D'Antoni: "Not even considering contract" "This is the most contentious"

Yea bringing up Melo's past & projecting what couldve happened is lazy. From what I saw on the court was a guy learning the system, who had a few solid games, but was NEVER in the interest of the coaching staff. He didnt deserve getting cut after 10 games. The whole team sucked at that point. Faried was similar. When Faried played good, their were times MDA would yank him for no reason. We could've USED Faried & Melo's rebounding in the postseason

 

LAZY?
What I saw on the court was a disaster. We were a sinking ship. Is that not what you saw?
What happened when Melo was removed from the equation? Problem solved
How much more would you have been demanding coach's head if we stuck with Melo and didn't even
make the playoffs?
We were trying to keep pace with one of the most effective teams of all time (GSW) and the Melo experiment
was an anchor that was dragging us down NOT up.

Can't blame D'Antoni for not wanting to get run out of town a second time at the expense of Melo.
And I also forgot to mention that Bzdelik also had a history with Melo in Denver.
He apparently burned both of them in the past.

Look, if Melo was still a productive force, why aren't teams clamoring for his services now?
I think that tells us everything we need to know. Teams can pick him up for next to nothing.
But yet, we're blaming MDA for shelving the guy to win games?
And the fact that we pretty much immediately corrected course after Melo was out shows that
the coaches knew what they were doing.
But, you are still free to rag on the coach for whatever reason (and I'm sure you will)
But, the facts show, the Melo decision was the right move

 

Sh!tty clickbait thread title

 

Prove it.

 

I'm pretty sure the Melo experiment here was doomed from the get-go. When he joined the Rockets, his head coach was someone he helped get fired once, and his defensive coach was someone he helped get fired from a head coaching spot once. What could possibly go wrong?

So Biglydick bails on the team right before the start of training camp. Why would he do that? My pure-conjecture-but-common-sense theory is that he had strongly expressed his distaste with the idea of working with Melo again, but the FO decided to bring him in anyway. Maybe Jeff got just enough exposure to recent-vintage Melo to realize he'd rather "retire" than stay and coach Melo for pretty big money. That's a strong statement. Following along my theory, MDA was more resilient and didn't want to leave a head coaching position because of a player. So after the experiment began to drag the entire team down with it, he had a talk with Morley, something like this: "We won 65 games and damn near got a title last year, man. What the hell are we doing here? Let's fix this mess." That's when Tilman began screaming and pounding his fist on the desk.

So I can't blame MDA for his "handling" of Melo.

I can't really blame Biglydick, though he should have quit a few weeks earlier OR have enough spine to see it through.

Can't blame Maori, because we were THIS close, and it seems like adding a sort-of star could push us over the edge.

Can't blame Tilman, because he was still stunned just to be owning an NBA team and probably went along with any low-cost moves Murray suggested.

Who does that leave? Melo. The guy who hadn't really adjusted his mindset to become what the team really needed, and thought he could bring the regular old Melo into the team without something going terribly wrong.

 

From what I can tell of Melo's career, it's always been about Melo.
Win or lose, it's about Melo

 

imo...the whole Melo thing was a clusterf**k... I think Bzdelik quit bc of Melo (due to Denver stint) and then Melo got kicked to the curb to entice Bzdeliks return - after starting the season and realizing MDA and staff didnt have a clue on defense... I think MDA grinned and beared Melo bc he wasnt walking away from the paycheck again (as he did in NY). Moreys quote was "Melo did everything the coaching staff asked of him..." now whether that was just spin or whatever...
End of the day it was a disaster... we spent longer recruiting the guy than we did playing him... Plenty of blame to go around - for everybody involved from Morey to Harden/CP3 to MDA to Melo... for MDAs part - be a man and either put your foot down - or make it work... but dont be all half ass on it...

As for Faried... MDA burned that bridge... For whatever reason MDA wasnt 'comfortable' with him down the stretch... Whether due to mistakes (like House) or spotty availability (like Nene)... MDA has to learn too play through issues - not just kick guys to the curb when they displease him and then pile more onto the starters...

players love MDA... he tells them to keep chuckin... and unless you're a top tier player, guys shoot themselves right outta the rotation. Rather than just giving everybody (GG) the green light to chuck, teach them a good shot from a bad shot - and im not just talking about 3 good and 2 bad... Watching that 3 on 1 back peddle for a 3 against GSW rather than taking it to the rack spoke volumes about the lack of real coaching... imo...

