Stotts Steps Down

[MVP2110]

I mean yeah, people would be talking about it with Boston because they just went through one of the worst coaching scandals in recent memory. Is that what happened to us?

I mean we fired a Championship coach in order to turn around and hire a guy that wasn't the choice of our front office and then before the season even begins that coach had his top assistant walk out on him. So maybe it's not an exact match but it's pretty embarrassing

I hope you bring this same energy when we're wiping the floor with the rest of the league this year. Lucky for you, and your incessant whine fest, you have the field and "we" have the Bucks. Anything less than a title and you can get up on your little soapbox and continue to complain.

I know this always seems shocking to a certain contingent of Bucks fans, which is utterly baffling considering how important he's been to the organization, city, and state for the last decade plus, but Giannis gets what Giannis wants.

Giannis told the front office to go get Bobby Portis. The front office went and got Bobby Portis. Giannis told the front office to go get Jrue Holiday. The front office went and got Jrue Holiday. Giannis essentially told the front office that Khris was untouchable. Khris has been untouchable. Giannis told the front office to hire Adrian Griffin. The front office went and got Adrian Griffin. Giannis gushed about Dame for years and told the front office to do everything in their power to keep the team title contenders. The front office went out and landed Dame. Appeasing Giannis at all costs seems to be working out well for the Bucks. <sniveling> "yeah but what about Thanasis eating a roster spot and Giannis speaking out in the media?" Sigh...

I'm pretty well on record here.

We have the most talented roster in the NBA. So if Giannis & Dame are healthy we have no excuses to not win a title and that's what Griff will ultimately get judged on. I'm very skeptical early on but willing to wait to see how the season plays out before I call for him to be fired.

If we lose then Griff will rightfully deserve some blame & if we win the title then Griff will rightfully deserve some credit. It's actually pretty simple, for most coaches it's more Grey, but when you have the most talented team it makes it very easy to determine where the bar should be set.

[MickeyDavis]

This thread is having a good run since the season hasn't started yet and there isn't much else to talk about it. And it's been worth discussing. Once the season ramps up next week we'll move on to actual game discussions.

[theFireBlanket]

Sure alot of man crushes in this thread for a 65 year old former head coach who hasnt coached in 2 years.FFS

Watch Dame address him leaving, he likes Stotts, they stayed in touch after his time in Portland was over.

Post Lillard trade, we're far better off keeping Terry around.

[Ron Swanson]

I have been and will remain one of the biggest Bud defenders out there, but I don't really see anything unceremonious about his firing outside of the moral quandary surrounding the timing with his brother's death. I do find it interesting that this exact same thing just happened in Toronto with everybody's favorite offensive genius though:

https://raptorsrapture.com/2023/04/24/insider-beef-assistant-coach-raptors-nick-nurse-firing/

“Nurse and Earl Watson were never going to pal around or hang out away from the arena or practice facility, and it wasn’t a huge issue, but it was a thing people around the game noticed,” Smith said. It’s not to say Watson undercut Nurse at every chance…but it was another layer that grew thicker as the season went on.

I mean, what would have been the better course of action here for the Raptors? Dare I say they should have let Watson go instead of letting this fester all season?

[MVP2110]

I have been and will remain one of the biggest Bud defenders out there, but I don't really see anything unceremonious about his firing outside of the moral quandary surrounding the timing with his brother's death. I do find it interesting that this exact same thing just happened in Toronto with everybody's favorite offensive genius though:

https://raptorsrapture.com/2023/04/24/insider-beef-assistant-coach-raptors-nick-nurse-firing/

“Nurse and Earl Watson were never going to pal around or hang out away from the arena or practice facility, and it wasn’t a huge issue, but it was a thing people around the game noticed,” Smith said. It’s not to say Watson undercut Nurse at every chance…but it was another layer that grew thicker as the season went on.

I mean, what would have been the better course of action here for the Raptors? Dare I say they should have let Watson go instead of letting this fester all season?

Earl Watson was an absolute terrible head coach though, he had a record of 33-85, that's a winning % of 28%. That's abysmal. Stotts had much more success and was over .500 despite early in his career having to coach some bad teams, plus our new star player loved him, I'm going to guess Kawhi didn't have strong feelings towards Earl Watson

[dbrodz7]

I mean we fired a Championship coach in order to turn around and hire a guy that wasn't the choice of our front office and then before the season even begins that coach had his top assistant walk out on him. So maybe it's not an exact match but it's pretty embarrassing

Yea, this is one of those things where if the Bucks were in LA or NY it would lead sports talk. Not enough was ever made of Giannis picking his new coach.

People were so fed up with Bud that anything else was better and people talked themselves into whoever we hired and didn't care how we got there.

These kind of posts make it sound like it's the all-star break and the Bucks have the best roster on paper in the NBA and a 26-32 record. We have literally zero idea how Griffin is going to do as the head coach of this team still. I was also upset about this Stotts thing and don't think it's good, but you are so far gone to the negative side it's almost crazy.

[VooDoo7]

Taking a few minutes to address a coachable moment with key players (which I believe can serve team purposes) is insubordiantion? How fragile and autocratic must any hc be!

