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Byron Scott on how he became a Laker after being drafted by the Clippers: What was their hesitation on not signing you? Byron Scott: If you hear some of the stories, Donald Sterling wanted a Laker. He wanted a Laker badly. And I think he had met with Dr. Jerry Buss at some dinner or something and they talked about some things and Norm Nixon's name was mentioned. So Sterling went back to the head guys, Pete Babcock and those guys, and said ‘I want to make this trade’. So basically the Clippers traded my draft rights to the Lakers and Swen Nater for Norm Nixon and Eddie Jordan.
Etan Thomas: Would you still leave the door open if a coaching opportunity did come and there was some interest? Even if it's as an assistant or whatever, you know, would you still leave that door open for NBA or college? Eddie Jordan: I would do it from a consultant role. My wife and I have such a great time together. We play golf together. I don't want to be leaving for road trips for a week or every other 10 days, going somewhere or being in practice every day, or being in the office for six hours. My life is a lot better now, right the way it is, but I would certainly do a consultant role or I would train somebody in the offseason here in Charlotte.
Etan Thomas: I see other coaches of a of a lighter hue, okay, I'll stay like that, that get opportunity after opportunity after opportunity. And they don't have the resume that you have… Eddie Jordan: And they include their sons on their staffs and everything else. Thomas: And so I'm just looking at it and I agree with the people who I was speaking to at Wegman's. I haven't heard your name come up or Mark Jackson's name come up when there are different openings. And I feel like I should be hearing your name come up. I think that you have built the resume for you to always be getting interviewed at least when new positions open. And just looking back at everything that you and people don't understand everything that you had to deal with when we was with the Wizards and we could talk about… Jordan: It's coming out a little bit. Thomas: There was a lot that you had to deal with and it didn't take away from the winning. Like we were still going to the playoffs every year if it wasn't for coming up against a young LeBron James for those three years straight, we would have even gone further.
Christian Clark: Every NBA head coach Willie Green played for: Randy Ayers, Chris Ford, Jim O'Brien, Maurice Cheeks, Tony DiLeo, Eddie Jordan, Monty Williams, Larry Drew, Vinny Del Negro, Doc Rivers, Jacque Vaughn, James Borrego
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Eddie Jordan, formerly a head coach with three NBA franchises, is close to joining the Charlotte Hornets as an assistant to Steve Clifford, the Observer has learned. The Hornets are finalizing a contract for Jordan, an NBA source said.
Q: And Mike Brown? Metta World Peace: “When Mike Brown was here, the offense was with [assistant] Eddie Jordan. It was Princeton. It’s a great offense. I would use some of those things. Q: Really? He got fired five games in his second season. Metta World Peace: “I know that’s what I was going to say. The Princeton offense is weird. It will put the superstar player off the ball at times we don’t need that superstar player off the ball. At times with the Princeton offense, it would put Kobe away for an entire game. It’s the right way to play if you have the right type of team. But when you have a superstar, you can’t put Kobe in that situation. You need him. He brings a lot to the table. He has heart. He’s hit 36 game winners. So you want Kobe to be in rhythm so at the end of the game, he can win the game.
“After my last few experiences, I did not want to be a head coach in the NBA,” Jordan said in a recent interview. He wouldn’t elaborate on what led him to make his decision, stating simply that it was, “all of it combined.”
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The Lakers grossly underachieved despite assembling a star-studded roster with Kobe Bryant, Pau Gasol, Steve Nash and Dwight Howard. Jordan accepted the job with Rutgers before the Lakers were swept by the San Antonio Spurs in the first round. “Mike Brown hired me. He was awesome. He allowed me to do a lot in a large role and when he was gone, Mike D’Antoni was gracious enough to keep me there and I really appreciate both those guys hiring me and retaining me. [Former Bullets/Wizards coach] Bernie Bickerstaff and I were reassigned to the back of the bench and we were okay. We were happy to be a part of it,” Jordan said. “It was a season of injuries, non-chemistry, getting to know each other as the season went along. Clashes of personalities and approaches and then it was more injuries. The injury factor and chemistry kept it dysfunctional to where you couldn’t have great success.”
“I thought, maybe I could be a really solid assistant. It’s almost a perfect place,” Jordan said of the Lakers. “We could win championships and I could sit there, and be like Tex Winters and let Phil Jackson take us championships and I could retire in the sunset, but it didn’t go that way. “I had three years of not doing this for sure, and this is what I’m built for, to be a head coach,” Jordan said. “It’s great to be a coach again. I jumped right in, didn’t have to talk to anybody. I knew what I was getting into. I wanted to prove that I could do it. But I did not want to be a head coach anymore in the NBA.”
About that due diligence: Despite all the accolades he's received from the university and despite the school's many claims to the contrary, Jordan hasn't actually finished his degree, according to the Rutgers registrar's office. The office sent me a verification document, found below, that indicates that Jordan attended classes at Rutgers from 1973 to 1977. He went on to take more classes in 1978, 1981, and 1985. There was no degree listed in the document. I called up the registrar's office on Thursday and asked for clarification.