Kobe runs off another head coach

[savafan]

Of course Kobe's a spoiled brat. He was given the world at such a young age, way before he was mature enough to handle it. Kobe's to blame for who he is, but so is the NBA and the Los Angeles Lakers.

[Unassisted]

Here's some proof that it isn't just a handful of schlubs on a baseball forum that see Kobe's fingerprints on the Tomjanovich departure. This is a column written by a journalist who covers the NBA on a regular basis.

http://www.mysanantonio.com/columnis....6862247f.html

Mike Monroe: Lakers in limbo without Rudy T.

Web Posted: 02/02/2005 12:00 AM CST


San Antonio Express-News

See if you can find it in your heart to feel a little sorry for Lakers fans this morning.

More coverage
Ginobili throws his body into his forays to the basket

By the time you read this Rudy Tomjanovich likely will have made official what leaked out prematurely Tuesday afternoon: That he is stepping down as head coach of the Lakers.

That means that in the past seven months the Lakers will have provided their fans: An embarrassing 4-1 loss in NBA Finals 2004; the departure of the game's most dominating player; the dismissal of a coach with more championship rings than anyone but Red Auerbach; and now, the resignation of a second championship-caliber coach after just half a season.

Ah, but they still have Kobe Bryant.

Of course, that may be even more reason to show Lakers loyalists a little sympathy. There have been hints that Bryant and Tomjanovich had a run-in at some point in the past few weeks. For a "player's coach" like Tomjanovich that may have been a contributing factor in a potential walk-away.

Health reasons most likely will be cited for Tomjanovich's departure, if and when it is announced. The Lakers officially assured Tuesday that he has not had a recurrence of bladder cancer, which was diagnosed in 2002 and contributed to his leaving the Houston Rockets bench.

Some close to him believe the coaching lifestyle has made it difficult for him to adhere to the dietary regimen recommended after the bladder cancer was discovered and that results of a recent bladder checkup frightened him.

But it also appears that Tomjanovich, one of only three active coaches to have won NBA titles, decided he just didn't want the stress of coaching any longer. His heart, said some of those closest to him, no longer was in the daily grind.

Lakers owner Dr. Jerry Buss, we're told, asked Tomjanovich to "sleep on" his decision. His wife, Sophie, who remains in Houston, also reportedly prevailed on Rudy T. to reconsider, suggesting a "sabbatical" of a few weeks.

Nobody, though, expected Tomjanovich to change his mind.

Tomjanovich's legacy in L.A. will be somehow having managed to coax a 23-19 record out of the shell of the 2004 Western Conference championship squad that he inherited.

Consider:

Shaquille O'Neal was sent packing, to Miami, and in exchange the Lakers got nobody capable of playing in the paint with anything approaching the ferocity — not to mention the bulk — that O'Neal provided.

The replacement center the Lakers signed, Vlade Divac, turned 36 years old Tuesday, and his aching back has allowed his participation in only eight games this season. He is averaging eight-tenths of a point and a whopping 1.1 rebounds in those eight.

Bryant has missed the past 10 games, nearly a quarter of the Lakers' games, with a severely sprained ankle, and his return is still a couple of weeks off.

Lamar Odom, the U.S. Olympic Team power forward who was the key player returned in the O'Neal deal, has seemed like a fish out of water in the Lakers' offense that emphasized Bryant's domination of the basketball.

What now for the Lakers?

Well, assistant coach Frank Hamblen has agreed to take over on the bench, but only on an interim basis. An assistant for Jackson during his reign in L.A., Hamblen likely prefers to be available to rejoin Jackson when, and if, he resurfaces in the NBA.

George Karl, who could have given the Lakers a Tomjanovich replacement with nearly as high a profile, signed on with the Nuggets just last week.

Mike Krzyzewski? The Duke coach must be thanking his stars he didn't go after the job last summer when Bryant wanted him to.

For the moment, the Lakers are stuck in basketball limbo.

A little compassion, please.

[Aceking]

I don't know if rule #5 applies here, since Kobe is a basketball player and not a baseball player. But it looks like some of you are going out of the way to Bash a player and a team's fans.

