Wizards Pursue Brown By Steve Wyche Washington Post Staff Writer Thursday, May 29, 2003; 8:54 PM DALLAS, May 29 -- The Washington Wizards have approached Hall of Fame Coach Larry Brown about becoming their president of basketball operations and head coach. Brown, however, has so far declined to entertain overtures because Doug Collins remains under contract as the team's coach, sources said. Brown resigned as coach of the Philadelphia 76ers Monday. "Washington Sports and Entertainment and [chairman] Abe Pollin are not discussing the interviewing process or the candidates we are speaking to," team president Susan O'Malley said. Brown, 62, cancelled a meeting with the Wizards that was scheduled for this morning after making contact Wednesday with Pollin or O'Malley. Brown has not ruled out future conversations with the Wizards but he won't meet with them while Collins, a friend, is still employed by the team. Whether Brown's stance forces the team to change its approach of hiring a president of basketball operations before making a decision on Collins is unknown. However, by seeking out Brown, arguably the most desirable coaching candidate available, the Wizards further fueled speculation that they intend to replace Collins, who is owed $10 million for the remaing two years of his contract.
You never know, Brown might take that job. If he wants a challenge, Washington is it. What a trainwreck.
As a mild Wizards fan, I would love to see this happen! Especially since the Wizards would be getting 2-for-1, coach and GM. Of course, I would rather he go to the Rockets if Les and CD agree that he is the best man for the job, but other than that, I say bring him on!
The problems in the Wizard organization are the players. They had arguably the best player of all time trying to teach them about commitment, dedication, hardplay, etc... Most of the players could not meet Jordan’s will to win. The only player on that team who showed an ounce of that was Lue. Wizards will always stink with their cast of players. K. Brown is the worst 1st pick ever, this guy I guarantee is better then he is playing...but he is another contract player. Will turn up his game a year or two before his contract is coming up and then he will begin playing hard.
Ha ha....... no chance in hell. It's Houston or LA. The only thing that will stop Brown from becoming our next coach is power - power of control albeit minute over personal issues. It still think the deal will be done and he will be here folgende Woche.
Courting Brown Is Pollin's Bold Stroke By Sally Jenkins Washington Post Friday, May 30, 2003; Page D01 For years, the Washington Wizards have looked like the definition of planned mediocrity. But at the moment, they look almost absurdly audacious, and that's not a bad thing, because here is what owner Abe Pollin knows: This time, he has to get it right. Pollin's next hire will be critical, perhaps even the most important one in franchise history, and it will be scrutinized to death by observers, pundits and aggravated fans. For that reason, he has been highly secretive about his plans and deliberations, to the point of seeming hapless, when out of the blue we learned yesterday he is quietly attempting a sensational hire, Larry Brown. Whether the bid is viable remains to be seen. But what's clear is that the Wizards want to make a bold and credible move, so they have a presence in the basketball community again, and so that players, coaches and spectators alike will view MCI Center as an arena that matters. While reports swirled about nine coaching vacancies in the NBA, and the Spurs and Mavericks kept turning our heads in that improbably long series, Pollin flew under the radar. We hadn't heard a word from him since the draft lottery. There was not even a reliable rumor about who he was considering to replace the fired Michael Jordan as president of basketball operations. There didn't seem to be any bright leading candidate, and that made the future seem bleaker than ever. But with the mere pursuit of Brown, the Wizards have a little heat again. I don't care how silly it sounds, or how unobtainable Brown might be in the end -- word is that he will probably land with the Houston Rockets or the Los Angeles Clippers -- the Wizards are right to go after Brown and offer him anything to come here, because the pursuit of Brown sends a message. It shows the Wizards are perfectly serious about finding the best available basketball man -- so serious that Pollin is even willing to overlook Brown's vehement public criticism of him for firing Jordan. It shows Pollin is not petty or prideful, or controlling, he just wants to win. And he will do whatever it takes to get it right this time. Brown could fix it. Pollin knows that. He should offer Brown a package job as president of basketball operations and head coach, and be willing to pay him what he wants, too, because there is no situation Brown can't turn around in two years. He's danced all around the league, six teams in 20 years, been with the Spurs, Nuggets, Clippers, Nets, Pacers, Sixers, and he's won everywhere. Whatever you have to pay him, or control you have to cede, it's worth it because, as the Wizards are discovering, there aren't too many guys who have both the gift and the experience to put a pro team together and make it successful in a very short time. Brown has done it, wherever he's gone. He's never left a team or a franchise worse off than he found it. It may be that Brown's loyalties are just too tangled to allow him to consider the job. He's one of the North Carolina brethren who didn't appreciate the summary firing of Jordan. And he's a member of the loyal coaching fraternity, and apparently doesn't