Coaching Candidates

[Bendit]

Its time we put some pressure on MU. He needs to be clear on what are his visions for the team. Either blow it up or Make some moves. Enough of the silent evaluation. IMO he should've evaluated the team before he took the job and just use a couple games to confirm his assumptions. Its beginning to be disrespectful to the fans that support the team.

It seems you may have actually taken him at his word when he put it out there that he wanted to "evaluate" the team.

Your instinct that he should have already evaluated the team is correct in my view. He was after all a gm with another NBA team as well as been here previously. GMs are in the habit of studying other teams rosters as well. Besides Lieweke said that he and MU are on the same page. But Lieweke fired Colangelo because his evaluation of the team speaking with other NBAers is that it was dog poo (i paraphrase). Circle then to the notion that MU already knew what the team was but was open to surprises but more importantly that the beginning of a season is a notoriously bad time to do deals especially of established players with large contracts. The f/as signed as well are not available in deals until Dec. 15th. He also had to work the league as now gm of the Raptors to secure the best deals as well as strategize the various moves I am sure. All to say...that was a bit of a white lie....what was he to say? That he wanted to get rid of a bunch of his players?

Disclosure: I offer the above as a "tanker" ...really I prefer rebuilder/remodeller. If you are not then I see where you might think his seeming tardiness is disrespectul to the fans. Needless to say, I would be most disappointed if my take on MU's intentions are wrong.

[Axel]

I see a bit of Shaka Smart love. I think he's a really bright young coach, and that he might be interested in giving the NBA a shot.

But I hope people aren't too in love with his Havoc D style. That is very likely not something that will translate well to the NBA, and I'd be a bit shocked if he tried. It relies a lot on pressing, which is not something you lean on in the NBA...at least not if you want to really succeed. Maybe he can adapt some principles to the halfcourt, or to certain situations, but I'd expect to see a different style.

Also noticed Izzo and Calipari in this thread. They are getting paid very well. Izzo has been coaching Mich St. for damn near 20 years. Calipari is coaching one of the top, and most storied programs in the country. I have a hard time seeing either guy leave.

Izzo is my favourite coach in basketball but I think that is as least likely a candidate as possible.

Do not want Calipari.

I think Smart can adapt. I like the way he schemes but also how he gets complete buy-in from his guys to play the system to the best effort possible. Best effort possible is something Raps fans have sorely lacked over the years, save a few guys here and there.

[mike, prague]

I'd possibly totally swipe the bench clean and go with Phil Jackson at the head with Van Gundy brothers and Sloan as assistants. Maybe I'd call in stockton and Karl Malone from retirement to be trainers at the gym as well ...

[Bendit]

Izzo is my favourite coach in basketball but I think that is as least likely a candidate as possible.

Do not want Calipari.

I think Smart can adapt. I like the way he schemes but also how he gets complete buy-in from his guys to play the system to the best effort possible. Best effort possible is something Raps fans have sorely lacked over the years, save a few guys here and there.

Do not want to generalize but as you probably know taking college coaches success and believing a transfer is likely to the NBA is not a proven model. The main reason in my view is that the college player is far more pliable and much to lose if he does not follow the program. Pitino and Calipari are two successful coaches who have given it a try in the nba and found wanting. Two other biggies who have refused to move are Izzo and Mike K. (Izzo nearly did to the Cavs last year). They of course wont say but many run their programs like a fiefdom and money is plentiful.

My own sense is that in the current evolution of the Raptors....why roll the dice. Boston has gone this way but their guy was one of the low keyed young coaches in the NCAA. He seems to be a good choice so far.

[Bendit]

I'd possibly totally swipe the bench clean and go with Phil Jackson at the head with Van Gundy brothers and Sloan as assistants. Maybe I'd call in stockton and Karl Malone from retirement to be trainers at the gym as well ...

Anyone else you had in mind?

[Axel]

Do not want to generalize but as you probably know taking college coaches success and believing a transfer is likely to the NBA is not a proven model. The main reason in my view is that the college player is far more pliable and much to lose if he does not follow the program. Pitino and Calipari are two successful coaches who have given it a try in the nba and found wanting. Two other biggies who have refused to move are Izzo and Mike K. (Izzo nearly did to the Cavs last year). They of course wont say but many run their programs like a fiefdom and money is plentiful.

My own sense is that in the current evolution of the Raptors....why roll the dice. Boston has gone this way but their guy was one of the low keyed young coaches in the NCAA. He seems to be a good choice so far.

