being with my cousins one day, and, they offered me an opportunity to smoke a cigarette. And I was 11, and I said, hey, man, nah, I don't want to smoke. And they asked me, why not? And I actually told them that I wanted to be an athlete. They laughed. So, you know, the rest was history after that, right?

[GEOFF MEARNS]

I take it that was a little motivation. So when you were growing up in your neighborhood, were you playing a variety of sports? Baseball, football, basketball?

[PARIS MCCURDY]

So you had to keep in mind that in the city? The only options we have to play sports are sports that are free. So basketball at the park. Football in the streets. Baseball, you know, that's open and whatnot. But, we always play with no gloves, right? Because we couldn't afford to get the glove. But we had a bat, right?

And, yeah, so, I mean, we just did everything. Kickball, all those kind of games like that. Nobody ever played hockey. Nobody played tennis. Nobody was playing golf.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

Right. No figure skating? 

[PARIS MCCURDY]

No figure skating, none of that stuff. Yeah. So, you know, that was the big deal for us in our neighborhood to just compete against each other in whatever sports we play.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

So did you become more serious about sports by the time you got into high school?

[PARIS MCCURDY]

So from middle school, I didn't make my middle school basketball team. One of my teachers told the coach to keep me around. He kept me around. I ended up starting for that team. I got to work.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

You worked your way back on to that team?

[PARIS MCCURDY]

And when I got to high school, I didn't make our JV team. I got cut. But the head coach knew my sisters who were ahead of me and I had a chance to meet him before I got to high school. So he told the JV coach to keep me around. I ended up starting for that team. So I didn't get a chance to play my junior year of high school. I only played my senior year, and by that time I played one year of high school football. And so I was getting recruited for football as well. So SMU, TCU, Prairie View A&M.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

What position were you playing in football?

[PARIS MCCURDY]

Defensive end. 

[GEOFF MEARNS]

Okay.

[PARIS MCCURDY]

Actually both sides. So Coach had us on both sides.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

Like, tight end and defensive line?

[PARIS MCCURDY]

Correct. Yeah. So it kind of just went from there.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

So when did you—did you break out a little bit in basketball by the time you graduated from high school?

[PARIS MCCURDY]

Not at all. So basketball, I was just, I was one of the stronger guys because I played football. You know, I like lifting weights and whatnot. My cousin told me one time I had on a shirt with the sleeves cut off, and I thought I had muscles. So she told me one day, and I was probably about maybe a sophomore, and she said, I don't know why you wearing that shirt with those girl arms. 

[GEOFF MEARNS]

Uh oh. 

[PARIS MCCURDY]

And so that was it right there for me, you know. It made me want to work out, get stronger and things like that.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

So one of your friends and one of your teammates in high school was Curtis Kidd. And I know you and Curtis developed a close relationship. And the two of you, after you graduated from high school, went on to play basketball for Arkansas Little Rock. Tell us how that came about, that the two of you would go together from Detroit to Little Rock, Arkansas.

[PARIS MCCURDY]

So to expound on your question about my breakout in basketball, it was basically, Curtis that that helped create that because the college coaches were coming in to watch Curtis. Curtis was a blue chip all-American. Great athlete.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

What position did he play? 

[PARIS MCCURDY]

He was a center, you know. And, you know, basketball is pretty much all those positions are interchangeable. But Curtis was a center. Very athletic. So the schools were coming in and Curtis and I had grown a, a really close relationship. And when the schools were coming in to talk to him, they saw that Curtis and I had a good relationship. So they told Curtis down in Little Rock, they said, hey, if you if you come, we’ll sign Paris too. We'll give him a scholarship. So it went from there.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

And so that was the opportunity that both of you had. It sounds like that meant a lot to Curtis that you two could go together?

[PARIS MCCURDY]

It did. And, like I said, we had grown a, a brotherhood that was unbreakable. We had a strong bond. So, yeah, I was able to go and, and I'm proud to say that I was riding Curtis's coattail at that point. 

[GEOFF MEARNS]

Right. So the two of you spent two years together at Arkansas Little Rock, and then you made a joint decision again, kind of another package deal, to transfer together to Ball State. Was Ball State already on your radar? Curtis's radar before the two of you made that decision?

[PARIS MCCURDY]

It actually wasn't. So Curtis and I both, you know, found out about Ball State when we were seniors at Cooley and we went to watch a game. Eastern Michigan was recruiting us and Ball State was playing Eastern Michigan. And that's when they had Dan Palombizio and he was a rebounding king, I tell you what. But anyway, that's when we first heard about Ball State.

