There's No Defense For Mike D'Antoni.

KBlack25

Starter
Not true!

Knowledgeable fans of the game, while happy for progress and a win, were not satisfied with a 120 to 118 score...

Because of what those Stats actually indicated.

When STAT was dropping 30 points per game you weren't around here complaining...
 

Red

TYPE-A
I'm glad you noticed this.

It took MIA a long time to get some continuity, I think this offseason will be good for Carmelo and STAT IF they dedicate themselves to learning how to play together. We blew this team up and brought in all new personnel, it wasn't going to click immediately, especially v. a Celtics team that has been running like a machine the last 4 years.

I think the most important thing is MDA needs to challenge STAT and Carmelo - whoever wins the title, he (or any head coach) has to make it clear that the team who won the championship (Celtics, Lakers, Miami, Chicago, whomever), has OUR title. Challenge Carmelo: tell him everyone says LeBron is better (or Rose, or Kobe)...ask if he believes that...and tell Carmelo it's on him to prove everyone wrong.

If MDA can communicate to STAT and Melo they should be out for blood, like cold assassins we can beat anyone, the two of them are as talented as any duo on in the league save for maybe James/Wade and Kobe/Gasol. I believe this is what MDA communicated (or someone on that bench communicated) to those 2 during that amazing Miami game.

Lacking urgency is the biggest issue, that's our inability to close games - it seemed like we were playing not to lose as opposed to playing to try and shut a team out. If MDA can't bring that - then he deserves to go. If Melo and STAT say privately, to Dolan and Walsh (not via a representative, not via "an anonymous source" in the media), they say it THEMSELVES, that they don't believe in MDA, then he should go.

More important than any scheme is the players' willingness to buy in, and in our situation, its whether STAT, Melo and (to a lesser extent) Billups buy in. If they do not, then find someone they do believe in.

Yeah sounds good.

Lacking DEFENSE is one of our biggest issues!

Are you a knowledgable fan, or a casual one?
 

Red

TYPE-A
When STAT was dropping 30 points per game you weren't around here complaining...

Actually I was. Then I chilled and gave te benefit of the doubt.

I'll take Stat avg.'ing 10 points per if our team defense was top 10. Believe that.

Smh at you stating Amare dropping 30 as some sort of anectdote.

I guess the D'Antoni brainwash iis ingrained in you...smh
 

KBlack25

Starter
Actually I was. Then I chilled and gave te benefit of the doubt.

I'll take Stat avg.'ing 10 points per if our team defense was top 10. Believe that.

Smh at you stating Amare dropping 30 as some sort of anectdote.

I guess the D'Antoni brainwash iis ingrained in you...smh

If STAT is averaging 10 points per game then we are paying Max money to a marginal player...
 

Red

TYPE-A
If STAT is averaging 10 points per game then we are paying Max money to a marginal player...

I could care less how much we are paying anyone. Its not my money.

And I don't hear you saying anything about D'Antoni being the highest paid. Wonder why?

Besides our ENTIRE payroll comes with the expectations of winning and competing. It matters NOT how we do it, or who performs to what standard...

The ends justify the means. In this case (Mike) we are being short changed.
 

KBlack25

Starter
I could care less how much we are paying anyone. Its not my money.

And I don't hear you saying anything about D'Antoni being the highest paid. Wonder why?

Besides our ENTIRE payroll comes with the expectations of winning and competing. It matters NOT how we do it, or who performs to what standard...

The ends justify the means. In this case (Mike) we are being short changed.

You could care less? So that means you care a little?

Look, there's a salary cap...bad contracts for underperforming guys severely hurt a teams chances of evening out a roster.

See:

Curry, Eddy
Lewis, Rashard
Arenas, Gilbert
Carter, Vince
 

Red

TYPE-A
You could care less? So that means you care a little?

Look, there's a salary cap...bad contracts for underperforming guys severely hurt a teams chances of evening out a roster.

See:

Curry, Eddy
Lewis, Rashard
Arenas, Gilbert
Carter, Vince

I think you know what I mean.

Just realize your stance on Mike is weak and unwarranted. We won't crucify you for adjusting your opinion. Its ok we understand.

