In Memoriam

Now that the NBA season is over, a number of coaches and GMs will soon be let go, fired, canned, and/or run out of town. This running summary is my attempt to remember each in some small way.

• Doug Collins will not return as coach of the Sixers next season, David Aldridge on Twitter IMO, Collins is a good coach and a better commentator. This season's debacle was not his doing. The famous 'Andrew Bynum blowing' gif tells you everything that you need to know about the 2012/13 Philadelphia 76ers.

• Byron Scott was fired as coach of the Cleveland Cavileres, Akron Beacon Journal. It's very fitting that both Collins and Scott were fired/resigned on the same day. Collins was fired from the Bulls in 1989. After struggling for a few years, the Bulls put together a core featuring young Michael Jordan, Scotty Pippen, and Horace Grant, finishing with a 47-35 record and a trip to the ECFs. Collin was replaced by Phil Jackson and the rest is history. Byron Scott managed the post-LeBron Cavs as well as can be expected. Like the 1988/89 Bulls, the Cavs have also put together a talented young core of Kyrie Irvin, Tristan Thompson, and Dion Waiters. While it's not Jordan, Pippen, and Grant, it's still pretty good. Is it a coincidence that Phil Jackson is again looking for a new job?

• Lawrence Frank was fired as head coach of the Detroit Pistons, Mark Stein on Twitter. I don't have much to say about Lawrence Frank, except that in January of 2004, he replaced Byron Scott as head coach of the Nets. It only seems fair that Scott replaces him in Detroit.

• Lance Blanks was fired as GM of the Phoenix Suns, ESPN.  After reviewing Blanks record on Basketball Reference, I can't say that he was terrible. His two worst moves were the Beasley signing and giving up Dragic, a #1, and the rights to Nikola Mirotic for Aaron Brooks. The Brooks trade was exceedingly atrocious. However for the most part, he did a semi-passable job as GM. His biggest sin may be timing. He is the GM who tore down the playoff team and traded Nash to the Lakers. 

• Mike Dunlap was fired as coach of the Charlotte Bobcats, CBS. Michael Jordan & Co. canned their first year head coach for reasons that are not clear: "As an organization, it was decided that we needed to make a change with the head coach position" - president of basketball operations Rod Higgins. Let me translate this for you, "Whoops! We f@!$ed up and hired the wrong guy!?!?  He's terrible! Who knew? Can we get a mulligan?" I have to assume that Dunlap was either completely overwhelmed by the position, he clashed with management, or he beat Jordan in a game of H.O.R.S.E

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• David Kahn was/will be fired as President Of Basketball operations of the Minnesota Timberwolves (FOX) Poor David Kahn has been dumped on by every media outlet across the country. Bill Simmons did a nice piece on how badly Kahn screwed up the 09 draft. Still,with a healthy Kevin Love, Rubido (two years removed from his ACL injury), and a resign Peković, the Wolves could be fighting for a playoff spot next season.

• Jim Boylan was fired as interim head coach of the Milwaukee Bucks. His final record was a less than stellar, 22-28. IMO, the 22-30 is a bit misleading. The Buck were locked into the 8th seed very early and had little motivation during their remaining ~15+ games. In addition, Boylan solidified the rotation, which was something that Scott Skiles could/would never do. The consistent rotation helped Ersan Ilyasova restore his confidence after losing it as a result of Skiles constant lineup changes, minutes fluctuation, and DNPs. On the Downside, Boylan clashed with Jennings. A head coach needs to have some authority, but the NBA is a star  driven league. The stars almost always win the coach vs. player battles, unless the coached is established and backed by the team's veteran players . In this case, Boylan was too new and Jennings is one of the vets on the team. Boylan also never played Tobias Harris. This always confused me. It was clear that the kid had talent. In the handful of games that Harris started at the beginning of the season, he did well (statistically) in limited minutes. After Skiles left the team, Harris did miss some time due to an injury, but racked up DNPs when healthy. Couldn't Boylan find 10-15 minutes a game for Harris? Perhaps those few minutes per game would have somehow kept Harris in Milwaukee? My condolences to the Bucks fans out there. Making the playoffs as an 8th seed and a 4 game sweep by the Heat is pyrite return on flipping Harris to Orlando.

<more updates as news breaks>