Money Talking on Coach Selecting:from NY Times

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Brown Leaves the Sixers for Points Unknown
By CHRIS BROUSSARD

With the Dallas Mavericks ailing and the Western Conference finals morphing into a certification of Tim Duncan's greatness, the most exciting topic in basketball is the quest to fill several coaching vacancies. The chase grew more interesting yesterday when Larry Brown, the Hall of Fame coach, resigned after six seasons with the Philadelphia 76ers.

Brown, who in keeping with his reputation as Mr. Fix-It resurrected the Sixers from a doormat to a contender, wants to continue coaching, and with five coaching positions available, he vaulted to the top of the list of candidates.

Along with the former Knicks coach Jeff Van Gundy, the 62-year-old Brown is already being mentioned as a top candidate in Houston and Cleveland. Brown had two years and $12 million remaining on his contract, but Philadelphia released him from a clause that would have kept him from coaching elsewhere in the N.B.A. if he left Philadelphia prematurely.

"I believe I've taken this team as far as I can," Brown said. "It's time for a change."

Brown's tenure in Philadelphia was the longest of his 31-year coaching career. His tumultuous relationship with Allen Iverson was believed to have been a factor in his decision, according to people familiar with the situation. While Houston and Cleveland will make strong bids for Brown, several league executives said yesterday that they expected him to end up with the Los Angeles Clippers, where Dennis Johnson is the interim coach.

Brown has a home in Los Angeles and he and his wife love the area. He is also a favorite of the Clippers' owner, Donald Sterling, because he led the Clippers to the playoffs when coaching the club in 1992 and 1993. Executives in both the Eastern and Western conferences said they believed Sterling would give Brown control of basketball operations and also commit to spending money in the free-agent market, mostly to re-sign the team's young and talented free agents.

"A lot of jobs are open, but I just left a great one," Brown said. "I'm going to sit back, try to get with my family and figure out what's best for everybody."

New Orleans and Toronto are also looking for coaches, and Washington and Atlanta are also expected to make changes before next season. Portland, Washington and Atlanta will hire new general managers.

If Brown goes to Los Angeles, Van Gundy, who resigned in December 2001 after nearly six seasons with the Knicks, would seem to be the top choice in Houston and Cleveland. Van Gundy has already spoken with Cleveland, and Houston recently received permission from the Knicks to interview him; the Knicks have him under contract through July 31. A meeting between Van Gundy and the Rockets is scheduled within the next week.

Houston has two superstars in Yao Ming and Steve Francis and several other talented players. But Houston, which is also considering Mike Dunleavy, may not be willing to pay as much as Cleveland, which will spare no expense to obtain a top-flight coach for LeBron James. Van Gundy, who turned down New Orleans's request for an interview, always had veteran teams during his successful run with the Knicks and there is a strong sentiment that he will not coach a rebuilding team.

But a person with knowledge of Van Gundy's thinking said he has not ruled out Cleveland, and that ownership's commitment to winning and to spending money in pursuit of top players will be the most important factors in Van Gundy's decision. As of last night, Philadelphia, which promoted General Manager Billy King to president yesterday, had not asked the Knicks for permission to speak with Van Gundy.

Maurice Cheeks, the coach of the Trail Blazers, and Paul Silas, who is also a candidate in Cleveland, are believed to be on the Sixers' short list to replace Brown. Eddie Jordan, an assistant to the Nets' Byron Scott, may also be considered in Philadelphia and in Washington, where Doug Collins is expected to be fired. Though it has not interviewed him, Washington is believed to be interested in Ed Stefanski, the Nets' director of player personnel, as a general manager. Washington, as well as Portland, have also asked Milwaukee for permission to speak with the Bucks' general manager, Ernie Grunfeld. But no talks have taken place yet.

If the Wizards hire Stefanski, Jordan would be a natural fit as coach. Jordan, the brains behind the Nets' offense, is popular with the Nets' players, and it is possible that his departure could cause problems in the locker room. Nonetheless, Scott said Philadelphia should go after him.

"We have a great group of guys, not only players but our staff," Scott said. "When you have that type of camaraderie, you don't want it to break up, but you do also want to see your guys succeed and get to the next level. And for Eddie, the next level is a head-coaching job."

Toronto is believed to be on the verge of hiring Kevin O'Neill, a Detroit Pistons assistant who served under Van Gundy with the Knicks. Mike Fratello, Van Gundy's broadcast partner on TNT, has been mentioned as Silas's eventual successor in New Orleans. Brian Hill, a Hornets assistant, is also a candidate.

"How about all these jobs?" one Eastern Conference executive said. "I've never seen such massive change in the N.B.A."