want to wrong Doug Collins, a good guy who as of yesterday still hadn't been officially let go as head coach. Brown won't even talk about the job until Collins's status with the team is decided. But at least for now, Brown's not ruling it out, either. There is only one downside to attempting to hire Brown: It sets the bar high, and should Brown turn a job down, any other hire will seem dull by comparison. What can the Wizards do if Brown is truly unobtainable? They can instead try to hire a quietly excellent if unglamorous front office manager or personnel expert, the next Rod Thorn or Jerry West. They don't need heat, or buzz, or a franchise player, or a savior. They just need a proven basketball man. The problem is, the list of proven front-office fixers is even shorter than the list of proven head coaches. The good news is that Pollin apparently has talked at length to two people in his search for candidates -- Jerry West and Rod Thorn. If the New Jersey Nets have shown anything, it's that one guy can change everything. And I don't mean Jason Kidd. I mean Thorn. Nobody remembers now the Nets weren't just another bad team, they were one of the lost franchises, a perennial sinkhole and punch line. Everyone thinks Jason Kidd is the guy who changed it. But there was another guy who changed it first, and that guy was Thorn. At a time when all we can talk about is Kidd, the guy we should be looking at is Thorn. He's the real savior of that franchise. Thorn wasn't anybody's idea of a team savior at the time. He was just a smart guy who had been around for years, who was smart enough to draft Jordan out of Carolina in 1984 for the Chicago Bulls, and then had gone to work as the NBA's operations guy. In '99 he was a longtime league exec, and nobody was beating down his door to come manage a team. Thorn took over the Nets in June 2000 and immediately showed vision. He swung the deal that brought them Richard Jefferson. He made Kenyon Martin his No. 1 draft pick. And he made the single best trade of the last five years, Kidd for Stephon Marbury. In other words, one smart guy who makes one smart pick and one smart trade can change everything. The lesson here is this: Before you hope there's a Jason Kidd to come save you, you've got to have a Rod Thorn come save you. There's another lesson, too: If you can do it with the Nets, you can do it anywhere. The Wizards simply put their money on the wrong front-office guy when they hired Jordan four years ago. He had his crack at it, and now will probably become an owner and smoke his cigars without having to answer to anyone about his job performance. Jordan kept asking for more time to show what he could do. But what Thorn proved in New Jersey is that if you know what you're doing, it takes exactly a year to turn a franchise around. So who is the next Rod Thorn? That's the tricky part. It may well be his New Jersey assistant, Ed Stefanski, who was behind the Jefferson deal. For that matter, the next bright young coach might be Nets assistant Eddie Jordan, who installed that pretty, cutting, passing Princeton offense. The Wizards could do worse than pluck promising managerial and coaching talent from the Nets -- though it would be a gamble. Brown is no gamble, he's proven. He's not just a headline grabber of a hire, he makes sound personnel decisions. He fixes things -- and make no mistake, things will take some fixing. Whoever comes in has to teach a hangdog team how to win, a nondescript perennial loser that hasn't been to the playoffs since '97, owned by a 79-year-old man looking for one more title, and willing to start from scratch. He will have to rebuild the confidence of younger players like Juan Dixon and Jared Jeffries, and decide if Jerry Stackhouse is the leader of the club. He will inherit a club with no point guard, or developed center. He will have to decide whether Kwame Brown is a diamond in the rough who's just waiting for the right coaching hand to become Jermaine O'Neal, or not. Redemption for the Washington Wizards won't come in a week, or a month. It will come a year from now. There are lots of problems, sure. But one man is all it takes. Guys like Larry Brown and Rod Thorn have proven it.
Article: Brown being suited by wizzards Friday, May 30 With friend Collins still in house, Brown holds off Wiz -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ESPN.com news services A new name has apparently been added to the list of Larry Brown suitors. According to a report in The Washington Post, the Washington Wizards have approached Brown about becoming their new president of operations and head coach. But Brown has so far turned down any proposals from the Wizards because Washington coach Doug Collins is still under contract with the team, according to the report. "Washington Sports and Entertainment and [chairman] Abe Pollin are not discussing the interviewing process or the candidates we are speaking to," Wizards team president Susan O'Malley told The Post. Brown, 62, resigned as head coach of the Philadelphia 76ers on Monday. Earlier this month, the Wizards did not rehire Michael Jordan as president of basketball operations. Brown, who is friends with Collins, has reportedly not ruled out more talks with the Wizards, but he won't meet with them while Collins is still with the team. The Post also reported that Brown canceled a Friday morning meeting with the Wizards after making contact with Pollin or O'Malley. According to The Post, the Wizards' pursuance of Brown fuels further speculation that Washington does want to replace Collins, who has two years and $10 million left on his contract. The newspaper also reported that Brown has tried to contact both Collins and Jordan.
