Little General Relieved of Duties

[admiralfats]

http://espn.go.com/new-york/nba/story/_/id/8783854/avery-johnson-fired-brooklyn-nets-starting-14-14

looks like we won't have an AJ reunion on new year's eve.

[phxspurfan]

Looks like D-Will got another coach fired. What a cancer

[Cane]

As you were

Wonder what Mike Brown's up to these days. Vaughn could turn out to be better than both FWIW

[timvp]

:lol Deron Williams the coach killer.

Him "sitting out with injury" was an obvious ploy to get AJ fired.

Oh well, hopefully he lands on the Spurs staff :tu

[SequSpur]

Avery is an overrated coach just like he was a way overrated player...good move by the nets.

[BG_Spurs_Fan]

Oh well, hopefully he lands on the Spurs staff :tu

Do you think his ego would allow him to accept an assistant coaching job for the Spurs?

[foodie2]

:lol Deron Williams the coach killer.

Him "sitting out with injury" was an obvious ploy to get AJ fired.

Oh well, hopefully he lands on the Spurs staff :tu

No. Just no.

[SequSpur]

Hell no...if AJ comes back here, I am done with them.

[jon123spurs]

Hey let's fire udoka and bring back the little general. Get it done R.C.

[Gagnrath]

Really this makes very little sense, but so be it. You loose a borderline all-star center this year and you wonder why your loosing games. I know lets fire the coach because a noted problem player has issues with him.

[Juggity]

This dude's number should not be up in the rafters at the AT&T center. He falls pretty far short of the qualifications tbh.

He falls pretty far short of everything, actually.

[Mel_13]

AJ out, PJ in. He'll go over better with the NY press.

[tmtcsc]

Maybe they should have selected Deron Williams as the interim player/coach. He seems to have all the answers. I couldn't care less about Avery Johnson and the Nets but Williams is a sorry ass, coach-killing malcontent. If only he was as successful at leading teams as he was at ending coaching tenures. Dude would be HOF material.

I'm happy for Jerry Sloan in standing his ground and happy for the Jazz in shipping Williams' ass out of Utah. What a punk.

[Bruno]

AJ might be a great leader/motivator but he has never been able to implement a relevant offensive scheme. He looked good as a coach with Mavs because they had great players who could hide his deficiencies.

I don't know the state of the Deron/Sloan relationship, but Sloan would be a heck of a choice for Nets.

[maverick1948]

I like AJ and always have. One thing about him, he was never afraid of the moment. Finally, Parker passed him for all time assist leader on the Spurs. He could dish the ball. He was never afraid of the big shot. Think game winner in playoffs. And he was "The Little General" next to "The Admiral". He was never afraid to get in David's face and let him have it. He was a floor leader. When he took Dallas head coach's job, they continued to win. When he went to the Nets, they hadnt won enough games to even count. He had the worst of the Top Ten PG in DWill(I have never given him that level but everyone else does). He gets them to 14-14 and now they want to blame him for losing games.

If they are put off by his rotations, they should come down here and read Spurstalk about the rotations Pop has used. People on here attack Pop and his rotation, but I bet they could not find a coach that is able to carry Pop's jock strap.

Bring Brown and AJ home.

[cd021]

http://espn.go.com/new-york/nba/story/_/id/8783854/avery-johnson-fired-brooklyn-nets-starting-14-14

looks like we won't have an AJ reunion on new year's eve.

UNBELIEVEABLE, GREAT COACH FIRED AGAIN !

Lead Dallas to a 127-37 mark in a span of two years

[DMC]

Don Nelson left Dallas in great shape. Giving AJ credit for that is like giving Barry Switzer credit for winning a superbowl in 95 instead of pointing out that he cost them the ring in 94 with a couple bone headed moves. It takes a special person to not fuck things up, Avery is not that person.

Don Nelson coached the Mavs up from a losing record to 60 - 22 and went to the WC semis before Avery took over. Avery maintained then lost in the Finals, then couldn't do much afterward. Don't credit AJ for what Don did.

[Darkwaters]

Don Nelson left Dallas in great shape. Giving AJ credit for that is like giving Barry Switzer credit for winning a superbowl in 95 instead of pointing out that he cost them the ring in 94 with a couple bone headed moves. It takes a special person to not fuck things up, Avery is not that person.

Don Nelson coached the Mavs up from a losing record to 60 - 22 and went to the WC semis before Avery took over. Avery maintained then lost in the Finals, then couldn't do much afterward. Don't credit AJ for what Don did.

