Sonics Embark on the K.C. Jones Era

One year and one day ago in a tiny dilapidated Seattle Center Coliseum office he called his own, Seattle SuperSonics Coach Bernie Bickerstaff looked ill.

His tie loosened and his face drained of life, Bickerstaff had just watched his team blow a 29-point lead to get eliminated by the Los Angeles Lakers in the second round of the NBA playoffs. In any venue, he had a helpless look about him.

“You know, I don’t know if I can do this anymore,” he said. “I have to evaluate myself, my health and see whether this is really the right thing for me and the team. Should I keep on coaching?”

The wheels began to turn and Tuesday morning, it became official. Bickerstaff was named vice president of basketball operations and K.C. Jones replaced him as head coach.

“We just had to get all three of us together before it became official,” Sonics President Bob Whitsitt said. “I feel real good about what direction this takes the club.”

Bickerstaff had coaxed Jones -- who had gone from coaching the Boston Celtics for five years into a job as vice president of the Celtics -- to join him as an assistant coach Aug. 15 of last year. Not coincidentally, it came the season after Bickerstaff missed six games with a bleeding peptic ulcer.

“I missed being on the bench,” Jones said. “My relationship with Bernie is so special, it was something that I wanted to do. He just mentioned the head coaching job in passing.”

But Jones snatched the pass, and now he’s headed full steam down the field, hoping to improve from this team’s 41-41 season.

“I didn’t feel right about it last year,” Bickerstaff said. “But this year is just right. (K.C.) gives us a comfort zone.”

The personalities are a dramatic change for the Sonics.

Bickerstaff is a demonstrative, high-profile, holler guy during a game. He rides the refs and pounds the press table for emphasis.

Jones, meanwhile, is the kind of laid-back operator who watches and seemingly whispers to his players when they come to the sideline. If he gets really upset, he may scratch his head particularly hard.

“You won’t see me yelling from the bench or giving long motivational speeches,” Jones said. “That’s not my personality.”

Jones, 11 years Bickerstaff’s senior, refused to get into what he was looking for in an assistant coach. But Tom Newell’s contract will not be renewed, and the fate of Bob Kloppenburg has yet to be decided.

“I have some people in mind,” he said. “But we have a long way to go. We haven’t really discussed it as a group yet.”

He intends to open the floor and push the ball as opposed to the more stilted game that has had the Sonics work endlessly to get Dale Ellis and Xavier McDaniel shots. “It’s a big floor out there,” Jones has said many times.

He is dynamic in that his humor and presence are subtle yet compelling. It is that magic the Sonics are counting on to lift the team.

“I think this group, if healthy, is a 45-46 win team,” Bickerstaff said. “But K.C. will be handling the basketball team. If I’m wanted to be involved, I’ll make suggestions. It’s like when Lenny (Wilkens) hired me. I would have been an idiot if I didn’t ask him for his input.”

Jones reiterated that he wants Bickerstaff to stay involved, although the latter will undoubtedly begin upgrading the scouting system and spend more time focusing on talent.

“Now I will be able to see players growing from their freshman (college) year,” Bickerstaff said. “You learn a lot about how they grow as people and players.”

He said he is excited about his new role and will not listen to dissenting opinions that he, like Jones, will miss being on the bench. After 17 years, he has no illusions about moving into the front office, referring to a story written while he still was an assistant with the Washington Bullets.

“(I’ll miss) the per diem,” he joked. “The camaraderie with the players.

“I wanted to coach five years, then move on to something else. That’s what I’ve done. I told my family that over the weekend at my baby girl’s (college) graduation.”

That leaves it up to Jones to guide this team back into the playoffs after a one-year absence. Before that quest begins in October, the management trio must complete its staff, decide on what players to keep, who to trade, and what to do in the June 27 draft.

It’s a mouthful. It’s a change. It’s a new step for the Sonics. There are some eminently qualified assistants out there like recently fired head coaches like Jimmy Rodgers, Dick Harter and Don Casey. If Chris Ford doesn’t replace Rodgers as head coach with the Celtics, then Ford, too, could be high on the list. Look for Ed Badger, a temporary hire for the coachless Atlanta Hawks, to be a strong possibility in the scouting department.

This is a new world for Jones, and his last go ‘round at the helm with his 58th birthday a week from Friday. These aren’t the Celtics he’s picking up. This is a young team called underachievers by many, overachievers by some, and just a bit better than average by most.

“I’m excited about this team,” he said. “With Dale (Ellis) and the X-Man (Xavier McDaniel), Nate (McMillan) and the youngesters, there’s a strong nucleus and a lot to build from. My goal, like everyone else’s here, is to build toward a championship.”

With eight championship rings to choose for 10 fingers every day, K.C. Jones ought to know how.