I doubt he will even consider them. They are a horrible organization with not much talent. They forced Jordan out and now they are trying to get a coach behind Doug Collins back? This is a poor franchise and I think Larry Brown see's this. The only reason the Wiz are on the map (sorta) is because Jordan was with them. Even when he was with them, they were horrible. This is a mediocre team with no potential.
Wow! I guess this sort lets Collins know where he stands, huh? There is NO chance of this happening. LB's wife and family hated the East Coast and Philly - does anyone here think they'll consider DC an upgrade?
I really dont see what they have to offer. The only thing is that they will give him total control of almost everything. That may be attractive to him.
People forget that Philadelphia was in shambles for YEARS before Larry Brown took over and turned them around. The fact that Brown has tried to contact Collins and Jordan tells me he is a SERIOUSLY interested in the job. Larry Brown loves a challenge, and he'll get one in Washington, Jordan absolutely destroyed the confidence of the young players there with his ego. And Washington will break the bank to get Larry Brown. And the fact that Larry Brown showed serious interest in the Cavs tells me that the chances of winning a championship isn't the #1 priority to Larry Brown. And Lebron James has said he would love to have Larry Brown there. I expect Larry Brown to end up coaching Cleveland or Washington. I get the feeling that Larry Brown is Washington's to lose as coach since they can offer him big bucks full or close to full control of personnel movement like he had in Philly. Washington will go all out to get Larry Brown.
http://sports.excite.com/news/05302003/v0458.html Wizards Fire Collins, Three Weeks After Showing Jordan the Door May 30, 5:06 PM (ET) By JOSEPH WHITE WASHINGTON (AP) - First Michael Jordan, now Doug Collins. And if Washington Wizards fans don't like it, they can get their money back. Collins was fired as the Wizards' coach Friday, three weeks after Jordan was shown the door by owner Abe Pollin. The widely expected move happened sooner than expected - Pollin originally had pledged to let Jordan's yet-to-be-hired replacement decide Collins' fate. "With seven head coaching positions available in the league and with his future here in Washington in doubt, I felt that it was only fair that Doug be given a chance to pursue other interests," Pollin said in a statement Friday. Pollin went even further in a separate letter to season-ticket holders. After citing the unpopularity of his decision to dismiss Jordan, Pollin promised refunds to fans unhappy with his moves. "My pledge to you: If you are not satisfied with the direction of our basketball franchise after this summer, I will refund your season-ticket deposit in full," Pollin wrote. A copy of the letter, dated June 2, was obtained by The Associated Press on Friday. The Wizards are expecting a substantial drop in attendance this season after selling out 82 consecutive games during Jordan's second comeback as a player. Jordan was the Wizards' president of basketball operations when he hired Collins in April 2001. Jordan then decided to return as a player, putting Collins in the unusual position of coaching the person who hired him. The Wizards went 37-45 both seasons and failed to make the playoffs. Collins had two years remaining on his four-year contract, but his days were numbered once Pollin decided not to let Jordan, who had retired as a player again, return to the front office. Collins was an obvious member of the Jordan camp in a franchise that had splintered into two groups - one supporting the owner, the other supporting Jordan. Last week, Pollin said the new president of basketball operations, whom he plans to hire before the June 26 draft, would handle Collins' situation and select the team's coach. (AP) Washington Wizards coach Doug Collins, left, talks to Michael Jordan during the third quarter... Full Image But the fact that Collins was still technically an employee made it awkward for Pollin to pursue some candidates. The Washington Post, citing sources, reported Friday that former Philadelphia coach Larry Brown canceled an interview for a potential front office-coaching position out of respect for Collins. The Wizards said Pollin would have no further comment. In his letter to season-ticket holders, Pollin said he has "interviewed and will continue to interview the brightest available basketball minds in the business." Meanwhile, outgoing general manager Wes Unseld is in charge of draft preparations. Unseld, who held the title in name only while Jordan ran the team for 3½ seasons, is taking a leave of absence after the draft for health reasons. Collins coached Jordan and the Chicago Bulls from 1986-89 and the Detroit Pistons from 1995-98 and was working as a TV analyst when Jordan lured him back to the sidelines. His two seasons with the Wizards were his only two full seasons in which he did not lead his team to the playoffs. "I was disappointed I wasn't able to take the team to the playoffs and give the fans of Washington a taste of what the playoff experience is all about," Collins said. "It was a great experience to coach in front of sellout crowds every night." The Wizards said no decision had been made concerning assistant coach Brian James. Assistant Larry Drew's contract expired at the end of the season, and assistant John Bach retired.
mo' like washington dreamers. what an awful awful franchise. without jordan, theyd be less than nothing. brown would be insane to take that job. good mediocre at best young talent.
word! mayn, wizard aint nuttin without jordan! they should be ashamed they did that to jordan! he did everything to make the wizard go to the playoffs and that's how they repay him?! shame on the wizards! ei, how bout we lure stackhouse here.. lol!
