The blame game has begun.
Shakeup on Dwane Casey's staff in Toronto has begun, as assistant Bill Bayno was let go Monday, league source tells @CBSSports.
— Ken Berger (@KBergNBA) May 19, 2015
Bill Bayno was known for being a player development coach, and worked closely working with Jonas Valanciunas this year. Now, if Dwane Casey’s post-game press conferences are any indication, the organization wasn’t exactly pleased with Valanciunas’ development this year, and Bayno has taken the fall after a two-year stint with the Raptors.
Bayno’s on record stating that he had some very high hopes for Valanciunas:
“One of the big focuses for us to advance in the playoffs is that he’s got to be the best rim protector — block shots, [legal] vertical [jumps] and being able to get over to that weak side early on any [dribble] penetration. At times he was great at it last year. … But we want it every night, 82 games.”
“Best in the league. We want him to be No. 1 in the NBA. We want that as a goal. Right now, [Pacers centre Roy] Hibbert is the best. We want him chasing Hibbert. If he comes up a little short, hopefully he’s going to be elite, one of the top five in the league.”
Obviously, these lofty goals were never met and one has to wonder whether one assistant coach can make such a difference, especially when the subject has to function in a defensive structure as shoddy as Dwane Casey’s. You could replace Bayno with Bill Russell, and this observer thinks it wouldn’t have mattered in the system the Raptors played this past season.
You know when you’re gardening and you see a dandelion sticking out? The real fix here is to use a weed-extractor and get that thing by the root, pull that baby out, and toss it to the side, and walk away like this.
Or, you could just chop the dandelion off and tell everyone you fixed the problem. The Raptors have chopped the dandelion off.
