One NBA Coach That Each Team Would Love to Forget

Behind every great NBA team is an equally great coach.  Say what you want about Michael Jordan being the reason the Chicago Bulls were so amazing for a number of years, but there's no way he could have done it without having a great coach in Phil Jackson.  Yet, let's discuss the opposite type of coach for a second.

Every franchise must go through its dark period, be it the result of an underachieving team or, in some cases, an awful coach.  Knowing fans, they are quick to blame the coach and probably wish that he had never come to the team in the first place.  As a New York Knicks fan, I definitely wish I could lose all memory of the tenure of Isiah Thomas (pictured).

That all being said, here is one NBA coach that each team would love to forget.

Atlanta Hawks: Lon Kruger

After a long and successful career coaching on the college level, Lon Kruger was hired to coach the Atlanta Hawks in 2000.  He spent two-plus seasons there and I'm sure that if fans could, they would have said seasons wiped from their memories.

Kruger inherited a team that had just traded away two talented (yet troubled) players in Steve Smith and Isiah Rider, so thus his squad was missing something.  Yet, he could have just also been a coach who was great on the college level, but not in the pros.

In the two full seasons he spent at the helm, Kruger failed to make the playoffs and was fired just 27 games into his third year.  He finished with an overall record of 69-122 and is currently the head coach of the University of Oklahoma.

Boston Celtics: M.L. Carr

I've always been skeptical of former players becoming head coaches, with few exceptions.  Former Boston Celtics guard/forward M.L. Carr is not one of these exceptions, considering his two-year tenure as head coach of the Boston Celtics.

Hired in 1995, Carr was tasked with turning around a Celtics team that was without a core big three of Larry Bird, Robert Parish and Kevin McHale.  Considering how he was also the team's general manager, team ownership trusted him enough to put together a winning team.  Sadly, such was not to be.

Carr went an abysmal 48-116 in two seasons in Boston, winning just 15 games in his last season.  To date, he has never coached again.

Charlotte Bobcats: Bernie Bickerstaff

It's hard for me to do a slide for the Charlotte Bobcats since they've only been in existence since 2004 and only have had four head coaches.  It's even harder for me to include Bernie Bickerstaff in this slideshow because the man is a decent coach who didn't exactly start with a good situation in Charlotte.

As the coach of any new expansion team, Bickerstaff didn't have much to work with his first season.  He had first round draft pick Emeka Okafor and a bunch of guys that already-existing teams left unprotected in the expansion draft.  Yet, to his credit, the Bobcats' win total increased each of his three seasons in charge.

Still, his overall record was one to forget.  He left Charlotte with a 77-169 record and a .313 winning percentage.  He has since had multiple assistant coaching jobs within the NBA.

Chicago Bulls: Tim Floyd

Tim Floyd is another decent college coach who just couldn't seem to cut it in the NBA.  He was hired away from Iowa State to run the Bulls in 1998, the team's first year following the second retirement of Michael Jordan and the trading of Scottie Pippen.  Sure enough, it wasn't a rosy situation in the Windy City.

In Floyd's first season, the lockout-shortened 1998-1999 campaign, the Bulls won just 13 games.  The crazy part is that Floyd managed to last three seasons and change despite not ever winning more than 17 games in a season.  He finished his career in Chicago with an awful record of 49-190.

Cleveland Cavaliers: John Lucas

John Lucas cannot be completely blamed for his work in Cleveland, as he was handed a crappy situation to begin with.  He did not even last two seasons with the team and was fired 42 games into his second year.  In terms of record, he went 37-87.

Yet, many years later, Lucas made an interesting claim.  He told the press that in his second season, the Cavaliers "tanked" games in order to finish with a bad record and thus increase their chances of landing the first overall pick in the draft, one that would definitely be used to select highly-touted high school player and Ohio native LeBron James.

Whether or not said claim is true, it doesn't take away from the fact that Lucas's tenure in Cleveland was just plain bad.

Dallas Mavericks: Quinn Buckner

The year before Quinn Buckner became head coach of the Dallas Mavericks, the team had gone 11-71.  Thus, why team ownership chose to go with a man who had no coaching experience is beyond me.  Yes, Buckner was a decent former player who had won an NBA championship with the Boston Celtics and a national championship with Indiana while playing for Bob Knight, but are those really reasons to hire someone to run a team in shambles?

