In the Clutch with Artem Altman
The Coaching Carousel
Artem Altman
Issue date: 3/11/09 Section: Sports
Prompted by the recent firing of Tom Renney, the now former coach of the New York Rangers, I find it a matter of great importance to discuss the coaching carousel that has been going on in the three major sports leagues for as long as I can remember. Just like it's difficult these days to name an athlete in a team sport that has had a career long tenure with a single team for at least the majority of their careers, there are probably even less coaches who have spent the majority of their careers with a single team. But I will try to name a few.
In the NBA, Jerry Sloan has been with the Utah Jazz close to a quarter of a century and has always managed to bring out the best in his teams throughout the years. And in the MLB, Bobby Cox has led the Atlanta Braves to numerous division titles. That's all I have.
Now, the great Joe Torre and Phil Jackson did manage to escape being fired, but even though both coaches have won numerous titles with the New York Yankees and Chicago Bulls, respectively, neither is still coaching with their teams. Torre moved on to the Los Angeles Dodgers and Phil Jackson to the Los Angeles Lakers (is Cali the new trend?).
In sports today, we will no longer see the likes of Arnold "Red" Auerbach of the Boston Celtics dynasty, or Chuck Daily with the Detroit (Bad Boys) Pistons. No more Scotty Bowman of the Detroit Red Wings, or Vince Lombardy of the Green Bay Packers. Let's take a look at the coaching developments in the leagues whose seasons are in progress or have recently finished:
NHL: After a not-so-strong start, the Tampa Bay Lightning cut ties with coach Barry Melrose. He was in just his first year with the team.
NBA: Halfway through his first season with the Phoenix Suns, Terry Porter was fired from his coaching position for not getting the most out of his team. At the time of Porter's firing, the Suns were underperforming and were not the scoring powerhouse they had been under their previous head coach, Mike D'Antoni.
NFL: After an abysmal finish to such a hopeful season, the New York Jets fired Eric Mangini.
As athletes salaries are skyrocketing and the leagues (and their franchises) have began to reap vast profits from the global marketing of sports, the patience for coaches who want to develop a winning team over time has dwindled. Instead, team owners are pressuring coaches to build a successful team almost out of thin air. Something that is virtually impossible to do.
On a rare occasion, a team such as the Celtics of last season will make a freaky move and consolidate its efforts in order to manufacture a championship caliber team. But for what? For one championship, maybe two. The product that is thus forced on a coach to handle is not the kind of situation that always works. The short-term success of the Celtics' Big 3 (Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen) is as a rare chance within itself. How many times have we seen a team take on big names and big contracts in order to win at least once? And how many times has that worked?
It didn't work for the NY Rangers of the late '90s and early 2000s. Even Wayne Gretzky couldn't help the Rangers. Scottie Pippen didn't help the Portland Trail "Jail" Blazers late in his career. Terrell Owens didn't help the Dallas Cowboys. So what can a coach do when not even extraordinary talent can help? Nothing.
The difficulty is that the 'politics' of sports have changed, but the philosophy hasn't. If in the past teams were built through internal growth, the financial aspect of sports does not mesh with that philosophy. What makes matters even worse is that team owners are going along with all of it.
What we need is more outbursts like the recent tirades of Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban and Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling. On March 2, after a poor showing against the depleted Oklahoma City Thunder, Cuban derided Mavs players for their lackluster "effort and energy," promising to "turn over the roster 100 percent [rather] than subject fans to another game like [that]." Then on March 5, Sterling went on a similar tirade after the Clippers lost to the lowly Memphis Grizzlies, placing the future of every player into the hands of Coach and General Manager Mike Dunleavy.
This trend as of late is what has been missing from sports. Things need to change. Accountability has to start with the players. Athletes can no longer be pampered and expect teams to give in to their every whim. Coaches should no longer get fired because athletes themselves are underperforming. If the current sports philosophy has ceased to work and things are headed in the wrong direction, then it is time for coaches to take over the reigns and steer sports in the right direction. And it is up to management not to fire them before they get the chance to do so.
In the NBA, Jerry Sloan has been with the Utah Jazz close to a quarter of a century and has always managed to bring out the best in his teams throughout the years. And in the MLB, Bobby Cox has led the Atlanta Braves to numerous division titles. That's all I have.
Now, the great Joe Torre and Phil Jackson did manage to escape being fired, but even though both coaches have won numerous titles with the New York Yankees and Chicago Bulls, respectively, neither is still coaching with their teams. Torre moved on to the Los Angeles Dodgers and Phil Jackson to the Los Angeles Lakers (is Cali the new trend?).
In sports today, we will no longer see the likes of Arnold "Red" Auerbach of the Boston Celtics dynasty, or Chuck Daily with the Detroit (Bad Boys) Pistons. No more Scotty Bowman of the Detroit Red Wings, or Vince Lombardy of the Green Bay Packers. Let's take a look at the coaching developments in the leagues whose seasons are in progress or have recently finished:
NHL: After a not-so-strong start, the Tampa Bay Lightning cut ties with coach Barry Melrose. He was in just his first year with the team.
NBA: Halfway through his first season with the Phoenix Suns, Terry Porter was fired from his coaching position for not getting the most out of his team. At the time of Porter's firing, the Suns were underperforming and were not the scoring powerhouse they had been under their previous head coach, Mike D'Antoni.
NFL: After an abysmal finish to such a hopeful season, the New York Jets fired Eric Mangini.
As athletes salaries are skyrocketing and the leagues (and their franchises) have began to reap vast profits from the global marketing of sports, the patience for coaches who want to develop a winning team over time has dwindled. Instead, team owners are pressuring coaches to build a successful team almost out of thin air. Something that is virtually impossible to do.
On a rare occasion, a team such as the Celtics of last season will make a freaky move and consolidate its efforts in order to manufacture a championship caliber team. But for what? For one championship, maybe two. The product that is thus forced on a coach to handle is not the kind of situation that always works. The short-term success of the Celtics' Big 3 (Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen) is as a rare chance within itself. How many times have we seen a team take on big names and big contracts in order to win at least once? And how many times has that worked?
It didn't work for the NY Rangers of the late '90s and early 2000s. Even Wayne Gretzky couldn't help the Rangers. Scottie Pippen didn't help the Portland Trail "Jail" Blazers late in his career. Terrell Owens didn't help the Dallas Cowboys. So what can a coach do when not even extraordinary talent can help? Nothing.
The difficulty is that the 'politics' of sports have changed, but the philosophy hasn't. If in the past teams were built through internal growth, the financial aspect of sports does not mesh with that philosophy. What makes matters even worse is that team owners are going along with all of it.
What we need is more outbursts like the recent tirades of Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban and Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling. On March 2, after a poor showing against the depleted Oklahoma City Thunder, Cuban derided Mavs players for their lackluster "effort and energy," promising to "turn over the roster 100 percent [rather] than subject fans to another game like [that]." Then on March 5, Sterling went on a similar tirade after the Clippers lost to the lowly Memphis Grizzlies, placing the future of every player into the hands of Coach and General Manager Mike Dunleavy.
This trend as of late is what has been missing from sports. Things need to change. Accountability has to start with the players. Athletes can no longer be pampered and expect teams to give in to their every whim. Coaches should no longer get fired because athletes themselves are underperforming. If the current sports philosophy has ceased to work and things are headed in the wrong direction, then it is time for coaches to take over the reigns and steer sports in the right direction. And it is up to management not to fire them before they get the chance to do so.
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