You gave it a try it didn't work, now you realize we can't afford to make the same mistakes going forward. After all we do have $185 spent on two players. If that's what you care about.
 

KBlack25

Starter
I think you know what I mean.

Just realize your stance on Mike is weak and unwarranted. We won't crucify you for adjusting your opinion. Its ok we understand.

You gave it a try it didn't work, now you realize we can't afford to make the same mistakes going forward. After all we do have $185 spent on two players. If that's what you care about.

My stance has nothing to do with Mike and everything to do with NBA coaching/players in general.

As I said earlier, if the three main players don't buy into the system or don't respect the coach then he needs to go. More important than anything is whether or not players buy into/believe in the system. If there is MDA-related-dissension in the ranks, he needs to go.
 

nyk_nyk

All Star
Knowledgeable fans of the game, while happy for progress and a win, were not satisfied with a 120 to 118 score...

Because of what those Stats actually indicated.

This is so true. I remember not being totally happy with certain wins and indicating to my friend that it wouldn't translate into playoff basketball wins.
 

Blumatic

Rotation player
Steven a Smith was on with BT. What he says makes sense.

Here is SAS in a nutshell by MDA (my one sentence summary):

Its not that MDA is a bad coach, he just won't do the things to become a better one.

MDA did go through a lot. Any compassionate human being would want to give MDA stability and to se what he's about with one full year witha a solid core.

The problem is we haven't seen any glimmer of coaching moxy from D'antoni.

Here's an analogy:

Danilo Gallinari was abig topic here with Knicks fans: Would he be really good or just below average.

Gallo in his early stages showed that he can be a good play or a great piece to a winning team. His desire to be the best was there. Always wanted to guard the best player. Not the most adequate defender but always tried. His was a good teammate.

Knicks fans saw something.

In MDA, there was nothing the past 3 years that showed he did something special.
 

Red

TYPE-A
ok i'll go with th speculation

.. and we wouldn't win even w a top ten defense.

But I gaurentee we WOULDN'T HAVE lost in the fashion we did.

Nothings a lock in terms of how far one can go- but the fact remains defensive teams go further. Indesputable.

Recall how Love dropped 30 & 30 on us
Recall how Hansbourough (spelling) killed us... twice
Or how 3rd tier teams were made to look like contenders against us
Or how many times we were forced to comeback from 20 point deficits


And you want to sell me on the roster? The roster... really?

Wow. That's why we chucked 7 threes in a row or had to come back from 16 down... because of the roster..smh

At the very least not only would we not still be clammoring for almost impossible pieces, but we would have actually been competitive.
 

Crazy⑧s

Evacuee
I could have told you that...After watching basically all 86 games this team has played this season, I known the shtick...Amare frequently catches the ball around the top of the free throw arch, that's the go to play for Amar'e, giving him the option to put it up if his man sags or get to the hole if his man over plays him.

I could see that a week in to the season, it's nothing new...but it's a problem now. Why? Because Amar'e didn't hit his jumpers. But nobody was saying peep about this lack of creativity when Amar'e had his jumpers fall more consistently for 30 points nightly....

Not nobody. I've had my gripes with it all year.

I never said anything about Amar'e's jumpers falling. Thanks for the lack of effort.
 

Kiyaman

Legend
http://sports.espn.go.com/new-...&id=6425665

Heres an article on coments made by Knicks players

here are the quotes for those who don't want to click the link:

"It is not easy to call for the exodus of a coach who averaged 58 wins a season in his previous job, who is as kind and decent as they come. Nor does it seem fair to call for the head of a coach who, some would say, helped resurrect this franchise and made the Knicks relevant again. But when players are devoid of respect for a coach's basketball acumen, when the opposition laughs over the transparency of his game plan -- so much so that D'Antoni's players intimated they had instituted their own changes at halftime of a close-out game -- the need for a change simply cannot be denied.

The rare display of heart and guts the Knicks exhibited in the second half of Sunday's Game 4 didn't happen just because they started hitting shots and the Celtics suddenly forgot how to defend them. "We got tired of the way things were going," one player explained in the wee hours of Sunday night, long after everyone had departed from the Garden.

