A visit from Pat Williams and Matt Harpring's recall of a Chuck Daly moment

ORLANDO — Lost amid the news of Tuesday’s Eric Maynor/Matt Harpring contract trade to Oklahoma City for some really tall dude from Germany who’ll never play in the NBA and more than $10 million in happy-holidays saving for Greg Miller and the Jazz was the tale of a brief visit Monday from Orlando Magic senior vice president and co-founder Pat Williams.
The friendly Williams frequently stops by the pressroom in Orlando to say hello to visiting beat writers, and when he does he usually has a copy of his latest book (he’s cranked out more than 60) in hand and a pen ready for a personal inscription.
That was the case before the Jazz’s loss to the Magic on Monday, when Williams dropped off “Daly Wisdom” — Life Lessons from Dream Team Coach and Hall of Famer Chuck Daly.
The book (published by Advantage; advantagefamily.com) features what Williams calls Chuckisms — well-known phrases and sayings from Daly — and memories of the late Detroit Pistons, Magic and Team USA Olympic coach from many around the NBA.
One page alone contains references to former Jazz star Adrian Dantley, former University of Utah/NBA big man Michael Doleac and the just-traded Harpring.
Recalling his rookie NBA season in Orlando when Daly was coach there, Harpring said, “Chuck … didn’t spent a lot of time talking to rookies, but he liked my aggressiveness going after offensive boards. One day I was watching film with him after practice, and he said, ‘Son, you’ll keep rebounding that way and you’ll be in this league as long as you want to be.’ I never forgot that.”
More than 10 years later, Harpring’s stay in the league is winding down only because of chronic knee and ankle injuries that have cut his career short.

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