The Hot Button: Who’s the biggest dud in local sports?
Megaton dud Eddie Haas pulls Gene Garber. (AJC photo by Calvin Cruce)
Again, I have you folks to thank — or blame, as the case may be — for this entry. This tangent arose on Saturday’s live chat off the Falcons’ defensive collapse, and I thought it would make a nice Hot Button. (Or Cold Button, as the case may be.)
The question: Who’s the biggest dud in local sports?
Parameters: It has to be someone currently employed locally. Meaning: No Len Barker, no Aundray Bruce, no Eddie Haas, no Ron Jirsa, no Bruce Pickens, no Jeff Francoeur, no J.R. Rider, no Jeff George, no Priest Lauderdale, no Ray Goff, no Corky Miller, no Marion Campbell, no Peerless Price, no Damian Rhodes, no Bill Lewis, no Albie Lopez, no Robert Fick, no Shelden Williams, no Jimmy Williams, no Bobby Petrino, no Dan Kolb, no Steve Broussard, no Adam Keefe, no Brad Komminsk, no Reggie Kelly … enough already!
I’ve taken the liberty of nominating one deserving — or undeserving, as the case may be — candidate from each local entity. (Caveat: No college players will be considered. It’d be mean to label an amateur a flop, especially with so many alleged pros from which to choose.) And here we go. Feel free to comment/disagree/amplify/moan.
Greg Norton, Braves slugger: I don’t think I need to outline the argument for/against him. And if I did, I’m not apt to do it any better than I did it in this post earlier today.
Jamaal Anderson, Falcons defensive end: First-round draft pick (No. 8 overall) has two sacks in two seasons. On the bright side, he had two more sacks in Year 2 than in Year 1, so the graph is pointing upward. Started as a rookie. Probably won’t start as a third-year man. Was drafted as a DE. Has been tried at defensive tackle. Best position would seem the bench.
Mike Woodson, Hawks coach: He makes the list because each local sporting concern must have a representative. Also because he’s still more than a hundred games under .500 as a head coach. Also because he just groused to Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports about not having been offered a contract extension. But Woody did a good job last season and wouldn’t be included had not Speedy Claxton been shipped to Golden State, which was downright thoughtless of Rick Sund.
Don Waddell, Thrashers GM: Ten years on the job, two winning seasons, one playoff appearance, no playoff victories. But he has had a nice offseason, and if he persuades Ilya Kovalchuk to stay we’ll be throwing roses at the Teflon Don, as opposed to the usual rotten tomatoes.
Loading ...Willie Martinez, Georgia defensive coordinator: His players were in position; they just didn’t make the tackles. But seriously, folks … here’s the reason Unslick Willie is substandard.
Paul Hewitt, Georgia Tech basketball coach: Took the Jackets to the 2004 national championship game by winning five riveting NCAA games in 17 days. Has won one NCAA game since. Has missed the Big Dance three times in the past four years. Has had a losing record three of the past four seasons. Just saw his program lose two scholarships for failure to meet NCAA academic progress standards.
Me, I’d say the overall choice comes down to expectations, meaning money. Norton is stealing earning $800,000. Martinez makes $325,000, or $1 per missed tackle. Anderson earns — wrong word, I know — $3.8 million. Which would seem to make him the winner/loser. Except:
Though Hewitt’s annual pay packet is only (only!) $1.375 million, Tech would owe him $7.175 million were it to fire him today. That makes him the biggest underachiever in local sports. But I say that knowing, seven months from now, we might well believe he’s the best bargain around. Because the Jackets should be really good next season.
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259 comments Add your comment
Steve Brown
September 3rd, 2009
1:58 pm
Chipper Jones-Highest paid part-time player on the Braves with a new physical excuse every week for a pathetic batting and fielding slump during this season’s second half, a period in which the Braves have a shot at a playoff spot for the first time in a few years. I would say more but my fingers hurt, my back hurts, my wrist hurts, my hips hurt, my side hurts and I need to get in some hunting before dark.
