The Mark Jackson Era Begins
by Mike
Well, the early rumors about Mark Jackson being the front runner for the Warriors job weren’t the smokescreen I thought they were. I was initially a bit disappointed, but after letting it sink in for 24 hours — and learning of the Mike Malone hire — I’m definitely feeling a lot better about things. I like that he will have credibility as a former player; I like that he should be a hell of a PG coach for Curry; I like that he isn’t a retread; and I like that he appears maniacally driven to succeed in this new role.
(Of course, he also has no coaching experience of any kind.)
(Also, I found this article by Steinmetz interesting — in particular, the notes about how at the end of the regular season, it seemed like Doc Rivers, Stan Van Gundy, Erik Spoelstra and Mike D’Antoni could become available. Just like this year’s draft class, the available coaching pool was severely limited this year).
Reading the transcript of Jackson’s chat with reporters tonight before Game 4 of the finals makes me feel a bit better about his inexperience — he’s aware of his limitations, but confident that he’ll overcome them. He’s expecting 100% effort on the defensive end, and I think that’s a different 100% than Smart demanded.
Perhaps the biggest hurdle will be the offensive and defensive scheming, and on that front the Mike Malone hiring is huge — and I love the reports that Lacob made him an offer he couldn’t refuse to keep him from rejoining Mike Brown with the Lakers. Now that is the sort of aggression and smart money-spending that we never saw under Cohan.
So consider me cautiously optimistic. I like the front office team that Lacob has put together (especially the West hire), something that has made me want to trust the team’s judgment more than I have in the past.
Throw in the reports of a potential Monta Ellis for Andre Iguodala swap — something I would do in a heartbeat — and we could be looking at a very different Warriors team by the end of the month. One can only hope — after all, even if Jackson proves to be the best coach in history he won’t get very far unless the Warriors upgrade the roster.
Tags: andre iguodala, mark jackson, monta ellis
