1) Stotts fired concluding the 2013/2014 season 2) PA & Co. pull out ALL the stops ($$$) and bring in a "big time" coach 3) Said coach begins the process towards.... 4) Enticing a "major" FA to sign with the team in the summer of 2015 5) Enough for the Blazers to then become a "player" in the quest for an NBA Championship OK, pipe dream, sure. Hey, did someone already mention these are the "dog days" of summer?
Not saying Stotts is a "next level" coach, but every "next level" coach starts somewhere, and that's usually not at "next level".
OK, well, so maybe there's only one Phil Jackson wielding zen mystique and subsequent wins. I don't know who "said" coach is, but I just don't see Stotts lasting past next season. I think he was more of a semi-appeasing stop-gap hiring on the heels of Nate's canning. Seriously, when he was hired, did any of you think he was a long-term head coaching answer? That said, I'm also wondering if a big name coach might be enough to attract the future star for this team. I mean, look how things panned out for the Clippers. Paul signed on for that (trade) hiring. As a very gross example, if the Blazers were somehow able to lure Pops away from the Spurs, do you think that would immediately change the overall dynamic for this team......in an extremely positive manner? We ain't gettin' Pops, but maybe there will be a diamond in the rough out there come next summer.
If Stotts wins, he's a long term, next level coach. If not, not. It's not more complicated than that. barfo
There are two guys who I think would disagree with you on Stotts. (Karl and Carlisle) As for him being a next level coach? He has yet to show it with anyone. But on this team I think it's too early to tell. One thing Nate got when he was here was time. Time to prove himself. He went through the rebuild process and in the end the team gave him enough talent to give him a chance to prove himself. Paul was very fair to him IMO. I'm thinking to be fair Terry, they need to do the same for him. Unless he just flat out isn't cutting it. And they can probably see this in practice sessions. But I think at this time it's to early to jump to that conclusion on Terry.
That's a fair thought. I've wondered how the team has responded to Terry. Do they respect and want to play their collective best for him? I've heard it said that, in the end, the team quit listening to Nate....tuned him out....which turned out to be his undoing. Speaking of which, what the heck happened there? Respected NBA coach.....assistant on team USA....big contract.....to now seemingly fortunate to have an assistant role with the Pacers (KP favor?). Go figure.
In what way? Do you believe: Stotts is the long-term answer as the Blazers head coach? That PA won't ever go after a top-tier coach? The Blazers have zero shot at a top free agent in 2015? Allen has fired the old guard - wholesale - and has (seemingly) put into place some very fine management minds. I would surmise that upgrade movement would then translate to the basketball side of the operation. Gut feeling is that Paul may have one more last hurrah in the tank.
Even though Paul Allen was very fair with Nate, the length of time and the amount of success he had might have hindered Nate. He had pretty good talent here but he couldn't ever make it out of the first round. And when his teams went down, they went down the same way each and every time. Very lil defense even though he was known as a defensive guru and he lived and died with the isolation. Very little creativity. He never changed even with a new coaching staff. So I think in a sense he had ample time to make a name for himself. He also had enough time to expose himself to the rest of the league. Which is why he is settling with a lead assistant role in Indy.
Not to mention, he got outcoached in the playoffs (make some adjustments, man!) by Adelman, Gentry, and Carlisle.
A guy that has not played in a single playoff game after 5 years in the NBA is a "big name" FA. Gotta love Portland fans.
Coaches get fired because management has expectations that the coach doesn't live up to. This team is simply not good enough to have any sort of expectations that they wouldn't live up to. What didn't you like about Stotts' coaching? Your vague feeling that he's not a next level coach is unacceptable. UNACCEPTABLE!!!!!!1!!!!!ONE!!!!! Coaches care a lot more about their chance of success and their relationship with ownership than money. There's little to no chance of success with this team. With the lone exception of Bob Whitsitt I've never heard of a single Blazer employee having a good relationship with PA & Co. And who gives a rats ass about the coach? Even the best coach in the league isn't worth much more than the 6th man. So if you think that what's keeping you from the next level is that the opposing team's sixth man is better than yours but you don't have any means to improve that situation then maybe it's worth it to dump your coach and pay giant amounts of money for a better one. I have never once heard about a player joining a team because of the coach. But if you could it would be worth it. Even if LaMarcus sticks around this team is a perennial first round and out sort of team with him and Lillard as your one two punch. You need to add another player that's better than either of them before this team has a chance to be considered a contender. It absolutely is the dog days of summer. I expect to be responding to A LOT of threads that would just wither away and die any other time of year.
Is Love at least equal value to Aldridge? I would think Kevin would (pardon the pun) LOVE to play in Portland!
