Mullin 珍惜溜馬時光

[yushi (瓶子)]

http://www.indystar.com/articles/1/125731-6861-039.html

Mullin cherishes his experience with the Pacers

By Mark Montieth
[e-mail]
March 2, 2004
 
OAKLAND, Calif. -- Chris Mullin has a vague job title, a vague job
description and seemingly only a vague notion of where he wants to
go with it.

But should he ever be in a position of high authority for the Golden
State Warriors, he knows how he would like to see things run. That
would be much like they ran during his three-year stint with the
Indiana Pacers.

"There's no place I've been that was anywhere near the Pacers,"
said Mullin, who will watch his two former teams, Golden State and
the Pacers, play tonight at The Arena in Oakland. "Being with Donnie
(Walsh) and Larry (Bird), that was the model.

"Everything was just right. And the teammates that I had there,
everything just fit. It was a professional experience every day.
It's something I cherished and learned from and hope to benefit from."

Walsh traded Erick Dampier, then coming off a modest rookie season,
for Mullin in the summer of 1997, adding a scoring threat and veteran
presence that was crucial at the time. Bird coached Mullin for three
seasons, their respective careers with the team coinciding perfectly.

It seemed appropriate they would have that experience together,
so similar were they as players, and it seems appropriate that Mullin
could follow Bird's path into an executive office.

He always seemed a left-handed clone of Bird, his teammate on the
1992 Olympic Dream Team, only of slightly less stature. He was two
inches shorter, but an equally great shooter and passer, equally
non-athletic by NBA standards and equally devoted to the game.

The difference was that Bird played for a top-notch organization
that pieced together teams that won three NBA titles. Mullin, the
seventh player taken in the 1985 draft, played on just five winning
teams and never advanced past the second round of the playoffs in his
13 seasons with Golden State.

That's why his three seasons with the Pacers were such a relief,
and a revelation. Mullin started the first two seasons for teams that
reached the Eastern Conference finals, then played sparingly for the
Finals team of 2000 after Jalen Rose replaced him in the starting lineup.

Although he was past his playing prime -- during which he was named
to five All-Star teams and averaged more than 25 points per game in
five consecutive seasons -- he still was a valuable role player and
role model.

He set franchise records for single-season 3-point percentage each
of his first two years, which in turn drew defenses away from the
middle so Rik Smits could operate more effectively. He also set an
example for the young players of how to play and how to work.

In return, he got to experience how well things can go when all a
franchise's pieces are in place. Even the disappointment of sitting
through much of his final season with the Pacers enhanced his NBA
experience and gave him insight into the value of everyone's job --
an insight that could serve him well in the front office.

"Jeez, that was a great time," he said. "I learned so much. So much."

Mullin is now a special assistant -- the very words printed on his
business card -- for the Warriors, but it would surprise nobody if
he joins ex-players such as Bird, Kevin McHale, Danny Ainge and
Isiah Thomas in a position of franchise front-office leadership.

If it happens, Walsh would approve.

"He sees the game in the right way," Walsh said of Mullin. "He knows
the right way to play it and I think he knows the players when he
sees them that can fit into that way of playing. Which is saying he
has the vision to build the team."

For now, Mullin, like Bird, spends much of his time scouting. He just
returned from a high school tournament in Peoria, Ill., and went to
Europe for nearly three weeks to scout in remote outposts in Italy,
Germany, Austria, Latvia, Lithuania and Yugoslavia.

"I could tell you the smell of the gyms, but I don't know the names
of the towns," he said.

But he still spends a lot of time in the gym, shooting, working out
and interacting casually with the players. Three years removed from
his career, the 40-year-old Mullin remains an influence.

"I've had several conversations with him, some about basketball,
some about life outside basketball," Warriors forward Brian Cardinal
said. "It's been a great experience being around him.

"I walk in the gym and he's still doing drills and running around.
It's amazing to see his work ethic, and he's not even playing."

--
你好嗎？上帝的左手。^^


--
※ 發信站: 批踢踢實業坊(ptt.cc) 
◆ From: 61.223.129.220
→ axlu:不過當年他守不住Spree造就老八傳奇...
→ ppjoey:裁判吹LJ投進4分球造就了老八傳奇
→ BYANG:不關 Mullin 的事
→ rik:是LJ的四分球比較關鍵!!!
→ ncumiller:好想你阿~~~老Mullin  :P