http://www.sacbee.com/kings/story/981287.html He is fondly remembered by longtime franchise executive Jerry Reynolds. Joe Axelson, the first general manager of the Sacramento Kings, bore the brunt of much criticism during his tenure, but little from those who worked with him. Axelson died Saturday at age 80 at his Coronado home, his son, David, also a former Kings employee, said Sunday. Joe Axelson was the team's GM in 1985 when the franchise moved from Kansas City, Mo., and therefore ran the show when the Kings made the playoffs in their first season here at the old Arco Arena 國王的第一位GM Kings player personnel director and television commentator Jerry Reynolds said it became "a sad day" Sunday when he learned of Axelson's death from Mike Duncan, the vice president of arena programming. "Joe was a guy I enjoyed being around," said Reynolds, who was the head coach at Rockhurst College (now University) in Kansas City when the franchise known as the Cincinnati Royals moved in 1972 and became the Kansas City-Omaha Kings. Axelson was named the NBA's Executive of the Year in 1972-73, the first season the award was given. 第一任最佳行政人員得主 The Kings practiced there (at Rockhurst), and it was clear to me that he was a nice man," Reynolds said of Axelson. "I never told him, but I had been a fan of the Royals and was mad at him for trading Oscar Robertson (to the Milwaukee Bucks). A lot of visiting (NBA) teams practiced at the school, so we almost had to have a relationship, but it was a good one. Joe was witty and easy to be around." Axelson resigned from the Kansas City Kings in 1979 to become the NBA's director of operations. The position managed the officiating staff and has become more widely known while being manned by Rod Thorn and now Stu Jackson. Axelson returned to the Kings in 1982. "He came back to the Kings because the team was floundering," Reynolds said, "and the organization believed it needed him." Reynolds在國王有難時回來挺國王 Axelson was quoted by the New York Times with this description of his new five-year deal with the Kings: "It's a typical NBA contract, paying me about four times what I'm worth." Reynolds said the fondest memory he had of Axelson stemmed from meetings Axelson held with the coaches and basketball staff. "We'd have these 'road win lunches,' " Reynolds said of his days as a Kings assistant. "Joe would be kind of charming and witty and tell all kinds of stories about the league and players. He had a lot of insight. Of course, we didn't have as many of those lunches as we'd have liked. But Joe knew road wins were hard to come by." 他有著深刻的洞察能力 (對總管而言 這很重要) Reynolds said he believed the league's growth ultimately became Axelson's biggest hurdle as an executive. "He'd been in the league when it was basically a small business, but that changed. I remember when the salary cap went up to $12 million. Joe thought that was ridiculous." Reynolds said he didn't always agree with Axelson's calls. "I know I wanted to take (Dennis) Rodman (in 1986) or Scott Skiles," Reynolds said, "but Joe wanted to take Harold Pressley. But I do know this: (in 1987) Joe was set to take Scottie Pippen, but Chicago's (GM) Jerry Krause made a deal with (former Kings executive) Bob Whitsitt to jump ahead and get Pippen." 小蟲跟老皮都差點來當國王 Reynolds said Axelson bought his home in Coronado during the early 1980s and always wanted to spend time there. It's nice he got a chance to do that," Reynolds said. "Not everyone gets to do that." == 總之 R I P , Joe Axelson -- Look at a stone cutter hammering away at his rock, perhaps a hundred times without as much as a crack showing in it. Yet at the hundred-and-first blow it will split in two, and I know it was not the last blow that did it, but all that had gone before. --

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