Cohen you're right. It was a thoughtless thing to say. I can be pretty shallow sometimes. sorry man. Sage, fantastic post, really has me pulling for Van Gundy to be our next head coach.
As someone who was stuck living in NY back in the late '90s and saw quite a bit of JVG's Knicks I can honestly say that it was some of the most boring basketball I have ever seen. It was even rumored that JVG worked strictly on defense in practice which would explain the total lack of offensive creativity by his teams. I certainly wouldn't call Van Gundy a tactical X's and O's coach. He can't seem to think on his feet or make the right adjustments at halftime. Although if you let him sleep on it overnight and view film he would seem to come up with pretty good game strategies. I think he is a decent coach but is definitely no Larry Brown when it comes to teaching the game. Most of the Knick fans I know seem to hold a grudge against the way JVG left a sinking ship. He seemed to wait until they got back to the .500 level to save face and then quit 19 games into the season. Now because of his television exposure he is supposedly demanding a mega buck 7 million dollar contract according to the NY fishwraps. JVG would probably do a decent job with the Rox but personally I'm rooting for LB to be named the next HC. LB has left each situation better than when he got there...you can't say the same thing for Van Gundy.
Throughout the season, JVG was my first choice to replace Rudy, should the need occur. Once Rudy stepped aside, he obviously was the first name that came to mind. However, the availability of Brown intrigued me. This intrigue was only heightened by the pro-Brown slant displayed on this Board and in the media (see Houston Chronicle). All Pro-Brown arguments thoughtfully and accurately demonstrate his ability to turn a team around and to deal with younger players (AI). They all list his accomplishments and achievements. They all allude to some drawbacks, including his "wanderlust." Yet, these drawbacks have been dwarfed by the overwhelming admiration of his potential effect on this team. In short, I became convinced that Larry Brown was the right name for the job. Yet, Sage has brought me back to earth. Centered. The ignored drawbacks, when viewed in the light of such a stark contrast, become larger. Possibly unjustifiable JVG may not possess the breadth and depth of Brown's knowledge and achievements, but just give him time. The "intangibles" that JVG brings demonstrate why he is the correct choice. Brown appears to me to insist on his methodology to the point of vanity. His knowledge and approach appears to border on Narcissism. This may not be an entirely negative character trait for an NBA coach, but I’m not sure it fits with the Rockets. On the other hand, JVG personifies “humble and hungry,” the Rocket credo. His approach to the game (dedication), to his players (unwavering support) and to life (Honda Civic = humble) all demonstrate, to me, why he is qualified to guide Stevie, Yao and EG to the next level. I won't be disappointed to see Brown as the next head coach (as I would with Dunlavy). However, Sage has made it clear who the right choice is.
Thank you Sagehare6 for your deepeset all round analys on VG and explaination why he is the most fit for Rox.Especially"Francis and Yao will make each other look even better and Van Gundy has the brains to "optimize" each of their games. " The management will take this post into consideration,IMHO. I'l vote you as key consultant for Lees.How about other guys? Thank you very much again.
Time to Revitalize this Thread... since Jeff Van Gundy is clearly one of the leading candidates for the Rocket job. Well, if ESPN is right, then we're really looking at two candidates now...Jeff Van Gundy or Mike Dunleavy? Tough call. I love both candidates. However, this being a Van Gundy thread, let's review recent events surrounding Jeff Van Gundy. 1. Procrastinates and opts NOT to sign with the Cavs despite having two "productive" interviews with Gund & Co. 2. Refuses to interview with New Orleans. 3. Very decisive in reaching a mutual "no fit" conclusion with the Philadelphia 76ers. 4. Meets with Les and CD in Dallas upon receiving immediate clearance by the Knicks. Hmmm... if actions speak louder than words, then I'd say that Jeff Van Gundy also WANTS the Rocket job. theSAGE
Van Gundy will be gone by mid-week, while Les & CD are still trying to review their notes on how well Round 1 went... CD: Pass the highlighter, Dunleavy really hit a homerun on this answer! Woohoo... Les: What color bro? CD: Why don't we just use the green one, that will be cool!
