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http://www.billingsgazette.net/articles/2007/12/28/sports/local/24-krystkowiak.txt
Krystkowiak still learning the ins, outs of NBA coaching
Former UM player, coach trying to adjust to NBA's faster pace
by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
ST. FRANCIS, Wis. - It has been hard for Larry Krystkowiak to escape the whirlwind, since that day in March when he accepted the job as head coach of the Milwaukee Bucks.
After all, he suddenly was learning on the job as a young coach and directing a struggling team.
And he's still doing it in December, after the franchise's busy off-season, the signing of 7-foot Chinese power forward Yi Jianlian and Krystkowiak's first National Basketball Association training camp as the man in charge.
The 43-year-old Montana native isn't complaining, however. He is relishing the chance to coach the Bucks while also raising a growing family with his wife, Jan. Twin daughters Samantha Ann and Finley Jo arrived on Nov. 6, joining brothers Cameron, 8, Luc, 6, and Ben, 5. "Having the new girls is fantastic," Krystkowiak said after a recent morning practice. "Once the basketball season starts, you have to be pretty focused on the basketball.
"Everybody at our house kind of knew what we were getting into. It's not necessarily like you kiss them goodbye to start the season, but it's pretty close to that. It's always nice when you walk in the home, you get a reminder of what that's about. But a lot of focus has been on the job."
The Bucks have spent much of the early part of the season on the road, and even when they're at home, Krystkowiak is watching film and trying to figure out ways to do his job better.
After a close loss to Sacramento last week at the Bradley Center, Krystkowiak plunged into a lengthy film session.
"We have a new theater room downstairs, and it's not exactly why I built it," he said. "You watch the game a couple times, rewind it. My wife (a former basketball player at University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee) sat down there with me and played armchair quarterback. Then you just don't sleep.
"I woke up a couple times randomly throughout the night, and it was that play and that play. Nobody said it was going to be easy. It's fixable. I know our guys are capable of shooting the ball better than they are, and it's figuring out a way to quit turning it over."
The Bucks were 5-13 as they played out the season under Krystkowiak last spring, after Terry Stotts was fired. The former University of Montana and Bucks player started with a bang, beating San Antonio in his first NBA game as a head coach.
This season, the Bucks were out to an impressive 7-4 start, but they have gone 4-11 since then for an overall mark of 11-15. And they have lost a number of close games, including two in overtime, while struggling to a 2-12 road record.
"It's more about trying to survive the next play, and getting your team ready to play," Krystkowiak said. "It would be nice if you weren't always grinding the last couple possessions, which has been the way it's been.
"It would be nice to keep your foot on the throttle and close some of these games out. We've been a little bit snakebit, and we need to get it turned around."
Although Krystkowiak is less than 50 games into his career as an NBA head coach, he is expected to make the right moves and match wits with such veterans as the Los Angeles Lakers' Phil Jackson, Utah Jazz coach Jerry Sloan and San Antonio's Gregg Popovich, to name a few.
Krystkowiak coached one season in the Continental Basketball Association and two years at his alma mater, Montana, before joining the Bucks' staff under Stotts at the start of last season.
"The game is different," he said of the pro game, in contrast to the college brand of basketball. "That 11-second difference in the shot clock; things happen pretty fast. Momentum and leads can evaporate a lot quicker.
"I think the tempo is different. In the pros, the pick-and-roll game is huge, where you have time to run a lot more structure in college."
Krystkowiak is learning the referees and the subtle nuances that are such a big part of the NBA game. And he is discovering more about his players as he instructs them in practice daily.
Yi has communicated well with Krystkowiak since the forward arrived from China in early October, and the rookie's play clearly has justified his selection with the No. 6 pick in the June draft.
"He played the same position, and he can teach me, tell me the moves on offense and defense," Yi said. "He's a young coach, but I'm feeling more comfortable right now."
Krystkowiak and his coaching staff think the young players on the roster, including Yi, third-year center Andrew Bogut, third-year forward Charlie Villanueva and fifth-year point guard Mo Williams, will continue to make progress.
"The thing I'm most excited about is his future," Krystkowiak said of Yi, who had a career-best 29 points against Charlotte in a victory Saturday night. "The people in our organization respect him an awful lot. His work ethic is great, and he has a pretty bright future if he continues on this path.
