Five NBA Coaches on the Hot Seat
This is the time of year where rumors begin to fly around many teams. There are rumors of off-season player movement and, of course, what coaches may soon get the axe. Each team sets certain expectations for their season and, fair or not, when expectations aren’t met, the head coach is usually the first person to take the blame.
The following list of coaches is only a few of the coaches who are already on the hot seat or who may find themselves on it soon.
Mike D’Antoni – New York Knicks
Early on in the season, D’Antoni was a candidate for Coach of the Year with the way he had the new look New York Knicks playing basketball. Adding Amar’e Stoudemire to the mix, along with Raymond Felton, the Knicks looked as if they were building around Stoudemire with a fine complimentary core of young pieces. Yet, the Melo-drama took over and the trade went down, finally bringing Carmelo Anthony to the Big Apple.
While the Knicks showed some promise after the trade, they never really could grab a toehold. After making the postseason for the first time in years, the Knicks were quickly swept by the Boston Celtics and the New York media isn’t happy. In the end, it may be right to keep D’Antoni around to give him a training camp with the Anthony/Stoudemire led Knicks, but stranger things have happened.
Stan Van Gundy – Orlando Magic
In the same vein as the Knicks’ Mike D’Antoni, the Orlando Magic may very well look to change coaches at the end of the season. After making their big move early in making the trades that brought Jason Richardson, Hedo Turkoglu and Gilbert Arenas into their mix, they find themselves close to an early postseason exit. The team thought this was what it would take to push them over the top by surpassing the Boston Celtics and Miami HEAT, but instead, it may have very well made them worse.
With rumors circulating constantly about All-Star Dwight Howard’s comfort and happiness in Orlando, the last thing the Orlando Magic needed to do was take a step backwards. It would not be surprising to see Van Gundy go at season’s end, so the team can bring in another coach to try and mix things up enough to keep Howard’s interest level in Orlando high.
Kurt Rambis – Minnesota Timberwolves
As HOOPSWORLD reported last week, Kurt Rambis is well aware of the fact that he is on the hot seat. After only two seasons in Minnesota, things are not going well. Even though the Timberwolves were not expected to make the playoffs in the 2010-11 season by any stretch of the imagination, they were expected to be better than they were. While Kevin Love had a fine individual season, winning the Most Improved Player award, the rest of the team was unable to find a consistency needed to do win many games.
Recent reports state the Timberwolves may retain Rambis, but start over with a new batch of assistant coaches. If that rumor becomes fact, Rambis will be on his final chance. If there isn’t significant improvement—by Minnesota Timberwolves standards—Rambis will be gone.
Jay Triano – Toronto Raptors
{AUTHOR_BOX}After losing Chris Bosh to the Miami HEAT, the Raptors were in full-on rebuilding mode and finished the 2010-11 season with a record of 22-60. Obviously, that is not good. Even in the Eastern Conference where the eighth seed Indiana Pacers made the playoffs with 37 wins, the Raptors still have a lot of work to do.
Like the other coaches on this list, Triano shows coaching aptitude when he has enough talent to field a proper team. However, he doesn’t have enough talent in order to compete fully at this time and it is up to the team’s management to help him out in that department.
Alvin Gentry – Phoenix Suns
The Phoenix Suns lost Amar’e Stoudemire in the off-season, placing them in a tough spot. How do you replace a player such as Stoudemire, who played off Steve Nash so well in the post? Well, the answer is that you don’t in one season. The Suns fought admirably while trying to redefine themselves without him and through injuries, but in the end, missed out on the playoffs. This is a team not used to staying home during the postseason.
There may be a built in "excuse" in this case, but the end result is what matters. Like D’Antoni and Van Gundy for sure, their individual team’s struggles may have special circumstances surrounding trades or injuries, but this is a tough time of year.
In the end, all five of these coaches may very well keep their jobs for next year. You can make strong cases for and against each of them, but it comes down to what management feels is best for their players. Until such time that these coaches receive word one way or the other about their return or departure, they cannot be comfortable in their seat as the head coach of their respective teams.
Be sure to follow Stephen Litel on Twitter @stephenlitel and drop him a question in his weekly chat.
Loading ...
