- Slug: Sports-Suns Watson-Kidd, 524
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By LOGAN NEWMAN
Cronkite News
PHOENIX — In March of 2013, Earl Watson and Jason Kidd played against each other for the final time in their basketball careers.
A mere three years later, they met again. This time it was as opposing head coaches last season. Saturday, the two will meet up for the second time on the sidelines when the Suns host the Milwaukee Bucks at 7 p.m.
Kidd, 43, and Watson, 37, epitomize how players can jump quickly into coaching, especially if they were point guards during their playing careers.
Clippers coach Doc Rivers was another. He took the Orlando Magic coaching job in 1999, three years after retiring from a 13-year playing career. At the Clippers shootaround prior to Wednesday’s game against the Suns, he said that retiring from the court with the immediate intention to coach is not new.
“I think it’s been around for a long time, really it goes in its trends,” he said.
Watson’s job centers around maximizing the potential of the young Suns, eight of whom are 24-years old or younger.
Rivers thinks Watson is doing well with such a youthful roster.
“You can see the improvement of his young players, and when you’re rebuilding, that’s all you can go on right now,” Rivers said. “You can’t go on (wins and losses).”
The Bucks are in a similar position, with five players 24-years-old or under, including prominent starters Giannis Antetokounmpo, 22, and Jabari Parker, 21.
Kidd and Watson have precedent to turn their teams around; of the 12 coaches in the league with NBA playing experience, nine spent at least part of their career playing the point.
Rivers pointed out that guards bring an edge into coaching because of their duties running a club on the floor.
“They’re an extension of the coach,” he said.
However, he made a point to say that other positions can make good coaches, too. He pointed to Phil Jackson, former Bulls and Lakers coach who won 11 NBA championships, and Rudy Tomjanovich, who led the Rockets to the 1994 and 1995 Championships, as examples. Both played forward.
Watson echoed that sentiment. He said point guards don’t inherently make better coaches. In his personal experience, he attributes success to his mentors, the majority of whom were his coaches. Some were point guards, others hadn’t even played in the NBA.
“Maybe it’s guys who can pass the ball,” Watson joked. But he was serious when he added his final thought: “Coaches can coach no matter what position (they played).”
Rivers said that there was no set playbook for hiring a coach: whether they’re young or old, point guard or center, each coach brings his own technique.
“I don’t know what the best route is,” he said. “I think some guys are ready to do it and some guys are not.”
Kidd is 139-154 as an NBA coach. Watson, who took over midway through last season, is 25-60 after a home loss to the Los Angeles Clippers Wednesday night.
“That’s every young team — that’s not Earl,” Rivers said. “When you have a young team or you don’t have a bunch of go-to guys at the end of games, you’re going to lose close games.”