Then Spoelstra proved himself after a sometimes-rocky first season with the Big 3, especially on offense.
My reporting has always indicated that James didn’t either. And recall, Wade didn’t want Riley back as the coach, for plenty of reasons. He was entrenched at that point, with two playoff appearances even if they were first round exits. So the idea that Spoelstra was being “experimented with” is farcical. The Heat were 15-67 the year before Spoelstra took over, with Pat Riley taking sabbaticals, and tripled their win total under Spoelstra. Whatever you think of what Spoelstra has done the past couple of years - 2018-19 was not his best, under difficult circumstances - he did make the playoffs with Dwyane Wade and not much else before James arrived (broken down, playoff flop Jermaine O’Neal was the second best player Wade had during those two seasons Michael Beasley was force fed minutes when he was a lackadaisical defensive liability only to justify his selection to a threadbare roster).
For what that’s worth.).īut, of course, we are in Miami, and so it’s the Spoelstra part of the Thomas take that is most wrong. Then James went to the Lakers with Luke Walton in place, so he knew sort of what he was getting (plus, Walton had posted a sterling won-loss record with the Warriors, even better than Steve Kerr’s. They won a title and, while it wasn’t clear Lue was all that responsible for it, he didn’t get in the way much. They had a little something to do with Ty Lue - who was doing good work coaching the Cavs defense - getting the main job. He botched a timeout in a big playoff game against Chicago and the officials didn’t see it and then James’ game-winner bailed him out.īut James and his camp didn’t have to deal with him long. He made excuse after excuse (doesn’t fly with LeBron) and compared himself to a fighter pilot. David Griffin tapped him in Cleveland before he knew he was getting LeBron. And he was a branch from the Gregg Popovich tree.ĭavid Blatt? He wasn’t suited for the role. Mike Brown? He was well-regarded as a strategist, especially on defense, at least for a while. Miami in 2001 Ricky Davis is still dunking somewhere, with Pat Riley memorably saying he was “embarrassed and ashamed” by what Silas’ team did to his). He was drafted by Cleveland when Paul Silas was there Silas may not have been an elite strategist, but he was a respected player and was well-liked by players and would have success after coaching James (remember Charlotte vs. The idea that James who, let’s be honest, thinks he can coach himself - and pretty much can - has been held back by his coaches is ludicrous.įirst, he’s done pretty well in spite of them if that’s the case. He went to LA w/ Walton there.Īnd he came here when Spo was entrenched. That's known.īut to say "the coaches he's been given" is a problem is silly. That Isiah Thomas take is the worst in a while. LeBron James has never had the benefit of Hall of Fame coaches." - /nhR1mHPpoeĮxcept that Erik Spoelstra was in his 3rd season and made the playoffs twice with just one star. "This is where the NBA and our league has truly failed LeBron James: every place he's gone, they've always given him either a first year coach or someone they were experimenting with. But even in that area, sometimes he slips up. I’ve interviewed him, and been impressed by his breadth of knowledge. Now he’s an analyst, and he’s generally enjoyable there. And FIU? We don’t want to talk about FIU. Tragic failures, time after time, with the New York Knicks, where he somehow remained James Dolan’s pet. He was a decent head coach in Indiana by most accounts. He was the heartbeat of a mini-dynasty, the catalyst of the Bad Boys. He was fiesty and relentless, not backing down even to Michael Jordan. He was tough as anyone - remember that swollen ankle in the NBA Finals, and all that Thomas did on it. He was a score-first point guard before that was the norm. Isiah Thomas was a terrific basketball player.
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