I thought this was a pretty good article from Dan Bickley accepts the card at the end where he names Doug Collins and Pat Riley as possible replacements.
Joe Mama
http://www.azcentral.com/sports/suns/1119bickley1119.html
Win cools hot seat for now
The Arizona Republic
Nov. 19, 2003 12:00 AM
It is hours before tip-off, and Frank Johnson is alone in the basement of America West Arena. Down the hall, members of the Orlando Magic are addressing the sudden dismissal of Doc Rivers.
For a head coach catching his own whiff of trouble, the scene is a little too close for comfort.
"Every time you get in this business, you hear a phrase: You're hired to be fired," Johnson said.
This is a strange time in the Valley. Our teams stink and we're running out of hot seats for all the coaches in peril. Dave McGinnis is walking the green mile, Dirk Koetter may have to sacrifice his defensive coordinator and the Coyotes' coach is hanging on by his ties. John Mackovic has already been fired in Tucson, and when baseball comes out of hibernation, Bob Brenly will feel the breath on his neck and Mark Grace biding time in the broadcast booth.
Being Frank
Suns coach Frank Johnson's career coaching record with the team.
Season W/L Pct. Playoffs
2001-02 11-20 .355 0-0
2002-03 44-38 .537 2-4
2003-04 4-6 .400 ?
TOTAL 59-64 .479 2-4
And now, just 10 games into the NBA grind, Johnson's feet have landed in this wicked stew.
On Tuesday, the Suns authored a much-needed blowout. They passed the ball and poked holes in the opposing defense. They beat the wretched Bulls and calmed the growing storm.
But this story isn't going away just yet.
Father and son Colangelo have been greatly disappointed with the pedigree of their basketball team. The Suns have shown a tendency to wither in the fourth quarter of games. Their focus has been a little off center. And in the brutally tough Western Conference, it can get late very early.
The Suns are in the midst of a cozy stretch of games, with six of the next seven at home. If this team hasn't turned a corner before departing for the East Coast on Dec. 4, well, you know how impatient and proactive Jerry Colangelo can be.
Johnson understands the situation, but he wonders if people understand his. He claims the loss of Bo Outlaw hurts more than anyone realizes, that the Suns have missed his energy and lunch-bucket mentality. Then he spoke cryptically of some internal issues plaguing the team.
"When you have a lot of young players, it's like kids," Johnson said. "You're going to have situations, problems to deal with when your kids are young. And when they're older, the kids look back and say, 'Hey, thanks for helping me through these difficult (times), thanks for understanding.' And as they get older, they understand what you're trying to do as a parent.
"Well, it's the same thing here. We have a group of guys here who are very talented players . . . (but) we don't have enough of those young guys who are willing to do some of the dirty work. The mentality for young players, and we're no different, is everybody wants to score, give it to me, let me get mine. And I think we're fighting a little bit of that right now."
Johnson may be right about the challenges of a younger team, but he is overstating the importance of Outlaw. It is also a dangerous thing to subtly point a finger upstairs at General Manager Bryan Colangelo, who needed to dump Outlaw's salary yet nimbly upgraded the overall talent of the group.
"Now, skillwise, did we get a little better there? Yeah," Johnson said. "But they're still young skilled players and certainly still trying to learn the league."
Yet that same learning curve applies to Johnson. When he was awarded a three-year contract in February 2001, the Suns hoped he would grow with a young team. They provided his assistants, keeping Johnson on a short leash. They knew then what they know now, that it won't require antacid to swallow his modest contract.
It is worth noting that the elder Colangelo has had a long history of promoting assistants, from Paul Westphal to Danny Ainge, from Scott Skiles to Johnson. Longing for a NBA championship to complement his World Series ring, Colangelo may have had enough of the in-house promotions.
Pat Riley is out there. So is Doug Collins, who lives in Scottsdale.
Regardless of alternatives, Johnson is on the clock, just like the day he got the gig.
