walton rips larry brown

[leemajors]

Just Gimme Some Truth
Insider
Walton
By Bill Walton
ESPN Insider
Archive
Related Video:
NBA fines Wallace and Karl ESPN Motion

I wanted so badly for this Eastern Conference final to be a great series, hopefully one of the best of all time. I love this game and I know how important this all is when everything is on the line here and I came with good intentions.

But Larry Brown has shown his true colors, letting the disease of conceit create an untenable mess that I can't see a way out of for him. This is officially a disaster of epic proportions.

When this story first started simmering early this week, we were all waiting for the next Mark Felt and the new Deep Throat to shine the light in the darkest of corners. Amazingly, we didn't have to wait anywhere near 30 years for this one. Brown took care of that when he stuck his own foot deep down in his throat.

Shame on Larry Brown. Rest assured I have no rooting interest whatsoever here, other than for a great game and I find myself mad as can be, unable to let it go.

This scam is the Jeff Van Gundy story on steroids. The difference being that Van Gundy called in the question of the integrity of the league and the honesty of the refs and is rewarded with a contract extension, while Brown quits on his team in the middle of the Eastern Conference championship game and is given the state of Ohio and the future of the NBA.

Brown's selfishness and his greedy addiction to his own personal agenda has left an indelible stain on everything and his egregious actions have completely overshadowed a potentially great series. Now, Brown is taking the low road by blaming the media and laying it on the messenger as if this is all somehow our fault.

He is doing things on a continuing basis that he would never tolerate from his own players. All we ever hear from this guy is about doing things the "right way." Please, Larry, explain to me how this can be the "right way."

He is coaching one team and running another and in a business that reeks of conflicts of interest, this is the ultimate conflict of interest. One of the major roles of a good coach is to set the moral tone, for lesser, younger and inexperienced team members to follow.

But when I watch Larry Brown today in the huddles, at his press conferences, anything and everything, really all I see is fakery. A good coach with quality values and the best interest of the team at heart has the difficult task of asking his players to do things that are risky and not always in their best interest. He has abrogated that position of authority.

If I played for him and he did to me what he has done to his Detroit Pistons, I would lose complete faith and confidence in him as both a coach and a person. The next time he called the team together before the game for his last minute pre-game speech in the locker room, I would just get up and walk out asking him on my way out the door why I should ever listen to anything he has to say anymore.

How can they ever trust anything he does again? How can you believe anything he ever says again?

He has done the worst thing that anyone can do to a group dynamic, he has made himself the story and it's not even a good story at that. The Brown apologists will now start coming out of the woodwork. They will start spinning blame, responsibility and accountability on someone or something else, but the truth is this whole mess is as bad as it gets.

Those same enablers will claim that the Pistons gave the Cavaliers the right to talk to Brown and that this is all a non-story. The Pistons sure seem to be saying to Cleveland, that if you want him you can have him and none too soon.

His actions show that he cares about nothing but himself and if he doesn't care about his own team, why should we care about anything that's going on here?

The owner, Mr. Davidson, is one of the classiest owners in NBA history. He deserves so much better than this and what about the Piston fans, the ones who really make this all work?

I'm amazed that he's allowed to stay on as a member of the Pistons particularly in light of all the "right way" preaching that we heard this summer at the Athens Olympics about giving him players who want to be there as part of a real team. It sure seems that he's the one who has to go.

My other question is: Where is LeBron James in all of this? Why hasn't he spoken up? Is he in on this or is there some sort of a post-Olympic hangover for LeBron about not getting a lot of playing time because of his coach who was so insistent on his players doing things the right way.

Somewhere, Dean Smith and the many distinguished North Carolina alumni are shaking their heads in disgust. This is the kind of thing you would expect from George Karl, but not Larry Brown. This is a guy who seemingly every other phrase out of his mouth is to please, do it the right way. Please, gag me with a spoon!

Now there's the question of the new Cleveland coach who is reportedly there because of Brown. I'm sure that Mike Brown is terrific in all things, but he has never coached an NBA game in his life and while everybody has to get their start somewhere, the Cavaliers have one chance to keep LeBron and they're going with a rookie coach?

This whole debacle cannot be about money for him because along with Don Nelson and Pat Riley, nobody has made a bigger fortune coaching in the NBA than Brown.

This whole story is so bad, that Rasheed Wallace now looks like the rational one of the bunch.

Bill Walton, an NBA analyst for ESPN, is a regular contributor to Insider.


harsh words from mr walton.

