| Coaching Rankings |
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Flip Saunders
For years Saunders drew criticism for his inability to pilot the Minnesota Timberwolves out of the first round. But did any of those losses during that seven-year streak come against inferior teams? Not a one, as far as we can tell, and when the Timberwolves finally built up an enviable roster (2003-04), they rode all the way to the conference finals before an injury to Sam Cassell derailed what could have been a title run. Of course, in Saunders' first turn with Detroit last season, he managed to quash a deserved bit of goodwill when his 64-win Pistons fell to what appeared to be the inferior Heat. Detroit will make its third Finals appearance in four years if it listens to Flip, but it's also up to Saunders to remind his players of just how much they need his instruction.
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10 |
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Scott Skiles
As it's always been with Skiles, his team should stay successful so as long as it doesn't force him to run screaming toward his security blankets. Woobies such as Chris Duhon, P.J. Brown and Malik Allen are long on moxie but short on production; they don't screw up, but they don't win games either. If more talented types like Kirk Hinrich, Ben Gordon and Tyrus Thomas keep the miscues to a reasonable minimum, then Skiles has no reason to give anything more than token appearances to his bench scrappers. Win or lose, rest assured, these Bulls play hard for this coach. This is an unrelenting group of players, perfectly matched for Skiles' temperament.
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11 |
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Lawrence Frank
Frank has developed a reputation as a hard worker (even by NBA head coaching standards) and sound X's and O's man, and it has become obvious that his players respect him, but that still hasn't done much for New Jersey's record over the last few years. At the end of the day, and the fourth quarter of a close game, you need players who are internally motivated and have the skills to do a reasonable job of defending. Frank hasn't gotten that from the bulk of his roster this season -- even as the team won eight of 11 to finish the season at .500.
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12 |
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Sam Mitchell
After two odd seasons seemingly spent running the Raptors into the ground (check out Chris Bosh's minutes from this one-sided affair), Mitchell turned the corner and unexpectedly led a team in transition to a division championship. He's the likely and deserved Coach of the Year, but he'll also be manning the sideline in his first postseason. Mitchell's strengths, besides his ability to encourage his players to share the ball and find the open shooter, might lie in the surprise factor: Nobody knows what to expect from him or his team, and this could be enough to take a series.
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13 |
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George Karl
Karl's best feature seems tailor-made for the playoffs: This guy can motivate like few others. Karl's impassioned way with words (though sometimes in a barely audible croak) goes a long way toward spurring his players on to great things. Will it spur a few three-pointers to go in or Carmelo Anthony to a few more rebounds? Probably not ... but we'll get some good sound bites out of it.
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14 |
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Eddie Jordan
It won't be enough to win a playoff series, but Jordan has a chance in this postseason to show his injured All-Stars (Gilbert Arenas and Caron Butler) just how devastating a full-on Princeton attack can be. If the spacing is right and the players are motivated, Jordan can spread the floor, eschew the isolation and/or screen-and-roll game usually employed when Arenas has the ball, and watch as his players cut their way toward 100 points and 23 assists per game. With no expectations, EJ gets to float a trial balloon within the confines of the NBA's biggest stage.
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15 |
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Mike Brown
Brown's Cavaliers had plenty of chances to falter down the stretch of the regular season, but the team rallied to win four straight and secure the second seed in the East. And, as much as LeBron James should be expected to make up for an up-and-down season by leading Cleveland to a series win or four, Brown should be under nearly as much pressure. Compare these Cavs with the team that lost to Detroit in seven games in the conference semifinals last May. Have the Cavs changed all that much? The style of play, the execution, the ability to close out games? The defense has improved, to be sure, but you get the sneaky feeling that a month from now you'll be watching LeBron double-teamed some 26 feet from the basket late in a close game as his teammates fire blanks all around him. Brown needs an offensive breakthrough, badly.
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16 |
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Brian Hill
As we've talked about in the past, Hill isn't exactly at his best when having to adapt or adjust on the fly. Opposing teams flesh out Hill's schemes by halftime, his teams won't know how to react; and even if a sound game plan is in place, Hill hasn't always been the most proactive of motivators. The trick for the Magic coach this time around is to try to take a game or two before being knocked out of the playoffs -- Hill's three playoff series losses have all been sweeps.
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