Agree with everything you say in the 1st paragraph (although I question how close Izzo was to actually taking the Cavs position).

But to counter the bold, why not? What great coaches do the Raps have lined up?

The more established guys often do fail, because they are not flexible enough. I love the Brad Stevens hire for Boston because he is a brilliant young mind, but he's also young enough to not be 100% set in his ways. He'll grow over the next 2-3 years with the team and they'll both be better for it. I see Shaka Smart as this too.

[thead]

I don't believe college coaches are necessarily the way to go, but if there is gold to be mined there I wouldn't mind exploring

[Keeping it Real]

I say bring back Butch Carter. To this day he is still the best coach we ever had, he just messed up off the court with the Camby lawsuit and whatever that rumour was about Him going after Glen Grun's job and Peddie black ballin him to the rest of the league.

[Mediumcore]

My guess would be that we end up with someone between a Nate MacMillan, Byron Scott level coach and someone at the SVG level. Not a bad coach, but not a championship level coach either. We can afford to pay someone better than the lower end, but the high end want a team ready to contend, so they aren't coming no matter the money we throw at them.

I think it will be someone at the level of Goerge Karl, Don Nelson, and Larry Brown

[Mediumcore]

Larry Brown did win a championship, but I wouldn't say he is at that level any longer.

[Axel]

At this point I'd take Steve Nash if it means we are rid of this ISO crap. Nash can't be worse than Kidd can he?

[Bendit]

Agree with everything you say in the 1st paragraph (although I question how close Izzo was to actually taking the Cavs position).

But to counter the bold, why not? What great coaches do the Raps have lined up?

The more established guys often do fail, because they are not flexible enough. I love the Brad Stevens hire for Boston because he is a brilliant young mind, but he's also young enough to not be 100% set in his ways. He'll grow over the next 2-3 years with the team and they'll both be better for it. I see Shaka Smart as this too.

"why roll the dice?".....to further expound...I am tired of the experimentation mostly and wish to go with the odds. It also depends on whether we have a mostly a young more teachable team or one of mixture where discipline/accountability would be a necessity. My only exposure to Smart is during the MM games. His teams certainly play for him and both he and they choose a frenetic pace of play. Will he have the legs here and will he be able to change? He also reminds me of Pitino in his younger incarnation!!

Such questions must indeed be resolved even with one with NBA experience of course. My own choice of the gettable and someone with cachet would be Hollins with McMillan next...both no-nonsense types and with balanced offensive and defensive and in-game management accomplishments. They are also chomping at the bit to get back in. If MU does a decent changeover to team content he could convince one of them on the project.

[GoldenBaller]

I've wanted Stan Van Gundy ever since that shitface Howard got him fired.

[octothorp]

TBH no point of firing Casey now with the team as is... the team right now is a complete mess.

But isn't that a chicken-and-egg problem? You could just as easily say 'no point in trading players now until we have a decent coaching system implemented'. In reality, there's no reason to wait to fix one part of the team until another is fixed, especially if sticking with Casey now is just making the team into more of a mess.

I'm curious to know what you see as the downside to firing Casey right now. Because I don't see one.

[GoingBig]

I personally would be okay with Bayno taking over for this season and seeing how he develops Ross/JV and/or any prospects we get from trading Lowry/Gay/etc. If he does well then I'd extend him for one season and then in 2015-2106 get a named coach as we move towards retooling/contending.

Casey's big weakness has been zero credibility with respect to development of young talent. He's all "rooks get time when they earn time." Any and all tanking options for the 2nd half of the season are out the door with him in the case of Rudy/DD/Lowry trades- not because he would willingly tank - but that the results (young players) are where he would be useless.
Tank/Development = Casey gone.

I would prefer a coach with head coaching experience. The conservative temptation would be - in the case of the Rudy/DD/Lowry trades - to keep Casey to see what he could do in a new set of circumstances. But Ujiri has been measuring Casey already and so have the fans.

What I've seen generally is that Casey has come across problems and tried to solve them as if he's never seen any such situations before. His decisions are slowly slowly slowly getting better but only because he's lost games. In the future - he will know better than to wait for a time clock violation with 2.1 seconds left or to have his players foul right away. I don't think that this learning by errors is good enough for Ujiri - definitely not after 3 years as a head coach.

Bayno would be a reasonable Plan B but my preference would be a head coach with youth developments skills.