Elgin Baylor out?...yes...He is retiring!
by Lawler's Law
on Oct 7, 2008 1:58 PM PDT
Per ATIII (via, HoopsHype via The Loose Cannons show)...
http://lakers.freedomblogging.com/2008/10/07/baylor-apparently-out-with-clippers/
"Although the Clippers have not made an official announcement, Hall of Famer, Laker legend and NBA icon Elgin Baylor no longer is performing his duties as the team's vice president of basketball operations and general manager.
"There's a dispute going on," Baylor said. "My attorney advised me not to discuss it."
A NBA executive contacted Tuesday afternoon said he had been told that Baylor no longer was performing his job. Reportedly, legal representatives of the Clippers and Baylor are engaging in dialogue.
It is not known if Baylor resigned or was relieved of his duties. However, suspicion arose when the 74-year old Baylor was not at the Clippers' new practice facility when training camp opened nor was he listed in any way in the team's preseason media guide.
Asked about this omission, a team spokesman said that only the coaches' bios were listed in the guide. However, that was untrue, because in addition to the coaches the director of player personnel, director of scouting, director of international scouting and team physician all were listed.
In addition to those individuals, the team's athletic trainer, strength and conditioning coach, equipment manager and broadcast team all were listed.
When asked where Baylor was, the same team spokesman said he did not know but believed that Baylor was upstairs in his executive office.
Baylor, who was the NBA's 2006 executive of the year, has been with the Clippers since 1986, when he was named to the position of vice president of basketball operations.
However, his responsibilities and involvement in team personnel decisions have eroded in the past several years, as head coach Mike Dunleavy has initiated the vast majority of trades and free-agent signings.
Baylor's most significant decision in recent years was to select center Chris Kaman, who was drafted in 2003, with the sixth overall pick, a month before Dunleavy was hired as the coach.
It was Baylor, who also engineered the blockbuster draft night trade in 2001, when he acquired forward Elton Brand from the Chicago Bulls, in exchange for the draft rights to center Tyson Chandler.
Elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1976, Baylor was one of the league's premier players during an llustrious 14-year career - entirely with the Lakers - in which he averaged 27.4 points and 13.5 rebounds.
Baylor's No. 22 was retired by the Lakers and hangs in the rafters at Staples Center".
It's official...Per Ramona over at LADN...
http://insidesocal.com/clippers/2008/10/baylor-retiring-dunleavy-takin.html
0 recs |
9
comments
Email
PrintComments
not like he was doing much anyways
MD was basically doing Baylor’s job for him.
by bestclipfan on Oct 7, 2008 2:35 PM PDT 0 recs
So if Fredo's been nixed
Does Michael move up to Consigliere, or is he officially pulling double duty?
by OhMeOhMy on Oct 7, 2008 2:36 PM PDT 0 recs
i always felt like
mdsr belongs in the offices not in the court…sounds like the Don is pulling an Al Davis…
"Duck, Crab. Crab, Duck"
Roger Sterling - Mad Men
by Lawler's Law on Oct 7, 2008 2:39 PM PDT 0 recs
Classic Clipper Hijinx
Ceremonial status not what it used to be, I guess.
Leave it to the Clippers and Sterling to have a significant preseason dust-up. Not sure if the timing is bad or good or insignificant, and the question is if this might become a distraction.
The “new” Clippers, with a new practice facility and solid, reworked roster and a local-guy new star, would like to put up a smooth front as they start the season. Gordon’s ankle and Camby’s flu are relatively minor, acceptable training camp bumps. Camby is out on the court now and Gordon has one week down in his 2-3 week recovery. The preseason games start on Thursday.
It doesn’t seem like a great time for the Clips to start generating stories about their dysfunction, backing themselves into victim/laughing stock status. The team needs to project a winning attitude, and not have associations with goofball hijinx. Maybe it doesn’t matter. Dunleavy and the Clips managed to score a minor win in the public relations battle of Brand’s defection—the spin, if not the event, seemed to go their way, especially after they spent the money on BDavis. They could gain on that ground by working hard and coming out strong on the court. But they could easily give it up with poor treatment of Baylor, regardless of his level of functionality. Should be grist for the analysis mill here, at least—and that in itself isn’t a good thing.
by citizen zhiv on Oct 7, 2008 2:51 PM PDT 0 recs
Could this just be ...
a precursor to some major front office moves? Could we see MDsr becoming GM once his contract is up, and then hiring another head coach? Isn’t Mdsr’s contract up soon? Or is this all too good to be true, and the Clippers are just reinforcing the negative perception they have around the nba world?
by Clip Show on Oct 7, 2008 3:13 PM PDT 0 recs
More info
The assumed appears to be correct.
Hat tip commenter JM @ Clipperblog, though when I checked the LA Times blog they didn’t have it up yet. =P
Get me BD and 75 and I'm in
by John R on Oct 7, 2008 4:27 PM PDT 0 recs
Moving towards being official
Our beloved Pest had it too, when I checked a little while ago. They’re confirming the retirement—some question about the snafu that AT3 dug up, with lawyers talking. Guess is that Sterling must have made some kind of “lifetime” agreement with Elgin, and was okay to have him perform a “elder counsel” and ceremonial function as Dunleavy assumed the reins.
We can examine and discuss Baylor at greater length as it becomes official—it should be interesting to see how it is all handled. The big thing is that Baylor is old, 75. He was one of the greatest basketball players ever. He should hang out and take it easy, which is essentially what he’s been doing for awhile now.
Then there’s the question of Dunleavy officially assuming the duties that he has already been performing. Chances are that this contingency was already part of the contract that he signed with the Clips. The only wrench in the works was the very public feud with Sterling in the middle of last season. That does seem to be ancient history now, after all of the frenzy of activity this summer. Dunleavy seems to have recovered his affectionate “general” status in Sterling’s good graces.
It’s a really good thing, in any organization, to have a solid succession plan. Looking at this from a distance, it’s actually a pretty smooth and solid move by the Clippers, an orderly transition.
And it will set up another step: Dunleavy seeing how far he can go as a coach, but having the possibility of bringing in somebody else who might add something to the mix. We’ll have to see how this season goes first.
It’s another piece of “the new Clippers” material.
by citizen zhiv on Oct 7, 2008 5:34 PM PDT 0 recs
It is official
it has been posted on clippers.com
here is the exact link
http://www.nba.com/clippers/news/dunleavy_olshey_081007.html
by bestclipfan on Oct 7, 2008 7:43 PM PDT 0 recs
New FanPost