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From One Ed to Another
It's the feel good story that really doesn't get to be.
Washington's own Ed Tapscott is beginning his second full week in charge of the Wizards, but the joy for his opportunity is muted by the reality that it came at the expense of another D.C. native.
The end with the Wizards for Eddie Jordan just didn't seem fair. After all, he helped guide the franchise out of the NBA wilderness and into a playoff contender. It is something Jordan was even able to do the last couple of seasons while missing a couple of All-Stars.
When the Wizards beat the Utah Jazz for their first win of the season, I could not help but think of Jazz coach Jerry Sloan. NBA coaches come and go, but why couldn't Jordan have a run in D.C. like Sloan in Utah? In his 21st season with the Jazz, Sloan has won more than 1,000 games.
It would have been nice, but that's fantasy. Team President Ernie Grunfeld had to deal with reality. The loss to a 7-man New York Knicks team a week ago Saturday was the kind of loss that gets a coach fired. In the end, it did.
It must be something about Thanksgiving week and coaches at Verizon Center. Last year, the Capitals fired their coach on Thanksgiving Day, after a bad loss at home the night before. The Capitals ended up in first place, but a similar run by the Wizards at this point looks unlikely.
It had to be a tough decision for Grunfeld, because Jordan had proven before that he could deal with adversity. In many ways the Wizards ability to win 43 games last season with Gilbert Arenas injured for 69 games and Caron Butler for 24 games was nothing short of incredible.
Again this season, Jordan was faced with adversity with Arenas still out and Brendan Haywood also injured on the sideline. Unlike last year, the slow start was not limited to five games, and in fact, is not over as the Wizards prepare for their 15th game of the season Tuesday in New Jersey.
Tapscott is now 1-2 as Wizards head coach. In his first game in charge, the Wizards offered a glimpse of their potential in a 124-100 win over Golden State. Then it was a reality check in a loss to a very good Orlando team, followed by Saturday's competitive but ultimately frustrating loss to Atlanta.
The head could burst trying to figure out the answers. At 2-12 now, the Wizards know they have All-Stars in Butler and Antawn Jamison to build around, but who plays where and when is an open question.
For all the Xs and Os, it comes down to good people in a bad situation. Jordan is not a bad coach because of a bad start after four straight playoff years. Grunfeld is not a bad executive after assembling the team that made that run of post season appearances.
Grunfeld is ultra-competitive, and it is what has made him a success at every stop of the executive level in the NBA and this start has to gnawing at him. Jordan is the coach who wanted to be a coach even before he wanted to be a player and now he is on the outside looking in.
At his introductory news conference in 2003, Jordan was moved to tears when he talked about the impact his coach at the District's Douglass Junior High, John Paul Davis Jr., had on him. Jordan watched how a coach could change kid's lives, and it inspired him to want to be one.
Jordan made it all the way at the top of the profession as a coach in the NBA. Still his perspective stayed grounded. Just about ten days ago, with the pressure on, he took time to take a call in his office from his young son who was excited that he finally saw a highlight of his dad playing with the Lakers on NBA TV.
Yes, Jordan has his priorities straight, but at the NBA level it is about wins and losses. There just weren't enough of them to start the season, so a good man was replaced by another good man.
Tapscott also has his priorities straight. Like Jordan, Tapscott is a devoted family man. His last coaching job before last week was of his daughter's basketball team.
In his praise of Tapscott's work with the Wizards as Director of Player Development, it was Jordan who once said, "Whatever Ed Tapscott is doing, he is over-qualified for it."
Indeed, Tapscott is smart and can hold a conversation on just about anything. He played basketball at Tufts University, and not only coached at American University, but earned a law degree there.
Without Arenas and Haywood, it was never going to be easy for the Wizards, but few expected it to be this hard. It's now up to Tapscott to make the best of a bad situation, and really create a feel-good story.
It was fitting the Redskins played in the pouring rain yesterday, because it is clear after the 23-7 loss to the Giants they are still treading water.
Yes, Eli Manning passed for over 300 yards, but the Redskins defense made some big stops when they held Giants to field goals and opened the door for the offense. It was a door that stayed shut.
Clinton Portis was knocked around and held to 22 yards. With Portis held to under 100 yards, the Redskins offense continued to under achieve.
Granted, the Redskins had to deal with a very good Giants team, but Jason Campbell said it best when he noted that the offense's inability to make a big play is what is separating this team from becoming a really good team.
(Copyright 2008 by WTOP. All Rights Reserved.)
Posted by:  | 11/30/08  0  Comments | PermaLink
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