Best wishes, from Raptors
Team lauds Wilkens for landing new job with Knicks
By STEVE BUFFERY -- Toronto Sun
AUBURN HILLS, Mich. -- On the surface, one would think that Mother Nature wasn't the only one laying on a snow job yesterday.
This past season, his final one coaching the Raptors, it appeared as though many of his players had stopped playing for Lenny Wilkens. Indeed, other than a couple of guys, including Alvin Williams, there didn't seem to be much love lost between the players and the Hall of Fame coach.
FALLING ALL OVER THEMSELVES
But with the news yesterday that Wilkens had been hired as coach of the New York Knicks, the Raptors were falling over themselves in praise of the man who led the Toronto team to a 24-58 record in 2002-03.
"He's a great guy, a great coach and I wish the best for him," forward Morris Peterson said.
"We had a lot of injuries last year, a lot of different things going on, we didn't dress 12 people (in any game) and he did the best job he could do under the circumstances.
"His record speaks for itself, he's a good coach," added Williams, the longest-serving Raptor. "I have nothing but praise for him, so I'm happy he's back and I'm really not surprised.
"He's going to be a plus for that team."
Wilkens was let go after last season's debacle and the Raptors were on the hook for the final year of his salary for this season, worth about $5 million US. Now, with the Knicks signing Wilkens, Toronto general manager Glen Grunwald said that his organization will not have to pay the total amount, although he was unsure yesterday exactly how much less it would be.
"I'm happy for him. Lenny loves to coach, so I'm not surprised (that he's back)," Grunwald said. "Lenny is an effective coach. We had a lot of struggles last year that were unrelated to Lenny.
"In the right situation, he is a very successful coach."
In his three seasons with the Raptors, Wilkens led them to a 113-133 overall record.
He guided them into the second round of the 2001 playoffs, losing to the Philadelphia 76ers by one point in the seventh game.
In the 2002 playoffs, Wilkens and the Raptors pushed the Detroit Pistons to five games in the first round.
Current Raptors coach Kevin O'Neill was an assistant coach with the Pistons at that time and he has nothing but praise for the NBA's winningest coach, who also holds the record for most losses in the league.
"I wish I could live long enough to have as many wins and losses as he," O'Neill said. "He's a great coach. If you're making a coaching change at this time of the year, he's one of the two or three guys you would definitely think about."
