Isn't it about time to show some love to Avery Johnson? - Dallas-Mavs.com Forums

G-Man · 12-11-2005, 12:28 PM

After his near meltdown in the playoffs, many of us approached this season unsure if he would survive. Instead he's flourished. The league made him coach of the month, and hardly anyone on this board bothered to give him his props. So here's mine.

I think AJ has made a lot of smart moves this year.

He did NOT throw Dirk under the bus. He let Dirk be Dirk, but he has the big guy abusing small forwards again with a diverse game, backing them down sometimes, and shooting over them as well.

He uses his timeouts well, instead of hoarding them until the end of the game. The quick trigger has worked, especially when the Mavs start a half slow. He uses them well to stop runs, too, instead of waiting for the tie, like most coaches do.

He has Devin and Quis playing under control, which we had to wonder if we'd ever see.

He uses Armstrong brilliantly, to stay in front of waterbug point guards, or give the team needed energy.

The defense still needs work, but nobody takes plays off anymore.

He fixes things. 2 weeks ago, every point guard we played had a career night. Not anymore. At the beginning of the season, it seems like the Mavs started every game at an 8 point deficit. Not anymore. Pau Gasol goes from All-world to mediocre mortal in 1 game.

He has filled in the loss of Finley's leadership, in part with his own personality, and also by demanding that Dirk and Terry step into the void.

He stuck with Dampier, and is now getting decent play out of the big guy. And he seems to know which center to play at various points in the game.

I could go on, but I'll stop here with hope that he keeps getting better, just like he has his young players doing.

My sig still rings true.

MavKikiNYC · 12-11-2005, 12:32 PM

Yeah, where is his evaluation thread? Is that still going?

G-Man · 12-11-2005, 12:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MavKikiNYC

Yeah, where is his evaluation thread? Is that still going?

I searched for his name in thread titles and found nothing recent, so I started this one. Hope that's ok.

Bookit · 12-11-2005, 12:50 PM

Avery is a great coach. He learns really fast what works and what doesn't work. How long did Christie last anyway? I'm willing to bet that Avery had a lot to do with that whole Christie departure. It looked like Avery realized he made a mistake bringing him here and got rid of him in a hurry. And how good is the Diop signing? And you just know Avery has learned not to play KVH in the last 5 minutes under any circumstances. That adjustment is coming soon.

EricaLubarsky · 12-11-2005, 12:56 PM

I should bump the article that claimed that AJ was the biggest one involved in acquiring Diop. A few people were saying how AJ overstepped his bounds by going after a player as a coach.

MavKikiNYC · 12-11-2005, 01:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by G-Man

I searched for his name in thread titles and found nothing recent, so I started this one. Hope that's ok.

No problem as far as I'm concerned.

Was curious to see if/how the observations of his performance had changed over time.

He gets a very solid B from me so far. I think he's done a good job of at least getting them to think about team defense, and the rotation that he has developed with Dampier and Diop is what I've wanted to see for years. Thank God Avery is willing to get Diop minutes even though he can't shoot the 3-ball.

I think he's getting pretty good production out of Daniels too. To be sure, part of it is Daniels' own maturation as a player, and getting healthy--but think Avery has had some effect too. I'm not 100% sold on Daniels yet, but I haven't seen him play but a couple of times this year. His box scores look pretty steady though.

Will be interesting to see how Johnson works Stackhouse back into the mix.

One reservation I have about Avery--his commitment to Terry as the starting 1. Makes perfect sense until Harris is ready, but the future of this team is with Harris at the point. Here's hoping Terry can stay around to be a threat off the bench like Vinnie Johnson or Van Exel.

dirno2000 · 12-11-2005, 01:21 PM

Quote:

One reservation I have about Avery--his commitment to Terry as the starting 1. Makes perfect sense until Harris is ready, but the future of this team is with Harris at the point. Here's hoping Terry can stay around to be a threat off the bench like Vinnie Johnson or Van Exel.

I think that would be the perfect role for JT. You're not going to find a player as talented as Jet with a better attitude. Hopefully he'll settle for a 6th man role to stay with a championship caliber team that he feels comfortable with.

It'll be interesting to track Avery's substitution patters at the one for the next couple of games. A few days back he made the comment that playoff basketball is about "driving and dishing". Well over the past few games, Devin has been slowly making the transition from always finising at the rim to ocassionally kicking the ball out to the open man. If this continues it would seem that Devin, while still not as trustworthy as Jet IMO, is a better fit for what AJ wants to do.

Dirkenstien · 12-11-2005, 01:28 PM

Avery willk bring a trophy to Dallas. He is tough, motivational, and has a great attitude. It's an honor and a breath of fresh air to have a man with his passion coaching this team.

