[ClutchFans] Saying goodbye to Adelman feels like the right move

What I don't understand is why Alexander would have wanted to fire Adelaman at the end of last season. The Rockets obviously didn't make the playoffs, but I think everyone knew it was a long shot. But Budinger thrived as a rookie and Brooks won MIP, so Adelman was doing a good job developing the young guys. It's not like this season in which Willliams and Thabeet couldn't get any playing time.

Maybe Les thought Adelman should have led the team to the playoffs despite it all? His willingness to pay the luxury tax for this season is a sign he isn't looking to just rebuild.

I'd be disappointed if it were just a personal beef he had with Adelman.

I'm not sure either, but my guess is that some coaches have less conflict in using statistical information alongside what their senses are telling them. They're more willing to try different schemes and player combinations suggested by the analytic data.

I actually would have guessed Adelman to be such a coach. Maybe not an "analytics coach" per say but at least open to the data. I always thought he was pretty creative with his roster moves, especially at the start of the season, and I imagined some of that creativity to be coming from working with Morey's statistical information. Looks like I was wrong.

 

continue: what type of other role players you need to bring to help your star player, just like what morey did for yao. this roster with yao made up a formidable contender.

 

You still haven't answered the question. Let me repeat:

They said they let Adelman go because they wanted to win big, not just getting into the playoffs. Does that imply that Adelman just wanted to get into the playoffs?

I find it unbelievable that Adelman, or any coach for that matter, doesn't also want to win big. Again, the fact that Adelman expressed interest of coming back means that Adelman wanted (or at least had hope) to win big WITH THE ROCKETS.

 

I think you are missing the point of my question. If the plan was winning big after a short rebuilding, why wouldn't Adelman want it?

 

Great read.

One thing about this move is that it shows Morey is willing to take a gamble. Now this team is his and if he doesn't produce soon, Les will hold Morey accountable.

 

I think the Rockets plan to move the vets, and realized Rick would grumble, so they decided to part ways before it got ugly.

 

I can understand the rebuilding part, but I don't see how Adelman is one of the pieces that needs to go. This is not a trade and there's no salary cap issue.

It just comes down to Morey and Adelman disagreeing. Adelman is more of a proven winner than Morey. . . .

 

it's easy to understand. w/ this roster, ra believed he could still make to the playoff this season. this isn't contradicted with that ra wants to win big. well, morey had no interest on just making playoff for this season. it is obvious this roster has no future at all. he is looking ahead of anything this season. he kept searching for future while ra kept pushing for playoff. ra believed a little bit twist on the roster like many ppl here believed, adding a defensive true center, will make this team a true contender. well, morey saw different thing. he was looking for a superstar, no just a defensive true center.

see they are completely on different page.

 

none of great person is born with winner mark on their forehead. they always start with nothing and gradually build up their reputation.

 

coz ra didn't think this team needs big change to be a contender. well, dm thought differently.

 

As soon as Yao limped off the court and the rockets lost to La, shane and luis shouldve been traded. They did some nice things and was forced to do a couple of other things, but the rebuild shouldve started that summer. Instead, management decided to give the yao ming experiment another chance and the mcgrady deal was terrible also.

I said before that I understand both sides of the deal, but a coach like adelman deserves the respect of being consulted about deals.

 

I think Adelman is great at doing what it takes to win with a given roster, but he doesn't strike me as a "Big Picture" guy.

In other words, he'll play the rotation that gives him the best chance at winning each game, and if possible give minutes to those players who earn and deserve them. However, he's not going to give minutes to a player whose current value or effort is questionable, even at the expense of raising his value for a major trade down the road. He may play such a player if the management demands it, but he won't be happy about it.

It almost seems like an ethical issue for Adelman. Does he want to win a championship? Of course, what coach or player doesn't? But I don't think he's willing to sacrifice playing and coaching "the right way" in order to get to that goal.

If it's a choice of five years of playing "the right way" without a championship, or four years of awful basketball in order to get a championship-caliber roster in the fifth year, my guess is Adelman will choose the former every time.

