BY JIM O'DONNELL STAFF REPORTER
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Yet both earned three championship rings playing with the Bulls. Both later became quick studies and stars in NBA broadcasting spheres. And both are intrinsically involved in the front-office affairs of franchises in new stages of ascent -- Paxson as executive vice president-basketball operations with the Bulls, Kerr as a minority investor and adviser to new managing partner Robert Sarver with the Phoenix Suns.
Four months shy of his 40th birthday, Kerr continues to reap the rewards of an improbable 15-year playing career in the NBA. He is completing his second season as an analyst for Turner Sports. Beginning next week, he will be teamed with Marv Albert and Doug Collins on the cable network's coverage of the Eastern Conference finals. The Suns are on an upward run deep into the Western Conference postseason. And Kerr is having yet another time of his life.
''I am having a blast,'' the affable, endurable global sojourner said. ''I love the NBA playoffs. This is the best time of the year in the league.''
But this is one of the most worrisome times back in NBA Chicago, the port o'strange that Kerr called home from 1993 to '98. While Bulls fans continue to search for lasting meaning from an impossible season of revitalization that began with a nine-game losing streak -- and ended with a four-game skid -- the future status of coach Scott Skiles remains undecided.
Yes, Skiles has been given massive credit as co-architect, along with Paxson, of the Bulls' Phoenix-like rise from the ashes. Yes, it is Skiles' from-sir-with-love bench bossing that is cited as the critical link from Paxson's visions to the team's harder courting this season. And, yes, some among the Bulls' faithful -- foolish dreamers -- would like to think it is the organization's new Damon and Pythias who will lead it back to the Air-worthy vistas of old.
CURRENT KERR
KEEPING TABS ON THE POPULAR FORMER BULL
Age: 39.
Residence: Rancho Santa Fe, Calif. (north of San Diego).
Family: Wife Margot, three children.
Current roles: Minority investor and adviser to vice chairman and managing partner, Phoenix Suns; NBA analyst, Turner Sports.
Years since NBA playing career ended: 2.
Years since departure from Bulls: 7.
On a return to the Bulls: ''Who knows? My wife and I love Chicago. John Paxson and Scott Skiles are both friends of mine, and I couldn't be happier for them. I hope they have a long and successful run with the Bulls.''
On coaching: ''I would prefer to coach in the NBA, but if the Arizona job ever became a possibility for me, I'd have to consider it. I love Tucson and I love the university.''
On the lessons of life, Part I: ''Work hard, prepare and enjoy yourself.''
On the lessons of life, Part II: ''One can achieve his potential. One can't overachieve.''
But from the Skiles side, the fact of the offseason is that his marketability never has been higher. And old college chum Dan Gilbert -- he of Quicken Loans mortgage riches -- is calling the disbursements as principal owner of the Cleveland Cavaliers and in need of a coach. And Skiles and agent Keith Glass can't help but remember two chunks of historical data from Jerry Reinsdorf's stewardship of the Bulls: 1) Phil Jackson was treated like a shammying beggar on an off ramp after producing six championships; and 2) Skiles was passed over for the Bulls' job -- along with Paul Silas, Rick Carlisle and Ron Rothstein -- during the 1998 North Shore parlor game that led to the pin-the-failing of Tim Floyd.
All of which -- for truly deepest Bulls dreamers -- leads back to Steve Kerr. Or does it?
If Skiles bolts, could Kerr be the man, in lockstep with Paxson, to pick up the mantle of momentum?
''Coaching has always been a dream of mine,'' Kerr said. ''I think I am cut out for it, and when the time is right, I'll try my hand.''
What about the Bulls? Could Kerr see himself in any role with the team?
''I enjoyed my time with the Bulls, obviously, and my wife and I love Chicago,'' Kerr said. ''Who knows? John Paxson and Scott Skiles are both friends of mine, and I couldn't be happier for them. I hope they have a long and successful run with the Bulls.''
Diplomatic, for sure. But the only certainty seems that Kerr -- somehow, somewhere -- will continue to enjoy success on whatever new path of professional pursuit he deigns to follow.
The steps to success
It always has been that way for Kerr, from his days as a toddler in Beirut, Lebanon, where he was born in the fall of 1965, through the bleakest day of his life. That was on Jan. 18, 1984, when his father, Malcolm, the president of American University in Beirut, was shot and killed by gunmen as he left his office. The act later was attributed to Islamic fanatics.
