Natt says his hand are tied...

[Showtime]

...I'm paraphrasing. Here's something from ESPN:

Kenny Natt spent nine seasons as an assistant in Utah, watching Jerry Sloan rule the Jazz with an iron fist.


He also spent time in Cleveland, observing the much softer touch of Paul Silas, then Mike Brown.


He means no disrespect to the folks he worked with on the Cavs, and he thanks them for teaching him the so-called Popovich system, but Natt would prefer to do things Sloan's way (the Jazz coach has been known to yell at players who let their shirts come untucked at practice) now that he is in charge of the Sacramento Kings.


Problem, is, he can't.


Not with the scarlet "I" attached to his title, the "interim" tag that seven NBA coaches are toting into the final two weeks of the regular season. (That's not including Lionel Hollins, who was hired by Memphis through the 2009-10 season, replacing Marc Iavaroni, after Johnny Davis served as interim coach for two games.)


"Just trying to instill discipline in the guys, letting guys know that you want things a certain way, that's one of the things I struggle with being an interim coach. Because it makes a difference when you have two or three years on your contract, whereas when you're an interim coach but you want to be a hard-line disciplinarian, it doesn't work quite the same. It puts me at a disadvantage, so I'm struggling with that," Natt said.



"You also want to be in a position as a coach, as Jerry taught me, that hey, if you're not listening, you're coming out. He still does it now with [Andrei] Kirilenko. And that's another situation that I don't have as an interim coach, because I have only so many guys to work with, and the accountability factor -- you need to use that.



"That's what Sloan does," Natt said. "I can't."



What the Kings say publicly about Natt is the same as what every team with an interim coach is saying: His future will be determined after the conclusion of the regular season.

These points have been brought out on KHTK several times, and so it's interesting how much judgment should be placed on Natt this season.

EDIT: PLEASE remember to include links back to the sites of origin if you're quoting an article from another site. If you don't do it, your post will be deleted. It's one of those rules we are really strict about enforcing.

Thanks.

 

[pdxKingsFan]

Here's a thought... if being an extreme disciplnarian that obsessed over the tiniest of details like a shirt being tucked in properly actually paid dividends he wouldn't have to be afraid of being one.

And even if it did it doesn't matter if he's an interim coach or not because its easier to replace the coach than the players no matter how long the contract.

 

[Bricklayer]

Excuses...

 

[kings4lyfe32]

the so called "Popovich system" has 4 nba titles, while sloan has 0

 

[Circa_1985_Fan]

the so called "Popovich system" has 4 nba titles, while sloan has 0

Yeah, but he has been to the 'dance' twice(like Adelman), and does command respect even without having won one yet..ask Karl Malone and John Stockton about that.

 

[BMiller52]

Natt needs to be quiet, he's a terrible X's and O's guy.

 

[6th]

Natt needs to be quiet, he's a terrible X's and O's guy.

He's just coming across as a whiner. He knows he's gonna be gone.

 

[rhythmless]

Natt needs to be quiet, he's a terrible X's and O's guy.

maybe Natt and Musselman could team up into one giant super... competent coach?

 

[TheWileyVet]

maybe Natt and Musselman could team up into one giant super... competent coach?

Musselman would have some sweet drinking games to play after losses, at the very least.

Natt would probably be a whiney drunk tho. "Nobody respects me, I'm only an interim head coach, it's not my fault yada yada yada."

 

[SacKings7]

Musselman would have some sweet drinking games to play after losses, at the very least.

Natt would probably be a whiney drunk tho. "Nobody respects me, I'm only an interim head coach, it's not my fault yada yada yada."

Lol

 

[Aenadin]

oh he needs his hands tied alright.... for all that dumb plays hes been drawing up...

Heck! Vincent Van Gogh could communicate better with his players if he was a coach... and the guy has one ear!

 

[mac]

and I say his *** is fired.

 

[Rockmeister]

Please Fire Kenny Natt!

 

[ovrush]

Clearly interim coaches can't be disciplinarians. Just look at the 49ers after Nolan left. I mean that Mike Singletary guy was a total pushover and got rushed out the door because of it.

Granted there's huge differences between football and basketball but in a lot of ways being an interim coach provides you with exactly the kind of protection he claims not to have. It's almost unheard of for a team to fire its coach and then fire its interim in the same season. If Natt really wanted to coach a certain way he should have just coached that way. Never ever did he come across as a disciplinarian this season. Not even in the first week he coached. There's nothing to indicate he coached a certain way and was told not to. He just took the path of least resistance from day 1 on the job and all this article seems like to me is a cop out.

 

[Monty'sBiggestFan]

Singletary had more backing from his front office than Natt has. He could take the risks he took. I got the feeling that Singletary was interim in name only..only because they weren't allowed to just flat out hire him because of league rules.

And then there's the whole "players' league" difference.

That having been said, for the Kings to not be playing better after the roster was torn up is why he should shut up about having his hands tied. Unless he was told to back down on the discipline threats he was making to bench people for not defending, there's no excuse for him not to have been able to exert his influence on the team after the trade deadline.

