Some Good News - Kings To Interview Thibodeau and Rambis

Good to hear, I would take Thibodeau over Eddie Jordan anyday.

Whats up with the repeated interviews with Rambis every yr? If we didn't want him the last 2 times, does GP think he would have grown so much as a coach? Rambis is in charge of defense for the lakers and that is one of their problems. No for Rambis.
 
I'd like to see Rambis, actually. I don't buy the whole offensive/defensive coach thing in the NBA. These guys get paid millions of dollars to play basketball, and if they don't want to put forth the effort to be good defensively, then there's not much you can do about it. I don't fault Rambis that the Lakers aren't a top-notch defensive team; I fault the Lakers players for thinking that they don't have to work 48 minutes a night.

I like Thibodeau too, but if I had to choose, I'd go with Rambis. Thibodeau wasn't on anyone's radar until the Celtics dramatically went from worst to first, and I don't think that makes him a good coach anymore than it makes Doc Rivers a good coach. I'm not knocking him, I'm just saying that his team's championship pedigree didn't exist 24 months ago. Kind of like how Iavaroni was the hot assistant a couple years back after the Suns became one of the best teams in the league overnight, and he's done nothing worth mentioning as a #1. I also don't like the fact that he is a Jeff van Gundy disciple.

At least with Rambis, he's actually had some success as a head coach, though limited. I wouldn't be mad if we landed Thibodeau, but I'd prefer Rambis. And I would not be surprised if I'm by myself on this one.
 
They'd probably bring them back to ask them follow-up questions such as:

- Now that the team is EVEN worse off then compared to two years ago, how do you plan on sucking lesS?
- The last two guys didn't know the meaning of teaching. Can you guys do any worse?
- You saw how horrible we were. We even netted a lame positioning in the draft. I find it suspicious you still want to come here. Are you working for Buss/Cuban?

Now obviously, the last question will be framed more towards the candidate being interviewed. In the end though, I hope we don't waste their time. Again.
 
How is this good news?!

What we need is an experienced head coach. We don't need another gamble on highly reputable assistant coaches.

This off-season is going from bad to worse for us.
 
Peter_Gibbons said:
Good to hear, I would take Thibodeau over Eddie Jordan anyday.

Whats up with the repeated interviews with Rambis every yr? If we didn't want him the last 2 times, does GP think he would have grown so much as a coach? Rambis is in charge of defense for the lakers and that is one of their problems. No for Rambis.
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Keep in mind that the Maloofs have supposedly made the final decision the last two years. Petrie may very well be a huge Rambis fan, so the results of the last two coaching searches are irrelevant if Petrie is actually in charge this time.
 
Superman said:
I like Thibodeau too, but if I had to choose, I'd go with Rambis. Thibodeau wasn't on anyone's radar until the Celtics dramatically went from worst to first, and I don't think that makes him a good coach anymore than it makes Doc Rivers a good coach. I'm not knocking him, I'm just saying that his team's championship pedigree didn't exist 24 months ago. Kind of like how Iavaroni was the hot assistant a couple years back after the Suns became one of the best teams in the league overnight, and he's done nothing worth mentioning as a #1. I also don't like the fact that he is a Jeff van Gundy disciple.
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Just some information: I believe the Kings interviewed TT after Rick was let go, and the Maloofs picked Muss. So there was interest before Boston blew up.

Also, about his resume and accomplishments before Boston:

The sentiment from Ainge and Rivers is that Thibodeau is "an excellent coach who just needs an opportunity." Thibodeau has worked both seasons in Boston under 1-year contracts.
Calls to Thibodeau were not immediately returned. The Sixers declined comment
Thibodeau just completed his second season as an assistant with the Boston Celtics and has spent 19 seasons in the NBA, but none as a head coach. Thibodeau spent the 1993-94 season with the Sixers, working with then head coach John Lucas. He went on to work with Jeff Van Gundy in New York and Houston.
Thibodeau is considered one of the best defensive coaches in the league. In his 19 seasons, his teams have finished in the Top 10 defensively 15 times.
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Every coach has got to start somewhere, and TT has paid his dues and proved to be a good coach before the Celtics won.
 