Now that Silas has taken the Cavs job, talk of JVG should really be interesting. I prefer Van Gundy, but Dunleavy is a close second after hearing some of his recent comments and positive attitude regarding the Rockets job. From what the news is reporting, JVG is commanding a huge salary and control, and that is making it tough for him to come to any agreement (probably what vaulted Silas into the lead in Cleveland). It should be fun to see what unfolds.
VanGundy would be absolutely stupid if he is holding out for reasons of wanting more $$$ or more power. Only crappy teams with little to offer will cede so much power to one person (e.g. Miami, L.A. Clippers, etc.). I sincerely hope that's not the case with VanGundy. I've heard some reports of VanGundy's "ask price" to be upwards of $7M which I find outrageous. $5M/year and 3 years I find to be acceptable. Despite how much I respect VanGundy, I also believe that it never pays to "overpay". When I look at the Rockets coaching job, I think to myself that this is a wonderful opportunity to: 1. have a shot at a championship (and perhaps more) 2. work with two PROVEN talents and then some 3. be the respected coach to MMs of great Rocket fans 4. be known to MMs of people on the other side of the world 5. become part of Rocket history 6. work with a GM and owner of DECENCY 7. enjoy the amenities of a new arena 8. hang with the Power Dancers What more can a coach ask for? theSAGE
This thread clearly demonstrates that Jeff Van Gundy should be the next head coach of the Houston Rockets. It also demonstrates why he should have been the first choice all along.
Underachiever? We have a couple of those don't we? Maybe Eddie will turn into a 15 point 12 rebound guy next year.
"Houston will likely end up with Jeff Van Gundy, who has suddenly emerged in public perception as a cross between Auerbach and Wooden by having the smarts to not coach the Knicks the last two seasons. Van Gundy will replace Rudy Tomjanovich, who was pushed into resigning by Rockets owner Les Alexander. The whisperers say that Tomjanovich just didn't do a good enough job getting his guards, Cuttino Mobley and Steve Francis to run the offense through Yao Ming. (Pause here to admit personal bias on this issue). Now, let's move on. Oh, please. Tomjanovich did a wonderful job helping Yao acclimate to the league when alleged experts were ready to write the guy off after one week. The team has no point guard, just two gunners in the backcourt who some say actually track their shots DURING games. When Tomjanovich had to leave the team in March for cancer treatments the Rockets were in the playoffs. They ended up 43-39, meaning if they had played an Eastern Conference schedule they would have won 50 games and been one of the top three seeds. Of course to be fair, we all know that might not have saved Tomjanovich's job either. Just ask Carlisle."
So is Van Gundy going to draw up a better offense for Yao? Will the offense he used for Ewing still work with the zone defenses?
All this posturing suggests to me that: "The Rocket Opening is JVG's to lose." Why? simply b/c all the talk and all the body language points to Dunleavy as the "default" choice. Even if you "knew the guy really well," doesn't he deserve a second interview? Maybe even before RudyT? Moreover, this active courtship of JVG in round two isn't exactly a "screening call". If anything, the fact that Les limited his candidates to, say, 4 in total, tells you, "screening time is over." Whatever comes out of this second interview is probably either contract negotiation or a broken deal. i.e. if JVG and Les/CD come to a mutual agreement on the direction, philosophy and culture of this team, we could very be looking at our successor to RudyT in JVG. On a separate note, JVG's story is far spicier than Dunleavy's IMO. Think about it. There is a great deal of intrigue with JVG given that: 1. he's coached in perhaps the BIGgest market in the US 2. he's coached a preeminent BIG man in Patrick Ewing 3. he's led a less talented Knick Squad to the BIG dance 4. he made a BIG decision to remain noncommittal to the Cavs. 5. he's made a BIGsplash as a TNT announcer with global appeal Is it me, or do you see a pattern here to? The only thing that isn't BIGabout JVG is his stature. And lest we forget that Les likes BIGthings, I think BIGthings are indeed coming to the Rox. theSAGE
