Indiana at Miami

[Real Deal]

I'm sorry, but Doc is a hell of a motivator, played in the NBA(huge factor here) and knows how to get through to his guys. Jerry Sloan has taken teams to the NBA Finals and would have won a few had it not been for #23.

 

This team needs a motivator. Someone who can rally them together and get them to play hard every second of every game. Spo doesn't command respect from anyone, not even his own coaching staff.

 

That's a huge problem for me and is part of what I've said all along. He's not the right type of coach for this team.

Why the hell do you have to motivate two superstars and an all-star? They sure looked motivated during their championship party.

[Makaveli]

What the hell can Spo do if LeBron and Wade refuse to play defense? Granger had a double double against LBJ and Rush had 20 against Wade.

Edited November 23, 2010 by #24

[Real Deal]

What the hell can Spo do if LeBron and Wade refuse to play defense? Granger had a double double against LBJ and Rush had 20 against Wade.

LeBron defended Granger well, from what I saw...but he got lazy here and there.

[Nitro]

Unfortunately for Spo, it seems like it's time for him to go. I feel bad for him because it's the first time he's ever had a team that could do some damage in the post-season, and he's had to deal with a few major injuries (Wade in the pre-season, Miller, now Haslem, etc...). Also, he was put in a position where he has to build a cohesive unit with brand-new parts that may not fit together perfectly, as well as all the huge ego's. With that said, the fans have wanted him to go from the start, the team is 8-6 with one of the most talented rosters in the league, and the players just don't seem to be responding to whatever coaching techniques he is using. With almost any other team, a coaching change wouldn't be needed so early. But with this specific group of players who are under such enormous pressure to perform at 100% capabilities every single night, I don't think a 3rd year coach (who has no NBA playing experience) with little experience in managing this type of team will get the job done.

[Flash]

Why the hell do you have to motivate two superstars and an all-star? They sure looked motivated during their championship party.

 

I don't think its just motivating them though. They don't respond to the guy and its shown all season. A proven winner at every level like Riley is what's needed here. Someone these guys can respect and respond to under adversity. I have no faith that when things are going bad for this team, that Spo is the type of person who can get them to respond positively.

 

What the hell can Spo do if LeBron and Wade refuse to play defense? Granger had a double double against LBJ and Rush had 20 against Wade.

 

Bron's defense was solid tonight. Wade got caught cheating a lot defensively. He gambled waaay too much instead of getting to work defensively and staying on Rush. Indiana also set a ton of great screens tonight which Wade couldn't fight through at all.

 

[Dash]

Spo just doesn't have the respect of the players nor can he control the big egos on the team. Its not necessarily his fault but when you have 3 big personas on one team, you're going to need a coach with the balls and respect to control those egos. I can understand that Pat wants to turn his protege into that coach but unfortunately its not working out and Riley needs to step in.

Edited November 23, 2010 by Dash

[NomarFachix]

lmao @ blaming the coach

[Flash]

IMO, we missed a golden opportunity this offseason when we could've hired Byron Scott. He would've been PERFECT to lead a team like this. Even if it were just Wade and Bosh and LBJ had never come along. Once the season ended I would've made that hire without thinking twice.

[Lkr]

Why do they need a proven winner? Only one of these players has proven anything themselves. In fact, LeBron has played for a worse coach for the last few years in Mike Brown

[Flash]

Why do they need a proven winner? Only one of these players has proven anything themselves. In fact, LeBron has played for a worse coach for the last few years in Mike Brown

 

Mike Brown > Spo. Yeah I said it.

 

LeBron is a 2 time MVP and has been to the Finals. He's proven a lot in this league.

Edited November 23, 2010 by Flash

[Real Deal]

Mike Brown > Spo. Yeah I said it.

...Mike Brown wasn't even coaching the team 95% of the time.

[Newman]

Mike Brown > Spo. Yeah I said it.

 

Like Sir Charles once said....0 + 0 = 0

 

But seriously though, Spo isn't God. He doesn't determine whether D-Wade's shots would go in or whether James Jones and House's 3's go in. All he (and any other coach) can do is draw up plays, ensure players play at their best and choose the players on the court.

[Luke]

Awesome win..and it helped my accumulator.

 

Boston win

Indiana win

Okalhoma win

San Antonio win

LA Clippers win

 

Thankyou very much williamhill.

[The Lone Granger]

Great win for us! We showed that we know how to play against, and can beat elite NBA teams. The Heat just couldn't get past our defense, and we hit shots down the stretch to seal the win.

 

I'm getting really tired of hearing Heat fans blame everything on the coaching. Sure, maybe Spoelstra isn't getting the job done, but that is not the reason you are losing. You have to find away to beat defenses, and I haven't seen it so far. They just aren't playing smart, and judging by how many charges we took, you aren't very well disciplined against good defense. LeBron has always been killed by defense, see the Playoff series' against Boston and even the Magic.

 

This is a huge win for the Pacers, and I'm starting to think that we may turn into a name for contenders in the near future. We played great defense, team basketball, and moved the ball well on offense to hit shots down the stretch. Do you guys think Indiana has a chance to compete in the Playoffs this year?

 

Also a huge shoutout to Brandon Rush who is finally playing with confidence and using his athletic abilities to get in the paint and score. He put up 20 points tonight, and played excellent defense as well. Ford was huge off the bench as well.

[Built Ford Tough]

LeBron has always been killed by defense, see the Playoff series' against Boston and even the Magic.

 

You mean the series that he put up 38/8/8? Yeah, the Magic defense sure did kill him.

 

Even against Boston, he has career averages of 31/6/6 on 47%. Sure, some of those numbers may be a bit inflated due to him beating up on them when they were horrible in the middle of the decade, but he has definitely had a lot of success against the Celtics in his career, at least individually. Don't let his play in the playoffs last season, when he had clearly mailed it in, try to tell you otherwise.