Pops #2?

[lessthannick11]

http://www.sportsline.com/nba/story/9718594

I guess I can see why since most writers have such a short term memory and forget his other championships came a way over a decade ago, but at least the got Pop over Jackson right?

Either way after Pops 4th le this year he'll be #1

Heres a question.....Think Pop sticks to his word and retires with Timmy?

[Dave McNulla]

stupid list. he gives all pops credit to duncan, doesn't mention magic johnson, kareem, shaq or wade for riley (or that he couldn't win a le with ewing) or that riley's coached for 30 years, doesn't mention jordan, pippen, shaq, or kobe for jackson.

1. jackson (you can't argue with that kind of success)
2. popovich
3. riley
4. nelson (lots of success*, lots of places)
5. sloan (lots of success* in one place, generally over achieves)
6. jeff van gundy (#8 team in the finals with star injured)
7. karl
8. dunleavy (the freaking clippers in the playoffs?)
9. scott (two finals appearances)
10. d'antoni (barely gets in the conversation with reg season record)

avery - lots of coaches are COY candidates the first season and can't get to that level twice (doc rivers, terry porter). let him do it again and again before he's ranked in front of guys like don nelson and jerry sloan.

[MajorMike]

At this point, yes Jackson would be over Pop. The top tier would be Jackson, Pop and Riley. Everyone else would be fighting for #1 in the 2nd tier.

[RandomGuy]

I have always respected Pop. I think were I to coach, I would share the same philosophy. As for the list, I must admit I can't really speak to it.
Haven't been following professional basketball for very long.

[bdictjames]

No Avery?

[lessthannick11]

Think there are any assistants of Pop now that could be a head coach? You would think PJ but no one seems to bite on him

[Jimcs50]

Pop sucks...he should not even be in top 10

[jman3000]

avery - lots of coaches are COY candidates the first season and can't get to that level twice (doc rivers, terry porter). let him do it again and again before he's ranked in front of guys like don nelson and jerry sloan.

and both of those coaches were prematurely fired... didn't doc get the ax the year after he won coy?

[T Park]

Terry Porter got Fed over royally.

Terry Porter would've gotten the Bucks more wins and prob more wins int he postseason last year

[ChumpDumper]

probasketballnews.com has Pop at #1 -- but the byline may lead to su ion of ulterior motives.

Enjoy the xrayzebra formatting:

1. Gregg Popovich, San Antonio Spurs

I know a lot of readers may want to rip me for not selecting a “bigger” name here like Phil Jackson or Pat Riley, but I firmly believe that Popovich is the best head coach in the game.

Popovich gets each one of his players to check
their egos at the door every year and coaches
teams that are eerily similar every season,
although many of the Spurs players annually
change because of today’s frenetic free agency.

Other than resident superstar Tim Duncan,
Popovich has had to mix and match numerous
other players over the years, albeit, talented
ones, with Duncan, to form his usual perennial
championship contending teams.

If this guy had half as much talent over the
course of his career as some other coaches
who populate this list, “Pop” would have more
than the three championship rings he has
currently pocketed. As it stands right now, I
expect him to win at least one or two more
rings with Duncan over the next few seasons.

[Zunni]

Enjoy the xrayzebra formatting:

LMAO

[freemeat]

I would actually put Jerry Sloan at the top, followed by Riley, Jackson then Pop. Sloan has one of the most underrated minds in the history of the game. The only reason he doesn't have a ring is because he took his team to the finals against Jordan.

You also must consider the fact that other coaches like Pop (and subsequently, Avery Johnson) and to some extent Larry Brown have borrowed some of his philosophies over time. Any team he coaches will always be a playoff contender.

[Dirk41MVP]

Jackson and Riley both >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Popovich

[jacobdrj]

Well now, since someone opened the subject:

First, some terms:
Strategy - pre-game planning
Tactics - in-game adjustments
OSCL - Old School Coaches' List (see below)
NSCL - New School Coaches' List (see below)
Clutch - coaching: ability to make in game adjustments based on the fell of the game, like timeout plays, rotations etc...

