SuperSonics fire Weiss after 30 games

0 Comments | Deseret News (Salt Lake City), Jan 4, 2006 | by Associated Press

Bob Weiss' laid-back attitude made him a favorite of players. It just didn't translate to enough victories.

Weiss was fired as coach of the Seattle SuperSonics on Tuesday with Seattle struggling at 13-17 and having lost five of its last seven. The Sonics are the second NBA team to change coaches this season, following Stan Van Gundy's resignation at Miami last month.

Assistant Bob Hill will take over and his first game will be Wednesday night against Chicago. Seattle opened a five-game road trip with a 115-96 loss to Indiana on Monday.

"We've epitomized the word 'inconsistent' for professional basketball," general manager Rick Sund said after the team practiced at Moody Bible Institute in Chicago on Tuesday. "We talked a lot in the last two weeks trying to (figure out) 'How can we get more consistent?' . . . We talked, and we both kind of felt that a change might be in the best interest of the club."

Usually smiling, Weiss was promoted from assistant to head coach on July 18 after Nate McMillan left for Portland, and was a popular choice of All-Stars Ray Allen and Rashard Lewis. He was also a cheaper option, as Seattle passed on higher-priced candidates like Flip Saunders and Paul Silas.

But Weiss' smile was absent lately, replaced by visible signs of frustration. Seattle has not been above .500 this season after winning 52 games last season while capturing the Northwest Division. The Sonics are four games below .500 for the first time since finishing the 2004 season 37-45.

"There are a lot of things I could have done better to help this team. I take full responsibility. I feel I let Bob Weiss down as a coach," Allen said. "He was a guy you could trust and count on. My heart goes out to him."

The 63-year-old Weiss previously coached Atlanta, San Antonio and the Los Angeles Clippers and has an overall record of 223-299. He was a Seattle assistant from 1994-2005.

But his track record as a head coach was average. He had two winning seasons -- 1991 and 1993 in Atlanta -- and never finished higher than fourth place.

Team president Wally Walker could not be reached for comment on Tuesday, but in a statement released by the team said, "Over the past 11-plus seasons, the Sonics have the fifth-best winning record in the NBA including four division titles. Bob Weiss has been a significant contributor to that success. His loyalty and insights have been extremely valuable to this organization."

Weiss will remain with the team in an advisory role, Sund said.

CLIPPERS WAIVE EISLEY: The Los Angeles Clippers waived guard Howard Eisley, who played sparingly since signing as a free agent in November. The 33-year-old Eisley averaged 0.7 points and 8.6 minutes in 13 games with the Clippers. He joined the Clippers having averaged 6.6 points, 3.5 assists and 1.7 rebounds in 11 NBA seasons. The 30th overall pick by Minnesota in the 1994 draft, he also played for San Antonio, Utah, Dallas, New York and Phoenix.

76ERS ASSISTANT WON'T RETURN: Jim Lynam will not return from a leave of absence to serve as Philadelphia's assistant coach because of health reasons. Lynam returned this year to the Sixers, 20 years after he was an assistant for Matt Guokas. Lynam replaced Guokas as head coach 43 games into the 1987-88 season, going 194-173 in four- plus seasons and winning the Atlantic Division in 1989-90.