In praise of Rudy

Posted on 2/2 at LG.net

Today is a day for recognizing the great things Rudy did during his brief tenure as coach of the Lakers. I praise Rudy for:

Turning Chris Mihm into a quality starting center
Prior to being coached by Rudy, Mihm had played for four coaches in three years. Under none of them did he play well. When the Lakers acquired him, he looked like a decent back up C at best. Mihm is having a breakout season, with career bests in shooting percentage, blocks, rebounds, points and assists. Under Rudy, Mihm blossomed into one of the top 10 centers in the league and probably in the top 3 of young centers (behind Ming and Amare).

Ending the locker room turmoil
I was sick of hearing about Shaq bashing Kobe or Payton bashing Phil or Phil bashing Kobe or .... It is so much more enjoyable to see a ball club where the team doesn't just get along, but where they are fond of each other and their coach.

Turning Jumaine Jones into a quality sixth man
Jones was a throw-in in the deal for Mihm and Atkins. At bottom of the bench player for the Celtics who seemed destined to slide out of the league. Under Rudy, he is having a breakout season as one of the top sixth men in league, with career bests in shooting percentage and 3pt shooting percentage (if you ignore his rookie year when he took 4 3-pointers).

Teaching Kobe the advantages of an offensive system
I think prior to this year, Kobe wanted to do it all on the offensive end. Rudy let him do that and Kobe saw the results - defenses keying on him and his teammates standing around. Kobe eventually suggested installing an offensive system and agreed to using the triangle. I doubt that Kobe would have been open to that before the season started.

Rejuvenating Chucky Atkins
Chucky had a very good '01-'02 season for Detroit. The last two seasons, his numbers dropped significantly. Under Rudy, his shooting percentage is back up, his 3pt shooting percentage is up and he is posting career highs for points and steals. Atkins is now a decent PG, which is better than what most fans thought we were getting.

Showing Laker fans like me that a nice guy can be a winner
Leo Durocher may have thought that "Nice guys finish last", but Rudy demonstrated that it isn't so. As a fan, I much rather rout for someone who I like personally as well as for his achievements. Thanks Rudy for being a great Laker and I wish you a speedy recovery of your health.