Howland Takes Hot Seat

Ben Howland was welcomed to the peculiar world of UCLA basketball on Wednesday.

The new Bruin coach experienced an array of oddities during a first day in Westwood that did not end until he agreed on a contract at 9:40 p.m.

He learned of the school’s financial constraints while hammering out a deal that is the most lucrative given to a UCLA coach but could cause Howland serious tax liabilities.

He learned of the largess of boosters tied to the entertainment industry, several of whom anted up $1 million apiece to sweeten his deal and another who arranged for a private jet to take him to the Final Four.

And he learned during a three-hour meeting that Chancellor Albert Carnesale is a pleasant and erudite man who drives a hard bargain but will become a staunch ally in the inevitable times of duress that are ahead.

Howland, 45, will be introduced as the 12th Bruin coach today at a news conference. His four years as coach at Pittsburgh, five years as coach at Northern Arizona, 11 years as an assistant at UC Santa Barbara and a childhood in the Southland made him the swift and decisive choice to return the Bruins to a semblance of their former glory.

Contrary to published reports, however, Howland was not the only candidate interviewed by Athletic Director Dan Guerrero, who contacted several coaches through intermediaries and interviewed at least one.

Guerrero last week was granted permission from Stanford interim Athletic Director Debra Gore-Mann to meet with Cardinal Coach Mike Montgomery.

The discussion did not progress enough for Montgomery to gain an audience with Carnesale.

In fact, Montgomery might have endorsed Howland to Guerrero the way he did to Brandin Knight four years ago when the talented point guard considered leaving Pittsburgh as a freshman because he didn’t know the new coach.

Howland asked Montgomery, a longtime friend, to contact Knight, whose brother, Brevin, had played at Stanford. Knight stayed at Pittsburgh, developed a strong relationship with Howland after a stormy beginning, blossomed into an All-American and led the Panthers to the Sweet 16 the last two seasons.

Now Howland is expected to work similar magic at UCLA, which last season was 10-19, its worst record in 61 years.

Steve Lavin was fired after serving as the Bruins’ coach for seven seasons.

“To now be the head coach of this program is something I dreamed about but never thought possible,” Howland said in a statement. “I have an appreciation for what these four letters mean in the world of college basketball.”

Said Guerrero: “He is the man we want to run our program. He has built winning programs throughout his career and we expect that he will return UCLA basketball to the nation’s elite.

“Ben understands that championships are built on defense, intensity, teamwork and fundamentals, and those elements are the foundation of his philosophy.”

Howland is expected to bring along most of his Pittsburgh staff, although the status of top assistant Jamie Dixon is uncertain because he is a finalist for head coaching openings at Wright State and Illinois State.

The assistants will earn more than previous Bruin assistants, a condition placed by Howland. Facilities also will be upgraded, although renovation of Pauley Pavilion probably will not occur until the team’s record is turned around and donors continue to loosen the purse strings.

The well-heeled did step up for Howland. Money for the assistants, facility upgrades and much of the coach’s salary of about $800,000 over the next six or seven years will come from the approximately $10 million raised in recent weeks from a select group of boosters.

Howland’s contract has incentives that could increase his income beyond $1.1 million, but the package is no better than what he had at Pittsburgh and is less than what his former school offered in recent days.

He agreed in principle to a deal with help from Adidas representative Sonny Vaccaro, who was in frequent contact with Howland and Guerrero for several weeks. Adidas has lucrative sportswear contracts with UCLA and with Howland and Pittsburgh.

Snags in negotiations were smoothed over during a grueling session Wednesday.

A source close to the talks said Howland, not UCLA, must pay a $700,000 buyout of the Pittsburgh contract, creating a huge tax burden for the coach. If a third party gives Howland cash to cover the buyout, the coach must report it as income.

That and less significant obstacles prompted Howland to fax the contract to his former agent, Pittsburgh-based Jim Zeszutek.

Howland severed ties with Zeszutek over the weekend in favor of the more nationally visible Jordan Bazant when it became clear he would come to UCLA, and Bazant spent two days at UCLA hammering out the deal.

But by Wednesday afternoon, Howland asked Zeszutek to become involved.

The contract might not be all Howland desired, but he must appreciate perks such as jetting across the country three times in a private plane.

Howland took a private jet to his initial interview with Guerrero on Sunday and flew in from Pittsburgh on another Wednesday morning. After the news conference today, a jet supplied by Casey Wasserman will transport the coach to the Final Four.

Wasserman is owner of the Avengers, a UCLA graduate and grandson of the late movie mogul Lew Wasserman.

While Howland focused on working out the deal, Dixon picked up the pieces in Pittsburgh. The assistant held a team meeting Wednesday to inform players that Howland and the rest of the staff were leaving.

Two days earlier, Howland left the impression with several players at a team meeting that he would not leave. He never saw them again.

“Ben was noncommittal,” a source in Pittsburgh said. “He mentioned UCLA to the kids but didn’t say what his plans were. Some might have interpreted it as he was staying.”

From 3,000 miles away late Wednesday night, Howland had a message for his former team, though it wasn’t the one they wanted to hear.

“I want to make it clear how hard it was for me to leave the University of Pittsburgh,” he said. “I can’t imagine myself leaving Pittsburgh for anywhere except UCLA. The last four years have been the most enjoyable of my career and that’s because of the support my family and I received from the Pittsburgh administration, the community and, most importantly, the players.”

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Howland

at a Glance

Some numbers involving Ben Howland, who will be formally introduced as UCLA’s basketball coach today:

8

Number of UCLA coaches since John Wooden retired in 1975 after winning his 10th national title in 12 seasons.

9 Seasons as a Division I head coach (Northern Arizona from 1994-99 and Pittsburgh from 1999-2003)

.629 Overall win percentage (168-99 record)

.435 Combined win percentage (37-48) at each of the schools the season before he took over (Northern Arizona 13-13, Pittsburgh 14-16 and UCLA 10-19).

3 NCAA tournament appearances (one at Northern Arizona in 1998, two at Pittsburgh in 2002 and 2003.

4-3 Record in NCAA tournament.

45 His age.