Scott Skiles talks Orlando Magic on Tuesday media car wash
Scott Skiles spent his second day as Orlando Magic head coach taking the car wash around various radio stations in Orlando and nationally.
The Orlando Magic did their big media roll out for Scott Skiles on Tuesday as Skiles appeared on Open Mike with Mike Bianchi on Tuesday morning along with the nationally syndicated Dan Patrick Show and then the local drive-time show, the Sports RX on 740 AM.
Unlike the press conferences, Skiles opened up a bit more about what he thought about the roster, how he is getting involved in the Draft process and how he will complete his staff.
His day started off with an interview with the Orlando Sentinel’s Mike Bianchi on his radio show, Open Mike on 740 AM:
Bianchi and many others talked about Skiles’ hard-driving ways. Skiles maintains players want to be coached hard and that they like having someone who pushes them to get to a higher level.
This has led to what Skiles calls a false narrative about him and his coaching tenure. Skiles just is not a self-promoter. He re-iterated again he did not go out looking for work, even though he had offers from reporters to leak his interest in head coaching jobs throughout the league. He figured something would come along.
Bianchi also had Shaquille O’Neal on his show, and O’Neal told the story of the time Skiles tried to fight him during a practice.
"“I wasn’t worried, but he was a tough guy,” O’Neal said. “I knew he wasn’t going to back down – that’s what I always loved about Scott Skiles. I always loved playing with him.”"
O’Neal also called Skiles the best point guard he ever played with, including Anfernee Hardaway.
So give the Big Aristotle’s seal of approval on the Magic’s hire.
Skiles then went on the Dan Patrick Show to talk about his hire:
Patrick asked Skiles if he can coach “toughness.” In essence, can he teach players to play the way he did?
Skiles said building a solid defensive scheme and teaching guys to get in the right spot are the first steps to building that “toughness” perception. He has done a good job in his previous stops building that mentality and building that defense.
This is exactly what the Magic are paying for.
In all, Skiles did reveal a few interesting nuggets.
First, he is just jumping into the Draft process. So he is going to trust Rob Hennigan’s staff and their judgment as he plays catch up some. Skiles lauded Hennigan’s preparation and staff in reviewing the Draft prospects and doing research on the prospects. In his two days, he has come away impressed with how Hennigan and his staff approach this process. He appreciates Hennigan and his staff want everyone’s opinions.
Second, Skiles started to get into a little bit with the roster.
He said he is impressed with the defensive potential of Victor Oladipo and Elfrid Payton, but they still have some things to clean up defensively — particularly off-the-ball defense and learning the ins and outs of the league. He also said Nikola Vucevic can be a good defender when he learns better positioning.
These are all things Skiles hopes to teach. And has taught before in his previous stops.
Third, Skiles spoke to James Borrego on Monday and expressed there is an open spot on his staff for him if he wants it. He said Borrego is going to take some time to make a decision.
So it is clear Skiles is already at work and contributing to the process of preparing for the Draft. As he puts together a staff, the Draft will be one of his bigger focuses.