#1 right now is
PHILL... before this year, it was debateable. This season, taking the same Laker squad as last year and pushing them to game 7 in the PO's... this man is a basketball prophet... A complete coach. NSCL (kind of INVENTED it), meaning he is clutch. Good strategy, awesome tactics. Can manage egos too...

#2
Pop
Hard not to give it to Pop right now. Certanly more of a New School coach than his 'mentor'. More clutch than most. Has a great balance of tactics and strategy. Still makes mistakes though.

#3 Avery Johnson. WOW! Another New School coach to add to the list! This guy might be #1 before all is said and done. His rotations are masterful, his clutch decisions are WAY above most OSC's, and with time could become a truly all time great. Not there yet.
#4 Rick Carlisle. Wow, he has fallen in the list, because his people skills are just that bad. Tactics are even better than Phill Jackson's. So clutch. Is only medeocre strategist. Truly a NSC.
#5 Pat. Got to give him props. The old dog managed to learn a few new tricks. Perhaps only second to Larry Brown in being the most heinous Old School offender (never calling timeouts, poor rotation decisions, unclutch), he stuck to his [illegal] defense (that's a bit of an old school joke), he learned how to properly implement Hack-A-Shaq, and even called a timeout once in a while, in the process exposing Flip Saunders as a terribly Old School coach.

Bottom of the list, in no particular order:
Mike Dunleavy... sad man sad. You are OSCL, and whats worse, you found a neet little trick, and use it to death (hack a shaq). Burn in .
Flip Saunders... if only the NBA had offensive coordinators the same way the NFL does... if only the NBA also had a 'managerial' position like Baseball... if someone could just be there to make the 'tough' decisions when things get tight and tired(like Phill, or Rick Carlisle, or Avery Johnson) this guy would have, what, like 11 championships... oh well.
George Karl - You have been exposed as OSCL. While I agree with you politically, I say to you: Go away.
Don Nelson - How the did he get another job... well I guess GSW couldn't have done worse. He was an upgrade. But just enough to get them to an 8th seed. OSCL looser...
Jerry Slone - Retire already... You already sabotaged the careers of Jeff Hornasec, Karl Malone, and John Stockton with your OSCL patheticness, JUST GO AWAY!

[Kermit]

Jackson and Riley both >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Popovich

god, i hate mavericks fans. imagine a world i which they won the championship. we would all be comteplating suicide. the only fans worse root for the oklahoma sooners.

[Dirk41MVP]

god, i hate mavericks fans. imagine a world i which they won the championship. we would all be comteplating suicide. the only fans worse root for the oklahoma sooners.

You hate the facts ?, 9 rings and 5 rings for Jackson and Riley with 2 teams, 3 rings for Popovich with only 1 team... yet he is somehow better than Jackson and Riley... you sure you passed math in elementary school ? 9 and 5 are both greater than 3... I don't need to be a mavericks fan to know how to count, pardon your intelligence.

"imagine a world in which people knew how to count and how to spell... society would be much better, and this world would be moron-free..."

[Obstructed_View]

You hate the facts ?, 9 rings and 5 rings for Jackson and Riley with 2 teams, 3 rings for Popovich with only 1 team... yet he is somehow better than Jackson and Riley... you sure you passed math in elementary school ? 9 and 5 are both greater than 3... I don't need to be a mavericks fan to know how to count, pardon your intelligence.

"imagine a world in which people knew how to count and how to spell... society would be much better, and this world would be moron-free..."

Yeah, you didn't say it to be a or anything...

[Kermit]

You hate the facts ?, 9 rings and 5 rings for Jackson and Riley with 2 teams, 3 rings for Popovich with only 1 team... yet he is somehow better than Jackson and Riley... you sure you passed math in elementary school ? 9 and 5 are both greater than 3... I don't need to be a mavericks fan to know how to count, pardon your intelligence.

"imagine a world in which people knew how to count and how to spell... society would be much better, and this world would be moron-free..."

the facts are misleading. 9 rings, 6 of which can be attributed to Michael Jordan. do you believe that the bulls would have been any less of a team with pop in charge? they still would've won numerous championships. pop would have won just as easily with pat's teams in the 80's. , you or i could've have coached those laker teams to 4 nba finals. same with k.c. jones and the celtics or rudy t. to say that they are greater coaches because of their hardware is idiotic. i would expect nothing less from a mavericks fan, and i would put pop on their level any day of the week.

