Sam Mitchell coaching thread

[Monster]

Lip, what do you think the chances are of Sam coming back as head coach next season? Still holding out hope for JVG or Thibs. :anxious:

Right now, I'd say the odds of Sam coming back as head coach after this season are less than 50/50. But it ultimately depends on how things go the rest of this season -- the Wolves win/loss record, whether we make the playoffs, whether Sam can consistently control his arrogance at press conferences as he did last night and whether the players continue to have confidence in him. If we make the playoffs, I think it's likely Sam comes back. If not, all the other factors kick in and I'd put the chances of him returning at between 20-40%.

I don't trust Glen Taylor to make the right decision. Although I criticized Flip for holding on to the head coaching position, I trusted him to ultimately make the right choice for his replacement. Just consider the guys I know for a fact he was considering -- JVG, Fred Hoiberg, Tom Izzo and Joerger. Unfortunately, Izzo turned the job down and Joerger decided to stay with Memphis before Flip extended him an offer. After that, Flip decided he wasn't ready to let go of the position. There's no question though that Flip and Fred are very close and Flip had him on his list as his successor in a year or two. Glen's pattern is to stay within the country club and hire guys he knows and likes. That favors Sam and I don't see Milt Newton as a strong enough presence to sway Mr. Taylor. On the other hand, Glen wants this team to win, had incredible respect for Flip and knows Sam was not on Flip's short list.

I admit that some people think that bringing Sam back would be the right decision. Others are on the fence. I've seen enough to make up my mind that Sam's not the right choice after this season.

Lip thanks for sharing your thoughts. Do you have a name of a coach in mind you would be absolutely thrilled with? I haven't thought of one yet. Of course we have to see how things played out like you laid out in your post but there are some nice coaches out there but none of them seem like nobrainers to me but part of that is we still don't know enough about this team. Are some obviously better than Sam? Sure but I am not ok with that being the bar and I am sorta on the fence about Sam sticking around for a while beyond this year.

[longstrangetrip [enjin:6600564]]

I think everyone here agrees on a couple things.

1) Flip Saunders assembled an intriguing squad of young talent that has the potential to be very good.

2) in addition, since the Wolves were not a major player in the free agency market this year, we will be well-positioned to be active in free agency over the next few years as needed. Much of our young talent is on rookie contracts, and expensive vets like KG, Pek and KMart have contracts that soon expire.

Given that positive situation, having the right coach to get the most out of this talented group is going to be essential. And there is broad range of opinions about what we need in a head coach. I don't have a name in mind, but here are the criteria I need:

1) A defensive mindset. I want a guy who knows defense wins championships, stresses defense from day 1 in practice, and can show immediate improvement in team defense.

2) A history of overachieving, both as a player and as a coach. For example, a player who despite being picked in the third round of the NBA draft, went on to finish in the top three all-time in many categories for his franchise. Or a coach who won 48 games with a roster that looked a lot like the 76ers' roster this year.

3) While I don't need an offensive genius, it would be good to have a coach who was effective in designing plays during time outs...say, a guy that has his team in the top five in scoring out of time outs.

4) A guy with several years of experience as both a head and assistant coach, but still young enough to have the requisite energy needed to be an NBA coach.

5)And although this may be asking too much because there aren't many coaches who meet this criteria, it would be great if he had at least one year in which he was named NBA Coach of the Year. Nah, forget about that one...too limiting because there just aren't many coaches who have been COY but are still young enough to coach

6) A coach who is both hard-nosed, but fair, and has his players solidly behind him...veterans and rookies.

7) A coach who is willing to be flexible with such a young team in trying different combinations in an effort to find the best mix, even if hos experimentation results in the fan base questioning the consistency of his rotations.

It's probably asking too much, but that is what I'm looking for. Now, if only there was a guy out there who met a few of my criteria. Hmm...

[AbeVigodaLive]

A coach willing to cede some duties to his assistants. Basically, not a Mark Jackson type. But a guy who knows the value of having true innovators on his staff. Hell, in the perfect world, there'd be multiple future NBA coaches on the next Wolves coaching staff.

[Monster]

A coach willing to cede some duties to his assistants. Basically, not a Mark Jackson type. But a guy who knows the value of having true innovators on his staff. Hell, in the perfect world, there'd be multiple future NBA coaches on the next Wolves coaching staff.

Mike Malone was on Mark Jackson's staff before he got hired by the Kings.

[AbeVigodaLive]

A coach willing to cede some duties to his assistants. Basically, not a Mark Jackson type. But a guy who knows the value of having true innovators on his staff. Hell, in the perfect world, there'd be multiple future NBA coaches on the next Wolves coaching staff.

