Adelman Returns to Sacramento

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SACRAMENTO, CALIF. &mdash; Rick Adelman knows just how the old arena will look. He can imagine himself checking out the banners again, coaching in front of that always-passionate crowd, hearing his name introduced once more in Arco Arena.</p>

There have been so many nights, so many big games in that building that he could easily imagine it all long before they turn on the lights for his first game back there as Rockets coach.</p>

But he has little idea how he will feel.</p>

It will be odd tonight, he allowed, to coach against the Kings in Arco, strange to enter the arena and walk past the home locker room, to the other side of the building to the famously decrepit visitors' quarters. But he looked forward to it, for the chance it will bring to feel again some of the way he felt in those eight years.</p>

"It's definitely going to be weird walking into the building, being in the other end," Adelman said. "You always get nervous. It's been more than a year. They've definitely gone their way and I've gone mine.</p>

"It's such a special place. Maybe that's where you remember the times we had there, the people and the crowd and all the people we had on the team. It was a really fun eight years. In that regard, it will probably be an excitement. But after just breaking a six-game losing streak, I'm just glad we won a few games before we went in there."</p>

Adelman, by far the most successful Kings coach, was fired after the 2005-06 season. The Kings never had a winning season in Sacramento before Adelman and never had a losing season with him.</p>

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<h3>Victim of success</h3>

But after the 2004-05 season, while Adelman was the coach, the Kings reached out to former rival Phil Jackson. Adelman returned, but believed he became a victim of his success, with expectations having grown past his team's abilities.</p>

"It was hard then," Adelman, 61, said. "It was like we were changing all the time without regard to that it could affect us on the court. Then we made the huge trade for Ron (Artest) for Peja (Stojakovic). Even though I didn't think we were as good, we were still expected to win 55 games. It was unrealistic, although I always thought if we could get to the playoffs, we could compete, and we did that year. We went to six games with San Antonio.</p>

"Even then, we were supposed to beat San Antonio. My staff and everybody, we worked as hard as we could, and I think it was a little unrealistic. But when you set the bar to a certain standard, no one is going to bring it down to you, until the team loses."</p>

But Adelman said he is not bitter and will not be tonight. Instead, the return will remind him of the way it was, rather than the way it ended.</p>

"What makes it emotional was all the positive stuff we've done, giving the city the best basketball they've seen since they've been around here (after moving to Sacramento in 1985)," said Rockets assistant Elston Turner, Adelman's assistant and a former player in Sacramento. "The other stuff doesn't add to the emotion. It's stuff that happened.</p>

"Rick is calm, cool and collected on the outer shell, but the man has emotions. Being behind the scenes with him, on the bench with him, close with him, I've seen that. He hasn't talked about it a lot. But I know it would touch him in a way he will enjoy it and be excited, just the whole way things ended. I don't know if he had a chance, or if the people of Sacramento had a chance to voice their appreciation.</p>

"This will be a perfect chance for the fans who were the recipients of all the good years and all that was accomplished. I would assume it would touch him emotionally. It lets him know he was appreciated and the teams he led."</p>
<h3>Support from Rockets</h3>

More than that, he said, "is saved for players."</p>

But players thought Adelman earned it.</p>

"They're going to have to show him love," said Rockets guard Bonzi Wells, who was part of Adelman's last Kings team. "Coach did a lot for that franchise. He won a bunch of games, got them national notoriety they didn't have before he got there. He's an excellent coach. He's an even better person. I just hope they show him the gratitude he deserves."</p>

If they "show him love," few expect Adelman to show his emotions. He said that by the time he is introduced, his thoughts will have to be on the Rockets and beating the Kings, but it would be difficult not to feel some emotions if the Arco crowd offers even the "polite" appreciation Adelman predicted.</p>

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<h3>Great to be back</h3>

Other than that, he knew only that he was looking forward to being back, to looking around and shaking hands, strange as it will be.</p>

"I understand the nature of the beast, but the people of Sacramento treated me and my family unbelievable," Adelman said. "I didn't have people coming up throwing knifes at me or anything. They were usually really nice. It was really a pleasant experience. I think they'll be really polite and we had some good times there.</p>

"You look at the banners. You look at everything else. But once the thing starts, we got to worry about getting wins. They're not going to like Yao (Ming). They're not going to like Tracy (McGrady). The people there are passionate. I think it will be fun.</p>

"Plus, I really want to see if the locker room on the visitors' side is as bad as everybody says."</p>

For all the times he had been in Arco, he never experienced that. But the spartan dressing room will offer a reminder that as much as will look familiar, for Adelman, more has changed.</p>

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<h3>Those nasty turnovers</h3>

Leading the Rockets in turnovers, averaging 3.7 per game, center Yao Ming said he was more concerned with the recent trend.</p>

He committed 17 turnovers in the first three games of the road trip, with five in just 28 minutes against the Warriors on Thursday.</p>

"The three-seconds (violations), sometimes I just think they will shoot and then move the ball and I get caught," Yao said. "I really need to limit the passing turnovers because that will lead to a transition score, particularly against those quick teams.</p>

"The traveling, I just need to be careful. You have a lot of contact inside. Sometimes it's not really my fault, I think, because there is a lot of pushing from behind, because there is too much pressure, from behind, from different angles.</p>

"Either way, it's my turnover."</p>

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<h3>Poor response to adversity</h3>

The Rockets' offensive breakdowns in Thursday's loss to the Warriors were their first since revising their offense to the motion and read-and-react style they had planned in training camp.</p>

But it was not the Rockets' poor perimeter shooting (3-of-15 from beyond the 3-point arc) that troubled coach Rick Adelman, but rather how they reacted to it.</p>

"If you're playing poorly and you're having trouble, you have to play together as a team," Adelman said Friday. "I thought we started going one-on-one, and it really played into their hands then.</p>

"As a team, it's easy when you're going good, you're playing well and everything's happening. When you're struggling, you have to rely on your teammates. We have to respond better.</p>

"But we have a day off and we have to try to get three wins on this trip."</p>

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<h3>James steps up</h3>

Rockets guard Mike James had his best game of the season Thursday, making eight of 14 shots and scoring a season-high 19 points off the bench.</p>

He has played almost entirely at shooting guard, rather than the point, in the past four games, but said the position does not change his approach.</p>

"It doesn't matter, as long as I'm on the court," James said. "The way we play anyway, the guards are interchangeable. Whoever brings the ball up, you can play a one or two.</p>

"I just play the game, do whatever it takes for my team to win. I'm not looking for my offense. My shots are going to come. My offense is going to come.</p>

"I was missing a lot of my shots. It's hard to get into a rhythm, but it's not the coaches' fault if I'm missing my shots. It's my own."</p>

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Source: Houston Chronicle</p>