Harry
September 3rd, 2009
1:59 pm
how is hewitt a dud? i know we haven’t been in the big dance in a minute, but look at his recruiting. And he not only won 4 games that march in 2004, that was a great season. i just lost a lot of respect for you.
John
September 3rd, 2009
1:59 pm
Mark,
I have to admit, once you have started writing these blogs, I nearly agree with everything you say. I am enjoying iy.
eyeball kid
September 3rd, 2009
1:59 pm
Mark,
Actually worked for Guy Curtwright, but I know he works for Gwinnett paper.
Harry
September 3rd, 2009
2:01 pm
steve brown, you might be the biggest ratard who posted on this article. Yes, chipper is in a slump. Batting .280 is a slump for him. Yea he takes off some days, but who doesnt. Hes getting old anyway. without him, we wouldn’t even be in the talk of things. He’s also one of the reasons why we won 15 in a row. GG
eyeball kid
September 3rd, 2009
2:02 pm
Mark,
My original question was: Does Ray Tapley still work for AJC? I was a stringer on Friday & Saturday nights taking info on HS football games.
Dwyer For Heisman
September 3rd, 2009
2:02 pm
I’m going to have nightmares about Hewitt taking my money at the ticket counter now! Thanks Mark….
AlternateReality
September 3rd, 2009
2:02 pm
YESSS, they built the dome because only 10,000 people would show up at Atl/Fulton co. stadium on a rainy December day to watch the Falcons lose their 13th or 14th game of the year. Forget putting a better team on the field, or having the foresight (or deep pockets) to include a retractable roof.
You do have to admit that without the dome we probably wouldn’t have gotten a Super Bowl, various league championship games, a more popular Peach Bowl aka chik-FilA, etc.
Brendan
September 3rd, 2009
2:04 pm
I agree with all who said, “The Atlanta Spirit.” But, I feel that’s not ENTIRELY correct, just MOSTLY correct. I’d specifically single out Bruce Levenson. Ya see, “Bruce is our guy with hockey experience, from his days with the Washington Capitals.” Well what, pray tell, did he learn while there? I’m not even going to pick on the Capitals for being Cup-less in their history, dating back to 1974. (They got SWEPT by Detroit, in 1998, in their only trip to the Stanley Cup Finals.) Bruce Levenson might be the single biggest detriment to hockey in Atlanta.
Don Waddell is an “easy target.” And, frankly, he deserves a good bit of the criticism that is heaped his way. But really, when you put it into the BIG PICTURE … who’s the bigger idiot?: The failing GM … or the owner who continues to employ him, including all the underlings he installed?
Still thinking? Really. You’re still thinking about it? Almost any other organization would fire a GM after nine seasons, six lottery draft picks, nine Top 10 overall picks, for no berths in the Conference Finals. For those of you who are hung up on ZERO playoff victories, I ask you to consider this: “Would it really have mattered a hill of beans if the Thrashers/Rangers split Games 3 & 4 in the Garden?” The bottom line is … the Thrashers weren’t properly assembled or prepared properly enough for the playoffs. And there it is.
Who has oversight over the team? Answer: The GM. The GM assembles the roster, via draft picks, UFA and RFA contract signings, and trades. In 2007, the Thrashers made four moves at the trade deadline to try to salvage a playoff berth. They gambled big, and lost. And there was NO ACCOUNTABILITY for that. Hartley wasn’t even fired until October 2008, six games into the season, with a fresh, NEW 2-year contract in hand.
