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djsunyc
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http://www.nynewsday.com/sports/basketball/knicks/ny-
sppow0728,0,6274520.column?coll=nyc-sports-headlines
Shaun Powell
SPORTS COLUMNIST
July 28, 2005
Hope.
That's not the four-letter word that usually comes to mind about the
Knicks. And yet, after a series of kooky events, after setting the NBA record for butt-kissing during a week-long romance, after a few
flights to the Hamptons aboard a corporate helicopter roomy enough for the team salary cap, after coming up with enough scratch to buy a Hall of Fame coach and after getting the OK from Herb Williams (chuckle), that's what the Knicks have now.
Hope.
It officially arrives today in the form of a dapper 64-year-old with a replacement hip and a man who happens to be a tortured genius.
Tortured, because despite a professional reputation so sterling it
deserves a Tiffany stamp, he's constantly in search of happiness and
needs to be reminded how much he's loved. Genius, because he might be
the best teacher on any level of basketball, with a golden touch that
shifts bad teams into reverse.
This makes Larry Brown ideal for the Knicks.
When Long Island Larry is introduced as the 22nd coach of the
franchise this afternoon, he'll ramble on about following his mentor,
Red Holzman; about coming home; about the challenge of spit-shining a
stagnant team; and about why this just seems right. However, the
mutual feeling is perhaps even stronger on the Knicks' end. They need
him more than he needs them. Given their awkward state of transition,
Long Island Larry is simply the right coach at the right time.
Listen to what veteran coach Doug Moe, a close friend of Brown's from
way back, said yesterday: "They'll be better right away. Larry will
get them playing basketball the right way. He'll do good. He gets
players to believe in what he's doing and believing in each other."
Brown seems right for Stephon Marbury, who's had too many voices in
his ear since he left Coney Island 10 years ago. Brown becomes
Marbury's 11th coach since high school.
Finally, this appears to be the right one. Brown has the track record
necessary to gain the point guard's respect and attention. Marbury has no doubt heard from Allen Iverson, who clashed often with Brown in Philly, but became better and wiser from the experience. It is Brown who finally may sell Marbury on the virtue of sacrifice and make him understand that his teammates' happiness is more important than his own.
Brown seems right for Jamal Crawford, a gifted player who doesn't know how to play. You can understand why; Crawford only played two years in high school and spent one season in college. He isn't that different from the players taken in last month's draft. Brown will attempt to fix Crawford's bad habits and show the kid the difference between a bad shot and a good one, and why playing defense isn't restricted to the folks in the Department of Homeland Security.
Brown is also the teacher necessary for the three incoming rookies and the other young talent on the roster. It hardly matters if Brown
doesn't form a lasting bond with Penny Hardaway, Tim Thomas and the
pumpkins who won't be around this time next year. But he will appeal
to their pride and their desire to get another contract elsewhere, and this should enable the Knicks to at least make a playoff run in the weak Eastern Conference.
Here's the catch: Once the Knicks get the right players and truly turn the corner, they'll be coached by Herb Williams.
They aren't built for the short term, and Brown isn't the short-term
answer. You cannot ignore his age and his health and his history of
leaving teams. They all add up to three years with the Knicks, maybe
four. There are other potential hazards: a run-in with Marbury, a
clash with team president Isiah Thomas over players, and a feeling of
insecurity if this becomes another 2004 U.S. Olympic experience.
Eventually, the honeymoon will fade, just as it did after Isiah was
hired and after the Marbury trade. Being in New York and in his dream
job could work against Brown if the marriage doesn't match the
intensity of the courtship.
"I think he goes into every job thinking he'll stay forever," Moe
said. "It doesn't always work out that way. He stays five years, in
most cases, and then for some reason he's ready to go."
So it should be interesting while it lasts, and for those wondering if Long Island Larry will see another contract after this one, I'll close with another four-letter word: Nope.
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