Don’t Mess With Happy, Mark Few Explains Why Tommy Lloyd Stayed Put

Mark Few used a Hall of Fame weekend in Indianapolis to reflect on more than his own career. The Gonzaga coach also looked back on Tommy Lloyd, their long partnership, and the chance that Lloyd might have left Arizona for another opening.

Few’s message was simple: stability matters, and success often comes from staying in the right place. “Don’t mess with happy,” he said, explaining why he believed Lloyd understood the value of building something lasting at Gonzaga and later at Arizona.

Few’s Hall of Fame moment and the Gonzaga legacy

Few was announced as part of the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame class of 2026, a recognition that fits his record at Gonzaga. He has led the Bulldogs to 26 straight NCAA Tournament appearances and two national title games, turning a once low-profile program in Spokane into a national power.

The coach said the honor felt like validation for Gonzaga’s rise and his own path from a small town in Oregon. He grew up in Creswell, where he said the Hall of Fame once felt far beyond reach.

Tommy Lloyd and the coaching tree

Lloyd’s presence in Indianapolis added another layer to the weekend. The Arizona coach worked with Few for more than 20 years, starting when Few first took over at Gonzaga and made room for a young assistant who had not been on staff.

Few said Lloyd fit the program because he was willing to do everything that Gonzaga required. He also praised Arizona for hiring Lloyd in 2021, calling the move “brilliant” and a sign of how far Gonzaga’s coaching tree had reached.

Why Few believed Lloyd would stay

Few said he was not surprised when Lloyd did not leave Arizona for another job that circulated in coaching talks. He pointed to the bond Lloyd had with Gonzaga and the broader lesson Few learned from his own long stay in one place.

The coach also tied that thinking to his family background, noting that his father served as a Presbyterian minister in Creswell for 54 years. That kind of loyalty, Few suggested, shaped his view of what it means to build a career without constantly moving on.

Key points from Few’s comments

1. Gonzaga has become a lasting national force under Few’s leadership.
2. Tommy Lloyd spent more than two decades under Few before taking the Arizona job.
3. Few said Arizona’s decision to hire Lloyd was a strong move for the program.
4. Few believes job stability and happiness can be part of long-term success.
5. The 2021 title-game loss to Baylor still carries weight because Gonzaga played in a restricted pandemic setting.

The 2021 run still stands out

Few also revisited Gonzaga’s perfect run to the championship game, which ended with an 86-70 loss to Baylor. He said the biggest regret from that season was that the team never got to play in front of a full crowd because of pandemic restrictions.

He noted that Gonzaga’s win over UCLA in the semifinal should have been celebrated by a packed arena, not by cardboard cutouts and a limited group of friends and family. That memory still shapes how he remembers the season and the assistants who were part of it.

A full-circle Final Four setting

Lloyd’s return to the Final Four with Arizona gave the weekend extra meaning for Few. The two coaches shared the stage in a city tied to both of their careers, while Gonzaga’s past and present remained linked through the staff they built together.

Few’s remarks made clear that the coaching profession may churn quickly, but some bonds last. In his view, Lloyd’s rise and Gonzaga’s stability both show why, sometimes, the best move is to stay where the culture already works.