Mark Montieth: Reflecting on the positive, negative decisions Indy’s general managers have made

The people who own and operate professional sports teams aren’t usually intimate with patience. They’ll fire a general manager or coach at the first hint of trouble, figuring it’s better to churn a team than let it curdle.

That’s what makes Colts General Manager Chris Ballard such a freak of nature—the nature of many NFL owners, that is. He’s survived eight seasons and will be back for another despite constructing teams that have compiled records of 62-69-1 during regular seasons and 1-2 in the playoffs. Some would argue that’s more like destruction than construction, but Ballard has the ultimate rebuttal. He’s still on the job.

You might say he’s a magician. The Colts continue to frustrate their fans, and yet, he keeps reappearing, sporting the Nile-long leash owner Jim Irsay draped around his neck. Now you see him. Now you see him again. And again. Even though he admits that, after all these years, “We’re not close.” Try putting that on a billboard to sell tickets.

Hey, it might still work out. Ballard probably set a record for self-flagellation at last week’s press conference, and humility is a good fallback position for any leader. But if he’s going to make progress and keep his job for yet another year, he would be wise to study what the successful team-builders in this market have done.

There are some lessons to be taken from the best calls local decision-makers have made. And from the worst, too.

1 Consider intangibles.

It’s easy to fall in love with raw talent and athleticism. These are, after all, athletic contests. So much time, effort and money are invested in measuring physical attributes that it’s easy to get sucked in.

Intangibles such as intelligence and character matter, too, though, and that’s why Peyton Manning was a better choice than Ryan Leaf for the first overall pick by the Colts in 1998.

It seems a no-brainer now that Manning is safely enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, and Leaf is best remembered for a failed career and drug problems that landed him in jail. Leading up to the draft, however, it was hardly an obvious choice.

Noted NFL draft analyst Mel Kiper had both Manning and Leaf rated a 9.7 out of 10. Manning scored better than Leaf on the Wonderlic test that measures intellect by such a small margin that it was inconsequential. Bill Polian, the Colts’ recently hired general manager, said before the draft it was a 50-50 call and that he might not have his mind made up even when driving to his office the morning of the draft.

Leaf was bigger than Manning, had a stronger arm and a quicker release, and was said to be physically and mentally tougher. Manning, however, was clearly more mature and disciplined. To the everlasting appreciation of Colts fans, Polian picked up on that. It wasn’t difficult after Manning made a positive impression in his pre-draft interview, and Leaf didn’t bother showing up for his.

Not coincidentally, Manning played 13 seasons for the Colts and four for Denver, leading each franchise to a Super Bowl title. He is among the most decorated quarterbacks in NFL history, with multiple MVP awards and 14 Pro Bowl selections.

Leaf is the face of NFL draft busts. He played in just 25 games over three seasons, sitting out one because of injury. His drug problems required a stint in rehab. He also pleaded guilty to a charge of domestic violence in 2020.

One has to wonder if Polian would have made a different decision if Leaf had shown up for his pre-draft interview and at least tried to make a favorable impression.

2 Ignore public sentiment.

It seems appealing to draft or otherwise acquire a popular player with local ties. It makes for a good press conference and might even increase ticket sales.

But probably not for long. The only thing that sells over a meaningful length of time is winning. Fans will turn on local players who don’t produce and quickly adopt the players who do, no matter where they’re from.

The ultimate example of that was Pacers General Manager Donnie Walsh’s decision to select Reggie Miller over Indiana native and Indiana University All-American Steve Alford with the 11th pick in the 1987 NBA draft.

You had to be there to understand the challenge of that assessment. Miller, whose games at UCLA were rarely televised in the Midwest, was largely unknown to fans in Indiana. Alford had just led IU to the NCAA championship and been voted first-team All-American. He was perhaps the most popular player ever to come out of a state college.

Although there was no significant media pressure to draft Alford—neither of the Indianapolis newspapers promoted him as the proper pick and did not criticize Walsh for not taking him—the fan pressure was enormous. Walsh received death threats from rabid IU fans. He was accompanied by a bodyguard when he walked from his office to the draft party inside Market Square Arena and left immediately after announcing Miller as the pick. He wasn’t going to be a sitting target.

