H o o p s C o r n e r . c o m
-------------------- October 18, 2005 NBA secret formulas...shhh
During an NBA season there's always a moment when a certain transaction happens and the fans can't quite figure out what just went on. Sometimes it might take the shape of a team executive's personnel decisions, and it turns out that those moves just happen to have everyone scratching their heads wondering what the decison maker was thinking. Well rest assured, considering the stakes involved, there's always a reason behind those sort of decisions. Good or bad. We've assembled a few of those NBA personnel moves that take place frequently (relatively) and have explained them for all. We call them (drum roll) the secret formulas. Sure a seasoned NBA follower will know the reasoning behind some of these moves, but to a neophyte, it might just seem like nonsense. Coaching resignation: This is the preferred exit method for big name and well established coaches. When a coach known for delivering results turns out to be a bust, this is the only option left when his bosses are unhappy with the results. The practice is popular because it helps the coach save face. Best of all though, because this is mostly used in the case of Hall of Famers, whose careers will be documentated in history books, it handily avoids an unsightly record of a dishonorable discharge on his resume. Lenny Wilkens resigned from the Hawks in 2000, the Raptors in 2003 and from the Knicks in 2005. Translation: in less than a decade this great NBA coach has been fired 3 times. Lenny Wilkens has won more NBA games then any other NBA coach and if you combine his playing career to his coaching career, he has experienced more NBA games than anyone ever. He has played or coached in well over 3,300 NBA games. No talk about NBA coaching greats would be final without him being mentioned. A similar situation happened in Dallas with coach Don Nelson. Sure they said he resigned because of health reasons, but don't overlook the fact that he hasn't taken the team anywhere near its potential. Since they had their first winning season in 2000-01 at 59-23, there haven't been any other breakthroughs. Mark Cuban was getting impatient and Avery Johnson proved capable the few times he took over for Nelson. Rudy Tomjanovich known for delivering titles when odds are against him, left the Rockets and Lakers on similar terms. Underpaid stars: This one goes many ways. Either the player in question had no idea how good he would be, and signed an inferior contract. Probably the most famous case of this scenario is Scottie Pippen when he was with the Chicago Bulls playing alongside Michael Jordan. A health condition had the team and himself believing he would be just another player in the NBA, not the benchmark for small forwards. If you consider the circumstance when he signed the contract though, the Bulls were taking a gamble. However as his health issues went away the team asked him to honor the deal he made. They became greedy then, but remember they could have been stuck paying him for all those years even if he never became the player he was. The Bulls were almost going through the same situation with Eddy Curry before they traded him to New York this summer. Sorry Big Ed, but no one sees the star potential as with Pippen. Other times this issue is simply based on loyalty: As in the case of Shawn Kemp. Shawn Kemp (The Reignman) had signed a contract which reflected the situation of the team at the time. They simply couldn't afford him. But he still decided to stick with Seattle. However as their situation improved (the revenue generated by Kemp and Payton winning games) and they started signing players to mega contracts, Kemp felt cheated and his loyalty to the team violated. He stopped caring and by the end of his contract he was sent to Cleveland in '97 where it seemed all the pressure became too much. But we suspect the Sonics would have anteed up on him, especially since the Lakers and Jazz were rising up in the standings. If you ever catch yourself wondering why there are no loyal players, remember these two cases. -------------------- Previous: Interview with Ray Articles index |
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