[Sense]

I just heard it on ESPN...



Nothing that surprises me from Walton..

[Kori Ellis]

I agree with Walton. I don't get why Larry Brown and the Cavs couldn't wait a couple weeks. The Pistons are trying to win a title - this is not time for their coach to be interested in other endeavors.

[AFE7FATMAN]

IMO
I think that Walton has finally gotten something right bsides his quote

of "Defense wins champions, but you better be able to put the ball in the hole."

[orhe]

larry brown sucks...
FAKER :))

[boutons]

Typcial over-the-top, florid overstatement, but Bill is right on the money. Larry has yielded any and all moral authority to talk about playing basektball The Right Way.

In Spurs terms, what is the moral authority and moral obligation? It's when your teammate goes out to play hard, not a word said, on the road, in an elimination game, and gets 31 and 15, while winning his team another trophy. As his teammate, you better fucking be ready every fucking night to play shoulder to shoulder with him, and don't even think about riding on his coattails.

[duncan_21]

Didn't read the article. I had enough of him announcing for the playoffs. He might have a point but I need a long break from waltons idiotic comments be it written or verbal.

[Sense]

He did exaggerate when he said that Rasheed was making more sense than him...


Or something like that.

[Obi wan Ginobili]

The crack on Mike Brown wasn't really needed.

[PM5K]

The crack on Mike Brown wasn't really needed.

It's not a crack, it's a statement and a credible one at that.

[timvp]

I've always hated Larry Brown and this is why. While he's a very good coach, he's a nomad of the worst kind. The only interest he has is his own.

Him and Pop being friends is amazing. Pop is pretty much the opposite of LB.

[whottt]

Walton is dead-on...but Larry Brown has always been that way. He's a great coach but he whines and he's full of it. He's also a major nag who wears quick on his players...AI being the exception.

IIRC...the Spurs players were not sorry to see him go when he left here as coach...including DRob. Of course...I don't think they realized that you can do a hell of a lot worse than Larry Brown as your coach...in fact they did so for several years after he left.

I can't remember if he was fired or quit...I think it was a combination of both.

[whottt]

I've always hated Larry Brown and this is why. While he's a very good coach, he's a nomad of the worst kind. The only interest he has is his own.

Him and Pop being friends is amazing. Pop is pretty much the opposite of LB.

I think Pop feels a sense of loyalty to Brown because he(Pop) probably learned quite a bit from him, and Brown helped him break into the NBA.

Pop probably wouldn't be where he is now without Brown, and like Brown or not, in terms of x's and o's and motivation, he's a great fucking coach. It's not like Pop was tearing it up at Pomona before hooking up with Brown.

[NASHville]

I think Larry has proven that he can multi-task with the best of them.

[BronxCowboy]

I think Walton is right about LB. But you know what they say, even a broken clock . . .

[boutons]

I happened to catch Mike Brown's Cavs press conference on NBATV. Among the 4 or 5 names he thanked for helping him along the way to get to head coaching job was Greg Popovich. Mike's got his hands full now.

[SequSpur]

Larry Brown has wanted out all year. Ever since the big fight. Ever since he had a hysterectomy or whatever.....

Larry Brown is through. Waste of legit Spurs topic space on the Spurs forum.

It's Championship time and there seems to be a disrespected rash of bullshit topics in the Spurs forum. Its upsetting.

[ALVAREZ6]

I've always hated Larry Brown and this is why. While he's a very good coach, he's a nomad of the worst kind. The only interest he has is his own.

Exactly.

Larry Brown doesn't spend much time with 1 team, but what coach does these days anyway? Larry is so interested in his job in Cleveland, when he is still competing to be in the NBA Finals. That is complete bullshit.

All he ever wanted was a championship, and he got it. Now that he has it, he wants to go to a different franchise. He's done with the Pistons, he used them for a ring.

[ducks]

pistons gave him permission to talk to cavs AFTER THE SEASON
Larry has 3 or 4 more years on his contract. HE SHOULD HONOR IT. HE IS STUPID+GREEDY


I also hope James bolt because of this. HE DOES NOT LIKE LARRY BROWN

[exstatic]

LB is a brilliant basketball mind, but not much of a human being. He reminds me of the Jeff Goldblum character in the first Jurassic Park movie. He's always on the lookout for his next future ex-team. He's done a lot of wrong things, but I'll always be glad that he brought Pop and RC here.

[SequSpur]

Not Spurs related.

[ChumpDumper]

Please, gag me with a spoon!I was wondering when someone was going to dust off this chestnut.