This board used to have a sense of humor. :thumbdown

[RBA]

Wow, thanks for the San Antonio paper slant on the story. There is no bias in anyway. (LOL)
However, they do make some valid observations despite their obvious Laker Hater status.

But why is it an embarrasment to lose in the NBA finals?

I'm sure if the Reds were to lose in the World Series, you wouldn't consider that an embarrasment.

[letsgojunior]

Supposedly Phil Jackson is thinking about coaching them again.

[GoReds]

Wow, thanks for the San Antonio paper slant on the story. There is no bias in anyway. (LOL)
However, they do make some valid observations despite their obvious Laker Hater status.

But why is it an embarrasment to lose in the NBA finals?

I'm sure if the Reds were to lose in the World Series, you wouldn't consider that an embarrasment.

The Lakers were prohibitive favorites to win the championship even before the season started. I'm sure you remember the buzz that surrounded the signings of Malone and Payton.

With the infighting between Kobe and Shaq and the trial, I would call the Lakers lack of a championship embarrassing. It certainly did not paint a favorable picture of any of the parties involved.

If the Reds were to make the WS this year and get beaten 4-1, I wouldn't be embarrassed for them considering that noone expects them to even make the playoffs.

Apples-Oranges, IMO.

[RBA]

I could see it that way. Put you have to give some respect to the Pistons who played as a team.

[WVRed]

Supposedly Phil Jackson is thinking about coaching them again.

Why? We all know Kobes ego problem includes Jackson, plus there is an underachieving team in Houston that could dominate with the Zen-Meister there

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/column...ric&id=1982925

It's not often anyone can return to the scene of an accident, unhook the mangled vehicles, review the mistakes made and resume the course they were on prior to the collision. Phil Jackson and Kobe Bryant have that chance.


To pass on it -- or do anything less than their best to convince Los Angeles Lakers owner Dr. Jerry Buss to provide that chance -- would be a monumental mistake by both of them.



Jackson's imperious style irritated Bryant, but it may be what he and the Lakers need.


"It's unfinished business," says Lakers executive VP Jeanie Buss. "Kobe has a throne to take. Phil has something to prove. There's more to their story."


The thought that too much has happened or that Kobe and Phil already have made it abundantly clear they have no desire to work together is simply wrong. Kobe couldn't plead with Dr. Buss to re-sign Phil last year because he was a free agent. He wanted the chance to see what other opportunities existed, what other teams could offer. Stumping for Jackson would've undermined all that. It would have been an implicit commitment to return to the Lakers. How would it have looked had he told Buss to re-sign Phil and then opted not to return himself?


According to Jeanie, far too much also has been made of Jackson giving GM Mitch Kupchak a it's-him-or-me ultimatum midway through last season, an episode recounted in Jackson's book, "The Last Season."


"I heard every frustration he had with the team," Buss says. "When he made that statement about Kobe, I took it the same way I would my girlfriend telling me she was going to kill her husband. I wasn't calling 911. I knew it wasn't as definite as it sounded. My dad didn't hear about those frustrations on a daily basis, so when he heard that he took it to mean they were past the breaking point. But I know how Phil feels about Kobe. He still thinks any team that has him has a chance to win a championship."


Have they ever been friends? No. Will they ever be? Probably not. That's not important. What do they have is mutual respect and a belief that their chance of winning a championship is greatly enhanced by the other. In the midst of all the chaos, turmoil and results of the last two seasons, it's natural they might have lost sight of that. In light of all that has happened since last summer, it's also reasonable to expect them to see anew that what they had was unique, on par, say, with what Tim Duncan and Gregg Popovich have in San Antonio, or Chauncey Billups and Larry Brown have (or had) in Detroit.


Buss, of course, has her own interests. She remains Jackson's significant other and the prospect of pogo-ing to Montana or New York -- with Jackson expressing interest in the Knicks -- to continue the relationship does not appeal to her. Jeanie was even open to seeing Jackson join the Kings because it would mean he could commute to Sacramento from L.A. with Ahnold the Governator on his private jet.



Lakers VP Jeanie Buss says the mutual interests of Phil Jackson and Kobe Bryant amount to "unfinished business."


