Ettore Messina interviewing for Olimpia job (Update: He got the job)

[UZER]

I hate “women power” narrative bull for politics. But in this case, I think Becky has a shot to be a good coach. I think she legit deserves the job if the opportunity presents itself.

[Dex]

I hate “women power” narrative bull for politics. But in this case, I think Becky has a shot to be a good coach. I think she legit deserves the job if the opportunity presents itself.

Agreed. If she wasn't a woman and had played NBA instead of WNBA, her credentials would be considered right on par with many assistant coaches in the league. To suggest otherwise is pure bigotry, tbh.

I don't think she should get any preference solely for the fact that she is a woman, and I don't think that has been the case for her. She has earned everything that she has gotten.

[D-Robinson 50 fan]

As for Ettore....que sera sera.

The offense and the defense have both regressed since he has been a major part of the staff, and some of that has to be partially attributed to him (otherwise what the was he doing?) Obviously, some of that is on the player personnel...but the offensive philosophy this last season was questionable to say the least.

He also wasn't particularly impressive in games he took over or coached.

And, from a fan perspective...he just didn't seem to be particularly likable. I know the Spurs don't need a "buddy" coach, but he struck me as a curmudgeon. At least Pop has a soft side sometimes.

Losing Ime is a bigger loss, tbh. Gonna be a serious shakeup on the bench.

I agree about Ime being a bigger loss. You need coaches who can relate and make players feel comfortable confiding in. We most definitely need a retired player on the staff in one of the open spots

[cd98]

Just get Manu to join as an assistant. That should make everyone happy.

[K...]

Just get Manu to join as an assistant. That should make everyone happy.

Manu won't ever coach. He's said as much and I believe him. The really compe ive players don't have the patience to coach.

The odds of pondexter and conningham being coaches is much much higher.

[timtonymanu]

We will miss you said no one

[timvp]

Congrats to Messina. Some thoughts:

1) I've heard he really wanted to be a head coach. But I've also heard he's not the most impressive interviewee. Language barrier probably played a role.

2) Would he have been a success NBA head coach? I don't know. He's well-respected by just about everyone so I'd say he would have had a decent shot. I was never overly impressed during the instances he took over for Pop but that admittedly was a small sample size.

3) After losing Udoka and Messina, I'm almost certain that the Spurs will bring in at least one additional assistant coach from outside. That's what history tells us they will do. There's only so much they can elevate from within.

4) Will Becky become the lead assistant? Maybe but I'd guess not. It's just a bit too soon -- that'd be two big jumps from her current role. Plus, in order to get the highest quality assistant, the Spurs will need to dangle the lead assistant role. I think the chances are higher for Becky to slide into Ime's seat.

5) I think there's a higher chance the Spurs hire two outside assistant coaches than there is they stand pat.

6) If the Spurs do stand pat, that'd tell me the Spurs are planning to hire an outside coach after Pop retires and plan to let him bring in the assistant coaches of his choosing. In that scenario, there's no use spending money on assistant coaches who could only be in San Antonio for a season or two.

7) I still like the idea of bringing back Avery Johnson as an assistant. In retrospect, he did great work with the 2006 Mavs. That wasn't a very talented team and he had them within an inch of a championship. Plus, some of his innovations (isolating Dirk midpost around the free throw line, constant pick-and-rolls to force mismatches, killing teams who employed slow centers) are now used league-wide and can be traced back to his mid-00s Mavs teams. Sure, he's gruff and not super player-friendly, but he's smart, dedicated and not afraid to share his opinions, to say the least.

[Genovaswitness]

Congrats to Messina. Some thoughts:

1) I've heard he really wanted to be a head coach. But I've also heard he's not the most impressive interviewee. Language barrier probably played a role.

2) Would he have been a success NBA head coach? I don't know. He's well-respected by just about everyone so I'd say he would have had a decent shot. I was never overly impressed during the instances he took over for Pop but that admittedly was a small sample size.

3) After losing Udoka and Messina, I'm almost certain that the Spurs will bring in at least one additional assistant coach from outside. That's what history tells us they will do. There's only so much they can elevate from within.