[SouthernFried]

You hire Brown...you should expect Brown behavior. This really is nothing new for him...albeit the rotten timing.

[Summers]

I'm NOT defending Brown, but I don't guess I understand completely. At the Cavs press conference, the owner (can't remember his name) tried to clear it up by saying it was very simple in that Brown had said he wanted to keep coaching the Pistons if he could but if his health didn't permit, he may be interested in a GM job in Cleveland. Am I being naive to think all of this got blown out of proportion? Like I said, I completely agree he should've waited until the end of the playoff run, but PJ's been talking to the Knicks and Timberwolves... Is that so different? I'm being completely sincere... I'm on the fence and am trying to understand what exactly Brown has done that's so awful.

[ChumpDumper]

Is that so different?Head coach of a defending champion? Yeah, different.

Brown made it worse by lying about it. The Pistons made a mistake by letting Brown talk to them before their run was over, but Brown's resigning would save them the trouble of firing him and paying out the rest of the contract. That seems to be too attractive to pass up.

[Kori Ellis]

I'm being completely sincere... I'm on the fence and am trying to understand what exactly Brown has done that's so awful.

PJ is an assistant coach.
Larry Brown is a head coach.

The Spurs gave PJ their permission to interview elsewhere right now.
The Pistons gave Brown their permission after their season was over.

PJ admits that he's interviewed with the Knicks and Wolves.
At first, Larry Brown boldfaced lied and said that he hadn't talk to Cavs at all about a job.

[Summers]

At first, Larry Brown boldfaced lied and said that he hadn't talk to Cavs at all about a job.

I didn't know he'd done that... I thought he was just being evasive. Although, I did see his little tiff with reporters the other day and I remember thinking, "Well, don't shoot the messenger, Larry!" Hm... pity. :(

[bonesinaz]

The scariest thing about reading this was that I can imagine hearing Walton's voice and I just woke up.

Larry Brown lost all credibility years ago. I know Pop is a friend to him and I can't understand why.

[Aggie Hoopsfan]

Brown's selfishness and his greedy addiction to his own personal agenda has left an indelible stain on everything and his egregious actions have completely overshadowed a potentially great series. Now, Brown is taking the low road by blaming the media and laying it on the messenger as if this is all somehow our fault.

He is doing things on a continuing basis that he would never tolerate from his own players. All we ever hear from this guy is about doing things the "right way." Please, Larry, explain to me how this can be the "right way."

They could have just printed this and been done with it. Walton nailed it.

[GoSpurs21]

It's not a crack, it's a statement and a credible one at that.Actually it's not credible (how many times did Brown have to coach because the head coach was tossed out?) it's speculation and not knowing anything about the man. I think James is really going to like playing for Mike Brown. After all Brown has shown that he is a players coach. Just go back and look at his work with the Pacers and Spurs and see what the players have to say about Brown.


The scariest thing about reading this was that I can imagine hearing Walton's voice and I just woke up.

Larry Brown lost all credibility years ago. I know Pop is a friend to him and I can't understand why.Maybe because unlike Larry, Pop is loyal to his mentors

[PM5K]

it's speculation and not knowing anything about the man.

That's exactly the point. This guy has never been a head coach anywhere and that's not what you look for in a coach when you have a team with great promise and one of the best players in the game right now who at the same time may consider leaving.

You want someone with experience.

I'm not saying Mike Brown isn't still a good choice, I'm just saying that the small part of Waltons article that referenced Brown was correct, it's not the best idea to hire a coach with no head coaching experience, especially not for this team under these circumstances...

[Dex]

I hate it when Bill Walton makes a good point.

[spurs_fan_in_exile]

Wow, I'm really surprised at all the hate going Brown's way. Do I question his timing? Sure. He could have waited a little while, but the fact of the matter is that Cleveland wants to hit the ground running in the off season. What the hell is Walton talking about Brown "quitting" on his team. I think a lot of people have been quick to pin their recent struggles on him meeting with Cleveland but they've been up and down all damn season and especially during the playoffs. I think this story is more hype than reality. The Pistons are not focusing well, and that may well be a shortcoming on Larry Brown's part, but it's not because he's talking to the Cavs.

[Vashner]

Not Spurs related.

He was a former Spurs coach, San Antonio resident, and Pop mentor. ... Spurs related!

BTW I think the fight is the reason he's leaving... and basically he's got a winning team but they are just a bunch of thugz.

He likes to help fix broken franchises anway.