Playoff success not enough to keep NBA coaching jobs

How much is enough? In recent years, successful NBA coaches have been terminated despite having winning records. Even playoff appearances have proven not to be sufficient for NBA owners. The latest fatality of the NBA's coaching fraternity was Cleveland Cavaliers head coach David Blatt.

David Blatt / Wikimedia Commons

Blatt, who led the Cleveland Cavaliers to the NBA finals in his first year in the league, was relieved of his coaching duties on January 23, 2016. He led the Cavaliers to a 30-11 start before he was let go by the Cavaliers.

A main reason for Blatt’s release was his tumultuous relationship with Cavaliers’ superstar LeBron James. In many situations throughout Blatt’s time in Cleveland, James would override his decisions, most notably in Game Four of the 2015 Eastern Conference Semifinals. Blatt called a late-game play that had James pass the ball, but James decided to take the shot.

“When that play was drawn up, I scratched it,” James said during the postgame conference. “I just told coach, ‘Give me the ball. We’re either going to go to overtime or I’m going to win it for us.’ It was that simple.”

Another major problem during Blatt’s stint as head coach in Cleveland was the disconnect in the clubhouse. Blatt regarded himself as a veteran coach, as he coached in Europe since 1993; however, the team viewed him as a rookie, as this was Blatt’s first season as an NBA head coach. Former Cavalier and current New York Knick Lou Amundson saw the tension in the clubhouse first hand.

“It didn’t feel like it should feel,” he told the New York Post. “I just think the atmosphere and energy wasn’t there. It wasn’t a healthy atmosphere.”

Blatt’s inability to control the clubhouse atmosphere was likely a large factor in his firing.

David Blatt is not the only coach to be fired after an excellent season. Tom Thibodeau coached the Chicago Bulls for five season before his firing at the end of the 2014-15. Thibodeau won the Coach of the Year award in his first year as head coach, where he led the Bulls to a combined 255-139 record during his tenure.

He got the most out of his Bulls teams, leading them to the playoffs in all of his five years as head coach, including a trip to the Eastern Conference Finals. Many of their wins came without star player Derrick Rose, who was marred by injuries while Thibodeau coached the Bulls.

Thibodeau’s accomplishments, however, were ultimately not enough for him to keep his job. The Bulls fired him, citing a lack of communication between him and the Bulls front office.

“Obviously there was a break down,” Bulls’ executive vice president John Paxson said in a conference announcing the firing. "It is our strong belief that there needs to be a culture of communication that builds a trust throughout this organization. … When that culture becomes sacrificed, it becomes very difficult to evolve and grow. And [Thibodeau’s firing] was about giving this team an opportunity to grow into the future.”

Stan van Gundy’s conflict with his star player was the reason he was fired despite a successful record. Van Gundy converted the Orlando Magic from a mediocre team to championship contenders. The year prior to his hiring, the Orlando Magic finished with a sub .500 record; however, in the first year under him, Orlando immediately made a jump to 52 wins, a 10 win difference from the prior season.

The Orlando Magic made several playoff runs throughout van Gundy’s five year tenure with the team, making the playoffs ever year van Gundy’s leadership. Van Gundy’s playoff success included a trip to the NBA finals as Eastern Conference Champions. Van Gundy references his relationship with Dwight Howard, then Orlando’s star player, for his firing.

"I think [Magic CEO Alex Martin’s] comments are based on the fact that Dwight and maybe others didn't like me…and thinking somehow that's important," van Gundy said.

Although there are different circumstance surrounding these three firings, they all have one thing in common: each of these coaches conflicted with a star player or the front office. In the NBA, where stars control the market, coaches may never get the benefit of the doubt, no matter how successful they are.

By: Bruce Mayfield and Michael Stern

How do the Cavs deal with Irving's injury?

Kyrie Irving - Wikimedia Commons

After the loss of superstar LeBron James, the Cleveland Cavaliers needed someone that could carry the team and they got exactly what they wanted in the 2011 Draft with point guard Kyrie Irving. For two seasons, he has been their go to scorer and overall leader. Despite this young guard’s talent, the biggest factor that has held him back is the endless string of injuries he has suffered. Whether its his sore knee, his sprained shoulder or even his broken toe, Irving has been plagued with injuries game after game.

It became obvious that the Cavs needed another role player when they went up against the Toronto Raptors, both on Feb.27 and March 10. When Irving played the Raptors on Feb.27 the Cavaliers won by nearly 10 points. However, during their rematch on March 10th he was taken out in the 3rd quarter and from there on the Cavs lost their nine point lead and eventually the game. The coach believes that Irving’s injuries are the result of his aggressive play style. "He's still very young and his body hasn't fully developed," said head coach Byron Scott in an ESPN interview.

