Of course Jenkins is on the hot seat
Taylor Jenkins didn’t say anyone had been fired.
The Memphis Grizzlies coach instead talked Tuesday of “restructuring” his staff, and the “collaborative” process he and the front office are undertaking to accomplish that this offseason. He sounded like a man trying to use every PR buzz word he could find to avoid saying someone is getting fired, particularly in light of multiple reports last week that suggested multiple Grizzlies assistants have already been fired.
That it inevitably has led to discussions of when or if Jenkins could be fired actually feels long overdue.
Of course, Jenkins is on the hot seat. It doesn’t mean he’s a bad coach, or done a bad job recently. It means he’s an NBA coach.
The more stunning realization is that Jenkins is about to enter year six with the Grizzlies and this is the first time the hot seat conversation can legitimately be had.
He is the longest-tenured coach in the league without winning an NBA title for that team. He’s on the verge of coaching, winning and losing more games than any coach in franchise history. He’s coming off a first-round exit and a 27-win season in back-to-back years, disappointing results that can be explained away by injuries but demand an urgency the Grizzlies haven’t had before with its current core.
It’s not so much an indictment of Jenkins as much as it’s a reflection of what’s expected from here on out with Ja Morant, Desmond Bane and Jaren Jackson Jr. all making big money. This is what inevitably happens in a coach’s lifespan except for a very select few. They get blamed first.
If anything, maybe the focus should be on general manager Zach Kleiman.
He’s the one who will make the tough call.
The Milwaukee Bucks fired Mike Budenholzer – Jenkins’ former boss – two years after he won an NBA championship. It fired his successor, Adrian Griffin, after 43 games this season. The Los Angeles Lakers and Phoenix Suns fired their coaches after making the playoffs. The Cleveland Cavaliers are reportedly considering firing former Grizzlies coach J.B. Bickerstaff after Cleveland won its first playoff series since Lebron James left.
If you’re wondering if this is an appropriate topic for Jenkins – as Washington Wizards forward Kyle Kuzma, of all people, did this week on social media – just look at the NBA teams still playing in the conference finals.
Minnesota’s Chris Finch lost to Jenkins just a couple years ago in the postseason and entered this season on NBA hot seat watch lists. Dallas Mavericks coach Jason Kidd also appeared on
those lists and got fired from his last head coaching job with the Milwaukee Bucks.
Joe Mazzulla could get fired if the Celtics don’t beat the Indiana Pacers and make the NBA Finals. Indiana’s Rick Carlisle has an NBA title and four conference finals appearances, but he’s also on his fourth job (and second stint with the Pacers), with more sub-.500 records than not the past eight seasons.
Jenkins, like all those coaches, is neither flawless nor faulty.
His teams have consistently struggled to score in the halfcourt and gotten off to slow starts – this season’s 6-19 mark with Morant suspended but Bane, Jackson and Marcus Smart still in the lineup especially stands out. He seemed to be forced back on his heels during all three playoff series he coached in with Memphis and advancing in the postseason should be the paramount trait guiding the Grizzlies’ decision-making from this point forward.
But Jenkins also created a sustainable culture that successfully weathered a litany of injury issues beyond just this season, forged meaningful relationships with the team’s stars, made good enough in-season adjustments to finish second in the west twice, and had the Grizzlies ahead of schedule for a while there.
He’s a good head coach who will probably wind up being a head coach somewhere else someday because this league that loves to fire its coaches is almost more enamored with hiring a retread.
Jenkins doesn’t fit either description at the moment. Of course, that’s subject to change.
You can reach Commercial Appeal columnist Mark Giannotto via email at mgiannotto@gannett.com and follow him on X: @mgiannotto