The Rockets offense has been the No. 1 surprise of the season. Everybody has been running crazily fast down the court whenever possible. And now people has been saying McHale should win Coach of the Year. Who should take the credits? Is it really McHale's style to run the up-tempo offense? I've not heard any of this during his Minnesota GM/coaching years. In case, some of you have not read this before, quoted below is some of Chris Finch's idea about how to run a team. Sounds familiar to you? Source: http://www.nba.com/rockets/news/qa-chris-finch
That would be nice. But Finch is currently behind Sampson so the chance will be really low to see him in action. Besides, I actually like the way how Finch preaches defense. Obviously he didn't have chance to get a hand on the defense end of the game. I wonder who's currently the guy responsible for that part.
Finch seems to be the only one doing his job right. Offensive coordinator=top 5 offense in the league.
I read somewhere, maybe from a Sampson interview, that McHale is quite rarely open to suggestions from the assistants -- and the stat data inputs from DM the GM too. I appreciate that part from McHale.
Oh no no no, there's no way that's true... McHale only handles the botched substitution rotations which have lost us every game this year. That's his only job and he screws it up every single time we lose. All the other stuff that we do well or even decent, that's all someone else's responsibility. Every defensive rotation that was good, was because Sampson installed it. Every thing on offense that is good, is because Chris Finch installed it or DM suggested it and threatened everyone with their jobs to run it. If it was up to McHale, we would be the worst team in the league, and his huge ego would be happy, amirite?
Take it easy, bro. I don't say things coming out of nowhere. The following is the prove about the McHale being open part, which I repeat is really great: Source: http://www.nba.com/rockets/news/q_with_kelvin_sampson_2011_11_19.html
McHale is more of a figurehead. All the success the Rockets have had from a coaching standpoint comes from gameplan, player development, and offensive/defensive philosophy implemented to match the personnel. My feeling is the assistant coaches and the front office are more influential in this regard than McHale. If McHale gets COTY (and he won't), it would be more of an honor for the entire team than his alone.
Good points. While offense is pretty much set with some small tweaks, defense has been a huge problems. I don't know if that requires major change in roster line-ups, an emphasis on defensive mentally to enforce it, or maybe even change in coaching personnel.
They touched on this during McHale's leave of absence. The team is run with the assistant coaches having considerable autonomy, much more so than on other teams, with McHale being the figurehead. They said that was the reason that the transition to Sampson's interim coaching period didn't cause any waves, since the assistant coaches just kept doing everything as normal. Finch is responsible for the offense. Sampson is responsible for the defense. And McHale is responsible for the in-game coaching player substitutions. He doesn't run plays or really do any X's and O's. They use a read and react system. So basically you know who to gripe about or praise. Finch: Offense Sampson: Defense McHale: substitution patterns and rotation minutes
So, what do you think McHale does when he draws up things on the clipboard during timeouts and between quarters? And how come the Rockets used different plays out of timeouts under Sampson than McHale? I thought McHale had nothing to do with the offense?
Wasn't there a piece about how during his Minnesota days, he would have his assistant coaches draw up the X's and O's for plays while he watched? In Houston, the offense is designed with specific counters that the players use in a read and react system. Since Finch is responsible for the offense, he probably designs those counters that the players use. The plays he draws for coming out of time-outs is a different item from the topic of designing the offensive system. People are praising the general offensive system and the play-book (i.e., the read and react counters designed by Finch), no one is praising the plays McHale runs out of time-outs. Finch is the one who designs those (non-time out) "plays" used in the rockets offense. They're not really plays, but specific counters for what to do in what situations, in a fluid read and react system created by Finch. This offensive system and "plays" is what people are commending. It would be erroneous to conflate this with the x's and o's out of time-outs that McHale scribbles up. The talking heads aren't commending those out of time out play-calling as the point of admiration for the Rocket's offense. Finch is the guy responsible for the Rocket's offense that's being admired in the league. No one is admiring McHale's play-calling out of time outs. McHale was chosen by Morey to provide "leadership" and be a managerial overseer with considerable autonomy and responsibility devolving to the assistant coaches. Sampson designs the defense, Finch designs the offense. The intricacies of the way the coaching team and responsibilities were set up was examined and explained during McHale's unfortunate hiatus. The credit or blame for the offense should rightly be Finch's, just as the credit or blame for the defense should be Sampson's, or the credit or blame for the substitutions and rotation minutes management should be McHale's.
I will note, however, the McHale has an effect on the in-game flow of offense/defensive via his substitution choices. He's suppose to be the in-game coach, and responsible for controlling (of failing to control) the momentum or lack thereof during the game, as well as managing player fatigue and minutes, or adjusting to what the other coach is doing (trying not to get out-coached). Most coaches either begin as a offensive coach and pick up a defensive assistant, or begin as a defensive coach and pick up an offensive assistant. McHale began as a GM, who was forced to step down and coach since he couldn't find someone he liked as GM. D'Antoni was an offensive coach responsible for the offense, and he hired Woodson to be his defensive assistant to be responsible for the defense. Woodson started as a defensive coach. McHale didn't start as either a defensive or offensive coach. He leaves it up to Finch and Sampson. And he doesn't adopt either the defensive or offensive duties as his bailiwick the way D'Antoni or Woodson would. Morey said he hired McHale for "leadership" and "being a leader of men" not for any defensive or offensive coaching ability.
Reading your post it's obvious you have no idea what you're talking about when describing the Rockets offense and it's also quite obvious that you have an agenda. The fact that you actually have talked yourself into believing that McHale has no input in offense or defense really just says it all. At no time was what you try to sell here as a fact ever reported. The opposite, in fact: http://blog.chron.com/ultimaterocke...-gets-a-taste-of-hectic-life-as-a-head-coach/ "Help guide" obviously means Finch & Bickerstaff have input, but it certainly doesn't mean they run the offense. How much input each coach or even Morey has you do not know, so stop trying to present your agenda-driven speculation crap as a fact.
