What about Bob? Contract Option Picked up on Hill

A couple weeks ago I was flipping through the TV channels after a Sonics game and came across the movie What about Bob? It started me thinking What about Bob Hill? Will Bob Hill be around next year? That question was answered today with the announcement from the Seattle Supersonics that they have picked up the option on Bob Hill's contract for next season. I think that's a smart move. Bob Hill has made the effort to develop the young players on the team. He has given them more structure, and a well defined system for the players to work in.

Bob Weiss, the man Hill replaced, ran what he called a "flex" offense. This allowed players to start from positions on the floor and react to what the other team is doing. That's a fine system if you have veteran players that can easily recognize situations on the fly. Unfortunately veteran players are the exception to the Sonics roster. The lack of structure was so frustrating for Robert Swift that he had asked to go play in the NBDL, NBA minor league, just to get some experience. Before young Robert's wish could be granted Bob Weiss was fired, replaced with Hill, and changing Swift's career.

Player development has never, ever, been more important as it is now. The age, years in college, of the player is less than it was 20 years ago. 10 years ago when Kevin Garnett was showing that the high school kids that perform at a higher level are likely wasting some of their time going to college, or at least giving away money. But those few high school players that dared to make the jump to the NBA had the benefit of playing with veterans: on teams that comprised mostly of players that went to college, or played many years of European ball.

The players that were drafted shortly after Garnett, and even to the draft of Rashard Lewis in 1989, had on the job training for inexperienced players. Those players worked with college educated, full-grown men. The necessity to coach, to develop players to the extent is required on such a massive scale, just wasn't the situation 10 years ago.

What the Sonics have today is Robert Swift, 20, on the floor with Rashard Lewis, neither having the benefit of college. One player is learning very little from the other because the other, the veteran, is 26, and according to his coach is playing at 65% of his developed ability. Somebody else, somebody other than the veteran players that were available in the past, has to take up those aspects of development beyond the x's and o's that isn't handed off from player to player.

All of this mental professional development, the monitoring, used to be handled by veteran players. The players used to come out of 4 years of college. Those days are over. The smartest thing the Sonics have done in recent memory is the hiring of Jack Sikma. Coincidentally, he was on many NBA All-Star rosters with Kareem. Sikma is a veteran not so far removed from his years of playing that the player that he can't transfer the implicit knowledge of how to play when explicate instruction sometimes fails.

The Sonics have added another assistant coach, Detlef Schrempf, to mentor every player they have playing power forward. All of the back court players have been to college and likely will only need the leadership of Ray Allen and not a specialized coach. Coach Bob Hill has stepped up to address the Small Forward position; he’s called on Rashard to set an example through his own improvement.

Bottom line on the new Bob Hill era; he's exactly the coach you want for the players you have right now. I wouldn't bother changing him if you do not intend to change the players. The Sonics management apparently feels the same way. The young players need structured plays and development, Hill provides both by the bucket full.

It is more important than ever to have a coaching staff that can develop players.