First of all, you really think that a 10 hour interview consisted of nothing but going over hypothetical coaching situations? If the account is as Justice put it, that's perfectly fine. Lack of experience as a coach leads to questions about his understanding of how to manage a game and what sort of plays to call in various situations. It makes sense to go over particular scenarios, and ask him how he'd handle it. If that bothers you, you're being silly.
No, I don't think that's all they did...I didn't say that. I'm pointing to Morey's comments where he felt like that was the most critical part of the interview...that's where he was "sold" on Kevin McHale. It doesn't necessarily bother me they went through this exercise (though honestly I don't see the value if there isn't someone on the Rockets side of the table who can truly analyze the quality of the answer from experience)...it bothers me that it was deemed to be so critical in the determination of who they hired.
There is probably nothing that could be said that would make you or TheFreak happy with this hire. Your animosity over the Adelman firing/hatred toward Les will make you second-guess just about anything that comes out about McHale or the Rockets. It's mostly those that have been around for a while who are most up in arms about the new coach (you can throw Deckard in there as well). I agree with CXbby -- sad to see you old timers become so irrational in wake of these recent events. I wasn't happy about the Adelman firing either, but it doesn't mean I have to lose my sense of rational thought.
i am in wait and see mode. right now, we don't know anything about his offense and defense styles. according to his interview with espn and nba.tv, he likes ra's offense and he will have rox defense on the top of his list as he said nba playoff shows defense wins. as long as he focuses on defense, i am fine with him.
You got the wrong cat...sorry. I said I was neither excited nor disappointed with the McHale hire, generally. I don't think it matters, frankly. And the uncertainty of the NBA labor situation makes it all seem so shaky, anyway. I don't think there's anything irrational in what I said in my post. You may not agree with it, but it's not irrational.
If you were interviewing McHale, what would you consider to be more critical than his understanding of how to manage a game and draw up plays? Isn't that the biggest question mark people have with him? His other positive qualities -- communication, leadership, player development -- are well known. So, what else is there that should take priority over coaching during the game? Also, being articulate and a quick thinker is kind of an important quality for a head coach. Its not like that is a superficial attribute. He's interviewing to be a coach, not some position where he doesn't have to communicate with others in critical situations.
Being articulate in a game is probably overrated. Can you imagine JVG as a trial lawyer? Instead of an objections, he'd say "Ah, come ON judge...Big Chief Johnny Cochran doesn't know what he's talking about. Try reading Statson v Exxon, 6 N.Y. 397 (N.Y. 1952) followed by confirmation in Ratcliff v State of California CA 473 (CA 1986)." He'd probably win over the jury, though, when he got jailed for contempt. So, maybe his Xs and Os of law would work. I suppose you are saying Morey's statitical analysis of what works at the ends of games is not good enough.
I've got the right guy, but I don't expect you to realize what you're doing. Complaining about end-of-game hypothetical is irrational, especially when several hours of other questions/qualifications went into the multiple interviews.
I have tape to look at for that. Not safe answers over fantasy hypotheticals in a conference room. Again, I don't necessarily have a problem with them doing that...I have a problem with Morey going, "yeah, his answers to those questions are what sold me!!" I'm great with that. I don't disagree. You have experience to look at there. What do others say about him in those roles? How did he perform? I'm not arguing with the end result necessarily....I don't support or dislike the decision frankly. I'm stuck with it either way. Honestly, I don't think he has enough talent on this roster to make much of a difference with, anyway. But the process of decision making is important not just for this decision but for others as well. If answers to fantasy hypotheticals are what "sells" our GM on a new coach, then I'm not real confident.
Thanks for the personal jab. I'm not complaining about them doing it...I'm saying answers to fantasy hypos should NOT be the selling point in an interview for a head coach in the NBA. Particularly when there's no one with any real coaching experience in the room to evaluate the quality of the comments beyond how articulate they are.
You might want to consider reading what I said, not what you think I said. I didn't use the term manage, and I never implied it. I'm saying Morey wanted a cpl qualities that he could only find out by talking to them, their ability to impact plays in crunch time to maximise winning, when to call timeouts to kill opposing momentum, etc Ie, Mchale was picked basically because he had the best game sense essentially. (hence the questions about "what to do when x happens at y time") and their willingness to allow the FO to pick the assistants to manage general play structures (ie are you ok, with me picking x assistant to have the team run y offense for the 45 mins of the game the other teams d isn't scrambling, and a assistant to develop b defensive structure for the same period), because yes we all know, the last few minutes of the game, the intensity ramps up and general structure plays collapse.
Where did I get personal? I think you, and a handful of other veteran posters, got wrapped up in the emotion of Adelman being let go and that has caused many of you to criticize the front office/next coach, even when not warranted. For all you know, the question Justice could have asked was: "At what moment in the interview did you think McHale was the right guy?" Morey would then have to pick out a particular part of the interview where McHale impressed him. It doesn't mean he decided on McHale because of his lone answer to being down 5 with 50 seconds left. The fact that McHale doesn't have a lot of experience as a head coach means the front office would need to lean more toward his interview on situations vs. watching game film. I don't see a problem with that whatsoever. Maybe we should have brought in a former coach to help lead the search. Dan Reeves did wonders for the Texans coaching search! Oh wait.
