During a lengthy coaching career that has included many stops, former Milwaukee Bucks coach Scott Skiles' style has been known to wear thin on players. While his intense insistence on defensive effort yields early results, players tend to respond to his methods only for so long.
Samuel Dalembert opens up about problems with Scott Skiles
From starter to the doghouse, Bucks center Samuel Dalembert discusses his relationship with former coach Scott Skiles.
Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports
But in the case of Bucks center Samuel Dalembert, the relationship was rocky almost from the start.
As Dalembert describes to Gary Woelfel of The Journal Times, his relationship with Skiles became rocky not long after joining the team, as the veteran big man quickly landed in his head coach’s doghouse. That led to Dalembert going unused for 13-straight games in December and January, an understandably frustrating situation for the player.
Dalembert says that he was initially quite excited to join Milwaukee after an off-season trade from the Houston Rockets, and that excitement continued after meeting Skiles for dinner last summer. But something changed in their relationship early this season, which Dalembert attributes at least partially to a conversation the two had during a practice.
The veteran big man wouldn’t go into details about exactly what was said during that unfortunate exchange, but Dalembert believes that Skiles’ attitude towards him changed afterwards. A lack of communication only compounded the issues, as Dalembert says the two never actually discussed why the big man was playing so infrequently.
With Larry Sanders emerging as the Bucks' best option at center, Dalembert will likely have to settle for back-up minutes under interim Bucks coach Jim Boylan. The big man doesn't hold any ill will towards his former coach, though, saying, "I wish him and his family well. I don’t wish bad for anyone."
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