4) Will Becky become the lead assistant? Maybe but I'd guess not. It's just a bit too soon -- that'd be two big jumps from her current role. Plus, in order to get the highest quality assistant, the Spurs will need to dangle the lead assistant role. I think the chances are higher for Becky to slide into Ime's seat.

5) I think there's a higher chance the Spurs hire two outside assistant coaches than there is they stand pat.

6) If the Spurs do stand pat, that'd tell me the Spurs are planning to hire an outside coach after Pop retires and plan to let him bring in the assistant coaches of his choosing. In that scenario, there's no use spending money on assistant coaches who could only be in San Antonio for a season or two.

7) I still like the idea of bringing back Avery Johnson as an assistant. In retrospect, he did great work with the 2006 Mavs. That wasn't a very talented team and he had them within an inch of a championship. Plus, some of his innovations (isolating Dirk midpost around the free throw line, constant pick-and-rolls to force mismatches, killing teams who employed slow centers) are now used league-wide and can be traced back to his mid-00s Mavs teams. Sure, he's gruff and not super player-friendly, but he's smart, dedicated and not afraid to share his opinions, to say the least.

why did kawhi leave

[DPG21920]

Congrats to Messina. Some thoughts:

1) I've heard he really wanted to be a head coach. But I've also heard he's not the most impressive interviewee. Language barrier probably played a role.

2) Would he have been a success NBA head coach? I don't know. He's well-respected by just about everyone so I'd say he would have had a decent shot. I was never overly impressed during the instances he took over for Pop but that admittedly was a small sample size.

3) After losing Udoka and Messina, I'm almost certain that the Spurs will bring in at least one additional assistant coach from outside. That's what history tells us they will do. There's only so much they can elevate from within.

4) Will Becky become the lead assistant? Maybe but I'd guess not. It's just a bit too soon -- that'd be two big jumps from her current role. Plus, in order to get the highest quality assistant, the Spurs will need to dangle the lead assistant role. I think the chances are higher for Becky to slide into Ime's seat.

5) I think there's a higher chance the Spurs hire two outside assistant coaches than there is they stand pat.

6) If the Spurs do stand pat, that'd tell me the Spurs are planning to hire an outside coach after Pop retires and plan to let him bring in the assistant coaches of his choosing. In that scenario, there's no use spending money on assistant coaches who could only be in San Antonio for a season or two.

7) I still like the idea of bringing back Avery Johnson as an assistant. In retrospect, he did great work with the 2006 Mavs. That wasn't a very talented team and he had them within an inch of a championship. Plus, some of his innovations (isolating Dirk midpost around the free throw line, constant pick-and-rolls to force mismatches, killing teams who employed slow centers) are now used league-wide and can be traced back to his mid-00s Mavs teams. Sure, he's gruff and not super player-friendly, but he's smart, dedicated and not afraid to share his opinions, to say the least.

Thanks for the thoughts; are you surprised IME was not viewed more highly by the Spurs knowing Messina was likely to leave?

[K...]

why did kawhi leave

He got traded.

[K...]

I am pretty bitter about Avery for 1) sucking as a player, 2) coaching the wrong team. But I think enough time had passed and he's hopefully mellowed a bit. His fortrightness may be good to battle lamarcus and DeRozans existential drama.

Also, his jersey retirement was a bit weak, and this will shore it up

[superbigtime]

Ime is gone too, bro.

I know that. I'm lamenting the fact, bro

[DesignatedT]

No, wait, I just realized, Becky isn't black! And she isn't disabled. Hm.

Ok, no problem. We just spray paint her, cut one of her legs off, and stick her in a wheelchair. Perfect. Then we make Becky the head coach, and all the little snowflake media from CNN and MSNBC and all the rest, will crawl a thousand miles on their hands and knees to kiss our ass. Yeah, that'll work.

[Dex]

I know that. I'm lamenting the fact, bro

Sorry broseph, didn't catch your sarcasm.

[SAGirl]

Gotta laugh at the clueless blind misogynists who haven’t watched the job Hammond’s done in summer league. Becky’s being elevated. Guaranteed.

For real. True story.

[rjv]

All misogynists report to Spurstalk at once.

that's like half of ST.

