Tweet
After a loss to the Pistons on Tuesday night, the Trail Blazers' record falls to 22-33 this season.
For all his popularity among the players and the fans, Portland Trail Blazers coach Maurice Cheeks ultimately didn't have the wins. Cheeks was fired Wednesday morning, after the Blazers had lost seven of their last nine and tumbled to 22-33.
"It's a sad day for me because I've got guys on my team that I really... ," said Cheeks, his voice trailing off in disappointment during an emotional news conference a few hours after he was let go.
"I didn't do as well a job as I could have, as I did in previous years," he concluded.
With Portland's chances of making the playoffs dwindling, the Blazers appointed Kevin Pritchard, the team's director of player personnel, as interim coach.
"Our players liked Mo a great deal, but sometimes a fresh voice might ignite them to go in a different direction," Blazers general manager John Nash said.
While the Blazers are not entirely giving up on the playoffs, Pritchard's appointment shows the team is going to focus on evaluating younger players.
"I'm not going to mislead anybody. It's a long uphill battle to get to the playoffs from where we're at - 11 games under .500," Blazers president Steve Patterson said.
The Blazers are in 12th place in the Western Conference, six games behind the Los Angeles Lakers for the eighth and final playoff spot. Portland went 41-41 last season and missed the playoffs for the first time in 22 years.
Portland's latest defeat came Tuesday night, 103-93 to the defending champion Detroit Pistons. That left Cheeks with a 162-139 record as Blazers coach. He was in the final year of a four-year contract worth an estimated $12 million.
Cheeks, who played in the NBA for 15 seasons, was hired by Portland in 2001 to replace Mike Dunleavy.
"I enjoyed teaching kids, I enjoyed being around the players and I loved the game itself," Cheeks said.
But the Blazers hardly made Cheeks' tenure easy - on or off the court.
There were several players cited for marijuana possession, and forward Qyntel Woods was investigated in a dog fighting scandal.
Former Blazers forward Rasheed Wallace drew unwanted attention to the team two seasons ago when he threatened a game official on the loading dock of the Rose Garden. Wallace, later traded, was suspended seven games by the NBA.
Although he was generally popular among his players, Cheeks did have a couple of high-profile verbal run-ins with former guard Bonzi Wells and current forward Darius Miles. Both players served team suspensions for their actions.
Cheeks never shied away from questions about his team's misbehavior, bringing him the respect of fans and reporters who covered the Blazers.
He endeared himself to many in April 2003 when he came to the rescue of a 13-year-old girl, Natalie Gilbert, who forgot the words to the national anthem before a playoff game against the Dallas Mavericks. Cheeks went to her side and helped her with the words.
Both Patterson and Nash said it was with great regret that they broke the news to Cheeks on Wednesday morning at the team's practice facility.
"We were kind of hoping in January and February that we'd gain some momentum - but that didn't happen," Nash said.
The assistants who served under Cheeks will remain with the team.
Cheeks, 48, said he'll likely take a vacation, and wouldn't mind coaching in some capacity again soon.
"I love the game too much to stay away," he said.
Pritchard, hired by the Blazers in August after serving as a scout for the San Antonio Spurs, was asked if he thought the role as interim coach was an audition.
"This is not the role and not the career path I want to take," Pritchard said. "That said, I would do anything to help this organization."
Pritchard, 37, who played at Kansas, spent four seasons in the NBA. Before joining the Spurs organization, he served as coach, general manager and director of player personnel for the Kansas City Knights of the American Basketball Association.
Cheeks served as an assistant in Philadelphia under Larry Brown for seven seasons before he was hired by the Blazers. He spent 11 of his 15 seasons playing for the 76ers, and was a member of Philadelphia's 1983 NBA championship team.
He was recently named a finalist for election into the Basketball Hall of Fame.
Source: AP