Miller, of course, went on to play 18 seasons for the Pacers. He is their all-time leading scorer, one of the greatest clutch performers in NBA history, and has been inducted into the Hall of Fame. Alford, who was drafted by Dallas with the third pick in the second round, 26th overall, played four seasons in the NBA, no small feat for a second-round selection.

Many a GM would have drafted Alford instead of Miller. It would have been easy to take a popular local kid who was a first-team All-American and had led his team to the national championship. What else could you possibly want?

Miller, however, was the better choice because he was about 4 inches taller, which was crucial to his ability to get off a shot, and more athletic.

Walsh made the objective choice, public sentiment be damned.

3 Take the long view.

The Fever had the third pick in the 2001 WNBA draft after going 9-23 in their inaugural season and missing the playoffs by six victories. They needed immediate help, right?

Kelly Krauskopf had a better idea.

“I’d rather have a player who can help us win a championship in ’03 or ’04 than a player who can help you get a playoff spot this year,” said Krauskopf, whose title was chief operating officer.

That player was Tamika Catchings, who had undergone surgery on Feb. 5, 2-1/2 months before the draft. She would not be ready to play in the upcoming season, but Krauskopf was willing to skip a meal for the possibility of a banquet to follow.

Catchings had been voted college Player of the Year in 2000 and might well have gone first in the draft if not for her injury. As it turned out, Seattle took Lauren Jackson No. 1, and Charlotte took Kelly Miller second. Jackson went on to a Naismith Hall of Fame career, winning league Most Valuable Player honors three times and leading Seattle to two championships. Charlotte no doubt wished it had taken Catchings and waited. Miller had a solid career, playing 12 seasons and averaging 7.1 points. Her best season came in 2004 when she averaged 10.2 points and earned the Most Improved Player award—while playing for the Fever.

Catchings became an icon for the Fever, earning Hall of Fame induction after being voted Rookie of the Year in 2002 and league MVP in 2011. She didn’t lead the Fever to a championship in ’03 or ’04 as Krauskopf imagined but did in 2012.

A less-patient general manager might have passed on Catchings to take Jackie Stiles. After all, Stiles was the NCAA’s all-time leading scorer at the time and could have made an immediate impact. She was drafted fourth by Portland and went on to be voted Rookie of the Year but suffered an injury in her second season and never played again in the WNBA. She might not have suffered that injury if she were playing for the Fever, but regardless, it’s safe to say she would not have had a career that equaled that of Catchings.

In hindsight, the one season Catchings missed in 2001, when the Fever finished 10-22, is long forgotten. Her 15-season career will be long remembered.

The Pacers did the opposite of this in 1978. They had the first pick in the draft that year, although they traded it to Portland for a player (Johnny Davis) and the No. 3 pick. They could have used that on Larry Bird, who had one more season of eligibility left at Indiana State, but the ownership group did not want to wait to draft him. The Pacers were coming off a 31-51 season and losing money as fast as they were losing games. They were desperate to improve and sell tickets, so they drafted Rick Robey out of the University of Kentucky instead.

Nancy Leonard, who was not yet the team’s assistant general manager, recalls encouraging the group to draft Bird and wait on him. As she recalls, one of the owners said he had a daughter who attended Kentucky and believed Robey, who had starred on UK’s national championship team, was as good as Bird.

Robey played 43 games for the Pacers during which he averaged 8.6 points and then was traded to Boston for former Pacer Billy Knight. He went on to play eight NBA seasons and average 7.6 points before retiring.

You know how Bird’s playing career turned out. Imagine if it had happened as a Pacer.•

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Montieth, an Indianapolis native, is a longtime newspaper reporter and freelance writer. He is the author of three books: “Passion Play: Coach Gene Keady and the Purdue Boilermakers,” “Reborn: The Pacers and the Return of Pro Basketball to Indianapolis,” and “Extra Innings: My Life in Baseball,” with former Indianapolis Indians President Max Schumacher.