Runnin’ with the Racers Podcast – Guard Sleets Was Super
6/18/2023 3:58:00 PM | Men's Basketball, Hall of Fame
Lamont Sleets set the bar for guards at Murray State from 1979-84.
Murray State men's basketball great Lamont Sleets and 1994 MSU Hall Fame inductee, was the guest on the Runnin' with the Racers Podcast to recall his days of playing for Coach Ron Greene from 1979-84.
The Runnin' with the Racers Podcast posts each week to GoRacers.com, Spotify, iTunes and Soundcloud.
Sleets marked the 54th Murray State hall of famer to be featured on the program, hosted by Dave Winder.
From Eminence to Murray
Sleets still lives today in his hometown of Eminence, Kentucky. The small town of less than 3,000 residents sits north of I-64 between Louisville and Frankfort.
Five years behind world class sprinter Jim Green and Sleets lived in the same Eminence neighborhood. Green was about five years older and went on to a great career at the University of Kentucky as multiple NCAA sprint champion and was the fastest human on the planet in 1971.
"That's right, the fastest man in the world was very inspirational to me," Sleets said. "I just saw Jim work very hard and he made me want to do the same. I liked the way he carried himself, he was just mildly manner, nice guy. I'd see him run by my house and he was fast, that I felt a breeze on the porch!"
At Eminence High School, Sleets was well known in Region-8 as a player that could take over a game.
While he was a prime recruiting target for Coach Ron Greene and his staff, Sleets was putting up amazing numbers. As a junior in 1977-78, Sleets scored 32 points per game. In the Region-8 Tournament in 1979, he hit 17-of-25 from the field for 47 of Eminence's 59 points in a 60-59 loss to Grant County.
"We lost by a point, so I guess I should've passed more," Sleets surmised. "I'll never forget that game, I was averaging 33 a game, some nights I'd score 40."
When his three-year prep career was done at Eminence, Sleets had scored 1,944 points and was on his way to Murray State in the fall of 1978.
Assistant coaches Steve Newton and Mike Dill began recruiting Sleets long before other suitors and Sleets felt a sense of loyalty when it came time to decide.
"I was really impressed with Coach Newton and Coach Dill." Sleets said. "I believed what they were telling me about Coach Greene's plans to build a winner. I met Coach Greene again at the district tournament and he didn't mind the way I played. Coach Greene knew what I could do best. I was not a great defensive player, but I could score a lot. My jumper was good as gold and he recruited me to do that. I wasn't great defensively or rebounding, but if you needed a basket? I could go get it. I am glad that I made the choice to come to Murray State, it was one of the best decisions I've made in my life.
Sleets Joins Greene's Vision
In the 1978-79 season, Sleets was still at Eminence when Ron Greene's rebuilding job at Murray State was just beginning. The Racers won only four games in Greene's first season, but Racer fans gained a dose of confidence when two of those four wins came against arch rival Western Kentucky.
Arriving with Sleets in the fall of 1979 was a group of talented players including fellow freshman Glen Green. The Racers also had Mississippi State transfer, Gary Hooker who became the 1980 Ohio Valley Conference Player of the Year. Kenney Hammonds, Allen Mann, Michael Davis, Walt Davis and Jerry Smith gave the Racers a solid chance of winning.
And the Racers did a lot of winning the Racers did, 23 times, while tying the NCAA record for most improvement.
"Did I think we could go from four wins to 23? I don't know about that," Sleets said. "When I visited Murray, I got on the court with some of those guys I thought we're going to be alright. The way Coach Greene and his staff prepared us for games gave us a lot of confidence. We were pushed hard and we were pushed to play fast, which is what we all wanted to do. It was fun, because I was a freshman and they threw me to the wolves. At first, Coach Greene kind of scared me at times (laughs), I didn't want to let him down because I didn't want to get yelled at. We used to call him the bulldog because that's how he was. He coached you hard and he fought for his team."
Sleets was named All-OVC for the 1979-80 season, which put him on the path of becoming the Racers first four-time honoree. In his freshman season, he scored 16.8 points per game and dished out what was the MSU record of 157 assists. Sleets' 522 points made him the first MSU freshman to top 500 points in a season, a mark that has been matched only one time since, by Cameron Payne with 572 points in the 2013-14 season.
