The differences between great NBA coaches and poor coaches are subtle because most coaches at the NBA level are basketball experts. For example, Stan Van Gundy has been widely criticized by the media during the 2009 NBA playoffs while Phil Jackson has been praised with very little criticism. Why does the sports media differ in their treatment of these two coaches when they have both coached their team to the NBA Finals?
There are some minor factors that seem to determine the effectiveness of a head coach such as coming up with a game plan, managing the players on the roster, and building team confidence.
A head coach has the responsibility of coming up with a primary game plan. The game plan is important because a team works best when they are all working together toward the same goal. A coach wants to maximize the strengths of his team while minimizing the weaknesses.
For the Phil Jackson's Lakers, their strengths are their size, experience, and their bench. They have twin towers in the middle with Bynum and Gasol. Odom is one of the tallest small forwards and Kobe Bryant is one of the tallest shooting guards in the NBA. The Lakers are loaded with experienced players. Kobe Bryant and Derek Fisher have won multiple championships, and almost every player on the roster was on the Lakers last year when they went to the NBA Finals. They have been tested in the playoffs and they keep their composure when most teams would panic. Their bench includes Lamar Odom, an all-star caliber SF/PF. The Lakers second team is one of the best in basketball. They take care of the ball and share the ball well.
The strengths of the Orlando Magic are its three point shooting, speed, and its center. Dwight Howard is the NBA's leading rebounder and shot blocker. He also shoots a high FG%. The Magic have many players who are considered great shooters such as Rashard Lewis, Hedo Turkoglu, and JJ Reddick. The Magic play with a small lineup which makes them one of the fastest teams in the NBA because the players all run the floor extremely well.
Managing the players on the roster is just as important as game strategy. Both coaches have managed their rosters well. The Lakers and the Magic seem to have cohesive units. The Lakers seem to understand their roles and responsibilities with the exception of Andrew Bynum. Phil Jackson has managed the starters well and the role players have complimented the stars of the team (Kobe, Odom, and Gasol).
The Magic also have little issues when it comes to team chemistry and player roles. Dwight Howard is the obvious leader, but he allows the other players to take leadership roles too. Van Gundy has been criticized by Dwight Howard because he felt he was not getting enough touches, but overall coach Van Gundy has managed his roster well.
While the Lakers exude confidence in their ability to win, the Magic lack confidence. Stan Van Gundy has not helped his team believe that they are worthy of being world champions. While they know that they have the talent to win, they do not show confidence that they will win. They have accepted their underdog role, but they are not showing the fight and the grit of a team that wants to prove everyone wrong. Stan Van Gundy's late game strategy is hard to judge because at times it appears genius such as the lob play for Courtney Lee, but at other times it appears incompetent such as allowing Lebron to take a wide open three pointer (with a two point lead and less than one second remaining).
It is unfair to harshly criticize Van Gundy because he has coached his team to the NBA Finals. Is it possible for the Orlando Magic to make it this far if Stan Van Gundy is a bad basketball coach? It appears that Van Gundy is a good coach, but lacks some minor elements that keep him from being considered a great coach by the general sports public.
Stan Van Gundy is the master of Panic
As Jeff Van Gundy says, "this is a make or miss league" If Courtney Lee makes his shot and D-fish misses his then SVG is a genius,master, brilliant mind so on and so forth. Everyone forgot that D-fish was 0-5 till the big 3. It wasn't as if he was nailing 3's all night. SVG got alot of flack for not playing Skip but didn't Drew Bledsoe get benched for a returning Tom Brady before? Why was that ok? If D-fish misses that shot then the heat is on PJ for not playing Farmar or Shannon Brown.(sigh!) Finally, look at the playoff format 2-3-2. We knew the magic was going to lose a home game and steal one in LA (blown game 2????) That's why this 3-1 series is much closer than it looks. They could win game 5 and steal game 6 with laser beam shooting to force game 7. oooooh!
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