[SAGirl]

6) If the Spurs do stand pat, that'd tell me the Spurs are planning to hire an outside coach after Pop retires and plan to let him bring in the assistant coaches of his choosing. In that scenario, there's no use spending money on assistant coaches who could only be in San Antonio for a season or two.

This point is really telling.

[spursistan]

Let's be honest, If Pop writes you multiple letters of recommendation-- by far the most authoritative of its kind in this league-- and you still can't grab a HC job with a lottery team in a small market-- that should give us a pause to reassess Messina and his so-called 'good reputation around the league'

He heads back to Europe without even getting an opportunity to get hired and fired by some ty organization like the Suns. In the final analysis, that's definitely not a good reflection on the guy's pedigree..

[BillMc]

I wish him well.

[GreekSpursfan]

I want to congratulate Becky H. for being the next SA head coach. I see no other alternative unless Bud comes back somehow, a scenario that has a very slim chance of happening because Bud and Giannis are a duo i don't see splitting in the foreseeable future unless they come here together.
I'm good with Becky as our next head coach.

[TD 21]

Someone of some pedigree will be hired to be the lead assistant.

Not that it matters, but expect one of the two hires to be black. There's a reason there's typically a token one on otherwise all white staffs and it has nothing to do with their a en (not that it's any lesser because it obviously isn't). It's because it would be a bad look to have an all white staff in a mostly black league, so they got to have one to supposedly "relate to the players", as the (ignorant) thinking goes.

[venitian navigator]

Let's be honest, If Pop writes you multiple letters of recommendation-- by far the most authoritative of its kind in this league-- and you still can't grab a HC job with a lottery team in a small market-- that should give us a pause to reassess Messina and his so-called 'good reputation around the league'

He heads back to Europe without even getting an opportunity to get hired and fired by some ty organization like the Suns. In the final analysis, that's definitely not a good reflection on the guy's pedigree..

I don't see it like this...the point is Messina is enough experienced and has enough pedigree and world reputation (outside of jis euro success he also has coached the italian national team) to negotiate the possible agreement in his own terms...and he's not inclined to accept works like the ones you were talking about. One thing is being a candidate for a Milwaukee team with potential and having quite a full control of your destiny (the one that Bud took and Messina was in compe ion for) another be treated like someone starving for a minimal chance of a coaching job. That's not the case of Messina. Ha has alternatives...like the Milano one, that make no mistake, is a very good opportunity.
The fact he's having interwiews doesn't mean he's crying for a head coaching job...the fact that team don't choose him, imho, has more to do with the kind of role and conditions the teams are offering compared to the ones he has proposed them to have.
No match, no deal.
The main lesson learned from the nba experience (expecially in a team like the Spurs, with a strict hierarchic order) is that if you are going to be head coach you need to have as much of control is possible 'cause the variables of your possible success are millions (starting from big players powers and owner's decisions about the market/personnel and goals)... In this the Blatt and Kokoskov experience teach something...if you're not in control of the situation your fate is not determined even by your outcomes (Blatt) nor by the kind of game you play (the non playmaking Phoenix Suns).

[exstatic]

Someone of some pedigree will be hired to be the lead assistant.

Not that it matters, but expect one of the two hires to be black. There's a reason there's typically a token one on otherwise all white staffs and it has nothing to do with their a en (not that it's any lesser because it obviously isn't). It's because it would be a bad look to have an all white staff in a mostly black league, so they got to have one to supposedly "relate to the players", as the (ignorant) thinking goes.

Hopefully, someone better than their last lead assistant outside hire...

[exstatic]

Someone of some pedigree will be hired to be the lead assistant.

Not that it matters, but expect one of the two hires to be black. There's a reason there's typically a token one on otherwise all white staffs and it has nothing to do with their a en (not that it's any lesser because it obviously isn't). It's because it would be a bad look to have an all white staff in a mostly black league, so they got to have one to supposedly "relate to the players", as the (ignorant) thinking goes.

Hopefully, someone better than their last lead assistant outside hire...

[K...]

It'd be nice if the holt babies hinted what they want. This would be their first big choice.