<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (MikeDC @ Mar 25 2008, 08:48 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div><div class='quotemain'>http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/basketba..._must_give.html <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'>Rick Carlisle's chummy relationship with Bulls chairman Jerry Reinsdorf apparently has put him at the top of the list of candidates to succeed interim coach Jim Boylan. But if Nets exec Kiki Vandeweghe crosses the Hudson to take over the Knicks, he has Carlisle at the top of his list of coaching prospects.</div> Guess that's one reason we keep hearing his name. </div> How in the world and in what setting would Rick Carlisle have cultivated a chummy relationship with the Chairperson? Bizarre. I don't have a good suggestion for the next head coach. On some of the other boards it is accepted conventional wisdom that the coaching this year is responsible for 75%+ of the negative results, but I think that's a pretty unlikely circumstance at the NBA level. However, I'm sure the Chairperson is still feeling burned by Skiles and won't green-light a competitive contract for a big-name coach. I think we're going to be picking from the Porters and Caseys and candidates of that nature. Just another of the many fairly major decisions Pax needs to make this offseason.
Well, I for one feel we're in good hands. I've come to the conclusion a guy with head coaching experience is probably warranted. Even one of the "hot assistant" sorts (i keep hearing people talk about Tom Thibodeau for example) is still coming from a position of relative inexperience even though he's been in the NBA. Given this team's lack of leadership, positional logjams, and general quittieness, I tend to think any sort of training wheels would be an obstacle.
I'm not quite happy with calling Reinsdorf the "Chairperson." How about we call him "The Chair?" As in, when you play for (or coach) the Bulls, you get "The Chair!"
Sam Mitch from raptors, just kiddin loll, no but what about Van Gundy? I think he would be a very decent candidate
I went through Basketball-Reference the other day and looked at most every guy with recent coaching experience. Guys that at least crossed my mind: 1. Any chance Mike Brown gets fired after losing tonight? I recently heard Sam Smith call Brown the worst coach in pro basketball because he "doesn't use Lebron" right. Um, Sam, have you looked at the other 14 guys on those Cavs rosters? MJ wasn't winning win he was surrounded by that kind of "talent", so I have to think that Brown is doing something right. I'd like to see the Cavs try to run and gun with Big Z and the corpse, but that's because I'm a Bulls fan. 2. Didn't Mike Dunleavy have a big blowout with Donald Sterling earlier in the year? 3. Paul Westphal coached a team to the finals and now lives under a bridge downtown. 4. Again, Van Gundy is starting to look ok when I hear John Lucas being mentioned. Yeah, John freaking Lucas. Really. <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'>Former Cavaliers coach John Lucas, according to a league source, is a candidate for the head coaching job with the Chicago Bulls. The Cavs fired Lucas, who coached them to a 37-87 record in two seasons, in 2003. Lucas was a special consultant with the Toronto Raptors this season. Celtics guard Sam Cassell, who works out with Lucas in the off-season, hopes Lucas gets another chance. "Lucas would be excellent for that team," Cassell said. "He won't beat them down mentally. Those players will be in shape, I know that. He demands good condition."</div>
Dunno about Lucas, though I've heard lots of good things about him over the years. I like what Cassell says about him (won't beat them down mentally). Not sure that's what Paxson wants in a coach.
Mike Dunleavy seems like he'd be a good fit here. I agree with the need for experience. We have so many green players that are trying to find out where they fit with the team that we don't need a head coach who has the same problem. What about Mike Fratello? He seems like a decent candidate as well. Van Gundy is okay, but I've never seen him run an offense that isn't predicated on dumping the ball to a big and having everyone else stand around and wait for him to kick it out. Ideally, I think we'd want an experienced coach with good pedigree who has shown excellence in managing offenses or unconventional teams. Don Nelson would be great. I would have liked D'Antoni too. Rick Adelman as well if he wasn't with the Rockets. I'm not sure if he's dead yet, but Hubie Brown wouldn't seem like a bad choice if he wasn't on the verge of kicking the bucket.