But when we decided to come here, we had, uh, Jud Heathcote had called from up at Michigan State, I think it was, um, Southern, Southern Miss. It was quite a few other schools that called.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

And this was even before this transfer portal craziness that we live with now—

[PARIS MCCURDY]

Yeah, absolutely. And when we ended up going there it was because of a guy that was in Little Rock that knew Sidney Moncrief, who knew Al McGuire. Sidney was from Arkansas, and he told them about us. Al McGuire knew the coaches up there up at Marquette or Milwaukee—that's where Majerus was at the time. So he told them about us down here. They came down, watched us play a summer league game. We were playing against Scottie Pippen. He was playing at the time. You know, he went to UC Conway. And, they had a chance to watch us play and, it was some good players in that league, in that summer league and, they just said, hey, we gotta have you guys here at Ball State.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

So Scottie Pippen, as most of our listeners know, was also part of one of the most famous duos in all of basketball with MJ, Michael Jordan.

[PARIS MCCURDY]

That's correct. That's correct. And what's interesting about Curtis and I coming to Ball State. It was our understanding that there was a little question about whether or not to bring us here, but it was Warren Vander Hill who really pushed the envelope to get the university to allow us to come here to Ball State.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

And was Warren the provost at the time?

[PARIS MCCURDY]

He was a provost at the time.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

Right. And, as our listeners know, Warren was a beloved person on our campus and recently passed away. (pause) So when you arrive at Ball State, that's Coach Majerus first year. I think everyone has heard a few colorful stories about Coach Majerus, but first, I want to, you know, I'm a little curious about what were your impressions of him? Especially that first season on our campus here?

[PARIS MCCURDY]

Well, he was, he was pretty much a tactician. You know, he was he was about, you know, coming out with a strategy every time to win the game. And he was about preparation. So, you know, when we got there, even though we weren't playing, we still had to have the notebooks that he passed out to all the other players.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

Because you weren't playing. Because you were practicing, because you were redshirting at that point.

[PARIS MCCURDY]

Yes, yes. And so but we had to learn everything. So it gave us an advantage too as well for playing into him. But, we had to, you know, take notes and we had to keep our notebooks. That was something I thought that was really special. I never did that before, but Coach Majerus was that kind of a guy that really cared about us as players. Not just players, but as humans.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

He wanted you to be the best you could be, both on the court, in the classroom, and in whatever profession after you graduated.

[PARIS MCCURDY]

And you have to say all the time.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

Right? Yeah. My understanding is, pretty exacting, day in and day out. Every possession, every drill.

[PARIS MCCURDY]

That's right. I mean, he didn't want us shirking our duties at all. You know, every day we came out there, he expected us to give us every bit of the two hours we had to be out there on that court, whether he was talking to us or we were drilling. But he was always giving us something, giving us nuggets, giving us knowledge.

And one of the things that he shared with us in the beginning was that if you're going to play this game, you have to become a student of the game, meaning that, hey, you're always able to learn something. You had to be willing.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

Before we continue with, with that, any colorful stories that you can share on a, with a G-rated audience?

[PARIS MCCURDY]

Well, I tell you what, it's, it's interesting when Curtis and I decide to make the final decision to sign with Ball State, we had our chance to sit down with Coach Majerus, and we went to Tony's Locker Room. That was one of the big restaurants here in town at that time. And he came in, he got there a little late. He had on a torn off sweatshirt, shorts.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

He was not known for his sartorial splendor like you.

[PARIS MCCURDY]

(laughs) Well, I take that. And he came in and sat down, and he was sweating and everything, and he said, he just got done running. So he sat at the table and as we got into the conversation, the waitress brought out the food. She brought out a bowl of salad. And Coach Majerus, the first thing he did was stuck his hand in the bowl and start eating the salad while he was talking to us.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

With his hands?

[PARIS MCCURDY]

With his hands. Just came right in, and Curtis and I looked at each other and we just nodded. And we knew that this was where we were supposed to come.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

He was blue collar from start to finish.

[PARIS MCCURDY]

Yep.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

Okay. So, as I said, because you transferred, you had to redshirt that first season, 87-88. Then comes the magical 88-89 season, 29 and three overall, a 14-2 record in the MAC. So we're going to talk about the other magical season, the run to the Sweet 16. But what are some of your what is your most favorite memory from that first year? First year for you playing on the court, you and Curtis?

