As the clock struck 1:23 p.m. on a Tuesday afternoon, a newly minted head coach paused to collect his thoughts. The question before him was about the NBA’s all-time leading scorer and how his own experiences with other great players had prepared him to lead this legendary athlete in what are likely to be the final seasons of his career.
“I take that responsibility seriously,” the coach said, his voice filled with conviction. “I really do.” Just moments earlier, the iconic player had been shooting with his son on the same basket where the coach now sat, contemplating the best way to maximize the final years of this remarkable career.
The coach, who turned 40 in June, and the player, who will turn 40 in December, are contemporaries at different stages of their lives and careers. Yet, they share a common bond as fathers. “I mean, you get to coach your own kids when they’re little,” the coach said, “but he’s in the freaking NBA, shooting right over here on this basket with his son.”
Those close to the player say he craves structure and accountability. He thrives in disciplined, highly organized systems where everyone on the team understands their role. The coach’s job is to create that kind of environment as quickly as possible.
To achieve this, the coach has implemented a rigorous schedule. Mornings start early with weights and conditioning. At 10:30, he hosts a classroom session for younger players. Practice begins at 11, with each day bringing new concepts and systems to be installed. The players’ workload is tracked daily, and the performance and coaching staff pour over the data.
Despite the intense focus, there’s room for deviation. After practice, the coach granted the player’s request for a DJ, although it’s unclear who will foot the bill or how long it will last. The coach tries to balance his time, ensuring he’s home in time to grill hamburgers or hotdogs for his kids’ dinner.
“I’ve tried to be super intentional about my time,” the coach said. “Everything we do this season is about making the most of the final years of this legendary career and avoiding some of the painful lessons of the past.”
The player’s decision to join this iconic franchise was influenced by the standard of care they showed during the final seasons of another legendary player’s career a decade ago. The player liked playing for an iconic franchise as much as he liked how it treated its iconic players.
There was no telling how much longer the player could maintain his level of play when he joined the team. He was 34 at the time, the same age as the other legendary player was when he suffered an injury that accelerated his physical decline.
Still, the other player had tried to cajole the team into fielding better teams around him in his final few seasons, recruiting free agents and encouraging trades. The team didn’t land any of them, and the player was left to finish his career with teammates who were infants when he entered the league.
The team’s vice president of operations, who was previously the other player’s agent, found himself at a similar juncture with the current player. Like the other player, the current player had made it clear he wanted to finish his career with the team and contend for one last championship. And like the other player, he was willing to recruit free agents to help him do so.
But unlike the other player, the current player has shown little evidence of decline, heightening the pressure on this season even more. He was an All-NBA second-team player last year at age 39 and played a lead role for Team USA as it won gold at the Paris Olympics.
In May, the vice president of operations called a renowned coach and asked for advice on how to approach the situation. The coach had been a close confidant of the other player’s for nearly two decades and was his choice to coach the team in 2004.
“It was just about going into the last part of the player’s career, how his legacy should be intertwined with what the team is doing,” the coach told ESPN of his message to the vice president of operations. “I said it can’t be the only thing that you’re thinking of. But is there a way that you can help him in positioning him in different ways on offense? On defense?”
The coach developed a close relationship with the player in his years coaching Team USA. He knows the way the player likes to be coached and the systems he has thrived in.
The connection was made. The coach was the first person to make the new coach and vice president of operations aware of the similarities in their personal styles and way of thinking.
“We’ve gotten that from a lot of people,” the vice president of operations said. “When I huddled up with the coach at the combine, he was like, ‘I really think you and the new coach should work together. I’ve known you for over 20 years, and I think you guys just see the game and see the business of basketball very similarly.’”
If the new coach could handle the pressure of coaching the player in the final years of his career, the thinking went, he could take being booed in every arena he went to. The new coach was organized and thoughtful about everything he did. His personal style was one that would meld easily with the player and vice president of operations.
“It’s a long season… I think they will have each other’s back, and that’s going to be essential,” the coach said. “Especially in the new coach’s case. If they can keep growing that relationship, I think the players will see it too.”
In his five years on the job, the vice president of operations has endured withering criticism despite winning a championship in 2020 and advancing to the Western Conference Finals in 2023. It is the cost of leading a franchise like this and managing a superstar like the player.
“I mean, there’s always stuff going on around the team,” the vice president of operations said. “When you have a strong partner, you’re not facing it alone.”
The new coach was in the room when the team made history and a dream into reality. He stood next to the vice president of operations as they weighed whether to take the player’s son in the draft. The team ultimately selected him, and the dream met reality this week.
After practice, a teammate described a scene from a scrimmage earlier in the day. First, the player’s son hit a 3-pointer over his father, which had the whole team doubled over in delight. Then the player responded by bullying a defender on the opposing end, only to have his son knock down another shot over a teammate.
Each day there are stories like this. And starting tonight, there’s a chance they play together in the team’s first preseason game.
“It means the world to him,” the teammate said. “I mean, no one has ever got a chance to play with their son. So that’s like a different level of joy and appreciation. Nobody’s ever done that.”
There are also the quiet moments no one sees. Each day after practice, the player and his son are part of a shooting group with a third-year guard. They shoot jumpers from all over the court, taking passes from a new player development coach and assistant coach.
The player makes his 3-pointers at a high percentage. His son is
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