Pooh
08-30-2003, 07:01 AM
Here are some excerpts from an article in the Chicago Sun-Times about the firing of Pacers' coach Isiah Thomas:
Larry Bird, the Pacers' new basketball operations chief, had president and CEO Donnie Walsh fire Thomas because Bird thought there was too big a gap between him and Thomas about what playing style and coaching philosophy was best for the team. In three seasons under Thomas, the Pacers won 41, 42 and 48 games and made the playoffs each season, though they were eliminated in the first round every time.
Will rebuilding also include significant roster changes? Jermaine O'Neal, the team's best player, has charged the Pacers with tricking him into signing a seven-year, $126 million contract with the false promise that Thomas would be retained. O'Neal might demand a trade. The same goes for several other Pacers who think Thomas was the right coach and had the team moving in the right direction with aggressive defense. But just when all the NBA coaching vacancies were filled, Thomas got fired.
The Pacers think there are at least 126 million reasons why O'Neal will stay and play. But even if he stays and the rest of the roster remains intact, the players will have to adapt to a new style and have a new attitude about training and off-court behavior.
Bird said it took him only one meeting in person and one phone conversation with Thomas to see he was reluctant to coach the team the way Bird wanted it to play.
Bird hasn't given specifics about what that way is, but it apparently isn't the hard-nosed, physical, aggressive style that typified the Pistons when Thomas was their captain and top player. Bird wants his team playing sound defense, but not the Pistons' "Bad Boys'' brand that many thought the Pacers were trying to emulate.
"Bird especially didn't like the way Ron Artest was allowed to play out of control,'' one insider said. "He felt Artest was permitted to play selfishly, holding the ball a lot but not holding his temper. Bird also did not agree with Thomas' continuing to start Reggie Miller. It's clear that Miller is no longer a daring and deadly shooter.''
So don't be surprised if Artest is traded. The loss of free-agent center Brad Miller might make Artest more expendable because their physical styles complemented one another. Bird and Carlisle prefer a more free-wheeling, finesse game in which wit is prized at least as much as grit.
www.suntimes.com/output/b...anx29.html (http://www.suntimes.com/output/banks/cst-spt-banx29.html)
Larry Bird, the Pacers' new basketball operations chief, had president and CEO Donnie Walsh fire Thomas because Bird thought there was too big a gap between him and Thomas about what playing style and coaching philosophy was best for the team. In three seasons under Thomas, the Pacers won 41, 42 and 48 games and made the playoffs each season, though they were eliminated in the first round every time.
Will rebuilding also include significant roster changes? Jermaine O'Neal, the team's best player, has charged the Pacers with tricking him into signing a seven-year, $126 million contract with the false promise that Thomas would be retained. O'Neal might demand a trade. The same goes for several other Pacers who think Thomas was the right coach and had the team moving in the right direction with aggressive defense. But just when all the NBA coaching vacancies were filled, Thomas got fired.
The Pacers think there are at least 126 million reasons why O'Neal will stay and play. But even if he stays and the rest of the roster remains intact, the players will have to adapt to a new style and have a new attitude about training and off-court behavior.
Bird said it took him only one meeting in person and one phone conversation with Thomas to see he was reluctant to coach the team the way Bird wanted it to play.
Bird hasn't given specifics about what that way is, but it apparently isn't the hard-nosed, physical, aggressive style that typified the Pistons when Thomas was their captain and top player. Bird wants his team playing sound defense, but not the Pistons' "Bad Boys'' brand that many thought the Pacers were trying to emulate.
"Bird especially didn't like the way Ron Artest was allowed to play out of control,'' one insider said. "He felt Artest was permitted to play selfishly, holding the ball a lot but not holding his temper. Bird also did not agree with Thomas' continuing to start Reggie Miller. It's clear that Miller is no longer a daring and deadly shooter.''
So don't be surprised if Artest is traded. The loss of free-agent center Brad Miller might make Artest more expendable because their physical styles complemented one another. Bird and Carlisle prefer a more free-wheeling, finesse game in which wit is prized at least as much as grit.
www.suntimes.com/output/b...anx29.html (http://www.suntimes.com/output/banks/cst-spt-banx29.html)