Once again, Don Nelson has a Warrior's heart

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Golden years

Once again, Don Nelson has a Warrior's heart

By ART GARCIA
Star-Telegram Staff Writer

Cigar in one hand, glass of wine in the other, the occupant of the Presidential Suite is winding down after a preseason game, on his balcony with Marina del Rey bathed in the moonlight down below.

A visitor from Texas is sharing the evening, although he's facing away from the harbor and the endless slips of private yachts. Don Nelson begins to coach.

"Turn around," he orders, "and enjoy this view."

Nellie sure is. Again.

Don Nelson, 66, spent more than a year enjoying life. Enjoying all that can't be done with shootarounds in the way.

Joy, his wife, rode shotgun for the Nelson Retirement Tour. He explored New Zealand, enjoyed a new summer home on Cedar Creek Lake and a new bar, and watched whales in Maui. Playing shuffleboard with Owen Wilson, playing poker with Willie Nelson, and a failed HBO pilot also helped eat up the 18 months bridging Nelson's coaching resignation from the Mavericks and resurrection in Golden State.

Everyone said he was coming back. Retirement be damned. Gregg Popovich half-joked during Nelson's farewell party last fall that it wouldn't be the last such celebration.

The coaching bug began to burrow into Nelson's psyche during March Madness. It didn't wane during the NBA playoffs and the Mavs' run to the Finals.

"I thought I might coach again after the year," Nelson said. "I wouldn't have coached during the year. The itch just never went away. It stayed all summer. I guess that was the start of it."

Enter old friend Chris Mullin. The president of the Warriors needed a spark. He needed to bring excitement back to the Bay. He needed to win. He needed a coach.

He needed Nelson.

But it wasn't as simple as just handing over the keys to the Warriors. Mullin had a few questions that needed to be answered before he could entertain any thought of Nelson returning to the franchise that hasn't made the playoffs since he left more than a decade ago.

Mullin asked Nelson: "Do you feel good coaching this team? Are you getting back into coaching to see if you could coach, or is this a fit for all of us? That's more pertinent than, 'Can he coach after a year off?' That didn't even enter into my consciousness."

Recharged, Nelson was ready to coach again. He had interest in the Golden State and Sacramento openings, but the Kings didn't call.

Mullin did. And although Nelson isn't one to shortchange himself when it comes to money, Mullin didn't simply buy the man he said "saved his life" from alcoholism nearly 20 years ago.

Nelson accepted a modest -- by NBA coaching standards -- $9 million guaranteed for three years. Sure, there are plenty of incentives built into the deal, but it's unlikely Nelson will approach the $5 million he made annually on his last Mavs contract.

So why would Nelson want to coach again for less money after living la vida tropica?

"Because I'm good at it," he said. "It's a hard job, and it's not hard for me to do."

Old is new

The Warriors last made the playoffs in 1994. Don Nelson had given up the fish ties by then, had watched Run TMC come and go, and was about to lose a power struggle with Chris Webber. He was fired after a 14-31 start during the 1994-95 season. A bitter lawsuit over money -- what else? -- would follow with Warriors owner Chris Cohan.

For all that went wrong at the end of his seven-year Oakland run, the Warriors were more right under Nelson than anytime since. The eight coaches gapping the bridge from Nelson to Nelson went 318-589.

Nelson knows he can win. He's second all-time in wins (1,191) in NBA history and has taken three franchises to the playoffs. He also knows he can make the game fun again.

"Developing a losing team into a good one is something I've done a lot of times," Nelson said. "I know how to do it. It's just getting it done. It takes time."

Golden State's players were ready for a change, having tuned out former coach Mike Montgomery. A Warriors official said Nelson immediately brought a measure of "discipline" to the locker room that was missing under Montgomery, a longtime college coach without any NBA cred.

"We already really believe we can win just from him being here," Warriors forward Mike Dunleavy said. "As the season goes on, I think we'll believe even more. He makes us feel good in situations."

There are parallels between these Warriors and the early teams Nelson had with the Mavs. It's debatable whether he's got another Steve Nash-Michael Finley-Dirk Nowitzki trio, but the offensive potential is there with Baron Davis, Jason Richardson, Troy Murphy and Dunleavy.

"Nellie felt there were enough pieces and players that could play his style," Mullin said. "You know the way Nellie plays. There is a style and pace you have to keep up with, or you're going to struggle.

"As I watch these guys, I always felt they were capable of playing that way. My personal opinion is there is no one better at it than Nellie."

Davis is a big key. The temperamental point guard could flourish under Nelson, much as Tim Hardaway did with the Warriors in the early '90s.

"Blessing, blessing, blessing," Davis said of his new coach. "A chance to get back to being me and what I wanted to be in this league.

"He's the boss. I'm here to work, do what I'm supposed to, and I know if I listen I'll be all right."

The chance to work with Mullin, plus two other former Warriors in general manager Rod Higgins and special assistant Mitch Richmond, has given Nelson the feeling he lost with the Mavs.

"You would think with all he's accomplished and all the games he's won, he wouldn't be insecure," a close friend of Nelson's said. "But he is. Nellie needs to be wanted."