Jeanie also, of course, has been wrong before about what the future holds for Jackson, Kobe and the Lakers. After they reached the 2004 Finals, she was confident Phil and her father would reach agreement on a new deal. That was with the presumption, made by nearly everyone except myself and Tacoma News Tribune writer Frank Hughes, that the Lakers would thump Detroit and claim their fourth title in five years.


"In our business, losing is a catalyst for change," she says. "People were dumbfounded by the loss. My dad felt things crumbled and Phil didn't know what to do. He likes Phil and cares for him and still thinks he's the best coach in the NBA. But with Phil being uncertain about coming back and saying he didn't think he could coach Kobe anymore, my dad felt it was his job to make a decision and move the team in a new direction."


The road that stands before Kobe and Phil, should they rejoin forces, is indeed a different one. For starters, the previous one had to be shared with a Diesel, as in Shaquille O'Neal, which made for an entirely different traffic pattern. Jackson, understanding how beloved Shaq was in the locker room and how inordinately sensitive he is to criticism, never prodded him the way he did Kobe. Bryant resented that he took far more abuse, in light of how much harder he worked at being in shape and contributing at the defensive end.


That issue no longer exists. Kobe, by all accounts, is the most respected figure in the Lakers' locker room. Phil has admitted that his tactics, such as suggesting Kobe purposely manipulated his high school games in order to look like a hero at the end, were ill-advised. Kobe, in turn, endorsed Rudy Tomjanovich's idea of re-incorporating the triangle offense to create more movement and options than his penetrate-and-pitch tactics were producing. Absence indeed can make the heart grow fonder, apparently, about anything.



Jackson, left, revealed in his book that he and Bryant eventually reached a truce last season.


But rejoining forces isn't just about regaining what they had. It's also about adding a few new superlatives to their respective resumes. Jackson would have a chance to eliminate the knock that he is a closer, as in someone deft at making championship talent realize its potential, but not a developer, as in someone who can make the most of a flawed team. Like it or not, it's a criticism that has mightily undercut his stature as a coach, despite having won nine championships.


For Kobe, welcoming back Phil would do wonders for his image as a cold-hearted, power-hungry egomaniac. Unfair as it might be that he was blamed for Jackson's departure in the first place, perception is reality. This would come off as an act of humility, an acknowledgement that he doesn't know everything and is open to getting a little help and sharing the spotlight in his pursuit of another title. Instead of someone who is forever begrudgingly respected, who knows, he might even taste what it means to be beloved.


Maybe Dr. Buss, with the infinite wisdom of someone who has ably manned the Lakers' rudder for several decades now, will ultimately decide that bringing back Phil isn't the right move. I have no problem with that -- as long as Kobe and Phil make every effort to convince him otherwise. They owe it. To each other

[letsgojunior]

Phil Jackson was quoted yesterday as saying he was interested.

I think Kobe is a jerk for everything that happened in Colorado, for throwing Shaq under a bus, and for being a difficult teammate.

That said, he plays harder than athlete I've seen in recent memory. While Shaq used to postpone his surgeries until right before the season, Tracy McGrady and Vince Carter have admitted to dogging it when their teams were out of it, Kobe has consistently trained and played hard. That I respect.

This story reminds me of the Junior situation when he first came to the Reds, minus the rape charges. They both went from not being able to do a single thing wrong to being evil. From the Jim Edmonds ESPN controversy to the Karl Malone thing, the Phil Jackson/Jack McKeon firings... the situations were somewhat similar. And it's a shame what glee people take in absolutely pounding them.

Don't get me wrong - I will never root for Kobe again after the rape charges. However, blaming him in this thread for the firing of a coach (after it's been pretty well reported that Rudy stepped down to health concerns), is the same sort of thing that Mariners fans did to us back in the day IMO.

[remdog]

I wonder if Jeanne has anything to do with Phil's interest in possibly coming back?

Rem

[RedFanAlways1966]

Sounds to me like the Lakers need their own reality show... "The Difficult Life". Guys and coaches making millions, but cannot stand one another and such. One player fighting with another's wife and and being accused of coming-on to the wife. Adultery (rape?) in hotels. Stars with egos that cannot fit in the Staples Center at the same time.

It must be a very difficult life for these poor players & coaches. They have my sympathy... just not my money. Poor guys...