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 Monday, December 13
Skiles is NBA's youngest coach
 
Associated Press

 PHOENIX -- At 35, Scott Skiles becomes the youngest coach in the NBA, but his ascension was not unexpected by him or anyone else around the league.

The only surprise is the manner in which he suddenly took over Monday as coach of the Phoenix Suns after the unexpected resignation of Danny Ainge.

"Scott has prepared himself since he was a little kid to be a coach," the Suns' Jason Kidd said. "Scott is one who has written down play after play since he's been in the league. We all respect him. We're all going to be open-minded and trust him. That's the biggest thing."

The new coach has a distinctly different personality from Ainge, who is easy going and masks his intensity with humor and a boyish grin.

"Scotty is a different person. He's more a disciplinarian," said Penny Hardaway, who as a rookie played with Skiles in Orlando. "He's a guy that's not going to take a lot of nonsense. It's going to be a different story around here because Danny was more laid-back, more friendly. Scotty is the same but he'll yell at you when he has to."

In a 10-year NBA career that included stops in five cities, Skiles played with three current Suns -- Hardaway, Tom Gugliotta and Rex Chapman. Skiles still holds the NBA record for most assists in a game at 30 while playing for Orlando against Denver on Dec. 30, 1990.

Skiles said it will be up to him to earn the players' respect as a coach.

"If the guys see that I'm professional and if they believe in me and believe in what I'm trying to accomplish, that won't be a problem at all," he said. "If they come out here and see that I'm not prepared or I'm phony with them, then it's not going to work."

As a college star at Michigan State, Skiles was second in the nation in scoring his senior season and was the No. 22 overall pick, by Milwaukee, in the draft.

After playing for Milwaukee, Indiana, Orlando, Washington and Philadelphia, he coached a team in Greece before Ainge brought him back to the NBA as an assistant in June of 1997.

Skiles has interviewed for head coaching jobs before, most recently with Orlando before this season.

"When we brought him in as an assistant, we figured his stay with us would be brief," Suns owner Jerry Colangelo said, "because we knew he would be a candidate for a head coaching position. Little did we know it would open up for him here."

Skiles said he and Ainge disagreed on few things. He thinks the Suns have the talent to compete in the tough Western Conference.

"I believe we have the players here to succeed," Skiles said. "Otherwise, I wouldn't have taken the job.
 


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Ainge resigns as Suns coach; Skiles takes over



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