Can we at least agree now that coaches don't really matter that much?

And when Rubio and Pekovic went down to injury.... they began to look like the old Wolves. Actually, make that just Rubio.

 

Kevin Love played like a top 10 player...and the Rockets still had a better record.

 

I've made the analogy before to having a driver's license.

Its not a big deal to have a driver's license.
Its a way BIGGER deal to NOT have a driver's license.

The point is to get a competent coach and NOT have an IDIOT. Its much easier for a mediocre coach to MESS UP a team, than it is for a good coach to make a good team into a great one.

Where the comparison of good coaches to star players comes up a little short is, there are simply FEWER coaching positions than PLAYERS. (Think of how contraction works, coaches being "contracted" in). Its just hard for the coaching position to be "diluted" thin. Therefore there's gonna be quality coaching for every team.

 

A lot of that might depend on what you measure as success to begin with.

- You can say its to Popovichs' CREDIT that he's won titles WITHOUT the premium talent, and found a good coaching system in spite of that.
If teams need TALENT to win, and he's winning without talent, then thats a sign of a good coach?

- "he hasn't developed someone of Kyle Lowry's caliber" With that, we can say Kyle Lowry was developed into a player. And that is something a coach is judged by.
So does the coach who doesnt matter Rick Adelman GET CREDIT for developing Kyle Lowry?

- Also, Rudy T with in his short seasons with the Lakers had a WINNING record WITHOUT KOBE. What happened to those Lakers after Rudy T stepped down and Frank Hamblen became coach?

 

Popps developed Tony Parker. I think he was drafted like 30th in the first round. Manu was a 2nd round overseas stash. He is currently developing Gary Neal (undrafted) and Danny Green (2nd rounder). He's won 3 rings and may be on the verge of winning his 4th.

Coaches and front offices make a tremendous difference between winning and losing.

 

Yes they do.

DD

 

It's so true. It is often said here that the star players do not want to play in the city but that is so far from the truth because there was a time in the 90's that stars were going out of their way to volunteer to play here.
It is not the city, we have a great city, it is the organization and how they treat their players that are most probably the reasons that stars don't want to play here at this time. The current Rockets organization is simply inept and clueless.

 

Gregg Popovich has been essentially coaching the same team for a decade.

 

Pointless? I simply can't agree with the premise of this thread, meh. You say it wouldn't have made any difference. That the talent we have would have been essentially the same under either coach, and you believe that we would have had a similar record. You appear to dismiss the impact of the coaching change entirely. Before this season started, many of us, perhaps a majority, expected McHale to at least keep the bulk of Adelman's system for continuity's sake, making gradual changes as his tenure progressed. He did not. I think that had a negative impact on some key players, like Scola and Martin, for example, but IMO, it impacted everyone who had finally "got" Adelman's offensive system, to one degree or another. How did that impact our record? Did floundering around offensively cost us some games? I think it did. How many? We can't know how many, obviously, but I think it was enough to have made a difference at where we stand now... out of the playoffs by a nose. Would Adelman had played McHale's insane end of game small ball lineup with Scola and Patterson during this horrendous stretch of games, sitting Camby and Dally? I don't think Adelman is that stupid, so in my opinion, that is probably at least a couple of more wins we don't have.

Speculation? Sure. That's all this thread is. Mine is as good as yours, IMO, and I think yours is wrong. -

 

Would loved to have seen Adelman coach a team that had proper defensive personnel (a team that had at least one center).

 

Or with the Bobcats.

 

Adelman maximized offensive skills...If he had Dragic play the way he has this year...He would have ensured the Rockets get in...
Kevin McChoke...didnt know how to close games out...

 

We could have used DaDakota as our coach for free and would still be a .500 team. Rockets management is so dumb in spending millions of dollar to hire Kevin McHale.

Oh, since coaches don't matter, why did they fire the coach again?

 

The firing of Adelman was utterly foolish...They didnt have someone better...and they didnt upgrade on talent...Adelman was not willing to change his coaching staff...and DM was trigger happy and axed Rick... In the end...the Rockets ended up with a mirror season of last year..

 

Maybe not solely on the basis of the Rockets this year, but notwithstanding the lionization/scapegoating coaches get in the media - I've read that most of the empirical evidence tends to show coaching changes tend to have a very small efect on winning % overall, when the same group of players is involved..and even that number is skewed a bit (since losing teams are more likely to fire their coach, and thus statistically more likely to improve).

 

LOL - I see waht you did there.

So you're saying that coaching and front offices (i.e. the players they) make the difference?

Revolutionary concept brah.

I know that you have constructed a mythology around player development so that you have an easy out when your ludicrously hyperbolic picks for future superstardom don't pan out ... but it doesn't make it any less laughable.

EVen as successful as Ricky Rubio was this season, he was a far cry from your over-the-top, silly projections. I guess it was lack of development.