Editor’s note: Este artículo está traducido al español.

As he traditionally does around this time every year, Brian Greenspun is turning over his Where I Stand column to others. Today’s guest is Joshua Pastner, the head coach of the UNLV men’s basketball team.

Every morning, I pinch myself. When I was first able to put on a polo with that iconic UNLV logo, the hair on the back of my neck stood up. I’m the head coach of the UNLV Runnin’ Rebels. This is my dream job.

For me, like for so many of you, the legend of this program is deeply personal. Growing up, I watched coach Jerry Tarkanian and the legendary teams of the ’80s and ’90s. They were the coolest of the cool. The level they were winning at — a stretch of winning 88% of their games — is surreal in any sport. Later, as a player and assistant coach at a rival, the University of Arizona, I saw firsthand what made this job so special. The rivalry between coach Lute Olson and Tarkanian was fierce because they were the best of the best, and their programs were absolute juggernauts.

My connection to this city runs deep. For 30 years, I’ve been coming to Las Vegas for grassroots basketball. My father ran tournaments here. I played in them, some right here on the UNLV campus. I’ve coached in them and recruited from them. Through it all, I’ve always said this program is a sleeping giant. Now, I’m humbled and honored to be sitting in this chair.

Since my arrival in March, I’ve had the pleasure of meeting the incredible people of Las Vegas and the fiercely loyal Runnin’ Rebels faithful. I want to be perfectly clear: This program is your program. This team is your team. This is Las Vegas’ team.

Our vision is to build a team that reflects the identity of this city: tough, resilient and relentlessly hard-working. When you spend your money on a ticket or contribute to our student-athletes, you deserve to see a team that plays with gratitude and fire on every single possession. There will be nights the shots don’t fall, but there can never be an off-night when it comes to effort. You deserve to see a team that dives for every loose ball as if winning that single possession is more important than breathing. We will not be outworked. That is my promise to you, and that is how we will earn your support.

To deliver on that promise, we hit the transfer portal hard with an emphasis on two factors: shooting and toughness. We sought out student-athletes from winning environments who understand what it takes to succeed. Now, our work is to mold these new pieces into a cohesive unit. Building that chemistry takes time, and there are no guarantees. Our guys know that every minute of playing time will be earned in practice, not given.

We have tremendous respect for the Mountain West, which is a great basketball league full of talented players and excellent coaches. Our goal is to compete for conference championships and to hear our name called on Selection Sunday.

To get there, we must be the Runnin’ Rebels — not the Walking Rebels or the Slow-Down Rebels. But you can’t run if you don’t get stops. It all starts on defense. We will hang our hat on our defensive tenacity, because defense travels. We will create opportunities in transition and play a brand of basketball that is exciting to watch and honors this program’s legacy..

As we look toward November, my glass isn’t just half-full; it’s overflowing. Las Vegas is the epicenter of the sports and entertainment world, and this program belongs right in the middle of it all. We need you with us on this journey. To those who have already bought your season tickets, thank you. To those who haven’t, we need your support to turn the Thomas & Mack Center back into the roaring madhouse it once was. With our fans as our sixth and seventh man, it can once again be the best home-court advantage in all of college basketball. Please visit UNLVtickets.com or call 702-739-FANS (3267) to purchase your tickets.

This is a partnership. If you have ideas, thoughts or suggestions on how we can make this program better, I want to hear from you. Please email me directly at [email protected]. I read them all, and I promise I will get back to you.

The excitement is real. The work has begun. We can’t wait to see you at the Mack.

Let’s go, Rebels!

Josh Pastner was hired in March as the UNLV men’s basketball coach.