Brown/Pistons in ugly mess - Detroit News

[jochhejaam]

Still nothing clarified but Bob Wojnowski of the Detroit News gets more in depth with the story 7/10/05

http://www.detnews.com/2005/pistons/0507/10/B01-242652.htm

I'm really looking forward to our summer camp and next season with the addition of a solid draft pick in Jason Maxiell. Hopefully we'll have major contributions from Delfino, Darko and Arroyo, plus the MLE possibility (Donyell Marshall would be my choice). Champions in '04 and runnerup in '05...we shouldn't be in this mess!

Not that it matters but who's most responsible for this mess?
Dumars?
Brown?
Davidson?

GOOOOOOO PISTONSSSSSSS!!! :elephant

[ALVAREZ6]

I hope Larry doesn't coach the Pistons again next season.

Better chances for the Spurs, plus, he's the biggest bandwagoning coach, he likes to rebuild teams.

[Pistons < Spurs]

Rumors swirl on Brown firing

BY FRANK ISOLA
DAILY NEWS SPORTS WRITER

Isiah Thomas' protracted wait for Larry Brown may prove to be Thomas' smartest play yet as Knicks' president.

In recent days, various reports have surfaced that Pistons owner Bill Davidson will fire Brown and it sounds as if Brown is daring Detroit to do just that. The Knicks, according to a league source, are more optimistic than ever they will have a real chance of hiring Brown as their coach.

"The things going on in Detroit are legitimate," the source said. "It sounds like Davidson wants to fire him."

It had been rumored for weeks that the Pistons would look to remove Brown and replace him with Flip Saunders. Sports Illustrated reported on its Web site that Brown will be fired. Brown continues to say that he wants to return to the Pistons, but he has yet to inform the team if he'll be healthy enough to coach an entire season. Brown missed 17 games in 2004-05 because of hip surgery and subsequent bladder problems.

"I'm planning to be there on Oct. 3 (the opening of training camp)," Brown told The Detroit News. "My dilemma is, I can't tell them 100% I'll be ready because the doctors don't know and I don't know. But if the Pistons can't wait, let me know, don't put this stuff out there. I mean, what would you do if you were me?"

There is no guarantee that Brown will join the Knicks if he leaves the Pistons. His health concerns could keep him sidelined next season or force him to retire. There is also the possibility of Brown becoming president of the Cleveland Cavaliers. Brown met with Cavs owner Dan Gilbert about that position during the playoffs. Cleveland eventually hired Danny Ferry as GM but hasn't ruled out making a deal with Brown.

The Pistons are upset that Brown's flirtations with Cleveland became public during the playoffs and they want to be certain that Brown will be available for most, if not all, of the 82-game season.

"If I was them, and they really valued me to be their coach, I'd say, 'Take as long as you can to get well and we'll figure it out,'" Brown told the newspaper. "That's what they'd do if it was a player. That's what other teams have done for coaches with health or personal issues - Jerry Sloan at Utah, Rudy Tomjanovich at Houston, Don Nelson at Dallas. This is not a made-up thing. I have a health problem."

Originally published on July 11, 2005

[Mark in Austin]

If Detriot hires Flip Saunders they can kiss contention goodbye.

[jochhejaam]

If Detriot hires Flip Saunders they can kiss contention goodbye.


I don't think that's necessarily the case. Three years ago with Rick Carlisle we went to the Eastern Finals and that was without Rasheed, McDyess and with Tayshaun having little playing time or experience during the regular season.
Add to that the team chemistry that exists with the players after being together for almost 2 years and hopefully Delfino and Maxiell making big contributions and we can be right back in the Finals.

Flip's not one of the top two coaches in the game but he's in the top 10.

[Mark in Austin]

Rick Carlisle is ten times the coach Flip is. There are better options out there.

[jochhejaam]

This should come to a head Wed. as Davidson, Dumars and Brown are scheduled to meet face to face.

Tuesday, July 12, 2005
By Joanne C. Gerstner / The Detroit News

Pistons coach Larry Brown is scheduled to meet with owner Bill Davidson and president of basketball operations Joe Dumars on Wednesday, according to a broadcast report on ESPN.

The trio likely will discuss Brown's future with the team. There has been speculation over Brown's status with the Pistons for a while, dating back to the Eastern Conference finals against Miami.

Dumars and Brown did not return requests on Monday night for comment on the reported meeting.

Brown's agent, Joe Glass, and Dumars have been in contact since the season ended but Brown has been unavailable for a personal meeting, as he was attending to health issues.

There have been a few issues clouding Brown's coaching situation, despite the existence of three more years on his five-year contract with the Pistons.

Health: Brown had surgery nearly two weeks ago to alleviate a bladder problem. He has been recovering at his home in the Hamptons.

Other offers: Brown has been courted by the Cleveland Cavaliers and, according to some reports, the New York Knicks for varying front office and coaching roles. Brown has stated he wishes to stay with the Pistons, but the media furor over other clubs approaching Brown was a disquieting issue during the playoffs.

[Pistons < Spurs]

July 12, 2005 -- LAS VEGAS — Has Larry Brown's manipulation made Bill Davidson mad enough to write off his championship coach (1-for-2 in two trips to the Finals) and $18 million?

That's the topic that will be on the table today when VP Joe Dumars returns to Detroit for the express purpose of meeting with the Pistons' aggravated owner over Brown's continued employment, The Post has learned.

Today's meeting will do more than decide the future of the Pistons.

If Brown is fired, Isiah Thomas will surely be there to present him with his Knicks' "dream job."

Davidson is having a very difficult time managing his anger toward Brown, who has three years guaranteed remaining on his contract and continues to be play mind games regarding his return to Detroit's sidelines next season.