Sure enough, Buckner's inexperience caught up with him.  In his lone season as coach, he went 13-69 and was fired two days after the season ended.

Denver Nuggets: Bill Hanzlik

In Bill Hanzlik's defense, his lone season in Denver wasn't exactly his fault.  His team was absolutely devastated by injuries, and that isn't the coach's fault at all.  Yet, when the end result is an 11-71 record, there needs to be a fall guy.

Sadly, Hanzlik played that role at the end of the season and was fired.  To date, he owns the worst full-season record for a rookie coach in NBA history.

Detroit Pistons: John Kuester

Once a storied franchise known for consistently contending for championships, the Detroit Pistons were a complete and utter joke when John Kuester coached them for the previous two seasons.  A former college coach, and not a very good one at that, Kuester went 57-107 in Detroit and developed a reputation for clashing with star players and not exactly respecting his squad.

To add insult to injury, it's clear that the players didn't respect Kuester much either.  Last year, after the man was ejected from a game and forced to leave the court, the players could be seen laughing at him.

Golden State Warriors: P.J. Carlesimo

Considered an "unrepentant screamer" by some of his former players, P.J. Carlesimo's short time with the Golden State Warriors was infamous.  In his first season with the team, he was choked by star forward Latrell Sprewell and things only got worse from there.  He didn't even last three seasons and went 46-113.

The sad part is that Carlesimo managed to get another NBA head coaching job some years down the road, but more on that later.

Houston Rockets: Tex Winter

It absolutely pains me to include Tex Winter on this list.  Not only was he a good coach on the college level, but he was one of the game's most innovative figures.  Without him, there would be no triangle offense and teams like the Chicago Bulls and Los Angeles Lakers may not have experienced certain successes.

Yet, like most college coaches in any sport, Winter did not do so well as a head coach on the professional level.  His only NBA head coaching experience was with the Houston Rockets from 1971-1973 and in that time, the team only went 51-78 with no playoff appearances.  To date, Winter is one of just two coaches in team history to not make the playoffs, the other being Alex Hannum.

Indiana Pacers: George Irvine

George Irvine became head coach of the Indiana Pacers in 1984 and lasted two seasons before getting the boot in favor of Dr. Jack Ramsay.  In that time, he went 48-116.  The crazy part is that team management brought Irvine back on an interim basis two seasons later, when he went 6-14 over 20 games.

It can be argued that Irvine didn't have much of a team to work with in Indiana, but that shouldn't be an excuse for him nor anybody.  As a head coach, it was his job to get the best out of his team and he just didn't do that.

Los Angeles Clippers: Chris Ford

This one proved to be tough considering how in 40 years of existence, the Clippers have only managed to have four coaches take them to the postseason.  Still, after much consideration, I've opted to go with Chris Ford.

An experienced leader who had spent time with the Boston Celtics and Milwaukee Bucks before coming to LA, Ford didn't even last two seasons.  His first year in charge was the lockout-shortened '98-'99 campaign, and he only went 9-41.  The next season, he went 11-34 before being fired.

The record cannot be entirely blamed on him, as Clippers owner Donald Sterling is notorious for being cheap and not spending any money on the team, but the sad truth is that coaches are the fall guys when teams don't do well and Ford was no exception.

Los Angeles Lakers: George Mikan

Just how the Clippers were tough because they had so many bad coaches, the Lakers are tough for the opposite reason.  They have had so many good coaches pass through their hallowed halls that it's hard to find a bad apple.  Yet, this one could prove to be interesting.

George Mikan was a popular player for the Lakers back when they played in Minneapolis.  After retiring, he served as head coach of the team for 39 games in 1958 following John Kundla stepping down to become the team's GM.  Sadly, Mikan was a better player than he was a coach and went 9-30 before resigning.

It is a prime example of why good players don't necessarily make good coaches.

Memphis Grizzlies: Brian Winters

Taking on a head coaching job with an expansion team in its first season is never an easy task, and Brian Winters probably understands that better than anybody.  As the inaugural coach for the Vancouver Grizzlies back in 1995, he posted an abysmal record of 15-67.

Winters didn't fare much better the following season as he went just 8-35 before being fired and replaced by team GM Stu Jackson.  His only other coaching experience in the NBA was on an interim basis with the Golden State Warriors in 2001-2002 and he then went on to coach the Indiana Fever of the WNBA.