Blame Waddell all you want. But is it Waddell’s job to quit? Or is it the Atlanta Spirit, LLC’s job to fire him? My goodness. You’re still thinking about it, aren’t you? The time to clean house, with a new GM, who’d hire a new Head Coach, and a new scouting department, was in April, May or June of 2007. That’s when the organization could have made moves to retain Kovalchuk. Instead, the organization stood pat, while holding a 14, in a game of blackjack. The results were a pair of 76-point finishes, housed inside the lottery draft. I hardly think it went UNNOTICED by Hossa and Kovalchuk that after Hartley was fired, no new Head Coach was hired. Instead, the inept ownership, probably led by Bruce Levenson, suggested that Don Waddell coach the team. After all, Waddell was the “visionary” who put the team together. Well, they went 11-4-1 post Hartley, so Bruce Levenson thought the problem was solved, and handed Don Waddell a fresh, new 3-year deal. Levenson was the butt of many jokes on hockey websites after that. Levenson has done little to contradict claims of his incompetency. It was allegedly Levenson’s idea to continue to charge season ticket holders FULL PRICE for a product he bankrolled to an EXPECTED lottery draft finish. “Stupid is as stupid does,” right?
Some people blame Waddell for Hossa’s departure. I don’t. We knew when Hossa got traded here that he might never re-sign with us. And that turned out to be the case. This is what happens when you trade for players who don’t want to be here. Well, I hear some people screaming, “Waddell didn’t have the budget to assemble the team that Hossa wanted.” That’s certainly true, to some extent. But the 2006 and 2007 seasons saw a maxed cap by season’s end. So? So when the Atlanta Spirit pulled the carpet out from under Waddell and authorized only salary cap floor spending, they essentially “quit” on the Thrashers. So when they (1) STOPPED TRYING to win, (2) retained Waddell, despite the irrefutable results of his Administration, and (3) cut the purse strings, they OFFICIALLY became The Biggest Dud in local sports. I await your rebuttals.
Glenn Beck
September 3rd, 2009
2:10 pm
Notice most are AA. they ruin sports teams just like Obama has done to this country
Money
September 3rd, 2009
2:11 pm
Mike Hampton
Joe Fan
September 3rd, 2009
2:14 pm
To many duds to list them all but if I had to vote my top 3 would be:
1.Paul Hewitt (Even if the team is good in 2009-10.They will be right back in the bottom half the next season when they lose several players to the NBA.)
2.Bobby Cox (Way past his prime. His managerial decisions say it all.)
3.Atlanta Spirit Ownership group (Thrashers-enough said)
Steve Brown
September 3rd, 2009
2:26 pm
Harry,
He has missed 25% of the teams games since the 2003 season (juice testing began). He is hitting .250 since the All-star break and is our highest paid player. Chipper was a great hitter (part-time) and I hope he will be again but right now he needs to shut up and stop making excuses. That’s it, GONE HUNTIN’
BugKiller
September 3rd, 2009
2:26 pm
I am also SICK of people bashing the Dome.
Yeah, the Dome, much like New Comisky Park came in right before Oriole Park at Camden Yards, came along before the nice new stadiums like Bank America Stadium in Charlotte, or M&T Stadium in Baltimore, or the stadium in Tampa.
BUT… the Dome has something not many of newer stadiums have, with their boxes stacked to high heaven:
Some of the best sight-lines of ANY stadium in football.
The Georgia Dome shares impeccable sight-lines with stadiums like Giants Stadium and Arrowhead Stadium.
The only stadium in the NFL with better sight-lines is Ford Field, because like with Phillips Arena, they stack the luxury boxes on one side of the field, meaning the upper deck is lower than at any other stadium.
If the Falcons DO build a new outdoor stadium (which they need), I hope they use Phillips as a model as well. Stack all of those boxes up on one side and have a two-decked stadium for the other 3/4’s for a nice 65,000 seat stadium.
But the Dome is perfect as it is. I love having the SEC Championship Game there. So does the SEC. Don’t you think the ACC would give it’s right nut to have their game in the weather-controlled Dome in the first weekend in December, instead of Jacksonville or Charlotte?
This city would get NO big sporting events if it weren’t for the Dome. No Chik-Fil-A Kickoff Game. No big-time bowl. No NCAA Final Fours. No Super Bowls. No SEC Championship Games.
Nothing.
