Ronald Martinez/Getty Images
After management handed Byron Scott a pink slip last week, the New Orleans Hornets need a head coach.
Does anyone think General Manager-turned interim coach Jeff Bower will last more than a few months?
Avery Johnson, fired by the Dallas Mavericks in 2008, wants to return to the sidelines.
He's cajun, he played point guard for 11-plus seasons, and his short track record shows he can get underachievers over some tough hurdles.
The Hornets' star attraction is a point guard who needs someone to help his team advance in the postseason.
How's that for convenience?
Do not consider this a "little general" endorsement, but a coaching vacancy in Johnson's home state begs the question: Would George Shinn put this defensive-minded, control freak in charge of his struggling squad?
Johnson likes to control everything, and some would say that makes him no better for the job than Scott.
Both men won championship rings as complimentary players. They understand the game's nuances, what wins, and how to deal with big egos.
When the Mavericks parted ways with Don Nelson, Johnson was taking the reigns of a former Western Conference Finalist.
He made them a Finalist for the first time in franchise history.
In his first full season at the helm, Dallas won 60 games and reached the championship round.
The next, the Mavs won 67 games, sixth most in league history.
Like Scott's Nets in New Jersey, Johnson's squad failed to finish the job.
An embarrassing first round exit to the eighth-place Golden State Warriors put a damper on that 67-win campaign.
As quickly as the Mavs became overachievers, they reverted back to their underachieving selves.
Johnson offered his stamp of approval on a risky trade that sent promising youngster Devin Harris to New Jersey for veteran point guard Jason Kidd.
Then, he appeared to damn it, sitting Kidd on the final play of a critical loss to the Spurs in San Antonio.
Since Johnson's firing, his replacement in Dallas Rick Carlisle has handed over most of the play calling to Kidd with often spectacular results.
Mark Cuban axed Johnson because the players threatened a mutiny if he was still there the next fall.
These are not resume blemishes. These are alarming indiscretions—reasons to dismiss a phone call to Johnson as a possibility.
Still, the guy can coach. He has it in his blood.
One Mavs-supporting friend—whose basketball opinion I value—thinks he could become one of the greatest to ever yell in a suit with his arms folded.
The potential is there.
Johnson's Mavs played more defense than Nelson's version ever did.
Another selling point: Johnson did what his predecessor could not: beat the Spurs in the playoffs.
Funny thing, Scott couldn't beat them either.
Now on ESPN as a studio analyst, no one but Johnson knows if he's ready to return to coaching.
He turned down an offer from the Grizzlies (a wise move given the catastrophe that has unfolded in Memphis) and could not come to terms with the Detroit Pistons on a contract.
The Hornets can be better now than either of those squads—with the proper tutelage.
His paint-by-numbers offense crumbled in Big D, but maybe with Chris Paul leading the attack, Johnson would embrace a philosophical change.
The Hornets brain trust has to give him a call, doesn't it?
We're going to send you the most entertaining New Orleans Hornets articles, videos, and podcasts from around the web.
2 Comments
Loading more comments...
This comment and all replies have been deleted This comment has been deleted Undo delete