This could be why he is so popular with the players he's coached. OTOH I also think this is why problems between him and front offices may develop.

 

If the firing is about making money for Les, then this makes perfect sense.
If this is about long-term winning, then this makes as much sense as Bobcats trading away G. Wallace and saying this is good for the organization.

1) Rockets are a good team without a superstar, and with Yao/T-Mac contracts gone, there is absolutely no reason why Rockets can't paid a superstar to lift them to champion caliber. Can't say we don't have cap room.
Fact: GM sucks, don't have the balls to make the big trade to put together a championship team. Excuses, excuses...and Rockets are too cheap.

2) If Morey live by statistics, then look at this stats of NBA champions.
http://www.nba.com/history/finals/champions.html
Which team in the last 20 yrs won the championship by rebuilding?
Fact: GM sucks, don't have the balls to make the big trade to put together a championship team. Excuses, excuses...and Rockets are too cheap.

3) Watch Morey resign Yao next year. How's that for long-term wining?
Fact: GM sucks, don't have the balls to make the big trade to put together a championship team. Excuses, excuses...and Rockets are too cheap.

 

So the revolving door for cheap inexperinced coaches just opened up. We can expect a new coach in each new season. We will sacrifice these cheap(money wise) coaches at the altar of "Money ball", "Morey ball", stat and analytics?

Morey can pull the Barney Madoff to only a few owners - Les is one of those.
It may not be that far off that Less will analyze his GMs stat and boot his ass out of Houston.

 

Clutch:

I agree. Adelman will be 65 years old when the season starts, and we are rebuilding. The fact is the Rockets would be in a better position right now had Adelman looked long term and not tried to win at all costs. I do not blame Adelman, he wants to win, but it was not in the long term interest of the organization.

It is hard enough to win in the NBA when everyone is on the same page, but Adelman did not want to play the players Morey targeted at times, and that severely neutralized moves the team made.

If Adelman was younger, or the team was headed in a different direction, then Adelman would be perfect... but the reality is that Adelman is no longer a good long term fit.

Further, no doubt that Morey is a confident man.... "firing" Adelman is a bold move, and now ALL of it is in Morey's shoulders.

 

Spot on!

 

I sort of agree with your thought process Clutch, in that
1) With the Yao era ending, I didn't feel Rick would have stuck around until we mattered again at any rate
2) A coach can't win you a title until the GM's plan to build a contender plays out, and Rick was going against the flow in places
3) People need to wait and see what happens in the next 12 months before going nuclear.

That said, I'm sad to see Rick go and definitely think that anyone we bring in will be a sizable downgrade, but a short-run downgrade that may still pay off long-run.

 

Morey has consistently proven to be a good GM, an overwhelming majority of his moves have been positive. He has done about as well as possible under the circumstances. There are 25-30 other teams that would snap him up if he became available.

That is not necessarily true... look at Popovich, Van Gundy, Sloan, Brooks, Rivers... etc. The fact is that coaches that don't coach up to their teams talent typically get fired.

Morey lost Yao and T-Mac.... I seriously doubt that many GM's would do better. Morey's talent evaluation, and hiring practices have been exceptional.

 

That should be on Morey, and if Les is livid about it, he should be mad at Darryl.

I'm hoping the move to build on Yao this season was Les's idea to pump up sales and foreign interest because I'll be extra disappointed if Morey decided to double down on his own.

The only consolation to this year is that the draft class will suck regardless of tanking. Making 8th seed only prolongs the decades long pain that Morey inherited....

 

I agree with this. I have lots of respect for RA and what he did here. But I knew there was probably going to be a problem and it was clear there was that 'disconnect' as soon as I heard that one interview about Williams where Adelman said something along the lines of "I don't know why we traded for him." That's a bad sign.

Clearly there was even more to it than that, and if you're going to be trying to 'rebuild' quickly, you have to have your front office and coaching staff on the same page.