Yes, I too hate the selection of music in the Dome for Falcons game, but Blank still insists on trying to bring in a certain kind of person to fill his seats instead of appealing to the family orientated college football fans all across the metro area so that’s his deal, not the Dome’s. Notice how quickly all those people abandoned him when their Favorite Felon went to jail. But I digress.
The Georgia Dome is a great venue for sports. And entertainment.
Carter is a Fool
September 3rd, 2009
2:30 pm
Governor Sonny Purdue.
Harry
September 3rd, 2009
2:31 pm
Steve, sorry for calling you a ratard my bad. Chipper is a HOF, and hes still going strong. He had one of his best seasons last season.
and about the list, if we’re counting people who aren’t playing/coaching anymore, wouldn’t the UGA ex-coach top the list? forgot his name…
Hunter Johnson
September 3rd, 2009
2:39 pm
How do you still have a job? How? It is unbelievable to me…
Sanford Drive
September 3rd, 2009
2:41 pm
Well, last time I checked, the Falcons have yet to win the big one.
oldmac
September 3rd, 2009
2:53 pm
OK-I remember Charles Dudish-(left handed, there that proves it) they even did a documentary about his recruiting odyssey. Enough already.
No mention of Koncak?
What about UGA’s nearly constant stream of #1 football recruiting classes? Should be working on their 4th or 5th national champ by now eh?
jn
Puck Headlines: NHL’s money goalies; Brashear charms NY fans | Lancilo USA
September 3rd, 2009
2:57 pm
[...] • Is GM Don Waddell the biggest dud in Atlanta sports? [AJC] [...]
Puhlease?
September 3rd, 2009
2:59 pm
The woman who does the Table Talk blog. She writes about nothing and when brought to task, she retorts in a condescending manner.
All I'm Saying Is...
September 3rd, 2009
3:04 pm
Did anyone mention June Jones III?
Aside from him, it should be Don Waddell in a landslide. With Brad Komminsk coming in second given all the trades we did not make because we wanted to hold on to him.
Puck Headlines: NHL’s money goalies; Brashear charms NY fans | Newstion.com
September 3rd, 2009
3:11 pm
[...] • Is GM Don Waddell the biggest dud in Atlanta sports? [AJC] [...]
Mark Bradley
September 3rd, 2009
3:16 pm
Sorry, Eyeball Kid,. I was having lunch with the older of the lovely Bradley daughters and your post got stuck in the spam file, for reasons I know not.
Ray Tapley doesn’t work for us any longer. Ever since I’ve been here, he has worked for the Associated Press stringing games.
Phil
September 3rd, 2009
3:17 pm
In a landslide, it has to be the manager who has lost more post season games than any manager in baseball history:
Moron Bobby Cox
Walter
September 3rd, 2009
3:33 pm
Anybody remember Pepper Rogers as a coach?
Who's Priest Lauderdale?
September 3rd, 2009
3:34 pm
What about Priest Lauderdale picked first round by the Hawks and Nick Esasky picked up by the Braves? Both total Bombs.
Dave
September 3rd, 2009
3:35 pm
Eyeball Kid . . . you and your brothers played football in DeKalb County in the 60’s? And you don’t remember North DeKalb Stadium on the campus of Chamblee High School? Or the stadium @ Decatur High?
JW
September 3rd, 2009
3:39 pm
Reaching a few weeks into the future here….Joe Cox.
dicynoman
September 3rd, 2009
3:42 pm
Fred kalil’s nightly sportscast.
