If not Dunleavy, then who?

No, I vote Dunleavy to stay

No coach would be willing to coach the clippers at this stage of the season unless he’s an interim assistant coach who wants a job.

I’ve made this post before. Why Baron is not playing well is not Dunleavy’s fault. If BD is as good as he thinks he is, he should be able to play to the best of his ability REGARDLESS of coach.

by clipFanInSD on Dec 30, 2008 11:59 AM PST reply actions

I definitely agree that Dunleavy is a bad coach, but I don’t think that firing him is the solution. Look at how the other teams around the league have played after their coaches have been fired (OKC, Sacramento, etc.). It isn’t very good. I think that we’ve made enough changes and had enough injuries.

The players who are on the floor need to step it up regardless of what system they’re playing in or who the coach is. The coach is the fall guy in these situations, but it is definitely all Dunleavy’s fault. It’s not like we’d be a playoff theam with a different coach. We need a complete culture change (as in getting DTS the hell out of here). Since that is not going to happen, I say we stand pat for the moment. More changes is not going to bring more success. Let’s see where we are when we can finally field a somewhat healthy basketball team.

by WestsideBrandon on Dec 30, 2008 12:07 PM PST reply actions

be realstic

there is not one coach that would join a team already having a bad season if we want a good choach we have to wait to the end of the season cause somebody like eddie jordan wants to have the team from a fresh start so he can teach his style. the biggest issue as well is the big fat contract mdsr has why would any owner fire a coach and still pay him and bring in another coach to a losing team and pay them as well and oh yea eddie jordan aint looking for chump change lets just all think about this and be realstic. o

by masonjoussa on Dec 30, 2008 1:19 PM PST reply actions

Here to stay

at least for now. As mentioned above, you are not getting a good coach mid-season. Next offseason is the time to make a change. As far as MDsr, keep him as GM for the rest of the current contract. You can then decide then about weather to continue to keep him at that role or look for a new GM.

As to who next summer, CS covered it well. I would prefer a new face over a retred. Rambis, Mark Jackson, etc. I like the idea of Sam I Am, but would want him to have some assistant coaching exp first.

by HT on Dec 30, 2008 5:19 PM PST reply actions

suppose the whole personnel comes back....

Kaman, Zach, BD plays to his potential, Gordon matures and these clips managed to, say, win 31 games (sounds like a stretch, but suppose it is), would you still want Dunleavy to get fired?

Look, these players never really had a chance to gel. Heck, Kaman hasn’t even played with Zach at all, and even if they did, that in itself will take some time. But there’s no doubting Kaman, Zach, and Camby can be a great frontcourt! Lets give Dunleavy a chance before we roast him. In fact, I vote that he remains coach even next year and see what he can REALLY do when all the players are healthy.

Look at how the team performed during their playoff run? I don’t remember that team being injured in its first and second rotation…although, I would argue that Cassel’s savvy veteran presence is the main reason for their success that season.

by clipFanInSD on Dec 30, 2008 8:30 PM PST reply actions

Veteran Coaches who are better than Dunleavy and are available:

Eddie Jordan
Flip Saunders
Jeff Van Gundy
Hubie Brown

Anyone of these guys can get more out of this team than Dunleavy right now. The question is; should we wait until this season is over to finish last in the West and piss off the remaining season ticket holders, or bring in someone new to give a glimmer of hope?

My thinking is that the franchise will do nothing and will probably let Dunleavy finish his contract. With our record and lack of passion, attendance will crater next season along with the economy. According to our rep, they lost 40% of season ticket holders from last season this year. Next season, they are going to lose another 60%. Even in the LA market, you’re probably going to see attendance in the 5000. Bad entertainment product + bad economy = disaster. Can the Clippers apply for a federal bailout?

by MichaelCage on Dec 30, 2008 9:51 PM PST reply actions

How will these coaches get "More"?

I don’t get the reasoning…Jeff Van Gundy and Hubie Brown are both defensive coaches…and both prefer to pound the ball inside to their PF/C’s like MDSr. So I do not know how that is an improvement over MDSr. MDSr gets the most of of PF/C’s, as can be witnessed by Zach Randolph’s monster games when he came over. MDSr is the best coach for ZBo, which is the Clips best player. Also, look at how FElton is doing without MDSr? It’s not so fun when you don’t have a coach running the entire offense thru you.

When ZBo is healthy, the team is .500, and that’s with a weak bench. Kaman and ZBo are both out and BDiddy went 3-17. How is any team supposed to win like that? I also don’t get the argument that BDiddy is being held back. Despite his lousy shooting, that hasn’t stopped him from taking 17-20 shots a game. So clearly, he’s not “held back”. If anything, he has too much leeway.
its funny now when to think about how we were complaining about Brevin Knight’s shooting last year. At least Brevin Knight knew his weaknesses and had some self-control.

I love LAC.

by oasisman on Dec 31, 2008 12:08 AM PST up reply actions

Right - let's keep MDSr forever, no matter what happens - it's always someone else's fault

Always excuses – for six of seven years at the helm.

