Le Basketbawl

Sacramento Kings-Reggie Theus: Should survive the season, if only because of the Maloof brothers caving in to Tru-Warrior. When Joe and Gavin Maloof, allowed Ron Artest to go to Houston in the fire sale  that happened during the Summer, the franchise lost any hopes of contending this season. Theus deserves a Mulligan for the campaign.

Who Could Be Next? Evaluating The Longevity Of The Association’s Coaches

Apparently Sacramento Kings Team Owners Joe and Gavin Maloof did not agree with my assessment. The “Sacramento Bee” reported Monday that the Sacramento Kings have become the sixth NBA team this season to fire their head coach. According to the report, the Kings have fired head coach Reggie Theus 24 games into his second season as the Sacramento bench boss. The report also states that assistant coach Chuck “The Rifleman” Person has also been terminated. The Kings Media Relations Department have verified the dismissals, and have stated that assistant coach Kenny Natt has been named interim head coach.

The Kings have gotten off to a lackluster start in the 2008-2009 campaign, as they have a record of 6-18 mired in last place in the NBA Pacific Division. Sacramento has lost 14-16, and they were humiliated on Saturday as they were blown out by the New York Knickerbockers 114-90. The team was 39-43 last season under Theus. He joins Maurice Cheeks, P.J. Carlesimo, Eddie Jordan, Randy Wittman, and Sam Mitchell, all previously dismissed.

Reggie Theus may or may not be a good NBA coach, that question has not been answered. Whether he will get another chance to coach again in the Association, remains to be seen. He certainly did nothing to distinguish himself during his tenure, however he also did nothing to harm his reputation. No one will win with the way the Kings are presently constituted, and by the end of the campaign chances are great that Kenny Natt will no longer be part of the organization. Theus may not have done any thing to prevent his being fired, but he deserved more of a shot to show what he could do.

As you are most likely aware by now the Philadelphia 76ers on Saturday became the fifth NBA team to terminate their head coach since the start of the season. Maurice Cheeks, joins P.J. Carlesimo, Eddie Jordan, Randy Wittman, and Sam Mitchell as former NBA bench bosses. Has the blood letting stopped, or will there still be further victims in the coming days and weeks?

There are of course 30 franchises in the Association, eliminating the five teams that have already fired their coaches brings the total down to 25. There are currently, 4 untouchable coaches in the NBA, Greg Popovich in San Antonio, Jerry Sloan in Utah, Doc Rivers in Boston, and Phil Jackson with the Lakers. Cases could easily be made for including Mike Brown from Cleveland, and last season’s NBA Coach of The Year Byron Scott in New Orleans which reduces the total to 19.

Eight teams started this campaign with new coaches; Charlotte, Chicago, Dallas, Detroit, Miami, Milwaukee, New York, and Phoenix, which brings the number of possible positions in play down to 11. It is pretty safe to assume that we can take the following teams from the list due to their records so far, Atlanta,  Denver, Houston, Orlando, and Portland, which brings us down to six teams. The teams that remain are Indiana, the L.A. Clippers, Golden State, Memphis, New Jersey, and Sacramento. Will all six of these coaches make it until the end of the season, or will they also join their former peers in the unemployment line? 

Indiana Pacers- Coach Jim O’Brien: Most likely will survive the season. Pacers Team President Larry Bird is not a man who is known for making rash decisions. The Pacers are a team in transition right now, as they try to work in new players acquired by trade or the draft. Bird knows that this campaign will have its peaks and valleys.

Golden State Warriors-Coach Don Nelson: Monta, Monta, Monta! The player that the Warriors had designated as the heir to Baron Davis took the planet’s most expensive moped ride during the Summer. The results were Monta Ellis being laid up at least another month, and causing a riff in the organization. Team ownership imposed a fine on Ellis over the objections of General Manager Chris Mullin and Nelson. What effect if any it has on their relationship is unknown. Nelson was talked into returning to the bench after last season and is most likely safe.

Memphis Grizzlies-Coach Marc Iavoroni: His days could easily be numbered in Memphis. There were reports right after the regular season ended that Iavoroni would be fired after his rookie year. He survived and is on the bench but Memphis at 8-15 should be playing better. Chris Wallace got the Grizzlies some players during the Summer, but the results have not shown up on the court.

