His staff in Sacramento was: 1) Elston Turner: Apparently, about to become a Rockets assistant 2) Pete Carril: 76 years old and retired, recently said in a Chron article that he's antsy in retirement (but I doubt he comes back) 3) T.R. Dunn: Assistant in Sacramento under Musselman, likely soon out of a job 4) Bubba Burrage: Seems to not be an assistant anywhere right now; I can't find him So, if Adelman wants his old staff back, he can probably get all four of them, though Carril is probably too old to really keep doing this stuff. But, who's to say he wants his old posse back? Apparently, he wants to consider Turner. But, he'd do well to interview Elie and Thibodaux too. Thib's probably out since Turner is first assistant, so Thib can't be.
No **** - if Yao learned how to use his elbows, the Jazz wouldn't have been able to maul him like that and cause so many turnovers. Dream working with Yao, Elie on the sidelines - this is really cool. I hope they do hire Elie. And if the Adelman thing doesn't work after a few years, give Elie the job.
I know we all love Mario for what he did while he was here in a Rox uni.. However, maybe it's just me, but I can't keep from also remembering that he left here with some bad blood, and became quite the jerk to Houston while in San Antonio. He was most definitely not beloved at that time. Bygones being bygones, though.. I know that's mostly neither here nor there, but it does bring me to my point: How much NBA coaching experience does the man have, exactly? 1 year? 2 years? What has he done exactly to merit even a MENTION as a coaching candidate, much less a HEAD coaching candidate? Didn't he get FIRED as an assistant coach from one of the worst teams in the league the last few years (GS)? I want it to be clear that I am not knocking the guy, but merely want to try to look through the hype and love-fest stuff and try to determine if he is even qualified for the job. I can say that from listening to him on the radio once a week, and seeing him on TV before and after some games, he does not strike me as the sharpest knife in the drawer, and certainly not very well spoken. Again, probably not a big deal (See: Avery Johnson), but could we examine some merits OTHER than the fact that he was a useful role-player on a team that happened to win a couple of championships here? Are there any kinds of testimonials from players he has coached, any kinds of indications as to what kind of an 'X's & O's' kind of coach he is? Any idea how well he can make adjustments to what other teams may be doing? We can talk about 'toughness' and 'kiss of death' type stuff all day long, but in reality, all I really care about is that this team get the highest benefit from whatever coach or coaches may be available, and all I want to know is what is it about Mario's coaching ability that would make him a more attractive candidate than any of the other potential ones out there? Does anyone even know?
I didn't see any testimonials, but I did find a Bay Area blog that talked about how sad they were when he was fired when Nellie took over. A lot of fans added comments that he was a bright spot of the Mike Montgomery tenure...I guess they also liked that he ran out and chest bumped JRich after some good play. I also found This writeup on SF Weekly:
Then he was fired. I am in the same boat as Nero. I just dont see what he has done to deserve all this attention as a coach.
Rockets, F*** Yeah, We're Coming To Save The Mother F***ing Day. I sing that whenever the Rockets do something good, I know, it's stolen from Team America, but who cares.
very true...adn next year when everybody here want to fire Adelman, we can just ask them to promote Elie to head coach
Unless I'm mistaken, Montgomery was the coach who was fired. Elie -- and the other assistant coaches -- were merely collateral damage.
interesting find rimbaud. i have no ability to gauge how good elie is as a coach, but if his fiery attitude as a player rubs off a little on the team, how can that be bad? frankly he's boring on 610 and as the analyst on fsn but i seriously doubt that's his lockerroom personality.
Even on FSN the guy manages to sneak in "hell" and "damn". Seriously I can't wait for him to yell at T-Mac when he settles for those jumpers. Give it to em Mario.
If he had acted any differently, he would not be the Mario we all know and love. And I don't think he hates the Rockets anymore. He was analyzing their games on TV this year.
I remember when JVG was considering candidates 4 years ago and passed up on Elie...big Mistake! You need some guys that can relate to the young player and knows how to talk to them (Francis, Mobley at that time)... Elie is a keeper no matter who the coach is...he shoud be the Kurt Rambis...the Carrol Dawson of the Houston Rockets... His tough minded-ness is contagious. Please don't let him go elsewhere...listening to an interview with Adelmen I sensed that he might be leaning toward another direction...
Come to think of it, was any of JVG's staffs an ex-NBA player? If not, it can help explain why they didn't understand the duress of an NBA player and managed the game to their strengths better.
I would love to add the junkyard dog to the coaching staff. While I do not have enough information to judge his ability as a coach, assistant or potential head coach, I think the mental toughness and tenacity that represented his career would be a great addition addition to any team. Factor in the fact that he has so much goodwill earned from the hardcore Rocket fans, it seems like a no brainer.
i want the junkyard dog to do mentality training with yao and tmac. ... "c'mon yao, you p*ssy! grab that f*cking rebound!" "hey mac! why don't you earn that f*cking 20 million and go the hole, it's in the same place everytime!" i like that. the junkyard dog would get nasty!
I would love to see Rockets blood in the new coaching staff. And if Mario is really qualified than bring him on. But I got to say he doesn't come off as the brightest Rocket on TV. I know looks can be decieving and Rudy didn't always seem like the best basketball mind in front of the media. Still when he was placed in more comfortable surroundings you could hear his intelligence. But Mario in his most recent playoff game analysis made Clyde look brilliant. If that's just a tv thing and he is actually very sharp than bring him on board. Or if his role is more of a motivator for the players, which I think he would be great at and not an X's and O's guy than give him a lesser role and bring him on board.
Nope. It's against the rules because it would be extra compensation for a player. Plus he's old. But it would be great to see him hit just one more big shot.
