What's next for David Blatt?

[J.J.]

I had a strong belief in my mind that David Blatt would not be the right fit for the Cleveland Cavaliers once LeBron James came into the picture. That's no pun towards either individual, but a rookie NBA head coach, coaching a high profile player like LeBron I felt was going to warrant some disagreement. Personally I was giving it 2 seasons, unfortunately I was wrong. But now where does David Blatt go from here?

People have formed their theories since the firing as to why he was fired. From the lack of leadership, his offense and to LeBron never respecting him. While that all may be true, all I take out of it is that is a hot seat for any coach. Best of luck to Ty Lue to manage those egos.

I believe one major flaw I saw in Blatt's offense:

I pay a lot of attention to the games(unlike BlunderKunker who rambles off stats)the offensive sets then go back and look at how effective Blatt ran them overseas. The downfall of that Cavs offense was Kevin Love turned into Ryan Anderson 2.0. The stretch 4 is sagging on the perimeter in almost all of the sets they ran.

Overseas Blatt's 4 man is very often used as a high facilitator or pick and pop option. He's nothing more than either a perimeter camper to create space or a 3 point fader. Honestly watching those sets only help me understand more why Love wasn't fitting into the Cavs offense. Blatt seems to use his 4's exclusively as stretch 4's.

Apart from that, as a coach I thought he done the best possible job anyone else could do with that offense. But I have a couple ideas of where he could be a good fit.

Well I thought about the Phoenix Suns.

Jeff Hornaceck has been a disaster this season. They're getting beat down like Jerry Stackhouse did to him years ago. Besides his bizarre habit of losing games that was decided in the last 30 seconds last year, which I put on him. His rotations this year have had no rhyme or reason. He's got too many playable guys and has no idea what to do with any of them.

He plays all the playmakers together which descends into isolations with a bunch of guys standing around, and then he'll run with a Price/PJ/Leuer/Chandler lineup on the floor together, none of whom can create their own shot and they turn the ball over. Not to mention he clearly lost the locker room. Getting that Morris twin far away from that team would be a great start. Could be good option for Blatt.

Despite them saying no interest in Blatt, I would pick the Minnesota Timberwolves. A young team with KAT, Rubio and a guy who Andrew Wiggins who played good summer league ball under David Blatt. This team has draft picks and cap room to bring in a few pieces.

I could see this offense working for this team. Blatt's offense actually has a lot of similarities to what the Warriors run under Kerr. That doesn't come as a surprise since the Princeton offense Blatt's schemes are based on are similar in nature to Kerr's experiences with Phil Jackson's Triangle. Anyone who has watched Phil's teams with the Bulls and Lakers know that this type of offense is based on reads and options that utilize combinations of ball movement, player movement, off-ball screens, and backdoor cuts to pick apart the weaknesses and openings of a defensive set/positioning.

These require all the players to understand each option that is available and where all other players are expected to be. It's a lot of memorization as well as a lot of understanding what to look for when trying to find weaknesses for the right decision. Nobody on Phil's teams will tell you that they fully learned or perfected it in a single season, but the common ingredient was always leaders that could see the outlook in the investment in such a plan and it paid long term dividends.

Essentially, it requires a lot of investment and energy in ingraining the concepts and positioning from both theoretical and physical execution standpoints. The smarter your players are in being able to see the big picture and ability to make those reads, the faster the team will believe in its concepts and execute it properly. I think the Wolves with the veteran presence of Prince and Garnett can help assist Blatt in getting the young team to buy into his style and would do wonders for a guy like Andrew Wiggins.


Where do you think David Blatt would fit in at?

 

[Khalifa]

I think Blatt was in a bad position as soon as Lebron came back. I mean how can you be any type of coach when the cities golden boy is basically calling his own plays at the end of games. I'm not saying that's anyones fault as well because Lebron is the greatest player on the planet so he should be able to do that but also Blatt is also trying his best to keep the team as one. Like you said J.J, its sad to see Love stranded on the perimeter so much. The guy is a good post player and can draw double teams easy, you think that would help this team out a lot.

If the stories about Blatt not calling Lebron out in the film room are true then I can see where Blatt is coming from because how can he have a shot at Lebron without getting even further on the hot seat. Blatt was blamed for everything in Cleveland so he was backed into a corner and just made everyone happy or atleast tried. Still though it's disgusting how you can fire a coach with the best record from the conference and made the finals. Stuff being a coach at all.

As for where he will end up. I think a few teams could maybe change their coaching. It's not something I want to happen but it seems to be a trend in the NBA. The teams I think could go with him are Washington, Brooklyn and the Suns. I love Hornacek as well and is a fantastic coach but we all know he will get fired eventually because the players are in a bad position. T-Wolves make sense but I like Sam Mitchell so I don't really have much care to see that change. None of those teams really have the traditional European players but they are definately destinations possibly in the future.