Miami Heat: Ron Rothstein

I hate to include coaches who manned expansion teams in the franchise's first few seasons, but the Miami Heat have had so many good coaches that Ron Rothstein is just the odd man out.  He spent four seasons with the team from 1988-1991.

In that time, the man guided the young expansion team to an overall record of 57-189.  He was replaced by Kevin Loughery, who guided the Heat to their first playoff appearance in his first year with them.

Rothstein later coached the Detroit Pistons and has since had multiple assistant jobs on top of coaching the WNBA's Miami Sol for three years.

Milwaukee Bucks: Larry Krystkowiak

Larry Krystkowiak took over the Bucks in March 2007 following the firing of Terry Stotts.  After beating the San Antonio Spurs in his head coaching debut, he was given a four-year deal worth about $8 million.

Yet, Krystkowiak's time in Milwaukee was short-lived as he went 26-56 in his first full season before being fired.  Overall, he went 31-69 and is now the coach of the University of Utah men's team.

Minnesota Timberwolves: Kurt Rambis

One would think that after so many years serving as an assistant under Phil Jackson, Kurt Rambis would be a decent head coach.  Instead, in two years with the Minnesota Timberwolves, he went 32-132.  Considering how he had talented young players like Kevin Love and Jonny Flynn on the team, not to mention Michael Beasley last season, that record is simply unacceptable.

I'm sure the Minnesota fans wouldn't lose any sleep if Rambis's time with the team was wiped clean from the annals.

New Jersey Nets: Butch Beard

Following the death of star guard Drazen Petrovic in 1993, the New Jersey Nets went into a tailspin.  Without his electrifying shooting and the laziness of Derrick Coleman, the team just didn't do well at all.  With this tailspin came some coaches that were just downright awful.

One that stands out is former NBA player Butch Beard, who spent two forgettable seasons coaching the team.  In those two years, Beard went 60-104 and has not coached in the NBA since.

New Orleans Hornets: Jeff Bower

You know that a team is really in trouble when the head coach is fired and replaced with, of all people, the general manager.  This happened with the New Orleans Hornets in 2009 when Byron Scott was fired and GM Jeff Bower took over.

In terms of record alone, Bower wasn't that bad as he went 34-39, respectable for someone with no coaching experience.  Still, for a team like the Hornets to be so bad and strapped for cash that Bower was the only option, I would want to forget that 100 times over if I were a fan of the team.

New York Knicks: Isiah Thomas

As a Knicks fan, it's hard to not have nightmares about Isiah Thomas's two years as head coach, not to mention the five he spent as GM.  To be honest, I don't know where to begin with this one.

First, he insisted on playing head cases like point guard Stephon Marbury and out of shape busts like center Eddy Curry.  The team consistently lost with these men in the lineup, yet Thomas stuck with them and believed that they could take the Knicks to the playoffs.

In two seasons as head coach, Thomas went 56-108 before being fired.  Considering how he still has a strong friendship with team owner James Dolan, I'm praying that he doesn't walk through the walls of MSG any time soon.

Oklahoma City Thunder: P.J. Carlesimo

I'm still trying to figure out why the Oklahoma City Thunder (then the Seattle SuperSonics) chose to hire P.J. Carlesimo as head coach.  He had already shown that he wasn't good with young players in his time with Golden State, but years as an assistant with Gregg Popovich and the San Antonio Spurs seemed to nullify all of that.

Instead, Carlesimo proved that old habits die hard and his time with the team was forgettable.  He only lasted 95 games and posted a record of 21-74.  Despite that, he managed to get an assistant coaching job with the Toronto Raptors, but it's doubtful that we'll see him manning a team as head coach any time soon.

Orlando Magic: Johnny Davis

Johnny Davis took over the Orlando Magic following the firing of Doc Rivers in 2003.  He went on to remain with the team for nearly two more seasons, but did not have much to show for it.

In 135 games, Davis went 51-84 before being fired in 2005 and replaced with Chris Jent.  He has since had a multitude of assistant jobs and served as the interim coach of the Memphis Grizzlies in 2009 after Mark Iavaroni was fired.

