Going Beyond Mere Winning : Pro basketball: In his 20th season as a coach, Clippers’ Brown has emphasized teaching as well as success.

When Larry Brown was growing up, first on Long Island and then at the University of North Carolina, he talked of going into politics.

“In college, I was a class officer, so I thought about going to law school and doing that,” he recalled. “But they don’t talk about politicians moving.”

Brown laughed.

“I wasn’t smart enough,” he said of those aspirations. “I figured that out.”

Instead, he became a basketball coach, he said, because “most of the people who were really important in my life were my coaches,” and, “I guess I wanted to be like they were.”

They ranged from his high school football and basketball coaches to more recognizable names--Frank McGuire, Dean Smith, Henry Iba.

After an amateur playing career that included the 1964 Olympics, Brown began coaching as an assistant at North Carolina in 1965. He then became a pro player in the American Basketball Assn. for five seasons--three as an all-star--before becoming coach of the ABA’s Carolina Cougars in 1972-73. That was followed by coaching stints with the Denver Nuggets, UCLA, New Jersey Nets, University of Kansas, the San Antonio Spurs and, now, the Clippers.

He is respected both as a teacher of the game and for his success. He has had winning records in 18 of his previous 19 seasons, and he is the only coach to have taken two schools--UCLA and Kansas--to the Final Four. Brown and Kansas, led by future Clipper Danny Manning, won the NCAA title in 1988.

Brown is frequently ridiculed for having moved so often, but until San Antonio, he had never been fired. Fifteen days later, on Feb. 5, Brown, 51, was hired by the Clippers and became the first to coach two NBA teams during the same season.

Question: You’ve now had seven teams in 20 seasons, college and pros. What was your best job of coaching?

Answer: I don’t ever like to compare teams. My proudest moment was when I got the UCLA job, when Mr. (J.D.) Morgan (the athletic director) asked me to be the coach there, because of what that program accomplished with Coach (John) Wooden. That was a pretty special moment for me.

People would naturally say, “Oh, when we won a national championship.” That’s the ultimate--why you play and why you coach is to try to win a championship. That team had to overcome so many obstacles. It was really special. It was special for the people in Kansas because there’s a lot of pride and tradition in that university, basketball-wise. That’s got to be way up there.

UCLA going to the finals my first year after struggling was pretty neat, but I don’t know. There are a lot of great situations and a lot of places.

I’ve been with four different pro teams. There’s only been 10, I think, to improve by 20 games, and I’ve been involved with four of them. Those were all pretty special feelings.

Q: You said after being fired in San Antonio that you might end up back in college because you miss the teaching aspect the NBA rarely provides. Do you still see yourself coaching in college again one day?

A: I said college or high school, I think. What I said, really, was I had always thought of myself as a college coach or a high school coach. But after being fired, I wanted to go back to the NBA because I wanted to be involved with an NBA championship.

I was involved with an ABA championship as a player, but I wanted to be involved with an NBA championship. That’s why I went back to the NBA (after leaving Kansas) with San Antonio. And then, after failing there, I was really inclined to stay. Maybe down the road toward the end of my career, I can see myself being in college or high school. But the chances are better that I’d be with a high school.

Q: Realistically, you can see yourself coaching a high school team?

A: Oh, yeah. Easily.

Q: Why is that? It seems like such a change for someone used to big programs and NBA teams.

A: I don’t think it matters where you are. . . . It’s just how comfortable you are in the gym and in the locker room.

Q: What appeals to you about high school?

A: I think I could really get down and teach fundamentals and have an effect on kids. When you come from the NBA or being involved with programs like UCLA, Kansas or North Carolina, when you would talk to kids, it would mean a lot and you could have a real positive effect if you did your job properly.

I don’t know if I could get involved in teaching in classrooms and stuff, but it’s something I’ve always considered, something I envisioned when I went into coaching. I think everybody can have a goal that you want to be a college coach or a pro coach, but realistically I was prepared to be a high school coach. That’s what I thought my life would be.

Q: Do you ever regret not returning to UCLA in 1988 or not pursuing the South Carolina job a little longer in 1991?

