Posted on 07 May 2007 by Raps Fan
This is just me reading the betweens, nothing concrete or substantiated, but Colangelo is playing his cards perfectly not to resign Mitchell, and come out the good-guy. He is quoted as saying the budget for a coach is “realistic and reasonable,” but it’s certainly not limitless. And “the game is looking at 30 contracts, looking at successes. Not just one week in a season, it’s an entire season.” Not exactly a ringing endorsement for the incumbent Joke Coach of Year.
The most telling quote, for me anyways, is when Colangelo said “Whether we’re the right franchise for Sam is something I can’t answer.” Of all the teams, that are looking for coaches this off-season, only Orlando and Bobcats (and Memphis if they can land a top two pick) have the kind of young team that Mitchell apparently favours. Of those, none is in a major market, and none have the upside, mix of veteran and young buck, and success that the Raptors have so far.
I suspect that Colangelo will stretch out his negotiations in hopes that someone else comes after Mitchell with a deal he can’t refuse, and let him walk; where out of nowhere, Iavaroni (who I don’t think we should sign either, I will talk about this at a later date) will become the Raptors next head coach.
Technorati Tags: Sam Mitchell, Bryan Colangelo, Marc Iavaroni, Orlando Magic, Charlotte Bobcats, Memphis Grizzlies
May 8th, 2007 at 9:37 am
Classic:
http://www.thestar.com/Sports/article/211499
May 8th, 2007 at 10:19 am
if bc low balls sam , it means ivaroni is in . i think deep in his heart , bc wants ‘his’ coach. it’s just to complicated to let go of smitch after a succesful season .
May 8th, 2007 at 3:50 pm
Does Iavaroni speak Italian? If he does, then bring him in; I’m sure Andrea Bargnani has a hard time understanding what Mitchell is saying - I know I do. Thats probably why they don’t run any plays for Andrea…wait..the Raptors don’t run plays at all.
I know Mitchell had a great season, but he had the players and he was coaching for a new contract.
The Raptors were not prepared for the firt round. I don’t think it was an experience issue; it was more about the lack of preparation.
I don’t mind if Sam leaves
May 8th, 2007 at 5:36 pm
i think it is a combination of the two. they didnt hav the experience, which is why they split the first two games; and they werent preparied, which is why they got raped in the second two games. very hard to recover when you are down 3-1.
i dont mind at all if they dont resign him. i just dont know how bc is going to position it. i am sure he will divine something suitable though.
May 10th, 2007 at 5:35 pm
I’m still recovering from the Game 6 loss but I’ll say my two cents about the coaching here.
Mitchell is a good motivator and not a good coach. BC wants his own man in there (which GM wouldn’t?) and this is setup perfectly for him to “not afford” Mitchell and bring in his own man. I really think Mitchell will get exposed next year when he’s coaching the Bobcats and his team gives up 115 points on average.
Mitchell’s success in TO can be largely attributed to the players here. I know it’s a copout answer but its the truth. I saw every Raptor game all year and rarely did I see any offensive creativity. Moments like the endings of the Wizards game should never happen - we couldn’t even bring the ball up the court!!
I think it’s fairly easy to tell that the Raptors are not a well-coached team on offense - lack of plays, set-pieces, out-of-timeout plays say it all. Defensively we’re horrible but that has more to do with the players than the coaching. Even then I DID NOT see an improvement in our defense as the year went along. I think Mitchell needs to be responsible for that. Games 1, 3 and 4 were brutal.
Anyways..hopefully I’ll be out of my depression soon…