"We walked in at halftime and said 'We can't go out this way.' We were pretty ticked off, especially at us not seeming to have any answers scheme-wise. We knew Boston knew everything we were going to do, how we were going to do it, so we needed to do something differently. We just couldn't keep going the way we were going."

"Coach knows offense," one player explained. "It would be nice to set plays, control pace and not jack up shots just because you're open. But that's what Coach does. You could live with it if we played defense. But obviously, we haven't done that much. Good, bad or otherwise, all I can say is that I've never seen anything like this."
 
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Why The Knicks' Mike D'Antoni Needs To Be Fired


First Posted: 04/25/11 03:58 PM ET Updated: 04/25/11 04:52 PM ET
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Mike D?Antoni has to go.

There, I said it.

The truth is D?Antoni is a nice guy who belongs as an assistant coach solely dedicated to designing fast break style and scheme. But, in a league where you simply cannot win without consistent defense, D?Antoni?s time as a head coach has come and gone.

The Knicks just don?t know how to win, which, of course, is a direct reflection of the head coach. D?Antoni?s coaching style of ?we?re going to do everything possible to push tempo and outscore you? is a fun system that produces excitement and some regular season wins. His teams consistently rank at the top of the league in points scored and at the bottom in points allowed (28th this season and dead last in 2009-2010 when they gave up 107.8).

But I can?t reiterate the downside of such a system enough. Winning playoff basketball is predicated off of half-court execution and defense. Boston -- as I predicted before the series began -- did not allow New York to run. The Celtics made the Knicks beat them in a slow game, which they couldn?t do. Better yet, the C?s did what every good club in the playoffs has always done to D?Antoni teams ? make them play defense.

To be fair, not all of the onus falls on him. Despite the uber-gifted duo of Amar?e Stoudemire and Carmelo Anthony, the Knicks? roster is full of holes. As great as he?s been, Stoudemire has been playing out of position all season as a center.

Anthony meanwhile is a superior talent but still, eight years into his career, not an actual superstar. Debate it all you want, but he's just not.
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Lastly, Chauncey Billups -- at 34 years old -- is not the right man to direct this offense. He doesn?t have the sheer speed of Raymond Felton and thus could not lead the transition game as effectively. Moreover, it?s very challenging to bring a team together after infusing such egos and talent midway through the season. There are a lot of moving parts for a team still searching to find the right balance of top heavy talent and ancillary parts.

But that?s where it stops. D?Antoni still had plenty of opportunities to will his team to wins against Boston.

Game One was an abomination. New York held a double-digit lead for much of the game, yet somehow seemed shell-shocked when Boston made its run. Memo to the Knicks: This is the NBA ? everyone, especially a team like the Celtics, can make a run. You have to take the punches and fight back. The Knicks though -- lacking the winning framework its head coach -- rolled over like a hot batch of Pillsbury dough.

As bad as that was, nothing was worse than Game 2.

Despite the absence of Stoudemire and Billups, New York once again outplayed Boston for much of the night. Anthony was brilliant, scoring 42 points and grabbing 17 rebounds. But, as always in crucial games, D?Antoni?s team folded.

First off -- and this goes for the entire series but especially Game 2 -- where in the world was Landry Fields, playing just 15 minutes?

D?Antoni instead turned to the ice cold Roger Mason, Jr. along with Jared Jeffries and Bill Walker. But why? Mason hasn?t made a jumper all season nor has he played any significant minutes. Jeffries -- whom D?Antoni made it a point to acquire in late February after buying out the defensively minded Corey Brewer -- is a good defender but awful offensively. Walker is a long-range chucker and perhaps the worst defender on the league?s worst defensive team.

Fields could have very well made the difference in that game, and would have helped the whole series. A capable scorer, the rookie was also the best rebounding guard in the entire NBA. Without him, the Knicks may have missed the playoffs altogether, yet when push came to shove, D?Antoni went with Mason, who shot under 39 percent for the series and was a marginal defender at best.

Better yet, why was Jeffries in the game that final possession? Perhaps D?Antoni can make the case for using Mason as an extra shooter to spread the floor, but Jeffries is one of the league?s worst offensive players. His turnover attempting to pass to a wide open Walker was terrible for sure, but in reality ... he had no business being in the game.

