2022-2023 POST GAME CHARLOTTE HORNETS - HOME

With regard to the Coach Joe commentary, I'll happily throw him a few kind words.

First off, it doesn't matter one little bit how good or bad an interview you are. What matters is how much you get out of the roster you have.

Mazzulla was on his way to being a head coach somewhere in the future, but this was an unexpected flash in an instant you're it with the season approaching job. He's inherited a talented squad, but with no time to plan ahead, a number of injuries and at least one aging/game management situation with a key starter. He's been no less successful than Udoka was last year while under arguably greater pressure and a lineup juggling game that has stretched the duration of the season so far.

I'm good with him snubbing us listeners in TV land as long as he keeps building his game management resume and pushing the right lineup combos onto the floor with this X-Ray department ready team.

Maybe Coach Joe needs an Andy Reid type deal. The Chiefs know the press is an unneeded distraction at some key times. Among other points, if KC is behind at the half, it is mandated by the team and understood by the press that Reid is off limits. No interviews going into or coming out of the tunnel. An assistant coach will give a statement. Post-game is tough to get away from, but maybe guys like Mazzulla just need a similar ruling from their team's front office.

NYCelt wrote:With regard to the Coach Joe commentary, I'll happily throw him a few kind words.

First off, it doesn't matter one little bit how good or bad an interview you are. What matters is how much you get out of the roster you have.

Mazzulla was on his way to being a head coach somewhere in the future, but this was an unexpected flash in an instant you're it with the season approaching job. He's inherited a talented squad, but with no time to plan ahead, a number of injuries and at least one aging/game management situation with a key starter. He's been no less successful than Udoka was last year while under arguably greater pressure and a lineup juggling game that has stretched the duration of the season so far.

I'm good with him snubbing us listeners in TV land as long as he keeps building his game management resume and pushing the right lineup combos onto the floor with this X-Ray department ready team.

Maybe Coach Joe needs an Andy Reid type deal. The Chiefs know the press is an unneeded distraction at some key times. Among other points, if KC is behind at the half, it is mandated by the team and understood by the press that Reid is off limits. No interviews going into or coming out of the tunnel. An assistant coach will give a statement. Post-game is tough to get away from, but maybe guys like Mazzulla just need a similar ruling from their team's front office.

Thats somewhat similar to the NBA where during halftime reporters speak with an assistant coach and not the head coach.
Sorry but it’s not an Andy Reid deal as all teams follow league media mandates. There are no exceptions.

I respectfully disagree on the Mazzula/Udoka comparison. Udoka had more pressure on him when he replaced Brad and the pressure mounted when the team got off to a shaky start.
No one knew what to expect from Joe and outside of status quo, most weren’t expecting much more.

I agree. Managing and coaching the team is the most important pat of the job. However, it is not okay for the coach to snub listeners, viewers and or the media.

If ifs okay for the coach to do that then you and I will be relying solely on what the media tells us. Many of us here are skeptical of some media reports and take some of it with a grain of salt. We can’t have it both ways.
If it’s fine for coaches to snub the outside because they're too busy doing the most important part of the job then we’re left with suspect information that should not be okay with anyone. We don't need to be guessing what may or may not be true.
We need to know whats going on with our team.
Engaging with the media is part of the coaches job. It’s part of the contract that the league has with media. (that’s why they're paid stupid money too) Some are better at it than others. Joe being a young and new should be transparent (and he is) and patient with media reps. Its in his, the teams and the public’s best interest.

Ktron wrote:

jrleftfoot wrote:

Ktron wrote:

jrleftfoot wrote:Kind words for Joe Mazzula are few and far between around here. If the consensus of the board coached the team we'd probably 56-0 instead of 40-16. Brad Stevens must be some kind of idiot to elevate him to head coach. Now we are criticizing his media relations, as well as his starting lineups, substitution patterns, offensive philosophy and use of timeouts? Mannaggia----

Yeah, It sucks being a Step Coach. Honestly though, for his sake, Coach Joe could use a media coach.

Then maybe, once the tag is removed everyone will fall deeply in love with him. Maybe….:>)

        TBH, I probably overreacted to the surly little stepcoach appellation. On reflection it is pretty damn funny. Joe could probably use a media coach. He doesn't project warmth. I just feel that he is underappreciated around here. He walked into a tough situation on short notice. The only objective standard for coaching performance is wins and losses. So far, JM's results have been pretty darn good. We'll see what happens from here.

Overall I think Joe is doing a good job. Like any other coach he has his shortcomings.
Some people, including myself are viewing him through a narrower lens because of his age and experience. If we sucked it wouldn't be a big deal but we are on the cusp of #18 so of course his every move is going to be magnified.
You are not wrong when pointing out the heightened criticism of our coach but it kind of comes with the territory especially when you have a team whose expectations are higher than high.

Off the court, Joe really does need to be cautious in dealing with the media. The Belichicks, and Pop’s have earned their right to be testy and surly. Joe has not and again, as long as he’s winning he’ll get away with it. He needs to know how to play the media game because he’s always going to be second guessed and it appears that he doesn't believe that he should be.
I’ve heard numerous people say that they don't like the way he treats Abby. i don’t think he’s treated her any differently than anyone else but he comes off as not wanting to be bothered and at times and is very dismissive.
Like I implied earlier, it’s in his best interest to at least appear that he wants to answer questions.
Doc Rivers was and is a master at press relations. Talk about catching grief, Doc has been pummeled from all sides for years and handles it very well.
If Joe doesn’t have a media coach he needs to get one and also study as to how some of the other coaches handle it.
Media will eventually murder him if he doesn't.