G-Man · 12-11-2005, 01:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dirno2000

I think that would be the perfect role for JT. You're not going to find a player as talented as Jet with a better attitude. Hopefully he'll settle for a 6th man role to stay with a championship caliber team that he feels comfortable with.

It'll be interesting to track Avery's substitution patters at the one for the next couple of games.

Against Boston, Jet's 1st game back, he started slow, and AJ put Harris in quickly. He did the same thing at the end of the game. Like with Damp, he may let Terry keep starting, but will have the right guy in at the right time. I think we'll see Terry more at the 2, scoring, while Harris or Quis handle the ball more. Its been very interesting already watching how AJ uses the guards. Big test comes Tuesday, when we find out if AJ has a plan to handle Nash. They sure shut down Paul and Staoudamire and Big Mouth Bobby.

dude1394 · 12-11-2005, 02:33 PM

It looks like jet/devin will be used interchangeably based on the match-up until devin just blows past him as a playmaker or he gets his outside shot to go down more consistenly. I'm loving how he's using Damp early and Rock to finish. He also has not gone to a small line-up since the first week, not at all. That's probably due to Diops emergence as much as anything. If Rock weren't getting the job done we'd probalby be seeing some smaller lineups.

So part of it's AJ and props to him, but the players are really getting the job done when they come in. It will be very,very interesting to see what happens if stack makes it back.

Day1MavsFan · 12-11-2005, 03:13 PM

I'm pretty happy with Avery right now, and I think he has what it takes to bring a trophy here. Very few coaches would have a 15-5 record right now, considering the schedule and the injuries.

However, I think you are being too generous, G-Man. As in:

1) He has not gotten Dirk to play in the post, as he had said he would. His outside shot is alive and well, but his inside play is MIA (save the first half against Indiana).

2) While he has instilled a commitment to defense (half the battle), the goal has yet to be reached. It's still a work in progress, that is on schedule. Yes, progress has been made, but we are not the Grizzlies yet.

3) I'm not sure I'd call Damp's play decent. I think he's playing under par. Imagine if we didn't have Diop, but a more average back-up center. Then how glaring would Damp's under-acheivement be? This was Avery's guy, remember.

Again, I like the job Avery is doing. I'm just saying that I haven't seen him get a whole lot more out of any players than what was expected.

G-Man · 12-11-2005, 04:11 PM

On Damp, I disagree. I've come to expect him to get 3 fouls in 6 minutes and spend most of the game sitting on his butt. Just staying in the game and clogging up the lane is more than he did in last year's playoffs. I credit that to this: Its been said they need to get Damp involved in the offense early, so at the beginning of the season, they'd run a play or 2 for him. Too often, he'd commit an offensive foul trying to get open - that put him in immediate foul trouble. The game where he got his 1st foul in 15seconds and had 3 in 5 minutes, 2 of them were offensive. So AJ stopped doing that. The Boston game is the 1st one in a long time where they ran a play for him at the beginning. Fewer early fouls lets him stay in the game and get his 10 rbds. So I credit the coaching for getting him to play close to his potential. He's not playing above par, but at least he's not a spectator.

True Dirk isn't pounding it into the post. But what he is doing now is better than his lame attempts at post play in the playoffs- weak shots and no fouls called. With Quis and Devin penetrating, Dirk's getting a lot of close in jumpers. Sorta like Duncan.

True again on the not yet there defense. Horrible to watch them blow big leads in the last 3 games, but great to watch them clamp down at the end. Diop's many blocks, and that one by Damp against Gasol were things of beauty. Nellie won at end of games by drawing up a great play to score. We won these last 4 the way San Antonio used to beat us. By stopping the scoring. And that with our best defender in street clothes. I know AJ deserves the credit, because against Boston, I saw Devin Harris pissed at himself for blowing a defensive assignment, even tho his man missed the 3 and Harris grabbed the rebound.

Dirkenstien · 12-11-2005, 04:27 PM

I think Avery is realizing that Dirk is not a post up player and that he will be more productive and efficient if allowed to face the basket. When it comes down to it, it's just about being comfortable, and if facing the basket makes Dirk more comfortable and thus allows him to play better, then so be it.

I am very impressed with how Avery is using Dirk this season.

kg_veteran · 12-11-2005, 05:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dirno2000

I think that would be the perfect role for JT. You're not going to find a player as talented as Jet with a better attitude. Hopefully he'll settle for a 6th man role to stay with a championship caliber team that he feels comfortable with.

It'll be interesting to track Avery's substitution patters at the one for the next couple of games. A few days back he made the comment that playoff basketball is about "driving and dishing". Well over the past few games, Devin has been slowly making the transition from always finising at the rim to ocassionally kicking the ball out to the open man. If this continues it would seem that Devin, while still not as trustworthy as Jet IMO, is a better fit for what AJ wants to do.