Do not speak that name!

[Dex]

AJ might be a great leader/motivator but he has never been able to implement a relevant offensive scheme. He looked good as a coach with Mavs because they had great players who could hide his deficiencies.

I don't know the state of the Deron/Sloan relationship, but Sloan would be a heck of a choice for Nets.

Sloan left the Jazz because he 'couldn't relate to the younger players anymore', which basically meant Williams. Though he was too proud to say it directly, when KSL-TV later asked Sloan whether reported conflicts with guard Deron Williams forced him to leave, he responded "I forced myself out".

We're talking about a guy who coached the same team for 23 years and dealt with plenty of 'young players' in his time. He made Popovich's tenure look like an internship.

I don't think there is any way he would ever return to coach Williams again.

My bet is one of the PJs will get the job. Probably Carlesimo, but I wouldn't be surprised to see them throw the big dollars at Phil Jackson and see if they can get him to bite.

[Dex]

As for AJ, the writing was on the wall.

He did well with an ultra-talented Mavericks squad, but that team was already pre-assembled for him. I probably could've coached that squad to 50+ wins, and I'd be the first to say I don't know the first damn thing about coaching.

His 60-116 record with the Nets has really shown that he is not ready for a head coaching role.

Wouldn't be surprised to see Pop throw him a bone with an assistant gig, though.

[Obstructed_View]

AJ might be a great leader/motivator but he has never been able to implement a relevant offensive scheme. He looked good as a coach with Mavs because they had great players who could hide his deficiencies.

I don't know the state of the Deron/Sloan relationship, but Sloan would be a heck of a choice for Nets.

He was good with the Mavs because they had Don Nelson's offense and he got them to play defense. They stopped listening to him before they could win a title. His only mistake was not ducking Nelson's Warriors. I don't even know that he's much of a leader or motivator. He got through to Robinson, but he even started to wear on his teammates before he left. Might have been the reason Pop gave the team to Tony so quickly.

[Cry Havoc]

Nets are .500. Not sure what they expected from this team so soon, TBH. They have absolutely no consistent shooters, and teams pack the paint against Dwill & Co.

[FuzzyLumpkins]

Nets are .500. Not sure what they expected from this team so soon, TBH. They have absolutely no consistent shooters, and teams pack the paint against Dwill & Co.

That's a good point. They were a .333 team last season. Something has to be going on and D-Will is the obvious suspect.

[Obstructed_View]

Nets are .500. Not sure what they expected from this team so soon, TBH. They have absolutely no consistent shooters, and teams pack the paint against Dwill & Co.

The hot start was probably AJ's downfall. Now everyone has tape on them.

[Cry Havoc]

That's a good point. They were a .333 team last season. Something has to be going on and D-Will is the obvious suspect.

It's not just DWill. Aside from Joe Johnson, who's numbers are down again this year (despite increased minutes), look at the guard play the Nets have:

CJ Watson
Marshon Brooks
Keith Bogans
Tyshawn Taylor

That would be a rough D-league team.

[BackHome]

They have decided to tank the season they want a all star player in the draft.

[Mal]

They have decided to tank the season they want a all star player in the draft.

Good luck with finding all star player in next year draft. Nerlens Noel is projected top3, and he sucks so far

[superbigtime]

I saw the Knicks play the Nets at MSG a week ago. Just one on one no strategy basketball from both sides. The Nets were awful, DWill couldn't get anything going, Lopez missed everything, Crash looked old, and their guard play was laughable (Bogans). The Knicks are just a transition team with a lot of rooster strutting (carmelo and j.r. smith) and chest thumping (tyson chandler). I was impressed with Felton, he just gets better every year. But the Knicks are nothing special and neither is their coach. Their fans are delusional and rude. After seeing these two teams play, I can affirm that it is a true pleasure to watch the Spurs and attend their games. A better experience from top to bottom. Too bad Avery lost his job. Teams play better when the coach gets canned, so the Spurs had better take care of business on NYE.

[Obstructed_View]

Somewhere Jerry Sloan is laughing.

[team-work]

Other coaches can only envy the position Pop put himself in. He can walk just when he likes. Maybe he will have left after the Duncan era before any turmoil happens.

[racm]

Nets are .500. Not sure what they expected from this team so soon, TBH. They have absolutely no consistent shooters, and teams pack the paint against Dwill & Co.

:cry but we added Joe Johnson and a healthy Brook Lopez :cry

Tbh, adding so many ball-dominant players while there's only 1 ball on the court is a dumb move, tbh.