 

[Smills91]

You know what, he's probably right. But my problem is they're EXCUSES. Winners don't make excuses, winners get the job done. I'm not saying that Natt has a lot to work with right now, but the fact is the team is WORSE (statistically-which is how we use to measure things) than they were before he took over. So I'm not buying it. I'm not even saying he needs to win all that much either, not with this roster, but I'd expect the team to be BETTER, and they're not. The team should at LEAST overachieve expectations, and the fact is they were far more underwhelming even under the MEAGER expectations that were set. So as nice of a guy as you are Natt, and as good of an assistant coach as you are. You're just not IT as the Head Coach of this franchise. Good luck on your next job though, I sincerely wish you the best.

 

[PoundForPound]

Kenny Natt is a good person. What do we expect him to do with this team? He doesn't exactly have the cream of the crop to work with here.

 

[VF21]

Kenny Natt is a good person. What do we expect him to do with this team? He doesn't exactly have the cream of the crop to work with here.

I don't think it's a matter of what we expect him to do with this team as much as it's a matter of what we DON'T expect him to do. I don't know about anyone else but I am so beyond freaking tired of coaches (or players for that matter) whining to the media I could hurl...

I had a saying a few years ago that I'll use again here...

Attention Coach Natt:

Suck it up, shut up and coach the team. The fan base isn't idiots; we all know you're not working with a championship caliber team. That doesn't excuse some pretty bizarre play calls, substitutions or lacks of focus at various times.

You knew what you were walking into when you agreed to accept the interim job. If you didn't, shame on you. The whole disciplinarian thing works with coaches who have the RESPECT of their players. If you don't have it, that's not their fault. It's YOURS.

I haven't had that many problems with the job you've done for the simple reason we suck and the only good thing about it is we suck badly enough to actually be in competition for one of the top lottery picks. You can overlook a lot of flaws if they're minor and they lead to the achievement of objectives.

BUT quit whining to the media. Don't answer their bleeping questions. Don't make freaking excuses. Excuses are like ... well, you know the quotation as well as I do so fill in the rest yourself.

Help develop the kids and get them ready for their future. Do the best job you can with what you've been given. That's all Kings fans have ever asked of our coaches. You're still feeling the reverberations from Adelman's departure so part of the fan angst isn't really directed at you, Kenny Natt, as much as it is directed at any head coach of the Sacramento Kings not named Rick Adelman ...

We have young talent on the roster right now that needs to learn to work together so they'll reach their full potential. Work on that. And, in the back of your mind, keep the thought that if they do shut down at this point in the season who could blame them? They're only playing for pride right now; they're not out there to prove to management you need another season at the helm.

I could go on but I think I've made my point...

/end rant

 

[rainmaker]

Natt is right about being a lameduck coach. He was a temporary solution for the Maloofs, right or wrong. But, he shouldn't be airing out his problems to the media. That is one way to make sure you won't be back, because when you start whining to the media you lose the respect of your players. I don't know how much respect he had in the first place.

His inability to put together a halfway decent substitution pattern has nothing to do with his status as a coach. Nor does his playcalling, which has been absolutely horrible since he took over. Nobody expected this team to take off and challenge for the playoffs once Natt took over. But this team was actually getting worse, up until 2-3 weeks ago.

 

[hrdboild]

Discipline is great....if you have a proven system that works and you hold your players to it. Popovich and Sloan are both system coaches. They bring in players who fit the system and they bench players who don't. Are the Kings so terrible because the players refuse to play Kenny Natt's system or because Kenny Natt doesn't have a good system?

It's hard to say being on the outside looking in, but Natt has been in charge of this team for quite awhile now and during that span the team has the worst record in the league. Substantially worse than when he took over actually. Not only that, they don't seem to be getting any better. Something isn't working. I don't think the 'interim' label has all that much to do with it honestly. You have to earn respect. If you're a winning coach, sooner or later your players are going to have to shut up and listen to you if they want to win. Yes having a longterm contract in place might give you a little more clout, but whining to the media about how your players won't listen to you or work hard enough pretty much negates any effect that would have.

You had a chance to earn some respect -- being an interim coach is a great opportunity to prove yourself. But you didn't do it, so, better luck next time. Moving on. Look at Scott Brooks in OKC or Lawrence Frank in New Jersey for examples of how to do it right. Both of those guys earned the support of their players and changed their team's record for the better. I haven't seen any "Bring Kenny Back" campaigns from the Kings players.

 

[fnordius]

Kenny Natt + discipline does not equal Sloan. Kenny Natt + discipline equals... the next infamous incident ala Sprewell-Carlesimo.

Besides, the only thing I like about Natt is that he loses, and doesn't say too much weird stuff to the press. Neither of those will be improved by throwing a new contract at him, or by giving him permission to spank the players.

 

[gunks]

Haha...I'm gonna have to cosign that post fnordius...


...I could totally see Beno choking Natt out while screaming "it's everyones fault I'm a bad pointguard but mine!" with tears streaming down his face.