How fragile must an asst. coach be to step down because of that?

[MVP2110]

Yea, this is one of those things where if the Bucks were in LA or NY it would lead sports talk. Not enough was ever made of Giannis picking his new coach.

People were so fed up with Bud that anything else was better and people talked themselves into whoever we hired and didn't care how we got there.

These kind of posts make it sound like it's the all-star break and the Bucks have the best roster on paper in the NBA and a 26-32 record. We have literally zero idea how Griffin is going to do as the head coach of this team still. I was also upset about this Stotts thing and don't think it's good, but you are so far gone to the negative side it's almost crazy.

I haven't called for Griffin's firing or anything like that. I've said he's off to a shaky start and for a team that's title or bust I'm very nervous. He hasn't really done alot to inspire my confidence in him. I get some people want to just sit back and see how the season plays out and that's fine, but when Griff does something I think is especially smart or dumb ill say it and unfortunately he's done a few things that aren't great early on imo. I'm not a blind optimist when it comes to my sports teams and I'll comment on the positives and the negatives. Having your top assistant coach walk out right before the season is embarrassing for any head coach, especially a 1st timer.

[PG Graveyard]

Taking a few minutes to address a coachable moment with key players (which I believe can serve team purposes) is insubordiantion? How fragile and autocratic must any hc be!

How fragile must an asst. coach be to step down because of that?

Right!? It goes both ways here. I still don't think Stotts liked the idea of the grind and being an assistant again. That's ok and understandable. Maybe him and AG didn't hit it off either and that's ok as well. They both are professionals. Ultimately though Stotts is the one who made the decision here and I'm not sure why AG is getting so beat up about this. Is he supposed to change how he acts to placate to Terry Stotts? If so, we should have just hired Terry Stotts to be our head coach.

[Ron Swanson]

I have been and will remain one of the biggest Bud defenders out there, but I don't really see anything unceremonious about his firing outside of the moral quandary surrounding the timing with his brother's death. I do find it interesting that this exact same thing just happened in Toronto with everybody's favorite offensive genius though:

https://raptorsrapture.com/2023/04/24/insider-beef-assistant-coach-raptors-nick-nurse-firing/

“Nurse and Earl Watson were never going to pal around or hang out away from the arena or practice facility, and it wasn’t a huge issue, but it was a thing people around the game noticed,” Smith said. It’s not to say Watson undercut Nurse at every chance…but it was another layer that grew thicker as the season went on.

I mean, what would have been the better course of action here for the Raptors? Dare I say they should have let Watson go instead of letting this fester all season?

Earl Watson was an absolute terrible head coach though, he had a record of 33-85, that's a winning % of 28%. That's abysmal. Stotts had much more success and was over .500 despite early in his career having to coach some bad teams, plus our new star player loved him, I'm going to guess Kawhi didn't have strong feelings towards Earl Watson

It's almost the exact same situation (coach doesn't get along with assistant who he believes is undercutting him) and you're just gonna excuse it because "Earl Watson sucks" and doesn't deserve input? That doesn't jive with your insistence that this is an issue of professionalism and the importance of a coach maintaining positive relationships with their subordinates, or else it reflects badly on their coaching ability.

By all accounts Nurse has a sordid list of accusations at this point that he's abrasive and tough to work with. But I could care less if I thought he was exactly what this roster needed to win another championship. And again, did the organization not make the right move if this was indeed gonna be an issue between Stotts and Griffin all season?

[dbrodz7]

Is it 7pm yet? I’m thinking Lillard might smile and make a couple shots with a few assists to Middleton to quiet this thread down.

[FrieAaron]

And again, did the organization not make the right move if this was indeed gonna be an issue between Stotts and Griffin all season?

What decision was that? Sounds like Stotts said "**** this" and left.

[theFireBlanket]

I have been and will remain one of the biggest Bud defenders out there, but I don't really see anything unceremonious about his firing outside of the moral quandary surrounding the timing with his brother's death. I do find it interesting that this exact same thing just happened in Toronto with everybody's favorite offensive genius though:

https://raptorsrapture.com/2023/04/24/insider-beef-assistant-coach-raptors-nick-nurse-firing/



I mean, what would have been the better course of action here for the Raptors? Dare I say they should have let Watson go instead of letting this fester all season?

Earl Watson was an absolute terrible head coach though, he had a record of 33-85, that's a winning % of 28%. That's abysmal. Stotts had much more success and was over .500 despite early in his career having to coach some bad teams, plus our new star player loved him, I'm going to guess Kawhi didn't have strong feelings towards Earl Watson

It's almost the exact same situation (coach doesn't get along with assistant who he believes is undercutting him) and you're just gonna excuse it because "Earl Watson sucks" and doesn't deserve input? That doesn't jive with your insistence that this is an issue of professionalism and the importance of a coach maintaining positive relationships with their subordinates, or else it reflects badly on their coaching ability.

By all accounts Nurse has a sordid list of accusations at this point that he's abrasive and tough to work with. But I could care less if I thought he was exactly what this roster needed to win another championship. And again, did the organization not make the right move if this was indeed gonna be an issue between Stotts and Griffin all season?

