#Spacing - Steve Clifford Thread

[Elden Payton]

why is everyone so in love with Malone?

Curious about this as well. He was 28 - 54 his first season with SAC, then started this season 11 - 13. Granted SAC was a bit of a mess, but not sure what the draw is.

Malone is from an NBA coaching family and has been around the business a long time.

He's known as an excellent motivator, who can develop talent and can coach offense.

11-13 with the most dysfunctional organization in the league (which plays out West) is COTY type stuff.

Firing him was ridiculous and the Kings are suffering for it.

Nearly every team that needs a coach will be after Malone and for good reason, he's a damn good coach.

[Braggins]

I dont know much about Malone, but I cant imagine he is worse than Clifford. I pay close attention to the coaching aspect and Cliff has been shockingly bad this season. I cant say this with much certainty because Im not familiar with every coach, but I find it hard to believe there are more than five or so head coaches in the league that are worse. I feel like just being from the SA coaching tree is enough to convince me Malone is better. Van Gundy ball in its purest original form is kind of terrible and outdated. The good coaches from the Van Gundy tree are smart enough to adapt to fit todays game and their rosters. Clifford is just like a talking parrot repeating what he picked up from the Van Gundys without an adequate understanding of how to apply the good aspects to actual games.

[JDR720]

I wouldn't fire Cliff for Malone, he isn't any more proven IMO. now if someone like Thibodeau would come here....bye Clifford

[HornetJail]

I wouldn't fire Cliff for Malone, he isn't any more proven IMO. now if someone like Thibodeau would come here....bye Clifford

MKG would play 42 minutes a game.
MKG would play 42 games per year.

[Braggins]

I would fire Cliff just to be rid of him. In addition to all his various weaknesses, I feel like he is stunting our progress as a team. Maybe that wont be as much of an issue with Al gone, but Al might not be gone next season and even if he was going to leave, I still wouldnt want to risk wasting another season. I would be fine with firing him even if we dont have a long term replacement in line. Id rather hire a developmental placeholder for a couple years than watch another season of all our crappy vets making this team unbearable.

[Elden Payton]

Thibs is way too abrasive for an MJ owned team.

MJ would clock him, I have no doubt.

[yosemiteben]

So we'd rather replace Cliff with a placeholder? Six coaches in six years would have to be a record.

[Elden Payton]

So we'd rather replace Cliff with a placeholder? Six coaches in six years would have to be a record.

Maybe we could just sit in the boat and ignore the fact it's sinking?

[yosemiteben]

So we'd rather replace Cliff with a placeholder? Six coaches in six years would have to be a record.

Maybe we could just sit in the boat and ignore the fact it's sinking?

When this is like the third coach in a row that you've had to use that excuse, and you're already building it in for your next hire, yeah maybe you need to rethink your hiring and retention strategy.

I know I've made these arguments before, but the dude was receiving serious COY consideration twelve months ago. Firing him after one bad season where we had incredible injury issues would be a terrible look considering this franchise's history of poor coach treatment.

[Elden Payton]

So we'd rather replace Cliff with a placeholder? Six coaches in six years would have to be a record.

Maybe we could just sit in the boat and ignore the fact it's sinking?

When this is like the third coach in a row that you've had to use that excuse, and you're already building it in for your next hire, yeah maybe you need to rethink your hiring and retention strategy.

Maybe we should hire the right coach the first time?

Clifford sucks and he has to go.

we can either sit in the boat or swim for land, either way we could drown, but swimming at least gives us an opportunity to make it.

[Braggins]

So we'd rather replace Cliff with a placeholder? Six coaches in six years would have to be a record.

Maybe we could just sit in the boat and ignore the fact it's sinking?

the dude was receiving serious COY consideration twelve months ago.

Because the media loves narratives. We made the playoffs two seasons after being the worst team ever so he got credit for a miraculous turnaround. However, our record at the all-star break last season was almost exactly the same as this season. We have been bad the entire time Cliff has been here with the exception of Al's three month run. Take that away and there is literally nothing to give us any reason to think he isnt just as bad as he seems. His reputation as a good coach is based almost entirely on that run by Al.

The jig is up at this point. I dont know how anyone could analyze his coaching performance here and come to the conclusion that he has been a good coach. He made all the same mistakes last season, even when we were winning, but low expectations and Al going supernova disguised it. I won't be terribly upset if we get rid of Al and give Clifford one more season to prove he can grow as a coach, but I really doubt it works out and I'd rather just go ahead and move on.

[gipper08]

I wouldn't fire Cliff for Malone, he isn't any more proven IMO. now if someone like Thibodeau would come here....bye Clifford

MKG would play 42 minutes a game.
MKG would play 42 games per year.

Deng and Noah both have postural problems that lead to injury. Rose is the softest all-star in league history. Thibs does not run players in the ground. When you play hard you get injured more.

[Goudelock]

Well, I've been wondering about Clifford's offense for a while, so I'll ask you guys and see what I get:

1: Does the team actually run plays? All I saw was some PnR and isolations, OKC-esque stuff.

