I have to say, for a fan of/writer for the Utah Jazz, I typically like Ross Siller. He is a solid writer that doesn't seem to be swayed from his opinion easily. With the niceties out of the way, Mr. Siller, you could not be more wrong.
He writes:
And I know Tomjanovich isn't an NBA coach still, though let it be very clear that this had NOTHING to do with lack of ability. He was a fantastic NBA coach from the day he took the job till the day he quit for medical reasons. Let's not forget, Rudy probably should have died after that Kermit Washington punch. His medical reasons for stopping were multiple. His coaching reasons for stopping were nil.
Ross, I know your point was to say that Sloan should have coached the team, but leave Rudy out of it.
He writes:
I won't rehash the whole thing for you, but the bottom line is Sloan was the lead assistant for the 1996 Olympic team. Everyone figured he would get the top job in 2000, given USA Basketball protocol going back to the Dream Team days. But Sloan was bypassed in favor of Tomjanovich for the head coaching job in Sydney.The only part of those words that seems correct to me is that Sloan was indeed bypassed in favor of Tomjanovich. But let's get one thing straight; At no point in time, in either of their careers, was Sloan a better player OR coach than Rudy Tomjanovich. Not for one single second. Sloan would be, and was at that time, a terrible choice to coach Team USA. He simply is not fit for that job. It's the same reason he couldn't ever win a championship with two top 50 all time players for their entire carrers; he just doesn't have what it takes to win a championship of any kind. While he had Malone and Stockton's loyalty, I just never saw that from his other players that weren't stars. Deron Williams and Carlos Boozer (though I'm less sure of him) seem to be in the same boat. I'm not stating this with any kind of inside knowledge. It is in every way my own opinion, but Sloan just seems like an asshole. That alone is enough to not reach most of today's players. Coaches like him are over, they aren't what wins championships in the NBA or International play. Coaches like Rudy T were the new breed, they relate to players and still get their message across.
The snub was a result of politics, personalities and backroom maneuvering and left the veteran Jazz coach as upset and disillusioned as I have ever seen him, mostly because he did not know what he did wrong.
The fact is, Sloan did nothing wrong.
And I know Tomjanovich isn't an NBA coach still, though let it be very clear that this had NOTHING to do with lack of ability. He was a fantastic NBA coach from the day he took the job till the day he quit for medical reasons. Let's not forget, Rudy probably should have died after that Kermit Washington punch. His medical reasons for stopping were multiple. His coaching reasons for stopping were nil.
Ross, I know your point was to say that Sloan should have coached the team, but leave Rudy out of it.