NBA Finals or Bust: The Scary State Of Head Coaching In The NBA

Head coaches, successful ones at that, are being dismissed left and right in the NBA. One can only wonder why the sudden surge of a “win-now” mentality has arrived, and how long it will last

The NBA, like life, is a series of ups and downs. Over the past few years, though, many NBA coaches have found out the hard way that sometimes the ups, simply aren’t good enough. Scott Brooks, Tom Thibodeau, Frank Vogel and many other head coaches have been fired in the midst of what many would deem successful tenures in their respective cities.

A trend which is typically reserved for the NFL, which features a heavy win-now attitude, has come to the NBA and appears as if it’s here to stay. Mark Jackson, who is now a commentator for ESPN, was terminated by the Golden State Warriors after three seasons and 121-109 record.

That record won’t blow anyone away, but when you consider that in a mere two years the team jumped from winning 23 games to winning 51 in his final season, it is quite impressive. Not to mention that this team was trending up when he was released, which led to Steve Kerr sliding into a first year Finals victory.

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Another prime example is the Minnesota Timberwolves new Head Coach, Tom Thibodeau. Thibs was the defensive coordinator of Doc Rivers’ champion Boston Celtics and transitioned right into being a defensively minded head coach in Chicago. He won 64.7% of his games in Chicago, making the postseason in five consecutive seasons, despite fighting through constant injuries.

His relationship with upper management and ownership played a role in his firing, which was uncalled for no matter the circumstances.

This offseason two playoff teams fired their head coaches, not including Houston who decided not to retain their interim head coach. Although the Rockets also fired Kevin McHale after a mere 11 games, in spite of his three consecutive playoff appearances with last season’s being his most successful.

Memphis, who fired their previous head coach after three consecutive playoff appearances, fired Dave Joerger after his third consecutive playoff appearance. Joerger’s team stood no chance in the first round, especially without Mike Conley and Marc Gasol, and was swept by the powerhouse that was the San Antonio Spurs. That being said, Joerger’s Grizzlies were never truly title contenders but that had more to do with personnel than it did his coaching.

May 10, 2016; Sacramento, CA, USA; Sacramento Kings head coach Dave Joerger smiles during a press conference at the Sacramento Kings XC (Experience Center). Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports /

Frank Vogel, who was on the hot seat multiple times throughout his tenure in Indiana, was dismissed after his fifth playoff appearance in six seasons. Vogel’s win percentage was 58% and this includes a season that the team missed the playoffs largely due to Paul George’s offseason injury.

An honorable mention goes to Erik Spoelstra, who was on the hot seat as the Head Coach of the Miami Heat, in spite of the team representing the Eastern Conference in four consecutive NBA Finals.

Coach Spo, who was criticized for possibly being a Pat Riley puppet or not commanding the players’ respect, weathered the storm and his championships forced the seat to cool down substantially. Although this “pressure” was largely from the media and less from his boss Pat Riley, who was committed to Spoelstra and knew that the team was championship bound.

If it weren’t for the winning, Coach Spo likely would have become David Blatt. Blatt was fired after a season and a half in Cleveland, largely due to LeBron James’ obvious lack of respect for him and the resulting lack of respect he received from the rest of the team.

James never openly admitted to or commented on playing a role in his firing, but his open appreciation of Tyronn Lue and lack of that for Blatt made his opinion clear.

The NBA is trending in an odd direction, with the apparent win-now mentality with which teams are dismissing rather successful head coaches. The most telling facet of such is that most of these coaches are finding new jobs, fairly quickly at that. Joerger moved on to Sacramento, Thibodeau is in Minnesota, Vogel went to Orlando, Brooks is the new coach of the Wizards, and so on and so forth.

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Patience is a virtue, as is realism. Perhaps it’s time franchises began to evaluate how talented their teams truly are, before having unrealistic dreams of a championship.

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