Not saying we should change horses in midstream, but definitely at the end of the year. Both coach and GM. Also not saying that we should hire any of those guys, although Jordan and Saunders (and some others not mentioned) are intriguing.

He’s not a good motivator, creates horrible offensive sets, is reactive re matchups, drafts poorly, and doesn’t sign players that fit within his system (BD, for example).

Other than that, he’s a winner !! (actually, he’s not – look at his record lifetime, with the Clips, etc.)

by Jax on Dec 31, 2008 9:32 AM PST up reply actions

once again...

what makes you think ANY of these coaches would want to coach the Clippers? Maybe you want it for them to be the replacement coach, but I"m pretty sure they wouldn’t. Heck, they might even ask for more money than they should.

At this point, I think only second or third tier coaches are willing to coach the Clips. Not someone with a good track record hoping to turn this thing around, because they’re smart enough to know they wouldn’t. Dunleavy I think is the best coach to coach this team right now. Hate to say it but deep down you know that is right. Right now we’re just reacting on emotions and immediate frustrations because they are losing. Think of this as the stock market and hope “dollar-cost averaging” works out :)

by clipFanInSD on Dec 30, 2008 10:24 PM PST reply actions

sorry don't mean to come on hard...

I know you guys are welcome to your own opinions…I’m not pointing to any particular poster when I said “maybe you want it for them to be the replacement coach” etc. I’m just saying to all us frustrated fans to think about this logically and realistically, and not necessarily voice out due to frustrations. This year (like last) is once again a product of bad luck…Mike Taylor injured, Kaman injured, Zach out, Ricky Davis pulling a Lamar, etc. If anyone ought to be disappointed it should be BD…he should stop complaining about how he’s feeling restricted and prove the great player that he is by making himself versatile…oh and maybe put in extra hours at practice so he can make those mid and long range shots!

by clipFanInSD on Dec 30, 2008 10:28 PM PST up reply actions

They will coach if there is no where else to go

and they may be the case with so many teams going for the young up and coming coaches. And money is money in the end. And if they can turn this team around Larry Brown style then even better. Larry brings up one example of a high profile coach coaching the clips (unless that was before he was really considered high profile).

by bestclipfan on Dec 30, 2008 10:33 PM PST up reply actions

after how much Sterling paid for Dunleavy...

I doubt he’ll be paying even more money to a top-tier coach like the list mentioned above. Now, suppose he will be. One look at the state of the current roster would make ANY coach run…or at least wait it out for the season. An unhealthy team with a teetering chemistry due to so many new faces is not good for this team right now. Unless we all scrap this season altogether and start fresh then maybe I can see a logic of hiring a new coach…but at the expense of a continued losing games as the “new” coach establishes a new chemistry with a bunch of new people.

Its not like this team has underachieved by any teams…..we’re just missing the players we all depend on. Clearly BD cannot run this team by himself. But look what happened when Zach was in the lineup?

by clipFanInSD on Dec 30, 2008 10:42 PM PST up reply actions

what we want and what will happen...

I think alot of us wants Dunleavy out…at the last poll here, I think it was up to about 80%. Now whether Dunleavy will actually get fired is an entirely different story. My guess is NO. Sterling won’t fire Dunleavy because he will then have to fill both the GM and the coach spot, and he owes Dunleavy alot of money. So when it comes down to it, we will probably be stuck with the same front office, coaching staff, and roster of players for the next two years or so whether we like it or not.

And whether any out of work coaches will want to coach this team? If you think you’re a good coach and you believe that the Clippers have enough pieces: Camby, EG, Thornton to be a competitive team, then you’ll want to try. If you’re afraid to take that risk and is just waiting for a championship caliber team to come along, then guess what, you’re just not a very good coach.

This is all spinning the wheel though. 80% of us might want Dunleavy out, but ther’s probably an 80% chance that Dunleavy will be coach and GM of this team until his contract expires. The Clippers are actually one of the most profitable NBA franchise right now due to their fiscal discipline and Sterling’s sweet heart deal with the Staples Center. In this recession environment though, with retail sales cratering and entertainment dollars disappearing, it will be very interesting to see how a 20 win team do in the next three years…even in the LA market where we’re all paper millionaires.

by MichaelCage on Dec 30, 2008 10:43 PM PST reply actions

which is why I commend Dunleavy more....

“If you think you’re a good coach and you believe that the Clippers have enough pieces: Camby, EG, Thornton to be a competitive team, then you’ll want to try. If you’re afraid to take that risk and is just waiting for a championship caliber team to come along, then guess what, you’re just not a very good coach.”

Remember, Dunleavy inherited a VERY BAD team when he joined the Clips. And after, what, 3 or 4 years, he hasn’t quit on this team and that is why I have great respect for him. I truly believe if all the personnel are healthy and are gelling together, this team can be great. The unfortunate thing is they’ve never had that time to really gel at all.

by clipFanInSD on Dec 30, 2008 10:53 PM PST up reply actions