Except the ticking is getting louder. And while Tuesday's win was nice, a few more encores are a necessity, not a luxury.
Joe Mama
http://www.azcentral.com/sports/suns/1119bickley1119.html
Win cools hot seat for now
The Arizona Republic
Nov. 19, 2003 12:00 AM
It is hours before tip-off, and Frank Johnson is alone in the basement of America West Arena. Down the hall, members of the Orlando Magic are addressing the sudden dismissal of Doc Rivers.
For a head coach catching his own whiff of trouble, the scene is a little too close for comfort.
"Every time you get in this business, you hear a phrase: You're hired to be fired," Johnson said.
This is a strange time in the Valley. Our teams stink and we're running out of hot seats for all the coaches in peril. Dave McGinnis is walking the green mile, Dirk Koetter may have to sacrifice his defensive coordinator and the Coyotes' coach is hanging on by his ties. John Mackovic has already been fired in Tucson, and when baseball comes out of hibernation, Bob Brenly will feel the breath on his neck and Mark Grace biding time in the broadcast booth.
Being Frank
Suns coach Frank Johnson's career coaching record with the team.
Season W/L Pct. Playoffs
2001-02 11-20 .355 0-0
2002-03 44-38 .537 2-4
2003-04 4-6 .400 ?
TOTAL 59-64 .479 2-4
And now, just 10 games into the NBA grind, Johnson's feet have landed in this wicked stew.
On Tuesday, the Suns authored a much-needed blowout. They passed the ball and poked holes in the opposing defense. They beat the wretched Bulls and calmed the growing storm.
But this story isn't going away just yet.
Father and son Colangelo have been greatly disappointed with the pedigree of their basketball team. The Suns have shown a tendency to wither in the fourth quarter of games. Their focus has been a little off center. And in the brutally tough Western Conference, it can get late very early.
The Suns are in the midst of a cozy stretch of games, with six of the next seven at home. If this team hasn't turned a corner before departing for the East Coast on Dec. 4, well, you know how impatient and proactive Jerry Colangelo can be.
Johnson understands the situation, but he wonders if people understand his. He claims the loss of Bo Outlaw hurts more than anyone realizes, that the Suns have missed his energy and lunch-bucket mentality. Then he spoke cryptically of some internal issues plaguing the team.
"When you have a lot of young players, it's like kids," Johnson said. "You're going to have situations, problems to deal with when your kids are young. And when they're older, the kids look back and say, 'Hey, thanks for helping me through these difficult (times), thanks for understanding.' And as they get older, they understand what you're trying to do as a parent.
"Well, it's the same thing here. We have a group of guys here who are very talented players . . . (but) we don't have enough of those young guys who are willing to do some of the dirty work. The mentality for young players, and we're no different, is everybody wants to score, give it to me, let me get mine. And I think we're fighting a little bit of that right now."
Johnson may be right about the challenges of a younger team, but he is overstating the importance of Outlaw. It is also a dangerous thing to subtly point a finger upstairs at General Manager Bryan Colangelo, who needed to dump Outlaw's salary yet nimbly upgraded the overall talent of the group.
"Now, skillwise, did we get a little better there? Yeah," Johnson said. "But they're still young skilled players and certainly still trying to learn the league."
Yet that same learning curve applies to Johnson. When he was awarded a three-year contract in February 2001, the Suns hoped he would grow with a young team. They provided his assistants, keeping Johnson on a short leash. They knew then what they know now, that it won't require antacid to swallow his modest contract.
It is worth noting that the elder Colangelo has had a long history of promoting assistants, from Paul Westphal to Danny Ainge, from Scott Skiles to Johnson. Longing for a NBA championship to complement his World Series ring, Colangelo may have had enough of the in-house promotions.
Pat Riley is out there. So is Doug Collins, who lives in Scottsdale.
Regardless of alternatives, Johnson is on the clock, just like the day he got the gig.
Except the ticking is getting louder. And while Tuesday's win was nice, a few more encores are a necessity, not a luxury.
