Don Nelson resigns

Yep, I just saw the breaking news on ESPN. Surprising because I thought it would be at the end of the season. He has been grooming Avery.
 
Saw it first right here, and it doesn't suprise me. Nelson has been in and out with personal problems/injuries all year. I just hope Avery doesn't pull a George Karl and take the Mavs on a huge run to end the season, we could be screwed in the playoffs. Of course, I'm kidding, because Johnson has been steppin' in at the head coach slot alot this season, so it wouldn't be the same kind of shift that came when Karl began to coach Denver.
 
Well I would hate to bet on Nelly being the glue holding Dallas togeteher, but this can't help the number 4 team... Kings chances of moving back up just got better.
 
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I will miss him

As a Mavs fan it really saddens me - I love Don Nelson and what he and Cuban has done for our lowly franchise. AJ's a good coach - we'll see how the Mavs do. I think (and Nellie thinks) the team really responds to AJ a lot better lately. We'll see what happen.

I will miss these kind of Nellie moments as well, like this one where he was suspended for berating the refs. He decided to come to a local Dallas bar and drink with fellow Mavs fans dressed in a prisoners suit. It was also fun to see him drink tons of beers during post game press conferences, that will be missed too.

0319nelson6.jpg
 
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The Mavs are a better team with Avery Johnson guiding the ship.

I always disliked Nelson the coach, but I hope everything off-court (specifically family) works out for him and he can stay active within the organization.
 
PixelPusher said:
what was the reason? Mav's are a playoff bound team with a month and a half to go.
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Nellie said that the team was simply responding to Avery Johnson better and there were a lot of non-basketball related issues concerning his family and wife. All of these things led him to retire. It takes a big man to step down under those circumstances of "they're responding to the assistant coach better". I think he's a genius to groom his successor and I think Avery will do just fine.
 
I tend to think that Nelson is an average coach with a great ability to get talent together. Nelson had one of the best frontlines in history with Syndey Moncrief, Terry Cummings, and Jack Sikma but struggled to get past those great Sixers and Celtics teams. Then Nelson had one of the most talented perimeter trios in league history with Tim Hardaway, Chris Mullin, and Mitch Richmond but he couldn't crack the Finals with them either. And, in Dallas, he had one of the best players of this era, a deep roster, and a great owner but couldn't get to the Finals.

He did bring this team from hell to being a consistently top 10 team over the last five years, I will always appreciate that. But Nelson could never get over the loss of Steve Nash, he hated Mark Cuban for letting that happen and I don't think he was giving nearly his all this year.

I am excited, ofcourse, cause I loved the way the team played under Avery Johnson. Damp, ofcourse, plays better but Jason Terry also plays a lot better under Avery. Dirk gets 2 more SPG under Avery and is the go to guy down the stretch, which is important. Nelson likes to go with the best matchup, Avery goes with Dirk no matter what matchups are there, that is the way it needs to be.

Bottom line, someday I will fully appreciate what Nellie did for a dying franchise but right now we are as alive as ever and I am as excited right now as the day I heard Bill Parcells was coming to town. I am sure some Mavs fans are feeling the pain that I felt when Jimmy Johnson was gone so quickly, but I am not and I will be excited about this because it is great, great news to me.
 
To all our Mavs fans: I feel for ya having to go through major change so close to the playoffs. We certainly know what it is like. And, it is never easy when it is someone you like. Although I am not a Don Nelson fan, I respect your feelings.

I think this will actually make the Mavs better. Miles berg did a nice job assessing the whole situation. It is not like they are bringing in someone new. Avery has not only been there as an assistant, but has had many opportunities to actually be "the coach."
 
I can't speak for other Mavericks fans, it has been a battle all season with about a 50:50 ratio of Nellie lovers v haters, but I am very, very happy this happened and happened when it did. We needed a spark, we have been playing like the Shaq/Kobe Lakers lately, ie taking games off, waiting until the 4th to turn it on, etc...problem is that we don't have Shaq, hell we don't even have Dampier right now, so we were playing like crap.

