Oh, there's a money aspect to it. There's also a winning aspect to it - Portland will spend the money it takes to win, whereas Seattle traditionally hasn't. But there's a bigger issue still - the respect issue.
Going into this past season, EVERYONE knew Nate McMillan was a good coach, yet Seattle left him on a lame-duck contract. Only once they had won the division, had a great year, and realized that, with the lock-out being averted, and McMillan would be a free agent - ONLY THEN did they open negotiations. And after all that, Wally Walker tried to strong-arm McMillan into a quick decision - announcing to the press that they wanted an answer, because it was unfair to keep them on the hook. HOW ABOUT THE WAY THEY KEPT MCMILLAN ON THE HOLD?
Which one of Wally Walker's pals gets the job now? We all remember the failed Paul Westphal-instead-of-George Karl experiment up there, don't we?
Well, fortunately for Seatlle, there's a good coach available out there with a tie to Seattle success, who used to be a teammate of Wally Walker's, who doesn't mind being trampled to death by management (at least, that's what his track record shows): PAUL SILAS. He's not as good as Nate McMillan, but he is a good coach. Write it down - I'm calling it first - Paul Silas to coach Seattle.