I think this is what everybody hopes happens -- Harris continues to mature into the starting role and JET becomes the 6th man and clutch shooter off the bench. Personally, I see no reason for it not to happen, either at some point this season or at the beginning of next season. Harris is clearly more talented than JET, but as dude pointed out he has to rediscover his jumpshot and he needs to continue to become more effective as a playmaker. Once he gets to that point, I'm confident he'll be starting or at least on the floor at the end of games.

Stitch Jones · 12-12-2005, 12:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by EricaLubarsky

I should bump the article that claimed that AJ was the biggest one involved in acquiring Diop. A few people were saying how AJ overstepped his bounds by going after a player as a coach.

Yeah, didn't he say something to the effect of, "If coach didn't want him here then he wouldn't be here." orsomething like that? And then people kind of freaked out that he was so involved in the evaluation process.

I think AJ has done well and has learned quickly. I think I'll be most interested as to how he uses (or if he uses) his depth, come playoff time - I felt like he "choked" the rotation a few times in the post-season. All in all, he's doing a great job.

birdsanctuary · 12-12-2005, 12:40 AM

Avery deserves some serious props. The Dallas Mavericks of 2005-2006 are a pretty damn strong Dark Horse to win it all. If the Mavs could somehow win the Southwest, I'd have to believe that this might be their year.

Avery is a huge piece, master motivator, though he seems to mirror Devin Harris, games where he appears to be masterfully in charge (ie. vs SA #1) and other's where he looks like a complete nincompoop in the end game...

Bottom-Line Avery is a winner!

snoop · 12-12-2005, 01:08 AM

he has deserved acclaim since he took over. It was always surprising to me to see the negative reaction from some in here towards him. Great thread

seelenjaeger · 12-12-2005, 05:54 AM

Well, show me his rings, his playoff success ...

Bookit · 12-12-2005, 09:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by seelenjaeger

Well, show me his rings, his playoff success ...

????

RedPhase · 12-12-2005, 10:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by seelenjaeger

Well, show me his rings, his playoff success ...

how many coaches have rings and playoff success?

not alot ain't it?

HexNBA · 12-12-2005, 10:45 AM

Especially in their first year of coaching

Drbio · 12-12-2005, 11:22 AM

I think that Kiki was looking for the thread where I was rating Avery's game to game performance. Certainly after a poor start (which should not have been entirely unexpected due to a new system being in place I guess) he has done well. I'm ready to proclaim that I am comfortable with Avery at this point and think that he has done a good job. However, I do reserve the right to scream aimlessly at him at various points during the year.

Mavdog · 12-12-2005, 11:42 AM

What's not to like?

A somewhat consistent rotation (which would be even more consistent if we didn't have these pesky injuries).

A good eye to the favorable matchups, and the team exploiting them on most nights.

The improved (how much seems to be debatable) defense.

and best of all, a very funny video at the game, a parody of the Brady Bunch: "The Avery Bunch"

spreedom · 12-12-2005, 02:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by seelenjaeger

Well, show me his rings, his playoff success ...

How many coaches win a ring in their first year of coaching.. at any level? Especially after coaching only the last 18 games?

And playoff success? I'd say winning a playoff series against a hot team after going down 0-2 at home is a pretty respectable start..

EricaLubarsky · 12-12-2005, 02:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by seelenjaeger

Well, show me his rings, his playoff success ...

Well, he does have that 1999 championship ring, and many runs to the 2nd and 3 rounds, including a 2nd round appearance last year when he took over a floundering club only 18 games away from the postseason.

seelenjaeger · 12-12-2005, 04:43 PM

Guys, you miss my point.

I was only trying to make the infamous Don Nelson comparison.

Whenever someone achieves something in Big D, he´s either hyped beyond belief or the things to celebrate are torn apart by things like "yeah, fine, he´s great, but we don´t play D, so shoot".

I´m not sold on Avery, I think he´s shown a promising start of what could be a long and successful coaching career. But he´s also shown some lapses and lacks, which HAVE to be adressed at some point.

My call: too early to tell.

Evilmav2 · 12-12-2005, 05:43 PM

31-7; That's all that needs to be said ...

Bookit · 12-12-2005, 05:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by seelenjaeger

Guys, you miss my point.

I´m not sold on Avery, I think he´s shown a promising start of what could be a long and successful coaching career. But he´s also shown some lapses and lacks, which HAVE to be adressed at some point.

My call: too early to tell.

What lapses and lacks need to be adressed?? I still don't get it.

seelenjaeger · 12-12-2005, 08:00 PM

He´s looking lost at times. I think he´s still looking for "the touch" concerning substitutions late in the game. He´s pushing the guys too far on the D end imho.

And maybe people not realizing about the things still to be done is part of what I´m trying to point out

Avery is coaching a great combo of players with a nice mixture and solid chemistry. He got a legit superstar, he made some nice adjustments in the off season together with Donnie, and he shows so far that he´s able to get the guys working together on the floor. So far, so good.

