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By John DentonJune 2, 2015
ORLANDO – Listen to Ben Gordon rave about the smarts, motivational tactics and credibility of head coach Scott Skiles and it’s easy to see why the guard’s best years in the NBA came while playing for the new leader of the Orlando Magic.
``For whatever reason, Scott Skiles was the best coach that I’ve played for,’’ Gordon said not long after Skiles was named the Magic’s new head coach on Friday. ``I learned so much from Skiles. When I talk to him, I tell him, `I’m not trying to (joke around), but I learned more from you than anybody in my whole basketball career.’ He played at the highest level and coached at the highest level, so everything that he is telling you, you know it has to be true. You have to respect him because he has done it. A lot of coaches get nervous and insecure about their jobs because they aren’t good enough. That’s not the case with Scott because he’s done it all.’’
Gordon is one of three Magic players to have played previously for Skiles along with forward Tobias Harris and point guard Luke Ridnour. All talk about their love of playing for Skiles because of the way he gets the best of teams with his demanding tactics and relatable personality. Other Magic players, such as standout guard Victor Oladipo and center Nikola Vucevic, have heard the stories of Skiles’ legendary competitiveness and they are plenty excited about working with their new coach in the coming months.
Oladipo, who made a huge jump in his game from his rookie season to his second season, reached out to Skiles on the day that he was hired as coach and the two talked at great length soon after. Oladipo said Skiles’ grit and competitiveness could be felt through the phone conversation and he’s looking forward to playing for his new coach.
``From what I’ve heard, he’s very competitive and hard-nosed. It’s great to have someone like that on the sideline. He’ll bring the competitive nature out of us and I’m looking forward to him driving us,’’ said Oladipo, who boosted his scoring production to 17.9 points per game last season. ``He’s played the game at the highest levels of basketball so he knows what it takes to win both as a player and a coach. It won’t be hard at all to listen to a guy like that. We’re going to play hard for him, I know that.’’
Getting teams to play hard is something that Skiles is known for doing in his previous coaching stops in Phoenix, Chicago and Milwaukee. His ability to drive teams to play gritty defense and up-tempo offense are some of the reasons he’s been able to have an immediate impact at every stop. He guided the Suns to a first-round upset of San Antonio in his first season in Phoenix; his first Bulls team in 2003-04 held 26 straight foes to less than 100 points; and his second Bucks team won 46 games, had a winning record for the first time in seven seasons and he finished second in the NBA Coach of the Year voting.
Ridnour, a reserve point guard for the Magic last season, played for Skiles in Milwaukee and he considers the coach to be a master motivator because of his ability to relate to players. He said that Skiles has the toughness to hold players accountable, but he often shares stories from his playing days to let them know that he understands what they are going through. And his gritty style of coaching often rubs off on his players, Ridnour said.
``The biggest thing that stood out was his tenacity and him holding guys accountable for doing their jobs,’’ Ridnour said. ``That pays off for a team and everybody comes to play hard every night for him. All of his teams are feisty – just like he is. You get wins that you probably shouldn’t because of the feistiness that he teaches. The defensive principals and the way he demands that you move the ball, those were all reasons why I enjoyed playing for him.’’
Harris played 42 games as a rookie and 32 games in the 2012-13 season in Milwaukee before Skiles resigned his head coaching post with the Bucks. Harris was later traded to the Magic where he flourished the past 2 ½ seasons with more playing time. Skiles said he was instrumental in Milwaukee acquiring Harris on draft night in 2011, and the two have remained in contact through the years via text messages.
Skiles explained that Harris’ playing time in Milwaukee was limited because he was 19 at the time and Mike Dunleavy and Luc Mbah A Moute were better options because of their advanced experience. Skiles said last week that he is looking forward to working again with Harris, a restricted free agent this summer. Magic GM Rob Hennigan reiterated last week that the team fully expects to retain the versatile forward this summer, meaning that Skiles and Harris will be reunited.
``(The relationship) is very good and I was instrumental in drafting Tobias. I still communicate with Tobias,’’ Skiles said. ``He’s a very, very good player and a very, very good human being and he plays hard. He was in a tough spot (in Milwaukee) because our organization was geared from the top on down to try and win that season and Tobias was 19 years old. … We have a great relationship.’’
Ridnour said that Skiles also brings instant credibility as a coach because he is someone who played the game himself at the highest of levels. In 1990, when Skiles was a member of the Magic, he set the NBA record for assists in a game with 30. That mark still stands today, and Ridnour said there’s not a point guard in the league who doesn’t know that Skiles holds that record. That will help him, the veteran point guard said, when trying to relate to the likes of Elfrid Payton and Oladipo.
``He knows what it takes to win and this young team needs to start winning,’’ Ridnour said. ``It’s important to teach young guys the right way. Especially the young guys just coming into the league – they need to learn the right way to play. Scott will teach them to move the ball and defend and he demands a certain way that you come out and compete every night. So that will help these guys mature.’’
Added Gordon: ``Based on what Skiles has done in his career, it makes you think, `Coach said I have to do that? OK, then I have to do it.’ He has that kind of track record as a player and a coach. … He always shared his experiences with us. He shared his ups and downs, his up moments and when things went bad. So, as a player, you were getting what he went through right from the mouth of the horse. And you realize, `Wow, this is someone who had 30 assists in the NBA.’ If you’re Elfrid Payton, how could you not listen to Skiles?’’
Skiles has maintained a strong relationship with Gordon, who was his go-to scorer off the bench when the two were together with the Bulls. With Skiles serving as his coach, Gordon was an All-Rookie performer and the NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year in 2005 and he later averaged a career-best 21,4 points per game in 2006-07. Gordon said that Skiles was instrumental in helping him became one of the game’s elite scorers because he pushed him to play with confidence and be in superior shape.
Gordon said that Skiles was especially tough on him, but that’s what he wanted because he wanted to be a great player in the NBA. He said the coach gets a bad rap for being inflexible and for driving teams and players too hard. In fact, Gordon said that Skiles’ toughness and heavily structured ways are just what the Magic need because of all of the youth on the roster. Gordon told Hennigan that very statement when the GM called to ask for feedback about his former coach.
``Scott’s a straight shooter and a defensive-minded guy. He’s very organized. It’s simple things, but in today’s age that’s not always the case. He’s really good at motivating his teams and getting them to play to their potential,’’ Gordon said. ``I told Rob that with this (Magic) team, that burning a team out is not going to happen. Maybe he burned out some other players somewhere else, but that won’t happen to this Magic team because this team has good conditioning and it has workers. Based on the conditioning work that I did in Chicago under Skiles, I don’t think these young guys will have a problem doing it here. Our young guys are in shape and ready to go.’’
And Gordon, who has a team option on his contract for next season, is expecting the Magic to make a major leap under Skiles. After all, Gordon said, winning is exactly what the coach has done at every stop in the NBA.
``He’s someone who anytime they ask me about him, I always say the same thing – if you want to win, you hire him,’’ Gordon said. ``Especially if you want to win with young players, Skiles will win. That’s something that he’s proven that he can do.’’