Sorry... but I am not an MDA fan. I think he has his attributes but his stubborness is just infuriating at points..

 

A scorpion asks a frog to carry it across a river. The frog hesitates, afraid of being stung, but the scorpion argues that if it did so, they would both drown. Halfway across the scorpion stings the frog... they both drown... The moral of the story — the frog should have been aware of the scorpion's nature, and so we should always be aware of the true nature of those who surround us.

so everyone can blame Melo for being Melo... or realize there's plenty of culpability to go around... at least Bzdelik had the stones to walk away...

 

You don’t think he will be back next season if we make it to the finals or win a ring?

I think he will only be back under that circumstance. Otherwise, he’s essentially fired.

 

I believe he will be reupped even if we only get to WCF.
Would it be wise to ditch a coach with the BEST franchise record in Rox history?
What does that say to potential coaches? IF YOU DON'T COME BACK WITH A RING, DON'T COME BACK AT ALL

How many coaches are GUARANTEED to get you a ring or even past the WCF?

What 'available' coaches have a proven method or program?
Even Phil Jackson went bust in NYC. Does that mean he's a worthless coach?

Hard to justify cutting loose your winningest coach in franchise history
because Chris Paul's hamstring was too old and you could 'only' get to the WCF
against one of the greatest teams ever assembled.

Yes, I know. Toronto. They had a good run. Kudos.
Everything clicked for them (and some key injuries to help)

But, AGAIN, who is this replacement coach that is going to take us to the promised land?
I've heard Mark Jackson?

 

i would prepare for this to be MDAs last season as well. don't be too surprised if that's the case. MDA wasn't morey's pick, he was les' choice. morey wanted a more defensive coach. tilman is also cheap and may be interested in promoting a younger cheaper assistant coach to his first head coaching position instead of paying for a big name proven head coach like les liked to do.

i dont think its fair to ask who is the FA or assistant coach that will guarantee a championship. i think we can get equal value without taking away anything from MDA's success. he's a great offensive strategist. but without a top defensive guru he may be exposed as being too one-sided again. turner is a good defensive coach but i'm not sure he's on the same level as coach B was.

i think we can improve with game management from our HC. MDA doesn't really make in-game adjustments, subs, or timouts, plays out of timeouts... and those things can take us over the top. a defensive minded game manager would be a great fit at HC. with turner providing the adelman princeton O, and harden/rus iso-ing and PnR we don't need a lot more offensive coaching from the first chair.

 

I really think Tilman will not tolerate anything less than a finals appearance- wise or not. Last season he said anything less than the WCF was a failure. So he’s already pissed. Now that KD left the West, I think the stakes are higher for DanTony to produce.

It’s just my gut feel though.

 

I hope I'm not giving the impression that I believe D'Antoni is GOAT.
But, he's been one of the BEST coaches in Rox history and his record proves that.
An astute businessman doesn't simply throw away a valuable and productive asset without having something to replace it with

1) Morey wanted a more defensive coach - I would TOTALLY disagree. MDA is an analytic's DREAM
He and Morey are 2 peas in a pod. ONLY 3's and close range. I remember reading when he was first hired
that he and Morey were very much in agreement on how they approach the game

2) [I think we can get equal value without taking away anything from MDA's success]
Again, MDA is a KNOWN positive asset. We already KNOW what he brings
- Best winning percentage in franchise history,
- Lead team to BEST record and top seed in the West just 2 seasons ago
- Likely would have one of the best records last year if not for Melo experiment and CP injuries.
- May have won WCF if not for CP's hamstring
- Best record in NBA over past 3 seasons
- Single handedly turned James Harden into an MVP, Scoring champ, Superstar
That's a pretty impressive resume
I would question as to why we would discard a known successful commodity for someone who 'might' give us equal value?
If it's only equal value then what's the point of taking the risk?
WHAT IF WE GET LESS FROM A REPLACEMENT? THEN WHAT?
Players like working with MDA. what if the next coach ruffles James' feathers?
I don't see the value here

3) [a defensive minded game manager would be a great fit at HC]
PLEASE INSERT COACH NAME HERE [ ]
Who is this TOP TIER, DEFENSIVE MINDED COACH WHO CAN PUT US OVER THE TOP?
Tom Thibodeau? Jeff Van Gundy?