If they tried to mediate the situation before it came to a head, then letting Terry walk is the solution. But if Horst could've leveled with Griffin & made it work, then no.

[ReasonablySober]

Taking a few minutes to address a coachable moment with key players (which I believe can serve team purposes) is insubordiantion? How fragile and autocratic must any hc be!

How fragile must an asst. coach be to step down because of that?

Right!? It goes both ways here. I still don't think Stotts liked the idea of the grind and being an assistant again. That's ok and understandable. Maybe him and AG didn't hit it off either and that's ok as well. They both are professionals. Ultimately though Stotts is the one who made the decision here and I'm not sure why AG is getting so beat up about this. Is he supposed to change how he acts to placate to Terry Stotts? If so, we should have just hired Terry Stotts to be our head coach.

AG's getting "beat up" because he looks like an a*shole. No one here would want to work in a situation where you're being embarrassed and disrespected, particularly from someone who may only have been hired because of a special favor to someone else.

[MVP2110]

I have been and will remain one of the biggest Bud defenders out there, but I don't really see anything unceremonious about his firing outside of the moral quandary surrounding the timing with his brother's death. I do find it interesting that this exact same thing just happened in Toronto with everybody's favorite offensive genius though:

https://raptorsrapture.com/2023/04/24/insider-beef-assistant-coach-raptors-nick-nurse-firing/



I mean, what would have been the better course of action here for the Raptors? Dare I say they should have let Watson go instead of letting this fester all season?

Earl Watson was an absolute terrible head coach though, he had a record of 33-85, that's a winning % of 28%. That's abysmal. Stotts had much more success and was over .500 despite early in his career having to coach some bad teams, plus our new star player loved him, I'm going to guess Kawhi didn't have strong feelings towards Earl Watson

It's almost the exact same situation (coach doesn't get along with assistant who he believes is undercutting him) and you're just gonna excuse it because "Earl Watson sucks" and doesn't deserve input? That doesn't jive with your insistence that this is an issue of professionalism and the importance of a coach maintaining positive relationships with their subordinates, or else it reflects badly on their coaching ability.

By all accounts Nurse has a sordid list of accusations at this point that he's abrasive and tough to work with. But I could care less if I thought he was exactly what this roster needed to win another championship. And again, did the organization not make the right move if this was indeed gonna be an issue between Stotts and Griffin all season?

It depends, what role was Watson brought in to serve and was he promised anything specific? There's plenty out here that we hired Stotts to essentially run the offense, was that the case with Watson? Was Watson made one of the highest paid assistants in the NBA? You're right Nurse is very abrasive and we saw how that caused him problems in Toronto, abrasive personalities tend not to last long in one place, there is a very long history of coaches with that type of personality wearing thin real quick across sports.

Fwiw, if it's true that Griff and Stotts absolutely could not coexist then yes the best option is for Stotts to resign before the season. But that doesn't make me feel good about Griff if he couldn't even get through preseason with the guy brought in to be his #2.

[PG Graveyard]

How fragile must an asst. coach be to step down because of that?

Right!? It goes both ways here. I still don't think Stotts liked the idea of the grind and being an assistant again. That's ok and understandable. Maybe him and AG didn't hit it off either and that's ok as well. They both are professionals. Ultimately though Stotts is the one who made the decision here and I'm not sure why AG is getting so beat up about this. Is he supposed to change how he acts to placate to Terry Stotts? If so, we should have just hired Terry Stotts to be our head coach.

AG's getting "beat up" because he looks like an a*shole. No one here would want to work in a situation where you're being embarrassed and disrespected, particularly from someone who may only have been hired because of a special favor to someone else.

Because he called Stotts to come over to the coaches huddle? Good riddance. If Stotts is that thin skinned we are better off without him.

Also I hope AG is a little bit of an ****. We need that.

[VooDoo7]

How fragile must an asst. coach be to step down because of that?

Right!? It goes both ways here. I still don't think Stotts liked the idea of the grind and being an assistant again. That's ok and understandable. Maybe him and AG didn't hit it off either and that's ok as well. They both are professionals. Ultimately though Stotts is the one who made the decision here and I'm not sure why AG is getting so beat up about this. Is he supposed to change how he acts to placate to Terry Stotts? If so, we should have just hired Terry Stotts to be our head coach.

AG's getting "beat up" because he looks like an a*shole. No one here would want to work in a situation where you're being embarrassed and disrespected, particularly from someone who may only have been hired because of a special favor to someone else.

If AG treated him like that regularly, I'd get it. I've snapped at co-workers before. They were pissed for a bit. I later apologized. And it was all good.

[FrieAaron]

Obviously the little we got from Epi is going to be biased, but it sounds like it wasn't just about this last incident, which makes sense, but just a general sense of feeling that what he felt was agreed upon regarding his role wasn't being met somehow. It makes sense that this is just what broke the camel's back.

[tedbrogen]

Is it possible Dame carried those Portland offenses and Stotts is simply a mediocre coach who doesn’t move the needle one way or another?

[msiris]

All this fuss over an asst coach. Lol