Rick Carlisle was robbed.
It's that simple, folks. There are no other ways to explain the ridiculous notion that Phoenix Suns coach Mike D'Antoni was the best coach in the NBA this season. It's false, wrong, stupid, and idiotic to think scoring and records should be the sole barometer that measures the effectiveness of a coach in any sport, let alone the NBA. And I'm sorry if there are those who think D'Antoni's selection as Coach of the Year was based on anything else.
Now don't get me wrong, D'Antoni did an excellent job this season. After the Suns acquired Steve Nash and Quentin Richardson last offseason, D'Antoni was able to instill his up-tempo, fast break-style offense. An offense many observers didn't think would work in today's NBA. A style of play not seen in the league since Pat Riley and Magic Johnson's "Showtime" Los Angeles Lakers teams in the 1980s. But with D'Antoni calling the shots and Nash conducting the steam roller known as the Phoenix Suns, the Suns stormed their way to the league's best record, averaging a league-leading 110 points per game.
But while D'Antoni's Suns were winning games with a relative ease out West, one event on a November night in Detroit changed the scope of another team's season. The November 19 brawl between the Pacers and Pistons at the Palace of Auburn Hills transformed the Pacers from title contenders into a team just trying to survive on a nightly basis.
The season-long suspension of Pacers forward Ron Artest and the lengthy suspensions of Jermaine O'Neal and Stephen Jackson forced coach Rick Carlisle to start a lineup of no-name players and a veteran in his last tour of duty with NBA. But Carlisle got maximum effort from his team and the Pacers stayed competitive. Indiana managed to stay within striking distance of a playoff spot for most of the season, despite having to rely on players who hadn't seen much playing time on an NBA court.
Carlisle got the most out of second-year player James Jones, who actually became the Pacers' leading scorer during Indiana's run without its top performers. The Pacers also received solid contributions from veterans Austin Croshere, Jeff Foster, and "Mr. Reliable," Reggie Miller. Miller's resurgence during the Pacers' tough time proved to be one of the more surprising stories of the season. Prior to the "Malice at the Palace," Killer Miller looked like a player in the twilight of his career. But the incident in Detroit changed his season and fans started to see the player who broke hearts in New York as if it were his job.
Carlisle kept the Pacers in the playoff hunt until O'Neal and Jackson's suspensions were lifted and as the season wound down, the Pacers even had a chance to have home-court in the first round of the playoffs. But an injury to Jermaine O'Neal's shoulder late in the season derailed any hopes of home court for the Pacers, who settled for the sixth seed in the eastern conference. If securing a playoff berth with a shorthand roster for most of the season wasn't enough, Carlisle and his staff added an extra accomplishment to their season by guiding the Pacers to a seven-game first round series win over the Celtics.
I know the voting was somewhat close. D'Antoni received 326 points and 41 first-place votes, while Carlisle received 241 points and 26 first-place votes. Now you non-believers should consider this stat. Ron Artest, who only played seven games this season finished as the Pacers leading scorer from a statistical standpoint. He lead the team in points per game (24.6) and minutes per game (41.6) before his suspension. O'Neal finished a close second with 24.3 points per game in only 44 games played, while Jackson averaged 18.7 in 51 games played.
Bottom line, Carlisle accomplished a lot more with a lot less than D'Antoni did this season. Imagine the Suns having to play without Nash, Richardson, and Amare Stoudemire for a significant amount the season.
That's what I thought.
May 19, 2005
Vince Hemingson:
Andre Watson,
Buddy, what are you smoking? Carlisle got robbed? Puh-lease.
First, let’s give credit where credit is due. To begin with, Carlisle had to do an incredible to get his team to where he did over the course of the season. But why was it so incredible?
Because he couldn’t instill the kind of discipline to keep Ron Artest out of the stands, a player with a history of not being able to keep his temper. Where was his coaching brilliance then?
What does D’Antoni do? He convinces not one, not two, but three NBA professional basketball players to play out of position! He inspires a group of athletes best known for wanting to inflate their own numbers and their roles to sublimate their egos for the good of the team. It becomes not “ME” but “US”. Of course this is the reason that Steve Nash became the MVP, another decision I’m sure you must have disagreed with.
What happens because of the decisions Mike D’Antoni makes? Which his short-term career and job are riding on? He transforms the way the game has been played in the NBA for the past ten years.
I’m not taking anything away from Carlisle, what he did was inspirational. But THAT’S HIS FREAKIN’ JOB!!!!
What D’Antoni did was revolutionary. He literally changed the way the game is being played in the NBA this season.
Please God, let the Phoenix Suns make it to the Finals. We’ll finally have basketball that is played the way it is meant to be played and that is entertaining.
Best regards, Vince Hemingson
May 20, 2005
Kevin Connelly:
Carlisle is a great coach, yes.
Carlisle was the best NBA coach this season, hardly.
Keep in mind the fact that a good coach would have enough control over his players, including poor excuses for the human flesh like Ron Artest, and be able to keep them from going into the stands and throwing blows with drunk middle-aged men.
The fiasco is not the reason Carlisle should be coach of the year, but the reason he SHOULD NOT be. His team was the biggest disgrace to the NBA I can remember; not exactly something that would have had me voting for Carlisle.
Poor Reggie Miller for being caught up in the whole disaster. Jackson and Artest are thugs who belong in jail, not on a basketball court.
D’Antoni in a landslide over Karl and Van Gundy (Miami).
Thought you’d like to know.