McPhee on Rebuilding Sports Franchises

So, George McPhee, how do you fix a flailing pro sports franchise?

"Ideally, you get your best players through the draft, so you always put the emphasis on that part of rebuilding," he recently told blogger Brian Murphy from Homer McFanboy. "If you look at any successful team, they've drafted well."

Now look, he was clearly talking about NHL franchises. No need to throw in anything at all about punters, second-round pass catchers or repeated trades of picks for aging stars. Merely content yourself by making soft "hmmmmmm" noises at your desk, and then move on with life.

McPhee also discussed the inevitable pain involved in a concerted rebuild, and the impetus for making such a decision. These words could not possibly used to describe any other sports franchise in the world, and certainly not in D.C., so don't even try.

"It's not my team," McPhee said. "[Ted Leonsis and Dick Patrick] own the team, it's what they wanted to do and it's my job to tell them how I think it would work - what are the benefits and what are the risks? - and sort of educate them on what I think the process would be so that when we are taking our lumps nobody panics. That was the process and there were going to be some tough nights. It's not much fun walking into a building knowing you're probably going to get thrashed. But you get through that and you make sure your team is gritty and competitive and the wins will come at some point."

Well, at least it works in hockey. Lots more from McPhee over here.