Warriors' Smart takes calm approach to fill-in stint

Keith Smart might not be approaching his substitute duty as an audition, but if you're the Golden State front office, you might want to think of getting a retainer. A few teams that could have openings down the line (New Jersey?) might want to take a closer look at Mr. Smart.

Standing in for an ill Don Nelson, the Warriors top assistant/head coach in-training took a ridiculously undermanned squad into Dallas and shocked one of the top teams in the Western Conference. For the Mavericks and their fans, the 111-103 upset Tuesday night must have felt like 2007 all over again. For Smart, it's just part of the job.

Whatever job he happens to have.

"You don't look at it as your chance," Smart told NBA.com. "You just want to coach the basketball game and whatever happens from there, happens from there. So I won't put pressure on myself trying to show the world in these two games that I can coach."

Smart, a Warriors assistant since 2003, is scheduled to coach through at least Wednesday night in San Antonio. In all likelihood, Smart will still be in the lead chair Saturday when the Lakers visit Oakland. Nelson, 69, has been hit hard by pneumonia and didn't accompany the team to Texas.

Smart's debut Tuesday with Golden State really wasn't his debut. He's coached several games before, both preseason and regular season, with Nelson acting as an advisor on the sidelines. Nelson employed the same unorthodox technique in Dallas to help Avery Johnson prepare for his eventual promotion.

And while Smart has been an NBA coach before -- 40 games during an interim stint with Cleveland back in 2001-02 -- he's quick to credit his apprenticeship under Nelson.

"I've been very fortunate that when Nellie came, he said I want to put you in a position to be a head coach in the NBA again," Smart said. "He's given me a lot of freedom as far as running practices, running timeouts, running games. The players understand my voice. They know what I want, what I want to do and how I want to do it."

Smart said that freedom has prepared him for situations such as taking over for Nelson. He also hasn't been fazed by injuries crippling Golden State's roster, channeling his experience as a former CBA coach. The transient nature of the minor leagues came in handy Tuesday.

"I simply always focused on the next player in line," he said. "There's nothing else you can do. You have to play that night's game with eight guys or however many guys we have."

Try six. That's how many Smart used Tuesday. These aren't the same Warriors that embarrassed the Mavericks in the first round two-plus years ago. Gone are former pillars Baron Davis, Jason Richardson and, more recently, Stephen Jackson. The franchise has spent much of the last two seasons in turmoil, teetering on the brink of implosion, with the Jackson-Nellie standoff topping the list of headaches.

The ongoing drama has led to speculation that Nelson may not finish his contract, which is up at the end of next season. Johnson knows the deal. As the Mavericks' top assistant five years ago, the Little General filled in when Nelson missed 10 games recovering from shoulder surgery. Johnson had also "coached" several games with Nelson on the bench, but the 10-game trial was a chance to show he could do the job alone.

Johnson not only had the players believing -- several said at the time that he was ready -- but the 7-3 stint sold owner Mark Cuban on the idea. Johnson eventually replaced Nelson with 18 games left in the regular season.

Johnson's advice for Smart: "Look at it as a great opportunity. Nellie has already told him to be himself and go with his gut. He should act like he is ready to be a head coach now. Communicate effectively and lead in a way that's different from his boss."

The ESPN analyst also added that Smart shouldn't abandon the playbook.

"I give him an A-plus tonight," Warriors guard Monta Ellis said of Smart after the game. "It was really no different. He's been under Coach Nelson for years now, so he basically still does the same things that he sees Coach Nelson doing."

"Smart" might as well an adjective for Nelson's understudy. Throw in "prepared," "confident" and "headstrong." Smart has studied Nelson closely, as well as other coaches around the league. Smart's been a head coach before and he knows he'll be one again.

While he seems to be the obvious choice to succeed Nelson, whether it's this season or beyond, the Warriors aren't ready to go there publicly.

"We really won't look at this any differently," said Golden State general manager Larry Riley, also a close friend of Nelson. "This is a situation where it's two games, maybe three that he'll be coaching because of illness.

"Things won't change as far as the way we view Keith Smart as our No. 1 assistant. I don't put a lot of stock into this. There's nothing to be read into it. We're just happy that we have him because we trust him to take over the team in Nellie's absence."

Smart isn't about to make waves. The man best known for the game-winning jumper that propelled Indiana to the 1987 NCAA title over Syracuse is patient and ready.

"However it moves and whatever direction it takes, I'm more prepared now than I was back then," Smart said, referring to the Cleveland job. "I have a better understanding of the NBA now, so I don't look at it like this has got to be my shot. My shot is going to be my shot when my shot is there."

He's nailed it before.

Think the Best Player in the Game wasn't happy to get his 7-foot Spanish sidekick back? Pau Gasol's return to the Lakers makes even Kobe Bryant better.

"No question," Bryant said. "He can facilitate offense for everybody else, too. He's not just a great scorer. He's a great passer. He has great IQ, great vision. Not only me, it makes everybody's job a lot easier."

The defending champs have gone with their preferred starting five of Derek Fisher, Bryant, Ron Artest, Gasol and Andrew Bynum for the last three games. The Lakers have won each by double figures.

"Everybody is in their natural positions," Bryant said. "The second unit it playing with the same unit they did last year, pretty much. Things are starting to fall back into place a little bit."

"Pretty crazy. We had our rabbit foot on." -- Kobe Bryant on his circus shots Sunday against Oklahoma City, including one from behind the backboard and a left-handed bank shot at the first-quarter buzzer.

1. T-Mac is saying all the right things with a smile on his face. The Rockets are doing all the right things by making him wait.

2. Can someone give a realistic scenario where a contender could use AI? Someone? Anyone?

3. I want to understand Agent 1 Million Twitter, but I can't. Is he calling out teammates? Is he trying to part of the solution? I just don't know.

4. Brandon Jennings is a rookie after all. The Spurs harassed the young Buck into 6-of-21 shooting Monday. He'll use it and learn.

5. Thanks Abe Pollin.

AG: Would you call this season a soap opera so far?
SC: A little bit. Every team has their issues. Ours are just a little more public. It's been kinda chaotic, but once the game starts and we get on the floor, it calms down and we focus on playing.

AG: Does all this other stuff make it more challenging on you?
SC: Makes me focus more, actually. I remind myself not to get caught up in anything outside I what I can control. Makes me focus on coming to practice every day to get better and looking towards the future to make sure my game is where it needs to be.

AG: Favorite rookie so far.
SC: Well, Brandon Jennings scored 55 on us. That was a sight to see.

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Art Garcia has covered the NBA since 1999. You can e-mail him here and follow him on twitter.

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