Look, I'm not trying to mock you here. I've just seen these same questions thrown around
with no real solutions. I don't understand running a coach out of town who has been very successful for us.
I see a lot of posting about MDA's faults and shortcomings, but I'm not hearing any names that would be
1) Realistically Available
2) MORE successful

Without the extension, it's likely he'll be out the door next season.
But, I'm just not convinced it's the right move.
A BAD knock on a coach that has allowed us to 'consistently' succeed at a very high level
And, unless we know a replacement is a SURE THING, why not keep doing what we're doing? WINNING!

 

there were reports that morey was pushing to interview Vogel, thibs and JVG. les was quoted as saying he wanted to play "phoenix like" years earlier and finally got his guy MDA.

asking for me to name coaches I think would be a good fit just so you can say they aren't better than MDA is pointless and missing the point of the argument. MDA is a very good coach. he's had great success here. my point is the rockets need to extend him or let him go now. because a team with a lame duck coach will always underperform. there is no good reason, other than tilmans wallet, that they would let MDA play out the last year of his contract if they know already they aren't bringing him back. the players will figure it out too and he will lose the locker room. simply extend him now or replace him.

replacing him would still be a second option to keeping him. however, its not the end of the world if he's let go either before or after this season. there are plenty of great coaches on the planet with less than 3 initials in their name. you think raptors fans liked firing the COY so they could hire their g league coach? they were rioting.

very few coaches actually make a team over perform. most coaches' success is dictated by how good of a team they have. lets take MDA since we're already talking about him. in phoenix, amazing coach, 2 MVP candidates on the team. in LA and NY the teams sucked before and after he was there but those losing seasons made everyone thing he was a bad coach and he had to take an assistant job to stay in the NBA. now on a great team with an MVP everyone thinks he's a great coach again. Phil Jackson, greatest coach of all time until he had to coach the Knicks. thibs was COY when he had an MVP in Chicago, then he went to the wolves and can't find another coaching job because people think he's bad. the point is there are coaches out there that can coach. just because they haven't had the chance to coach a contender, or even be a head coach, no one knows they're a championship coach yet.

we can find a coach who can implement Morey's system. they just have to be willing to listen to the data. harden takes care of most of the offense through iso and PnR. now russ will take care of the rest doing the same. turner will help mix in some off ball movement. but someone has to adjust the gameplay during the game, call timeouts at the right time, make the right subs at the right time, manage players workloads through the season... these are things MDA struggles with. there are coaches out there who are good at that. they aren't the offensive genius he is, but we have Morey's system, we have rick adelman's disciple, and we have the best offensive player ever... I think we need the other stuff more.

but again, all that being said my first choice is to give him the extension. I think we'll be the most successful with MDA if all the players know he's staying. I think if all the players know he's being replaced when the season ends we'll underperform and I'd rather hire a new coach now than waste a year underperforming.

 

[a team with a lame duck coach will always underperform]

Disagree. How do most players perform when they are playing in a 'contract year' (last year of contract)?
They typically have their BEST YEAR EVER. Why? They know that they are showcasing their skills and trying to increase value
in case their team doesn't pick them up. They hope others will come calling.

I think it's the same thing here. NO WAY is D'Antoni going to sit on his laurels and ride off into the sunset.
He's had a chip on his shoulder for years. He was deemed as irrelevant just a few years ago until now.
I believe he still wants vindication from being 'slept on' by so many

I'm sort of puzzled why he wasn't extended and what's actually happening behind the scenes.
Whatever happens, I don't believe he's going to just mail it in this season.
He's going to want to give the league (and the Rox F.O.) something to think about

 

Tilman thinks mda is underachieved. With 2 mvps, Half of the Posters here expect him to win championship this year. MDA will be out the door if he loses in the 2nd round playoffs again.

if Defeated by Lakers, clippers or GS.

 

contract year is different for players and coaches.

MDA can try as hard as he wants, his success this year isn't up to how hard he tries. if the players know he's not coming back he loses some measure of authority. if a coach loses the locker room the team becomes a mess and underperforms.

 

So what your saying is.... James harden will be next year's head Coach? Got it.

 

BUMP

This is probably the #1 reason why the Rockets are sucking.
DanAndToni really does not give a **** at this point

He just coaching so he don't get find.
He would quit but he wants his money . .that he is owed

Rocket River

 

It's time for him to go.

We've looked lost all season. The players don't even seem to be motivated anymore. The only player who looks motivated at the moment is Westbrook, but that's probably because he wants to win the fans over. Harden has been here 8 years and has had a pretty trash supporting cast most of his time here. His confidence and motivation looks like it's gone. That's where a good coach comes into it.

I have no doubts that a new coach will shake things up, and it'll probably give motivation to the team.