Flip has an obvious massive chip on his shoulder

[BloopOracle]

A man who coached the only successful period in franchise history returns....he wants to rewrite his legacy here. The power grab all the way to the top and he is now in a position to take 100% of the credit/blame which is exactly what he wanted. The way he is with the media I mean you just feel him seething and wanting so bad to prove these people wrong. The Love situation has fueled him even more, I could sense even a more defiant aura from him the last few weeks. I don't know what our roster will look like when the season starts but I am extremely excited to see Flip coach, he is so incredibly invested in this that I expect him to be a man on fire to be honest. It's going to be fun to watch him fly up and down the sidelines next season and will our team to wins. But can he persevere?

[Q12543 [enjin:6621299]]

I'm glad you are excited for Flip, but our success as a team will be tied mostly to good health and improvement from key players. The biggest thing Flip can do is coach this team up defensively. Is that really his strength?

[khans2k5 [enjin:6608728]]

I'm glad you are excited for Flip, but our success as a team will be tied mostly to good health and improvement from key players. The biggest thing Flip can do is coach this team up defensively. Is that really his strength?

Isn't that what Sam Mitchell is for? I figured he would run the D and Flip would run the offense.

[worldK]

I'm glad you are excited for Flip, but our success as a team will be tied mostly to good health and improvement from key players. The biggest thing Flip can do is coach this team up defensively. Is that really his strength?

Isn't that what Sam Mitchell is for? I figured he would run the D and Flip would run the offense.

Not all teams have a defense coordinator. Some teams choose to designate 1 assistant for it while some don't. Flip has been hands on and on top of things in his coaching career.

Remember when the rule change to allow some zone defense? Flip was our coach then and he was one of the first to start using the 'matchup' zone in the league. He was hands on then so he isnt the type to allow an assistant to have control over an aspect of the game. He will at least still be the chief decision maker and scheme maker.

[Lipoli390]

Q -- I think Flip will do more than improve our defense. Flip's strength is on the offensive end. Two things Flip does especially well are: limiting turnovers, and getting quality shots and possessions. That leads to winning close games, something we didn't do well last season. Flip has the best winning percentage of any current head coach in games decided by 4 points or less.

[worldK]

Q -- I think Flip will do more than improve our defense. Flip's strength is on the offensive end. Two things Flip does especially well are: limiting turnovers, and getting quality shots and possessions. That leads to winning close games, something we didn't do well last season. Flip has the best winning percentage of any current head coach in games decided by 4 points or less.

Interesting stat there lip with regards to flips close game record.

1 more thing about flip's coaching is his teams always rank at the bottom on 3pt fg attempts. the 3pt shot is just not a shot that his offense produced but his offensive schemes usually results in midrange jumpers. The league of late has seen increased in 3pt shot attempts and reliance on it. It certainly is more efficient than the long mid range shot. But we'll see about it.

[mrhockey89]

Q -- I think Flip will do more than improve our defense. Flip's strength is on the offensive end. Two things Flip does especially well are: limiting turnovers, and getting quality shots and possessions. That leads to winning close games, something we didn't do well last season. Flip has the best winning percentage of any current head coach in games decided by 4 points or less.

Don't forget...Flip is about as good as it gets in drawing up scoring plays out of a timeout, which could bode well for us in late game situations.

[Lipoli390]

Q -- I think Flip will do more than improve our defense. Flip's strength is on the offensive end. Two things Flip does especially well are: limiting turnovers, and getting quality shots and possessions. That leads to winning close games, something we didn't do well last season. Flip has the best winning percentage of any current head coach in games decided by 4 points or less.

Don't forget...Flip is about as good as it gets in drawing up scoring plays out of a timeout, which could bode well for us in late game situations.

Good point, Hockey. Another reason Flip's teams have been pretty successful in close games.

[Lipoli390]

World -- You're right about Flip historically favoring the midrange game. But we've all heard him say the three-point shot is critical to success in today's NBA. So it will be interesting to see how and how well he adapts his offensive system. I take heart in the fact that he is a very good basketball mind as a coach.

[Q12543 [enjin:6621299]]

Q -- I think Flip will do more than improve our defense. Flip's strength is on the offensive end. Two things Flip does especially well are: limiting turnovers, and getting quality shots and possessions. That leads to winning close games, something we didn't do well last season. Flip has the best winning percentage of any current head coach in games decided by 4 points or less.

While it's heartening to know that Flip has a good record in close games, I tend to think that close game win percentage has more to do with random luck than any other variable. Our desire to understand the cause and effect for everything doesn't leave much room for random variability, but that's exactly what's at play when a game is decided by just a small sample size of shots, referee calls, etc.

As for defense, you seem to assume he will improve it. How? What's his defensive philosophy and track record? To me that's the factor a coach has the most influence over. We were already a good team when it came to limiting turnovers, so I don't see how he improves us much in this area.