Flash add 'Mad Dog' Madsen to coaching staff

The Mad Dog is coming to Utah.

The really good news about Mark Madsen's arrival in the Beehive State is that he's coming to coach basketball, not to give dancing lessons.

Madsen, who became legendary for his funky championship-celebration gyrations after his Los Angeles Lakers won an NBA title earlier this decade, is joining the Utah Flash's coaching staff this season.

The former NBA player, who most recently was with the Minnesota Timberwolves, announced on his personal Web site late Thursday night that he was invited to be an assistant on head coach Brad Jones' staff this season. The Flash confirmed the hiring in a Friday morning press release.

"I am very excited about joining the Utah Flash organization," Madsen said. "Not only for the opportunity to assist head coach Brad Jones and to learn the Utah Jazz system, but also to share my knowledge and experience with the players."

Madsen, a first-round pick by the Lakers in 2000, spent the past nine years in the NBA after playing collegiately at Stanford. He wrote on his Web site that he had opportunities to try out for an NBA team this fall and to play in Greece, but that he decided getting some sideline seasoning in the D-League would be his best option.

"Ultimately, it was an easy decision because I've always thought that I would like to coach," he wrote, "and you never really know when NBA playing opportunities come."

Madsen will take over the vacancy in the coaching staff left by Dale Osbourne, who took a job with the Tulsa 66ers, the Oklahoma City Thunder's D-League affiliate.

"We are very excited to have coach Madsen on our staff," Flash team president Joe Brown said. "He knows what it takes to win at the highest level, and I know that will translate to success with our team and our players."

Madsen, a two-time All-American at Stanford, said he has family members in Utah and he was impressed with Jones' basketball philosophy.

"It seemed like a great fit," he added.

e-mail: jody@desnews.com