As a Laker fan though I would want Blatt coming our way. I think he is more suited for European style which sounds stupid but I think he just doesn't know as much about the American style as he does European.

 

[J.J.]

Lakers are intentionally tanking for a shot at Ben Simmons or Brandon Ingram. I realized this since they've stuck by Byron Scott.

He views basketball as a gladiatorial sport rather than as a chess match. Scott can’t play chess. He’s already been checkmated. He’s still trying to figure out why the knights can make an L-shape move on the board and why the pawns on the board get to make the first move.

But in Byron's defense, he's in an extremely undesirable position of managing Kobe's farewell, playing rent-a-team with 1-yr or expiring deals, and the draft rebuild. Even if he is a terrible coach, I don't think there are others who can do much better with the lineup they have now. The only people who have a win-loss record next to their name is a coach, and he's taking these L's for the Lakers.

Blatt is an option, sure. But I'd want to stay far away from LA if I was that guy and take a low risk team.

 

[Khalifa]

Lakers are intentionally tanking for a shot at Ben Simmons or Brandon Ingram. I realized this since they've stuck by Byron Scott.

He views basketball as a gladiatorial sport rather than as a chess match. Scott can’t play chess. He’s already been checkmated. He’s still trying to figure out why the knights can make an L-shape move on the board and why the pawns on the board get to make the first move.

But in Byron's defense, he's in an extremely undesirable position of managing Kobe's farewell, playing rent-a-team with 1-yr or expiring deals, and the draft rebuild. Even if he is a terrible coach, I don't think there are others who can do much better with the lineup they have now. The only people who have a win-loss record next to their name is a coach, and he's taking these L's for the Lakers.

Blatt is an option, sure. But I'd want to stay far away from LA if I was that guy and take a low risk team.

I'm not as sold on Ingram as I am with Ben Simmons for obvious reasons so I hope they somehow manage the first pick. Need a Philly win tomorrow against the Suns. Your right about Byron though, he is there obviously for the tanking. I wouldn't mind Lakers bringing in Brian Shaw for the head coaching gig but probably wouldn't be the same feel as most of the players wouldn't even remember how much Lakers loved him.

Blatt would be smart to not go to a rebuilding team in my opinion as it could do him more harm losing all those games but I don't really see the need for any teams to change their head coach that are in a good enough position. Maybe he is best suited to go as a assistant for a year or two and then go back up. Wouldn't it be funny if Warriors got him. I mean they do have other former head coaches sitting on the bench with them so Blatt could be part of the crew although I know there wouldn't be any spots for him there.

 

[J.J.]

Blatt is a good fit for Suns, Pelicans or Timberwolves when picking teams that are almost on the brink of being a stellar team.

You have to take Ben Simmons if he's there - best player in the draft. Mechanically, Simmons uses too much upper body in his jump shot and often lands behind (instead of in front) the spot he released the ball from. You can see he doesn't use his legs enough or get the proper balance.

 

[SSJPhenom]

There is only one player to blame for Blatt's dismissal and that player isn't Lebron James. It's Kevin Love. Folks, its simple, Love as got to play better. Yes, in Minnesota he was a good post player but he was also the number one option to score. In Cleveland, he's the number three option. So yes, his touches are going to decline and be relegated to mostly open shots. Here's the thing though, he has to knock down those open shots. Also, his declined touches on offense has nothing to do with his defensive play. In Minnesota he could rebound with the best the league had. Where'd that go?

The same thing happened to Bosh when they joined Miami. He became the third option on offense and was relegated to mostly spot up jumpers. He made the most of it though and continued playing at all-star levels. That's what Love has to do. I mean, in that beat down they got at the hands of Golden State, Love only shot the ball six times. That's ridiculous. He just has to play better or they're not going to win anything. He's the $110 million dollar man, but right now he's not even worth half that. That old saying is always true in the end though. Players win and coaches lose.

As for what's next for Blatt. I think he'd be best suited on a low risk young team where he'd be given time to apply his system and build the team. It's not Blatt's fault that he was sort of intimidated in Cleveland next to Lebron. It was his first time coaching a player with Lebron's acumen and notoriety. Also, Blatt was hired before Lebron decided to go back to Cleveland. So it wasn't his fault. He just needs a shot with a young team to get his feet wet in the NBA and learn how everything works. I honestly think that he'll end up being a good coach in the NBA.

 

[J.J.]

There is only one player to blame for Blatt's dismissal and that player isn't Lebron James. It's Kevin Love. Folks, its simple, Love as got to play better. Yes, in Minnesota he was a good post player but he was also the number one option to score. In Cleveland, he's the number three option. So yes, his touches are going to decline and be relegated to mostly open shots. Here's the thing though, he has to knock down those open shots. Also, his declined touches on offense has nothing to do with his defensive play. In Minnesota he could rebound with the best the league had. Where'd that go?

