Fans Always Sad to See Van Gundy

Today, on ESPN's Mike and Mike in the Morning, the key question was sent Stan Van Gundy's way...

What is it like being Orlando's second choice?

He's used to it by now.

His coaching career been one in which fans are always sad to see him. It all started with Division II UMass Lowell. They won the 1988 D-II championship under the leadership of Don Doucette. Following that season, Doucette left, and Van Gundy was named the head coach.

Fans were depressed.

Four seasons later, Stan Van Gundy moved on to the University of Wisconsin. He replaced, as a D-II nobody, former NBA coach Stu Jackson. Jackson was only 32-25 in his career at Wisconsin, but consider this: prior the Jackson, the last Badger coach to finish their Wisconsin career above .500 was Walter Meanwell.

He retired in 1934. I'm going to assume Wisconsin fans weren't too happy to see Jackson leave.

Of course, now Stu Jackson is the NBA Senior Vice President of Basketball Operations (and has been in some controversy of his own).

Van Gundy later went on to become an assistant coach under Pat Riley. When Riley retired abruptly prior to the 2003-2004 season, Van Gundy was named head coach.

Toss up: a coach with four championship rings (at the time) or a Ron Jeremy lookalike?


You guessed right... and Miami HEAT fans cried

(A little off-topic, but in doing some research for this article, I visited Van Gundy's coaching profile on NBA.com. I noticed that every time the "Heat" were mentioned, the entire name was capitalized. I went to the official website, and an article was titled "HEAT History." The name is actually supposed to be capitalized! But then I search some website like ESPN and every-article-about-the-"HEAT"-I've-ever-seen and they are the "Heat." Thankfully, Wikipedia is there to set things straight. Who says Wikipedia is unreliable? Not I!)

Now, Stan Van Gundy is the head coach of the Orlando Magic.


Did you know that he wasn't their first choice?

Maybe it wasn't an understatement for Stan Van Gundy to say he is "used to it."

Although he has always emphasized defense first, Van Gundy also stressed the importance of teamwork and shot selection on the offensive end, he might be going in a different direction in Orlando. Van Gundy also spoke of the direction he wants to take the Magic. The most interesting (and exact opposite of that link I just posted) change is that he wants to have a fastpaced offense (but not Phoenix fast). This will be accomplished by building around the key guys (EDIT: guy).

In addition to that guy (could he have been throwing Darko and Jameer Nelson into the mix?), Van Gundy will focus on the supporting cast. That is, the offensive rebounders and shooters. Conveniantly, they have one of the best shooters in Travis Diener (OK, J.J. Redick). Of course, Dwight Howard is one of the best offensive rebounders in the NBA.

I thought one of the interesting things Van Gundy mentioned was the need for athleticism and versatility. Trevor Ariza is incredibly athletic, versatile... and misused by Brian Hill. But what this really makes me believe is that cap money (which was applauded by SVG) will be used on one of the these players. Gerald Wallace is probably fits the bill as much as anyone in the league.

Stan Van Gundy, although not always the trendy choice, is successful. Cheer up, Orlando, you got a good coach.

Read more...

Daunte To Leave Dolphins?

Tt is time, once again, for Daunte Culpepper to leave. After a reported deal to bring in Chief's quarterback Trent Green in for a 5th round draft pick, the Dolphins have told Culpepper they want to get rid of him, telling him they "are going in a different direction at the QB position."

The one-year Dolphin played in 4 games last season, not playing the other 12 because of knee problems. Culpepper was traded to the Dolphins from the Vikings for a 2nd round choice, after Culpepper had surgery on three torn ligaments in his knee in 2005. Since then, he has never been back to his full ability.

Green also is coming off of a rough year, playing in only 8 games for the Chiefs. Green suffered a severe concussion that kept him on the sidelines.

Daunte Culpepper Passing Stats

Trent Green Passing Stats

Culpepper does not want to leave the Dolphins. Green just has to pass a physical for the deal to go down. Culpepper would make $5.5 million dollars if he was on the Dolphins's roster this season.

"My position on Trent is that the Dolphins should get the best players that they can and let them compete for the starting job," Culpepper said Tuesday after learning of the reported trade.

Read more...

Billy Donovan to Return to Florida

No second thoughts on the NBA jump, right Billy? Not so much. Maybe he was worried about the job security, the hours, the pressure, and other potential pitfalls of the NBA. Maybe he realized how great he had it at the University of Florida. No matter which way you slice it, Donovan will be getting the chance to rebuild his Florida program.

