If Steve Kerr wants to reap the fruits of his highly controversial trade for Shaquille O'Neal, letting go of Mike D'Antoni is a move he should not, under any circumstances, make.
While D'Antoni's flaws as a coach were exposed in the first round against San Antonio, the Suns were undone more by their silly mistakes. Those mental breakdowns and blown assignments at the end of Game 1 were inexcusable. As were those costly turnovers in the latter stages of Game 5. Let's say that Phoenix won Game 1, the whole complexion of this series would have been completely different.
But alas, small mistakes always add up to having bigger consequences, and as a reward for the Suns penchant for mental lapses, they were given the boot in Round 1 and left everybody questioning the state of the Suns for next year.
Now that they've been booted out of the play-offs, the onus is on Kerr to breathe life on this floundering team and the first thing he needs to address is the status of Mike D'Antoni as head coach.
We've all heard about the philosophical differences Kerr and D'Antoni have had with regards to the team's direction. D'Antoni prefers his run-and-fun style of play and believes that after averaging 57 wins over the past four years, his style of play can work. Kerr, meanwhile, wants more emphasis on defense and a sense of accountability and responsibility from his younger players. In Kerr's mind, imagine how good Stoudemire will be if he cared a little bit more about getting rebounds, or how dominant Boris Diaw can be if he paid more attention to defense than the number of croissants he's had.
That's where their philosophical difference lies. D'Antoni thinks Kerr is micromanaging while Kerr thinks D'Antoni is being too lenient on his players.
If you ask me, there's a way to reseolve this and Kerr has to understand that firing D'Antoni will only exacerbate his gamble of acquiring O'Neal and you don't chase a gamble by making an even bigger one.
Kerr needs to ‘know his personnel' - as he always put it when he was a TNT analyst - and understand that the Suns are built to win now, and not later.
Changing coaches and changing philosophy takes time but the Suns don't have that luxury. Nash and Shaq are both 34. Grant Hill is 30-something, and Raja Bell has clearly lost a step - or three. Those four, supposing the Suns don't make any roster changes during the summer, are almost half of their regular rotation. Putting in a new coach with a different philosophy is a coated way of saying that ‘they're starting over'. That's fine and good if you're a team like the Toronto Raptors, but not if you're a team who relies a great deal on two players that are clearly past their prime.
The Suns can't afford to have another coach come in and put in a different style from the one they've been running the past couple of years. It's more important for Nash because D'Antoni's system fits his style of play like a glove.
If Kerr does decide to make a change, he should do everything he can to make sure D'Antoni's job is secure, but also try to convince him of the simple "merits" of playing defense in a way that will not undermine Coach D'Antoni's position as coach.
But if Steve Kerr does let go of Coach D'Antoni, he - for all intents and purposes - is closing the curtain on the run-and-fun style of the Suns; a bad idea considering the majority of his team is best-suited in that style of play.
Keep Mike D'Antoni, Steve Kerr. You already made a big gamble on the Shaq trade and its best that you don't get coaxed into making a bigger gamble on this one.
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Comments (4) Add A Comment
I really don't see getting rid of D'Antoni as a big gamble. He had a chance to win with a team built for his up tempo stylein year's past with Marion, and he had a chance to win with a team the Suns was built for the playoffs with Shaq and Hill this year. Both years, he was unsuccessful. Between the age of Shaq and Nash, and the rise of the Lakers this year (and with Bynum rejoining them next year to make them even more formidable), the rise of the Hornets, the up and coming Blazers, and general competitiveness of the Western Conference, the window to win is closing fast. Not to knock D'Antoni, but he's had chances, with various personnel, and he hasn't shown that he can get over the hump.
The complexion of the Spurs series certainly would have been different if they had won game 1 (or game 2 for that matter), and D'Antoni and the Suns had golden opportunities to win both games and came away empty in both, allowing double-digit leads to be erased in each game.
If he had gotten past the Spurs, which the trade for Shaq was supposed to do, his job might have been safe.
That being said, it's time to give someone who places an emphasis on defense a chance. There's no way with Shaq AND Amare that Parker and Manu should have gotten to the rim as often and easily as they did in that series. If Amare wants to be considered among the elite players in the league and receive MVP consideration, he needs to learn to play solid defense. By solid defense I mean the kind that doesn't always show up in the stat column but wins playoff games. It's pretty obvious that D'Antoni isn't going to sell Amare on that if he hasn't by now.
perfect360
Pittsburgh , PA
Total Comments (989)
X Perfect360,
You're right about the fact that D'Antoni had his chances with the Suns. Four years worth as a matter of fact.
But the thing is, when Kerr made that trade for Shaq, the whole dynamic of that team changed darstically, and I dont think it's fair for D'Antoni if we judge this Suns team based on what they did for half-a-season.
Contrary to popular belief, the Shaq trade actually spiked the Suns fast break points, mainly because of Shaq's ability to throw outlet passes that lead to fast breaks.
Yes, D'Antoni had his chances but this team he has right now is different from the one he had in year's past and it would be unfair if he didnt get a full training camp to instill a new style that revolves around Shaq, Amare and Nash.
With a full training camp, and a slew of minor roster changes that would emphasize a more stringent approach on defense, this Suns team can do damage next year.
If I was Kerr, I would give D'Antoni one - maybe two - years to make this work. If it doesn't work, you change coaches and you change your whole philospohy because by that time both Shaq's and Nash's contract would be up and you can rebuild the Suns according to the needs of whatever style Phoenix might need to play.
Squeaks & Sneaks
Wood Ridge , NJ
Total Comments (7)
Sneaks, my point is, he doesn't seem to place value on defense. Sure, he may not have had much time with Shaq in the mix, but he had plenty of time with Amare and company, and defense was never a strong point on those teams.
So that leaves you with a decision. You have a small window of 2 years with your current core players. Do you fire D'Antoni now and give a new guy the full two years with these guys, or do you keep D'Antoni for at least 1 more year, a guy who has NEVER placed and emphasis on defense, in hopes that he changes his philosophy and style to one that includes defense? If you give D'Antoni another year and the results are the same, you've left the new guy only one year with Shaq, Amare and Nash before you blow it up. Not exactly fair to the new guy either.
perfect360
Pittsburgh , PA
Total Comments (989)
If I were Steve Kerr, the logical compromise would be for them to hire a defensive-minded assistant coach like what the Celtics did. Of course, a big credit must go to KG for Boston's defensive re-emergence but their defense is anchored on Thibodeau's aggressive philosophy.
I think it may just work, provided the Suns get a few defensive-minded players. I mean, Paul Pierce wasnt really a good defensive player in year's past but his been an animal this year. If that guy can get STAT to play just a tad bit more defense, they're going to be even more dangerous.
Squeaks & Sneaks
Wood Ridge , NJ
Total Comments (7)
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