Aenadin said:
how is rambis as an assistant coach? is he any good?
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I can't say anything definitive, because I have no idea what he contributes to the organization on a day to day basis. However, I live in LA and most of my friends are die hard Laker fans. They love Rambis and see him as the heir apparent to Jackson. He is the one Jackson chose to coach the team when he could not make the trip to Portland earlier this season. He also had a good record with the Lakers the one partial season he was the head coach. Overall, he seems like a solid choice if it is him.
 
I wonder if this means they'll interview Brian Shaw again? I'm pretty sure he was Petrie's choice over Theus.
 
Sptsjunkie said:
I can't say anything definitive, because I have no idea what he contributes to the organization on a day to day basis. However, I live in LA and most of my friends are die hard Laker fans. They love Rambis and see him as the heir apparent to Jackson. He is the one Jackson chose to coach the team when he could not make the trip to Portland earlier this season. He also had a good record with the Lakers the one partial season he was the head coach. Overall, he seems like a solid choice if it is him.
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I'm not denying anything you just said. But in my opinion, you could coach the Lakers and do a good job. Its all about having the talent.
 
Wow, did you read the comments on that article? So much negativity right now. It's kind of embarrassing. I don't see how interviewing more candidates for the coaching spot could be anything but a good thing. Particularly Thibodeau who, at least on the surface, would appear like the best guy to improve the Kings defensively. Actually, I'd be using this opportunity to try and convince him to come to Sacramento as an assistant if he doesn't get offered the head coaching spot. He's got nothing else to prove in Boston and turning this Kings team into a half-way decent defensive team would surely get him a look at a head coaching job sometime soon.
 
Aenadin said:
how is rambis as an assistant coach? is he any good?
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Not sure. Its hard for assistants to get credit and the spotlight. But he hasn't done anything really. Some can say its the lakers players fault for not playing D with effort every game. But its also the coach's responsibility to put in a system that works and get the players to buy into it. He hasn't succeed at that. So I don't know how well he can do with a group of young players and a team thats currently a mess.
 
I would go with Thibodeau and be happy out of him and Eddie jordan and Rambis. At least he has a something that he is good at teaching. Besides the Celtics, he helped make the Rockets into a top 5 defensive team for many yrs now while he was there.

There were many games this season that we could score with the other team. Just that we couldn't make even 1 stop to win the game. A defensive minded coach with a proven history in that part of the game will help for sure.

The Maloofs are said to be trying to get by on the cheap with the coach position. They are hoping to pay no more than $2 mil a yr. That rules out bigger names like Avery Johnson, JVG etc. So if its going to be low price coach, why not give Thibodeau a try.
 
hrdboild said:
Wow, did you read the comments on that article? So much negativity right now. It's kind of embarrassing. I don't see how interviewing more candidates for the coaching spot could be anything but a good thing. Particularly Thibodeau who, at least on the surface, would appear like the best guy to improve the Kings defensively. Actually, I'd be using this opportunity to try and convince him to come to Sacramento as an assistant if he doesn't get offered the head coaching spot. He's got nothing else to prove in Boston and turning this Kings team into a half-way decent defensive team would surely get him a look at a head coaching job sometime soon.
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Agreed. Unlike others I don't have a problem with getting an experienced assistant with great head coaching potential. If this is the case - that Petrie is interviewing these guys - then Petrie and the Maloofs have changed direction on this, and I've got to believe that $$$ has something to do with it. Also, maybe the ex-head coaches don't thrill them. In any case, I like the flexibility.
 
bajaden said:
I'm not denying anything you just said. But in my opinion, you could coach the Lakers and do a good job. Its all about having the talent.
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I agree with you 100%. I have always thought just looking at a coach's record is overrated. I don't think he's any more qualified than Eddie Jordan just because he had Shaq and EJ had Arenas as their stars.
 
bajaden said:
I'm not denying anything you just said. But in my opinion, you could coach the Lakers and do a good job. Its all about having the talent.
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Pretty much, NBA is the one professional sport where the head coach means the less. Now college hoops its a whole different ballgame.
 