Mike Malone was on Mark Jackson's staff before he got hired by the Kings.

By several reports, Mark Jackson had a real problem with his assistants in his last season if they disagreed with him. That one guy ended up taping conversations or something goofy. And then Jackson banished Scalabrine.

It was on odd situation there...

[Tactical unit]

I think everyone here agrees on a couple things.

1) Flip Saunders assembled an intriguing squad of young talent that has the potential to be very good.

2) in addition, since the Wolves were not a major player in the free agency market this year, we will be well-positioned to be active in free agency over the next few years as needed. Much of our young talent is on rookie contracts, and expensive vets like KG, Pek and KMart have contracts that soon expire.

Given that positive situation, having the right coach to get the most out of this talented group is going to be essential. And there is broad range of opinions about what we need in a head coach. I don't have a name in mind, but here are the criteria I need:

1) A defensive mindset. I want a guy who knows defense wins championships, stresses defense from day 1 in practice, and can show immediate improvement in team defense.

2) A history of overachieving, both as a player and as a coach. For example, a player who despite being picked in the third round of the NBA draft, went on to finish in the top three all-time in many categories for his franchise. Or a coach who won 48 games with a roster that looked a lot like the 76ers' roster this year.

3) While I don't need an offensive genius, it would be good to have a coach who was effective in designing plays during time outs...say, a guy that has his team in the top five in scoring out of time outs.

4) A guy with several years of experience as both a head and assistant coach, but still young enough to have the requisite energy needed to be an NBA coach.

5)And although this may be asking too much because there aren't many coaches who meet this criteria, it would be great if he had at least one year in which he was named NBA Coach of the Year. Nah, forget about that one...too limiting because there just aren't many coaches who have been COY but are still young enough to coach

6) A coach who is both hard-nosed, but fair, and has his players solidly behind him...veterans and rookies.

7) A coach who is willing to be flexible with such a young team in trying different combinations in an effort to find the best mix, even if hos experimentation results in the fan base questioning the consistency of his rotations.

It's probably asking too much, but that is what I'm looking for. Now, if only there was a guy out there who met a few of my criteria. Hmm...

God you love Sam (PUKE)

[Monster]

A coach willing to cede some duties to his assistants. Basically, not a Mark Jackson type. But a guy who knows the value of having true innovators on his staff. Hell, in the perfect world, there'd be multiple future NBA coaches on the next Wolves coaching staff.

Mike Malone was on Mark Jackson's staff before he got hired by the Kings.

By several reports, Mark Jackson had a real problem with his assistants in his last season if they disagreed with him. That one guy ended up taping conversations or something goofy. And then Jackson banished Scalabrine.

It was on odd situation there...

I thought it was worth saying since we were making the parallel and you said ideally there would be multiple future head coaches on the staff. Jackson already has one guy from his staff to become head coach. I think it's also safe to say Malone was pretty involved and Jackson listened to him you don't get a head coaching job and get credit for a team's surprising defensive abilities for just sitting there. Some of the others guys...yeah no.

[longstrangetrip [enjin:6600564]]

I think everyone here agrees on a couple things.

1) Flip Saunders assembled an intriguing squad of young talent that has the potential to be very good.

2) in addition, since the Wolves were not a major player in the free agency market this year, we will be well-positioned to be active in free agency over the next few years as needed. Much of our young talent is on rookie contracts, and expensive vets like KG, Pek and KMart have contracts that soon expire.

Given that positive situation, having the right coach to get the most out of this talented group is going to be essential. And there is broad range of opinions about what we need in a head coach. I don't have a name in mind, but here are the criteria I need:

1) A defensive mindset. I want a guy who knows defense wins championships, stresses defense from day 1 in practice, and can show immediate improvement in team defense.

2) A history of overachieving, both as a player and as a coach. For example, a player who despite being picked in the third round of the NBA draft, went on to finish in the top three all-time in many categories for his franchise. Or a coach who won 48 games with a roster that looked a lot like the 76ers' roster this year.

3) While I don't need an offensive genius, it would be good to have a coach who was effective in designing plays during time outs...say, a guy that has his team in the top five in scoring out of time outs.

4) A guy with several years of experience as both a head and assistant coach, but still young enough to have the requisite energy needed to be an NBA coach.

5)And although this may be asking too much because there aren't many coaches who meet this criteria, it would be great if he had at least one year in which he was named NBA Coach of the Year. Nah, forget about that one...too limiting because there just aren't many coaches who have been COY but are still young enough to coach

6) A coach who is both hard-nosed, but fair, and has his players solidly behind him...veterans and rookies.

