The Blazers are looking for a few things in their new coach: *Defensive oriented *An up-and-comer The Hornets went from the 22nd ranked defense to #8 with the addition of Mike Malone. Described as having that "it" factor that Thibs had in Boston. A run-away winner in the GM poll of top NBA assistant. A defensive guru. Quick said Malone has studied this roster and wants to coach in Portland. He has all the qualities so what are they waiting for? This might backfire and Malone could very well accept the position in Washington, whom he is to interview with soon.
I think they are waiting to find out if the Blazers get the #4 and #7 pick in the draft, or if the Nets get to keep their pick and the Blazers get the #12 pick. To me, if Portland gets a situation like #4 and #7 "reload" is a possibility. If Portland misses out on the Nets pick it becomes a "rebuild" scenario. If I was Paul Allen I would hold off on hiring a GM / Coach until I know what I could do going forward, and I wouldn't know that until after the lottery.
The draft is deep with young talent, but is there realy anyone who can make an impact his first year? Maybe Davis but that is it. They are all 2-3 years away from making an impact. If they want to reload maybe they should trade both picks for a quality starter.
Personally I'm on the "hire a fucking GM already" bandwagon ... speculating about coaches and such seems kind of premature.
If our new GM doesn't choose his own coach without coercion from PA, this team will be no better 5 years from now.
Can he coach offense is what I want to know. That's what we've missed for years, with Roy bailing us out.
I agree with this. You need the GM to have a hand in the coach decision or there could be friction between the two. I think the Blazers are waiting on a few teams to get taken out in the playoffs to talk to their GMs still (Lakers & Celtics).
There is no guarantee that the Blazers will have TWO first round picks. And when hiring a GM and a coach it would be imperative when making that decision to know what direction you are going to take. If the Blazers get both picks you may want to hire a GM that you feel confident can make a deal to move the picks and players and bring something back that can put your team in a position to win now, and hire a coach that you feel can lead a team into the playoffs. If the Blazers only get our pick and it's 9 or worse you will want to hire a GM that is a great talent evaluator and a coach that can develop a system and young talent. That is why, while I really want to Paul Allen and Larry Miller to make a fucking decision and hire a GM / Coach, I'm 100% ok with them waiting until after the lottery to make their hire(s).
New Orleans was 16th in DEF EFF in 2011-12. They were 12th in DEF EFF in 2010-11. Doesn't mean he wouldn't be a decent hire, but EFF is more important than PPG, imo, when assessing team defense.
His team defense scheme was a welcome sight as a GS fan. Obviously we still sucked ass but with Curry, Monta, David Lee and no center to speak of what can you expect? He did a lot of the X's and O's, implementing the team defense and drawing up plays in games. Apparently he was doing all of the planning as far as practices and what not and a local beat writer said one of the biggest losses in losing him is all the planning and logistical crap he did on a daily basis. Not that someone else can't do it, just that he did a LOT and they'll have to find someone else to do it. He was about to be picked up by LAL and Mike Brown last summer before Lacob swooped in and made him the highest paid assistant coach in the league. Had to get a good X's and O's veteran lead assistant to assist Marc Jackson.
He sounds like a technocrat, great with paperwork. But can he lead men? All that desksitters are good for is posting their deep thoughts onto message boards from work. I used to cuss at them while I dug ditches for 50 years.
We need a GM first so he can have a say in who he wants to work with as a coach. I'm OK with Malone, but there are also other candidates for coach.