MadMax I don't think he was saying just that one part sold him. I think he was saying along with all the other qualities about McHale and then 'that' part sold him. That's just what I got from the article. I also think you have to look at who his assistants will be. That is going to be a big part of the 'coaching staff'. If we can get the guy from Memphis to go along with Finch I think we will be on our way. Just have to get the right talent for them to work with.
come on..."you're doing it, but you don't even know you're doing it?" thanks, Gandalf. Here's where I know you have me wrong....did I think it was wrong to fire Rick....ehhh...I think it doesn't matter. I think their roster is mediocre at best. Do I think Rick Adelman was a better coach than any of the candidates? Absolutely. I don't think that's even debateable, frankly. Having said that, I don't care enough to be irrational about it, because no one is winning with this roster. I'm reading Morey's direct quote. If he didn't say it, then I retract all of this. All I'm reading is the quote, itself....his words in print. Again...I'm not saying it's necessarily vital to have a coach in the discussion...UNLESS you're going to suggest that the point that seals the deal for any candidate is the point where someone is postulating on what they'd do in a specific game situation using fantasy hypotheticals. That's all I'm saying. Having Darryl Morey say that what sealed the deal for Kevin McHale was his answers to fantasy coaching hypos as judged by people who have zero experience coaching basketball at any level is not a real confidence booster for me in terms of organizational decision making.
I suppose you can read it however you want...and we can temper it however we want. And I really and truly hope you're right...but here's what I'm reading: "We analyze the heck out of those game situations," Morey said, "and Kevin hit the ball out of the park. It made me realize how smart he is and how he knows his stuff. That was the moment for me. Believe me, he's going to know what to do at the end of games." "we analyze the heck out of those game situations" -- who the flip is "we?" do any of those "we" people have any experience in actual coaching? in making decisions like that on the fly in the midst of a game with the whole world watching?
Basically, my position on the hire is the same as yours. Ambivalent, wait-and-see how the rest of the roster comes together, and then I'll judge the results next season. Regarding the process (again, if its as Justice portrayed it), it doesn't bother me. You call it "fantasy hypotheticals". But these are real situations that he'll very likely have to deal with, and they make the difference between winning and losing games. That's not fantasy to me. It seems you're trying to draw a connection between what they went over in the interview and fantasy basketball. There is no relation. I believe the Rockets did their due diligence as far as checking with former players/co-workers and getting their assessment of how he handled the job. Heading into the interview, the Rockets knew that stuff and (presumably, but who really knows) people had a lot of good things to say about him. But if all that was needed was background checks to make a decision, why even bother with the interview? I'd be glad if the Rockets aren't satisfied simply by what former players, teammates, co-workers had to say about him or what their analysis of his coaching performance showed. That's important, but a more thorough assessment requires one-to-one discussion of what he'd do with the Rockets and getting into specifics. To me, I would take it as a positive that even with that information they would be skeptical and they'd want to hear from him directly how he'd handle critical basketball scenarios as the coach. IMO, McHale's ability to manage a game is the biggest question mark with him, so I don't have a problem with that being the key part of the interview for the Rockets.
Out of curiosity. Do you believe that coaches are one-size-fits-all type of personnel? Or that some are better suited for certain rosters than others? If you think that Adelman > any potential coach with ANY given roster and ANY given direction of the team, then I'm afraid I have to disagree. If you think that coaches, like players, perform differently under different circumstances, then your statement would simply be incorrect. Because the Rockets roster is in a state of flux, and therefore it's impossible for fans to predict how Adelman compares to any other coach when the new rebuilt Rockets take shape. The Rockets organization, OTOH, do have some idea because they're the one building the team. So you're saying Morey, in all his 4 years as the Rockets GM, has never consulted ANY coach in regards to how one should handle late game situations? And that Morey's "answer" to his own hypothetical question comes about only from the results of non-coaches? If Morey truly came up with the answers that way. Then I wholeheartedly agree with you. Actually, if he came up with the answers that way, I want Morey to be fired this second. But I think if you don't have any proof to back that up, "common sense" should dictate that your statement is simply false. That Morey's own answer came as a result of compliation of coaches, players, scouts, and his stat researchers(in this case using statistical probability models). And if McHale can "intuitively" understand what to do without such tools under his disposal, then he would have an incredibly BBIQ.
No, I don't believe that. Yes, I do believe that some are better suited for current rosters. I don't see any coach putting this roster over the top...or having it perform better than Rick did. then we won't have to agree to disagree, because i didn't say that. I'm basing it on the current roster. I don't know how much different this roster will be next season. I know they've tried to move players but have been unsuccesful in attracting the type of player they covet. I'm saying Morey's opinions on dealing with game situations with zero coaching experience do not qualify him as an expert in the field, imo. So him using ascribing ultimate value to those answers is of very little value to me...and I think it means he was impressed with HOW McHale answered the questions more than the actual substance. I'll say further, I don't think the answers to hypotheticals while sitting in a conference room provides a ton of substance, to begin with. His consultation with other coaches in the past is of no concern to me in qualifying him as an expert to judge the quality of the answers given by McHale. Hell, that would make any NBA reporter of 10 plus years experience (for example) an expert. I didn't read that there were any coaches in the room. I don't know what coaches would be included. Who is still on the staff? Would Adelman's staff have been in these interviews?
It is kind of surprising that those questions "sealed the deal." After all, isn't it a given that coaches should know what to do at the end of games? Are there coaches who DON'T know what to do?
