now that it looks like we lost out on the Brown sweepstakes , would Mike actually come here you think? Or, since he's close to McDavid, is Atlanta his first choice? I feel like the Rockets got played by Larry, but it's just an emotional reaction. As someone stated earlier, Detroit will be Philly for the next 5 years. The west is where it is at.
Yeah, Dunleavy, haha! The portland team in year 2000 may be the most telanted team in 5 years and they lost western conference final badly by leading Lakers 15pts starting fourth qt. I remember that!!!
I think Detroit with the #2 pick[ie Darko] will be a lot more than Philly for the next 5 years. They made it to the conference finals, so imagine how good they would be with a true low post presence in Darko, especially with as much potential as he has.
I don't think Darko is going to be a true low post presence, name a true low post presence who has ever come out of Europe.
I am sure the Hawks sale will take a few more weeks to be finalized. We need to strike now while the fire is hot. We lost out on Brown, but Dunleavy is just as good of an option. Make the deal Les! Don't let him get away!
I think Dunleavy sucked before, and will suck in Houston in future. I have followed Portland team when he was there, this guy didn't know what to do in close game, and couldn't control his players. It is hard to believe he will succeed in Houston. With Rockets owner blew themself on Brown, good luck to ticket sale next season.
Dunleavy. Just great. Perception is reality. The perception is Larry Brown is a genius. Players in the NBA believe that. More importantly, Steve Francis probably believes that. Steve Francis called Larry Brown not Mike Dunleavy. When you command that type of respect, players listen. When everyone believes the coach is smartest guy on the court, the team is on the same page. Add in the fact the Rockets wouldve probably won 50 games and made the playoffs, this team wouldve revered Brown. 100% Buy-In gets you teamwork, chemistry, and unselfish play. Instead we get Mike Dunleavy. Does he command instant respect. Does Steve Francis or Cat care? The first day of practice when someone does something stupid can Mike Dunleavy start ranting and raving without looking like a total jerk or a buffoon? No. Dunleavy will be calm and the players get none of that shock treatment this team so desperately needs. Thank goodness this team is only immature and not hot tempered. You want to know the difference between Larry Brown and Mike Dunleavy? When Rasheed Wallace tried to take Dunleavy's head off, what happened? If Rasheed Wallace tried to take Larry Brown's head off, what wouldve happened? When you have an immature or stupid team, you need someone who is a King, a legend. Who is Mike Dunleavy? Another coach.
JUST AMAZING!! As much as I thought LA was where his family wanted to live, they decide on Detroit. AMAZING! Detroit makes Houston look like LA! Far as the Pistons, I guess they do have more potential then the Rockets in the near future. They made it to the Eastern conference finals, and now have the #2 pick in the draft. Being in the east Brown is almost guaranteed a shot to make the finals. Who wants to bet me that CD sits on his rear end another week, and we miss out on all the rest of the top coaches?
A coach with a reputation of completely losing control of a very talented team? Yeah, that's what we need.
Weird situation here. Dunleavy lives in Texas, and he apparently hit a home run with Les, but he's friends with McDavid. I'd like to see us go after Doc Rivers if it doesn't require giving up a draft pick. I think he would be a good fit here.
Pretty good recap of Dunleavy's tenure with Portland. The writer seems to blame Whitsett the most: ESPN.com news services PORTLAND -- Mike Dunleavy was fired as coach of the Portland Trail Blazers on Tuesday night, taking the fall for an underachieving team that failed to win a playoff game despite an NBA-record $89.7 million payroll. "I wanted to come back and try to get the ship righted," Dunleavy said in a telephone interview with ESPN on Wednesday. "As much as we went through, through the 10th of March we still had the best record in the West." Dunleavy met with team president and general manager Bob Whitsitt for about three hours Tuesday, and Whitsitt announced the coach's dismissal during an evening news conference. "Probably nobody had a tougher decision to make than me, because there's a lot of personal reasons why I'd like to see Mike come back," Whitsitt said. "But ultimately I've got to do what I think is right for the franchise." The Blazers, plagued by suspensions and infighting, lost 17 of their final 25 games, including a 3-0 sweep by the Los Angeles Lakers in the first round of the Western Conference playoffs. The day after Portland was eliminated, Whitsitt took much of the blame, acknowledging that several of his roster moves had backfired. But he would not give his coach a vote of confidence. After receiving assurance from owner Paul Allen that his own job was safe, Whitsitt spent much of last week meeting with the players, and at least one reportedly said Dunleavy should go. Earlier in the day, after Dunleavy and Whitsitt finished their meeting, Blazers co-captain Scottie Pippen lamented the "tough situation" Dunleavy was put in. "You hate to have to start over, but it was a very disappointing season and, as it always goes, coaches get fired and not players," Pippen