link to source SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- As the new coach at Chemeketa (Ore.) Community College, Rick Adelman could not have known where his latest profession would take him. No one could. He knew, however, how he'd get there. He was going to run Dick Motta's offense and then, like Motta, tweak it to fit the personnel that came through the program. He had run it for Motta with the Chicago Bulls. He had seen Motta take it to an NBA championship with the Washington Bullets. By the time he was through with his 25 years in coaching, Motta had taken it to 935 wins. More than two decades later, it has helped Adelman go from Chemeketa back to the NBA and now within a win of tying Motta to move into the top 10 in career coaching wins. "He had a big influence on me the way he coached that Chicago team when I was there," Adelman said. "It was really consistent the way they played. The offense he ran - a lot of people have used that offense. It's what Utah ran. I used it when I was in college (coaching), and I used it here but kind of tweaked it. "When you move into the top 10 and tie someone like that, it means something." In familiar territory Adelman said it doesn't matter where he reaches that milestone, but he'd no doubt prefer it happen tonight in Sacramento, considering the Rockets need every win they can get. Many around him say that would be fitting, since his longest coaching stint came with the Kings. "He would never tell you that," Adelman's son R.J., a Rockets assistant coach, said. "I don't think he is vindictive in any way. He enjoyed his time there. But it's a special place. He has a lot of good memories there. It would probably mean a little bit more." It might be as appropriate that with a victory, the Rockets would have their first winning record of the season. In 20 years of coaching, Adelman has had just two losing seasons - in his two-year stint with Golden State. He has the best winning percentage of any coach in Rockets history, with both his overall record and his record with the team. Among the top 10, only Jackson and Red Auerbach have better winning percentages. Adelman is just four wins shy of tying Auerbach, 10 from eighth-place Bill Fitch. "Truthfully, I'm shocked by it," Adelman said. "When I got the job in Portland, I never expected to do it 20 years. I didn't know what to expect. To do it this long and have three really good situations, I know how fortunate that is. I've seen really good coaches get thrown into situations where you're not going to win. You may never get another shot. "I never expected to be around those names." More than his record or longevity, Adelman seems most proud of his success in adjusting to his personnel. Though he values movement without the ball and passing above one-on-one play, his teams in Portland, Sacramento and Houston had vastly different styles and strengths. "Dick did that. Jack Ramsay did that," Adelman said of his mentors. "What I've enjoyed a lot is the teams have been so different. In Portland, we were so athletic. We were physically very, very tough. We were pretty darn good defensively and a great rebounding team. Sacramento was more of a finesse team that passed and shot so well. Here, with Yao (Ming) and Tracy (McGrady), we had two great players with a bunch of role players around them. "I had three different teams that were successful. That was the challenge. That makes you feel good." He is less certain, however, if he will be back for more. In the final season of his four-year contract, Adelman has grown increasingly weary of the travel and time away from his family in the Portland area. Summer is decision time "I still enjoy this team," Adelman said. "It's been fun the last two years, even though we haven't been as good because of the injuries. It's still been fun because of the way they work. "The travel really gets to you. Every year, my wife and I are going to sit down and look and see, 'What are we doing? What do we want to do?' Right now, I'm just going to try to coach the games we have left and, at the end of the year, sit down and see what I'm going to do." For now, he said he can't focus on the future, the milestone or the chance to reach it in Sacramento. His players - especially former Kings Brad Miller and Kevin Martin - want it for him and want it tonight. "We really want it to happen in (Sacramento)," Martin said. "He really doesn't care. I know Rick. He's not caught up in all that. For him to get to the top 10 just shows you how much of a great coach he is." It would be nice if Rick could get the win in Sacramento. I wish he can get a ring before he retires.
Adelman is a great coach. He will keep moving up this list over the next few years, probably not with the Rockets, but I think one of the contending teams would take him as a coach in a second. Also TS your sig is awesome couldn't agree more.
