For what it's worth, this is why I am "up" on McHale: McHale's hire shows me the front office are not quite the hedge fund assholes that they appeared to be when they fired Adelman. As some might recall, I was not happy with Adelman's departure, and with some of the comments we heard from the players and the front office at that time. The reason why I wasn't happy was not because I didn't think there aren't other good coaches out there, or that the Rockets won't work hard to look for them. The reason why wasn't happy was that part of the reason for the departure seemed to be that management, unlike Adelman, insisted on keep thinking of their roster as "assets" without a proper appreciation of the psychological effect on players. The management seem to suffer from the typical hedge fund/Wall Street ******* "**** is easy" syndrome where they think of every business as a portfolio that can easily be managed by any ******* with an MBA. I thought Adelman had his flaws, but he got the big things right: he got a lot out of players who are not proven stars and he understood how basketball humans work. I don't think having that a human portfolio philosophy and reputation helps the team either with "winning now" or "winning big." So, I was fully expecting that Alexander/Morey was going to look for a "moneyball coach"-- someone with similar background and philosophy to the front office and keep building their Hedge Fund of Humans. I was curious as to how that would turn out, but also thought that without someone like Adelman as a balance the hedge fund assholes would run rampant. That they even seriously considered McHale, let alone offered to hire him, was a pleasant surprise. McHale was WAY outside the box of the "Tom Thibodeau" that the front office set out to look for. He also would not be found dead working at a hedge fund, investment bank, or whatever kind of place assholes who wrecked the economy would work for. In fact, true economy-wrecking assholes would not even let him into their office lest his stink of humanity pollutes the air. He's a basketball lifer, much like Adelman, and understand the psychological aspects of the game. As a player, he was known for an efficient post game and good defense, but also for having a great sense of humor (Bill Simmons listed him as one of only 2 actually funny athletes) and being somewhat of an underachiever (Bird was said to have been frustrated that McHale didn't have the obsessive focus and worth ethic as as Bird). The Wolves owner noted that McHale liked his hunting and fishing and might not have wanted to be stuck in the office (or something like that). He is a guy who can tell the front office what impacts their moves have on players. He's got the people skills that the front office seemed to have lacked this past season. One more thing: I am glad to hear that Morey spoke with Martin on the coaching search. I think it shows that Morey appreciates that even if players are assets, they are also humans and need to be treated with some sensitivity. You gotta pamper your cows a bit if you want to slaughter them later for Kobe beef.
It's pretty simple. Morey wanted two things from Adelman: 1) Realize that even if the team had been able to scratch its way into the 8th playoff spot, we were still in need of a pretty deep rebuild. Adelman, on the other hand, had only one goal: win every game, even if it means forsaking the future in favor of winning today. 2) Add certain people to his staff so that when Adelman retires (or is let go), we'd have someone ready to step in. Adelman refused to make those changes. McHale may be a total failure, or maybe not. But this was more about lining up Chris Finch as the future coach than about anything else. It's one of Morey's biggest gambles as Rockets GM so far, but if he's right about Finch, this may pay off big-time in the future.
I'm actually curious and intrigued of the hire. Now I want to know is why isn't AnnaMegan down on us?
i like the mchale pick for the opposite reason lol. i think "hedging" is EXACTLY what they are doing with mchale and i think its a brilliant move. if he truly sucks, then we bottom out and get a good draft pick, he walks after 3 years, and finch takes over. if he is good, the team keeps going in a slow upward trajectory, morey keeps looking for trades, and we hope for playoff success. it's a win-win and all of mchales human qualities will instill a fresh optimism among the team, office, and fans. atleast for a little while. i can't predict where this team will be in 3 years, but at this moment i am happy with the move and i am excited looking forward to next season.