I remember with the previous coaching searches the Maloof clan (including momma Maloof) would all get together and judge the candidates. I hope we don't get any more of that this time around. Just stay away and let Petrie do his job!
 
hrdboild said:
Wow, did you read the comments on that article? So much negativity right now. It's kind of embarrassing. I don't see how interviewing more candidates for the coaching spot could be anything but a good thing. Particularly Thibodeau who, at least on the surface, would appear like the best guy to improve the Kings defensively. Actually, I'd be using this opportunity to try and convince him to come to Sacramento as an assistant if he doesn't get offered the head coaching spot. He's got nothing else to prove in Boston and turning this Kings team into a half-way decent defensive team would surely get him a look at a head coaching job sometime soon.
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Look, he can be the biggest defensive master thats ever graced the face of the earth but unless he has players who can play defence, he will never make the team to be a good defensive unit.

Defence is greatly about personnel. Its funny how according to our ever knowledgable owners Adelman didn't know how to coach defence yet his team in Houston is one of the best defensive teams in the league.

Its funny what personnell can do to a coach's reputation.
 
Showtime said:
Just some information: I believe the Kings interviewed TT after Rick was let go, and the Maloofs picked Muss. So there was interest before Boston blew up.

Also, about his resume and accomplishments before Boston:

Every coach has got to start somewhere, and TT has paid his dues and proved to be a good coach before the Celtics won.
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I don't remember that at all. Maybe he was mentioned after Muss, but I don't think before.

Even still, I'm not saying I'd be upset if he was picked. I mean, he's got an impressive resume, he comes highly recommended, and he has certainly paid his dues. He's not Eric Musselman or Reggie Theus, that's for sure.

But I would prefer Rambis. I don't buy into the whole "offensive/defensive" coach in the NBA, because there are way too many variables in basketball to make a meaningful determination one way or the other. (In fact, that argument is becoming a lot more blurry even in the NFL, where there's an offensive team and a defensive team. Look at Romeo Crennel and Wade Phillips: to defensive coordinators who took over decent defensive teams, only for the defense to get worse under their watch.) And specifically with the Lakers, even though Rambis is supposedly their "defensive coordinator", the reason they aren't an elite defensive team is not a reflection on him, in my opinion; it's a reflection on the players lackadaisical approach.
 
Čarolija said:
Look, he can be the biggest defensive master thats ever graced the face of the earth but unless he has players who can play defence, he will never make the team to be a good defensive unit.

Defence is greatly about personnel. Its funny how according to our ever knowledgable owners Adelman didn't know how to coach defence yet his team in Houston is one of the best defensive teams in the league.

Its funny what personnell can do to a coach's reputation.
Click to expand...

Improving the defense is going to be more than a one step process. Getting a coach who has proven he can take good defensive players and put them in a system that makes them an elite defensive team is one step in that process. If you have that coach, and that system, then you just need to acquire the right players. I'm not saying he's a quick fix. There is no quick fix. But I like coaches who have a system and a proven track record of teaching players.

I've been saying this ever since Adelman left Sacramento -- it was clearly a mistake to let him go, however, the Maloofs had a decent reason. They said that it was maybe time to go in a different direction and try to win games defensively. In hindsight letting Adelman take his expertise elsewhere set this franchise back farther than most people expected. The right thing to do at this point, though, is to stick to their guns. They've tried twice to find a defensive-minded coach and failed. There have been other personnel problems which have handcuffed both of those coaches though and neither was given enough rope to really prove anything one way or another. With ThibodeauI don't think anyone could argue that he's not a defensive coach. Aside from maybe Larry Brown or Greg Popovich, I think you'd be hard-pressed to find a more qualified teacher of NBA defense. Yes you have to take the next step and acquire the right players to win games with defense, but why shouldn't that process start with the coach?
 
sactownfan said:
http://cache.boston.com/resize/bonzai-fba/Globe_Photo/2007/10/31/1193884511_3053/300h.jpg


this guy= EPIC FAIL
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really??? Hes a loser... ok maybe not really... but has no record of actually being able to be the front man of a team. I'd hire del harris before i hired this guy. Hes a top tier assistant but nothing more...

