Jerry Sloan, Deron Williams and More Coach-Player Feuds That Ended Badly
Fights between a player and a coach have been a part of the game, it happens. It definitely seems to be happening more often than not these days, but they've always happened.
The latest came today when news that a rift between Utah Jazz star point guard Deron Williams and coach Jerry Sloan led to Sloan resigning after almost a quarter of a century in Utah. It was the end of a partnership that was never able to get over the hump in the Western Conference and the end of a brilliant coaching career in Utah for Sloan.
These are the tales of feuds that didn't end well, that didn't result in championships or glory, instead ended with infamy and bad blood. These are the tales of sideline fights, heated arguments and hurt feelings.
They are the player-coach feuds that ended badly.
15. Mike Shanahan vs. Donovan McNabb, Albert Haynesworth
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Shanahan and McNabb were supposed to be the ones that changed things in Washington, that turned the Redskins around and had them back in the right direction. Suffice to say it never happened. The same applied to Haynesworth, who was another big ticket signing by the Redskins the year prior.
Shanahan took both to task for their cardiovascular endurance (or lack thereof). Haynesworth in training camp and McNabb in the last five minutes of a loss in Detroit. Apparently Shanahan also believes McNabb puked in that Super Bowl.
Eventually both were benched and/or suspended, and it's widely believed neither one will be back in Washington next season.
14. Jerry Sloan vs. Deron Williams
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So who expected Jerry Sloan to resign today?
Obviously when you hear of someone like Sloan resigning, the first thing that comes to mind is that it's health-related or some sort of family issue. But it wasn't and Sloan had just signed a contract extension last week.
News is starting to leak now that Williams, Utah's star guard, might be the one behind the resignation. According to Yahoo's Adrian Wojnarowski, Williams and Sloan were in a heated argument Wednesday night that according to his tweets, some players feared would escalate to blows.
It never did, but it was the final straw. Sloan's going home after a brilliant career in Utah, Williams stays on.
13. Keyshawn Johnson vs. Jon Gruden
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Keyshawn Johnson has always been a lightning rod for controversy, especially since his controversy-to-actual-prodction ratio hasn't been as great as one would think.
But the last straw for Johnson and the man lovingly known as Chucky came in 2003 as the Buccaneers were struggling through a Super Bowl hangover. Gruden eventually had enough and benched Johnson, which led to a heated argument on national television.
Johnson was soon de-activated for the remainder of the season; Gruden stayed on as Buccaneers' coach for a few more seasons while Johnson promptly blamed Gruden for not making it work.
Ironically both men now work for ESPN.
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12. Jacques Martin vs. Sergei Kostitsyn
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Martin has always been a hard-nosed coach during his NHL career, but perhaps it was never more evident with Sergei Kostitsyn, who in his Montreal career went from young star to possibly hanging out with a criminal to in the doghouse.
It happened pretty quickly with Martin, who singled out Kostitsyn during practice and lashed out at him for missing a team shuttle to Quebec City. Eventually, Kostitsyn was sent down to the AHL to begin last season and by the offseason, he was off to Nashville for basically a bag of pucks.
11. Magic Johnson vs. Paul Westhead
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For someone as universally loved as Magic, you don't hear the label of "coach-axer" next to his name.
But I guess there's a first time for everything, and for Magic it came with Paul Westhead (the man who decided to famously start Magic at center in Game 6 of the 1980 NBA Finals). As the story goes, Magic was upset about the bland offense and spoke out about it, and Westhead was fired by Jerry Buss not too long after.
You learn something new every day.
10. Jeff George vs. June Jones
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George and Jones didn't have a uniquely tumultuous relationship during his brief stint in Atlanta. George was brought into Atlanta as a gunslinger after four years in Indianapolis. George even led the Falcons to the Playoffs in 1995.
But no one remembers that. Everyone remembers that home game on Sunday night in 1996 when Jones and George got into a heated argument on the sideline. George was suspended for the rest of the season and never played another down for the Falcons.
If it wasn't for those darn TV cameras.
9. Joe Torre vs. Alex Rodriguez
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Fast forward to 2004 and there was more controversy involving a Yankee and his star player who happened to be the apple of Mr. Steinbrenner's eye. Or in this case, it was a Yankee and a former Yankee manager's tell-all book.
Perhaps the biggest revelation to come out of Joe Torre's book "The Yankee Years," was the slamming of A-Rod by Torre. Among the jabs at A-Rod in the book was that he strained the Yankee clubhouse because he "craved the attention" and his lack of success in key spots.
Torre and A-Rod never combined for a title, instead they were part of one of the worst collapses in playoff history (2004 ALCS). A-Rod finally got his ring in 2009 with Joe Girardi as his manager.
