Van Gundy nothing if not prepared By FRAN BLINEBURY Copyright 2003 Houston Chronicle NEW YORK -- The story goes back to his early days on campus at Yale, before he left the Ivy League school (to his mother's consternation) in pursuit of more playing time on another basketball team. Jeff Van Gundy and several of his new college buddies had heard about and even caught glimpses of an attractive coed with a rather high profile. Jodie Foster had enrolled at the school. As college guys are wont to do, they placed a wager. Everybody kicked in a few bucks, and the winner would be the first one out of the group to secure a date with the glamorous, future Academy Award-winning actress. A short time later, on a bright fall day, Van Gundy found himself standing on a corner, near a vendor selling fresh popcorn. From behind him, a female voice said, "Doesn't that popcorn smell wonderful?" Van Gundy, would-be Don Juan, turned around, came face to face with Foster and uttered something along the lines of: "Uh, well, yeah." Then he simply froze up. In a few seconds, the Hollywood star was gone. In a few weeks, one of his pals had taken her on a date, collected the pot and taught one college freshman a valuable life lesson. "That's the last time I'll ever be unprepared," Van Gundy said. He is nothing if not constantly ready, organized, equipped, arranged and primed. Those dark circles under Van Gundy's eyes during his tenure with the Knicks, which had him frequently looking like an owlet peeking out from the corner of a barn, came from spending days and nights literally sleeping in his office when he wasn't breaking down game tape and trying to find one more detail that could make a difference in the next win. Beneath the happy-talk and pancake makeup of the joking TV color commentator still lurks the compulsive, fixated neurotic who'll be bouncing off the walls at the first sign of a two-game losing streak. Every coach with a set of footprints has his defenders and detractors. But what is unanimously agreed upon as defining Van Gundy is his obsessive nature and his abhorrence for defeat. If there is a single image that resonates about Van Gundy in the public eye, it is of him clinging to the leg of Alonzo Mourning when a bench-clearing near riot broke out during one of the annual playoff wars between the Knicks and the Heat. It was a photo that ran on sports section fronts of papers from coast to coast -- an ankle-biting Chihuahua -- and was as revealing as it was comical. Van Gundy will do anything for his players. He demands discipline yet engenders respect. He has throwback philosophies about the role of the big man in an offense yet finds a way for freewheeling, improvisational guards to thrive. Which should pay dividends with Yao Ming, Steve Francis and Cuttino Mobley in Houston. With Patrick Ewing in the middle and a backcourt of Latrell Sprewell and Allan Houston, Van Gundy's Knicks were always aggressive and frequently overachieving. Especially in 1999, when he led them as the No. 8 seed in the East to the NBA Finals with an injured Ewing on the bench. His touch will always show up first, it is said, on defense with precepts that he learned from Bud Presley, his coach for a year at Menlo College in Atherton, Calif, before Van Gundy finished his college career as a point guard for two seasons at Nazareth College in Rochester, N.Y. He gets his teams to sink their teeth in and not let go. But it will also permeate the locker room and every aspect of the organization, fostering a sense of toughness, of camaraderie, of doing whatever it takes. Role players such as Larry Johnson and Charlie Ward loved him in New York and carried his attitude into every practice, every game. Ewing came with all of the trappings of a superstar center who demanded the ball when Van Gundy -- a former Knicks assistant to Stu Jackson, John MacLeod, Pat Riley and Don Nelson -- took over as the head man. Ewing quickly was a true believer, as was, perhaps surprisingly, Sprewell, who arrived in New York dragging his reputation as a bad actor. Don't be surprised if Van Gundy reaches out for Sprewell or Ward to help spread the word and establish the hard-nosed ways with the Rockets. One big question will be about Van Gundy's offensive style, which in the past has concentrated on running down the shot clock, limiting possessions and keeping scores in the 80s. The Rockets under Van Gundy may test opponents and their own fans if his style is too deliberate. He is, of course, replacing an icon in Rudy Tomjanovich, and that is never easy. Rudy T is the coach who made "Never underestimate the heart of a champion!" the rallying cry for an entire city. His successor is a coach who simply up and quit on the Knicks, his players, in December 2002. He will have to explain that, at least rationalize it, before the loyal converts start lining up. But if history and Jodie Foster have taught him anything, Van Gundy will be prepared.
It's true, that is a lasting image, one for the ages. My girl friend, who tries to watch as little basketball as possible, asked me a few days ago about who was going to be the new head coach of the Rockets. I said, I'm not sure. Then she replied by suggesting that they should get the little guy who was hanging on the leg of the basketball player, obviously referring to Van Gundy to coach the Rockets. She said, "I like that guy". It's amazing how such an incident can bolster one's popularity.
lets face it..... none of us would have jumped on mournings leg during an NBA fight! that is one brave mo-fo. that also shows heart and dedication to his team.
well, being behind of your players is really rare in the NBA. all we can hear are coaches and players clashing at each other. but JVG is really gonna do everything for his players. he will stand up for his players and he will fight for them whenever there's a bad call or something like that. like what i said on the other thread, since that incident, ive respected JVG!
One thing I like about JVG is that he has shown that he is willing to mix in his lot with the players and fight for the team. Yelling and screaming out there, it makes the bench players all hyped up knowing that they're playing for a hard-nose coach so they would be willing to put in the extra effort when they are called upon.
Interesting quote: "Don't be surprised if Van Gundy reaches out for Sprewell or Ward to help spread the word and establish the hard-nosed ways with the Rockets." I'm surprised no one has started a thread about this. Wonder what it would take to get Sprewell.
Houston trades: Cuttino Mobley Eddie Griffin Glen Rice Knicks trade: Latrell Sprewell Kurt Thomas #9 pick this year Trade Accepted. ____________ Has anyone else heard rumors that Jodie Foster was gay?