[PARIS MCCURDY]

Well, you know, Curtis and I came to Ball State because we really felt that Ball State was, was ready for some success and had everything in place. It was just a matter of getting a group of guys together that was willing to get out there and get after it. And something that, we were able to really, really do was gel together as one unit. And that was something that Coach Majerus always wanted us to do. We were one unit, so nobody really tried to, you know, stand out over anybody else. We were all in favor of seeing the next guy score, get a shot. Whatever the case may be, even, um, when coach brought on some of the gray shirt guys, he had guys come and try out for the team from the university. Regular students, you know.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

Some people trying to be a walk on?

[PARIS MCCURDY]

Right. And so but he was actually using them to practice. You know, they would run other teams’ plays and things like that. And what I could really appreciate is that he even gave those guys a chance to really get after us, to be able to put a uniform on to play. And I thought that was really special. So we embraced those guys just like they were part of the team. They did everything with us, you know.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

So it's my understanding that back in those days, it was pre-, it was before Worthen Arena had been built. And so you were playing games in Irving Gym. I understand that that place would get packed and would get pretty loud.

[PARIS MCCURDY]

So the fans were really our sixth man, you know, and without them, I don't think that we would have rocked like we did. They were there that the bleachers came right down to the court. They were about, what, 3 or 4 or five feet or something like.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

They were on top of you—

[PARIS MCCURDY]

They were right there. And, I mean, we had we had the, the student support. You know, we had we were friends with the student body.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

Right.

[PARIS MCCURDY]

We were friends and they would come out. And then you have all of the corporate sponsors and Heeter, he was here.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

You can hear Dave Heeter even in Worthen Arena with 11,000 people.

[PARIS MCCURDY]

Yes you can. But yeah, it was some special playing in Irving, you know, we came and when we got here, we had Irving Gym and we had gym two. So Irving Gym was like the big arena for us. You know, we would sometimes go up and play in gym two. But Irving was, it was a special place.

And I think that in order for us to have the success that we had, we needed that vibration from the fans, from the student body, everything. And it was all working together.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

Yeah. So now let's go to the next year. This is the year you made the great run in the NCAA Tournament. In the first round, if I recall correctly, upset Louisville, is that right? And then in the second round, you were up against Oregon State, and they were one of the top three, four, five teams in the country. And you took the shot that beat Oregon State. Tell us a little bit about that.

[PARIS MCCURDY]

Well, I mean, as you well know that, you know, you got it on film, right? 

[GEOFF MEARNS]

You and I looked at that together. 

[PARIS MCCURDY]

Yeah. We checked it out, but I just thought that, something that I relive all the time is the time out. When, uh, it was—

[GEOFF MEARNS]

Set it up for us. 

[PARIS MCCURDY]

So we're down. We call a timeout. It was two seconds on the clock. We go to the bench. Coach sits there and he says Paris. He says Greg Miller. You get Paris. And so in a split second I had all kinds of thoughts like, why are you taking me out of this game? And then all of a sudden he scratched it off and said, no, Paris, you're going to win the game. He drew the play up, and at that point I felt like I had to succeed.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

You were down by two points at the time, I think? 

[PARIS MCCURDY]

That's correct. We were down—

[GEOFF MEARNS]

Two seconds left down two. Coach Majerus has drawn up a play.

[PARIS MCCURDY]

No, no, no. Dick Hunsaker—

[GEOFF MEARNS]

Oh, that's right, this is.

[PARIS MCCURDY]

Yeah. He was. He, Rick had gone out to Utah. Matter of fact, Rick was in the stands watching the game.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

Okay. That's right. But. So the coach has drawn up a play for you—

[PARIS MCCURDY]

Yeah.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

To take the—

[PARIS MCCURDY]

To take the final shot. And so, we just executed the play well. And a matter of fact, we had to have a freshman come in and make the pass. Our starting guard, Scott Nichols, he had fouled out, but he did a great job, you know defending Gary out front. 

[GEOFF MEARNS]

Gary Payton who was maybe the college player of the year that year.

[PARIS MCCURDY]

He was ranked that way, yes he was. And you know we had a chance to go in and step out and run the play. We executed it well as a team. I was fortunately able to hit that shot. And hey, they guy fouled me on the play.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

So you hit the shot, get fouled. It's now tied. Time is expired and you're at the free throw line. There's nobody else on the court, right?