[FuzzyLumpkins]

:lol

http://espn.go.com/new-york/nba/story/_/id/8785395/brooklyn-nets-establish-phil-jackson-top-coaching-target-sources-say

[Capt Bringdown]

Oh well, hopefully he lands on the Spurs staff :tu

Pop and TD have experienced enough of Avery's screechy god-bothering. Leave this turkey in the rear-view mirror, where he belongs.

[Arcadian]

Aren't the Nets being featured in some NBA TV series? Lol.

[SayTown]

Five Uh Oh

[lefty]

Aren't the Nets being featured in some NBA TV series? Lol.
Can't wait for the next episode :lol

Billy King :lol

[objective]

Going from memory from many different Jazz podcasts, one of the big problems between Sloan and Williams was Sloan's old-fashioned anti-technology coaching styles. Williams was frustrated with the lack of video scouting and preparation compared to most other teams and didn't hide that with the media. Sloan (and his top assistant Johnson) had the point of view that any fancy dvd-work and video breakdowns wasn't the responsibility of the coaching staff and if the players wanted that modern approach they could do it on their own.

[Spurs Brazil]

Avery Johnson is out in Brooklyn, but Deron Williams' own demise is sinking the Nets

Adrian Wojnarowski

Avery Johnson had this amazing ability to irritate everyone, a relentlessness of back-room politicking and angling that eventually costs him trust and contributes to costing him jobs. This is the reason that it took so long for a franchise to rehire him after the Dallas Mavericks fired him, and why it will likely take so long again.
From the Eastern Conference's Coach of the Month in November, Johnson didn't make it until New Year's Day. This was no power struggle with general manager Billy King, but it appeared to surprise Johnson once the franchise's extension talks with the GM came before those with the coach, sources said.

Keep reading: http://sports.yahoo.com/news/nba--avery-johnson-is-out-in-brooklyn--but-deron-williams--own-demise-is-sinking-the-nets-205709848.html

[Danny.Zhu]

Avery Johnson is out in Brooklyn, but Deron Williams' own demise is sinking the Nets

Adrian Wojnarowski

Avery Johnson had this amazing ability to irritate everyone, a relentlessness of back-room politicking and angling that eventually costs him trust and contributes to costing him jobs. This is the reason that it took so long for a franchise to rehire him after the Dallas Mavericks fired him, and why it will likely take so long again.
From the Eastern Conference's Coach of the Month in November, Johnson didn't make it until New Year's Day. This was no power struggle with general manager Billy King, but it appeared to surprise Johnson once the franchise's extension talks with the GM came before those with the coach, sources said.

Keep reading: http://sports.yahoo.com/news/nba--avery-johnson-is-out-in-brooklyn--but-deron-williams--own-demise-is-sinking-the-nets-205709848.html

There's a reason all those former Spurs teammates who became GMs never considered hiring Johnson as coach.
:lmao

[ploto]

Somewhere Jerry Sloan is laughing.

Maybe Mark Cuban is smiling, too, that he did not end up with Williams.

[exstatic]

Somewhere Jerry Sloan is laughing.

[spurspokesman]

I saw the Knicks play the Nets at MSG a week ago. Just one on one no strategy basketball from both sides. The Nets were awful, DWill couldn't get anything going, Lopez missed everything, Crash looked old, and their guard play was laughable (Bogans). The Knicks are just a transition team with a lot of rooster strutting (carmelo and j.r. smith) and chest thumping (tyson chandler). I was impressed with Felton, he just gets better every year. But the Knicks are nothing special and neither is their coach. Their fans are delusional and rude. After seeing these two teams play, I can affirm that it is a true pleasure to watch the Spurs and attend their games. A better experience from top to bottom. Too bad Avery lost his job. Teams play better when the coach gets canned, so the Spurs had better take care of business on NYE.
I concur with your knicks and knick fans comments.

[exstatic]

Going from memory from many different Jazz podcasts, one of the big problems between Sloan and Williams was Sloan's old-fashioned anti-technology coaching styles. Williams was frustrated with the lack of video scouting and preparation compared to most other teams and didn't hide that with the media. Sloan (and his top assistant Johnson) had the point of view that any fancy dvd-work and video breakdowns wasn't the responsibility of the coaching staff and if the players wanted that modern approach they could do it on their own.
Going by my memory, DW chafed at the rigidity of Utah's offense, and broke off plays to do his own thing on the regular. That is what led DIRECTLY to that halftime blowup leading to Sloan's departure. Now, DW wants more structure and less freestyle. Go figure. I think less DW could be a workable solution. They should have shipped him and Lopez to Sacto for Cousins and Evans.