I guess my main point atm is that he´s playing a very short rotation that might backfire sooner or later (he´s not responsible for all the injuries, but why sign guys like Powell if you get a whole lotta nothing outta them with plenty roster slots already filled?), he´s not getting any consistency from anybody (not even Dirk), which I blame in parts on his furious D-Approach (and on a larger part on the youth of the players and the injuries), and that he´s just 48 games into his carreer (making it roughly half a season) with a team just starting to develop Avery-shape under his hands, so we´ll learn about his coaching, his playbooks, player development, in-game decision making, adjusting-to-crisis stuff over the next 2-3 years.

He´s off for a nice start, but if you´d judge him like Nelson has been called out all the time, he´d barely get the love he´s getting already.

Dirkenstien · 12-12-2005, 08:39 PM

I disagree seelenjaeger.

Avery's defensive approach to this team has been the best thing to happen to this franchise in years and the reason many were frustrated with Nelson was because he didn't mind allowing other teams to have lay-up drills just about everynight.

Also, Nelson's lack of passion and constant pessimistic, underdog mentality soiled this team's sense of self worth. Just thinking about it upsets my stomach.

On the other hand, Avery's approach that the Mavs are just as good or better than any other team in the league as long as we hustle and play some defense is a breath of fresh air.

I am very happy with how he has done so far and believe he will only continue to improve as a head coach.

MFFL · 01-04-2006, 03:41 PM

39-11.

That's the best 50 game start by any rookie NBA head coach.

dude1394 · 01-04-2006, 05:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MFFL

39-11.

That's the best 50 game start by any rookie NBA head coach.

Really....san fran tastic. Now if we could only get him to coach the cowboys.

MFFL · 01-26-2006, 01:21 AM

Coach of the West All-Stars

dude1394 · 01-26-2006, 09:07 AM

Well nellie doesn't seem to have been blowing smoke when he said AJ would be a great coach. It must sort of gall nellie however to see "his" guys playing defense. ?

Seeing as how it sort of validates Cubes thoughts that they needed to focus on it more. That old dog just didn't want to learn many new tricks.

chumdawg · 01-26-2006, 01:56 PM

Dude, it wouldn't have been any new tricks for Nellie to learn. He coached some damn fine defensive Milwaukee Bucks teams when some of these guys were probably still in diapers.

But yes, it is nice to see AJ having so much success. As I have said before about him, he seems to be a terrifically fast learner.

DevinHarriswillstart · 01-26-2006, 03:16 PM

Avery obviously doesn't get much love from the media, as ESPN.COM's nba front page has 0 mention of Avery coaching the game.

dirno2000 · 01-26-2006, 08:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DevinHarriswillstart

Avery obviously doesn't get much love from the media, as ESPN.COM's nba front page has 0 mention of Avery coaching the game.

In their defense I didn't see anything when Flip clinched either (which was probably the 2nd week of the season).

The thing I like this is that it will make the commentators talk Mavs during the All-Star game. A lot of times we become a footnote because Dirk isn't the All-Star game type.

Dropstep · 01-26-2006, 08:29 PM

I agree with this 100%

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dirkenstien

I disagree seelenjaeger.

Avery's defensive approach to this team has been the best thing to happen to this franchise in years and the reason many were frustrated with Nelson was because he didn't mind allowing other teams to have lay-up drills just about everynight.

Also, Nelson's lack of passion and constant pessimistic, underdog mentality soiled this team's sense of self worth. Just thinking about it upsets my stomach.

On the other hand, Avery's approach that the Mavs are just as good or better than any other team in the league as long as we hustle and play some defense is a breath of fresh air.

I am very happy with how he has done so far and believe he will only continue to improve as a head coach.

roadrunner · 01-26-2006, 08:46 PM

I think that AJ's record is now up to 48-12 (I think that is correct) and that is fantastic. I know that he took over a well established team, but he has done a terrific job. He instills confidence with his gritty, persistant, and never say die attitude. I am one who thinks that our Mavs are a pretty special bunch.

I have the same feeling about this team that I had in the early 90's for the Cowboys before they started winning Super Bowls. I dont know if this means that we have the future NBA champs here in Dallas, but I am excited for the future of this team with AJ at the helm.

Thespiralgoeson · 01-27-2006, 01:47 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dirno2000

In their defense I didn't see anything when Flip clinched either (which was probably the 2nd week of the season).

The thing I like this is that it will make the commentators talk Mavs during the All-Star game. A lot of times we become a footnote because Dirk isn't the All-Star game type.

The west's coaches are also usually pretty stingy when it comes to giving Dirk minutes. Hopefully AJ will let Dirk do his thing out there.