NBA coaches get no respect.

With the exception of a few superstar coaches –Phil Jackson, Pat Riley, and Larry Brown– most NBA coaches are seen as highly paid and highly dispensable babysitters. While a good college coach is considered an essential long term building block for a winning program, most NBA coaches have a shorter shelf life than a reality television show.

Even if a coach manages to win enough to keep his job, he’s rarely credited for creating victories. Rather, the coach is typically seen as someone who was smart enough to get out of the way and let his players do their job. Despite winning 9 NBA championships, Jordan, Pippen, Bryant, and O’Neal are seen as the exclusive reasons for their respective dynasties. Even the success of the 2005-2006 Lakers is attributed more to Kobe’s maturity than Phil’s skills.

On the other hand, when NBA teams lose, coaches are the first to go. Why? Because they serve as the perfect scapegoat for team executives who are trying to buy an extra year or two before they are fired. How else could we be talking about firing Knicks coach Larry Brown and keeping team president Isaiah Thomas, who has played rotisserie league basketball with one of the league’s most storied franchises? Also, in an era where it is increasingly difficult to get rid of bad players without inheriting more expensive junk, coaches are often fired to placate frustrated fans. Isaiah Thomas’ firing of Don Chaney and the forced resignation of Lenny Wilkins (the all time winningest coach) are evidence of this phenomenon. (New Yorkers, notice a pattern here?)

Two of the four remaining coaches in this year’s NBA playoffs have reminded us of the importance of the job.

Avery Johnson has transformed the Dallas Mavericks from a high scoring but underachieving Mark Cuban project into the Western Conference front-runner. His focus on defense and rebounding, as well as his wise use of Dirk Nowitzki, has enabled the team to thrive against the conference’s elite teams. While many critics suggested that Johnson was too young and inexperienced to lead the Mavs, the “Little General” has broken team and league records for first-year wins, won the Coach of the Year Award, and positioned himself as one of the league’s rising talents.

At the beginning of the season, Stan Van Gundy “resigned” to spend more time with his family. Of course, most people speculated that he was pushed out by Pat Riley (When he decides to get another job, will he announce that he wants to spend less time with his family?). Either way, Riley has been able to galvanize the team by installing a greater level of defensive intensity and, more importantly, using Shaquille O’Neal more wisely. While few would argue that Van Gundy was a strong coach, it was clear that he lost the respect of the players following last year’s Eastern Conference Finals loss to the Detroit Pistons. Riley’s ability to command instant respect from every player has enabled him to control Jason Williams and Antoine Walker, both of whom were considered “problem players” by their former teams. More importantly, he has the team peaking at the perfect time.
Much respect to Johnson, Riley, and the rest of the unsung generals across the league!