[boutons_deux]

Deron Williams “surprised” Avery Johnson was fired (http://probasketballtalk.nbcsports.com/2012/12/27/deron-williams-surprised-avery-johnson-was-fired/)


http://bleacherreport.com/tb/d9fN7?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_campaign=nba

[exstatic]

Deron Williams “surprised” Avery Johnson was fired (http://probasketballtalk.nbcsports.com/2012/12/27/deron-williams-surprised-avery-johnson-was-fired/)


http://bleacherreport.com/tb/d9fN7?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_campaign=nba
Fake surprise is fake.

[superbigtime]

Pop and TD have experienced enough of Avery's screechy god-bothering. Leave this turkey in the rear-view mirror, where he belongs.

I agree. Pop loves him though.

[DMC]

Do you guys know he showed up in drag at DRob's HOF speech? Look at the "girl" behind Valerie.

[lefty]

rofl

[SenorSpur]

:lol Deron Williams the coach killer.

Him "sitting out with injury" was an obvious ploy to get AJ fired.

Oh well, hopefully he lands on the Spurs staff :tu

Please explain to me why you'd want him to land on the Spurs staff?

[SenorSpur]

There's a reason all those former Spurs teammates who became GMs never considered hiring Johnson as coach.
:lmao

After reading Wojo's article which only continues to confirm what most NBA Insiders have long known about Johnson, it makes me reask the question of anyone who would like to see him back in the Spurs organization in any capacity. That question is WHY?

[SenorSpur]

I agree. Pop loves him though.

So does Mavs head coach Rick Carlisle - and in both instances, I'm not sure why?

[wildbill2u]

He was good with the Mavs because they had Don Nelson's offense and he got them to play defense. They stopped listening to him before they could win a title. His only mistake was not ducking Nelson's Warriors. I don't even know that he's much of a leader or motivator. He got through to Robinson, but he even started to wear on his teammates before he left. Might have been the reason Pop gave the team to Tony so quickly.

I agree with most of what you have stated here. AJ's constant hectoring wears thin very fast. Pop can yell and get on players without turning them off because he knows how to temper his criticism with humor and encouragement. It was all over the Dallas papers from 'inside sources' about how some of the Dallas vets came to hate him and some simply tuned him out.

[Drz]

:cry but we added Joe Johnson and a healthy Brook Lopez :cry
Haha, nice.

I strongly agreed with John Hollinger's take on the Nets, following the Atlanta trade:


As for Brooklyn, this is what happens when you're desperate. I've killed the Nets for other reckless moves, but this one actually wasn't that terrible. They replaced one year of $14 million of flotsam with one year of a $20 million Joe Johnson and then signed Joe Johnson to a three-year, $69 million deal on top of that. Not ideal, perhaps, but again, they're desperate to have a compelling product for their relocation to Brooklyn. (And trust me as a Jersey boy, this is a relocation. People in New Jersey only vaguely know where Brooklyn is; forget about actually going there.)

The Nets cover themselves with a go-to option in Johnson if Deron Williams leaves, give themselves a very good spot-up shooter and secondary scorer if Williams goes, and give themselves a great shot at being a top-four seed in the East. Brooklyn's starting lineup will be among the best in basketball, presuming it re-signs Kris Humphries and Brook Lopez, and a bench (speculatively) of Jason Kidd, Mirza Teletovic and MarShon Brooks will at least be respectable in the backcourt. A lack of frontcourt depth and porous defense will keep the Nets from contending for anything important, but they'll be entertaining enough to put fannies in seats, and that was the idea.

[Obstructed_View]

I agree with most of what you have stated here. AJ's constant hectoring wears thin very fast. Pop can yell and get on players without turning them off because he knows how to temper his criticism with humor and encouragement. It was all over the Dallas papers from 'inside sources' about how some of the Dallas vets came to hate him and some simply tuned him out.

Pop came dangerously close to losing the team at one point. I really don't think Horry and Bowen were too thrilled with him toward the end of their time here, and even Manu was frustrated during that stretch. He seems to have gotten his mojo back. Not many coaches that can do that, and fewer ownership groups that will stick with the coach long enough for it to happen.

[FuzzyLumpkins]

OV, you talking around the 2008-09 season?