Spring Break
Ivaroni Out, Hollins in the House
Peter Zanca
Issue date: 2/4/09 Section: Sports
Michael Heisley has duped me once again. For what seems to be the millionth time now, he has fooled me into believing that he has any remote concern for the welfare and success of the Memphis Grizzlies as a professional franchise. As the team's owner and primary decision maker, Heisley has already shown me-for years-that he has no discernible understanding of the game of basketball, however his recent firing of Coach Marc Iavaroni and hiring of Lionel Hollins would make even the most casual basketball fans scratch their heads.
Let me start with the fact that Heisley was right to fire Iavaroni. Despite coming to the Grizzlies- his first head coaching job-with a great pedigree from the Phoenix Suns, Iavaroni was never able to create any sort of identity with his young team. Because of his association with former Suns coach Mike D'Antoni, Iavaroni was expected to bring an exciting, high-scoring offense to Memphis that would, at the very least, give fans something to watch. What Iavaroni found when he got here was a ragtag group of players with very little scoring capability. Shooters were few and far between, and only one or two guys could create their own shots. With limited resources, of course Iavaroni struggled in his first season.
This season, however, has been a different story. With a full 82-game season under his belt, Iavaroni was expected to have matured as a coach. Nevertheless, many of his line-ups and his defensive match-ups continued to be absolutely baffling. He failed to find a way to connect with his players on and off the court. Most importantly, he failed to show signs of improvement from the previous season, despite the marked emergence of rookies O.J. Mayo and Marc Gasol. There was no flow to his offense-just a lot of bad shots by Mayo and Rudy Gay. Defense continued to be an issue in spite of hiring assistant Kevin O'Neill as a sort of defensive coordinator.
So Iavaroni had to be let go. He was unable to live up to his hype of bringing a high-octane offense to Memphis. But then again, without the proper players, he essentially had his hands tied behind his back. And after Heisley brought him here to run and gun, what did he do? He forced him to hire O'Neill and focus on defense. So as far as Iavaroni goes, his failure in Memphis may not totally be his fault. But that doesn't change the fact that he needed to go-his coaching system was obviously broken beyond repair.
Let me start with the fact that Heisley was right to fire Iavaroni. Despite coming to the Grizzlies- his first head coaching job-with a great pedigree from the Phoenix Suns, Iavaroni was never able to create any sort of identity with his young team. Because of his association with former Suns coach Mike D'Antoni, Iavaroni was expected to bring an exciting, high-scoring offense to Memphis that would, at the very least, give fans something to watch. What Iavaroni found when he got here was a ragtag group of players with very little scoring capability. Shooters were few and far between, and only one or two guys could create their own shots. With limited resources, of course Iavaroni struggled in his first season.
This season, however, has been a different story. With a full 82-game season under his belt, Iavaroni was expected to have matured as a coach. Nevertheless, many of his line-ups and his defensive match-ups continued to be absolutely baffling. He failed to find a way to connect with his players on and off the court. Most importantly, he failed to show signs of improvement from the previous season, despite the marked emergence of rookies O.J. Mayo and Marc Gasol. There was no flow to his offense-just a lot of bad shots by Mayo and Rudy Gay. Defense continued to be an issue in spite of hiring assistant Kevin O'Neill as a sort of defensive coordinator.
So Iavaroni had to be let go. He was unable to live up to his hype of bringing a high-octane offense to Memphis. But then again, without the proper players, he essentially had his hands tied behind his back. And after Heisley brought him here to run and gun, what did he do? He forced him to hire O'Neill and focus on defense. So as far as Iavaroni goes, his failure in Memphis may not totally be his fault. But that doesn't change the fact that he needed to go-his coaching system was obviously broken beyond repair.
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