Meet
Our Coach of the Year
Posted by: Diana-Allen on April 23rd, 2010
The author's views are entirely his or her own and may not reflect the views of the Utah Jazz.
The NBA announced that Scott Brooks, the head coach of the Oklahoma City Thunder is the 2010 Coach of the Year. Brooks is deserving of the award. Scott’s team increased their wins by 27 games from last year. To Jazz fans it is no surprise. It happens every year a new up and comer coach takes a team that was lousy takes them to a higher level usually a playoff appearance and bam you have the Coach of the Year.
Fans of the NBA should not be surprised by the Thunder’s success. If one considers that the Thunder have 12 first round picks on their roster including four top ten picks. A team with that many top picks should win 50 games.
If you compare the number of first round picks on the Jazz roster it is amazing they even make the playoffs. The Jazz have three first round picks. Deron Williams, Kosta Kofous and Andrei Kirilenko. Only Deron is a top ten pick. The rest of the Jazz roster is made up of 2nd round draft picks and undrafted free agents.
How many coaches in the league would be able to take a bunch of 2nd rounders and undrafted players to 53 wins on the season?
This year Coach Sloan has done an outstanding job leading this team . Sloan took a awkward situation where players were not getting along, not knowing how they belonged and led them to success. A season where Boozer’s return could have been a distraction, a season where Millsap could have been a cancer not knowing his role. Where leadership among players could have been questioned. Sloan somehow in his coaching magic made these non-issues and got this team to play their best ball yet.
Sloan has done some of his best coaching in the 2010 season. Who can forget the comeback win against the Cavaliers The Utah Jazz were down six with 24 seconds left, how many coaches would have been out of timeouts by that point in the game? Sloan’s coaching in the game without Williams and AK was masterful. Sloan also lead the Jazz to a winning road record. With the struggles that this group of Jazz players have had on the road over the last four years this is a marvelous feat.
Now we are in the playoffs, facing the high octane offensively minded Denver Nuggets. We are down two starters. Most teams would be dead in the water but never ever count out a Jerry Sloan coached team. On Monday night Jazz fans were treated to one to one of the best playoff games in Jazz history. Behind a great game plan the Utah Jazz played their heart outs and did one no one thought possible, beat the Nuggets on the road. The team took on the personality of their coach, that tough determined, never count me out personality of Jerry Sloan.
It’s OK that Sloan has never won the Coach of the Year award. Jazz fans would much rather have over twenty years of success than a media driven award. Show your support to our coach of the year by cheering on the Utah Jazz tonight against the Nuggets at the ESA. Go Jazz!!!
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That’s about it. COTY award is as poorly conceived as awards come. It turned out to be the place where analysts can take off themselves the burden of their biggest miss in the season preview.
Your post is a bit unfair to the Jazz players, though. They deserve credit for evolving beyond what people expected more than Sloan. Sloan deserves a lot of credit for creating and maintaining an environment where this situation consistently happens!
GO JAZZ!!!! \o/
Only 3 first round, waouh, i had never pay attention to that stat…
It’s a bit frightening when you see that we’re much more over the luxury tax with only secound rounder
Coach Jerry don’t need the COY title, he’s allready our Special One, and the last years the COY Title is the thing you win with you letter of termination…….So Thank you but No Thank you
Another take the tittle and we keep our Coach
Great Post Diana
and for tonight May the Force be with our Guys
Sorry Joe. I didn’t try to be unfair to the players. I wasn’t implying that they were talented. I meant not many teams/coaches would have given them a shot but look at the talent they do have and do to a large part because Jerry knows how to get the best out of his players.
French Dude: Its crazy how COY always lose their jobs in the last 5 or so years. Byron Scott, Avery Johnson, Sam Mitchell, Mike D’Antoni (wasn’t fired but knew he wouldn’t get his extension) just in the last few years.
No need to explain, Diana.
I knew you meant just that, but when things are written, it’s always good to let clear. Love your posts, keep up with them!
Couldn’t agree more Diana!
So true