I am really happy, I have never been a big Don Nelson fan, go to DB.com and ask around, I was the guy that was pushing for us to get Rick Adelman when all the rumors swirled that he was going to be out in Kingsland.

Yes, this move will make or break the Mavs, I agree. We will either become a true contender or we will fall, the days of being above average mediocre are over now, we have to find an identity under Avery or he could be gone soon too. Cuban is ready to win it all.
 
Resigned. Isn't it weird that the same word is used for quitting and for extending your contract?

Miles, you didn't just make that Shaq/Kobe comparison.
 
I said we have been playing with that same type of "relaxed" approach that the Lakers took the last couple years of the Shaq/Kobe era. I said, unfortunately, we don't have a Shaq, so it was not smart for us.

I think Dirk is as good as if not better than Kobe Bryant so that part holds true. I was just talking about the fact that we didn't bring the type of fire that a team with only one superstar should bring.
 
Respect !

I always respected Don Nelson. Don't understand why all the hate/dislike for the same man who always praised the Kings play and cheered us on against the Lakers.

Oh well.

Wish him the best, and hope his wife gets healthy.
 
That picture is great. Reminds me of the ones with Dirk and Nash completely trashed with some fan a few years back. At least the Mavs know how to party...
 
I heard about this earlier on NBA TV...

now i don't know the reason why...but IMO unless he or his wife is sick...i don't buy him leaving with 15 games left in this season...THANK GOD they have Avery otherwise Mavs fans would really be breaking out the pitch forks...

I said the last time he was out that i really didn't think he wanted to coach anymore...you could just tell by looking at him
 
Webber4tHREE said:
didn't Don Nelson call Webber a loser when he used to coach the Golden State Warriors
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Nelson and Webber had more than one run-in when Nelson was coaching the Warriors and Webber was on the team.

That is OLD history and I think totally inappropriate to bring up now.

I agree with Stojakovic and I, too, hope his wife gets well soon.
 
VF21 said:
Nelson and Webber had more than one run-in when Nelson was coaching the Warriors and Webber was on the team.

That is OLD history and I think totally inappropriate to bring up now.

I agree with Stojakovic and I, too, hope his wife gets well soon.
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I totally agree with you. There is no point even mentioning it since it really doe not have anything to do with this thread. I wish Don all the best. BTW isn't his son assistant coach and how come he is not taking over the reigns?
 
DeAtHrOw said:
I totally agree with you. There is no point even mentioning it since it really doe not have anything to do with this thread. I wish Don all the best. BTW isn't his son assistant coach and how come he is not taking over the reigns?
Click to expand...

Donny is something like President of Basketball Operations, or President of Personnel..........or some such title.
 
Thanks, I did not know that. I don't know why I kept thinking he was an assistant coach.
 
DeAtHrOw said:
Thanks, I did not know that. I don't know why I kept thinking he was an assistant coach.
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He was at one time, I believe. I think it was last year that they moved him off the bench. Anyway, something like that sticks in my mind.

Mavs fans? What is the scoop?
 
Donnie Nelson is basically running the front office show without really having the title of GM - Don Nelson has the title. They put Donnie up there because he has excellent relationships with lots of European players and teams all around the world - he spends a lot of time overseas getting the next big prospects to try to come to Dallas. He was even Lithuania's assistant head coach in the Olympics (but refused to coach the game when they were playing USA).

Actually it was a bit ironic - they asked Larry Brown "why didn't you select more shooters and play like the Europeans" and the reporter made some reference to Donnie Nelson and his expertise with the Lithuanian team. Larry Brown scoffed at the reporter something to the tune of "what has Donnie won lately?" - only to lose to Donnie Nelson's Lithuanian team later that day...

(I don't like Larry Brown)
 
I always thought Nellie was a good coach. Not surprising to see him resign since Avery Johnson is always doing the coaching job.

I wish the best for Nellie and his wife. :)
 
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