WeatherGuy

What's the impact of an NBA coach, specifically coach Sloan? Do they still teach at this level or simply install an offense/defense and watch 'em play?

I think most agree there is ample talent on the Jazz, maybe with the exception of a traditional BIG man and, of course, little D. It seems there is certainly enough talent that they should be competing much, much better than they are. I don't understand Sloan's decisions regarding player rotations or offensive schemes. I also can't understand why he watches huge momentum swings and doesn't seem to make adjustments.

Call a time-out before a 15 point swing has happened! Teach some defense or at least how to effectively help. Defend the three, at lease when the game calls for it. If Okur is o-forever from three-land, send him to the hole! Make sure Deron doesn't focus solely on Boozer. Is there still a Jazz half-court offense, because I haven't seen one for a while? Where is Fez? Why is Collins logging so many minutes? What good is a ??deep, talented bench if they never play? Here's a concept: include the entire team in the offense and teach them to defend! Will the Jazz even figure out how to use Korver? He should be able to open things up for Boozer, AK, Deron, and even Okur. Is it too crowded for Korver on the three-line when Okur is always standing there? I say coach the players in the game instead of berate them in the locker or to the media.

I never have thought much of Sloan as an in-game coach even though I think he's usually prepared teams well and I respect his no nonsense style. However, I've always wondered what might have been with a different (?better) coach, coaching Stockton/Malone/Hornecek. If he wasted talent then, I worry he's certainly going to waste the current talent.

So, how much is coaching and how much is simply players playing? Is Sloan a good coach? Is he the right coach for this young team?

endora60

Just tossing in a howl of protest at the very idea. Stockton, Malone, and Hornacek simply ran into the monolith that was MJ and Company. If anything, Sloan made that team more competitive than they had any right to be.

Just out of curiosity, who do you consider would have been a (?better) coach for the Jazz during those years than Sloan? Please don't say Phil Jackson; he wasn't anywhere near Jerry Sloan in terms of coaching ability and still isn't. He's gotten unholy lucky in the players with whom he's worked, but he's not inherently a better coach than Sloan.

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unluckyseventeen

Sloan seems to be stuck in the mode of coaching a veteran team, and just letting them go out there and play basketball. I honestly don't think Sloan is the right coach for us anymore, and don't think the players are very inspired... at all, to play for him.

Sloan still makes bad decisions regarding momentum and substitution patterns. I guess he feels coaching every game on auto-pilot is just going to win games, or something.

I'd rather see Phil Johnson at the helm now. He seems better with young players, has good substitution patterns, and can't possibly be as stubborn as Sloan is.

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WeatherGuy

No, certainly not Jackson! He's never proved he can do anything without the likes of MJ/Pippen, Kobe/Shaq (i.e. multiple Hall-o-famers) to work with. But, what about some who have had success and then gone on to turn other teams around: Pat Riley, Larry Brown, and Don Nelson are the first that come to mind.

And, I'm not saying Sloan is a bad or was the wrong coach for Utah, just wondering how much difference a coach actually makes in the NBA. Could a better coach have gotten more out of Stockton/Malone/Hornacek? I don't think he's the right coach for the current talent.

It continues to get more and more frustrating watching this Jazz team when they look like they need a coach who can adjust and teach. The talent is apparent and the NBA has seen what they're capable of but they're steamrolling in the wrong direction.

Krstic All Star

Sloan was the perfect coach for the Jazz teams of the 80s and 90s, bar none. While there could be some chicken and egg dispute about whether the style was his, and the players conformed to it or whether he really developed it on the basis of what he had, the fact is that, especially during the 80s, the team was playing the perfect style for them.

The key is that he demands more of his point guards than any other coach I've seen. It's why I watched soooo many hours of Jazz tape when I was learning to play point on the fly my first year of college. But he's the difference for them - if and only if they can handle it.

So, turning back to the issue of the present team, he's still the best coach they could have. In Deron Williams, he's found a PG with the ability, both athletic and mental, to carry out his offense. Combine that with the development of some of the younger players, and the Jazz will be a dominant team sooner rather than later. Tossing him out, on the other hand, would mean disaster, regardless of whether it's immediately apparent.

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