Under Ron Greene, the Racers beefed up their schedule and took on the likes of Indiana, Kansas, Memphis and Texas. On the night of Dec. 7, 1981, the Racers rolled into Notre Dame and beat the No. 19 ranked Fighting Irish 56-54. Sleets didn't play in the Notre Dame game because of a nagging foot injury that cost him the entire 1981-82 season.
He avoided the injury bug most of the time, except when he began feeling pain in his foot in the later part of the 1980-81 season. Sleets was shut down with a broken bone in his foot only three games into the 1981-82 season.
"I just didn't know (about foot pain), I was country and I didn't know any better, I kept thinking I'll be all right." Sleets said. "I just kept going and that foot wasn't getting any better. Because I loved the community of Murray, our fans and the university, I didn't, want to let anybody down."
The record book shows the foot got better and Sleets resumed his greatness in the 1982-83 season with a scoring average of 16.9 points per game with 117 assists.
Sleets helped the Racers to three OVC regular season championships in 1980, 1982 and 1983. The Racers had tough luck in getting to the NCAA Tournament, but they made two NIT appearances and hosted the program's first postseason game at Racer Arena against Wake Forest on March 17, 1983. In front of a home sellout crowd of more than 5,500, Sleets scored 16 points.
Once a Racer – Always a Racer
As the years have gone by, Lamont Sleets keeps up with the Racers and is very interested in how the team is doing.
The fact that the Racers have had a knack of turning out great guards hasn't been lost on Sleets either. Racer Nation knows the history and they know how good Sleets was. From Don Mann in the late 1980's, to star guards including Frank Allen (1989-93), Aubrey Reese (1997-00), Isacc Miles (2008-11), Isaiah Canaan (2009-13), Cameron Payne (2013-15), Jonathan Stark (2016-18) and Ja Morant (2017-19), the Racers have recruited some amazing guards and some call Murray State Point Guard U.
"Back in the day when Isaiah Canaan was doing his thing, Bennie Purcell came up to me at a game one night and asked me what I thought about that kid," Sleets recalls. "I said he looks pretty good to me! All of the things he was doing, it just speaks to the program and the great players that come to Murray State. I've been very impressed and it feels good for people to say that about me."
Follow the Racers on Twitter (@MSURacers), Instagram (@RacersAthletics) and Facebook to stay up-to-date on all that is happening with Murray State Athletics. Follow Murray State men's basketball on Twitter and Instagram (@RacersHoops).
The Runnin' with the Racers Podcast posts each week to GoRacers.com, Spotify, iTunes and Soundcloud.
Sleets marked the 54th Murray State hall of famer to be featured on the program, hosted by Dave Winder.
From Eminence to Murray
Sleets still lives today in his hometown of Eminence, Kentucky. The small town of less than 3,000 residents sits north of I-64 between Louisville and Frankfort.
Five years behind world class sprinter Jim Green and Sleets lived in the same Eminence neighborhood. Green was about five years older and went on to a great career at the University of Kentucky as multiple NCAA sprint champion and was the fastest human on the planet in 1971.
"That's right, the fastest man in the world was very inspirational to me," Sleets said. "I just saw Jim work very hard and he made me want to do the same. I liked the way he carried himself, he was just mildly manner, nice guy. I'd see him run by my house and he was fast, that I felt a breeze on the porch!"
At Eminence High School, Sleets was well known in Region-8 as a player that could take over a game.
While he was a prime recruiting target for Coach Ron Greene and his staff, Sleets was putting up amazing numbers. As a junior in 1977-78, Sleets scored 32 points per game. In the Region-8 Tournament in 1979, he hit 17-of-25 from the field for 47 of Eminence's 59 points in a 60-59 loss to Grant County.
"We lost by a point, so I guess I should've passed more," Sleets surmised. "I'll never forget that game, I was averaging 33 a game, some nights I'd score 40."
When his three-year prep career was done at Eminence, Sleets had scored 1,944 points and was on his way to Murray State in the fall of 1978.Assistant coaches Steve Newton and Mike Dill began recruiting Sleets long before other suitors and Sleets felt a sense of loyalty when it came time to decide.
"I was really impressed with Coach Newton and Coach Dill." Sleets said. "I believed what they were telling me about Coach Greene's plans to build a winner. I met Coach Greene again at the district tournament and he didn't mind the way I played. Coach Greene knew what I could do best. I was not a great defensive player, but I could score a lot. My jumper was good as gold and he recruited me to do that. I wasn't great defensively or rebounding, but if you needed a basket? I could go get it. I am glad that I made the choice to come to Murray State, it was one of the best decisions I've made in my life.
