Having No Expectations Is Great Move for Kings

The Kings’ hiring of Andy Murray as their head coach was brilliant.

I realize that is a minority opinion, but you have to look at it this way: The Dodgers hired Davey Johnson and people expected them to be in the World Series. The Lakers haven’t even hired Phil Jackson yet and people expect them to be in the NBA finals.

If Dave Taylor had hired Ted Nolan, the most successful former NHL head coach among the candidates, or Dave Lewis, an assistant to Scotty Bowman with Detroit’s Stanley Cup championship teams, there might have been high expectations for the Kings.

With Murray, there are no expectations.

That might not be exactly the advertising slogan--Not Quite Serious Hockey: No Expectations!--the Kings would choose for their first season in the Staples Center. But at least their fans won’t be disappointed, as they were when the Kings followed up their playoff appearance of 1997-98 by finishing 22nd in a 27-team league.

In Murray’s position, stepping up to the NHL after coaching a prep school team last season in Faribault, Minn., that’s a plus.

“The fact that the team underachieved last season, this is a great time to come to Los Angeles,” he said at a news conference Monday.

The fact that the team underachieved last season, of course, is the reason Larry Robinson is gone.

Some players took advantage of Robinson because he was too nice a guy. No one has accused Murray of being nice, at least not as a coach.

That is the most encouraging thing I didn’t hear Monday and the reason that the Kings’ hire might be better than initial reviews indicate.

“You’ve got to have the fear that if you don’t do well, you’re not going to be in the lineup,” said Rob Blake, who played for the Murray-coached Team Canada that won the 1997 world championship.

Murray described himself as “demanding but fair.”

“There will be consequences in relation to success and not so much success,” he said.

*

Murray said he was excited to see the front-page frenzy about the new coach in town. . . .

Then he realized that the stories were about Jackson. . . .

“My family thought we were going to be millionaires,” Murray said. . . .

Considering the amount of money Jerry Buss is willing to pay Jackson, it’s not unfair to expect the Lakers to win a championship or three before the contract runs out. . . .

That doesn’t mean it’s going to happen. The only head coach to win NBA titles with more than one team is Alex Hannum, with St. Louis in 1958 and Philadelphia in ’67. . . .

Let’s hope Jackson isn’t tempted to bring Scottie Pippen to Los Angeles. Without Michael Jordan, the other Bulls on those title teams are like the Pips without Gladys Knight. . . .

Irv Kaze, who worked for George Steinbrenner, said that if the Yankees had been swept like the Dodgers were in Oakland, the Boss would have been on the phone to the manager as soon as the last out was recorded to demand that the team work out the next morning. . . .

I assume Johnson didn’t receive a call like that. The Dodgers didn’t work out Monday. . . .

I don’t even know who would make that call on behalf of Dodger management. But I’m pretty sure it wouldn’t be Rupert Murdoch. . . .

Kevin Brown is a stopper in the original sense of the term. . . .

For the fourth time in his last six starts, he will try to end a three-game losing streak for the Dodgers when he pitches tonight. . . .

Three members of Pepperdine’s 1995 baseball team are in the major leagues--Randy Wolf with Philadelphia, David Newhan with San Diego and Ryan Christenson with Oakland. . . .

Ronnie Lott is among candidates to become coach/general manager of the new Arena Football League team, the Los Angeles . . . drum roll . . . Avengers. . . .

That was the name announced Monday by the team’s owner, Casey Wasserman. . . .

“As long as it’s not Raiders, I don’t care,” said Steve Soboroff, L.A. Parks and Recreation director. . . .

Asked what he thinks when he hears the name, Wasserman said, “Power, energy, excitement.” . . .

I think of Diana Rigg and Patrick Macnee. . . .

Wasserman is too young to remember the original Avengers on television. He’s 24 and a former classmate at the Hawthorne School in Beverly Hills of Monica Lewinsky’s. . . .

In wishing Wasserman luck during Monday’s news conference at the Staples Center, do you think AFL exec Jack Youngblood told him, “Break a leg?”

*

While wondering if there’s a better name for a sport than tennis’ Anna Smashnova, I was thinking: No athlete was more impressive over the weekend than Kasey Keller in goal for the U.S. men’s soccer team, too many radio sports talk show hosts talk too little about sports, it’s hard to get upset about the Dodgers or Angels when you think about Larry Dierker.

Randy Harvey can be reached at his e-mail address: [email protected]