When Van Gundy used Ewing, he used him primarily in the low post. Every so often you'd see him at the top of the key or in the high post waiting for a J. But anyone who knows Ewing knows that his bread and butter moves, (e.g. turnaround J, drop step dive into paint, pivot into lane, fingerrolls), all came deep in the low post. I think it's fair to say that Yao will also have his fair share of low post possessions. Some added caveats though is that I also foresee JVG using him more, say, 10, 12 feet out, top of the key for Js. The quality of the shot, the high FG% and Yao's comfort with being outside will earn him more looks, ala Rik Smits. Moreover, against man defenses, we'd be able to draw out the opposing center (e.g. think Shaq). Couple that we some strong rebounding forwards in EG, and we got some chemistry here. I for one am glad that Yao is not a "turnaround jumper" center. Those kinds of shots are low percentage shots and they do a number on your back. Instead, I see no reason why Yao can't use his hook shot more... a weapon Ewing never quite fully developed. With good spacing, good cutters and good passing, Yao will be unstoppable. Lastly, Yao has one big counter against the Zone: He is so damn tall, he can SEE over the zone and SEE over the doubles. One way to break down the zone is to sent cutters and penetrators to force the zone to collapse. We have all the weapons of that caliber in our arsenal in Mobley and Francis. Yao can and will be highly effective, even with the new rules in place b/c he will be surrounded by preeminent guards. theSAGE
Huh? Couldn't disagree with you more. Most Knick fans I know (New Yorker here) were shocked when Van Gundy resigned but I think everybody understood why he had to leave. I don't know a Knick fan that would besmirch any part of VG's tenure in NY. Even under the harsh glare of the big city's bright lights, he remained one of the most lovable coaches ever. Rewind to last year's Patrick Ewing number retirement ceremony at the Garden. Of the invited guests, who got the biggest round of applause? Bernard King? John Starks? Nope. The crowd stood and cheered Van Gundy for a good minute.
My belief as to why JVG waited till a few weeks into the season to quite was reasons of drive. I'm sure, that given the changes in the roster, the new GM, preseason injuries, et. al, JVG had enough stress coming into the regular season about putting up a winning record. By my recollection, though no critic was picking the Knicks to emerge from the East, most critics did peg the Knicks to be a 500+ team. But I bet my hat, that JVG knew full well that his team was overrated and undermanned. Yet, given what I have seen of JVG, I will tell you this much: THE MAN IS NOT A QUITTER If he's guilty of anything, it's not resigning sooner (e.g. in preseason) given all the management and personnel changes. I think his passion as a coach and his desire to win overshadowed his better judgement as to sticking the team. Contrast that with say, a Larry Brown, who seems to have a VERY good understanding of 1.when a team has peaked (sorry Philly) and 2.when to skip town. The good thing we have going for us is that Houston is NOWHERE near peaking. Heck, given our young talent, JVG would be a fool not to see the MANY years of playoff contention, Houston represents. I hope this second interview goes well. One thing I also like about JVG is that he's not afraid to speak his mind... even if that's in conflict with his GM. That's not contentiousness, that's leadership we're talking about here. I'm sure JVG has very solid ideas as to what he'd like to see happen with Houston if he were to be coach. My only concern is whether Les has the open mind to sincerely consider a new gameplan (but same personnel) for the Rockets. theSAGE
You're right Don. Another New Yorker here (Brooklyn) and I don't know a single Knicks fan that has a grudge against Van Gundy. That guy was loved by the Knicks fans and I remember his name even being chanted before. If Van Gundy joins another team, he'll probably lose a little luster with the New Yorkers, but at the time he quit he was still very well regarded. That guy gave 110% for the team and took the team farther then they should've gotten. Don Nelson didn't do anything with the Knicks and then along comes no-name Van Gundy and takes the Knicks back amongst the contenders in the East.
ALL THE POSTERS HERE FROM NEW YORK.....well all but one...SUPPORT JEFF VAN GUNDY! This is a good indication that he is a good coach...respected....liked...Get Van Gundy!