In addition to his inability to manage his substitutions and rotation, D?Antoni also hampered the Knicks? by not making the necessary in-game tactical adjustments. He burned all of his timeouts way too early each of the first two games and inexcusably didn?t prepare his team for the famed Kevin Garnett alley-oop lob in Game One.

When Garnett posted up Jeffries to give Boston the lead in Game 2, he absolutely had to send the double-team. Case in point: Carmelo had 42 in that game, but he couldn?t even get a shot off after his three-pointer put New York up three with 2:35 remaining. Doc Rivers -- by sending constant double-teams at Melo -- forced someone else to beat them. D?Antoni meanwhile let Garnett body Jeffries into the paint for five seconds before draining the pivotal jump hook.

Many people will also point to Carmelo?s refusal to foul Delonte West on the ensuing Celtics possession following Jeffries? mishap. Once again, let?s be fair: This is two-sided. Melo had to know he needed to commit that foul -- that is just basketball 101. The 9th graders I coach know to make that foul. But then again, why was he even in the game to begin with?

Anthony had five fouls. He shouldn?t have been anywhere guarding the backcourt. That responsibility should have gone to someone else.

Games 3 and 4 were much of the same. The Knicks -- who shot a woeful 40.6 percent during the sweep -- looked uninspired and unprepared; like they knew the series was already over.

This has been a constant theme with D?Antoni coached teams before. Can you recall any key playoff win by his Phoenix teams? Despite an array of talent: an MVP in his prime, Steve Nash; young and healthy star, Amar?e; NBA Sixth Man award winner, Leandro Barbosa; All-NBA defender, Raja Bell; and guys like Joe Johnson and Boris Diaw ? D?Antoni never once took his teams to The Finals.

With the threat of the lockout looming, Walsh could very well keep D?Antoni for one more year to avoid the dreaded buy-out. The 59-year-old coach will make $6 million next season, his last under contract with New York.

The Knicks don't have the good fortune of waiting though. Anthony and Stoudemire are both at the point in their careers where if either one of them are ever going to win, it has be now. Chris Paul and Deron Williams -- the two elite point guards in the league -- are free agents after next season, as is the NBA?s premier center, Dwight Howard. Next season?s performance is crucial for a franchise desperately trying to lure one of these three players and create its own version of ?The Big Three,? which is all the reason more to fire Mike D?Antoni.

Cant sleep. Figured I'd share this with you guys. If it was already posted, my bad...
 

Red

TYPE-A
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14
Why The Knicks' Mike D'Antoni Needs To Be Fired


First Posted: 04/25/11 03:58 PM ET Updated: 04/25/11 04:52 PM ET
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Typical
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2011 Nba Playoffs , 2011-Nba-Lockout , Amare Stoudemire , Celtics Knicks , Chauncey Billups , Collective Bargaining Agreement , Donnie Walsh , Kevin Garnett , Knicks Celtics , Landry Fields , New York Knicks , Knicks , Mike-Dantoni , Mike-Dantoni-Knicks , Nba Playoffs , Nba Collective Bargaining Agreement , Nba Lockout , Nba Playoffs 2011 , Nba-Cba , Nba-Lockout-2011 , New Cba Nba , Poll , Sports News

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Mike D?Antoni has to go.

There, I said it.

The truth is D?Antoni is a nice guy who belongs as an assistant coach solely dedicated to designing fast break style and scheme. But, in a league where you simply cannot win without consistent defense, D?Antoni?s time as a head coach has come and gone.

The Knicks just don?t know how to win, which, of course, is a direct reflection of the head coach. D?Antoni?s coaching style of ?we?re going to do everything possible to push tempo and outscore you? is a fun system that produces excitement and some regular season wins. His teams consistently rank at the top of the league in points scored and at the bottom in points allowed (28th this season and dead last in 2009-2010 when they gave up 107.8).

But I can?t reiterate the downside of such a system enough. Winning playoff basketball is predicated off of half-court execution and defense. Boston -- as I predicted before the series began -- did not allow New York to run. The Celtics made the Knicks beat them in a slow game, which they couldn?t do. Better yet, the C?s did what every good club in the playoffs has always done to D?Antoni teams ? make them play defense.

