FITCH GETS CLIPPED : COACH FIRED; HARRICK, BIBBY COULD BE JOB CANDIDATES.Byline: Scott Wolf Scott Richard Wolf (born June 4, 1968) is an American actor. Born in Boston, Massachusetts to Steven Wolf and Susan Enowitch, Wolf was raised in West Orange, New Jersey. He graduated in 1986 from West Orange High School. Daily News Staff Writer Just days after announcing they would play in a new arena, the Clippers decided they needed a new coach. The Clippers fired coach Bill Fitch William Fitch (born May 19 1934 in Davenport, Iowa) is a former NBA coach who has been successful in making teams playoff contenders throughout his coaching career. Before entering the professional ranks he coached college ball at the University of Minnesota, Bowling Green State during a Monday-morning meeting at the Sports Arena with vice president of basketball operations Elgin Baylor Elgin Gay Baylor (born September 16, 1934 in Washington, D.C.) is a retired American basketball player who played 13 seasons as a forward for the NBA's Minneapolis Lakers/Los Angeles Lakers. Baylor was a gifted shooter, a strong rebounder, and an accomplished passer. and executive vice president Andy Roeser. ``I'm in the moving business,'' Fitch said. ``I was not expecting them to do it. The way I look at it, we had a hard-working staff and did the best we could. It wasn't enough, so somebody else is going to do it. I'll sleep tonight.'' Rhode Island Rhode Island, island, United States Rhode Island, island, 15 mi (24 km) long and 5 mi (8 km) wide, S R.I., at the entrance to Narragansett Bay. It is the largest island in the state, with steep cliffs and excellent beaches. coach Jim Harrick Jim Harrick (born July 25, 1938 in Charleston, West Virginia) is a former college basketball head coach who coached at Pepperdine University, UCLA, the University of Rhode Island and the University of Georgia. , who is close to Clippers owner Donald T. Sterling, has already been reported to be a leading candidate to replace Fitch. In addition, USC An abbreviation for U.S. Code. coach Henry Bibby Charles Henry Bibby (born November 24, 1949 in Franklinton, North Carolina) is a former professional basketball player and current assistant coach with the Philadelphia 76ers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). should also be considered a candidate. According to according to prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. a source, Bibby and Roeser were seen talking briefly at a Los Angeles restaurant Monday afternoon. Former Phoenix Suns coach Paul Westphal is also bound to be considered. He was reportedly a candidate two years ago when the Clippers contemplated firing Fitch and he is eager to return to the NBA NBA abbr. 1. National Basketball Association 2. National Boxing Association NBA (US) n abbr (= National Basketball Association) → Basketball-Dachverband (= . Westphal's laid-back style and ability to relate to players directly contrasts with what many viewed as the hard-nosed Fitch's No. 1 shortcoming short·com·ing n. A deficiency; a flaw. shortcoming Noun a fault or weakness Noun 1. . ``I wouldn't rule out anyone,'' Baylor said. ``There is no deadline. I haven't even put the list together.'' The decision is sure to be a popular one in the Clippers locker room. During his four-year tenure, Fitch clashed with many current and former Clippers, including Lamond Murray, Pooh Richardson, Malik Sealy, Darrick Martin, Brent Barry and James Robinson. Just two weeks ago, Fitch got into a heated argument with reserve center Keith Closs before a game in Cleveland. The Clippers are also expected to have a hard time convincing free-agent center Isaac Austin to return and might hope another coach can sell him on staying. Baylor said these were not factors in firing Fitch, but when asked what he would look for in a new coach, said, ``a coach who can communicate and relate to the players.'' The decision to fire Fitch was made Sunday, Baylor said. Presumably pre·sum·a·ble adj. That can be presumed or taken for granted; reasonable as a supposition: presumable causes of the disaster. , Baylor, Roeser and Sterling all discussed the matter. Sterling was out of town and unavailable for comment. ``It was 100 percent agreement,'' Baylor said. ``I thought it was the best decision. . . . As an organization we believed we should have had a better season. We weren't going in the direction we wanted to go.'' The timing also coincides with last week's announcement that the Clippers would move into the new Staples Center arena in downtown Los Angeles Downtown Los Angeles is the central business district of Los Angeles, California, located close to the geographic center of the metropolitan area. The sprawling, multi-centered megacity is such that its downtown core is often considered just another district like Hollywood or in 1999. They will share the building with the Lakers and be under more pressure than ever to provide a competitive team. The Clippers finished 17-65 this season, the third-worst record in the NBA. It was the second time in the past four years they won just 17 games. It was the first of Fitch's four seasons that the team did not improve its victory total from the previous year. Fitch blamed the poor season on a season-ending back injury to Loy Vaught and the Clippers' inability to re-sign forward Charles Outlaw last summer. ``Even without Loy Vaught, we believe the team would have done better,'' Baylor said. Just a year ago, the 63-year-old Fitch signed a two-year contract extension that was to go into effect next season. He was to be paid $2 million each of the next two seasons. ``The contract will be fulfilled,'' Fitch said. During his tenure, Fitch led the Clippers to the playoffs in 1997 and even survived emergency heart-bypass surgery the summer before the 1996-97 season. ``It was a very difficult decision. Especially if you've been with somebody for four years,'' Baylor said. Fitch stands as the NBA's second-winningest coach, with 944 victories. His 1,106 losses make him the NBA's No. 1 all-time losingest los·ing·est adj. Slang Less successful or losing more often than any others of its kind: "help turn around one of the network's losingest nights of the week" Washington Post. coach. The Clippers also fired assistant coaches Jim Brewer, Barry Hecker and Rex Kalamian, although Kalamian is expected to remain in the organization. FITCH'S RECORD WITH CLIPPERS Regular Season Season W L Pct 1994-95 17 65 .207 1995-96 29 53 .354 1996-97 36 46 .439 1997-98 17 65 .207 Playoffs 1996-97 0 3 .000 Notable: Fitch has also been the head coach for Cleveland, Boston, Houston and New Jersey. His career record of 944-1,106 makes him the NBA's No. 1 losing coach and its No. 2 winning coach. CAPTION(S): Photo, Box PHOTO (Color) The Clippers made the playoffs once in four seasons during Bill Fitch's stint as coach. Chris Pizzello/Associated Press BOX: FITCH`S RECORD WITH CLIPPERS (see text) |
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