7) A coach who is willing to be flexible with such a young team in trying different combinations in an effort to find the best mix, even if hos experimentation results in the fan base questioning the consistency of his rotations.

It's probably asking too much, but that is what I'm looking for. Now, if only there was a guy out there who met a few of my criteria. Hmm...

God you love Sam (PUKE)

Hmm...I hadn't thought about Sam but you make a great point, tactical...Sam Mitchell does meet all the criteria I laid out above. Great call!

I think any fan who has been passionate about the Wolves since day 1 in the Metrodome loves Sam Mitchell, TU. KG is clearly Mr. Timberwolf, but Flip and Sam are 2a and 2b based on their performance and longevity. And I admit the "I'm so much smarter than Sam" arrogance that permeates most message boards annoys me at times. It's like posters think he experienced a full lobotomy since he was named Coach of the Year less then 10 years ago, and is no longer capable of making proper coaching decisions! Criticizing a coach's moves is what we do as fans. I criticize something any Wolves coach does every game...Sam's starting Martin over Prince, for instance, is a move I don't support, and just like I criticize the arrogance of some anti-Sam posts here, I have criticized Sam's arrogance in dismissing reporters' post-game questions. Both attitudes bug me. But the criticism of Sam seems to me to often go outside the bounds of normal questioning of coaching moves, and seems based on factors other than actual performance at times.

[AbeVigodaLive]

A coach willing to cede some duties to his assistants. Basically, not a Mark Jackson type. But a guy who knows the value of having true innovators on his staff. Hell, in the perfect world, there'd be multiple future NBA coaches on the next Wolves coaching staff.

Mike Malone was on Mark Jackson's staff before he got hired by the Kings.

By several reports, Mark Jackson had a real problem with his assistants in his last season if they disagreed with him. That one guy ended up taping conversations or something goofy. And then Jackson banished Scalabrine.

It was on odd situation there...

I thought it was worth saying since we were making the parallel and you said ideally there would be multiple future head coaches on the staff. Jackson already has one guy from his staff to become head coach. I think it's also safe to say Malone was pretty involved and Jackson listened to him you don't get a head coaching job and get credit for a team's surprising defensive abilities for just sitting there. Some of the others guys...yeah no.

Yeah, the goal is to have those good assistants. And to keep that culture going even after good assistants leave. I just wanted to point out that Jackson didn't seem like the type who seemed to champion his assistants. At every turn, there were rumors of contentious relationships.

For example, he and Malone went weeks not talking to each other (allegedly) in 2013. The same thing happened to Jackson and Scalabrine. Then, that weird thing with Ermann taping stuff.

Here's an article that mentions the Scalabrine and Malone feuds: http://sports.yahoo.com/news/warriors-coach-mark-jackson-forces-reassignment-of-assistant-brian-scalabrine-184142899.html

[Monster]

A coach willing to cede some duties to his assistants. Basically, not a Mark Jackson type. But a guy who knows the value of having true innovators on his staff. Hell, in the perfect world, there'd be multiple future NBA coaches on the next Wolves coaching staff.

Mike Malone was on Mark Jackson's staff before he got hired by the Kings.

By several reports, Mark Jackson had a real problem with his assistants in his last season if they disagreed with him. That one guy ended up taping conversations or something goofy. And then Jackson banished Scalabrine.

It was on odd situation there...

I thought it was worth saying since we were making the parallel and you said ideally there would be multiple future head coaches on the staff. Jackson already has one guy from his staff to become head coach. I think it's also safe to say Malone was pretty involved and Jackson listened to him you don't get a head coaching job and get credit for a team's surprising defensive abilities for just sitting there. Some of the others guys...yeah no.

Yeah, the goal is to have those good assistants. And to keep that culture going even after good assistants leave. I just wanted to point out that Jackson didn't seem like the type who seemed to champion his assistants. At every turn, there were rumors of contentious relationships.

For example, he and Malone went weeks not talking to each other (allegedly) in 2013. The same thing happened to Jackson and Scalabrine. Then, that weird thing with Ermann taping stuff.

Here's an article that mentions the Scalabrine and Malone feuds: http://sports.yahoo.com/news/warriors-coach-mark-jackson-forces-reassignment-of-assistant-brian-scalabrine-184142899.html

Fair enough thanks for providing that info. If he was not getting along with Malone no wonder Jackson ended up getting canned.

Sidenote: I wonder how long Scal stays in broadcasting. He seems to have plenty of options of what to do with his life when it comes to basketball.