[JamStone]

Personally, I wouldn't put Pat Riley on that top tier list.

Magic, Kareem?

Shaq, Wade?

If Riley wins another le with this Heat team, maybe. But, not at this point. Do people forget his failures as a Knicks coach and his first stint with a Hardaway-Alonzo Heat team?

[Dirk41MVP]

the facts are misleading. 9 rings, 6 of which can be attributed to Michael Jordan. do you believe that the bulls would have been any less of a team with pop in charge? they still would've won numerous championships. pop would have won just as easily with pat's teams in the 80's. , you or i could've have coached those laker teams to 4 nba finals. same with k.c. jones and the celtics or rudy t. to say that they are greater coaches because of their hardware is idiotic. i would expect nothing less from a mavericks fan, and i would put pop on their level any day of the week.

AND WHO THE DO YOU ATTRIBUTE POP'S 3 RINGS TO ?, YOU EVER HEARD OF TIM DUNCAN? YOU BAG ?, you seriously got to be kidding me, can't believe you're using that as a valid argument. Pops w/o Duncan = 0 rings, that simple.

"would've, could've, should've, bla bla bla", look at the facts 0 and 6 is more than 3.

, you or i could've have coached those laker teams to 4 nba finals

you are officially the biggest moron in this board, seriously. I can't believe your arguments... the bottom line is:

Phil Jackson = 9 rings with 2 teams
Pat Riley = 5 rings with 2 teams
Pops = 3 rings with 1 team.

If you want to do the "6 rings can be attributed to MJ" thing, I'll do the same thing with Popovich and that leaves him with 0 rings against 3 of Jackson, still 3 times more then popovich... want to do it with the lakers ?, Pat riley still has a ring and popovich doesn't, who's still better ?

to say that they are greater coaches because of their hardware is idiotic

Let's look at their career wins, losses and winning pct...

Gregg Popovich 339 185 .647
Pat Riley 1,110 569 .661
Phil Jackson 776 290 .728

Jackson has more than twice Popovich's victories and a 72% winning record, more than Popovich

Riley has more than 3 times Popovich's victories and a 66% winning record, still more than Popovich

i would expect nothing less from a homer spurs fan that can't look beyond his nose...

If Riley wins another le with this Heat team, maybe. But, not at this point. Do people forget his failures as a Knicks coach and his first stint with a Hardaway-Alonzo Heat team?

What would Popovich have won without Duncan (and arguably Robinson?), 2 potential hof's, it's the same argument here, except that with those players, he still has an inferior record than Riley.

Riley has coached over 3 times what popovich has coached and he still has had more success then him. I'm not knocking on popovich he is a good coach, but Jackson and Riley are both >> than him.

They have both done it with 2 teams, 2 different "era's" of basketball and for wayy longer periods of time and still maintain a better win %... how can you knock on that ?

[Kermit]

my point is, mavs fan (which is the equivalent of calling someone a re ) that having more rings does not make you a better coach. i think that everyone will agree with this. , i think avery is a better coach than riles. he just has players that happen to choke during the big games.

"Let's look at their career wins, losses and winning pct...

Gregg Popovich 339 185 .647
Pat Riley 1,110 569 .661
Phil Jackson 776 290 .728

Jackson has more than twice Popovich's victories and a 72% winning record, more than Popovich

Riley has more than 3 times Popovich's victories and a 66% winning record, still more than Popovich

i would expect nothing less from a homer spurs fan that can't look beyond his nose"

okay, who is the bag here. for one, update your ing stats. it makes you look like a re . oh, my bad. pop's won 518 games, lost 252 for a winning percentage of .673. phil had his lowered this year to .713 thanks to his incredible comeback job with the lakers. he has a better winning percentage than riles with riley checking in at .661. what does all this mean, other than the fact that you gave a smelly vagina? nothing. they are all great coaches. does having more rings due to the fact that you coached some of the game's greatest players make you the "greatest coach"? no. sorry.

so i guess what i'm trying to say here is that you suck and that phil and riles do not > pop. it's more along the lines of =.