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Miracle ushers in new era tonight

With Dee Brown in his first season as coach, the pace will quicken.

By ANTONYA ENGLISH, Times Staff Writer
© St. Petersburg Times
published May 30, 2002

TAMPA -- From the moment he retired after 12 seasons in the NBA, Dee Brown began preparing to become a coach.

During his career, teammates and coaches often told him he was well-suited for the role.

He thought so, too, which is why he took a job in the front office of the Orlando Magic, where he finished his playing career. Brown wanted to learn from the ground up then move into coaching.

He just didn't know the coaching opportunity would arrive so soon.

When Carolyn Peck abruptly left the WNBA's Orlando Miracle in April to coach at Florida, opportunity knocked.

And Brown listened.

Tonight, the 33-year-old former slam dunk champion will begin his tenure as coach when the Miracle opens its fourth season against Detroit at 7:30 at the T.D. Waterhouse Centre.

"Playing for Doc (Rivers, Magic coach) and the coaching staff, they always thought I should be a coach after I stopped playing because of the rapport I have with other players in the league and my background as far as being a leader on and off the court," Brown said.

"I wanted to coach, obviously, but it came quicker than I thought. With Carolyn leaving so quickly, they had to find someone quick. I wasn't planned to be in the coaching field this early, especially on the women's side. But it was an ideal situation."

Brown graduated from Jacksonville, where he majored in mathematics and computer science. He played for Boston, Toronto and Orlando, averaging 11.2 points and 2.6 rebounds. He led the NBA in 3-pointers made (135) and attempted (349) in 1998-99.

In 1991, Brown won the slam dunk championship during the All-Star weekend.

He was working as a special assistant to Magic general manager John Gabriel when the Miracle job opened.

"I was doing a lot of corporate stuff, some light scouting, community relations," Brown said. "I wanted to learn the business side of basketball first, the everyday operations of being a general manager."

Now he's turning his attention to his new career. The father of two daughters, 7 and 5, Brown said he's a huge fan of the women's game.

Since he was hired in April, 10 days before the draft, Brown has had to adjust quickly. He has gone through the draft, assembled his staff, met with players and implemented his system.

Expect a much different team, Brown said.

"We play up and down," he said. "If you looked at any of our (preseason) games, we're going to force turnovers. This preseason, we're forcing 25 turnovers per game, and that's our style. We're going to play 40 minutes of what we like to call 'organized chaos.' "We get after it. We pressure you 94 feet, and if you score, we come right back at you. We have athletes who do that."

Brown inherited a team that struggled last season, finishing 13-19 and fifth in the East. The Miracle returns three all-stars in Nykesha Sales, Taj McWilliams-Franklin and Shannon Johnson, and the players said they have confidence in Brown despite his inexperience.

"I know Dee as a person, and I know he's a great guy," Sales said. "He knows a lot about the game. Obviously, he played. So he's really excited about being here, and we're excited to have him." Brown said the toughest part of the job has been cutting good players. The next task is getting the team to play the kind of ball he believes is necessary to win.

His biggest challenge begins tonight: proving to himself and his players that being a successful player in the NBA can translate into being a good coach in the WNBA.

His ultimate goal?

"I want to win more games than I lose," Brown said. "I think that's the main thing coaches want.

"We have three all-stars and players who play behind these players who can play on all the teams in this league, so my expectations are high for them."

Orlando Miracle

COACH: Dee Brown (first season).

2001 RECORD/FINISH: 13-19, fifth in Eastern Conference.

TOP RETURNERS: Taj McWilliams-Franklin, 6-2, F/C (12.6 ppg, 7.6 rpg); Nykesha Sales, 6-0, F/G (13.5 ppg, 5.4 rpg, 2.1 spg); Shannon Johnson, 5-7, G (11.6 ppg, 3.0 rpg, 2.6 apg); Elaine Powell, 5-9, G, (3.1 rpg, 3.1 apg).

OF NOTE: After a below-.500 2001, the Miracle opens tonight with a new coach/general manager and a revamped offense. Gone is the triangle offense, replaced by what Brown calls "40 minutes of organized chaos," a run-and-shoot style with plenty of tough defense. Along with veterans Johnson, McWilliams-Franklin and leading scorer Sales, second-year guard Katie Douglas is back. The Miracle picked up depth and size in the middle with the acquisition of 6-foot-5 center Clarisse Machanguana from Charlotte. Adrienne Johnson, one of the team's best players two years ago, returns after missing 2001 with an Achilles' tendon injury. Powell played admirably last season in place of Johnson, which means more depth for Brown. Rookie forward Davalyn Cunningham, selected in the second round, was injured during practice May2 and will miss six weeks with an oblique fracture of her right ring finger.

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