To be fair, not all of the onus falls on him. Despite the uber-gifted duo of Amar?e Stoudemire and Carmelo Anthony, the Knicks? roster is full of holes. As great as he?s been, Stoudemire has been playing out of position all season as a center.

Anthony meanwhile is a superior talent but still, eight years into his career, not an actual superstar. Debate it all you want, but he's just not.
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Lastly, Chauncey Billups -- at 34 years old -- is not the right man to direct this offense. He doesn?t have the sheer speed of Raymond Felton and thus could not lead the transition game as effectively. Moreover, it?s very challenging to bring a team together after infusing such egos and talent midway through the season. There are a lot of moving parts for a team still searching to find the right balance of top heavy talent and ancillary parts.

But that?s where it stops. D?Antoni still had plenty of opportunities to will his team to wins against Boston.

Game One was an abomination. New York held a double-digit lead for much of the game, yet somehow seemed shell-shocked when Boston made its run. Memo to the Knicks: This is the NBA ? everyone, especially a team like the Celtics, can make a run. You have to take the punches and fight back. The Knicks though -- lacking the winning framework its head coach -- rolled over like a hot batch of Pillsbury dough.

As bad as that was, nothing was worse than Game 2.

Despite the absence of Stoudemire and Billups, New York once again outplayed Boston for much of the night. Anthony was brilliant, scoring 42 points and grabbing 17 rebounds. But, as always in crucial games, D?Antoni?s team folded.

First off -- and this goes for the entire series but especially Game 2 -- where in the world was Landry Fields, playing just 15 minutes?

D?Antoni instead turned to the ice cold Roger Mason, Jr. along with Jared Jeffries and Bill Walker. But why? Mason hasn?t made a jumper all season nor has he played any significant minutes. Jeffries -- whom D?Antoni made it a point to acquire in late February after buying out the defensively minded Corey Brewer -- is a good defender but awful offensively. Walker is a long-range chucker and perhaps the worst defender on the league?s worst defensive team.

Fields could have very well made the difference in that game, and would have helped the whole series. A capable scorer, the rookie was also the best rebounding guard in the entire NBA. Without him, the Knicks may have missed the playoffs altogether, yet when push came to shove, D?Antoni went with Mason, who shot under 39 percent for the series and was a marginal defender at best.

Better yet, why was Jeffries in the game that final possession? Perhaps D?Antoni can make the case for using Mason as an extra shooter to spread the floor, but Jeffries is one of the league?s worst offensive players. His turnover attempting to pass to a wide open Walker was terrible for sure, but in reality ... he had no business being in the game.

In addition to his inability to manage his substitutions and rotation, D?Antoni also hampered the Knicks? by not making the necessary in-game tactical adjustments. He burned all of his timeouts way too early each of the first two games and inexcusably didn?t prepare his team for the famed Kevin Garnett alley-oop lob in Game One.

When Garnett posted up Jeffries to give Boston the lead in Game 2, he absolutely had to send the double-team. Case in point: Carmelo had 42 in that game, but he couldn?t even get a shot off after his three-pointer put New York up three with 2:35 remaining. Doc Rivers -- by sending constant double-teams at Melo -- forced someone else to beat them. D?Antoni meanwhile let Garnett body Jeffries into the paint for five seconds before draining the pivotal jump hook.

Many people will also point to Carmelo?s refusal to foul Delonte West on the ensuing Celtics possession following Jeffries? mishap. Once again, let?s be fair: This is two-sided. Melo had to know he needed to commit that foul -- that is just basketball 101. The 9th graders I coach know to make that foul. But then again, why was he even in the game to begin with?

Anthony had five fouls. He shouldn?t have been anywhere guarding the backcourt. That responsibility should have gone to someone else.

Games 3 and 4 were much of the same. The Knicks -- who shot a woeful 40.6 percent during the sweep -- looked uninspired and unprepared; like they knew the series was already over.

