"I'm very excited," Stewart said. "It's going to take some time, but I feel we'll do great things."
We'll includes two other guys. Stewart's righthand man will be Shawn "Reds" Smith, his point guard at Gratz and later a college assistant. His director of basketball operations, so to speak, will be Bill Ellerbee, who enjoyed wild success during 20 seasons (1983-2002, 450-100, six Public League titles) as Gratz' coach.
Stewart spent last season as an assistant at Hope Charter, of the Pub. When Jim "Flipper" Phillips resigned as PC's coach, Stewart pursued the job with zest.
"At first the interviewing focus was on me," Stewart said. "As I went through the process, and I understood this, there were questions about my experience. I mentioned I'd be bringing along Reds and Mr. Ell and as time went on, everything took shape. I was coached by two Hall of Famers [Ellerbee, and by John Chaney at Temple] and played pro ball for a long time overseas under some very good coaches. That's a pretty strong resume."
Lynard's brother, Larry (Murrell Dobbins Tech, Coppin State, NBA, overseas), is an assistant at Bowie State. Another, Stephen (Parkway, Coppin), formerly assisted at Delaware and is hoping to latch on somewhere else.
"During my playing career," Lynard said, "I always thought of myself as someone who studied the game. I'd come home for camps or clinics and while teaching the game I'd get that little flicker inside. That buzz. Plus, my brothers were doing it and they'd talk about how much they liked it.
"When my pro career finished, I went to talk to Aaron McKie [Sixers assistant; also a product of Gratz/Temple]. He said he hadn't really pictured getting into coaching as a player. But once he did, he was able to fly right into it. And he really likes it. He's on a different level, of course, but still you're teaching the game and trying to get the best out of your players." *