No more Reggie/Muss experiments.... this next coach needs to be successful to some degree as a HEAD coach... this guy reminds me of another SUPER AWESOME assistant Marc Iavaroni.... EPIC FAIL!!!!!!
 
Lawrence Frank was an assistant and did pretty well for himself in New Jersey. Scott Brooks looks like he's staying in Oklahoma City. Not every assistant coach is a failure. Every head coach started out as an assistant at some point or another. Musselman did have NBA head coaching experience but he was worse than Reggie Theus who had none. Thibodeau comes recommended from NBA head coaches and NBA players and has a proven track record of making teams better defensively. Theus had two years head coaching experience in college. Thibodeau has 19 years experience as an NBA coach and he's coached in an All-Star game and an NBA finals. You could hold out for Eddie Jordan or Paul Westphal I suppose, but there aren't a lot of established coaches out there looking for work right now. Of the guys who are assistants, Thibodeau is one of the most experienced. Of course it's not a sure thing, but the front office has been talking about getting better defensively for years with very little to show for it. If this guy can't help our teams defense then no one can.

Some in Boston are wondering what will happen to the team if he leaves.

And how about assistant coach Tom Thibodeau? Largely credited for orchestrating Boston's defensive turnaround last year, the fact that he was coaching well into June prevented him from being considered for a handful of jobs last year simply due to logistics. Since that's no longer the case now, might he jump ship to seek a promotion? Can the Celtics entice him to stay and work his magic one more year? And if he leaves, did the rest of the coaching staff absorb enough of his gameplans to survive his absence?
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Those are the defending champions and someone is asking if they can survive his absence? Surely that says something.

In that first article Jeff Van Gundy says Thibideau is a better coach than he is.

"You want to hire people as assistants who are better than you," said Van Gundy. "He's better."

"Whatever team hires him as a head coach, it's going to be a grand slam for the team and a grand slam for the players."
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In the second article Kobe sings his praises.

"I've been facing his defenses here for some time, and they're tough," says Lakers guard Kobe Bryant, who is shooting 40.8% from the field in five games against Boston this year. "Every single team he's been on had great strategies. … He's awesome."
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For what it's worth.
 
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hrdboild said:
Lawrence Frank was an assistant and did pretty well for himself in New Jersey. Scott Brooks looks like he's staying in Oklahoma City. Not every assistant coach is a failure. Every head coach started out as an assistant at some point or another. Musselman did have NBA head coaching experience but he was worse than Reggie Theus who had none. Thibodeau comes recommended from NBA head coaches and NBA players and has a proven track record of making teams better defensively. Theus had two years head coaching experience in college. Thibodeau has 19 years experience as an NBA coach and he's coached in an All-Star game and an NBA finals. You could hold out for Eddie Jordan or Paul Westphal I suppose, but there aren't a lot of established coaches out there looking for work right now. Of the guys who are assistants, Thibodeau is one of the most experienced. Of course it's not a sure thing, but the front office has been talking about getting better defensively for years with very little to show for it. If this guy can't help our teams defense then no one can.

Some in Boston are wondering what will happen to the team if he leaves.



Those are the defending champions and someone is asking if they can survive his absence? Surely that says something.

In that first article Jeff Van Gundy says Thibideau is a better coach than he is.



In the second article Kobe sings his praises.



For what it's worth.
Click to expand...

They had Kevin Garnett Rondo PP Allen..
 
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