2: Why does the team play at a snail's pace? It looks like the personnel would flourish under a fast-paced system.

3: Is Kemba Walker actually any good? This is off-topic, but he plays like Lou Williams (I don't have a very high opinion of Lou.)

4: Would you like D'antoni to be the coach?

[fatlever]

why is everyone so in love with Malone?

Curious about this as well. He was 28 - 54 his first season with SAC, then started this season 11 - 13. Granted SAC was a bit of a mess, but not sure what the draw is.

He's known as an excellent motivator, who can develop talent and can coach offense.

.

What makes you think he can coach offense? He was a defensive guy in Golden State, not an offensive guy, basically the same role that Thibs, Clifford and Joeger held when they were also assistants.

http://www.sfgate.com/sports/article/Wa ... 366556.php

http://www.sactownroyalty.com/2013/6/3/ ... gs-defense

Expecting Malone to come here and turn this team into a good offensive team is wishful thinking. One of the reasons the Kings fired him was because they wanted him to get the team to play faster with more offense.

Yes, it's largely Ranadive's fault for ignoring the Team Building 101 handbook by hiring a defensive-minded coach before adding offensive-minded executives in D'Alessandro and Mullin in 2013.

But again, like Kenny used to put it, it is what it is. The Kings wanted someone who, as D'Alessandro said, will be more "moldable" to their outside-the-box ideas and high-risk-high-reward plans. Play faster, like the Warriors and Nuggets teams that D'Alessandro and Mullin came up loving in their respective time in the NBA. Try new things on the offensive end, maybe stealing a page or 10 from the playbook of the Kings' NBA Development League team in Reno that has become a personnel petri dish of sorts.

But Malone was widely known to be a defense-first coach, someone who had helped LeBron James make strides on that end during his time as a Cleveland Cavaliers assistant coach under Mike Brown and who ran the Warriors' defensive unit when it improved during his time there as well. D'Alessandro, meanwhile, spent the majority of his front-office tenure with the offensive-minded Karl in Denver and offensive wizard Don Nelson when he was with the Warriors.

http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/nb ... /20420147/

I certainly won't argue that Malone may still turn out to be a good head coach and there is no doubt he was the victim of a dysfunctional front office on Sacto. That being said, lets not turn Malone into some mythical, cure-all coach based off incorrect assumptions about his coaching style.

[fatlever]

The Nuggets SB blog has a write-up on Malone as a potential coach.

http://www.denverstiffs.com/2015/3/21/8 ... ike-malone

Experience: Malone went the traditional route toward landing his first head coaching job, working his way up the ranks as an assistant. He got his start with the Knicks in 2001 and worked under several head coaches during his time there. In 2005 he joined Mike Brown in Cleveland as the team’s defensive assistant coach. The Cavs became a defensive force during his tenure, ranking in the top 7 in DRtg three of his five years with the team. He joined the New Orleans Hornets in 2010, again as a defensive assistant and again helped the team improve defensively. In one season with the Hornets, the team had the biggest year-to-year improvement in DRtg and made the playoffs.

In 2011, Malone joined Mark Jackson’s staff in Golden State, allegedly as the highest paid assistant in the NBA (coaching salaries are not always made public). It was apparently money well spent as Malone helped build defensive principles that transformed the Warriors into a respectable defensive team over the course of his two seasons with the team despite injuries to Andrew Bogut. In 2012, Malone was voted the best assistant coach by NBA General Managers.

Malone became head coach of the Sacramento Kings in 2013, one of the very first hires by new owner, Vivek Ranadive. Malone was hired two weeks before former Nuggets assistant GM Pete D’Alessandro was hired as General Manager. Malone helped improve the team’s DRtg from 29th in 2013 to 23rd in 2014. The team was 19th in DRtg under Malone to start this season but was abruptly fired under strange circumstances.

Style: Malone is obviously a defensive minded coach. His teams tend to play relatively conservatively on the perimeter while focusing on taking away the paint. People around the league had great respect for Malone as a defensive mind and he had earned a reputation around the league as someone who was always well prepared with scouting reports. He would anticipate late game situations and opposing team inbound plays or tendencies.

He had a reputation as having a hot temper and a volatile personality which was rumored to be why he wasn’t offered a head coaching position sooner. He improved on his temper and as a head coach the guys in the locker room seemed to like him. DeMarcus Cousins was very vocal in opposing Malone’s ousting and Rudy Gay spoke positively of Malone when he signed an extension in the summer of 2014.

While he was only a head coach of the Kings, all of Malone’s teams have played a fairly slow pace. Coming into the Kings coaching position, Malone stressed defense as his first priority and rebounding as his second priority. He accomplished both goals as the Kings were 1st in the league in REB% when Malone was let go. In that same press conference Malone mentioned wanting to "become a running team but to run with discipline."

Adam’s Opinion: In researching coaches for this series, one of the biggest takeaways is how frequently a rookie coach is given a difficult situation. Malone might be the poster child for this since his first coaching gig came with one of the most dysfunctional organizations, under a brand new owner who is trying to reinvent every aspect of the game, and under a rookie general manager who never wanted him in the first place.

