| Monday, April 3
By Mitch Lawrence
Special to ESPN.com |
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NEW YORK -- Moving companies are observing a moment of silence. Larry
Brown says he's filled out his last change-of-address form.
|  | | Larry Brown will be yellng at the 76ers for a few more years after signing a contract extension. |
"I've always taken a job with the hope that I'd stay," said the Sixers
coach the other day in Los Angeles. "The Sixers want me to finish my
career with them, and I think it's a good idea."
Lord knows it's a novel one, too. The gypsy of all basketball coaches is
finally putting down stakes after coaching in North Carolina, Denver,
Los Angeles (at UCLA), New Jersey, Lawrence, Kan., San Antonio, Los
Angeles (with the Clippers), Indiana and Philly.
Unless, of course, he changes his mind and zip code once again.
But for now, the extension to keep him in Philly is believed to be the
first one Brown has ever signed. Shipping papers have been another
matter. He chuckles when thinking about all of the packing and unpacking
he's done since 1972, which doesn't even count his two seasons assisting
Dean Smith at North Carolina in the mid-60's.
"Nobody realizes that the first job I took, with the Carolina Cougars --
they moved," he said of the old ABA team. "I might have been there
forever. People forget that."
People always remember, though, that Brown is one of the game's great
teachers, wherever and whenever he's set up camp. Not that it's getting
any easier, with players coming into the NBA at younger ages all the
time. He turns 60 this fall.
"It's hard," he said. "But in some ways it's a challenge, as well.
I think the biggest thing is that we have to teach them is to have an
appreciation for the game and a respect for the game and for their
teammates."
But that also means having a respect for the rules and being a
professional. Brown's star pupil, Allen Iverson, sometimes flunks that
course. Their flareups have been well-documented, which is why Brown's
commitment to sign an extension caught many observers by surprise.
With an out after this season in his contract, Brown did have his eye on
the Clippers situation, bleak as that is. He once worked for Donald
Sterling and has remained good friends with the Clipper owner ever
since.
"I was worried about losing Larry," admitted Sixers president Pat
Croce.
But Brown says the progress the Sixers have made in his three seasons in
Philly compelled him to stay. Now with Toni Kukoc giving them another
offensive option, they figure to be a tough out when the playoffs
start.
"I never wanted it to be me or Allen," Brown said. "That makes
me real uncomfortable. I have a flareup with a guy who doesn't come
to practice. Or is late. You'd have a flareup with your kid if he didn't
show up for curfew. That doesn't mean you have a bad relationship."
So the Brown-Iverson affair, however stormy it is or will be, goes on.
"I wouldn't be here if I didn't feel I could help this team win,"
Brown said. "If he is part of it, I have no problem with it. I like what
I've seen from his development. He still has a ways to grow, like any
24-year old."
Rim Shots I
Although he's told LSU people he's coming back, NBA scouts
say Stromile Swift will still opt for early eligibility. Swift's
announcement that he's staying was seen as a way to keep the Tigers'
boosters at bay. Why stay anyway, when you're a lock to go in the top
five? Prep stars Darius Miles and Gerald Wallace also reportedly are
coming out. Miles was the top player in the McDonald's All-Star Game,
wowing scouts with his athleticism and length and quickness. Already,
he's being compared to Kevin Garnett, which is a major reach.
The Pacers' gameplan after this season: Use $9 mil under the cap to import a
shooting guard. Then re-sign Reggie Miller for two seasons; do a
sign-and-trade with Mark Jackson; re-sign Jalen Rose for the long term;
convince Rik Smits to stay on one more year; keep Sam Perkins, who keeps
the young kids in line, for another season.
Isiah Thomas is this
year's Doc Rivers. He can have just about any pro coaching job he wants.
Now Thomas' name is being mentioned in Indiana, which has expressed an
interest in talking to the CBA commish. Atlanta and Dallas also have
interest.
Rick Pitino is failing in Boston. P.J. Carlesimo got
fired in Golden State. John Calipari was a bust with the Nets. Now you
can see why pro teams are expected to start shying away from hiring
college coaches, at big price tags. It could mean big breaks for young
NBA assistants like Seattle's Nate McMillan, a name to remember.
Rim Shots II
As if the Lakers defense hasn't been good enough, Phil
Jackson is unveiling a trapping system, just for the playoffs.
"When it gets to the playoffs, you have to take teams out of their
offense," Jackson said. "The easiest way is to pressure the point
guard. It's my basic theory that any point-guard oriented team you can
trap or harass you find a way to make the offense difficult to run."
The new defenses are intended to stop the Spurs and Avery Johnson, with
Gary Payton likely to play the role of guinea pig in the first round.
"The idea of the defense of those Chicago Bulls teams on the Detroit
Pistons teams, we had to find a way to make it tough for Isiah (Thomas)
and tough for their guards," Jackson said. "We had the trap upcourt to
do that. Here, we haven't provided enough pressure like we need to."
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Not that the Lakers have been shaky. They rank No. 1 in field-goal
percentage (.414) and with their 91.4 ppg allowed they are right there with the
Spurs' league-best 89.7.
"One of the knocks on us in the past is that our transition defense was
bad," Kobe Bryant said. "In this system Phil brought, our offensive
system is a kind of a defensive system as well. It provides floor
balance at all times. So we're not constantly getting beaten down the
floor."
Plus, their length and quickness in their halfcourt defense has
prevented drives and forced teams to shoot over the top. As stifling as
the great Bulls teams were during their dynasty, Jackson thinks the
Lakers can be as dominant. He points to having several defensive
stoppers (Robert Horry, Ron Harper and A.C. Green), plus a dominant last
line of defense in Shaquille O'Neal.
"The potential is there, but it's just like everything else," he said.
"It's, where are you gonna put your energy in the course of a
ballgame?"
There's no secret where Jackson wants the Lakers to put their energy
come playoff time.
Rim Shots III
'Tis the season to be ... tanking?
The Bulls have been noting all the strange moves involving the Clippers
and are wondering whether L.A. is purposely losing so that they secure
the No. 1 pick in this June's draft. In the final weeks, they're vying
for the most Ping-Pong balls. It's not far-fetched, if you look at the
release of former starting PG Troy Hudson, along with benchings
involving Tyrone Nesby and Michael Olowokandi, to go with the prolonged
absences of Maurice Taylor and Lamar Odom. Taylor is sitting out so that
he doesn't hurt his value for when he leaves L.A. via free agency.
Chris Webber doesn't put it past the NBA to influence Vince Carter's
decision on whether he leaves Toronto and plays in a major U.S. market:
"The NBA is one of the smartest businesses in the world. So I'm pretty
sure if it's needed, they'll do it. The problem is, he's not in the
States. He's in a smaller big market. But this is not the WWF. I don't
know if anybody needs to program things where the stars need to be."
Webber himself is a free agent after next season. Although he's grown to
like Sacramento, playing in a small market does have its drawbacks: "I
can't find a restaurant to eat in after the game. They all close at nine
o'clock." On weekends.
You think Shaquille O'Neal wants to win a
second scoring title? "The bowl I got for winning it (in '95)?" he
said. "I eat my cereal out of it." No, Shaq wants a ring and "one of
those gold balls." The big gold basketball that sits atop the Lawrence
O'Brien Trophy and goes to the world champs, that is.
Mitch Lawrence, who covers the NBA for the New York Daily News, writes a regular NBA column for ESPN.com.
|  |
Lawrence: Making Riley's life miserable