[PARIS MCCURDY]

So, they didn't get a chance to call it a time. I think Oregon was out of timeouts. There was no reason us call a time. I don't know if we were out or not, but, yeah, that was it. I was the only one at the line, so everybody else was at half court and I had to step up there to the line.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

If the shot goes in, you win.

[PARIS MCCURDY]

If I miss it, we tied. It's a tie ball game.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

What was going through your mind as you walked to that free throw line?

[PARIS MCCURDY]

My teammates. I felt like they knew that I was going to make that shot.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

Now, with all due respect, you were not the best free throw shooter on the team, correct? You were a good free throw shooter, but not a great one.

[PARIS MCCURDY]

So I want to go back to a conversation you and I had earlier when we were chatting it up about relativity. So relatively speaking, I was the best free throw shooter in that situation.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

And why is that? So it's not necessarily statistically true, but it's true for another reason.

[PARIS MCCURDY]

Mental toughness. Mental toughness. So just like the coach had me be the one to take that last shot. I'm also that guy that he wanted on that line. If there was anything that if it if it came down to it, he wanted me on that line.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

So as the ball leaves your hand, how did it feel?

[PARIS MCCURDY]

Honestly, I did everything routinely, right?

[GEOFF MEARNS]

So we had the same drill and everything.

[PARIS MCCURDY]

Yeah. So I just I put it up, I let it go, and I smiled. I don't know if you can see it in the in the video clip. I kind of smile because I saw it going. And once I let it go and everybody just came out and—

[GEOFF MEARNS]

And within a second it's all net.

[PARIS MCCURDY]

Yeah. That's correct.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

That must have felt pretty good.

[PARIS MCCURDY]

Yeah.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

So the next game in the Sweet 16 game, you have to play UNLV. Again, another team that's probably one of the best in the country that year. And Ball State lost in a close game 69-67. It was the closest game that UNLV had in the entire tournament run that year. They were beating everybody in the tournament by double digits. Ball State was the most competitive game. So I understand that you said in other conversations like this that you'd love to do that game over, that with given another chance, Ball State would have won that game. What would you have done differently? Why do you have that feeling? You know, in life you don't get a do over. But let's, let's go with it a little bit. What would you do differently?

[PARIS MCCURDY]

Well, I mean it's not a whole lot that I could have done differently. I think that the main reason that I didn't get a chance to get the shot off because again, coach drew the play up for me to take that shot. And when I got it, I had some I had on a new pair of gym shoes that had the sticker still on the bottom. I was wearing them the entire game. Never dawned on me to take to look at the bottom of my shoe. I just kept scrubbing my feet on the floor and just kept rubbing them, you know? But never did feel that that sticker on there. So I just wish that I could go back and take that sticker off that shoe and then see what would have happened.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

Yeah. Among your teammates on that team that year was Rick Hall, who as you know, Rick is now the chair of our Board of t=Trustees. Tell us a little bit about your memories of Rick as a teammate. And then also, what kind of relationship to the two of you maintain all the way to this day? Well, decades later?

[PARIS MCCURDY]

Well, Rick is, Rick was probably a true example of what leadership looks like, right? Rick did everything the way it was supposed to have been done back then. I mean, he worked hard in practice. He did exactly what coach wanted him to do. One of the biggest things that, that really goes a long way with all of the guys that was from that team, was when Rick came in one day, Coach Majerus had found out that Rick got a B in one of his classes.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

Which might have been the only B he got as a student here at Ball State.

[PARIS MCCURDY]

And it was. It was the only B he got that his whole four years here at Ball State. And coach called all of the guys over to them in a huddle when they were talking, and he lit into Rick like, no other time before. I mean, he really gave it to Rick and told him that this goes beyond just the classroom. This is about your life afterwards. And all I can say is that Rick never got another B after that. So...but Rick being the guy that he is being and having the success that he's had is not a surprise to me. I would, I would I would probably, you know, I probably would have lost hope if Rick hadn't been doing the things that he's doing now because that's that was his that was the trajectory of his life, being the person that he was. True friend. True friend. 

[GEOFF MEARNS]

Yeah. And just for the folks who are listening, Rick’s senior year here at Ball State, the NCAA initiated a new award, the Walter Byers Award. There’s one for a woman athlete and one for a male athlete. And it's given to the best all-around star student athlete in the country across all divisions. Division one, two and three. And Rick Hall, a Ball State Cardinal, was the first recipient of the men's Walter Byers Award as the best all-around student athlete in the country.

[PARIS MCCURDY]

That's a true story. I mean, it's undeniable.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

That's a big deal.

