The FO is not as dumb as asserted on this board from time to time. Cliff is here to heal and transition as a favor to the organization. Why else would he accept such a radical deal? If he can win a few games, teach D, and grow a few boys to men - then that is the cherry on top!
Back here where we need you
I think that is the goal. Maybe Mitch was targeting Snyder after Atkinson exit, and Snyder insisted on the year off. I think if Clifford does well, he will stay, if not we might move to Snyder in a year or two.
Yup, this feels like Cliff to the rescue for sure
Just watched the introductory presser. Look, it might be this Catawba White Zombie, but I am all in. 48-34 next year.
The more I hear SC talk, it does ease a little of the anxiety and give me some confidence this thing could work out.
Dudeâs a good coach. Itâs just that if youâre thinking, âwe need a guy deep in the new way of NBA basketball and who will play Bouk and Kai more,â Uncle Cliff isnât who comes to kind.
Heâll make us better though.
It is true. I have always had the mindset that Clifford will play anyone who is coachable, tough and plays defense. If you arenât doing 2 of those three and you are young, you arenât playing.
Think the âplays defenseâ is over-stated. He plays guys that give effort, that typically manifests as playing defense but is all about the effort with some smarts sprinkled in.
You think? I always took him as a guy that demands that players at least put themselves in the position of the team scheme. He should have won some kind of award for getting al Jefferson and mcbob to appear to be defensively capable.
They knew (especially big al) they had to at least be present defensively
Thatâs sort of my point. Kemba wasnât good defensively but he gave big effort. Al did try to the best of his ability. Cody wasnât good defensively for a few years but he gave major effort on that end.
Also, I very much miss the basketball days of al -fense. I wish there was more of that in the league. My favorite fan years were 2006-2014ish
Big Al was so dominant. Really could have made some noise in the playoffs if he didnât get banged up right before.
That last line is so key. 100% agree.
For those who were worried about whether LaMelo is a Clifford guy, this might ease your anxieties: Orlando Magic Head Coach Steve Clifford on LaMelo Ball! "LaMelo Ball Has Phenomenal Vision!" - YouTube
He spoke very highly of LaMelo even while coaching the Magic as an opponent. I think he and LaMelo are going to get along extremely well.
Well letâs fucking hope so.
Kai might be good, but heâs no Byron Mullens aka the bobcats legend. We can only hope Kai reaches Byron Mullens status one day.
Watching a master in the post is amazing, which I donât think can come back with todays emphasis on pace and points per shot.
Two radical changes for Silver:
a) give players the option when theyâre fouled to either shoot 2 free throws, or get a one on one possession in the post to make a basket. Weâd definitely get more points from Plumlee with that
b) make every successful dream shake, or McHale up and under, or Duncan bank shot, or even an old man Kareem sky hook worth 3 points.
Iâm not drinking the koolaid. This wasnt some mastermind, âgotchaâ-to-the-rest-of-the-NBA, chess not checkers hire. It was done in haste, likely because MJ didnt want to pay DâAntoni. Clifford had no other chance at a HC gig and was desperate for another shot. We didnt want to pay anyone worth their salt, and thus, what we got was the coaching equivalent to a Vegas Elvis Chapel marriage after an all-night coke bender.
It wasnt well thought out. It wasnt about some bigger picture play. It was a panic move to save face after trying to stiff the other guys didnt work. And any one trying to sell anything different, there is no greater red flag signaling the hasty recklessness at work then bringing back a guy you fired on essentially a year-to-year contract with the options.
And as far as him bragging about playing young guys. Yeah man, pat yourself on the back for playing MKG and Jeff Taylor. Taylor was ok, but really neither shouldve been getting major minutes. The issue isnt just playing young guys, its playing the RIGHT guys. There have been plenty other high-drafted busts that organizations knew right away were not good players and thus, they didnt play. In the same presser he goes on to talk about how playing guys who arent ready creates a snowball effect of problems on the court. And yet, he played guys he trusted who created those very issues - Biz, MKG, Maxiell, Henderson, etc. I get some of it is only being able to work with what youâre given, but my point is, it isnt just about playing young guys - itâs playing the right guys. I dont feel like going back and looking at all those rosters to come up with examples right now, but it was the same every year in that we all had guys that we felt should be playing and produced seemingly better than the guys he favored, because he âtrustedâ them. The MKG stuff was unforgiveable. It was my opinion, the only way you could make him functional offensively was to let him run point and play 5 or 4 out. And yet, we never did. And yet, he kept playing. And still, never developed any further from what he was when he came in here as a rookie. So we had a guy out there that couldnt shoot to space the floor, sitting on the perimeter where other teams just cheated completely off of him all game⌠and many defended it saying MKG was a lockdown defender which I disagreed with all along as he continued to log major minutes and guys logged their career-high scoring nights on him. So he can save the âplayer development is about the minutes earned not the minutes playedâ-crap, because i watched him use minutes to try to develop almost every young guy he actually did play that didnt deserve it. This isnt to trash MKG, as he is, by all accounts, a great guy off the court. Itâs just to dispel this notion that Clifford was playing young guys because they were the right guys and that should somehow be a credit to him. It shouldnt. Borrego had the same issues. Yeah, you played SOME young guys, but did you play the right young guys. Did you play the right guys at all? Did you yank a young guy after playing a minute and thirty seconds because he made a mistake so you could put your favored vet back in there to stink it up for 32 minutes a night? SmhâŚ
As with everything with the Panthers and Hornets, my approach is hope for the best, expect the worst. I hope Clifford proves me wrong, as this is the most talented roster he has ever had⌠but Iâm not holding my breath.
I love how everyone accuses MJ of being cheap and not wanting to pay players or coaches but then, in the same breath, accuse the Hornets of always overpaying their players. I think they probably went with Clifford because MDA wanted to win now and play a certain way; he might have even wanted to change the roster too and MJ and/or Mitch wasnât on the same page. Money isnât the only factor involved. Besides, they probably thought Clifford was closer to what they were looking for in Kenny Atkinson than MDA was. As for Clifford playing young players, the facts are the facts. We can talk narrative all day but when you actually look at the young players he coached, more often than not they got minutes. Monk was the exception not the rule.