According to the Orlando Sentinel, the Orlando Magic will allow Billy Donovan out of his contract to return to Florida.

"It's over," said a source close to the situation.

Donovan had reservations about leaving the Florida Gators for the NBA on Friday and spent all weekend trying to find a way to get out of his contract. On Saturday, Orlando Magic General Manager Otis Smith went to Gainesville to try to convince Donovan to honor the deal. Smith talked with Donovan again on Sunday, and so did Magic President Bob Vander Weide.

Unless Donovan wakes up today and changes his mind, the Magic will let him go, the source said.

The Magic released this official statement regarding the Donovan situation.

While Central Florida, the Orlando Magic and Billy were energized with the announcement of his contract signing on Friday, we know there was a different feeling in Gainesville and people have been tugging at him since that time.

Billy is conflicted with those emotions and the opportunity he has ahead in Orlando and in the NBA.

We've had numerous conversations and a personal visit in Gainesville with Billy over the last 48 hours and we have a commitment from him that the dialogue between us will continue

In the end, going back to Florida is the best move. I was predicting he would be out of Orlando in a season and a half (tops) anyways.

Read more...

General Manager at Age 13

Jake Floyd, 13, is the general manager of the Ash Fork Miners of the Desert Cactus Independent League.

And no, it is no publicity stunt. Jake Floyd is the real deal, an intelligent baseball mind.

His knowledge of stats and analysis seem to come straight out of Moneyball.

“Infield stolen hits and outfield stolen hits. It’s a new stat I invented. You see, the old ways of measuring a player’s defensive ability—fielding percentages, blah blah—are dumb. Eighty percent of the balls hit, you or I could handle: lazy fly balls, choppers to short. But ISH and OSH measure a player’s ability to make great plays, to literally steal hits away from the opposition. Over the course of a season, a guy like Irv will win you six or seven games with his defense alone. That’s, like, huge.”

Though he has read the book at least 8 times, ISH and OSH are uniquely his own.

Jake Floyd's interest in the baseball management, and statistical, side of baseball started young.

When Jake grew old enough for Little League, he found he was less interested in playing than he was in sitting on the bench analyzing the weaknesses of his team, the Tiny Scorpions. After spending a season marinating in right-field mop-up duty, Jake asked Tiny Scorpions manager Freddy Ward to install him as a permanent third-base coach and let him help select new players for the team.

“Jake was very smart, but to be honest, he was a bit much,” Ward told me one day when I dropped by his auto-supply shop. “He got on kids for having low slugging percentages and ‘warning-track power.’ This was Little League—half the kids couldn’t catch a fly ball. I had to cool him down a bit.”

Still, it's still quite the jump from Little League. How does a kid this young stumble into a general manager's position?

Halfway through their second season, the Miners were the pits of the Desert Cactus League, having never won more than two games in a row. That’s when Jake walked in. As Lou tells it, he was in the concession stand trying out new popcorn recipes when the kid wandered over, his head barely high enough to reach the counter.

“I want to be your stat man,” Jake said.

“Stat man?” Lou asked.

“You know, crunch your numbers. Tell you who’s doing well and who’s not. Advise you on what kind of players you need—and what you don’t need.”

Lou had never used a stat man before. He looked at batting average, homers, RBIs. But mostly he relied on word of mouth from other team owners and Ash Fork fans.

“So I asked the kid how old he was,” Lou recalls. “And he says to me, ‘Old enough to know you can’t bring anyone home from scoring position with two outs.’ That cracked me up. Look, I’m a businessman, and I don’t care if you’re 12 or 25 or have a purple horn growing out of your head—if you can help me, I’m interested.”

Jake started the next day, right after school, for $45 a week and free Pepsi. At first, Lou sat him on the lobby couch with his iBook, but after a week or so, he gave him a desk and a nameplate. Every day Jake would print out a three-page dossier of Miners statistics and deposit it on Lou’s desk. He taught Lou how to spot the undervalued players, the importance of team defense, middle relief, and moving runners over. When the Miners returned from a six-game West Coast swing without a victory, Lou felt frustrated enough to make a bold move. He called Jake that night. “Hey, kid,” Lou said. “You feel like running the show?”

“You mean be the general manager?” Jake asked.

