By Sam Perley, hornets.com
Welcome to Out of Bounds…A weekly series that dives deeper into the issues fans might not know the whole story about. Our Hornets players will give you insight into topics like traveling, hobbies, injuries, trades and everything in between throughout the NBA season.
More than three decades of hard work and dedication to the game of basketball was what coach Steve Clifford brought to the table when he joined the Charlotte Hornets organization before the beginning of the 2013-14 season. Like most head coaches around the NBA, Clifford worked on numerous teams and with countless players and fellow coaches, all of whom had some role in shaping the Charlotte Hornets into the team they are today. This week, in the first of another two-part special, two of Clifford’s former players talk about what their relationship was like working with the Hornets coach during the early part of their own careers.
First Stop: Houston
Amongst the handful of stops Clifford made in the NBA before he got to Charlotte was with the Houston Rockets, where he was an assistant coach on Jeff Van Gundy’s staff from 2003-07. With no current Hornets players having played under Clifford prior to his arrival in Charlotte, veteran Chuck Hayes of the Toronto Raptors was able to shed some light on what his early years in the NBA were like playing under the Hornets head coach during his time in Houston.
“Jeff Van Gundy designated [Coach Clifford] to me,” said Hayes. “Practice would be at 11 a.m. but he and I would meet at 9 a.m. and have a full-blown hour workout before practice, putting me through drills and watching film. We trained, worked out and watched film. It’s all we ever did. He was always in my head.”
Hayes also stressed some of the most important things he learned during his time with Clifford in Houston.
“Learning guys tendencies – coach and [Rockets teammate] Shane Battier really helped me out in terms of preparation and learning the scouting report,” said Hayes. “[Also] being there early and seeing [things] before [they] happen was important.”
According to Hayes, the current Hornets team would be the kind of team he would have envisioned Clifford someday coaching in terms of defense, hard-nosed play and rebounding. “Absolutely,” the Raptors power forward now in his 10th NBA season stated with a smile. “I thought Cliff hated me. He’s a great guy though. I love him to death. I am happy he got this opportunity last year and [Charlotte’s] playing well.”
Off to Orlando
After leaving Houston, Clifford joined the Orlando Magic coaching staff where he was an assistant under Jeff Van Gundy’s brother, Stan, from 2007-12. Clifford was the lead assistant coach on a team that made the playoffs in all five seasons he was there, including an appearance in the 2009 NBA Finals. Now with the Washington Wizards, Marcin Gortat played under Clifford in Orlando from 2007-10 and echoed Hayes’ sentiments.
“He’s a great, great guy. This is an example of a guy that paid his dues to be in this league for a long, long time,” Gortat stated. “You can see how he turned this Charlotte Hornets team around in the past year and now this year. He’s doing a tremendous job. He’s a great, great person. Great personality [and] I love this thing about him - when he has to be the bad guy, he's going to be the bad guy. When he has to be the guy who's going to support you, he’s going to support you. He was tremendous. I’ve got nothing but good things to say about him.”
As for the most lasting thing Clifford taught him in Orlando, Gortat says it wasn’t so much one particular thing he took away but rather the manner in how Clifford approached him and worked with him in order to help improve his game.
“He was really direct with everything he was telling me. He didn't [mess] around with me,” Gortat recalled. “He came down and would say ‘You’re not doing this. You have to learn this, this and this.’ I remember the days after the NBA Summer League he came down to me and said ‘Listen young fellow, if you want to be in this league you have to do this, this and this and you got to cut out this, this and this.’ He was really direct. Direct as anybody can be. He came to me and said directly to my face certain things. Bottom line, I didn't take it personally. I really took it as a sign that I have to change something in my game and have to get better. I think his personality is great and when he has to, he can laugh with you and talk to you about everything.”
Like Hayes, Gortat’s admiration and respect for Clifford was abundantly clear, even if at times his relationship with him was challenging.
“I can’t tell you anything bad about him,” Gortat said. “The most impressive thing was everyday at 5 a.m. he was coming into the office with coffee in his hand. Repetition, consistency and hard work [is] everything he does. I love him. He’s a [heck] of a coach.”
Next Week…
After hearing from ex-players this week, we'll talk next with former and current coaching colleagues as they weigh in on their own relationships with the Hornets coach. Steve Clifford himself will also reflect on the relationships with his former mentors and what it’s like squaring off against them and former co-assistants in the NBA today.