Cleveland Cavaliers Fire Mike Brown: Where Do They Go from Here?
In the early hours of Monday morning, the Cleveland Cavaliers announced they had fired head coach Mike Brown , the 2008-09 NBA Coach of the Year.
Brown ends his tenure in Cleveland as statistically the best coach in franchise history. Over five years, he finished with a 314-167 record, including a 42-29 record in the postseason.
Under Brown, the Cavs never lost in the first round of the playoffs, won 50 or more games in four different seasons, had the best record in the league the last two years, and made their first ever NBA Finals appearance in 2007.
But ultimately, despite pretty much overachieving in the playoffs from 2006-2008, it was the postseason failures in the last two years that led to his demise.
The decision to let Brown go could not have been an easy one, especially considering the circumstances.
This is a franchise that won 50-plus games just three times before Brown arrived.
They made the conference finals twice from 1970-2006; they made it twice in a three-year span (2007 and 2009).
Brown was the winningest playoff coach in Cavalier history, and was the longest tenured head coach in the Eastern Conference.
This isn't official, but Brown's firing has to be the first time that a team that led the regular season in wins in consecutive years voluntarily replaced its coach.
But as of today, none of those accolades mean anything. All it means is that he might have the most impressive resume of anyone that's not coaching in the Association.
Brown's firing didn't come simply because the Cavs lost in the playoffs two years a row. It was because of the way his teams lost.
In 2006, Brown took a Cavs team that relied on heavy minutes from Eric Snow, Damon Jones, and Donyell Marshall to a seventh game against the Detroit Pistons, the two-time defending Eastern Conference champions. That team had no business being on the same court as the Pistons, let alone taking them the distance.
Same goes in 2007, when the Cavs improbably defeated the Pistons in the Eastern Conference Finals. This is subject to debate, but that Cleveland team could have been the worst team (on paper, at least) to ever make the Finals.
And in 2008, they used a gritty defensive series and a well-constructed game plan to take the eventual champions (Boston) to a seventh game, where they were a missed three-pointer with less than a minute to go away from taking the lead and maybe knocking off the 66-win Celtics.
Those Cavalier teams were a reflection of their coach: a blue collar, hard-nosed defensive team that always played hard and left everything they had on the court.
But in the last two seasons, those characteristics were no longer present.
In 2009, the normally defensive-sounded Cavs were torched by the pick-and-roll happy Magic to the tune of 103 points per game and 48 percent shooting in a six-game defeat.
This year, they gave up 100 points per game on 47 percent to a Celtic offense that was woeful for the previous four months (stats courtesy of Brian Windhorst).
But more important than that, the team didn't respond to any of Brown's adjustments. It was obvious they quit; they rolled over and let the Celtics impose their will. Whether that's the fault of the coach or the team captain is debatable.
Maybe it was a complete overhaul of the roster that made it too problematic for Brown to settle on a rotation and style.
Maybe, after so many years of preaching the same things, the players eventually tuned him out.
Or maybe, after years of offensive futility and the same feeble approach at that end of the court, the rest of the league caught up and knew the subtleties and nuances of the Cavs offense.
So was this the right decision?
Mike Brown is one of the nicest people in the league. Everyone that's ever met him will tell you as much.
He's a player's coach, and that's evident from the comments made by Mo Williams and Zydrunas Ilgauskas . He had a style that encouraged players to speak their minds and give their own insight to the game, and deferred a lot of responsibility to his assistant coaches as well.
To be personal for a minute...
I was often very critical of Mike Brown, but more so during his early years. In the last two years, I questioned his gameplans less and less. Maybe I was used to his approach at that point, or maybe winning 127 games over two years was enough to make me overlook his shortcomings.
I'm not bitter at him because of what happened in the playoffs this year. When I think of the Mike Brown-era, I'd like to think I'll remember what he did right.
Like turning LeBron James into an All-Defensive player.
Like his lineup changes in 2007, where he put his faith in the hands of a rookie named Boobie, which was the spark the Cavs needed in Game Six (one of the most memorable nights of my life).
Like how the Cavs won an incredible 66 games in one season, something that I never thought I'd see in my lifetime, even with LeBron James.
And there's only one playoff series in his five years that I think the Cavs lost because of his coaching.
Unfortunately, that came at a tumultuous time where expectations were higher than ever before. With that, it became evident that a change needed to be made.
In today's NBA, the old adage is that coaches are easier to replace than players. Someone had to take the blame for the collapse against Boston, no matter how well the Celtics were playing.
So now, the Cavs are in a precarious spot that leaves some glaring questions that won't be easily answered. Do they throw any amount of money at a big-name coach in hopes of enticing LeBron (i.e. Phil Jackson)?
Do they go with another assistant that specializes in one particular aspect (i.e. Tom Thibodeau?)
Do they go with an experienced coach who can get the most of this team, but maybe can only do it in a two to three year window before the team turns on him (i.e. Byron Scott)?
Or, do they even hire a coach before they know James' plans?
Without speculating, here are a few names that have been floating around the Internet today, how they would fit in, and whether or not they would have an impact on LeBron's pending free agency (in no particular order):
Phil Jackson
Every team in the league would love to have a 10-time (and potentially 11-time) champion as their coach.
Jackson's contract expires at the end of the season, and though he has hinted he'll probably retire, a lucrative offer and the chance to turn LeBron James into a champion is something to look at. The fact that the Lakers might want him to take a substantial pay-cut could play a role as well.
As great of a fit as Phil would be, it's probably not worth holding your breath.
Avery Johnson
Johnson would be near the opposite end of the spectrum when compared to Brown. He's an aggressive coach that isn't afraid to get in his players' faces to get the most out of them.
However, Johnson has interviewed twice for the Atlanta Hawks coaching vacancy and is one of the top candidates for that job. Plus, it doesn't seem like he'd be a great fit as many of the problems Brown had with this team would likely be repeated with Johnson at the helm.
John Calipari
Unless LeBron explicitly states that he won't play for the Cavs unless Calipari is the coach, stay away. Stay far away.
Mike Krzyzewski
It doesn't seem likely that Coach K would leave Duke. But the closest he ever came was when Kobe pleaded for him to coach the Lakers in 2004. An opportunity to do the same with LeBron James might be worth listening to.
Tom Izzo
He's not leaving Michigan State. That's one of the most confident statements I've ever made.
Tom Thibodeau
A great assistant that will bring many of the same assets that Brown did when he was hired: a great defensive mind with championship pedigree for a prestigious NBA team.
While he's considered by many to be a more well-rounded coach than just a defensive specialist, the AP reported a few hours ago that the Hornets plan to offer their head coaching job to Thibodeau. He'll be in high demand if that's the route the Cavs want to follow.
Byron Scott
Scott did a great job turning around both the Nets and Hornets, but after a while, both of his teams eventually turned on him and forced the front office to fire him.
This would be a panic hire, something short-sighted instead of a long-term solution.
Jeff Van Gundy
He doesn't have the playoff track record that Phil Jackson, Byron Scott, or even Avery Johnson does, but Van Gundy is a coach that demands discipline and execution from his players.
He's a similar to Mike Brown in style, but not in philosophy, which could be just what the Cavs need to get over the hump.
Larry Brown
Again, not a long-term solution. But Brown seemingly always gets the most out of his teams, even if it's just in a one to two year span.
However, the relationship between Brown and James wasn't exactly a match made in heaven when the two were together in Athens in 2004.