Philadelphia 76ers: Roy Rubin and Kevin Loughery

The 1972-1973 season was a forgettable one for the Philadelphia 76ers.  With a roster decimated by multiple odd trades, most notably the one that sent Wilt Chamberlain to the Los Angeles Lakers, the team was a mess.  Roy Rubin started the season as coach and went 4-47 before being fired.

He was replaced by player Kevin Loughery (pictured), who didn't fare much better at 5-26.  The team finished 9-73, to date the worst ever full-season record for a team in NBA history.  Though neither coach could be blamed for the record, fans would surely love to forget about it.

Phoenix Suns: John Wetzel

John Wetzel lasted one season with the Phoenix Suns, the 1987-1988 campaign.  Despite having a decent core featuring Kevin Johnson, Walter Davis and Larry Nance, the team finished 28-54 and Wetzel was fired after just one season.

He was never a head coach again, taking several assistant coaching jobs before retiring from the game permanently in 2004.

Portland Trail Blazers: Maurice Cheeks

In terms of wins and losses, Maurice Cheeks was not a bad coach for the Portland Trail Blazers.  In three and a half seasons, Cheeks took the team to an overall record of 162-139, pretty respectable considering how tough the Western Conference is as a whole.

Yet, fans grew frustrated with Cheeks after he proved to struggle come playoff time.  Keep in mind, he was replacing a coach who came within a few minutes of a trip to the NBA Finals in Mike Dunleavy.  Cheeks never got that far in Portland, his playoff record being a less than average 3-7.

He later coached the Philadelphia 76ers, where he struggled horribly.

Sacramento Kings: Dick Motta

Considering how Dick Motta could easily make the Hall of Fame as a coach some day, his short tenure with the Sacramento Kings should not even be looked at.  The man who won a title for the Washington Bullets in 1978 lasted just over two seasons in Sacramento, putting together a horrific 48-113 record.

It wasn't his last coaching job, but Motta's time with the Kings could be a black mark on his Hall of Fame resume that may haunt him when it comes time for him to be considered.

San Antonio Spurs: Jerry Tarkanian

Once again, we have another college coach who just couldn't cut it in the pros.  Jerry "The Shark" Tarkanian had built a reputation as a great coach in nearly 20 years coaching the UNLV Runnin' Rebels, so the Spurs brought him in for the 1992 season.  It was a bad start from the moment he signed the contract.

Tarkanian had multiple disagreements with team owner Red McCombs, who brushed off Tarkanian's opinion that the team could not compete without an experienced point guard.  Sure enough, McCombbs fired Tarkanian after just 20 games and a 9-11 start.

The man wasn't necessarily a bad coach, but the situation itself was just so embarrassing and full of drama that fans would rather forget about it.

Toronto Raptors: Jay Triano

I still don't understand why Jay Triano was the head coach of the Toronto Raptors for so long.  He had limited coaching experience and considering how young the team was when he took over for Sam Mitchell in 2008, I'm surprised that ownership opted not to pursue someone with more experience.

In two and a half seasons as head coach, Triano went 87-142 for a career winning percentage of .380.  He was relieved of his duties after last season and reassigned within the organization.

Utah Jazz: Elgin Baylor

I'm of the opinion that just because someone is a good player, that doesn't necessarily mean that they'll be a good coach.  Such is the case with Elgin Baylor who despite being one of the game's most talented players, he was not as great on the sidelines.

He coached the Jazz for three seasons, 1976-1979 (plus one game in 1974) and posted a career record of 86-135.  Sure, the Jazz were still a fairly young team at this point, but that's no excuse.

I've said it before and I'll say it again.  The head coach's job is to get the best out of his team and turn them into contenders.  Unfortunately, Baylor could not do that and was let go.

Washington Wizards: Eddie Jordan

Eddie Jordan spent four-plus years coaching the Washington Wizards and while he wasn't necessarily a horrible coach, fans would much rather forget he was ever with the team.  He had a reputation for being quite fiery and clashed with Kwame Brown, though that was probably Brown's fault.

His overall record was 197-224, but he still made the playoffs in each of his full seasons.  This is where the forgettable aspect comes in.  Jordan only went 8-18 in the playoffs despite having talented men like Gilbert Arenas and Antawn Jamison on his team.

He has yet to land another head coaching gig, but his playoff record may prevent that from ever happening.