MySA: Assistant coach Newman's energetic style has been a welcome addition

[LauraBC]

Assistant coach Newman's energetic style has been a welcome addition
Web Posted: 04/20/2005 12:00 AM CDT
Johnny Ludden
Express-News Staff Writer

George Karl knows the smile well. He saw it for three seasons as Don Newman scrapped and hustled his way into a starting job in the CBA outpost of Great Falls, Mont.

Win or lose, Newman arrived at the gym the next morning eager to work, wearing the same ear-to-ear grin.

Karl liked Newman's competitiveness, as well as his contagious no-day-is-a-bad-day personality. Enough that nearly a decade later, he hired him as an assistant in Milwaukee.

Karl won't have to look long to find his former player and assistant this weekend. He'll be sitting on the opposite bench.

The newest member of Gregg Popovich's staff, Newman will be working against his old coach when the Spurs open the playoffs against Denver.

"My misfortune," Karl said, "has become Pop's good fortune."

Popovich has realized as much. Newman has infused the Spurs this season with the same "daily positive energy" Karl said he provided during their four years together with the Bucks.

"I think Don is one of the best assistants in the game," Karl said. "No matter what happens, he's there and ready to go, ready to take on the world. If you said, 'Go to Iraq and coach the troops,' he might think for 10 seconds, but he'd go."

Popovich recognized Newman's competitiveness when he served as an assistant on Karl's staff at the 2002 World Championships. Karl brought Newman along as an unofficial coach.

"That impressed me that George had so much confidence in him," Popovich said. "He had a great way about himself with the players."

After Karl was fired in Milwaukee following the 2002-03 season, Popovich considered hiring Newman as a replacement for Mike Brown. Newman joined Byron Scott's staff in New Jersey and Popovich brought Mario Elie aboard.

Elie left for Golden State last summer, so Popovich offered the position to Newman. Though close to rejoining Scott in New Orleans, he accepted.

"I was looking for somebody who could develop players at the same time as develop relationships with them," Popovich said. "Different players react to different kinds of people and I thought it was important to have that really experienced, high-energy kind of guy."

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Newman fit the profile. The son of a former pitcher in the St. Louis Cardinals' organization, he was a multi-sport high school star while growing up in New Orleans.

After signing with LSU, Newman transferred to the University of Idaho, where he averaged 17 points from 1978-80. The Boston Celtics took him in the third round of the 1980 draft — the same year they picked Kevin McHale — but cut him the day before the season began.

Though Newman never played a down of college football, he was a good enough athlete that NFL scouts noticed him when they visited Idaho. The Seattle Seahawks signed him as a free agent, waived him after a few preseason games then recommended him to the Edmonton Eskimos of the Canadian Football League.

For the next six years, Newman bounced from Edmonton to Saskatchewan to Hamilton as a defensive back and occasional receiver. He also played for Karl's Montana Golden Nuggets in the CBA for three years, joining the CFL immediately after each season. The NFL's New York Jets cut him the week before the 1985 season.

While Newman has spent much of the past two decades coaching basketball, the Spurs' big men quickly learned their new broad-shouldered coach can still deliver a hit. During drills, he sometimes uses blocking pads to harass players as they fight him for post position.

"The game of basketball, in itself, is much more physical than people give it credit for," Newman said. "I think you have to be ready to play through all the bumps and bruises and all the hits. When you're in a situation on the floor defending in the post, attacking the rim, there's a mentality that goes along with that."

Karl said he has had only a couple of other assistants whose energy rivaled that of Newman — noted skill-development guru Tim Grgurich; and former Atlanta head coach Terry Stotts. Tony Parker compares him to Brown, who has enhanced his own reputation the past two seasons as Rick Carlisle's top assistant in Indiana.

"He's just so positive," Parker said of Newman. "He fits nicely on our team."

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Not that Newman's attitude hasn't been tested. He spent five seasons at Sacramento State, helping transition the Hornets from NCAA Division II status to Division I. During his time as head coach, the team went 20-114.

"I learned lessons from it: You can't wear 15 hats and get the job done," he said. "I look back at it as a training ground for me. It was an incredible experience and a tough situation, but it made me better."

That wasn't Newman's only reclamation project. He joined Bill Frieder's staff at Arizona State before the 1996-97 season. When Frieder abruptly resigned in the wake of a point-shaving investigation, Newman was promoted to interim head coach.

Newman guided the Sun Devils to an 18-14 record and an NIT berth, but Arizona State, looking for a higher-profile coach to help rescue its program, didn't seriously consider him for the full-time job. He interviewed for Karl's vacancy in Milwaukee, but the Bucks hired Terry Porter. He also was mentioned for previous openings at Oregon State and Washington State, where he once served on the staff of current Oklahoma coach Kelvin Sampson.

His goal, like most assistants, is to someday become a head coach, whether in college or the NBA. In the meantime, he wants to collect as much experience as possible.

"To come and work for Pop has been great," Newman said. "You have to admire his structure and discipline and his attention to detail. How he prepares not only his team, but the organization. Everything is built on character."

For the next two weeks, Newman hopes to put what he learned under Karl to good use. Already, his recommendation of former Bucks forward Glenn Robinson has looked better by the day.

"I'm going to cheat as much as I can," Newman said, laughing, "to help these Spurs get through the series."

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[Assassin]

He is my hero already for getting us Big Dog.

[tmengd]

Yep sounds like a real good guy, hope we give him and big Dawg a ring for thanks.

[brickowskay]

interesting guy, glad he's on our team

[Spurd_On]

Nice article with incite and in-depth bio.

With the revolving door in the NBA coaching arena, I expect him to get a shot at a head
coaching job sooner than later. Holding onto assistants will never be easy for the Spurs
as long as the franchise yields so much success.

[scol]

I did not know a thing about Newman -- really great article. Good to see he is on our side.