told KGW-TV. Dunleavy, 47, had one year left on a five-year, $12 million contract he signed in 1997. He's rumored to be a candidate for the vacant job in Cleveland. Dunleavy has known Cavaliers general manager Jim Paxson for years, and Paxson was Whitsitt's assistant GM during Dunleavy's first season in Portland. Dunleavy was 190-106 in four seasons with the Blazers. He was selected the league's coach of the year in 1999, when the Blazers went 35-15 in the lockout-shortened season and won the Pacific Division title. But like Rick Adelman and P.J. Carlesimo before him, a winning record wasn't enough to save Dunleavy's job. His teams went just 18-18 in the playoffs, reaching the conference finals in 1999 and 2000 before falling to the Spurs and Lakers, respectively. Last season, the Blazers were only a few points away from reaching the NBA Finals. After winning two straight games against the Lakers to force Game 7 in Los Angeles, led by 15 with 10:28 to go but then missed 13 consecutive shots. The Lakers ended up winning by four and went on to capture the title. The Blazers never seemed to recover from that humiliation, but Dunleavy faced incredible pressure this season. The team's marketing campaign, which included the slogan "One Team, One Dream," made it clear that nothing less than a trip to the finals would satisfy this one-sport city. Portland had the best record in the West in early March, but a five-game losing streak precipitated its downfall. The Blazers didn't beat any playoff-bound teams from their own conference after March 22, and they stumbled to 50 victories -- nine fewer than last season. "We have confidence in him, but he can't get out there and score for us and defend," Pippen said. "It's not anything that he did wrong that caused us to have such a bad season, it's just that, as I said, coaches lose their jobs in this game when teams don't perform right, and we didn't perform to the right level." Dunleavy's most difficult challenge was finding playing time for all the veterans Whitsitt acquired. Along the way, several of Whitsitt's maneuvers backfired. He traded popular forward Brian Grant to Miami and got out-of-shape, unproductive Shawn Kemp from Cleveland in return. Kemp was an $11.7 million bust, and left the team in early April to enter a drug-treatment program. Little-used center Jermaine O'Neal also was traded to Indiana for Dale Davis. While O'Neal had a breakout season, Davis scored just one point in two playoff games and was suspended for Game 3 for elbowing the Lakers' Robert Horry. Whitsitt also brought Detlef Schrempf out of retirement and signed free agent Rod Strickland, further congesting the roster. Players griped about playing time, and criticized Dunleavy for calling too many plays on offense. Following a loss in Denver three days before Christmas, the coach and players aired their differences during a meeting. Dunleavy agreed to loosen the reins, and the team won 10 straight games. After they began their tailspin, however, Dunleavy resumed yelling and micromanaging, and many of the players resented it. Dunleavy seemed to lose control of the team late in the season after Shawn Kemp departed to enter a treatment program for cocaine abuse and Bonzi Wells tore a ligament in his left knee. After Rasheed Wallace threw a towel into center Arvydas Sabonis' face during a road loss to the Lakers, Wallace charged at Dunleavy in the locker room and had to be restrained by teammates. Dealing with Wallace was a season-long headache for Dunleavy, who twice suspended the All-Star for his tantrums. Wallace received a league-record 41 technical fouls and was ejected seven times.
The Rockets never came out and said Brown was #1. I think that was more of this BBS and media hyping. Sounds like Dunleavy had a great interview, and he's the one. Let's hope all goes well. . .
I don't understand why people get on Dunleavy's case about Portland. no one remembers that the year they lost to the Lakers was the same year Rasheed Wallace tried his best to collect the most technicals ever? C'mon this is ridiculous...this is another example of the coach taking the fall because his players were out of control. Sure blame him for not reeling them in..but when you have those kinds of personalities and cry babies and egomaniacs on one team...it's not all the coach's fault.
Riet, I can understand your viewpoints on Dunleavy. However, if you look at their records, you will see that Dunleavy is not a bad coach. In the last 4 years of coaching, Dunleavy's teams have won 192 games (one of those seasons was strike shortened and in a much stronger conference. His teams went 18-18 in the playoffs. Brown's teams, won 196 games (4 FULL seasons and in a weaker conference) and went 25-25 in the playoffs. Lets also consider that Dunleavy's teams were on the cusp of the finals and lost to the Lakers (clearly the most dominant team in the league for 3 years). Also Riet, this team (the Rockets) is not full of head cases like Portland. As someone said earlier, that Portland team self imploded. I can't see Brown taking the Blazers farther than Dunleavy did.
That's not really a knock when that "very talented team" = the jailblazers. Dunleavy sure as hell didn't put together that team of bad characters and mental midgets.
how many championship has Dunleavy won? and how many has Brown won? to my recollection...both have zero. and don't hold Brown has some 2nd coming of red auerbach either.
