duncan228
02-07-2009, 10:45 PM
I put this here because of the last line.
Taking next step forward even harder for new coach (http://www.mysanantonio.com/sports/spurs/Taking_next_step_forward_even_harder_for_new_coach .html)
Mike Monroe
When a coach takes over a team with a terrible record, there is a built-in platform from which to claim progress. Nevertheless, of the six interim coaches who inherited teams with anemic winning percentages, only four have forged improvement.
What about the three coaches hired during the summer to replace coaches who were fired for failing to win championships?
None have done as well as the coaches they replaced.
Michael Curry replaced Flip Saunders in Detroit after the Pistons went 59-23 last season, a winning percentage of .720. Under Curry, the Pistons went into a Saturday game against the Bucks with a winning percentage of .553.
The Suns ran off Mike D’Antoni after they went 55-27 last season, a winning percentage of .671. His successor, Terry Porter, has led the Suns to a winning percentage of .563.
Avery Johnson was fired in Dallas after his Mavericks went 51-31 last season, a .622 winning percentage. Rick Carlisle sent this season’s Mavs into their Saturday night game winning at a .592 clip.
Taking over a team that has won a lot while doing things one way under a coach can be tougher than turning around a losing team. That’s because a team that has lost a lot will try anything but the way it had been doing things.
Curry, Porter and Carlisle have discovered this reality: Old habits die hard.
Mark Cuban hired Carlisle in Dallas, in part, because he promised to turn Jason Kidd loose at the offensive end. Carlisle has not felt comfortable enough with the transition to totally trust Kidd with the Mavs’ offense until the past couple of weeks. But Dallas won three in a row on the road, including a victory in Orlando, and looks poised to make a nice run to the finish.
The biggest challenge for the Spurs in the Southwest Division? It may, once again, be the Mavs.
Taking next step forward even harder for new coach (http://www.mysanantonio.com/sports/spurs/Taking_next_step_forward_even_harder_for_new_coach .html)
Mike Monroe
When a coach takes over a team with a terrible record, there is a built-in platform from which to claim progress. Nevertheless, of the six interim coaches who inherited teams with anemic winning percentages, only four have forged improvement.
What about the three coaches hired during the summer to replace coaches who were fired for failing to win championships?
None have done as well as the coaches they replaced.
Michael Curry replaced Flip Saunders in Detroit after the Pistons went 59-23 last season, a winning percentage of .720. Under Curry, the Pistons went into a Saturday game against the Bucks with a winning percentage of .553.
The Suns ran off Mike D’Antoni after they went 55-27 last season, a winning percentage of .671. His successor, Terry Porter, has led the Suns to a winning percentage of .563.
Avery Johnson was fired in Dallas after his Mavericks went 51-31 last season, a .622 winning percentage. Rick Carlisle sent this season’s Mavs into their Saturday night game winning at a .592 clip.
Taking over a team that has won a lot while doing things one way under a coach can be tougher than turning around a losing team. That’s because a team that has lost a lot will try anything but the way it had been doing things.
Curry, Porter and Carlisle have discovered this reality: Old habits die hard.
Mark Cuban hired Carlisle in Dallas, in part, because he promised to turn Jason Kidd loose at the offensive end. Carlisle has not felt comfortable enough with the transition to totally trust Kidd with the Mavs’ offense until the past couple of weeks. But Dallas won three in a row on the road, including a victory in Orlando, and looks poised to make a nice run to the finish.
The biggest challenge for the Spurs in the Southwest Division? It may, once again, be the Mavs.