THE CHEAP SEATS with STEVE CAMERON: Zags growing tired of Few? Not likely

I’ve been doing this for a long time now.

Once in a while, I hear from someone or receive an email that makes me go, “Whoa!”

Really angry responses are more common in big cities, and frankly, I like the sensible conversations you find in North Idaho.

To give you an idea of the difference, I got three death threats when I was a columnist at the Denver Post.

The paper had a policy that when a reporter was legitimately threatened, we had to notify the FBI.

Somehow, word got out and the Miami Herald sent a reporter to Colorado, specifically to cover my day-to-day routine for a week — and to see if someone would come after me with a baseball bat.

Anyhow.

Life in the sports world is far calmer in the Northwest, which is why the messages I’ve gotten in the past few weeks have been shockers.

This was the first one …

“Gonzaga is going backwards, and it’s all about coaching. Time for a change. What can I say? Thanks for the memories, but we’ve hit the finish line. #FewOut.”

And then …

“The Zags best players are now at Arizona. Tommy Lloyd is picking Few’s pocket.”

AS OF Tuesday afternoon, I had 11 emails packing some version of the same message.

Few has lost his magic.

The timing is bizarre, to say the least, since Few is on the verge of being inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame.

Lloyd, of course, may win a national championship with Arizona next Monday.

Most of these emails either hint — or flat-out announce — that it might have been Lloyd, not Few, sprinkling pixie dust on the Gonzaga program all those years.

One thing is certain: The people I’m hearing from credit Lloyd with most of the Zags’ spectacular recruiting over the 22 years Tommy worked for Mark Few.

Let’s get a grasp on all this without going bonkers.

Lloyd has been gone for five years, and I haven’t noticed Gonzaga stumbling to any 7-win seasons.

Until the 2025 NCAA tournament, the Zags were carrying a record nine consecutive trips to the Elite Eight.

In ’25, the Zags got an awful seeding, wound up playing national finalist Houston in the second round, and got knocked out far sooner than that team’s talent should have merited.

This year, Few had to deal with the injury loss of Braden Huff, the slick 6-11 shooter who combined with Graham Ike as one of the best big-man combos in the nation.

The Zags’ second-round loss to Texas wasn’t exactly embarrassing, but you surely could call it a surprise.

And to be honest, that was a game in which Few seemed to let it get away from him.

Nothing catastrophic, but for serious Zag junkies who want every game, it was doggone unpleasant in a tournament that will celebrate Arizona in the Final Four.

AS FOR Lloyd, there may be a battle coming to keep him in the desert.

With Arizona advancing at every step, rumors that North Carolina plans to offer Tommy everything from tons of money to a Caribbean island are getting louder and louder.

For what it’s worth, Lloyd’s friends think he’s happy in Tucson — wanting only more money for his staff — and isn’t cooing back at Carolina.

Meantime, believe it or not, there are money people who care deeply about Gonzaga and want to try luring Tommy back to Spokane — if only Few will retire to the lake life in Coeur d’Alene.

Those twin moves are less than likely.

Far less.

Place your bet on Lloyd staying at Arizona.

The bigger question is whether Few’s recent critics are seeing something real — or just muttering to the basketball gods because Gonzaga hasn’t been to the Final Four in a while.

Hey, Few hasn’t forgotten how to coach — not after 773 wins and a success clip of 83 percent.

He just needs to find another rebounder and, please, a couple more guys who can shoot.

My guess?

All will be well at The Kennel.

Email: [email protected]

Steve Cameron’s “Cheap Seats” columns appear in The Press three times each week, normally Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday unless, you know, stuff happens.

Steve suggests you take his opinions in the spirit of a Jimmy Buffett song: “Breathe In, Breathe Out, Move On."