 

all good points. A lot of the criticisms of JM are , to me, typical reactionary fan nonsense, but there are certainly aspects of his coaching style that raise eyebrows. Bottom line: team success and players buying in are , pretty much, all you can ask for. I am still nonplussed at how little credit he is given on this board, but folks are entitled to their opinions, and there are wiser heads than me on here. I think a lot of it has to do with disliking the style of play that has become prevalent in the league and Joe's embracing of it. It's akin to the analytics distaste among baseball fans. I preferred contact hitting and agressive baserunning , but analytics showed that swinging for the fences was more statistically positive. What wasn't sufficiently taken into account was that playoff pitching is a different animal. All that will be reigned in , to some extent, by the changing of the shift rules. To get back to basketball, three point shooting will continue to be, statistically, the best harbinger of success. Does Joe's team rely too much on three point shooting? Statistics say otherwise.Are the playoffs a different story? Sure, but fortunatly our guys can do it all, including driving the lane.( which may also culminate in a pitch out to a corner 3.) I'm actually starting to belIeve that we can do this thing. The board work is day and night versus the Stevens years. Guys are actually permitted to crash the glass rather than always turning tail and runing Back on D, That may be a product of personnel, of course. Brad has put together a better team than he ever had to work with , and the Jays are all grown up now. Let's see what kind of job Joe does in the postseason.

jrleftfoot wrote:

Ktron wrote:

jrleftfoot wrote:

Ktron wrote:

jrleftfoot wrote:Kind words for Joe Mazzula are few and far between around here. If the consensus of the board coached the team we'd probably 56-0 instead of 40-16. Brad Stevens must be some kind of idiot to elevate him to head coach. Now we are criticizing his media relations, as well as his starting lineups, substitution patterns, offensive philosophy and use of timeouts? Mannaggia----

Yeah, It sucks being a Step Coach. Honestly though, for his sake, Coach Joe could use a media coach.

Then maybe, once the tag is removed everyone will fall deeply in love with him. Maybe….:>)

        TBH, I probably overreacted to the surly little stepcoach appellation. On reflection it is pretty damn funny. Joe could probably use a media coach. He doesn't project warmth. I just feel that he is underappreciated around here. He walked into a tough situation on short notice. The only objective standard for coaching performance is wins and losses. So far, JM's results have been pretty darn good. We'll see what happens from here.

Overall I think Joe is doing a good job. Like any other coach he has his shortcomings.
Some people, including myself are viewing him through a narrower lens because of his age and experience. If we sucked it wouldn't be a big deal but we are on the cusp of #18 so of course his every move is going to be magnified.
You are not wrong when pointing out the heightened criticism of our coach but it kind of comes with the territory especially when you have a team whose expectations are higher than high.

Off the court, Joe really does need to be cautious in dealing with the media. The Belichicks, and Pop’s have earned their right to be testy and surly. Joe has not and again, as long as he’s winning he’ll get away with it. He needs to know how to play the media game because he’s always going to be second guessed and it appears that he doesn't believe that he should be.
I’ve heard numerous people say that they don't like the way he treats Abby. i don’t think he’s treated her any differently than anyone else but he comes off as not wanting to be bothered and at times and is very dismissive.
Like I implied earlier, it’s in his best interest to at least appear that he wants to answer questions.
Doc Rivers was and is a master at press relations. Talk about catching grief, Doc has been pummeled from all sides for years and handles it very well.
If Joe doesn’t have a media coach he needs to get one and also study as to how some of the other coaches handle it.
Media will eventually murder him if he doesn't.

 

all good points. A lot of the criticisms of JM are , to me, typical reactionary fan nonsense, but there are certainly aspects of his coaching style that raise eyebrows. Bottom line: team success and players buying in are , pretty much, all you can ask for. I am still nonplussed at how little credit he is given on this board, but folks are entitled to their opinions, and there are wiser heads than me on here. I think a lot of it has to do with disliking the style of play that has become prevalent in the league and Joe's embracing of it. It's akin to the analytics distaste among baseball fans. I preferred contact hitting and agressive baserunning , but analytics showed that swinging for the fences was more statistically positive. What wasn't sufficiently taken into account was that playoff pitching is a different animal. All that will be reigned in , to some extent, by the changing of the shift rules. To get back to basketball, three point shooting will continue to be, statistically, the best harbinger of success. Does Joe's team rely too much on three point shooting? Statistics say otherwise.Are the playoffs a different story? Sure, but fortunatly our guys can do it all, including driving the lane.( which may also culminate in a pitch out to a corner 3.) I'm actually starting to belIeve that we can do this thing. The board work is day and night versus the Stevens years. Guys are actually permitted to crash the glass rather than always turning tail and runing Back on D, That may be a product of personnel, of course. Brad has put together a better team than he ever had to work with , and the Jays are all grown up now. Let's see what kind of job Joe does in the postseason.

Yessir! I understand and agree that we may be being a little hard on Joey. It appears that he has tough skin and that’s also a good thing.
Growing up there used to be a saying in my neighborhood “ do not trust anyone who’s eyes are too close together.” Lol. Maybe I haven’t been able to wipe that out of my memory.
Joey has the stare of a serial killer and maybe that’s haunting me as well. Imagine waking up with him staying down at you with those piercing eyes.
:-)
Bottom line Is I think we’ll be fine with our coach. We just have to keep an eye on him.

ktron, the beady little close-set eyes are, indeed, offputting. Apropos of nothing, with, Gallo, Muscala, and Joe, I'm pretty sure we have a new record for Celtics of Italian descent, Maybe that's why I am defending the guy. Enjoyed the discussion. Thanks for responding.