Irving’s injury troubles has made the Cavaliers question his consistency. So far, Irving has missed 29 games in his two seasons due to injuries and his absence is felt in the teams 7-22 record. An unfillable gap is made when Irving isn’t on the court, but the Cavaliers need to find someone that can lead the team. ”We just have to wait and see what happens,” said coach Scott. Right now, the Cavaliers are at loss without a healthy Irving. Either the Cavs get lucky in the draft again or key players pick up what Irving leaves behind.

In the 2012 Draft, the Cavaliers drafted shooting guard Dion Waiters from Syracuse. In the 12 games that Waiters played, the Cavs went 7-5 and he added 15.8 points per game on 51.4 percent shooting. He is a great replacement for Irving because he is able to score well and works hard defensively. Another key player that must step up is seven year veteran shooting guard C.J. Miles. While Dion Waiters plays in the point guard position, Miles must put up points at the shooting guard position. In the past ten games, six of which Irving missed, he has averaged 12.4 points. The combination of Waiters and Miles will prove to be enough to fill the offensive gap that Irving leaves behind. In their last game on March 20 against the Miami Heat, without Waiters and Irving, Miles scored 10 points to give the Cavs a 27 point lead over the Heat. Although they lost, it is easy to see how good Miles is and how he can affect the offense when he plays.

The Cavaliers need to change their offense so that it does not revolve around Irving. While Irving may be their team leader, they have players are capable of filling his role in his absence. The team can prosper if they use these key players to both help Irving and replace him when he is injured.

Contributed to by Alex Long

Jeremy Lin's future with the Knicks

Jeremy Lin / MattBritt00 / Flickr

In the past few weeks Jeremy Lin’s popularity soared after he recorded 25 points, five rebounds, and seven assists on February 3rd against the New Jersey Nets. That game earned him a spot in the New York Knicks' starting line-up.

In his last game before All-Star weekend against the Miami Heat he struggled to bring the Lin-sanity to South Beach, ending the game with eight points and eight turnovers. This game left people questioning Lin’s skills.

In his first game back from All-Star weekend Lin had 19 points along with 13 assists against the Cleveland Cavaliers, proving that he is still capable of what he was doing a few weeks ago. He played consistently, with 14 points in each of the past two games and averaging four turnovers.

Throughout the season Lin was criticized on his average of 5.6 turnovers per game. Against the Cavaliers he had only one turnover, which is an improvement from his recent games. This game hints that he can maintain a low amount of turnovers and keep his average of 21 points in his past 16 games.

The disappointing trade

Mike D'Antoni / C.J. / Wikimedia Commons

The hottest news for the New York Knicks is the trade that landed Carmelo Anthony  in the Big Apple. It all started with superstar Amar’e Stoudemire joining the Knicks at the beginning of the 2011 season. With Stoudemire leading the Knicks in points, rebounds, and blocks; the Knicks went on 13-1  run to get in playoff position. Everyone was looking forward to the Anthony trade, but rather than helping the Knicks, it appears he's been a negative influence on them.

At the time of this writing, the Knicks are 7-11 ever since Carmelo Anthony started wearing blue and orange. The Knicks lost to teams that they should have beat, such as the Cavaliers, Pacers, and the Bucks. On March 18th the Knicks lost to the Pistons in which Carmelo Anthony only scored six points. The Knicks did not give up Wilson Chandler, Raymond Felton, and Danilo Gallinari for a player who scores only six points. Although Carmelo averages 25 ppg, the shots he takes are not very smart. In a recent interview Amar’e Stoudemire implied that Melo does not follow the D’Antoni system. He stated that the Mike D’Antoni system works; they just have to buy into it and get it done like they did before the trade.

However, Anthony isn’t the only one to blame for the Knicks poor performance. In the recent loss to the Orlando Magic, Anthony seemed to mature and correct his mistakes; instead of throwing up bad shots, he gave out nine assists. The problem for their loss to the Magic was Stoudemire’s performance, in which he scored 13 points, his fewest as a Knick. It is reasonable for Stoudemire to have one bad day because he plays a lot of minutes back to back. If the Knicks want to get back on top, their defense will have to improve, Anthony will have to take smarter shots, and Jared Jeffries would have to further contribute to their offense and be an efficient player. The Knicks are falling, but hopefully they can pick themselves up and get back on top.