For Walsh, Controversy
Has Bred Success
By Conrad Brunner
Aug. 10, 2006
Transition is rarely painless but, as Donnie Walsh has demonstrated throughout his career at the helm of the Pacers' front office, it is occasionally necessary and ultimately successful.
As popular players depart and unfamiliar faces arrive, there is an inevitable sense of anxiety within the fan base. Controversies often arise as judgments are passed – often before the new acquisitions have stepped on the floor. Such is the case this summer as the Pacers are in the process of a dramatic shift both in the makeup of the roster but the philosophy of the coaching staff. Walsh and President of Basketball Operations Larry Bird already have acquired eight new players, dealing away popular veterans Peja Stojakovic, Austin Croshere and Anthony Johnson in the process. This, of course, has created quite a bit of consternation in Pacers Nation.
Walsh and Bird have never shied from a controversial move, presuming they felt it was right.
Far more often than not, it was.
Walsh's first draft pick was the result of carefully created deception, and caused quite a stir throughout the league, particularly in New York. With the fourth pick in 1986, Walsh let everyone know the Pacers needed a big man and could be expected to take the best available from what appeared to be a deep crop of prospects. Rather than taking William Bedford or Roy Tarpley, he stunned the league with the selection of Auburn forward Chuck Person. The Knicks, who desperately needed a small forward and were already counting on Person, who would go on to win NBA Rookie of the Year honors, had to scramble for a Plan B and settled for Kenny Walker of Kentucky.
His second made a few waves, as well, when in 1987 he bypassed local legend Steve Alford for Reggie Miller. Other than a mention, this one doesn't need revisiting.
Smits
The next year, he drafted unknown Dutchman Rik Smits from tiny Marist College when the consensus of draft analysts was Syracuse's Rony Seikaly was the better center prospect. While Smits struggled to adapt to his force-fed role in the NBA, Walsh stood behind his center in the face of increasing public criticism. Ultimately, Smits turned into an All-Star and vital cog in the team that rose to the Eastern Conference elite for most of the 1990s.
Walsh has raised eyebrows with his trades, as well, but perhaps none more than the 1993 deal sending two-time NBA Sixth Man of the Year Detlef Schrempf to Seattle for the enigmatic Derrick McKey. The decision was made that the team had gone as far as it would go with Schrempf, despite is obvious talent. McKey, though far less productive, statistically, turned out to be another crucial piece of the puzzle who helped lift the Pacers to an entirely new level of success.
True, he did trade away Mark Jackson to acquire Jalen Rose from Denver in 1996, but he re-acquired Jackson a few months later. He dealt Erick Dampier, a promising young center, to Golden State for Chris Mullin, a veteran with only a few years left.
Put them all together, and the common thread was that Walsh often traded away individual talent to build a dynamic team that reached the Eastern Conference Finals five times in seven years with two very different head coaches, Brown and Larry Bird.
O'Neal
Then came the summer after the Pacers peaked with their first-ever NBA Finals appearance, losing to the Lakers in six games in 2000. Jackson left via free agency. Mullin was waived. Smits retired on the eve of training camp. Clearly, the team had to change on the fly. So Walsh dealt one of the most popular veterans in franchise history, Dale Davis, to Portland for the completely unknown Jermaine O'Neal, a wildly unpopular move that turned out to be a master stroke.
Two years later, Rose and another local favorite, Travis Best, were dealt to Chicago in a seven-player trade that brought Brad Miller and Ron Artest in return. The ex-Bulls played vital roles on the 2003-04 team that won 61 games and returned to the conference finals.
Of course, events of the past two years have led Walsh and Bird into their current stance, which is to reshape the roster in a leaner, more athletic, more versatile image. The changes to this point have been multiple but largely surrounding the core players. The idea, as it always has been, is not to stockpile talent, but to build a team.
The Pacers have been re-invented almost entirely twice before under Walsh's guidance, missing the playoffs just once in that 17-year span.
The point being, next time you feel the urge to join the rush to judgment, step back, look at the big picture, and have a little faith. You'd think, by now, it's been earned.
