NBA Trade Rumors: 5 Teams That Must Get Rid of Their Coach

While Mike D'Antoni technically didn't get "fired," the Knicks and their ridiculous front office certainly didn't encourage D'Antoni to stay.

With D'Antoni's unexpected resignation, the coaching carousel in the NBA is beginning to move into motion.

While there aren't a lot of coaches that need to be relieved of their duties with their respective teams, there are certainly a few, and those coaches are what this article is about.

Whether it's because of a lack of leadership, failure to manage the team or the fact that the game has passed them by, the coaches on this list all need to find new places to take their coaching talents.

Ahead is a list of five NBA coaches that need to be relieved of their duties.  

Miami Heat: Erik Spoelstra

This one might come as a shock, but it's time to relieve Erik Spoelstra of his head coaching duties in South Beach.

It's not that Erik Spoelstra is a terrible coach, it's just that he's a below average one.

Whether it's terrible rotations off the bench, or failing to manage LeBron, Wade and Bosh's minutes, Spoelstra doesn't succeed at carrying out his head coaching responsibilities with the Miami Heat.

I'm not even saying that the Heat need to fire Spoelstra so that Pat Riley can step in. I'm just saying that the Heat need someone else, really anybody other than Erik Spoelstra.

His basketball knowledge and IQ is high, but his leadership skill is low, and the Heat need a head coach that is able to command respect and lead a team filled with superstars.  

Charlotte Bobcats: Paul Silas

I feel bad saying this, as Paul Silas is somewhat of a coaching legend, but it's time to leave the game of basketball, Paul, at least as a head coach.

It's clear that the game has past by Paul Silas, as evidenced by his Charlotte Bobcats' NBA worst, 6-35 overall record.

If the worst record in the NBA weren't bad enough, the Bobcats also rank dead last in both offensive production and defensive performance, with averages of 86.8 and 100 points per game respectively.

While the Bobcats don't necessarily have the best talent on their roster, they shouldn't be nearly as bad as they are, and part of their problem is that it doesn't seem like they believe in their own potential.

If one of the biggest responsibilities of an NBA head coach is to motivate, lead and get their team to believe in their own skill, then Silas has done an absolutely terrible job this season.

The only reason why the Bobcats won't fire Silas before the end of the season is because they don't have much to lose by keeping him on staff through the remainder of the 2011-12 NBA season. 

New Orleans Hornets: Monty Williams

The New Orleans Hornets' lack of success isn't all Monty Williams fault, but the fact that Hornets are 10-32 overall goes to show that Williams' success with the Hornets last year was more a result of having Chris Paul than it was his pure talent as an NBA head coach.

I don't have a problem with the way Williams coaches, but there's no doubt that it's not working with the hodgepodge of talent that the Hornets have on their roster.

With Chris Paul and David West on the roster, Williams was 46-36 as a head coach, and without those two players, he's 10-36 as a head coach.  That doesn't bode well for his performance review that will come at the end of the season.

While New Orleans will probably give him another season to work with the talent he has just because of his success last year, the right decision for New Orleans to make would be to just let him go now, while he might still be able to land another coaching job in the NBA.

It's time for New Orleans to rebuild, and part of that rebuilding process is undoubtedly getting rid of its fearless leader. 

Detroit Pistons: Lawrence Frank

The one thing the Detroit Pistons have going for them is the way they've been playing as of late on the defensive side of the ball, giving up the 14th least points per game, with an average of 95.4 points per game.

Other than that though, the Pistons are one of the worst teams in the NBA, ranking 28th overall in offensive production, with a weak average of 89.4 points per game.

While Detroit doesn't have much elite talent on their roster, there's no doubt that its head coach, Lawrence Frank, isn't necessarily doing much to help their situation either.

Frank has a 232-261 overall record as a head coach, which gives him a 47.1 percent winning percentage for his career. While that isn't terrible, it's not the kind of head coach the Pistons need.

Detroit needs a vocal head coach that will command respect from the young talent on the Pistons' roster and lead a team that is often times underwhelming. If Frank doesn't lose his job during the 2011-12 season, he'll surely lose it at the end of it.

New Jersey Nets: Avery Johnson

In his time with the New Jersey Nets, Avery Johnson has accumulated 39 wins and 87 losses.

With that kind of coaching record with the Nets, it's somewhat shocking that Johnson is still their main man.

Not only is has Johnson lost way more games than he's won, this year the Nets rank 24th or worst in every major team statistical category. New Jersey ranks 25th in offensive production, with 92.9 points per game, and also ranks 26th in defensive production by giving up an average of 99.4 points per game.

The Nets are going nowhere fast, and with the possibility of Deron Williams leaving at the end of the season, the future is certainly not bright for New Jersey or for head coach Avery Johnson. 

The Nets would be wise to unload Johnson before their season gets even worse, because even though there's not much he can do, he's not helping their situation either.

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