[PARIS MCCURDY]

It's a huge deal. It's huge. So that's I guess you could say that's almost like, what is it when they go over to Oxford or something like that?

[GEOFF MEARNS]

Rhodes Scholar.

[PARIS MCCURDY]

Rhodes Scholar, yeah.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

It's even more selective. 

[PARIS MCCURDY]

Yeah, that's right now. But Rick, I mean, just a great dude. I mean, still to this day, you know, and, we still get together. We'll grab a beer. Sit down and just, reminisce, you know, about the , old pass.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

And I think Rick would be the first one to acknowledge that while his GPA was really high. He probably didn't have the same vertical jump that you did.

[PARIS MCCURDY]

Well, I didn't really have a vertical jump either, you know, so I just I mean, I used my skills from the standpoint of fundamentals, you know, just the—

[GEOFF MEARNS]

Position and hustle.

[PARIS MCCURDY]

Yeah. Yeah. Right.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

Yeah. They often say that rebounding is really almost 100% position and hustle.

[PARIS MCCURDY]

Yeah. Because they say that, that 80% 90% of rebounds are below the rim anyway.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

Right. Okay. So after that remarkable season for Ball State, you had an opportunity from the NBA and the NFL. You had some opportunities in both those leagues. Tell us about how you were making that transition from college sports, focusing on basketball, to responding to opportunities to do either pro football or basketball.

[PARIS MCCURDY]

Well, at that point, it just became more about opportunity and will. So after the end of our senior year, that basketball season, Sweet 16 season, I went over to Japan for an All-Star game. Gary Payton, guys like that were all there. When I got back, I had three notes in the basketball office: Green Bay, Dallas Cowboys and the Denver Broncos.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

So these were messages that were sent by three professional teams. And the messages were delivered to the basketball office?

[PARIS MCCURDY]

Correct. They were basically phone calls. And I had to return the calls. So I was actually sitting in my room one day. It was during the draft, the NFL draft. And I thought that it was some of the guys playing a joke on me because I was a jokester. I was a prankster. And so I never forget when one of the teams call, player personnel, he said, “Paris, this is Lyde Huggins calling from the Denver Broncos.” And he went into his spiel and so I looked at the phone—

[GEOFF MEARNS]

You thought it was Curtis Kidd.

[PARIS MCCURDY]

I pulled the phone back from my ear, you know what I mean? And I said, okay, okay. So he asked me, told me they had a draft pick coming up in the fourth round. Asked me if they drafted me would I come. I told him that I had offers to go to the NBA, which I spoke with Cleveland, LA, Milwaukee...it was a couple other teams, Chicago .... and so I was anticipating going to the NBA because they projected me to go in the second round of the NBA draft. So after talking with them, they called me back again in the eighth round, said they had a pick in the 10th and asked me if I would come. And I said, well, I can't promise that I would come there, you know. So they said, well, if we decided would you come in as a free agent? I said, yeah, I would do something like that. So I thought that I could actually do that and wait until the NBA draft came. But once I signed my contract with the Broncos, all bets were off with the NBA.

So that’s a—that’s money. Those draft picks are serious, blah blah blah. You know so—

[GEOFF MEARNS]

It's a business.

[PARIS MCCURDY]

It's a business. Exactly. So once I did that, I was in it and I just moved forward with it.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

So you went out to Denver. You were on the practice squad with Denver, but you didn't ultimately make the—did you make the 53-man roster? Did you get in an NFL game?

[PARIS MCCURDY]

Nope, I didn't. I was on there for a year. They wanted to resign me. The next year, I resigned with Denver. I had an offer from Green Bay as well, but I resigned with Denver because I was with them already. Then I got a call, maybe about three weeks later, from the Sacramento Kings.

[GEOFF MEARNS]
In the NBA?

[PARIS MCCURDY]

In the NBA, and they offered me an opportunity to come and try out there. So when I resigned with Denver, I got a signing bonus to resign with them. I was set to go, and I went in and told Dan Reeves that I wanted to go try out for the NBA.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

And what did Coach Reeves say?

[PARIS MCCURDY]

He actually told me that I could have a career in the NFL. He said they watched me out there on the practice field, and they felt that I was, uh, fit to be an up and coming leader in the NFL, for an NFL team. And he told me that he would honor our agreement by going, you know, if I wanted to go to an NBA team. And I did. The only thing about it, I was giving up a contract to go and try out with the Sacramento Kings. Who they told me that my chances of making the team were like lottery winning odds.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

In other words, long odds.

