Mark Jackson, and NBA coaching styles

[Warner2BruceTD]

I posted this in the Warriors/Spurs thread, mainly just to say I liked Mark Jackson, but it turned into something else as I was typing and I think it could make a good discussion. So here's the post:

I like Mark Jackson. He's a horrendous x's & o's coach. Outside of Keith Smart in Sacramento, he's probably the worst x's & o's coach in the league.

I've watched roughly 50 Warriors games plus all of the playoff games, and there is no team in the league that does a worse job out of timeouts or on final possessions. They almost never get a good look. And that's on the coach.

With that said, he makes it up in other ways. He's a players coach. He believes in his guys and doesn't give up on them. He doesn't bench or bury people for mistakes. He rides the horses that got him there. That goes a long way, when players know they can play their game with no fear and do what they're paid to do.

I don't know if he's ultimately the guy to take this (very) young team to a title, but he's definitely been the guy to get them in the mix as a contender. There is a theory in baseball, that you should always replace a player's manager with a totalitarian manager once his style gets stale - and also the opposite. I'm not sure that would work in the NBA, where the players drive the cart far more than the players do in baseball, a sport where the manager is still firmly in charge and the players almost never call the shots and largely "just play".

Can tyranny still work in the NBA? It works when the coach is an established winner. Can young coaches adopt this style, or has the culture of the league changed too much?

 

[Nico]

I hate all the critizism Jackson receives because personally, i love him as a coach. Like you said he's maybe not an x's and o's guy but he's a great preacher and motivater. That's just what this young team needs all the guys are playing together perfectly, Jackson has them working as a team. I think it's hard to blame a guy that has led the Warriors to where they are right now

 

[JeremyHight]

I won't say that a totalitarian guy wouldn't work because the Spurs outperform teams every year that have more/younger talent with Pop at the helm. If a guy is a totalitarian, but know his stuff and gets the respect of the players, he can succeed. The problem is that certain players think they are bigger than the team and should not need to adapt their game or practice to get better.

 

[Warner2BruceTD]

Popovich also was very luck to inherit a team with a veteran team leader who came from a military background, a rookie star who certainly is cut from a different cloth than most young NBA stars, and three veteran players who were future NBA coaches on his roster.

And now that he's won a bunch of titles, he has instant respect and carte blanche to run his team his way.

The number one priority in choosing a coach in the NBA seems to be to find a guy who won't ruffle the feathers of your star player. And don't blame "modern" players, either. It's always been this way. Smilin' Magic Johnson ran his coach off as a rookie. You can go back to the 60's and find examples.

 

[ralaw]

Tom Thibodeau seems like a no nonsense type of coach that that has his players respect. Along with Popovich I think he is the best coach in the league. As the head coach he hasn't won a championship, but his players will run through a wall for him. Granted I think much of that is because of the type of tough and grind it out players Chicago has brought in to help set the tone.

 

[JimLeavy59]

He's a good A to B coach.

 

[Len B]

I don't know if he's ultimately the guy to take this (very) young team to a title

Unlikely. He uses the Doc Rivers style of coaching but doesn't have the leadership in the locker room to steer the ship right when they get in trouble.

Rivers was just as bad at drawing up game winning plays, I'm known for always criticizing what I have now dubbed the 'Inevitable Pierce Fadeaway' final shot mentality that developed in Boston, so it was no shock to see Jack to the same thing Sunday. Thibodeau was the perfect match for Doc.

 

[jeffx]

Smilin' Magic Johnson ran his coach off as a rookie. You can go back to the 60's and find examples.

Not just Magic - Larry Bird and the entire Celtic team tuned out Wild Bill Fitch. When Don Nelson came to NY and tried to run the offense through Anthony Mason, guess what happened? Any coach will be successful if the star player buys into his system. Patrick Ewing bought into Pat Riley/Jeff Van Gundy. Carmelo Anthony didn't buy into Mike D'Antoni.