Walsh back as president of Indiana Pacers; Bird out

Cliff June 27, 2012 0

By CLIFF BRUNT

ISL Editor

Donnie’s back!

Larry Bird, president of basketball operations for the Indiana Pacers the past nine years, has stepped down. Former team president Donnie Walsh returns as president of basketball operations, and Kevin Pritchard will replace David Morway as general manager, the Pacers announced Wednesday on the eve of the NBA Draft.

Walsh left the Pacers in 2008 to serve as president of the New York Knicks for two years. He was the Pacers’ general manager from 1986-88 before becoming the franchise president from 1988-2008.

Walsh is excited about the opportunity to return to the Pacers.

After discussing this with Herb (team owner Herb Simon) and Larry, I’m very comfortable in coming back and doing whatever I can to help the Pacers continue their return to prominence in the NBA, he said. This is home in so many ways, and I couldn’t be more proud about coming back and being part of this great franchise again.

Morway, who resigned Tuesday, was aware of the rumors that Walsh would return. He told Indy Sports Legends that would be good for the franchise.

“He’s my mentor, my first mentor, and was always like a second father to me,” Morway said. “He was extremely instrumental, not only in my professional growth, but in my personal growth when I came here to Indiana. Donnie was the first one to give me an opportunity in the NBA. And I look at Donnie as one of the best executives that has ever been in the league. I may be biased, but I think I’m right. He’s brilliant, he’s a great communicator, he knows the league inside and out. He’s got great instincts. I just think he’s as good as there is in the industry.

Bird might return someday, but he has health issues to deal with for now.

I’m going to take some time off and evaluate what I will do in the future, said Bird. This has nothing to do with any conflict or anything else, it’s just time. I considered leaving last year, so this shouldn’t be a surprise. I’m proud of what we’ve accomplished, I like the position this team is in and with Kevin and Donnie, the basketball side won’t miss a beat.

Simon wanted Bird to stay, trying as recently as Monday to try and get him to change his mind.

I fully understand Larry’s decision to step away and can’t thank him enough for what he has done for the Pacers, Simon said. I can’t ask for a better transition at this time than to have Donnie back to work with Kevin in overseeing the basketball side.

Pritchard joined the Pacers prior to last season as director of player personnel. The Bloomington, Ind. native was Portland’s general manager from 2007-10 prior to joining the Pacers.

This is a great opportunity, said Pritchard. To be able to work with someone like Donnie Walsh, whose record with the Pacers and Knicks speaks for itself, and to continue to build on what Larry has done here is a great honor.

Bird took a franchise crippled by the brawl between Pacers players and Pistons fans in 2004, made a series of difficult trades to get rid of troublemakers, rebuilt through the draft and returned the Pacers to the Eastern Conference semifinals this season. Indiana defeated Orlando in the first round of the playoffs, then led the series against the Heat 2-1 before dropping three straight and ending its deepest postseason run in seven years.

Bird was the NBA’s Executive of the Year in 2012, becoming the first person to win that award, an MVP award and NBA coach of the year. Bird won three MVPs and three NBA titles during his Hall of Fame career with Boston and also was coach of the year for leading the Pacers to their only NBA Finals appearance in 2000.

Bird has stayed with the Pacers on a season-by-season basis, discussing whether to return with team owner Herb Simon each offseason. Bird said in May that he wanted to stay and it was just a matter of reaching an agreement with Simon.

Bird was hired as team president in 2003 and shared the basketball decisions with Walsh. The brawl shook up a perennial title contender and prompted the team to make talent-depleting trades. Ron Artest, Stephen Jackson, Jamaal Tinsley and Shawne Williams were the most notable casualties of the housecleaning.

Bird took full control of basketball decisions after the 2007-08 season, when Walsh left to become president of the New York Knicks. Financial restrictions slowed his progress, and the Pacers went 36-46 in 2008-09 and 32-50 in 2009-10.

Two seasons ago, the Pacers were 17-27 when Bird fired coach Jim O’Brien. Interim coach Frank Vogel then took a young team with core pieces Danny Granger, Roy Hibbert, Tyler Hansbrough and Darren Collison and guided it to the playoffs. The Pacers challenged the Chicago Bulls before losing the first-round series 4-1.

After the season, Bird met with Simon, and the team announced it would keep him as president. Indiana then added San Antonio guard George Hill in a draft-day trade, hired Vogel as the full-time coach and added free-agent forward David West. He added Leandro Barbosa at the trade deadline to bolster the team’s depth and experience.

Bird primarily rebuilt through the draft, despite never having a high pick.

In 2008, the Pacers acquired Toronto draft pick Roy Hibbert, and the 7-foot-2 center was a first-time All-Star this season. In 2009, Indiana drafted Hansbrough, who has become a key part of the second unit. In 2010, the team picked up Fresno State’s Paul George on draft night. George participated in this year’s rising stars challenge and slam dunk contest, and he got votes for the NBA all-defensive team.

In 2011, the team traded its draft pick for Hill, an Indianapolis native. He was the starting point guard by season’s end.

Vogel, meanwhile, was third in the coach of the year balloting this past season. He thrived while blending the skills of new assistant coaches Brian Shaw and Jim Boylen with those of holdover Dan Burke.

The Pacers, well under the salary cap, are expected to be a significant player in free agency.

“We’re not even close to where I think we’re going to go with this franchise,” Bird said in March. “We’ve got a long way to go. We’ve got a core group of young players that are going to be pretty good, and we’ve brought in some guys I think are positive moves, but we’re nowhere near where I think this franchise needs to be and where I want it to go.”

Morway talks exclusively to Indy Sports Legends about stepping down:

http://www.indysportslegends.com/morway-tells-isl-resigned-pacers-gm-recharge-batteries/#ixzz1z12G4zNv