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http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/inside_game/marty_burns/news/2003/06/01/burns_skiles/
Scott Skiles won’t be at this year’s NBA Pre-Draft Camp, the league’s annual talent showcase and unofficial job fair, which begins Tuesday in Chicago. The former Suns head coach will be back home in Bloomington, Ind., doing what he’s been doing much of the past 15 months.
"Typical dad stuff," Skiles said. "Spending time with my two boys, going to their little league games. And following the NBA, like always."
Maybe Skiles should consider hopping in his car and making the 3 1/2-hour drive to Chicago. Once considered a rising young star in the coaching fraternity, he practically has disappeared off the NBA radar since parting ways with Phoenix in February of 2002. Even with this year’s coaching carousel spinning wildly, Skiles’ name barely has surfaced.
"It’s been kind of mysterious, really," said Skiles, who compiled a 116-79 record in his two-plus seasons. "Maybe if I was on TV, pleading my case, I’d be better off. But I guess that’s not really my style."
After taking over the Suns for Danny Ainge early in the 1999-00 season, Skiles drew widespread praise for leading an injury-plagued team to a 50-32 record and the Western Conference semifinals. The following season the Suns went 51-31 and again reached the playoffs.
After the 2000-01 season, however, the Suns traded Jason Kidd to the Nets for Stephon Marbury. Phoenix got off to a 12-7 start but suddenly went into a tailspin and couldn’t get out of it. Citing a mutual need for change, the Suns and their hard-nosed young coach parted ways at midseason.
Contrary to some reports, Skiles insists burnout had nothing do with his decision to step down. He says it was simply time to move on, though it was no secret his intensity and no-nonsense approach led to friction with Marbury and veteran guard Penny Hardaway.
It also probably didn’t help that Kidd, upset over what he termed "negative" comments by the Suns' coaching staff, made a crude gesture and mouthed an epithet at Skiles on the court during the team’s first meeting after the trade.
"We went up to New Jersey, and there was all this hype," Skiles recalled. "Jason had been saying lot of negative things about Jerry Colangelo [the team’s owner]. He hadn’t said anything about me or my staff. Then all of the sudden he came out with this stuff about the coaching staff being ‘negative.’ I don’t know where it came from.
"I had a great relationship with Jason. All I ever said publicly was how phenomenal he was. But I guess because I stayed quiet and didn’t fight back, I got hurt."
Skiles believes the Kidd situation and a rumor that he didn’t want to coach any more have scared off some teams. He also admits his own reluctance to play the political game might be costing him. For example, he decided not to go into broadcasting even though many other coaches have used that route to get back in the NBA game.
"If I had a legitimate interest in that, fine," he said. "But I didn’t want to do it just to be out there. Maybe I’ve been a little naïve about how things operate, but I’d like to think that my record as a coach speaks for itself."
At least one NBA GM believes Skiles will be back on the bench someday. Magic general manager John Gabriel brought Skiles to Orlando as a player and interviewed him for the team’s head coaching job before hiring Doc Rivers. "I thought he did a good job in Phoenix," Gabriel said. "I thought at the time he was destined to be coaching in the league for a long time."
Instead, Skiles has had to confine his Xs and Os to his son’s eighth grade team. His name recently came up for openings in Toronto and Cleveland, but neither brought in him for a formal interview. Given the success of other young former players-turned-coaches like Rivers, Rick Carlisle and Maurice Cheeks, Skiles says he can’t explain it.
"I went from being perceived as one of the best young coaches in the league to this negative perception in a span of about 30 games," Skiles said. "It’s really bizarre."
Actually, it’s no more bizarre than the $6-7 million annual salaries many big-name coaches are seeking these days. Which, come to think of it, is another good reason for somebody to give Skiles a call. At this point, he'd probably work for a lot less.
Scott Skiles won’t be at this year’s NBA Pre-Draft Camp, the league’s annual talent showcase and unofficial job fair, which begins Tuesday in Chicago. The former Suns head coach will be back home in Bloomington, Ind., doing what he’s been doing much of the past 15 months.
"Typical dad stuff," Skiles said. "Spending time with my two boys, going to their little league games. And following the NBA, like always."
Maybe Skiles should consider hopping in his car and making the 3 1/2-hour drive to Chicago. Once considered a rising young star in the coaching fraternity, he practically has disappeared off the NBA radar since parting ways with Phoenix in February of 2002. Even with this year’s coaching carousel spinning wildly, Skiles’ name barely has surfaced.
"It’s been kind of mysterious, really," said Skiles, who compiled a 116-79 record in his two-plus seasons. "Maybe if I was on TV, pleading my case, I’d be better off. But I guess that’s not really my style."
After taking over the Suns for Danny Ainge early in the 1999-00 season, Skiles drew widespread praise for leading an injury-plagued team to a 50-32 record and the Western Conference semifinals. The following season the Suns went 51-31 and again reached the playoffs.
After the 2000-01 season, however, the Suns traded Jason Kidd to the Nets for Stephon Marbury. Phoenix got off to a 12-7 start but suddenly went into a tailspin and couldn’t get out of it. Citing a mutual need for change, the Suns and their hard-nosed young coach parted ways at midseason.
Contrary to some reports, Skiles insists burnout had nothing do with his decision to step down. He says it was simply time to move on, though it was no secret his intensity and no-nonsense approach led to friction with Marbury and veteran guard Penny Hardaway.
It also probably didn’t help that Kidd, upset over what he termed "negative" comments by the Suns' coaching staff, made a crude gesture and mouthed an epithet at Skiles on the court during the team’s first meeting after the trade.
"We went up to New Jersey, and there was all this hype," Skiles recalled. "Jason had been saying lot of negative things about Jerry Colangelo [the team’s owner]. He hadn’t said anything about me or my staff. Then all of the sudden he came out with this stuff about the coaching staff being ‘negative.’ I don’t know where it came from.
"I had a great relationship with Jason. All I ever said publicly was how phenomenal he was. But I guess because I stayed quiet and didn’t fight back, I got hurt."
Skiles believes the Kidd situation and a rumor that he didn’t want to coach any more have scared off some teams. He also admits his own reluctance to play the political game might be costing him. For example, he decided not to go into broadcasting even though many other coaches have used that route to get back in the NBA game.
"If I had a legitimate interest in that, fine," he said. "But I didn’t want to do it just to be out there. Maybe I’ve been a little naïve about how things operate, but I’d like to think that my record as a coach speaks for itself."
At least one NBA GM believes Skiles will be back on the bench someday. Magic general manager John Gabriel brought Skiles to Orlando as a player and interviewed him for the team’s head coaching job before hiring Doc Rivers. "I thought he did a good job in Phoenix," Gabriel said. "I thought at the time he was destined to be coaching in the league for a long time."
Instead, Skiles has had to confine his Xs and Os to his son’s eighth grade team. His name recently came up for openings in Toronto and Cleveland, but neither brought in him for a formal interview. Given the success of other young former players-turned-coaches like Rivers, Rick Carlisle and Maurice Cheeks, Skiles says he can’t explain it.
"I went from being perceived as one of the best young coaches in the league to this negative perception in a span of about 30 games," Skiles said. "It’s really bizarre."
Actually, it’s no more bizarre than the $6-7 million annual salaries many big-name coaches are seeking these days. Which, come to think of it, is another good reason for somebody to give Skiles a call. At this point, he'd probably work for a lot less.
