Bring Rick Adelman to Toronto

by user Hoopsaddict.com

Rick Adelman was canned in Sacramento earlier this week and I’m crossing my fingers that the Raptors ditch Sam Mitchell and bring Adelman to the T Dot. Mitchell has shown that he’s not ready to be a head coach in the League yet while Adelman is a veteran coach in the League who has coached two teams to NBA Finals, has 752 career wins and a career winning percentage of 61%.

Besides the stellar coaching resume of Adelman, the perfect justification for bringing him on board in Toronto is found on the Kings official website. In the official press release explaining the firing of Adelman, the team wrote that, “when Adelman signed on as the 19th head coach in Kings’ franchise history on September 17, 1998, he inherited a team that had won only 27 games the year before (1997-98). In each of his eight seasons as the Kings’ skipper, Sacramento finished with a record above the .500 mark. The Kings’ climb to 61 wins during the 2001-02 campaign marked a 34-win improvement over a four-year span, which was the highest jump among NBA teams. Prior to Adelman’s arrival to the Capitol City, no Sacramento-era Kings squad (since 1985-86) had registered a winning record.” Sounds like a perfect match for the Raptors, but I have to admit that it’s baffling as to why the Kings lost interest in Adelman. Maybe it’s like when a guy forgets how hot is girlfriend is and his eyes start to wander. Regardless, one man’s junk will be another man’s treasure this summer when they ink Adelman to turn around the fortune of their franchise.

I’m just hoping it’s my Raptors who grasp this golden opportunity.

Adding to my confusion about the firing of Adelman was the statements that Kings GM Geoff Petre provided the media with this afternoon. Petrie tried to justify the firing of Adelman by saying that he, “came to the conclusion that continuing this way just wasn’t feasible. The dynamic that needed to be there to help it move forward just wasn’t there.”

Umm…. what?

What dynamic are you talking about?

Adelman’s ability to lead the Kings to the playoffs despite fitting Bonzi Wells into the team during training camp and then adding Ron Artest mid-season?

His ability to take a team near the bottom of the Western Conference standings during the All-Star game and turning them into one of the hottest teams in the League heading into the playoffs?

I just don’t see what there’s not to like about Adelman.

If anything, this reminds of the way that Toronto dealt with Cito Gaston after he won those two World Series for us. Despite giving the city our only baseball Championships he was heckled for not being an aggressive enough couch. Just like Gaston, Adelman has been termed “boring” by the Maloof brothers because they have grown accustomed to watching his coaching style.

I’ve long believed in the old adage that, “if it ain’t broke there’s no point in trying to fix it.” If Adelman was able to help turn the Kings into one of the top teams heading into the playoffs he deserved another season at the helm.

After all, it’s not his faults his Kings drew the World Champion Spurs in the first round.

Date
Wed 05/10/06, 6:18 pm EST