Carril hired as Kings assistant

While the attention of the basketball world this summer was tuned to the brilliance of Michael Jordan, the smack talk of Gary Payton, the zen philosophy of Phil Jackson and the dye job of Dennis Rodman, the Sacramento Kings made a move contrary to the trend sweeping the NBA. The Kings hired ex-Princeton coach Pete Carril as an assistant coach. Carril sticks out in the circus that is the NBA unlike any other basketball character, except possibly Rodman. While players and coaches alike now sport thousand dollar Armani suits and drive around in exotic sports cars, the 65-year-old Carril is most comfortable on the sidelines with a simple sweater and a pair of slacks. And when he decided to dress up for his stint as a television studio host during last year's NCAA tournament, Carril went with a short-sleeved shirt, bow tie, no jacket. Carril's basketball style perfectly complements his fashion style. It's not pretty, but it serves its purpose. Using a slow-it-down offense with structured set plays combined with a strong defense, Carril's teams were regularly among the nation's leaders in scoring defense. Last year, after tying Penn for the Ivy League championship, Princeton beat the Quakers in a one-game playoff to gain a bid to the NCAA tournament. The Tigers then recorded the biggest upset of the tourney by knocking off defending national champion UCLA in the first round. The joy ride ended when the Carril's team was bumped in the second round by Final Four-bound Mississippi State. Prior to the UCLA victory, Carril had a record of bringing severe underdogs into the tournament and coming within a basket or a missed call of pulling off a major upset. From 1989 to 1992, the Tigers lost four first-round games to Georgetown, Arkansas, Villanova and Syracuse by a combined 15 points. After the playoff victory against Penn, Carril announced that he would be leaving Princeton after the Tigers' NCAA run. Although he didn't say anything at the time, Carril knew he would be moving on to the pro ranks. "I knew I was going for a few months," Carril said. "I had received four or five offers from other NBA teams in the past few years, and I knew I was going." Carril cited Kings vice president Jeff Petrie as being a key to the move. Petrie played for Carril at Princeton through 1970 and has remained a good friend of his former coach. According to Carril, he and Sacramento head coach Gary St. Jean have yet to formalize Carril's job description. "I don't know what I'll be doing," Carril said. "Whatever they want me to do, I'll do. If they want me to work with any individual player or on anything else, I'll do it." Bill Carmody, a long-time Carril assistant and his successor at Princeton, believes Carril can help St. Jean most in developing an offensive strategy. "I don't think of Carril as a defensive coach, but as an offensive coach," Carmody said. "When I think of Carril, I think of his offense. "You look what's happening in the NBA today, and it's structured offense. You look at the Chicago Bulls, and if there's any team that could afford to just shoot it up, it'd be the Bulls, with Michael Jordan and [Scottie] Pippen. But they have the most structured offense in the league. The team that could best improvise is the most organized." Although the NBA might seem like a long way from the Ivy League, Carril already has experience dealing with the pro players. Before this past year, the New Jersey Nets had held a three-week preseason training camp at Princeton every fall for 15 years. Carril routinely provided instruction to the Nets, including players like Darryl Dawkins. "NBA coaches have been constantly calling in my 10 years as an assistant here," Carmody said. Carmody believes Carril will be as successful at the pro level as he was at Princeton. "Like any coach, some guys listen and some guys don't," Carmody said. "It's the same in the NBA, the same in college. But the players tend to respond well to Coach Carril. "He's not threatening. He's only 5-7. Players really open up to him."

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