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Tim Floyd's second chance bordered on fantasy. How did a coach with one of the worst records in NBA history win the job with the playoff-contending New Orleans Hornets?
``It's kind of a unique situation,'' Floyd concedes. ``This is absolutely more than I could've dreamed for.''
That's because
when he resigned from the Chicago Bulls after three seasons he had a record
of 49-190. Then he sought refuge in his adopted hometown, New Orleans, which
at that time was not an NBA city.
A year later the Hornets moved in from Charlotte, N.C. And a season after that,
Paul Silas, who led the Hornets to more victories than any other coach in franchise
history, was fired after taking an injury-plagued team to its fourth straight
playoff appearance. Ticketmaster
Barring injuries, Floyd will have a starting lineup that includes two players who have been All-Stars in the past two seasons -- Jamal Mashburn and Baron Davis -- along with one of the league's best rebounders in P.J. Brown.
Some say Floyd was hired because he came cheap. Silas, who was making $1.5 million a year, wanted a raise -- and he would more than double his pay when hired by the Cleveland Cavaliers. Hornets management said Silas was let go because the team shouldn't have been eliminated in the first round of the playoffs with the talent it had.
In any event, Floyd will be paid about $4.8 million over three years, plus incentives for playoff victories, so the Hornets potentially saved millions. Also, Floyd had been popular in the city since coaching the University of New Orleans to two NCAA tournament appearances.
Floyd's supporters insist he deserves a second chance, noting that the Bulls were rebuilding after the Michael Jordan era and their roster was never stable. Of 36 players Floyd coached in Chicago, 26 were no longer in the NBA after the season he left. Ticketmaster
``In Chicago, we had no shot, and I wasn't coaching in Chicago, I was consoling and begging guys to come back out and practice the next day. We were a vulnerable group,'' Floyd said.
Not everyone agrees. Former Bulls forward Charles Oakley sharply criticized Floyd when he played for him and reiterated those sentiments in a (Chicago) Sun-Times article Thursday.
``He doesn't have a clue. He proved that trying to coach the Bulls,'' Oakley said. ``And with smart veterans like Jamal Mashburn, Baron Davis, David Wesley and P.J. Brown, you can't get by trying to massage their egos.''
Floyd said he wasn't bothered by Oakley's assessment.
``It was a very difficult thing with Oak because I had him at the end of his career,'' Floyd said. ``It was a big learning experience for me to coach a guy who was basically finished, and it's hard being the messenger with that and that's no big deal because we don't have any Oakleys here.''
Floyd has worked hard on player relations with the Hornets, such as when he flew to Las Vegas to meet with Davis.
``I thought that was very impressive,'' Davis said. ``He's done a good job here so far. He's got a good staff and we've come out every preseason game prepared to win.''
Brown hedges a bit but generally likes what he's seen from Floyd. Ticketmaster
``We have a new system and everything's different and we've been able to go out and execute and win games so far,'' Brown said. ``It doesn't guarantee anything, but it's a nice way to start off.''
The Hornets won three of their first four preseason games before losing their fifth, to Chicago, of all teams.
In that game, the Hornets faced Marcus Fizer, who played for Floyd in college and with the Bulls. He maintains that Floyd is a good coach and that he was not surprised to see Floyd back in the NBA.
``It was a very hard team to coach,'' Fizer said, referring to his time with Floyd on the Bulls. ``It comes to a point where guys got to go out and perform. We were bad because we were bad.''
Floyd knows there can be no excuses with his new team, which features a veteran roster. And with that, and the fact he is coaching in a city he loves, comes a different type of pressure. Ticketmaster
``I'd like to live here when it's over,'' Floyd said. ``I'd like to win some games so I can go in the same pubs and same golf courses and see my old friends.''