‘Deserve’s got nothin’ to do with it’
Yesterday, I noted in this corner of the Sports section that the Suns’ firing of Jeff Hornacek didn’t have anything to do with whether he “deserved” it. He may have been debilitated by injuries to vital cogs a mere year and a half removed from serious consideration for Coach Of The Year honors, but the bottom line was that management, for a host of reasons, decided it needed to make a change, period.
Parenthetically, other examples of “deserve” not figuring in on the equation likewise abound at the other end of the spectrum. In fact, the National Basketball Association is littered with head coaches who don’t seem to be doing well but remain in the hot seat. Among them is, yes, Lakers mentor Byron Scott, and I cite him primarily because his name has been in the news of late due to a continuing back and forth with Clippers analyst Don MacLean.
Needless to say, Scott is receiving no small measure of scrutiny simply due to his presence in a major market. At the same time, it’s hard to argue with the notion that he attracts all the second-guessing in light of the Lakers’ anemic record. Sure, the purple and gold don’t have the personnel to reach the throes of mediocrity. On the other hand, their insistence on running outdated and inefficient offensive sets coupled with their inability to maintain any semblance of unity at the other end of the court speak volumes of their brain trust’s deficiencies.
Perhaps Scott is just a victim of circumstance; after all, it’s hard for him to be competitive when he has a youthful set of players whose progress has taken a backseat to the Kobe Bryant Farewell Tour. Then again, it’s telling that his charges posted losing slates and missed the playoffs in eight of the 12 full seasons he hitherto paced the sidelines, and that, after his 2015-2016 campaign, the numbers will be nine in 13.
No doubt, Scott’s close relationship with Bryant and cachet as a crucial part of three championship runs with the Showtime Lakers in the eighties have helped keep his job secure. And because all and sundry have been too busy saying goodbye to a surefire Hall Of Famer, the questions that arise from poor effort are saved for another day. Of course, that day will come; a fan base so used to winning will again harbor heightened expectations and wonder why the product on the floor does not justify the cost of the tickets in their hands. And when final reckoning arrives, I will again venture to contend, as wise old Bill Munny did, that “deserve’s got nothin’ to do with it.”
Examples of “deserve” not figuring in on the equation likewise abound at the other end of the spectrum. In fact, the National Basketball Association is littered with head coaches who don’t seem to be doing well but remain in the hot seat.