“Well, I was thinking something more along the lines of my junior executive assistant,” Lou said.

“I’d like to be GM,” Jake said.

Lou thought about it for ten more seconds. “Aw, hell,” he said. “Why not?”

Since that time, Jake Floyd has transformed Miners' roster. Once a squad full of free swingers, the Miners' now play a disciplined, defense first style. The team, on the back of some key trades, finished 2 games out of the playoffs last year.

With his overall success and intelligence (I'm almost 96% sure he's smarter than Cubs' management), what are his shots for the big show?

As we sit, a tall, gray-haired man starts walking toward us.

“I know who you are,” Jake says. “Whatever you want to tell me, you can tell these guys. They’re cool.”
“Well, we’re prepared to make you an offer,” the man says. “We’d like you to come run our Staten Island team next year.”

“Single-A?” Jake rolls his eyes. “Maybe if I was, like, 11. I think I can handle a little bit more than that.”

“Tampa thought you’d say that. All right, how about the double-A club, up in Trenton?”

I’m not sure I believe what I’m hearing—a man in his seventies negotiating with a 13-year-old over running a team in the Yankees farm system.

“Is that the best you can do?” Jake says. “I’m sure I can call John Henry and Theo and they’ll be happy to make room for me up in Pawtucket. Or hell, I’ll go work for free as a summer intern up in Boston. Help get them A-Rod next summer.”

“Or Mussina,” says Tyler the Intern.

“What do you want, Jake, the Bronx?” the man says. “Steinbrenner’s not that crazy.”

Jake grins. “Oh yeah? He gave $40 million to Carl Pavano. Go tell George I’m flattered by his interest. But I got high school next year.”

The man starts to leave when he turns around and points a finger at Jake. “Be careful, son,” he warns. “You’re smart. But I’ve been around a long time, and I’ve seen trends come and go.”

“Okay, old man,” Jake says. “Give my best to Honus Wagner.”

So, maybe it will be a while (at least 4 years?) until Jake moves on from the Miners. As for his replacement?

“That’s Tyler, the intern. He’s 9. And twice as smart as me.”

Is Tyler the next great kid GM? Should their age even matter?

“It’s like what Theo Epstein’s dad said when Theo got the Red Sox job: ‘At Theo’s age, Alexander the Great was already general manager of the world.’ ”

“His dad said that?” Tyler asks. “What a dick!

Read more...

Minor League Manager Loses It After Ejection

Phillip Wellman, manager of the Mississippi Braves, was none too happy with the men in blue in a recent game. Let them know about it he did!

This just gets me thinking; do managers have a plan thought up before hand? The army crawl combined with grenade toss could not have been off the top of his head!

Read more...

Zambrano and Barrett Brawl in Loss

The Cubs are finally showing some fight... amongst themselves? Carlos Zambrano and catcher Michael Barrett can be seen brawling in the dugout in this video, which includes the plays leading up to the meltdown.

The fight carried on into the clubhouse when Barrett followed Zambrano, who was sent home by Piniella. Part II of the Zambrano-Barrett fight resulted in two blackeyes, a cut lip, and a trip to the hospital for Barrett. Both players will be disciplined later today.

As you can imagine, the display didn't sit well with Piniella.

"I only have so many players that I can play. You know? And it's about time some of them start playing like major leaguers! Or, get somebody else in here that can catch the damn ball or run the bases properly! All right? That's all I can say!"

Here is the video of Lou at the press conference.

We'll see if the incident will put some fight back into the team. The Cubs did score 4 of their 5 runs after the fight, if that means anything.

As you probably know, this is not Barrett first fight. Last season, as shown in this video, Barrett punched White Sox catcher A.J. Pierzynski.

If it wasn't for Barrett's history, I might be more inclined to back him up. Then throw in the fact that he followed an emotional Zambrano into the dugout looking for a fight, I say he got what was coming to him. I'm not giving a pass to Zambrano; he needs to start pitching.

Read more...

LeBron Takes the Step in Game 5

You know LeBron James had a huge Game 5 against the Pistons. You know he scored 25 straight points for the Cavs. You know that he scored 29 of his team's last 30 points. You know he willed Cleveland to victory.

I did not know this.

Not even Michael.

Let us get that out of the way right now. What LeBron James did Thursday night in the Eastern Conference finals was not Jordanesque. It was Mike to a max not even he reached.