Sleets Joins Greene's Vision
In the 1978-79 season, Sleets was still at Eminence when Ron Greene's rebuilding job at Murray State was just beginning. The Racers won only four games in Greene's first season, but Racer fans gained a dose of confidence when two of those four wins came against arch rival Western Kentucky.
Arriving with Sleets in the fall of 1979 was a group of talented players including fellow freshman Glen Green. The Racers also had Mississippi State transfer, Gary Hooker who became the 1980 Ohio Valley Conference Player of the Year. Kenney Hammonds, Allen Mann, Michael Davis, Walt Davis and Jerry Smith gave the Racers a solid chance of winning.
And the Racers did a lot of winning the Racers did, 23 times, while tying the NCAA record for most improvement.
"Did I think we could go from four wins to 23? I don't know about that," Sleets said. "When I visited Murray, I got on the court with some of those guys I thought we're going to be alright. The way Coach Greene and his staff prepared us for games gave us a lot of confidence. We were pushed hard and we were pushed to play fast, which is what we all wanted to do. It was fun, because I was a freshman and they threw me to the wolves. At first, Coach Greene kind of scared me at times (laughs), I didn't want to let him down because I didn't want to get yelled at. We used to call him the bulldog because that's how he was. He coached you hard and he fought for his team."
Sleets was named All-OVC for the 1979-80 season, which put him on the path of becoming the Racers first four-time honoree. In his freshman season, he scored 16.8 points per game and dished out what was the MSU record of 157 assists. Sleets' 522 points made him the first MSU freshman to top 500 points in a season, a mark that has been matched only one time since, by Cameron Payne with 572 points in the 2013-14 season.
Under Ron Greene, the Racers beefed up their schedule and took on the likes of Indiana, Kansas, Memphis and Texas. On the night of Dec. 7, 1981, the Racers rolled into Notre Dame and beat the No. 19 ranked Fighting Irish 56-54. Sleets didn't play in the Notre Dame game because of a nagging foot injury that cost him the entire 1981-82 season.
He avoided the injury bug most of the time, except when he began feeling pain in his foot in the later part of the 1980-81 season. Sleets was shut down with a broken bone in his foot only three games into the 1981-82 season.
"I just didn't know (about foot pain), I was country and I didn't know any better, I kept thinking I'll be all right." Sleets said. "I just kept going and that foot wasn't getting any better. Because I loved the community of Murray, our fans and the university, I didn't, want to let anybody down."
The record book shows the foot got better and Sleets resumed his greatness in the 1982-83 season with a scoring average of 16.9 points per game with 117 assists.
Sleets helped the Racers to three OVC regular season championships in 1980, 1982 and 1983. The Racers had tough luck in getting to the NCAA Tournament, but they made two NIT appearances and hosted the program's first postseason game at Racer Arena against Wake Forest on March 17, 1983. In front of a home sellout crowd of more than 5,500, Sleets scored 16 points.
Once a Racer – Always a Racer
As the years have gone by, Lamont Sleets keeps up with the Racers and is very interested in how the team is doing.
The fact that the Racers have had a knack of turning out great guards hasn't been lost on Sleets either. Racer Nation knows the history and they know how good Sleets was. From Don Mann in the late 1980's, to star guards including Frank Allen (1989-93), Aubrey Reese (1997-00), Isacc Miles (2008-11), Isaiah Canaan (2009-13), Cameron Payne (2013-15), Jonathan Stark (2016-18) and Ja Morant (2017-19), the Racers have recruited some amazing guards and some call Murray State Point Guard U.
"Back in the day when Isaiah Canaan was doing his thing, Bennie Purcell came up to me at a game one night and asked me what I thought about that kid," Sleets recalls. "I said he looks pretty good to me! All of the things he was doing, it just speaks to the program and the great players that come to Murray State. I've been very impressed and it feels good for people to say that about me."
Follow the Racers on Twitter (@MSURacers), Instagram (@RacersAthletics) and Facebook to stay up-to-date on all that is happening with Murray State Athletics. Follow Murray State men's basketball on Twitter and Instagram (@RacersHoops).
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