B.R. native loses job: Keith Smart, a McKinley High graduate, is out as the Golden State Warriors’ head coach after one season. The Warriors announced today that Smart’s option for next season will not be picked up. A coaching search will begin immediately. Smart spent seven years as an assistant with Golden State before he replaced the ousted Don Nelson just before training camp. The Warriors went 36-46 under Smart, a 10-game improvement from the previous season but clearly not enough to appease a new ownership group that has promised sweeping changes to the perennially underachieving franchise. Smart had a one-year deal with a team option for next season, and nothing short of a rare playoff appearance was likely to save his job. This was Smart’s second stint as an NBA head coach; he went 9-31 as an interim coach with the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2003.
Will eliminate 36 jobs: The U.S. Postal Service is closing a mail-processing operation in Alexandria and moving its duties to a mail center in Shreveport. The Postal Service says the move is needed because of less mail moving through the system. The agency estimates the move will save $4.7 million annually. The (Alexandria) Town Talk says the move is expected to be finished by October. The Postal Service estimates it will cost the Alexandria area about 36 jobs. The agency says some employees may be transferred to the Shreveport plant or moved to other vacant positions in the Postal Service.
