How safe is Vinny Del Negro?

[DoctorS]

I know that this is his first season with the Clippers but how secure is his job?
Clippers are just to good to have the worst record in the NBA.
Some would say that its still early to make evaluations, but basketball season in European basketball is 30 games long, so Clippers are almost there.
What do you think would have to happen for Del Negro to be fired during the season?

[thanumba2clippersfan]

I don't think that Del Negro won't get fired in his first season. We had Mike Dunleavy as our coach for like 7 or 8 seasons. His final 3 seasons were horrible. We have had some injuries and we are playing a lot of young players. He is also cheap and I'm sure Sterling doesn't want to fire Del Negro and then pay another coach or have a lawsuit because he doesn't want to pay the rest of Del Negro's contract. I'm not happy that we have the worst record in the league, but I think Del Negro is safe this season.

[PG3]

first season coaches are safe most of the time. Look at Kurt Rambis' first year. Its usually the second season that defines if its the right coach.

[BoomFizzle]

He will probably be safe but to be honest I am definitely not impressed.

Today his rotations had me scratching my head for starters. Baron was playing well, then was brought out the game. He waited until we lost the lead then brought him back in. Then benched him 2 mins before the end of the first half and we lost the lead again. Just very poor management if you ask me. Bledsoe needs a boost from his coach right now but I haven't really seen much encouragement or coaching go his way.

Besides today I thought he has been horrible in general. The offense is shockingly bad, which is what I heard from Bulls fans last year, he seems to throw players under the bus a little too easily and he doesn't seem to motivate the players any better than Dunleavy.


I was just checking the stats today following the Sterling reports. Small sample size but Baron seems to play better on the road so far. Not surprising if the coach is publicly slating you, the owner ripping into you during games and as such the home fans hating you. Baron needs to be blamed but public ripping and criticism isn't going to help. Its just basketball after all, imagine going to work every day and have both your bosses drop by every so often saying "you suck", "work harder", " why are you here" etc.


[/RANT]

[Em1]

This situation is so bad that it doesn't matter. We are eternally doomed. I pray Blake and Gordon find better teams because they seem to be nice guys.

[mattfish]

Eh, I think VDN is safe. Our offense isn't great though, and we need to figure out a way to stop turning the ball over. After every game, VDN says "We had too many turnovers." I wonder what he's doing with his playcalling and his players to try and fix that.

[donemilio21]

Sterling wouldn't fire him. since he has 2 year contract, he is pretty safe.

[So Gutta]

He shouldn't have been hired in the first place!

Byron Scott should be the coach right now-- a proven winner, having taken the Nets to the Finals twice. I'm sure he'd much rather like to live in LA than Cleveland.

[thanumba2clippersfan]

If I remember correctly I think Byron Scott chose the Cavaliers pretty quickly. He was the Cavs head coach before free agency started, we went into free agency with out a coach. For what ever reason the organization took its time in naming a head coach. Vinny wasn't my number one choice, but we are stuck with him and have to make the most of it.

I'm also now sure that Byron and Baron would really get along.

[SportsFan215]

I think he is safe for now, because we can't expect a lineup with mostly 19-22 year olds and declining vets to take this team to the playoffs. We have to give him another year, and hopefully we will make some smart moves to help him out.

[Roscoe Sheed]

I was in favor of Casey. Oh well, hope Vinny improves

[mkwest]

I wanted Casey. With all of the youngsters that we had on our team, we needed a teacher and someone that would preach defense. I was willing to give Vinny a chance, but he has done little so far to dispel the criticisms that he had received from Bulls fans. The fact that he has 2 1/2 years left on his contract, says that he probably isn't going anywhere any time soon.

[DH2905]

viewtopic.php?f=10&t=970270

[thanumba2clippersfan]

http://forums.realgm.com/boards/viewtopic.php?f=10&t=970270

Based on what I've seen from that I take it that Bulls fans weren't very happy with Del Negro.