[PARIS MCCURDY]

It's a long shot, but I went out and did it.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

So you went out to Sacramento?

[PARIS MCCURDY]

Yep, I left Denver. I had to lose 30 pounds because I was 250 at the time, so I had to lose 30 pounds. I had a month and a half to do that before camp started and successfully, I lost those 30 pounds. I was down to 230 at the time. And, um, I went and tried out and I mean, ultimately, what once we went through training camp and they had to select a roster, the newspaper headlines read: “Paris is lovely this time of year.” 

[GEOFF MEARNS]

And so did you get the opportunity to make the final roster?

[PARIS MCCURDY]

(laughs) That was it. That's what did it. That was it. That sealed the deal. Coach Dick Motta was really excited, and, he felt that I was, uh, genuine about my enthusiasm about the game, and, that I had never shirked my duty at all out there during the whole trial period. And, I made the team.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

Okay. How long were you on the team? Because I know you eventually went over to play basketball over in Europe?

[PARIS MCCURDY]

Yeah. So, with that, I ended up being the 12th man. Because Sacramento had drafted Billy Owens. Now this goes back to the business aspect of it. They drafted Billy Owens. Billy Owens didn’t want to come to Sacramento. The only team willing to do a deal with Sacramento was the Golden State Warriors. And they said, okay, we'll take him and we'll give you Mitch Richmond. But also, you have to take Les Jepsen. Les Jepsen had about a $650,000 contract, but he wasn't playing. He was out of Iowa. So they had to take that second guy with him and Dick Motta came and told me what the situation was, and he said, there's nothing I could do. You know, uh....

[GEOFF MEARNS]

Front office made the decision. 

[PARIS MCCURDY]

They had to do it, but, you know, they would lose out on Billy Owens. Because he was planning on—Billy Owens said he was going to sit out the entire year. That's what he would have to do if you don't go to the team that drafts you.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

So he was doing a holdout. He was thinking of doing a hold out?

[PARIS MCCURDY]

Yep, that’s what he's going to do. 

[GEOFF MEARNS]

Right. So as a result of that shuffling, you continued to play professional basketball. But you go over to Europe. Is that right?

[PARIS MCCURDY]

Yeah. Yep, yep. 

[GEOFF MEARNS]

So tell us how that experience, how many years did you play professional basketball in Europe? And what I really like to hear, and I think folks would want to hear, is how did that affect you in terms of your personal growth? Not just professionally, but personally. You're a kid from Detroit and now you're over in Europe playing basketball. And I understand you can now speak French?

[PARIS MCCURDY]

Bien sur. [speaks French]  

[GEOFF MEARNS]

And it's not easy.

[PARIS MCCURDY]

[speaks French]  Yeah. But you know, the experience. No question. Like you said, coming out of the city of Detroit. The different countries I played, I played in, Australia, Japan, Spain, Italy, France and, Turkey. So, you know, I like to tell people that I had a colorful career in basketball, and I played all the way into my last season of 2005., I'm sorry, 2005. That was my last season. And, you know, the biggest thing for me was having a chance to experience all those different cultures. And I didn't just travel there. I was actually immersed in those cultures

[GEOFF MEARNS]

You really seized that opportunity. Not just what was on the court, but what it gave you, the entree it gave you to cities all across the continent.

[PARIS MCCURDY]

And one of the things that I learned is that, you know, as I was hanging out with the guys on the team, I didn't feel like I was growing at all. Because I figured out over there that you can either become smarter, dumber. I mean, alcoholic, right? Womanizer. There's all kinds of other opportunities out there for everything because of the amount of time that we had on our hands. And I was able to get involved with a lot of the, local folks over there. And they really embraced me because I embraced them. I didn't come near talking. Hey, we don't do this. We don't do this in the States and blah, blah, blah. Whatever food they put on the table, that's what I ate. Whatever they did culturally, that's what I did.

And it worked out in my favor from this standpoint. So my biggest takeaway and I tell this to people all the time, my biggest takeaway was the ability to have acceptance, just accepting others. They're not doing anything different. I don't even like to say they're doing something different. They're doing what they do. I was doing what I, what I did here in the States, but it was not, is not different because if I say I'm doing something different, I'm saying, to me, I'm saying mine is better, you know?

So I learned that overseas, going to those other countries. Their focus was quality. Here in the States our focus is quantity.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

Mmhmm.