In one of the greatest performances in NBA history, the "Chosen One" of the Cavaliers scored 48 points. He scored his team's last 25 in the fourth quarter and the two overtimes it required for the Cavaliers to beat Detroit, 109-107. He scored 29 of his team's last 30.

He gave credit to his teammates afterward. He is like that, making stardust memories and then just trying to be one of the boys.

Please, do not get me wrong here. I am not going to diminish LeBron's 48 point performance. (I will even refrain from mentioning "global icons" in response to the "one of the boys" comment. Wait...)

48 points against the Detroit Pistons, though a very good team, is not 63 against a Bird-led Boston Celtics team. The big difference (outside of 15 points) is that Jordan's came on the losing end of a double overtime thriller.

Does that make LeBron's game greater? In my eyes, it doesn't.

It is just unfortunate that our sports media outlets (ESPN, the Plain Dealer, etc.) are trying to make LeBron James into Michael Jordan. It was just last season that Dwyane Wade was the new MJ.

LeBron James is not Michael Jordan. His performance does not have to be Jordanesque or better.

Because, for one, his performance was Jamesesque.

And that is perfectly fine.

Great even.

You know that performance was great.

Read more...

Steelers' Offensive Line Coach Apologizes for E-mail

Two weeks ago, Steeler's offensive line coach Larry Zierlein sent an e-mail to all of the NFL general managers and commissioner Roger Goodell.

The e-mail contained an x-rated video clip. Zierlein had received the video from Doug Whaley, pro personnel coordinator of the Steelers.

Zierlein apologized to those around the league, especially the Steelers' organization.

"It was 100 percent unintentional. I don't even know how to mass email, I don't know these machines very good -- just a 100 percent unintentional thing. I hit the wrong button."

Zierlein, 61, promised to use the "machine" for football work from now on.

I'll leave the computer alone.

Though Zierlein did get a stern talking to, no disciplinary action was taken in the matter. I tend to believe the embarrassment was enough.

Read more...

Billy Donovan Leaves Gators to Coach Orlando Magic

The Orlando Magic now have a new man on the sidelines with the hiring of Florida's Billy Donovan. Donovan, who replaces the twice-fired Brian Hill, is expected to make drastic changes to right the Magic ship. The Magic and General Manager Otis Smith felt Hill lacked the attributes the team needed in their coach, according to the Orlando Sentinel.

Magic General Manager Otis Smith fired Brian Hill as coach on (May 23) because he didn't believe Hill would get the most out of the team with his style and strategy if he returned.

Some of the issues in deciding Hill's fate, according to those close to the situation, were Hill's inability to adjust during the Magic's midseason slump; his lack of offensive imagination; and whether he was developing young players Dwight Howard, Darko Milicic, Jameer Nelson, Trevor Ariza and rookie J.J. Redick to their potential.

Donovan will be expected to improve on those deficiencies.

Still, the move leaves many wondering why Donovan would leave Florida after winning two straight championships. Dan Shanoff, through Deadspin, wonders the same.

What, exactly, is the lure of coaching in the NBA? On its face, it sounds like the shittiest job in sports.

Zero job security, with a "when" not "if" inevitability of a bad ending to nearly every coaching hire. (Welcome to Indiana, Jim O'Brien!) Star players who run the team. Financial realities that hamstring moves.

Roughest of all, the "Ring or Bust" mentality. Jerry Sloan is the ideal of NBA coaching longevity, yet he is best known for NOT winning a championship. And most of the coaches who have won a title recently (Jackson, Tomjanovich, Popovich) have enjoyed coaching the greatest players of their eras. Dwight Howard is the best post player in the East -- not a bad foundation to build a contender -- and they have double-digit cap millions to use (please God: NOT Vince Carter...hmm: Gerald Wallace?) But yeesh, those odds are still ugly.

Meanwhile, Billy D was on track to be one of the Top 5 most successful coaches in college hoops history. His style seemed MADE for college. (His weakness - Xs and Os - will be magnified in the NBA, while his strength - personality - will be mitigated.)

Donovan, much like Rick Pitino, will come to regret leaving a great situation like Florida. The money ($27.5 million over 5 years), though better in the short term, will not be there for decades like it would be had he stayed at Florida.

I guess college coaches will always want to take on the next challenge, professional sports.

To me, rebuilding Florida would have been quite the challenge for Billy Donovan.

Read more...