ElRey30
September 3rd, 2009
3:55 pm
HAHAHAAHAH DON WADELL LOLOLOLOLOZZZZZZ
Jake7
September 3rd, 2009
4:06 pm
Harry,
I’m ASSUMING you are a TEEN ager…….Has Chipper BEEN an IMPACT player?? NOOOOO…..look at his RECORD before you POOP off!
lee
September 3rd, 2009
4:08 pm
i voted for u, but just kiddin, greggy by far, he belongs in the dugout. then waddy, great guy, but really? uh not the best GM in my eyes.
nice blog bradley!
lee
September 3rd, 2009
4:08 pm
elrey- u back, r u gonna complain again bout all the other teams too?
gt fan
September 3rd, 2009
4:12 pm
hey volman i think you need to stick with the vols. furry lil varments arent they!
unless my anheuser’s desease is kicking in phew has a losing record against uga also.
matter of fact he does not have a winning record in any facet of the game. unless of course you include contract negotiations and a$$ kissing our former dumb a$$ of an ad… dave braine.
now that you mention it. why hasnt david braine’s name come up?
-he was the guy that insulted every gt sports fan both past an present when he said that gt was a 7-8 win program at best.
-he was the guy who sold blocks of seats in our stadium and in the tit to coporate sponsors that routinely go empty or are filled with opposing fans.
-he was the guy who hired chan gailey and gave him a contract extension the year before he was fired.
-he was the guy who hired phew our coach. looking at phew’s body of work one has to wonder what the f davey boi was thinking. phew is a coach who…
-played community college ball and was mediocre at it.
-who did not major in sports
-who had almost no experience as a bench coach
-who is a one trick pony as far as coaching schemes on D and O. if you are player who can not perform his style of O or D you are screwed. how have we done the last 5 years?
-who is a coach who would rather perform his duties for the BCA than attend coaching clinics and improve his skills. why do coach’s like coach k and coach w routinely attend clinics and phew doesnt?
-who only mentored under one notable coach. coach raveling. a black coach who was also a loser that was drummed out of college bb for cheating. a coach who’s only redeeming quality was that he was the first black coach at a major university. shades of the bca
-And as one other guy noted phew is a coach that put gt in the unenvialbe position of finishing DEAD LAST in both the conference standings AND academics.
phew is just one step away from completing the coaching trifecta…. he has dragged our progam to the bottom of the ACC… he has dragged the academics to the bottom of the ACC… the only item left would be for him to get caught for major ncaa violations.
we can hope cant we. as i see it that is the only way we get rid of phew.
one last slam on phew…. all his defenders brag on the fact that he has so many players in the nba and he does a GREAT job at teaching them fundamentals. he must be doing something right eh?
bull….
if phew was so great at preparing his players for the nba than some nba team would recognize this and hire him on the spot. last time i looked no nba exec is clamoring to hire phew.
one only read the comments from the san fran coach don nelson and from Amo and see that phew does NOT have a clue. he is unable to adjust his system to fit the team or his players.
funny how not even one other college program since right after his ncaa run has tried courting phew when a coaching position opens up. anybody notice that?
we have a coach who cant coach. we have a coach who can only recruit black players. we have a coach who is content with our program as it is now. (his own words) we have a coach who stopped caring about wins and loses once he signed his forever contract.
we have a coach that is connected to the bca such that no other program wants to touch that land mine. afterall if gt were to fire phew i would expect to see the BCA, Al Sharpton, Jesse Jackson and the NAACP at our door steps using the race card.
so if i was going to vote i would pick …
phew first followed closely by dave braineless.
Harry
September 3rd, 2009
4:27 pm
i never said anything about an impact player. Chipper is the most feared hitter we got. ask any pitcher and they’ll tell you the same thing. Your right i am a teen, 19.
4 jacks
September 3rd, 2009
4:29 pm
No doubt it is Hewitt, he has just about destroyed everything that Cremins built at Tech. Yeah, he will have a good year this year with his super stud freshman, but after he bolts for the NBA, it will be back to the basement for the Tech basketball program. Wish he had some class, and would let Tech buy him out at a reduced amount, but that won’t happen, as Hewitt’s ego would never permit him from doing the best thing for Ga. Tech. Wish he would have left with his idiot buddy Braineless, and we can only win 7 games per year attitude. What a complete joke and failures both these guys are.
