| | 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. | |
ALSO SEE
Ainge resigns as Suns coach; Skiles takes over
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 Scott Skiles is the new coach of the Suns.
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