Brown, who has had bladder problems as a complication from hip surgery, has been citing health issues for months as a reason for not committing to the Pistons next year. Lately, the finagling coach has been wondering aloud whether the team wants him back.

"When did this become us not [bleepin'] wanting him?" steamed the owner to the team's top officials.

Davidson doesn't mind being put on hold due to Brown's health problems, but can't stomach Brown wondering out loud whether the team really desires his return.

After all, management didn't admonish him privately or publicly when The Post quoted Brown in midseason as saying the Knicks are his "dream job."

Furthermore, the Pistons allowed Brown — during the playoffs — to negotiate for the job of team president with the Cavaliers.

Davidson appears to be convinced Brown is baiting him into firing him. He may do it anyway.

[Pistons < Spurs]

Larry Brown is sticking to his story that if he coaches anywhere next season it will be with the Detroit Pistons. But yesterday the Hall of Fame coach admitted for the first time that he's starting to wonder if the Pistons even want him back.

"My goal is to finish out my contract but that might not be a possibility," Brown told the Daily News. "You never know. I never want to be somewhere where I'm not wanted. If I don't have the passion to coach I wouldn't want to be there. But I still have the passion to coach that team.

"I have a contract but I don't know exactly where I stand. I want to continue doing what I've done. I love it there. I love my team."

In recent days reports have surfaced that Pistons owner William Davidson intends to fire Brown, who has three years remaining on his contract. According to sources, if Brown is terminated, the Knicks are prepared to make him the highest-paid coach in NBA history. He could command a salary of $12 million annually.

Knicks president Isiah Thomas has put off rehiring Herb Williams until Brown's future is settled. But if Brown becomes available, there is no guarantee he will coach in the fall. For starters, Brown says he doubts Pistons management would "let me coach anywhere else," hinting that Davidson and general manager Joe Dumars don't want Thomas and the Knicks to hire Brown unless the Pistons receive some form of compensation.

Moreover, Brown claims the only team he will coach is the Pistons, although he did not completely close the window on joining the Knicks.

"If I can't coach Detroit this year I doubt I'll coach," Brown said. "You never say never. But my thing is to try to get my health issue resolved. I'm not thinking about any alternatives.

"Whether I'm 100% healthy or not I intend to come back. But I don't know where they stand. I'm hearing some things that maybe I'm not in their plans. All I know is that I want to come back and coach the Pistons."

An NBA source, speaking on condition of anonymity, told The Associated Press that Brown will meet with Dumars tomorrow in suburban Detroit.

Brown is annoyed that some feel he is insincere about his plans to return to Detroit and that his medical problems are not serious. Brown, 64, had hip surgery in November, then had surgery for a bladder condition in March. He missed a total of 17 games and the Pistons want to be certain that Brown will be available for most if not all of the 82 games on the schedule. Brown was advised by doctors to rest for an indefinite period of time.

"I was supposed to be out six to eight weeks following the hip surgery but I came back after 11 days," he said. "After the surgery in March, I came back when the bleeding stopped but I wasn't completely healed. After the NBA draft, I had a 6:45 (a.m.) appointment at the Mayo Clinic and had a procedure there. So to hear comments that I'm not sincere about wanting to be back is troubling. For anyone to think that these aren't serious issues bothers me a little bit. Everyone only wants to talk about other issues. You hear speculation about the Knicks and Cleveland but my intent all along is to get healthy."

During the playoffs, Brown talked to the Cavaliers about becoming their team president. Those talks could have posed as a potential distraction, but the Pistons won a Game 7 at Miami to reach the NBA Finals. The defending champs eventually lost to the Spurs in seven games.

For weeks, there have been rumors that Dumars wants to replace Brown with Flip Saunders. Some have even speculated that the problems between Dumars and Brown still center around second-year forward Darko Milicic. Dumars selected Milicic second in the 2003 draft, immediately after LeBron James and before Carmelo Anthony, Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade. But while the other four have flourished, Milicic has been unable to crack the rotation on one of the league's best teams, only appearing in blowout games in the last couple of minutes.

Dumars' friendly rivalry with Thomas also is worth noting. Thomas maintains he will not pursue Brown while he is under contract out of respect for Davidson and Dumars. But Thomas is enamored with the idea of adding a legendary coach to guide his young roster. Brown's relationship with Thomas dates back to 1980 when Thomas was a freshman at Indiana and Brown was an assistant coach for the Olympic team.

"I feel for Herb Williams," Brown said. "There have been over 100 coaching changes the last three years in our league. I don't like seeing guys lose jobs. It's terrible to read speculation about other people for the job you have. I know my relationship with Isiah is strong. But he reads the papers. He's read my comments. He knows my goal is to come back to Detroit."

[ShoogarBear]

Last year this time I asked if LB had the credentials to claim being the greatest coach of all time.

The Olympics notwithstanding, I still say he has those credentials, but he now also may lay claim to being the biggest douchebag of all time.

Everyone (except a few Pistons faithful who wanted to see no evil) knew this was coming at least two months ago. It's not just that the guys has to move every couple of years; it's that he has to completely slime his way out and make it seem like he's an wide-eyed victim instead of the manipulative instigator. He's already laying down his story so that when Detroit fires him, he can use that as an excuse to renege on his "I won't coach anywhere else" BS.

What goes around, comes around for Detroit though. I still maintain there's no way the Carlisle firing/Brown signing two years ago was on the up-and-up. (And I despise Rick Carlisle.)

[Pistons < Spurs]

well said Shoogar. I still to this day am upset that we dumped Carlisle.....