I don't know if this has already been posted... The gulf of Houston By Adrian Wojnarowski http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/blog/nba_experts/post/The-gulf-of-Houston?urn=nba,33123 SAN ANTONIO -- Les Alexander never did find Jeff Van Gundy's grinding basketball style, nor his doom and gloom coaching persona, very endearing. The Houston Rockets owner preferred his team to be running, as well as his coach to be chipper and encouraging about the Rockets with the television cameras rolling. Well, whomever Alexander thought he hired four years ago, he must have done his research on the wrong guy. In a meeting last spring, Alexander told Van Gundy that the coach was damaging his business, one league source said. In the end, the gulf between management and Van Gundy was too deep to repair a relationship that had deteriorated over the past two years. The Rockets wanted to fire him, and he wanted to leave, but together they did a strange sort of dance in the two weeks since Houston's season ended with another first-round playoff exit. The team didn't want the P.R. hit of firing a coach whom had done a Coach of the Year-worthy job, and Van Gundy was hesitant to walk out for the second time as a pro coach. Still, one league executive with ties to Alexander said, "Les really grew to dislike Jeff," and nothing ever did get past that truth. Finally on Friday, it was over. Alexander has Rick Adelman waiting to take over as coach, and thus, the end officially came for Van Gundy. After rejecting two overtures for contract extensions during the regular season, Alexander and new general manager Daryl Morey believed what Van Gundy was privately telling people: The coach wanted out. After several meetings with ownership since losing to the Jazz in seven games in the Western Conference playoffs, Van Gundy did lay out some circumstances with which he would've been willing to stay on the job. Only, it was never going to happen. There were still too many fundamental differences in opinions on the roster and the style of play. Alexander wanted to play fast with an un-athletic team and 7-foot-6 Yao Ming, a choice that would've all but made obsolete a center who had been the league's dominant player until breaking his leg last December. For example, management liked Kirk Snyder, but Van Gundy considered him a mistake-prone player and didn't trust to use him in the playoff rotation. After losing to Utah, it didn't help the coach's case that Yao expressed frustration to a Chinese newspaper about Van Gundy failing to play Snyder in the series. Van Gundy didn't have much of a working relationship with outgoing G.M. Carroll Dawson and had been thrust with a new G.M., Morey, who was a product of the Bill James school of statistical analysis. For now, Adelman brings the cachet of extraordinary success with the Blazers and Kings. Only Michael Jordan's Bulls kept him from a title in Portland, and Shaq's Lakers from the NBA finals with the Kings. In 14 seasons, Adelman, who was fired in 2006 in Sacramento, never missed the playoffs. Perhaps it is inevitable that Van Gundy will coach again, but expect him to stay out in the near future. He has shown considerable promise as a television analyst for TNT in the past, and ESPN is using him in these playoffs. His family has enjoyed life in Houston and Van Gundy has said that he doesn't want to uproot his oldest daughter out of school. For now, the Rockets get to start over with a cheerful, offensive-minded coach. It's Alexander's team, his business, and he has his man now.
There must be some tinman haters here. Newsflash to you haters, I didnt write this article, i just cut and pasted it. some of you guys need to just buy some wayne and birdman cds.
DaDakota, don't deny it. I have read a lot of your posts the past several days, and I can conclude that hate the man to death. Please go back and read all your posts and again. You have shown your overtly excitement on firing of JVG. Whether or not you like JVG, you need to respect him as a person. There are so many people on the forum who do not like JVG, but your posts are just a little irritating to many people.
The Rockets have the right to terminate the contract. They gave JVG a chance to resign and save some face. JVG for whatever stupid reason decided to not resign and make a drama in the press. As usual, anything involving JVG is pretty ugly. Why couldn't he just resign given the chance so everything can move forward? If he thought he had a chance to stay after game 7 he must be pretty dumb. I think the Rockets are very classy handling the whole thing. Whatever they did, they gave a chance for JVG to resign. JVG is the one who's acting like a spoiled kid here, he turned down the Rockets when they wanted him, and when the Rockets don't want him he says I want to stay and drag the whole thing along until it becomes a media affair. JVG the troll king and his goblins need to understand this: the Rockets are not a w**** who come or go at his wish, instead, the Rockets are JVG's boss who gave him a chance to resign instead of firing him outright despite said troll king alienated Houston from free agents with his negative style. JVG deserves a swift kick in the rear and now he gets it.