If the FO felt like they needed more time to develop, then that's their call, whether it was the right or wrong one is another discussion. RA wasn't up for it because he said so, in those quotes. He wasnt up for what direction and moves they wanted to make. The point being they had opposing views and that's what created the separation. That's why i said "other guys". He did develop some of them, i'm not taking that away from him. I meant he wasnt open to developing other players that the FO may have wanted more focus on, or he was against trading developed players for underdeveloped players with more potential. He rejected them because he didnt want to coach at all, so it didnt matter who the offer was coming from and for what position.
i'll add a little bit more. here's why i am "up" on mchale - when adelman was initially let go, i was upset. not exactly because i think he is the best coach, but because i do recognize the positive aspects of his tenure here. mainly, the beautiful motion offense. i still have nightmares of the 65-point jvg days. even if the rockets weren't championship contenders, watching 120 point games was fun and exciting, the ball movement and the team work was a sight to behold. i also recognize the negative aspects of the adelman era. adelman-only-fans need to recognize the fact that he is not perfect. he had questionable rotations and substitutions, and he played favorites. it was clear to me that he was burnt out and mailing it in this year. i had been a huge adelman supporter in the past, but many things he did this year really soured me. it also appeared to me that adelman was causing a rift between the players and the front office. there was way too much whining this year from too many people, and adelman himself being a whiner was setting a bad example and tolerating it too much. this team had cancer problems this year and i think adelman is very weak in controlling those types of things. so when i heard the news that he was gone, i was mostly upset that we would be losing adelman's offense, but i wasnt upset at losing the man himself. my only fear moving forward was that the next coach might possibly try the overhyped defensive philosophy and this team would end up being back to where it was 5 years ago. but here we are today, mchale is the coach, and finch will be next to him to ensure that we keep the motion offense. i consider that a total win-win. adelman is gone, yet the adelman offense remains. perfect. mchale is a champion and a motivator and a player developer. perfect. i think this move is the best move the rockets could have made. i expect much more than 43 wins next season. i expect a motivated cancer-free team and i expect a fun and exciting team.
all the buzz i've been seeing points to that. i think it makes sense so i'm rolling with it. however, if it turns out that mchale and finch plan on turning this team into jvg part 2, then i reserve the right to change my mind and call them jackasses.
Good point, I felt this same, we were like a top 3 offensive team and that made the Rockets more exciting this season. How was McHale's offense like in Minnesota (I am unaware)?
Houston has almost no media presence outside Houston, it's not what I'd call a lot of noise in the media.
Kevin McHale literally means that this team is in full tank mode. Morey is putting this team on the rebuilding path so 20 or less wins for the next 3 seasons would be the game plan.
adelman-only-fans think that only adelman can win more than 20 games. thats how lowly they think of our rockets.
I wish the Rockets would try harder to sell their decisions to the fans. Maybe "sell" is the wrong word, because it implies manipulation or propaganda. I wish they would be geniune and tell us their real reasons for player moves, coaching changes, and other issues. We are the reason they have a team and revenue it generates, but it seems like we don't count. When polls on this board reflect a clear preference and the Rockets do the opposite, I think we are worthy of an explanation. If we ALL stopped watching them play, or buying merchandice, what the team be worth? Fans are truly taken for granted.
all teams really only have 2 goals - win games and make money. what more explanation do you really need.
They make money because we support them. I think they should appreciate fan support enough to explain unpopular decisions.
no explanation needed. if they win enough games, you will suppport them and they will make money. if they don't win enough, then they make changes that they think will help them win more. it's not rocket surgery. if you understand things in that context, then you already know the explanation that's coming. "we decided to do [whatever they did] because we think it will help us win more." they may be right or they may be wrong, time will tell, but that's as simple as it gets. there's only so many ways to beat a dead horse. what more do you want ?? tapes and transcripts of executives conversations ???
Morey goes on radio and podcasts all the time as much or more than most GMs. His answers usually aren't that cryptic and he can be surprisingly candid. Obviously he can't talk about the McHale hire until it's all finalized and assistants are in place.
How many fans are registered on this board and post enough to show that they are a core of the most serious fans the team has? And you ask why should they regard this board?
