I must say that I am surprised that this thread is still blowing up and posters are really this upset. It is now more the 2K posts of venom. Not a single person knows that this was a bad move. Posters only "think" that it was a bad move. It will be at least a year before we know the outcome of this move. If the team falls apart over the next 1-3 years or makes no progress, I could understand the upset at that point. Additionally, I find it highly unfair to Vivek and the FO to be so critical when the outcome is still TBD. For all that they have done for us in such a short time I think that they at least deserve a little bit of patience of the part of the fanbase as we wait and see the outcome.
But nobody will be able to prove that it was due to this move rather than "in spite of it".
None of that will vindicate this tasteless firing of Malone. Just for the timing and Pete's web of lies as to motivation (wins? style? wins? style?.... how about "butthurt egomaniac exec mad that the coach won't showcase his high jumper Derrick Williams and his fast runner Ramon Sessions, and his dumbass 4 on 5 defense").
D'Alessandro showed his ass big time here and I'm so glad the people of Sacramento are not letting him off the hook for it. It was complete betrayal - absence of common decency. Sacramento people don't like seeing a hard working guy like Malone get done like that. Trying to recruit an assistant with the promise that the head coach job would be his soon?! Using the DMC injury to create a false "results-based" pretense to fire the coach?! These crimes don't go away if the team succeeds under the next coach. The team had a dream November - Michael Malone coached this team to a freaking dream November... and Pete D'Alessandro inexplicably, desperately, deviously, used DMC's injury as a bogus excuse to fire the coach. Every single observer has seen through this except a very very very few die-hard PDA/Vivek supporters here. No reasonable person has articulated a case that Coach Malone DESERVED to be fired on merit at this point in this season. The idea that this roster "should be doing better if not for a coach deficiency" is madness to me (matter of opinion). The team was blowing away any realistic expectation. How people deny this is beyond me.
To me, it won't be over till D'Alessandro is gone. But at least for most people it can be over as soon as he hires a hall of fame coach to replace the terrific young coach he just screwed over. But I do not trust or like this GM after this episode. Even the way he is leaking this Deron Williams crap is more evidence that he thinks the fans are stupid sheep.
If they had replaced Malone in the off season (with whoever...) then what you say would be true I think - they would deserve some benefit of the doubt.
But they didn't.