Will It Be Curry or Paxson? Coaches of course, have always been convenient scapegoats for a team's failure to perform, especially as player salaries have skyrocketed. P.J. Carlesimo (Oklahoma City), Eddie Jordan (Washington), Reggie Theus (Sacramento) Sam Mitchell (Toronto), Randy Wittman (Minnesota) and Maurice Cheeks (Philadelphia) Marc Iavaroni (Memphis) all fired this year so far.
Based on how many times "Fire!" has been shouted in a league crowded with 30 teams, we could conclude that the NBA's belief in the importance of coaching soon may reach an all-time high. Unfortunately, such inferences are wrecked when we acknowledge that many of the sharpies handing out pink slips are the same rascals who create coaching predicaments through absurd personnel decisions. Recently Vinny and Curry have been under heavy fire by fans in demand of wins. But it is the GM that is responsible for hiring these guys.
Detroit Pistons: Michael Curry didn't directly deal Chauncey Billups for Allen Iverson, but his inability to build a system around the talents of his current roster has allowed the Pistons' winning percentage to drop from .720 to .585.
Yeah, the small-ball lineup didn't work out too well, but how could it when the Pistons check in at 27th in tempo? If you can put Iverson, Rip Hamilton, Rodney Stuckey and Tayshaun Prince on the floor at the same time, don't walk the ball down the floor.
Oh, you're subscribing to that old-time Pistons doctrine of strict defenses, modest pace and offensive structure? Well, Curry's first team is a robust 23rd in offensive rating. It's not a good idea to be slow and inefficient; it's just boring.
Chicago Bulls: If first-year coach Vinny Del Negro had an idea of what type of team he was trying to turn the Bulls into, that tiny dip in winning percentage (.419 to .402) might be easier to embrace.
It seemingly took Vinny and his veteran assistants a while to notice they have no inside game and a penetrate-and-dish philosophy might be the way to go.
The Bulls used to employ a pretty good coach who probably would have seemed a lot wiser if GM John Paxson had drafted LaMarcus Aldridge and not traded Tyson Chandler for Ben Wallace.
Note To Pax and Dumars:
In case you hadn't noticed, NBA players have a tough time respecting anyone. So finding an ex-player for current players to rally around can be a waste of time if that ex-player can't put the current players in a better position to succeed.
No comments:
Post a Comment