Has Bred Success
By Conrad Brunner
Aug. 10, 2006
Transition is rarely painless but, as Donnie Walsh has demonstrated throughout his career at the helm of the Pacers' front office, it is occasionally necessary and ultimately successful.
As popular players depart and unfamiliar faces arrive, there is an inevitable sense of anxiety within the fan base. Controversies often arise as judgments are passed – often before the new acquisitions have stepped on the floor. Such is the case this summer as the Pacers are in the process of a dramatic shift both in the makeup of the roster but the philosophy of the coaching staff. Walsh and President of Basketball Operations Larry Bird already have acquired eight new players, dealing away popular veterans Peja Stojakovic, Austin Croshere and Anthony Johnson in the process. This, of course, has created quite a bit of consternation in Pacers Nation.
Walsh and Bird have never shied from a controversial move, presuming they felt it was right.
Far more often than not, it was.
Walsh's first draft pick was the result of carefully created deception, and caused quite a stir throughout the league, particularly in New York. With the fourth pick in 1986, Walsh let everyone know the Pacers needed a big man and could be expected to take the best available from what appeared to be a deep crop of prospects. Rather than taking William Bedford or Roy Tarpley, he stunned the league with the selection of Auburn forward Chuck Person. The Knicks, who desperately needed a small forward and were already counting on Person, who would go on to win NBA Rookie of the Year honors, had to scramble for a Plan B and settled for Kenny Walker of Kentucky.
His second made a few waves, as well, when in 1987 he bypassed local legend Steve Alford for Reggie Miller. Other than a mention, this one doesn't need revisiting.
Smits
The next year, he drafted unknown Dutchman Rik Smits from tiny Marist College when the consensus of draft analysts was Syracuse's Rony Seikaly was the better center prospect. While Smits struggled to adapt to his force-fed role in the NBA, Walsh stood behind his center in the face of increasing public criticism. Ultimately, Smits turned into an All-Star and vital cog in the team that rose to the Eastern Conference elite for most of the 1990s.
Walsh has raised eyebrows with his trades, as well, but perhaps none more than the 1993 deal sending two-time NBA Sixth Man of the Year Detlef Schrempf to Seattle for the enigmatic Derrick McKey. The decision was made that the team had gone as far as it would go with Schrempf, despite is obvious talent. McKey, though far less productive, statistically, turned out to be another crucial piece of the puzzle who helped lift the Pacers to an entirely new level of success.
True, he did trade away Mark Jackson to acquire Jalen Rose from Denver in 1996, but he re-acquired Jackson a few months later. He dealt Erick Dampier, a promising young center, to Golden State for Chris Mullin, a veteran with only a few years left.
Put them all together, and the common thread was that Walsh often traded away individual talent to build a dynamic team that reached the Eastern Conference Finals five times in seven years with two very different head coaches, Brown and Larry Bird.
O'Neal
Then came the summer after the Pacers peaked with their first-ever NBA Finals appearance, losing to the Lakers in six games in 2000. Jackson left via free agency. Mullin was waived. Smits retired on the eve of training camp. Clearly, the team had to change on the fly. So Walsh dealt one of the most popular veterans in franchise history, Dale Davis, to Portland for the completely unknown Jermaine O'Neal, a wildly unpopular move that turned out to be a master stroke.
Two years later, Rose and another local favorite, Travis Best, were dealt to Chicago in a seven-player trade that brought Brad Miller and Ron Artest in return. The ex-Bulls played vital roles on the 2003-04 team that won 61 games and returned to the conference finals.
Of course, events of the past two years have led Walsh and Bird into their current stance, which is to reshape the roster in a leaner, more athletic, more versatile image. The changes to this point have been multiple but largely surrounding the core players. The idea, as it always has been, is not to stockpile talent, but to build a team.
The Pacers have been re-invented almost entirely twice before under Walsh's guidance, missing the playoffs just once in that 17-year span.
The point being, next time you feel the urge to join the rush to judgment, step back, look at the big picture, and have a little faith. You'd think, by now, it's been earned.
Comment