The same thing happened to Bosh when they joined Miami. He became the third option on offense and was relegated to mostly spot up jumpers. He made the most of it though and continued playing at all-star levels. That's what Love has to do. I mean, in that beat down they got at the hands of Golden State, Love only shot the ball six times. That's ridiculous. He just has to play better or they're not going to win anything. He's the $110 million dollar man, but right now he's not even worth half that. That old saying is always true in the end though. Players win and coaches lose.

As for what's next for Blatt. I think he'd be best suited on a low risk young team where he'd be given time to apply his system and build the team. It's not Blatt's fault that he was sort of intimidated in Cleveland next to Lebron. It was his first time coaching a player with Lebron's acumen and notoriety. Also, Blatt was hired before Lebron decided to go back to Cleveland. So it wasn't his fault. He just needs a shot with a young team to get his feet wet in the NBA and learn how everything works. I honestly think that he'll end up being a good coach in the NBA.

Since Lue took over, Love is getting way more touches in the high post. Which is opening up his face-up game, his passing game (like Lebron on the give and go dunk last night), and putting him in better position to crash on the offensive end. I have also noticed Love challenging around the rim more often the past two games.

I'm wondering if his no jump, no reach style of rim protection was a coaching point which if it was a coaching point there was likely a reason behind it as Love so far is creating more And-1s than blocks. It looks like they are starting to stagger the big 3 so there is a period of time in the 2nd quarter where Love is playing like he did in Minnesota.

All the above being said, Love is still about the worst pick and roll defender in the league, Lur will have to figure that part out after getting him going.

 

[GI Cake]

I pay a lot of attention to the games(unlike BlunderKunker who rambles off stats)

I was going to contribute to the thread with my thoughts on Blatt, but instead after seeing this little swipe you tried to take at me I decided to go out of my way to show what a dishonest shit you are and on top of it all, a plagiarist. So below I'll just quote your post, and then quote the original post and cite where you copied and pasted to pass off the image that you know what you're talking about.

I pay a lot of attention to the games(unlike BlunderKunker who rambles off stats)the offensive sets then go back and look at how effective Blatt ran them overseas. The downfall of that Cavs offense was Kevin Love turned into Ryan Anderson 2.0. The stretch 4 is sagging on the perimeter in almost all of the sets they ran.

Overseas Blatt's 4 man is very often used as a high facilitator or pick and pop option. He's nothing more than either a perimeter camper to create space or a 3 point fader. Honestly watching those sets only help me understand more why Love wasn't fitting into the Cavs offense. Blatt seems to use his 4's exclusively as stretch 4's.

In fact, watching a lot of these sets, it's no wonder why Kevin Love was turned into Ryan Anderson 2.0. The stretch 4 is sagging on the perimeter in almost all of these sets.
Edit: Watch the Chins motion offense. The 4 man is very often used as a high facilitator or pick and pop option. He's nothing more than either a perimeter camper to create space or a 3 point fader. Honestly watching these sets only help me understand more why Love wasn't fitting into the Cavs offense. Blatt seems to use his 4's exclusively as stretch 4's.

https://www.reddit.com/r/nba/comments/4294vb/blatts_offense_the_systemoffense_cleveland_fans/

So are you PeterGibbons2 by chance, or did you just copy paste what opinion sounded right to you?

Jeff Hornaceck has been a disaster this season. They're getting beat down like Jerry Stackhouse did to him years ago. Besides his bizarre habit of losing games that was decided in the last 30 seconds last year, which I put on him. His rotations this year have had no rhyme or reason. He's got too many playable guys and has no idea what to do with any of them.

He plays all the playmakers together which descends into isolations with a bunch of guys standing around, and then he'll run with a Price/PJ/Leuer/Chandler lineup on the floor together, none of whom can create their own shot and they turn the ball over. Not to mention he clearly lost the locker room. Getting that Morris twin far away from that team would be a great start. Could be good option for Blatt.

Hornacek has been a disaster this year. Besides our bizarre habit of losing every single game that was decided in the last 30 seconds last year, which I put on him, his rotations this year have had no rhyme or reason. He's got too many playable guys and has no idea what to do with any of them. He plays all the playmakers together which descends into isolations with a bunch of guys standing around, and then he'll put a Price/PJ/Leuer/Chandler and the floor together, none of whom can create their own shot and we turn the ball over. Not to mention he clearly lost the locker room.
That being said, shit went south this year for sure but Hornacek will learn from this and will get another shot somewhere and I could totally see him succeeding.

https://www.reddit.com/r/nba/comments/42lbv8/please_david_blatt_come_to_the_phoenix_suns/

Are you also Chupacabra Sandwich by chance?