8. Jeff Fisher vs. Vince Young
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It was always rocky between the coach and the franchise quarterback, especially both were well-liked by owner Bud Adams. But despite all the struggles, injuries and a couple of benchings, Fisher stuck by Young.
That was until Young was removed from the game with a hand injury the team said needed season-ending surgery. Apparently Fisher tried to confront Young in the locker room, after which Young walked out of the room.
Not on his teammates, just on Fisher. It's important to make that distinction.
So ended the golden age of Titans football and all two postseason games they played in.
7. Allen Iverson vs. Larry Brown
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Iverson and Brown, what a pair.
During their time in Philadelphia, A.I. and Brown defined a love-hate relationship. Things were always either coming up roses or a moment away from going sour. When the Sixers made the run to the 2001 NBA Finals, it was definitely peachy.
But then there were the bad times, and they were bad. But we have to give them credit, for if it wasn't for this pair, we wouldn't have had one of the greatest press conference rants of all time.
Anyone ask about practice?
6. Terrell Owens vs. Steve Mariucci, Andy Reid and Bill Parcells
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Which T.O. coach feud is the best?
Well take your pick: Would you like the one where he got his coach fired and before he left, questioned his quarterback's sexuality; the one where he got himself suspended by the team and famously did a workout/interview in his driveway; or the one where he got Bill Parcells fired?
Either one would work here.
5. Mike D'Antoni vs. Stephon Marbury
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The Marbury-D'Antoni debacle was a sight to behold. It was pretty clear from when D'Antoni came on as Knicks coach that he didn't want Starbury around. He proved it by burying Marbury on the bench, making him inactive rather than play him as a backup to Chris Duhon.
When D'Antoni did give Marbury a chance to play after a major trade, Marbury declined, staying on the bench rather than take the minutes. He was eventually banned from the Knicks (didn't know that could happen under the Dolan regime) and ended the season with Boston.
The entire fiasco was childish and humiliated the franchise in the New York tabloids.
In other words, it summed up the entire decade of Knicks Basketball.
4. Billy Martin vs. Reggie Jackson
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Oh, the good old Bronx Zoo.
If you remember those days in the 1970s, you remember the contentious relationship between the fiery manager and his star right-fielder. It was always on the edge of boiling over, especially when you threw vintage George Steinbrenner into the mix—the man who fired Billy Martin more times than he wore Babe Ruth's pants.
But everyone will always remember the scene in Fenway Park on that summer afternoon, when Martin pulled Jackson for not hustling and it combusted into blows in the visiting dugout. The irony was that these two were pretty successful as a duo, but it was never easy.
3. Patrick Roy vs. Mario Tremblay
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Hockey fans will never forget the night Canadiens coach Mario Tremblay left Patrick Roy, one of the best goaltenders of all-time, in for nine goals in front of a National Audience in Canada. They'll never forget Roy putting up his hands in a sarcastic cheer for finally making a save as the fans booed him mightily.
They'll never forget he was finally pulled in the second period. And they'll never forget that after he was pulled, Roy walked down the bench, leaned over to Team President Ronald Corey at the old Montreal Forum and told him he'd played his last game for the Habs.
He was traded days later. Meanwhile the Canadiens haven't reached a Stanley Cup Final since Roy left.
2. Mike Leach vs. Adam James
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We've all heard the story by now, it's so classic in the player-coach annals. Player gets injured with a concussion so coach allegedly puts him in a dark electrical closet with a guard and tells him he's off the team if he leaves. Player tells his dad, story breaks, and coach is eventually suspended and fired.
Sunrise, sunset.
The odd tale of Leach and James did in Leach at Texas Tech, and also brought many different stories of the situation to the forefront that it was hard to tell what exactly was the truth. It's either that James was basically imprisoned in a closet or that Leach told the trainers to keep him in an equipment room and that James was trying to skip practice.
You be the judge.
1. Latrell Sprewell vs. P.J. Carlesimo
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Let's face it, when a player chokes a coach, how can that not be No. 1?
Sprewell was a rising star on a bad Golden State team, when Carlesimo was asking Sprewell to make crisper passes during a practice.
"Put a little mustard" was the comment, according to CBSSports.com.
Apparently Sprewell had a short fuse when it came to condiments, because seconds later he had his hands around Carlesimo's throat, choking him before players were able to wrestle him off the coach. A Sports Illustrated story laid out the timeline leading up to the incident, which included Carlesimo calling Sprewell a "(blanking) joke," according to the article. But the damage had already been done.
Sprewell never played another game for the Warriors. He was suspended for 68 games and then traded to New York in 1999.
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