A: It’s hard to talk about regrets because I don’t want to look back. But, obviously I wanted to go to UCLA. It was just such bad timing. You win a national championship (at Kansas), and the next day you’re in a plane going to Westwood. I think I always told everybody I never should have left the first time, so then to have another opportunity to go back there, I was real shocked it would happen.

I was excited about it and wanted to go, but it just came at the wrong time. We (Kansas) had a parade, we had a banquet, we went to see the President, there was so much excitement for winning the championship that (the UCLA trip) really came at a bad time.

I was disappointed after it was over that I didn’t go back (to UCLA). But there wasn’t a heck of a lot I could do about it.

Q: Didn’t you once say it had been your dream to go back to UCLA and coach there again?

A: Yeah, it sure was. When I left the first time, people didn’t realize Mr. Morgan (had) died. He had hired me. He had quadruple bypass surgery, then he had a faulty valve when I got the job, so he really was sick most of the first year. Then he passed away the early part of my second year, and that was real difficult because I had specifically gone there because of him.

I don’t think I ever would have left had he stayed. But when I left, I knew I made a mistake. The people there treated me great. It was a great school academically. Needless to say, the tradition there was unbelievable.

When it happened (being offered the job again), it was just a matter of hours. If they could have given me some time, I think I would have been back there. But they did all right. The program has continued to get better.

Q: Do you still think about returning someday?

A: No. It’s not fair to even speculate on that, to Jim (Harrick), to their program. That’s a real sensitive issue. I realize I had my chance to go back. They’ve moved forward and are proud of what they’re accomplishing.

Q: Are you bothered by your reputation, people talking about the vagabond coach, or is that something you’ve learned to laugh off?

A: It bothers me. I might have been with the same first job forever, but that team (Carolina) moved (to become the Spirits of St. Louis). Nobody ever talks about that. . . . And then I’m bothered because there’s so many coaches who move that it’s never even mentioned. This last one (San Antonio) really proves it. You get fired and people say, “Here he is, up and moving again.” So I don’t think I’ll ever overcome that.

Will I get used to it? No, I’ll never get used to it because it bothers people who care about me as much as it bothers me. Even though you’ve got to try to accept it and deal with it, it still bothers you.

Q: What do those people say to you--the friends and relatives that it also bothers?

A: They tell me not to worry about it. The people who know and care about you understand.

All the places I’ve ever been, one, I’ve always done the best job I possibly could for them, and I’ve always felt that we left it in much better shape than when we got there. And I know that, so I feel good about that. But it still hurts.

I laugh about it that, as an NBA coach, going into this year I was on my job as long as or longer than 23 other coaches. I think that should make people understand a little bit.

Q: One job you did say that you wanted, coaching the Olympic team this summer in Barcelona, went to Chuck Daly. When you were not chosen you said: “I’m just not looked at as one of the guys.” What did you mean by that?

A: One, I think they made a great selection and had no problem with that. (But) I’ve played on the Olympic team, I’ve played on international teams, I coached in the Olympic Festival, I’ve been an assistant Olympic coach, I was World junior coach, I helped coach a bunch of Olympic trials and I’ve never been asked to be on an Olympic committee or been asked for any input in any way.

I don’t think I’m considered one of the NBA coaches. That’s happened to a lot of the ABA people.

Q: Do you think it’s because of your college background or your ABA background?

A: I think it’s a combination of both. It was kind of funny. I was considered in ‘84, but they said they couldn’t take a pro coach, because I had just gotten back into the pros. Then I was considered in ‘88, and they said I wasn’t a college coach long enough. And then I remember them talking about ’92 and that I wasn’t back in the NBA long enough.

It’s OK. My biggest concern is if I do a good job, and because I’ve done a good job, I warrant consideration later on. Maybe it’ll happen. Because it’s a goal of yours doesn’t mean there’s great disappointment when they hire a Chuck Daly or a Pat Riley or a Don Nelson. You can’t fault that. That’s never the case. You understand that. I think the nicest thing is when you’re mentioned. That’s a big plus.

Q: Your first few games with the Clippers, you had given significant playing time to some players who had spent a lot of the season at the end of the bench. Was that an indication that you wanted to work to boost morale and confidence as one of your first priorities here?

A: No, when I came in here, I just wanted the team to play hard and play together because there wasn’t a lot of time to make any changes.

