atrick Ewing yearns for more on sideline
By Steve Bulpett
Sunday, May 23, 2010 - Added 10h ago
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E-mail Print (0) Comments Text size Share Buzz up!Patrick Ewing has a nice job - and he’s been very successful at it - but it’s not quite the job to which he aspires.
If the Cambridge hero is in town trying to beat the Celtics [team stats], he should be forgiven. As an assistant coach for the Magic, it’s part of the gig.
Taking up where big man tutor Clifford Ray - now with the Celts - left off, Ewing has helped develop Dwight Howard into an even more imposing pivot force.
But he has done such a good job that it may have hindered his chances of becoming a head coach.
Ewing is not unhappy, but he is not professionally satisfied.
“I like my role here, but it’s not just what people think it is,” he said. “People say I’m just Dwight Howard’s personal coach, and I do work with him a lot, but I’m involved in everything here.”
Ewing has had trouble getting in the mix for top jobs, though you’d think by now he’s played the good soldier long enough to get a better look.
After all, many players with his Hall of Fame credentials are asked to lead far more quickly. Even some who don’t have Ewing’s credentials as both a player and a coach have gotten their shots.
“I’ve got no problem with working my way up, and I love putting in the hard work,” Ewing said. “But this is my seventh year coaching, and sometimes it’s hard when you see guys who came in after you getting (head coaching) jobs. But hopefully I’ll get some interviews this year with all the openings.”
Until such time as Ewing can move on and up, the Magic are certainly happy to have him offering overall input and, in particular, being there for Howard. He is uniquely suited to the task.
“If I can’t understand what he’s going through, nobody can,” Ewing said. “We were both the first pick overall, and we both came in with a lot of expectation. But Orlando is a little different than New York. They kind of take care of him here. In New York, there were so many people trying to get stories. It was hard at times.
“It can be really hard when you’re the big guy. Everyone’s going to look to you, and everyone’s going to look at you. It can get to the point where you feel like you have the weight of the world on your shoulders.
“I talk to Dwight all the time about that. I just tell him to play his game. The best way he can deal with the pressures is to work hard and improve. But you need the right people around you if you’re going to win championships. Even then, things have to work out right.
“I think people can see how Dwight’s gotten better. I’m trying to help him work on his skills and his approach to the game.”
