Bianchi on Rob Hennigan.
Hennigan must deliver—or else On a 10-game losing streak, and with a record identical to last season, the Magic make a change at coach
Orlando Magic GM Rob Hennigan called a news conference Thursday to announce the firing of head coach Jacque Vaughn.
Here’s hoping that next year at this time, the Magic aren’t calling another news conference to announce the firing of Hennigan himself.
A year ago, I would have thought such a scenario was preposterous. Hennigan was perceived as the wunderkind — the critical, analytical, mathematical, methodical Stepford GM who mesmerized us by using fancy-smancy terms like “process-driven” and “emotion-neutral” and “advanced matrix technology.”
Now, though, we’re not so sure if Hennigan’s postDwightmare rebuild is working. This is what happens when you have an overall record of 58-158 in 2 ⁄ seasons of running an organization.
Such an oppressive amount of losing makes everyone start to doubt everything. Even Hennigan himself said during Thursday’s fire-the-coach news conference: “Point the finger at me more than Jacque.”
Except that’s not a realistic option for team CEO Alex Martins and Chairman Dan DeVos. They can’t very well point the finger at Hennigan because it would send a troubling message to the growing number of disgruntled fans that the rebuild has failed and the Magic are much closer to being the Sacramento Kings than they are the San Antonio Spurs.
“We’re very confident in what they’re doing and how they’re doing it,” DeVos said of Hennigan and his staff. “We know the process Rob goes through: very detailed, very analytical. They know exactly where we’re at and how to get where we want to go.”
Adds Martins on Hennigan’s job status: “Rob is very secure. We are very pleased with the way he has constructed the roster, organized our basketball operations and the assets he’s accumulated so that we can move in a forward direction. …This is just a short bump in the road. We believe we have a great deal of talent on our roster. We believe we have the capability of being better than we are. Hopefully this change will be the shot in the arm to get back on the right path and get over that bump. We believe in our plan, and we’re going to stick with our plan. We believe we are building for long-term success, and it starts with our belief in the core of players on our roster.”
This is why Vaughn had to go. As I wrote last week in a column calling for his Magic general manager Rob Hennigan, left, and CEO Alex Martins listen during an Orlando news conference Thursday to announce the firing of head coach Jacque Vaughn. dismissal: “Martins and Hennigan need a designated scapegoat for why their team is so gawdawful. Blaming the coach and firing him is the quickest, easiest way to appease fans who have split into two troubling factions — acutely angry and alarmingly apathetic.”
The Magic are in Year 3 of the rebuild and are regressing rather than progressing. They’ve now lost 10 in a row, 16 of 18 and given up at least 100 points in 14 straight games. After 52 games, the Magic are 15-37 — the same record they had after 52 games last year. Not exactly the type of progress Martins and Hennigan had in mind this season.
I hope Martins and Hennigan are right. I hope the Magic do have a lot of talent on their roster and a coaching change will make the difference. I hope Hennigan’s plan is sound and a new coach can ignite the team.
But here’s the scary part: Nobody really knows if Hennigan’s plan is going to work — not you, not me, not Martins, not even Hennigan. Best-case scenario: The Magic hire a new coach with more experience and acumen who turns a young, talented roster into a playoff team. Worst-case scenario: The new coach comes in and the Magic continue to lose because the roster is just young — but not very talented. Best-case scenario: The Magic’s nucleus of young players — Victor Oladipo, Aaron Gordon, Elfrid Payton, Nik Vucevic and Tobias Harris — are a year or two from becoming the next Atlanta Hawks. Worst-case scenario: The Magic have a roster comprised of guards who can’t shoot and big men who can’t defend — a team perpetually three years away from being three years away.
The firing of Vaughn is an easy solution because nobody can argue with it. Vaughn, after all, is the worst coach — recordwise — in Magic history. His .269 winning percentage is even lower than that of Matt Guokas (.338) — the very first coach of the expansion Magic.
You can’t fire the owners. You can’t fire the players. And so you fire the coach. Let’s hope it works. Otherwise, there will be another news conference — same time next year.