When I walked into the locker room, I told them about my failure in San Antonio, and I wanted them to accept some responsibility for Mike (Schuler) not being there. Basically, all I was going to try and do was get with John (Hammond) and Mack (Calvin, the assistant coaches), figure out a way where I could evaluate the players so when the trade talk would surface I could be objective and when the draft came I could be responsible. I wanted to learn about the players, so I wanted to give everybody a chance.

Q: You have referred to the San Antonio job on several occasions as being a failure.

A: You can look at it a couple of ways. We were the only team (in that time) to win back-to-back division championships, and I’m really proud of that. And we had the biggest (single-season) turnaround in the history of the league, and I’m proud of that. Even more so, we won both championships the last day of the season, and that probably to me was the most significant thing.

I was asked to win an NBA championship. (Owner Red McCombs) gave me a great opportunity and we didn’t accomplish that. I know of some things that were happening with the team that troubled me in terms of the way I was coaching, so, yeah, I look at it as a failure. When you’re asked to do a job and you’re given a lot of things to help you accomplish that and it doesn’t turn out, yeah.

Q: Is that something that you are still trying to accept?

A: When the Clipper job came open and that possibility (of filling it occurred), I was struggling with it. I really didn’t want to go back into coaching that quickly.

One, I didn’t want to start in the middle of the year and replace somebody else, because I just was replaced and knew that feeling. I guess more important than that, I didn’t know how I was going to deal with it, how I could deal with walking into another locker room. It was a pretty difficult experience.

Q: So why did you go against your first reaction?

A: I liked Elgin (Baylor, the general manager) a lot. Danny (Manning) was here. This is a young team. Ownership explained to me that they realized with the schedule and injuries that it was going to be tough, but that it would be a benefit if I came in early so I could really evaluate the players. And I could kind of help them set a standard on how we wanted to play, that they would be anxious once the season was over to start working for next year, rather than all of the sudden in September or October coming in and seeing them in training camp. That made a lot of sense to me.

I would have hated to sit down at draft time or when they’re considering trades to give an honest evaluation on the players. Now I can. I can tell, along with Elgin and Harley (Frankel, the executive vice president) and the coaches, what I think we need, and what I think we need to change or if we need to do any of that. I think from the players’ standpoint, they are more inclined that if I told them, “Hey, we need to start getting ready the day the season ends for next year, and these are certain things you need to do,” I think you would have much more credibility with them.

Q: You have said since you first took the job that you were very conscious of your relationship with Manning and his feelings and how the other players might react to your being around.

A: There has been a lot written and said about Danny’s and my relationship. Obviously we accomplished a lot together. He went to Kansas and his mom wanted to make sure he got a good education and graduated. And then they were hoping we could win a national championship, and then we were all hoping he could be a No. 1 pick. Well, all those things worked out, which was wonderful.

But as a pro coach, you come into a situation and everyone says, “How’s he going to deal with this guy? Obviously this was a special person in his life.” I thought that might be tough for Danny. No matter how close the players are to him, they’re still going to see how I treat him, and I didn’t want to make it any more difficult for him than it already was.

He seemed kind of aloof and standoffish at first, and I understood that and tried to let him know that. I also wanted to let him know, which was tough, that I had to really coach him and teach him, because I had to prove to these guys that if I could coach him that I could coach them as well and they could accept that a lot better. So I’ve been pretty tough on Danny.

Q: Tougher than on the other players?

A: I think so in some respects. I think one of the most important things--and it’s from the San Antonio experience--you’ve got to make the players understand you’re trying to teach them and it is not criticism.

Consistency is a real important thing. I wanted them all to know if they do something well I would try to be positive with them and let them know how glad I was about it. And if they didn’t do something right, I try to coach them. It was with everybody. I didn’t just get on one guy. I didn’t just praise one guy. I think that’s real important. Especially with this team because the guys are so young.

Q: You have mentioned an NBA championship. Otherwise, what is unfinished business for you?

A: I don’t know. I love what I’m doing. When you get fired, you realize how precious these 27 (NBA) jobs are. I just want to be a good coach who does a good job with my players. I want to see my family taken care of.

But I can’t see myself doing anything but coaching. I feel really fortunate that I’m able to do it, and I want to do it right. And hopefully in L.A.