Nelson admits that.

"This job has been incredible," Nelson said. "I feel wanted and loved and welcome. It's the way the coach and front office should be. Mully and I, Higgy, Mitch, it's a 10 so far, and I would imagine it would continue. It's natural."

The Warriors (1-2) are not generally regarded as a playoff team in the loaded Western Conference. Nelson is ready for the bumps...and losses.

"That can wear you down," Nelson admitted. "Just dealing with the losses when you're coaching a bad team, you have to prepare yourself that you're going to have a lot of bad days."

Nelson did add one caveat.

"It's easier coaching veterans than kids, but it's more rewarding coaching young kids and watching them develop," he said.

"You know they're going to cost you games while they learn. You just have to accept that as part of the deal."

Coming home?

Don Nelson is back in American Airlines Center tonight, an arena he helped christen in 2001. He'll take residence in a bare-bones office without a leather lounger and window overlooking the practice court. He'll walk out onto the court through a different hallway and pace the sidelines at the other end.

He might run into Mavs owner Mark Cuban. Don't expect any pleasantries exchanged. The uneasiness between the two remains.

"We had a very bitter negotiation on my last contract, and it just never recovered after that," Nelson said, referring to talks in the summer of 2003. "We didn't communicate the last couple years and it wasn't as much fun doing the job. They made personnel moves without me knowing, so I thought it was time to step aside.

"If you don't have a relationship with the owner, it's time to move on. It's that simple. I like Mark Cuban a lot. He doesn't like me all that much. I have no problems with him, and he has a problem with me."

After resigning as coach with 18 games left in the 2004-05 season, and Avery Johnson's ensuing promotion to head coach, Nelson moved into a consultant role. One he was supposed to have through 2011.

Cuban called him the "godfather" of the organization. He felt more like the unwanted uncle.

"I was never used as a consultant," Nelson said. "Mark never called and he wouldn't return my e-mails."

Though he was still part of the organization, Nelson said he wasn't allowed to attend the summer league or board the team plane.

Nelson did attend one practice, at Johnson's suggestion, but otherwise kept away.

"It's not Avery, it's the ownership," Nelson added. "I just felt uncomfortable being around too much, so I decided not to be around. You know when you're not wanted."

The war of wills with Cuban appears far from over. Nelson has accused the billionaire of holding back $6.6 million in deferred compensation built into his contract with previous owner Ross Perot, and the last deal signed with Cuban.

Nelson agreed to defer a significant part of his salary, without interest, to help Perot's bottom line. Nelson said he received the deferred payments for two years before Cuban ceased.

"I'm being punished by the team I did a favor for," Nelson said. "I hope Mark Cuban comes to his senses and pays me the money he owes me."

Asked about Nelson's return and contributions to the Mavs' franchise, Cuban said: "I have nothing to say at all. He coaches the bad guys now."

Nelson was part of the Mavs' family for nine years, six under Cuban. Doesn't that mean something?

"It's not if you leave, it's how you leave," Cuban explained. "[Michael Finley] is a great example. He gave 110 percent every minute he was here and didn't leave by his choice.

"I will boo him every minute he has a Spurs jersey on, but after he retires, if he ever needed my help for anything, I would go out of my way to help him. My level of respect for Fin has and always will be as high as it can be."

Don't bet on the same with Nelson.

For others, Nelson's return is more sweet than bitter.

"The fans should really welcome him back," Avery Johnson said. "He's been a huge part of the success in helping getting this franchise back going in the right direction."

Nelson just wants to get through what he is sure will be an uncomfortable evening. He recalled getting booed in his first return to Golden State as New York Knicks coach.

"I don't think one person in the arena is going to boo Nellie," Johnson said.

Nelson also comes to town the same night the Mavs' Western Conference championship banner goes into the rafters. He knows he had a part in it.

"All I ever wanted to do was retire here and have a friendly association with the Mavs," Nelson said. "That seems to be impossible now.

"But I tell you one thing, I'll be the proudest guy in the area when they raise that flag."

MAVS LIGHT? Don Nelson's Golden State starting five is similar in style to his primary starters during the Mavs' 60-win season of 2002-03:

PG Baron Davis (6-3, 223), Steve Nash (6-3, 195): Both are dynamic performers who can do it all. The difference: Davis isn't always in shape or motivated.

SG Jason Richardson (6-6, 220), Michael Finley (6-7, 215): Richardson is a younger version of Finley: athletic, dynamic and more of a scorer than pure shooter.

SF Mickael Pietrus (6-6, 200), Adrian Griffin (6-5, 215): Quintessential dirty-work role players; Pietrus has the ability to be an elite defender.

PF Mike Dunleavy (6-9, 221), Dirk Nowitzki (7-0, 250): When Dunleavy was drafted in 2002, he was called a Nowitzki clone. Now in his fifth season, it's clear he is not.

C Troy Murphy (6-11, 245), Raef LaFrentz (6-11, 240): Undersized centers who can shoot the 3. Murphy is a rebounder; LaFrentz a shot-blocker.