This has been a constant theme with D?Antoni coached teams before. Can you recall any key playoff win by his Phoenix teams? Despite an array of talent: an MVP in his prime, Steve Nash; young and healthy star, Amar?e; NBA Sixth Man award winner, Leandro Barbosa; All-NBA defender, Raja Bell; and guys like Joe Johnson and Boris Diaw ? D?Antoni never once took his teams to The Finals.

With the threat of the lockout looming, Walsh could very well keep D?Antoni for one more year to avoid the dreaded buy-out. The 59-year-old coach will make $6 million next season, his last under contract with New York.

The Knicks don't have the good fortune of waiting though. Anthony and Stoudemire are both at the point in their careers where if either one of them are ever going to win, it has be now. Chris Paul and Deron Williams -- the two elite point guards in the league -- are free agents after next season, as is the NBA?s premier center, Dwight Howard. Next season?s performance is crucial for a franchise desperately trying to lure one of these three players and create its own version of ?The Big Three,? which is all the reason more to fire Mike D?Antoni.

Cant sleep. Figured I'd share this with you guys. If it was already posted, my bad...

+ A HEALTHY Amar'e DIDN'T get the rock in seven possessions down the stretch in game one! You know- the one where we had a double digit lead- where all of our squad was healthy (so as to thwart any excuse makers nonsense)... REMEMBER?

WONDER who decided that? Wasn't Amar'e killin' em'?

7 crucial possessions? More threes taken than Amar'e (healthy) had shots? Who decided that?


Great article! Keep em' coming! We must see this guy out...


BTW...

FIELDS AVG 1.7 POINTS IN THIS SERIES... 1 POINT MOTHERF*CKING 7 POINTS. He was on the down turn long before we got there. I guess it costs >$6mil for proper adjustments. Smh.
 

Red

TYPE-A
Gonna be a long off-season

But what if one of Dolan's players, a popular one at that, voices a dissenting opinion?

On Monday, Carmelo Anthony was asked every which way to endorse D'Antoni and he answered the questions like a senator caught in a love triangle.

Melo was evasive and non-committal, which was apparently enough to fool some in the media that Dolan's new favorite player believes the Knicks have the right head coach. In fact, the exact opposite is true. According to a person close to Anthony, the player D'Antoni wasn't thrilled about acquiring, is far from convinced that D'Antoni's system is the right fit for his game.

And when Chauncey Billups comes out and says there is no perfect coach and happens to mention that Larry Brown - D'Antoni's polar opposite and Dolan's sworn enemy - is his all-time favorite, I think it's safe to assume that the veteran point guard isn't reading "Seven Seconds or Less" in his spare time.

But I think D'Antoni lives to see another day. With the pending lockout, the Knicks may not want to risk paying two coaches when there may not be any games next season.

Plus, D'Antoni has something neither Brown nor another Hall of Fame coach, Lenny Wilkens, enjoyed during their brief runs in New York: a patient boss.

If you're a coach, you want to work for Donnie Walsh.

Walsh let D'Antoni hire his staff. He doesn't meddle in playing time. And he is patient. Almost to a fault.

This theory that D'Antoni hasn't been given a fair shake is misleading. D'Antoni is now eighth among Knick head coaches in games. He's coached more games than Brown, Wilkens and Don Nelson combined. Those three have a combined winning percentage of .437 as Knick head coach. D'Antoni's winning percentage is .419.

Wilkens was 40-41 and kept the Knicks competitive despite a major February trade. The Knicks went 14-18 after acquiring Anthony from Denver. Wilkens coached Stephon Marbury. D'Antoni has Amar'e Stoudemire, Carmelo and Chauncey.

D'Antoni has had players. He's had time. Have the conditions been ideal? Welcome to New York.

If D'Antoni wants the job beyond next season (which he may not) he needs to coach defense, have his team better prepared and hold all of his players accountable.

Oh yeah, he also better start winning.

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NYdailynews.com
 

Crazy⑧s

Evacuee
I don't think the winning % call is a fair one.

Gonna be a long off-season



NYdailynews.com

This theory that D'Antoni hasn't been given a fair shake is misleading. D'Antoni is now eighth among Knick head coaches in games. He's coached more games than Brown, Wilkens and Don Nelson combined. Those three have a combined winning percentage of .437 as Knick head coach. D'Antoni's winning percentage is .419.

