The New York Times on coach Mac and the Portland roster

[andalusian]

http://offthedribble.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/03/16/the-newest-element-in-mcmillans-laboratory/

 

[SlyPokerDog]

Nice find!

Thanks for posting the link.

 

[HailBlazers]

Indeed.

Honestly, I don't care if there's a better coach out there. I want Mr.Sonic to be the one to experience this teams post season success, whenever it comes. I'm with Sarge, and I know the players are too.

 

[andalusian]

Another article with the same idea, looking specifically at the back-court.

http://basketball.realgm.com/blog/212262/Looking_At_Portlands_Big_Backcourt

 

[Shooter]

Both of those articles are thoughtful and well-written. Congrats for finding them.

 

[The_Lillard_King]

Consider Tuesday night’s game against the Mavericks. For most of the fourth quarter, McMillan opted to use a lineup consisting of Wallace, Brandon Roy, Rudy Fernandez, LaMarcus Aldridge, and Marcus Camby. That unit –- though notably without a true point guard -– made sense for the occasion, as each player included offered an interesting counter for Dallas’ efficient offense. Wallace and Camby acted as disrupters, capable of creating turnovers, influencing shots, and stealing offensive rebounds. Roy, Aldridge, and Fernandez formed an offensive core capable of battling Dirk Nowitzki and company to the very end, when the Blazers eked out a 104-101 victory.

That’s not Portland’s go-to closing lineup, or even their starters; both Roy and Camby began the game on the bench, making this particular group a makeshift combination of starters and subs. According to BasketballValue.com, that specific grouping had never been used by the Blazers in a game this season, and was able to key a Portland victory while still learning how to function together as a unit.




During any Blazer loss, you can count on Nate gets blasted for his substitution pattern or how rigid he sticks to his substitution pattern, his lack of creativeness and being too predictable on offense.

It so easy to blame the coach, and I get that. But I hope he also gets appreciated when he does show he can be creative and flexible.

 

[andalusian]

I think that coaches in the NBA are given too much credit or blame for individual games - and not enough credit or blame for the overall disposition of the team. If there is something to be said about Nate is that he set the correct mindset, he teaches the game the right way, he holds people accountable and he tries to put them in the best place for them to succeed. With that said - he often makes mistakes and he is often doing stuff just right.

My opinion is that this team is mostly taking it's cues from him - and he has changed and adapted (even if it is not as fast as one would hope at times) to work with the roster.