[PARIS MCCURDY]

And so I really embraced a lot of the things that they do with regards to family, you know, just lifestyle. Living, enjoying life, you know, and, you know, that was kind of a great way to transcend right into what I'm doing here on campus. 

[GEOFF MEARNS]

Yeah. So before we get to that, that's a good segue. But also you when you came back to the States full time, you reengaged with your hometown in Detroit. You've lived there on and off and you've been an entrepreneur there. Tell us about your commitment, your continuing commitment, to your hometown.

[PARIS MCCURDY]

So, you know, right now, to this day, I still get invited to a lot of the different events that go on up in Detroit. I was working with the mayor up there at the time. I worked with the city officials, the, law enforcement, just doing different things to help support community and, you know, Detroit is one of those kind of places that, you know, is not really an attractive place, but it's one of those places that will help you evolve in a way that you can get along anywhere.

And I think that was the biggest, biggest advantage for me growing up in the city of Detroit, because they hustle hard up there is what we say, you know. I think, you may have seen, Kamala Harris, she had on the shirt that said Detroit versus everybody. That's how Detroiters feel up there. So, you know, as you well know, the media that they put out about Detroit being the worst place to be and all that kind of stuff like that. Detroit is bringing some, some, some real life skills to everybody up there that goes to Detroit.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

So as you know, I spent a lot of time growing up in Cleveland and living in Cleveland later. And, there was a t shirt that I think said a similar thing. It said, Cleveland, you've got to be tough.

[PARIS MCCURDY]

Yeah, right.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

Those up and coming cities. So now let's talk about Ball State. You came back to Ball State in 2016 as our director of community diversity initiatives. Tell us a little bit about what that job entails.

[PARIS MCCURDY]

So as you well know, the narrative at some point, was Ball State didn't want the community to be tied into it. Right. So as I was called to come out and do the work that Ball State needed to restore the trust between the community and campus. I saw a way that I could, leverage my past here, being a part of the Muncie community with the success we had with the basketball, the program here. And I was able to get out and figure out how I would be able to dovetail the Muncie community with the campus community. And that was me getting in touch and building relationships with the city leaders, nonprofit organizations, youth programs, youth centers, and, just community members at large. And in doing so, it became, my passion grew for wanting to connect the community with the campus, because I understand the value of Ball State being here.

When you go back and you talk about the history, the purpose of the Ball brothers bringing education here, they said in order for them to compete in this country, they got to bring education here. And this was that—Ball State is that...is the nucleus, I think, of Muncie because we have so much to offer here.

So in my work of tying the community to the campus. You know, it's an ongoing job. You know, it’s really difficult to measure the work that we do out of our Office of Inclusive Excellence. But one of my biggest things that I would like to see is people's minds being transformed.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

So you used a word a moment ago that somebody asked me recently. We had, as part of our ongoing strategic planning process, we had an open forum in the community at Muncie Central, and somebody asked me, what was my main takeaway. And, you know, there are lots of programs, whether it's the Muncie Community Schools, our Village project, our relationship with the collective coalition of concerned clergy.

But for me, the biggest takeaway was that you said a moment ago: we're building trust. We're not all the way there yet, but we're actually building that trust. And that's what will bring about breaking down those barriers of people on campus. Being disinclined to go out into the community, to go to Muncie, to go to the South Side. And the converse, of persuading all of the folks, enticing all the folks and making sure that they feel welcome and belonging on our campus. And it all begins with building trust.

[PARIS MCCURDY]

100%. And one of the things that we're doing, I know that, when I first got here, what, nine years ago, it was very difficult to communicate with the Muncie community. So Charlene was here at the time. Doctor Alexander was here. And one of the things that she wanted me to work on was trying to figure out a way to communicate, get information out to the community.

So we were able to do that through a process, a six year process. I was working with Mark Waters. Loren (Malm) as well. And something that we wanted to do was get these digital bulletin boards in the community. And so we've now successfully got the carousel in place. We have it in one of the local barbershops. So in the barbershop, you have a lot of conversations going on.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

A lot of people hanging out—

[PARIS MCCURDY]

A whole bunch of them. So the best way to get some information out is word of mouth. So we're able to post up there all the things that's going on on on campus. I got to get all the departments to get involved, to help make it sustainable. But they'll be able to advertise athletics performances, job opportunities, because I know that, Kate Stokes is trying to really connect with local talent here to get them here on campus to work.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

To both be employees as well as to be contractors on some of the big construction projects or other projects

[PARIS MCCURDY]

That's correct. So that'll be a medium for us to be able to do that with. Also, we'll be able to split the screen on that monitor and actually work with some of our community partners. So now we're going to help lift them up, because now they can advertise into a demographic of folks that they didn't do before. So that'll be a big deal. That'll be a big deal as well.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

So we're going to get more of those monitors, in lots of places throughout the community.