Despite picking an awful situation to jump into, Malone did a pretty great job making the Kings the surprise team of 2014-15 season. His firing had little to do with his success or failure as a coach and more to do with the direction that the front office wanted to go. Vivek reportedly pitched Malone on the idea of playing 4-on-5 for stretches of the game, a strategy that he came up with while coaching his daughters. As an NBA basketball coach, Malone had to feel insulted that his boss, who had no serious basketball experience, wanted to give him such unconventional advice.

Nonetheless, I am still not sure Malone is a great fit in Denver. His style is a bit more grit and grind than it is seven seconds or less and that neither fits the Nuggets current roster or their aspirations down the road. Malone’s comments about wanting to run but with discipline are eerily similar to Shaw’s comments when he was introduced in 2013. Shaw said, "Obviously we will still want to attack and get up and down the floor, but the ability to play in the half court and execute in the half court because that is where you get judged on in the playoffs." In both cases, the coaches seem to be merely paying lip service to fast break basketball while at the same time revealing that they can’t stomach even the slightest bit of freelancing on offense.

Then there is the issue of Malone’s assistants. One of the first signs of discord between Vivek and Malone was that Malone didn’t surround himself with great assistants. Vivek reportedly wanted Alvin Gentry alongside Malone in 2013. Perhaps Malone felt threatened to have such an experienced assistant next to him or was worried that having Gentry there would make it easier for Vivek to replace him if things went south. Malone hired Ty Corbin, a move that may have been as much about job security as it was about improving his team’s chances. It's hard to blame him, especially in hindsight. Perhaps he saw the writing on the wall when he accepted the job and tried to stack the deck in a way that would provide a bit more job security. If he were to come to Denver, I think it'd be imperative that the Nuggets surround him with great assistants, especially on the offensive end.

The public rushed to Malone’s defense when he was fired and rightfully so. He was given a difficult hand, played it very well, and was still given the axe by management. I would bet money that Malone is the type of guy that improves every year as a head coach and becomes a very good coach if given a new opportunity where he has room to grow. He seems to have a smart basketball mind and a willingness to improve himself. Those qualities can't be discounted. Nonetheless, the jury is still out. He might just be a guy that is one of the league’s best assistants. A guy that can come in and reinvigorates a defense or helps a rookie head coach learn the ropes. Ultimately, I’m not sold that he’d be great for the Nuggets and I'm not sold that he'd be bad. He's just probably not the guy for Denver.

[yosemiteben]

Good stuff fats, I hadn't taken the time to read up on him so that was very informative.

[fatlever]

from that same article

Style: Malone is obviously a defensive minded coach. His teams tend to play relatively conservatively on the perimeter while focusing on taking away the paint.

While he was only a head coach of the Kings, all of Malone’s teams have played a fairly slow pace. Coming into the Kings coaching position, Malone stressed defense as his first priority and rebounding as his second priority.

Then there is the issue of Malone’s assistants. One of the first signs of discord between Vivek and Malone was that Malone didn’t surround himself with great assistants. Vivek reportedly wanted Alvin Gentry alongside Malone in 2013. Perhaps Malone felt threatened to have such an experienced assistant next to him or was worried that having Gentry there would make it easier for Vivek to replace him if things went south. Malone hired Ty Corbin, a move that may have been as much about job security as it was about improving his team’s chances.

He had a reputation as having a hot temper and a volatile personality which was rumored to be why he wasn’t offered a head coaching position sooner.

again, not saying he wont be a good coach when he gets another chance, which he certainly will. But whoever hires him should know what to expect.

If you want a change from the conservative, defensive minded, slow paced style that Clifford brings, then perhaps Malone isn't the guy you want.

[DY_nasty]

Sacramento's FO wanted Malone to play 4 on 5 defense with a guy across the court to cherry pick....

[BobsBuddy]

Well Cliff.......Now I understand just why you were laughing sitting there on the Bench last night.....Your contract is structured such that since you made the playoffs last year,you don't really need to this year so whether MJ keeps you or fires you your salary increases dramatically next season..That said he might as well keep you and change players.

[OmegaAtrocity]

Well, I've been wondering about Clifford's offense for a while, so I'll ask you guys and see what I get:

1: Does the team actually run plays? All I saw was some PnR and isolations, OKC-esque stuff.

2: Why does the team play at a snail's pace? It looks like the personnel would flourish under a fast-paced system.

3: Is Kemba Walker actually any good? This is off-topic, but he plays like Lou Williams (I don't have a very high opinion of Lou.)

4: Would you like D'antoni to be the coach?

1. Not really, isos combined with poor PnR. We have 2 inbounds plays that work because teams don't bother watching us (I don't blame them).

2. We're built around throwing the ball into Al Jefferson, who generally takes 7 seconds to run down the floor and get into position.

3. Very debatable, some Hornets fans will tell you he's fine, and others will tell you he is trash. Personally I think he is very low efficiency and needs someone to reign him in, which will never happen with our current roster/coach.

4. No