I was watching some Dream Team clips last night and started looking up about Chuck Daly. I couldn’t find the information I was looking for though. How did he manage all the egos on that team? You had Jordan, Bird, Magic, Barkley, plus other greats like Ewing and Robinson. I’m sure they all got along great and were friendly, but there had to be some ego from some of them. Is there any information about how Daly coached the team? Any tidbits or strategies?
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Jack McCallum’s Dream Team dives into this element a good deal but it’s been a while since I’ve read it.
Considering how overwhelmingly talented the original Dream Team was relative to its competition, it was a little bit easier to manage egos.
Daly, a gregarious sort known as a Daddy Rich around our way (in Detroit), was an appropriate selection as coach, as he brought both the levity and know-how to the table. He knew he was managing the greatest team ever assembled but he also knew when to pull his foot off the gas pedal and let those guys be dudes. I remember a lot of golf being involved, Daly included.
But really, it’s tough to get too bent out of shape when everyone’s playing 20 minutes a night and you’re winning every game by 40. It was basically one drawn out coronation.
Dream Team by Jack McCallum is a great book and I think has a few bits dedicated to Chuck Daly and his interactions with the players.