MIKEM
September 3rd, 2009
4:32 pm
Terry Pendleton. Overrated or just misunderstood….either way he’s terrible. I have ZERO confidence in him as a hitting coach and God help the Brave’s if he turns out to be Bobby’s replacement.
Scrambled Eggs
September 3rd, 2009
4:36 pm
Leeman Bennett “We were just one play away from winning the ballgame”
Frank Wren
September 3rd, 2009
4:38 pm
Anyone who uses the term Bank on it!
go tech
September 3rd, 2009
4:44 pm
Wow, all those names bring back some emotion, just not the right kind.
Who’s coach is worse? I think our coach Hewitt is worse than your UGA coach Martinez for the simple reason that Hewitt has so much more control over the program, and will cost so much more to remove. Dave Braine should be considered one of the worst things to ever happen to Tech, worse I’m afraid than even B___ L___ because the damage propagated by Braine was so much more devastating when done at such a high level position. It may take years to recover from the Hewitt and Gailey buyouts. The only saving grace is that we have a real AD, DRAD, and a real football coach who will bring enough extra financial return to help pay for the Hewitt contract if/when the buyout is needed. Perhaps Hewitt will prove us all wrong and develop a watchable sporting event this year, and in future years. I hope so, but so far his “system” is about as frustrating to watch as Gailey’s “system” was.
Supersize that order, mutt
September 3rd, 2009
4:51 pm
volman, unfortunately you are incorrect in saying that Hewitt’s teams always beat UGAG. Tech has not won in Athens since 1976. During Cremins’ tenure, the game was always played at the OMNI, where Tech won the majority, but under Hewitt, Tech is 50-50 at best, and probably less, since the mutts have, if I remember correctly, won one or two times in Atlanta. Hewitt is defintely a dud.
As far as Charlie Dudish, it’s hard for me to call him a dud, since he obviously had the talent (I was there in 1969 in LA when he ALMOST beat nationally ranked USC). Charlie’s problem was his father, who totally screwed up the kid’s mind. I feel more compassion for him than to automatically call him a dud.
Maxwell Snark
September 3rd, 2009
4:59 pm
No Bob Wickman, no Bob Weiss, no Al Wood, no Dermarr Johnson.
Current dud? Why JSS, of course.
Coleman
September 3rd, 2009
5:12 pm
John Koncak!!!!!! biggest flop for the Hawks for sure.
falconidiot
September 3rd, 2009
5:13 pm
DJ
Biggest "Dud" List
September 3rd, 2009
5:16 pm
Thomas Dimitroff
Mike Smith
Arthur Blank
Matt Ryan
The Day The Dome Stood Still
September 3rd, 2009
5:22 pm
December 6th!!!!!
P Rose
September 3rd, 2009
5:44 pm
J.R. Rider,
Wohler’s slider,
Peerless Price,
Pendleton’s advice,
Turner Field’s chow,
The Chic Fil-A cow,
Roddy White’s holdout,
When Ted Turner sold out,
Robert Fick,
Michael Vick,
Reid Gorecki,
Mike Bielecki,
Garrett’s slowness,
Mike Minor’s bonus,
Jeff George’s trot,
Leyritz’s shot,
Campbell, Marion,
The Mad Hungarian,
Joey Devine,
Frenchy’s decline,
The Clampetts’ hires,
Van Wieren retires,
Hampton’s salaries,
Andruw’s calories,
Buddy Carlyle,
Mike Vick’s trial,
Brett Boone,
The Braves in June,
Eddie Haas,
Last night’s loss,
Petrino the quitter,
Our current pinch hitter,
Aundray Bruce,
Jordan Schafer on the juice,
Vick being “contrite”,
The Braves last night,
Francoeur’s pride,
When Skip Caray died,
Johnson, Kelly,
Bobby’s belly,
Fox reportin’,
Gregory Norton.
41 38 49 38 45
September 3rd, 2009
5:51 pm
Anyone whose name is Frank Wren.
Jack G.
September 3rd, 2009
5:56 pm
Ed—I do.