"And we have a lot of guys in the same situation, guys who can take steps to the next level."
Krystkowiak still learning the ins, outs of NBA coaching
Former UM player, coach trying to adjust to NBA's faster pace
by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
ST. FRANCIS, Wis. - It has been hard for Larry Krystkowiak to escape the whirlwind, since that day in March when he accepted the job as head coach of the Milwaukee Bucks.
After all, he suddenly was learning on the job as a young coach and directing a struggling team.
And he's still doing it in December, after the franchise's busy off-season, the signing of 7-foot Chinese power forward Yi Jianlian and Krystkowiak's first National Basketball Association training camp as the man in charge.
The 43-year-old Montana native isn't complaining, however. He is relishing the chance to coach the Bucks while also raising a growing family with his wife, Jan. Twin daughters Samantha Ann and Finley Jo arrived on Nov. 6, joining brothers Cameron, 8, Luc, 6, and Ben, 5. "Having the new girls is fantastic," Krystkowiak said after a recent morning practice. "Once the basketball season starts, you have to be pretty focused on the basketball.
"Everybody at our house kind of knew what we were getting into. It's not necessarily like you kiss them goodbye to start the season, but it's pretty close to that. It's always nice when you walk in the home, you get a reminder of what that's about. But a lot of focus has been on the job."
The Bucks have spent much of the early part of the season on the road, and even when they're at home, Krystkowiak is watching film and trying to figure out ways to do his job better.
After a close loss to Sacramento last week at the Bradley Center, Krystkowiak plunged into a lengthy film session.
"We have a new theater room downstairs, and it's not exactly why I built it," he said. "You watch the game a couple times, rewind it. My wife (a former basketball player at University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee) sat down there with me and played armchair quarterback. Then you just don't sleep.
"I woke up a couple times randomly throughout the night, and it was that play and that play. Nobody said it was going to be easy. It's fixable. I know our guys are capable of shooting the ball better than they are, and it's figuring out a way to quit turning it over."
The Bucks were 5-13 as they played out the season under Krystkowiak last spring, after Terry Stotts was fired. The former University of Montana and Bucks player started with a bang, beating San Antonio in his first NBA game as a head coach.
This season, the Bucks were out to an impressive 7-4 start, but they have gone 4-11 since then for an overall mark of 11-15. And they have lost a number of close games, including two in overtime, while struggling to a 2-12 road record.
"It's more about trying to survive the next play, and getting your team ready to play," Krystkowiak said. "It would be nice if you weren't always grinding the last couple possessions, which has been the way it's been.
"It would be nice to keep your foot on the throttle and close some of these games out. We've been a little bit snakebit, and we need to get it turned around."
Although Krystkowiak is less than 50 games into his career as an NBA head coach, he is expected to make the right moves and match wits with such veterans as the Los Angeles Lakers' Phil Jackson, Utah Jazz coach Jerry Sloan and San Antonio's Gregg Popovich, to name a few.
Krystkowiak coached one season in the Continental Basketball Association and two years at his alma mater, Montana, before joining the Bucks' staff under Stotts at the start of last season.
"The game is different," he said of the pro game, in contrast to the college brand of basketball. "That 11-second difference in the shot clock; things happen pretty fast. Momentum and leads can evaporate a lot quicker.
"I think the tempo is different. In the pros, the pick-and-roll game is huge, where you have time to run a lot more structure in college."
Krystkowiak is learning the referees and the subtle nuances that are such a big part of the NBA game. And he is discovering more about his players as he instructs them in practice daily.
Yi has communicated well with Krystkowiak since the forward arrived from China in early October, and the rookie's play clearly has justified his selection with the No. 6 pick in the June draft.
"He played the same position, and he can teach me, tell me the moves on offense and defense," Yi said. "He's a young coach, but I'm feeling more comfortable right now."
Krystkowiak and his coaching staff think the young players on the roster, including Yi, third-year center Andrew Bogut, third-year forward Charlie Villanueva and fifth-year point guard Mo Williams, will continue to make progress.
"The thing I'm most excited about is his future," Krystkowiak said of Yi, who had a career-best 29 points against Charlotte in a victory Saturday night. "The people in our organization respect him an awful lot. His work ethic is great, and he has a pretty bright future if he continues on this path.
"And we have a lot of guys in the same situation, guys who can take steps to the next level."
