An odd rumor bouncing around the past week had Tennessee coach Bruce Pearl in play for the future Wizards vacancy. Nothing was ever solid -- the only real connection seems to be Washington GM Ernie Grunfeld's Volunteer history and a smattering of talk that Pearl was considered a year ago as Eddie Jordan's tenure became more tenuous.The rumor was news to Pearl on Wednesday, and the coach dismissed the idea he was a candidate. Today, ESPN.com's Marc Stein reports Pearl isn't a serious option, as the Wizards will be looking for a bigger name with pro experience.
Washington is quietly confident that it will have no shortage of good applicants when it decides it's time to choose a permanent successor to Eddie Jordan, with the Wiz believing, among other things, that the attractiveness of the job and the city where they play has only been enhanced by Barack Obama's forthcoming installment as the nation's 44th president.Obama as an incentive to take the D.C. job seems odd, and misplaced. Regardless, the job is attractive. The Wizards are no longer a league-wide punchline, and the roster has more strengths than a lot of other teams. To me, a defensive-minded coach makes sense: a team with a remotely free Gilbert Arenas, Caron Butler and Antawn Jamison will score a-plenty. Even last year, with Brenden Haywood playing awesome and Antonio Daniels starting, the team's defense was mediocre. The team needs new eyes on that end, and perhaps a half-court style that allows the efficient D.C. assault to dominate.