Don't feel bad for JVG. He's got $20MM in the bank to keep him happy. Right now, JVG is more relaxed than ever and is basking in the sympathy many are giving him. Feel sorry for Rockets fans because Les Alexander is a chicken-hearted owner who likes to hide behind charades and who's primary concern is image.
He would trade all the players who didnt meet his "standards" and bring in Chuck Hayes and Rafer Alston.
Maybe he didn't resign because he wanted to coach again. I don't know why he didn't accept an extension earlier in the season, but that doesn't change how things were handled at the end. It is Jeff's right to not resign if we would rather coach again. Why should someone who doesn't want to quit, end up quitting? To say it was Jeff's fault that the Rockets lied about it, because he did what he wanted, doesn't make sense.
The Rockets deserve to have a GM who can make decision/enact a vision without having to first get overruled by an owner who hired him (for his vision) in the first place, and then be coereced into being a yes-man for whoever the new coach is. Les has forced his GM's into that role, consistently giving the big-ego coach most of the authority. And, make no mistake about it, Les has to have that power. Its no coincidence that the last GM we had to have that power was canned within 2 months of Les arriving on the scene. Les made it be known that he doesn't need anybody with a backbone to be his GM... just somebody who can follow in line.
Fair enough, and until Les sells the team, that is what we get to work with...... So we better hope that Morey can pull it off. DD
What's the point if Morey isn't being given the authority to enact his own vision? If I have no confidence in the the decision makers that are in charge of building a championship team, I will not simply sit back here and sip the Rockets kool-aid and assume everything works out because this is what we have to work with. They are setting horrible precedents... left and right... and history is doomed to repeat itself if it continues. And walking into two championhsips and lucking into Yao Ming are not accomplishments.
Didn't Mario Elie come in under Les' reign? How is trading OT for Drexler in the 2nd year walking into a championship? Or trading Horry and Cassel for Barkley or trying to sign other high profile players....like GULP Pippen? I think Les is trying, and our team has had more success than others. I am willing to give him some leeway here. DD
He said he would coach if Les wanted him to. What don't you understand about that? Would you coach for someone who didn't want you?
Here is the difference. I don't think JVG has the right to be flip-flop on whether he stays or not. When the Rockets showed commitment to JVG, he shut the door on the Rockets face. After the playoffs failure, JVG bugs the Rockets so he could stay. It's not acceptable for an employee to be that flip-flop. The Rockets are not his tool. JVG doesn't deserve any commitment from the Rockets, he turned it down. I don't get why people are telling me it's the Rockets fault despite everything they have done to save JVG face, including waiting on him to resign, and offering him other positions in the Rockets office? The Rockets went out of their way to accomodate JVG's resume, and JVG took it personal by showing them up with his snide remarks in the media. If the Rockets fired him outright, none of this crap would ensue. Instead, JVG chose to use the Rockets goodweill to make them look bad. The Rockets have the right to terminate contract, they gave JVG notice. They have done what a good employer have done, handling things so both sides get the least hurt. It's JVG who drags the whole things along and made it dramatic for whatever purpose he has. So, no, JVG doesn't deserve better, the mistake of the Rockets is that they thought too good of JVG and forgot he is a whiny, pouting little bugger when things don't go their way.
LOL, I was waiting for a Chinese fan to emphasize the value of "saving face" and take Leslie's side. I"m actually surprised it took this long. "Saving face" might have value in other cultures and spheres, but when you are dealing with the macho world of NBA coaches - they expect an up or down, yes or no answer, and regard it as an insult otherwise. That's why I regard this whole charade as an insult. Other teams fire their coaches and don't say "oh he decided to quit" - that's why it's insulting when leslie (who has tried this TWICE now) thinks he can pull a fast one on us and expect us to belive "Jeff quit"! It didn't work because Jeff wouldn't let him do it. Bravo jeff.
The bottom line for me, is that Les Alexander, and the Rockets were lying about it. They tried to be dishonest. I don't like being lied to by the sports team I support. Fire JVG or don't fire JVG, that isn't an issue, but don't try and pretend that it is all great and happy when it isn't. I would just rather have the truth, and move on with it. Honesty is something to be treasured and valued. The Rockets ownership were dishonest.
IMHO Leslie Alexander is a much better owner than Charlie Thomas. Charlie Thomas did not spent the money to build a team around Hakeem Olajuwon from 1987 to 1990-wasting valuable career years. I'm giving Ray Patterson / later / Steve Patterson the benefit of the doubt that Thomas did not want to spend money.