You have to admit that his first 2 years were throw aways.

You could also easily say that we should have won 10-15 more games than we did this year, too, but that's, IMO, a 70/30 split: MD/players.

Some will disagree with that 70/30 split, but I don't think they can deny that our game closing strategies/plays/capability are among the league's worst on both ends of the floor.
 

Red

TYPE-A
Crazy⑧s;177668 said:
You have to admit that his first 2 years were throw aways.

You could also easily say that we should have won 10-15 more games than we did this year, too, but that's, IMO, a 70/30 split: MD/players.

Some will disagree with that 70/30 split, but I don't think they can deny that our game closing strategies/plays/capability are among the league's worst on both ends of the floor.

Throw aways?

I can't research right now, but do you recall the 8th seed's records in the East the past two seasons? I'd bet they were losing record teams if not close to.

Recall when we finally started using Larry Hughes and won a few straight and then he was Dnp'd-cd? How about all the other DNP-CD'S? Recall? If I werea betting man, i'd say Mike was purposely tanking games.

But then again we had no pick to tank for... so how do you explain that?

I love how some (not necessarily you) point to a "changing roster" as some sort of excuse... as if when he gets a stable roster those decisions won't be made.

Guess what? The trade dead-line COMES EVERY YEAR- FOR EVERY TEAM & EVERY COACH!!!!!!

THERE WILL always be the possibilities for player movement, and the fact that as a coach he has experienced this MANY times, that excuse about roster movement is garbage- hold no water- bupkis!!!

As if we can't analyze his abilities until such minute conditions exist. Please.

A healthy, stable (just won 7 in a row before the last 2 throw away games), team with a lead on the road, riding the double x2 dominate performance of Stat, neglected to get him the ball seven times and blew the most important game in a decade...

And you got nerve to give me an excuse? After as you say we endured two "throw away" years- you actually explain that without mentioning the coach? Please!

Every excuse has been debunked. For every player injury, flux, roster theory you offer, there are a myriad of examples of why that explains nothing as much as "he just isn't that good" does!


REDUCE THE EXCUSE!
 

ronoranina

Fundamentally Sound
But I gaurentee we WOULDN'T HAVE lost in the fashion we did.

Nothings a lock in terms of how far one can go- but the fact remains defensive teams go further. Indesputable.

Recall how Love dropped 30 & 30 on us
Recall how Hansbourough (spelling) killed us... twice
Or how 3rd tier teams were made to look like contenders against us
Or how many times we were forced to comeback from 20 point deficits


And you want to sell me on the roster? The roster... really?

Wow. That's why we chucked 7 threes in a row or had to come back from 16 down... because of the roster..smh

At the very least not only would we not still be clammoring for almost impossible pieces, but we would have actually been competitive.

You call it speculation but I call it knowing the game of basketball and what you can and can't get away w. That comment rung true on it's face right?

I hear all of you guys that disagree w the basic principles within the system.

I agree that you need certain players to make it work really well, which is a shortcoming in a sense but then again most coaches need and covet certain guys to run their stuff. I also agree that scoring from outside-in goes against basic fundamentals that are time tested. <This to me is indisputable.

However after having studied this system closely and seeing it work well over the years, I have to admit, inspite of the above, I'm a fan of it. I like it. I believe, firmly, that w the right execution, by the right players, it can work properly and be devastatingly effective.

Next, I don't know what all of the fuss is about. Remember - our only stated goal for the season was to make the playoffs. It's not like we were going to win a championship this year. I didn't see us getting upset like the Spurs. It wasn't perfect, but in my IMHO, this coach did the best he could w what he had, all year.

I'm all for giving MDA another shot.. I want to see what he can do w a full training camp w Melo, Amare and Co.

If we start the season w the same inconsistency on defense, or if the offense isn't clicking properly, I'll really start to question this coach. I also agree w kblack in that if Melo and Amare aren't on the same page w MDA, he needs to go. I'd also really, really like to see MDA get another assistant who can teach proper defense. It's clear no one on this staff can accomplish this.
 
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