Green To Leave Southampton

Sidney Green, who resigned Tuesday as Southampton College's men's basketball coach, said yesterday that it had become abundantly clear to him during a telephone conversation with his 10-year-old son, Taurean, last week that he should return to Florida "to do the fatherly thing."

"He had been up to some mischief, and I wanted to correct him," said Mr. Green. "At first, he didn't understand. It took me five times to explain myself. My son and my daughter [LaShawn, 12] need me. I want to wake up with them in the morning, see them off to school, and be there for my wife [Deidra]."

The former National Basketball Association power forward, who played with the Chicago Bulls and New York Knicks, among other teams, had commuted between the East End and Orlando, Fla., where his wife and children had remained in residence during the two seasons he was the Runnin' Colonials' coach. In that brief tenure, he turned Southampton's program around, compiling a 29-26 record - 16-13 last year, and 13-13 this season.

"Very Emotional Meeting"

He told the team of his decision Monday night "at a very emotional meeting. I said I hoped that in some way, shape, or form I had had a positive impact on their lives, and that I was sure they'd be successful in whatever endeavors they chose. And I said that if in their view I had done some negative things, that when it came to those instances they had learned what not to do."

The talk had been when he first arrived at Southampton that Mr. Green had planned to stay for three years, though he said yesterday he had had no particular plan in mind. He was satisfied, he said, that the attitudinal change he sought had been brought about, and that therefore there was no reason why the men's basketball program could not continue to thrive.

"Of course, to a coach, winning is important, but it's the way you play that is the most important," said Mr. Green. "I've always told my players that there's no disgrace in losing, but it is disgraceful when winning or losing no longer matters. You don't want losing to become a habit, either on the court or in life. The attitude that I found when I came here has changed immensely. . . . It's the maturation of these kids that I've loved the most. I have nothing but praise for all my players. There is nothing but success written on this program."

While the 1996-97 team had not fared quite as well as last year's, which had posted the most wins for a Southampton College men's basketball team in many years, Mr. Green said, "Look at how we played," noting that the 96-97 Runnin' Colonials had won five of their last seven games to finish at .500.

Ryan Urged To Apply

Mr. Green said that he had urged the underclassmen whom he had recruited - players like Greg Testaverde, Kosta Diamantis, and Kevin Fleming - to stay on, and that he had turned over to the college's athletic director, Mary Topping, the names of all the players he'd been interested in recruiting for next season. "It's a big list . . . players throughout the country. I hope they'll still come to Southampton College."

Kevin Ryan, Mr. Green's chief assistant the past two years, has been urged by the outgoing coach to throw his hat in the ring for the head-coaching job. Mr. Green will serve as a consultant in the search for a replacement.

His and Mr. Ryan's philosophies were "pretty much the same," he said, adding, in reply to a question, that "one person is not the show. I told the kids, I'm the director, they're the stars. The stars will always shine if they apply what they've been taught."

As for his coaching future, Mr. Green said he had nothing in mind at the moment. "My objective now is to go back home to my family - a.s.a.p."

As for Southampton, he said, "the administration, the faculty, the staff, the students, and especially the student-athletes I've coached will always have a special part of my heart. They've been immeasurably nice to me. I give them my thanks."