Los Angeles Clippers-Coach Mike Dunleavy: With long time fixture General Manager Elgin Baylor gone and Dunleavy assuming most if not  all of his duties, one would think that the Clippers coach is entrenched. Not necessarily, when you are dealing with Donald Sterling, one of the most volatile owners in the Association. Los Angeles at 5-17 is playing without focus, Dunleavy should not assume anything.

New Jersey Nets-Coach Lawrence Frank: Almost assuredly will survive the season. Nets Team President Rod Thorn has given his coach a hodge-podge project to work with. If New Jersey ends up over .500 Frank could get an extension.

Sacramento Kings-Reggie Theus: Should survive the season, if only because of the Maloof brothers caving in to Tru-Warrior. When Joe and Gavin Maloof, allowed Ron Artest to go to Houston in the fire sale  that happened during the Summer, the franchise lost any hopes of contending this season. Theus deserves a Mulligan for the campaign.

It has reached epidemic proportions as it is cutting with a wide swath throughout the Association. On Saturday it reached the “City Of Brotherly Love” leaving yet another victim in it’s wake! The “Associated Press” reported Saturday that the Philadelphia 76ers fired head coach Maurice Cheeks Saturday after the team starting the season with a disappointing record of 9-14.

The Sixers had lost 8 out of their last 10 games including to the Cleveland Cavaliers Friday night. Philadelphia has named Assistant General Maneger Tony DiLeo as interim head coach. Sixers Team President Ed Stefanski told reporters that the reason for the dismissal was “I felt we were not progressing the way we had wanted to progress. I didn’t feel on the floor we were executing the philosophy we wanted to have as Sixers basketball.”

Cheeks who was the point guard on the 1983 Philadelphia team that won the NBA Finals, was the fifth coach that has been fired in the Association this season. In many ways, it may have been the least surprising. The 76ers gave the Detroit Pistons all they could handle last Spring in the first round of the NBA Playoffs before eventually losing. This Summer they signed former Clippers power forward Elton Brand, which immediately raised expectations that Philadelphia would be among the top teams in the Eastern Conference.

 Cheeks in three-plus season as coach of the Sixers had a record of 122-147. DiLeo has been with the team for 19 years and had been named Vice President/Assistant General Manager in 2003. There has been no word in how long he will remain on the bench.

After being a part of the Minnesota Timberwolves franchise since the team became a member of the NBA, Kevin McHale may be in the midst of his final season with the club. Minnesota went though some major changes on Monday, and for the first time during his tenure McHale could be vulnerable.

The “Minneapolis Star Tribune” reported Monday that the Minnesota Timberwolves became the fourth NBA franchise to fire their head coach since the season began, as they released Randy Wittman from his duties. Wittman has been replaced by Vice President of Basketball Operations Kevin McHale, who will leave behind his front office responsibilities, and concentrate strictly on being the bench boss. This will be the second tour of duty for McHale on the pine, he replaced former head coach Flip Saunders when Minnesota fired him during the 2004-2005 campaign.

McHale and T-Wolves Team Owner Glen Taylor addressed the changes in a press conference Monday morning. Taylor said that his dissatisfaction with the club’s 4-15 start led to Wittman’s demise. Taylor told reporters “I am disappointed in our record and believe that we have more talent than our record indicates. A change had to be made and with three-fourths of the season remaining, there is still time to make substantial progress this year. There were certain goals and expectations that we had for this team at the start of the season, and we have not lived up to them.”

Taylor in talking about McHale taking over as head coach, seemed to infer that the Hall Of Fame forward better improve the record, or there may be consequences. Taylor said “Kevin has assembled the players on this team, and believes in their talent and skill level. It is my expectation that Kevin will be able to get the most out of our team and our players in his new role as head coach.”

Reading between the lines it seems that Taylor may have finally grown weary of having McHale running the franchise. The former “Golden Gopher” has been by Taylor’s side since the inception of the team, first ass a broadcaster and special assistant, and has been Vice President of Basketball Operations since 1995. Despite the talent that have worn the Timberwolves uniforms over the years, the team has never advanced far in the playoffs. McHale always appeared to be untouchable with the T-Wolves, perhaps his Teflon coating has finally worn off.