The murder occurred during Kerr's freshman season at Arizona. That season in itself was an improbability because Kerr had been turned down by the only university that had recruited him, Gonzaga, after being outplayed, according to legend, by John Stockton during an illegal scrimmage at the Spokane, Wash., school. Arizona coach Lute Olson, then entering his first season in Tucson, finally offered Kerr his last scholarship only two weeks before the fall term began.
From that modest start, after a near-catastrophic knee injury in 1986, Kerr led the Wildcats to the Final Four in 1988. He was drafted by the Suns in the second round (50th overall), launching a professional odyssey through Phoenix, Cleveland and Orlando before the Bulls signed him as a free agent in September 1993. His first season in Chicago would be Paxson's last as a player.
Two weeks after Kerr hit town, Michael Jordan retired for the first time. It would be 17 months before Jordan would return and begin the team's second three-year run of championships. In the interim, Kerr established himself as a brilliant, firewalling organizer, an underrated defender and the best three-point shooter in the NBA. His .524 percentage during the 1994-95 season (89-for-170) remains the league record.
After championship No. 3, during the Reinsdorf-Jerry Krause wholesaling of 1998-99, Kerr was dealt to San Antonio in a sign-and-trade for Chuck Person, a conditional first-round pick and future considerations. Kerr said he ''hated'' to leave Chicago, but his ultimate net gain would include a five-year, $11 million contract and two more championship rings -- in 1999 and 2003 -- with the Spurs. He spent one season adrift in Portland (2001-02) before returning to San Antonio to end his career in 2003.
When his career ended, among the people Kerr sounded out for future perspective was Paxson. Discussion of a role in the Bulls' broadcast scheme reportedly ensued, but before an offer was forthcoming, Kerr signed with Turner.
Kerr's post-NBA life became further textured 15 months ago when Olson called on behalf of Sarver, an Arizona alumnus who was seeking help in buying a franchise. Kerr did some scouting, and Sarver wound up putting together a group that bought the Suns for a reported $401 million in the spring of 2004. The group included Kerr, who is now on the team's management committee.
Under the purchase agreement, Sarver will not have complete control of the team's operations until 2007. There already has been speculation that if Kerr is still in house at that time, he might assume a Paxson-like role atop the Suns' basketball wing.
Watching carefully
In the meantime, as Skiles and the Bulls twist toward separate threads, Kerr rolls through the Turner/NBA postseason. He has worked no Suns games -- and will not, according to coordinating producer Jeff Behnke -- to avoid any conflict of interest. He preps for games on handy flights east out of Southern California. And he and his wife, Margot, and their three children enjoy life on a new four-acre spread north of San Diego (''Big enough to build a ballpark on,'' said mother Ann Kerr, the Fulbright coordinator for the Visiting Scholar Enrichment Program at UCLA's International Institute).
From his comfortably distant perch, Kerr watches Paxson and his old team head uphill, consistently for the first time in a long time. He worked four of their six playoff games against the Washington Wizards for Turner. His conclusions:
''I was very impressed with the Bulls, especially since they were so undermanned. They play great defense and they play together. After watching them closely, I realized that Scott Skiles didn't get enough credit for the job he did this season. For the Bulls to get to the next level, Eddy Curry has to be healthy and dominant on the low block. Offensively, Chicago had no punch inside, and it caught up with them against Washington. If Curry develops, he could be one of the best big men in the league. Combine that with their aggressive defense and unselfish play, and they could be really good.''
And what about Steve? Any easterly NBA breezes blowing in toward Chicago off the Pacific highway?
''I have no agenda, no plan,'' Kerr said. ''I am broadcasting because I enjoy it and because it gives me a nice life with my family without the stress that goes along with coaching. With that said, one day I will definitely want to get back into the game on a more competitive level -- possibly coaching or management. I would prefer to coach in the NBA. But if the Arizona job ever became a possibility for me, I'd have to consider it. I love Tucson and I love the university. But that's a long way off.''
And what about a Paxson-Kerr redux? Once more with feeling?
''John is one of my favorite people in the league,'' Kerr concluded. ''He does things the right way, and he's a man of integrity. He's always been a role model for me.''
Maybe even the sort of partner you could help pattern the continued reconstruction of a franchise with.
