Arizona Republic from Phoenix, Arizona • Page 41

12 The Arizona Ri-pnlilic Utdmsdny, April 28, 1V93 SUIIS PUYDFFS '93 p.ik, iiiii I im.hi. ij hf I i.j.i. J-. i mmmj Few know more about game HEAD OF THE CLASS Suns Coach Paul Westphal becamfe the winningest rookie coach in NBA history with his 6 1 st triumph last Thursday at Portland, placing him ahead of such legendary figures as Bill Russell, Pat Riley, Jack Ramsay and Red Auerbach. -l i -m a sr art.

i-tr By Norm Frauenhelm The Arizona Republic Year Wins 92-93 62 Michael Jordan and Larry llird appear in a national television ad for a hamburger by calling their shots. You know the one. ii. i ii.u. 4' -J 60 56 55 55 54 53 66-67 61-82 6869 8990 85-86 77-78 Coach 1.

Paul Westphal 2. Bill Russell 3. Chris Ford 4. Jack Ramsay 5. Phil Jackson 6.

Matt Guokas 7. Billy Cunningham 8. Pat Riley 9. Paul Westhead 10. Red Auerbach Team Suns Boston Boston Phil.

Chicago Phil. Phil. LA Lakers LA Lakers Wash. skysrrajKT and nothing but net. This spot of in-your-face 81-82 50" 80-81 50" 4647 49 Became head coach with season In progress Source: NBA 1 v.

fx Suns Coach Paul Westphal has proved to be a genius at the rules of basketball, and has put that knowledge to good use in his career as a player and a coach. As a result, Westphal's 1992-93 season is the best by any rookie coach in NBA history. 0 la. w- -t- i.tumjB..farav 1 i Michael MeisterThe Arizona Republic fiction is fun. Hut sorry, guys.

In a real contest, (lie burger, fries and franchise belong to Suns Coach Paul Weslphal. A week ago at Portland, Westphal called one that had all the angles and top-spin of a cue ball. From Oliver Miller, off the backboard, to Charles Barkley, through the pocket, errrr net. "There was lots of luck there," Westphal said of an already legendary shot that came off a play designed with a half-second remaining and beat the Trail Bla.ers as time expired. "You can't practice that." Maybe not.

Hut Westphal has been practicing to make that kind of call for a long time with games. All kinds of games. MonoKly, backgammon, pool, Scrabble, pingpong and several other of his own making. "You name it," said Alvan Adams, Westphal's roommate during their years as Suns players from 1975 through I'M). Although Adams marveled at the way Miller and Barkley were able to complete the play that nipped Portland, he was not surprised at Westphal's call.

lie watched the same thing happen time and again he sat on the other side of a Monopoly board with little more than a (Jet Out Jail Free card as his roommate put hotels on Park Place and Boardwalk. "Paul knows all the rules, all the time," said Adams, the Suns' former center. "If it was MonoMly, he'd suddenly pull some rule out of the sky. He'd say something like '1 can do such und such with such and such a piece of unmortgaged He was always right, tix, and I think that's because he had a book on all these little Monopoly rules. J'In a lot of other games, he'd change the rules, When we'd play pingpong, he'd put the table along the wall.

The wall and the ceiling would be in bounds and part of the game. "There was always some game, and Paul would always know the rules. You could not argue with him about any of them." Before the recent strike of tactical genius at Portland, Westphal's thorough understanding of basketball's rule book was exemplified in and he wanted to be treated that way. He was free-wheeling, creative and very smart." Also, very courageous. As a player, Westphal was never afraid to take a chance.

On a bad shooting night, he'd still shoot. If Danny Ainge and Dan Majerle's shots aren't falling, they don't get yanked. Keep shooting, Westphal said, because eventually those shots are going to fall. "Paul's got a lot of guts," said Suns scout Al Bianchi, who was MacLeod's assistant during Westphal's best years in Phoenix. "He has a certain style, and he sticks with what he does.

He'll go with those small lineups, or he'll put in all the guards. At times, that could leave him open to a lot criticism. But he sticks with it. "Of course, it helps that he's got lots of talent and that he's winning. But even if he was in a losing situation, I'm convinced he'd be doing the same thing.

"Paul is not afraid to call his own shots." Game 5 of the 1976 NBA Finals at Boston. That's when Westphal talked then-Suns coach John MacLeod into calling an illegal timeout. The subsequent technical foul allowed Phoenix an inbounds pass at midcourt. The result was a tying jumper by Garfield Heard and triple overtime in a game often called the best in basketball history. "Paul has always been the ultimate in gamesmanship," Suns owner Jerry Colangelo said.

"I've known that for a long time. Show him a problem, any kind of problem, He loves to come up ith solutions." Hut there's been more than gamesmanship to Westphal's brilliant season, the best by any rookie coach in NBA history. Westphal isn't moving impersonal tokens around a board. He's dealing with rookies, veterans, all-stars, journeymen and all of the emotions that each brings to every game and practice. No matter who you ask, his approach to this very human mix of personalities is as unprecedented as his rookie record of wins.

"For me, at least, there's no comparison to anybody," said Suns reserve guard and senior citizen Frank Johnson, 34, who has played for Wes Unseld, Gene Shue, Kevin Loughery and Don Chaney. "Paul basically lets you be your own man in terms of working out and keeping yourself in condition. He puts the responsibility on you." It's a flexible approach, Colangelo said. It's also somewhat ironic, said assistant coach Scotty Robertson, who worked as a head coach for the Detroit Pistons and New Orleans Jazz before the move to Utah. Westphal's politics are conservative.

He's a fan and friend of talk -show host Rush Limbaugh. Yet, this self-proclaimed "ditto head" is a liberal coach. "The best word to describe Paul is paradox," Robertson said. "1 ie's a pretty complicated guy. You just can't pin a label on him." No, you can't.

He can be the good cop-bad cop rapped up in one. Colangelo said Westphal's personal interest in Richard Dumas has been the key to an emerging star's battle with substance abuse. The Dumas relationship is no surprise to Rodney Johns, who starred for Westphal at Grand Canyon. "Paul gave me the total perspective, on the basketball floor and off," said Johns, a Grand Canyon assistant today. "He really believes in you as a person.

For me, he was a big brother-father figure. It's all about respecting each other." Nevertheless, this generous, flexible guy lowered the boom on the rookie Miller earlier this season when Miller's weight soared. Miller was placed on the injured list and a tough diet until he lost 40 pounds. Westphal's style as a coach is a reflection of his playing days as an All-Star guard, according to Colangelo. "Paul coaches the way he wanted to be coached," Colangelo said.

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