[PARIS MCCURDY]

Yeah. You'll be able to put some of your videos on there if you want to get a message out. Yeah, you could put it right on there.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

I think we want to have somebody more attractive like you.

[PARIS MCCURDY]

No, no, no, no, I'm behind the scenes. I'm gonna stay behind the scenes.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

I'm on the radio. I'm all audio. So a couple more questions before we wrap up. So in the time when you were a student and now that you've been back, we've seen a lot of change on our campus, both the facilities, but also the demographics of our students in particular. As you know, this last year, the freshman class, once again, 30% of our incoming freshmen are first generation students. We also hit an all-time high 31% of our incoming students, freshmen, are students of color. What did those demographic changes mean to you now that you've seen that over the span of 25, 30 years?

[PARIS MCCURDY]

Well, it means a lot, actually, President Mearns, because I think that's a good example of the type of leadership that we've had here on the campus. And I applaud you as well, because, you know, we've had a chance to have some intimate conversations about the direction that you'd like to see things going in and seeing the students here, the underserved, underrepresented students on our campus like we have now is big, because back when I was here, and that's over 30 years ago, you know, pretty much the minority makeup was pretty much the student athletes, you know, and, you know, it was a far cry from what we see now, you know. The beautification of the campus, the dorms. I mean, the comfort of a campus, it’s really looking like a campus, you know? No, more like a  commuter school, you know, so it's awesome for me to see it. 

[GEOFF MEARNS]

Yeah. And those facilities send a message to students. It communicates a sense of pride in where you are, both a pride of place, pride of the institution and a sense of pride. Self-pride. 

[PARIS MCCURDY]

Absolutely, absolutely.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

So let me ask you the last question—

[PARIS MCCURDY]

Well, hold on before you got here. Let me just interrupt you real quick. But I have to say this by being here now to be able to look over at Worthen Arena and know that I was really a part of that, you know, them building it rom the success that we had. We really galvanized the community, the campus, everybody, to make them say, hey, listen, we might have a program going here. Back when our team was here playing, and that was a part of why, you know, they decided to build that nice arena over there.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

Yeah. And now we, everyone listening. We got to fill it up because we got a couple of very good basketball teams this season.

[PARIS MCCURDY]

Yeah we do. I think we have good chance. And again, it goes back to what you said before earlier about, you know, connecting the program to the community. We got to figure out a way to get that to, to get, you know, the community involved with our athletes, our student athletes.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

They're good athletes. Those are fun games.

[PARIS MCCURDY]

Yeah. They are.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

Okay. So we talked about pride. And you know, even though as you said, it's been 30 years. One thing I know about you that has remained a constant is your pride and affection for Ball State University. And as a student athlete, and now as one of our partners on campus. One of the things that I appreciate about you is that you embody the enduring values of Ball State.

These are the values, as you know, that are represented by the iconic Statue of Beneficence. And that statue is, really, a symbol of our mission to empower our students. And it also means, at its core, beneficence means doing good for other people through service and philanthropy. So if you would tell us, as you reflect on your own Ball State experience, the past, the current, and maybe what you hope to accomplish in the future, what does beneficence what does doing good for other people? What does that mean to you?

[PARIS MCCURDY]

Well, as you well know, beneficence has many facets, right? And, it's all about giving and giving of yourself. So beneficence gives life to me. And, you know, a simple example would be like when you see somebody on campus without a smile, there's an opportunity for you to give them one of yours, you know. And, um, Jackie Robinson, he has a quote, and I think it fits. And he says that life is not important except in the impact it has on other lives. And I think that that's really in line with beneficence and what we have here on this campus. So from, you know, from my standpoint, you know, when it comes to, we all have gifts, right? And I think it's super important that our gifts should be used on helping others.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

Yeah. What I like to say at commencement is that I think, as I've learned over time, life is a precious gift, and it's been given to you so that you can share it with other people who need you to have that impact on other people.

[PARIS MCCURDY]

On that, I have to say Amen.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

Yeah. So great to be with you, Paris McCurdy. 

[PARIS MCCURDY]

It's a treat, Prez. It's a treat.

[GEOFF MEARNS]

Okay. Take good care.

[PARIS MCCURDY]

Will do.