I could see this offense working for this team. Blatt's offense actually has a lot of similarities to what the Warriors run under Kerr. That doesn't come as a surprise since the Princeton offense Blatt's schemes are based on are similar in nature to Kerr's experiences with Phil Jackson's Triangle. Anyone who has watched Phil's teams with the Bulls and Lakers know that this type of offense is based on reads and options that utilize combinations of ball movement, player movement, off-ball screens, and backdoor cuts to pick apart the weaknesses and openings of a defensive set/positioning. These require all the players to understand each option that is available and where all other players are expected to be. It's a lot of memorization as well as a lot of understanding what to look for when trying to find weaknesses for the right decision. Nobody on Phil's teams will tell you that they fully learned or perfected it in a single season, but the common ingredient was always leaders that could see the outlook in the investment in such a plan and it paid long term dividends.

Blatt's offense actually has a lot of similarities to what the Warriors run under Kerr. That doesn't come as a surprise since the Princeton offense Blatt's schemes are based on are similar in nature to Kerr's experiences with Phil Jackson's Triangle. Anyone who has watched Phil's teams with the Bulls and Lakers know that this type of offense is based on reads and options that utilize combinations of ball movement, player movement, off-ball screens, and backdoor cuts to pick apart the weaknesses and openings of a defensive set/positioning. These require all the players to understand each option that is available and where all other players are expected to be. It's a lot of memorization as well as a lot of understanding what to look for when trying to find weaknesses for the right decision. Nobody on Phil's teams will tell you that they fully learned or perfected it in a single season, but the common ingredient was always leaders that could see the outlook in the investment in such a plan and it paid long term dividends. Essentially, it requires a lot of investment and energy in ingraining the concepts and positioning from both theoretical and physical execution standpoints. The smarter your players are in being able to see the big picture and ability to make those reads, the faster the team will believe in its concepts and execute it properly.

https://www.reddit.com/r/nba/comments/4294vb/blatts_offense_the_systemoffense_cleveland_fans/

So JJ are you able to concede that you have no fucking clue what you're talking about or do you want to keep parading around with this ugly Frankenstein of a post you gathered from Reddit and act like it was your own opinion?

 

[Khalifa]

There is only one player to blame for Blatt's dismissal and that player isn't Lebron James. It's Kevin Love. Folks, its simple, Love as got to play better. Yes, in Minnesota he was a good post player but he was also the number one option to score. In Cleveland, he's the number three option. So yes, his touches are going to decline and be relegated to mostly open shots. Here's the thing though, he has to knock down those open shots. Also, his declined touches on offense has nothing to do with his defensive play. In Minnesota he could rebound with the best the league had. Where'd that go?

The same thing happened to Bosh when they joined Miami. He became the third option on offense and was relegated to mostly spot up jumpers. He made the most of it though and continued playing at all-star levels. That's what Love has to do. I mean, in that beat down they got at the hands of Golden State, Love only shot the ball six times. That's ridiculous. He just has to play better or they're not going to win anything. He's the $110 million dollar man, but right now he's not even worth half that. That old saying is always true in the end though. Players win and coaches lose.

As for what's next for Blatt. I think he'd be best suited on a low risk young team where he'd be given time to apply his system and build the team. It's not Blatt's fault that he was sort of intimidated in Cleveland next to Lebron. It was his first time coaching a player with Lebron's acumen and notoriety. Also, Blatt was hired before Lebron decided to go back to Cleveland. So it wasn't his fault. He just needs a shot with a young team to get his feet wet in the NBA and learn how everything works. I honestly think that he'll end up being a good coach in the NBA.

I actually think Love and Bosh are the best type of team mates to have when creating the big three because they obviously know that having all 3 players wanting the ball is bad for the team so they adjust their game to suit the team. Chris Bosh could actually post up in Toronto but turned to more of a shooter in Miami because the floor would be crowded with Lebron and Wade on the perimeter and Birdman or whoever on the other side. I think if your Kevin Love it's a bit hard to say "Look Lebron and Kyrie, give me more touches". Lebron will be thinking who the hell are you and Kyrie was in town beforehand plus the point guard position seems to be the most important position in the league at the moment. Same happened with Bosh. He wasn't on Lebrons level and Wade was the cities first child. Both of them have not complained once publically that they don't like their position on the team when many can see that they don't.

You just can't have 3 number one scoring options on a team in my opinion. Horford would be perfect for the Cavs instead of Love in my opinion because he doesn't care if he gets 5 shots a game for 5 points but can do exactly what Love can do. Regardless it is not Blatts fault for this either. I think he would of done very well with just Wiggins, Irving and Thompson last year.