It seems like it was only yesterday we received the tip a guy named Van Chancellor would be named Head Coach of the new WNBA franchise, Houston Comets. I remember the phone call vividly, "His name is Fran, oh Van, that's Chancellor, Chancellor like the old NBC anchorman." It would be a few days later when the Rockets organization would make the formal announcement.

Who was this guy? An SEC Women's coach who knew nothing about Houston. I guessed all the Women's Basketball coaches in Texas didn't think the league would make it, and weren't about to leave their positions.

But from the start Van made believers of us all. That homespun Mississippi accent turned out to be his calling card, along with his sense of humor. Since the league was a start up, Van gave us a lot of access. While Rudy Tomjanovich was cordial to the media, even Rudy closed off Rocket practices so we wouldn't see any rancor between the superstars. (Although we always knew Charles Barkley and Clyde Drexler had their differences.)

But the Comets welcomed our presence, even when Van had to shout at us for making too much noise on the sidelines. "Hey guys, I'm trying to conduct practice over here." The truth is Van has a lot of P.T. Barnum in him. While he knew the players would be responsible for playing their best on the court, he also knew he was responsible for promoting the sport.

One of his first speaking engagements was at my wife's ABWA chapter meeting. Many of the women didn't even know there was something called the WNBA, and they were a little circumspect. After his talk, several of the women bought season tickets. The team hadn't even practiced yet.
It was remarkable the Comets would go on to win the first 4 league championships, and even when they didn't win titles, they were always competitive with Van "calling out the plays from the bench."
"Coaching is coaching" Van would say when someone would ask him whether it was any different coaching women or men. 4 WNBA Championships and a Gold Medal is quite a legacy.
Van's sport is Women's Basketball, but his character reminds me of another successful coach who's homespun humor made him an icon in Houston too, Bum Phillips.
Carleton Cole KHOU-TV Exec. Sports Producer.

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