Win or Get Fired!

The TNT network and the NBA have commercials that state “Win or Go Home.” The meaning of this slogan is that during the NBA playoffs, if a team does not win they will eventually be going home to watch the rest of the playoffs. But what is starting to happen with African American NBA coaches is “win or get fired.” Mike Brown, Cleveland Cavaliers ex-coach, found this out after losing in the playoffs to the Boston Celtics. It did not matter that the Cavs had the league’s best record this season. Or that he led them to two consecutive 60+ win seasons. Or that he was coach of the year in 2009. And I can’t forget that he led the Cavs to their first ever NBA championship appearance in 2007, only to be out manned by the San Antonio Spurs. After being ousted by the Magic last year in the Eastern Conference finals, the Cavs acquired Shaq and Antawn Jamison to be able to match up better with the Magic this post season. But that never happened, because the Celtics had other plans. Now Brown is at home pondering what’s next for his coaching career.

This is not the first time a successful African American NBA coach has found himself without a coaching job after having a successful season. Byron Scott, former New Jersey Nets coach, was given the boot after taking the Nets from the joke of the NBA to back to back NBA championship appearances. Needless to say, the Nets walked away empty handed on both occasions, but they were definitely not capable of beating the Lakers (01-02) or Spurs (02-03) for the championship. A year later, Coach Scott was in the unemployment line, better known as the broadcasting booth. Becoming a coach analysis for the NBA is the waiting grounds for all coaches that have gotten the axe.

Not to long after Coach Scott was terminated, Avery Johnson, former Dallas Mavericks coach, had a similar fate. Coach Johnson in his first complete season as the Mavericks head coach was not only named the NBA’s coach of the year, but led his team to the NBA finals (first ever in franchise history). The Mavericks lost to the Miami Heat in six games, losing four in a row. This had the Mavs boisterous owner, Mark Cuban, fuming with anger. Unfortunately, the next season ended a lot earlier than the previous one. As the Mavericks were sent packing in the first round by the Golden State Warriors. This was not the finish Cuban had anticipated, especially after the Mavs had the best record in the league with 67 wins. The next day after their playoff lose Avery Johnson was released from his head coaching duties.

Now, are all these stories a coincidence? Or is there a common theme between them? I find it hard to grasp the concept of being fired for not winning the championship, but if that is the case, how are other coaches maintaining their positions every year? Jerry Sloan has never won a NBA championship, but has coached the Utah Jazz team for 22 years. Granted it is always the owners personal preference of who should coach his team, but what bothers me most is the retreading of coaches such as Doug Collins, Scott Skiles, and Flip Saunders to name a few. These guys have never won a NBA championship or even taken a team to the finals. Yet, they are all head coaches still.

So did Mike Brown deserve to be fired? Yes and No. Were there some things he could have done different? Yes. But would the end result have changed? I don’t think so. Brown was put in a situation that regardless if they had made it to the finals he would have been fired. Only a championship would have saved his job and with the team he had there was no way that was going to happen. You see it is easy to win when there is no pressure on you, but when the temperature heats up that’s when you find out who can handle the pressure. The Cavs were loaded with hype men and not ballers. As soon as it was time to roll up their sleeves and get dirty the real nature of some of the Cavs came out. And heart can’t be coached!