Detroit Pistons - Michael Curry next coach?
NBA Obsessed takes you into the hit and run game of NBA Basketball.
Michael Curry during a stint with the Raptors
Image details: Raptors v Sonics served by picapp.com
Why would Joe Dumars, one of the smartest GMs in the NBA, hire a NBA head coach with no experience?
Michael Curry was an assistant for the now fired Flip Saunders.
Years ago Michael Curry played for the Pistons. He was somewhat of a defensive wizard with a basic set shot, standing around 6′ 5″.
Curry was traded to Toronto or Milwaukee or some place in part of a bigger package deal. When he was released the Pistons immediately brought him back to sit at the end of the bench.
Why? To play defense?
No, because Michael used to organize bike trips for the whole team on off days, or trips to the movies, or card games. He was all about team at all times. He is still about team and being accountable and that is why Joe D may hire him.
Listen to Stephen A. Smith.
Curry is the right man for the job at the right time because he’s hungry for the opportunity. He’s been groomed for this position. He’s a former Piston. He’s hard-nosed.
“And guess what, he can flat-out coach,” one Pistons player told me during the Eastern Conference finals. “He knows what he’s doing. He commands the respect of the players not only because he knows what he’s doing, but also because he’s not scared to get in anyone’s face.”
“He’ll hold people accountable,” Dumars said recently, when discussing Curry’s head coaching potential. “Every team needs that, but especially one competing for a championship.”
Case closed
But what about his lack of experience?
Asked last weekend about his lack of experience, Curry scoffed and said, “I’ve been on the bench as an assistant for 15 years. For me, personally, it was an easy transition (this season). Having all those leadership roles I had as a player made it that way.”
Curry had no trouble gaining the respect of the locker room this season. Anyone who has played in the league will garner some leeway in the NBA brotherhood, but Curry took that advantage and went much further.
Curry is all team.
He installed a mandatory pregame routine that put every other team’s pregame routine to shame. Like clockwork, about 90 minutes before tip-off, Curry had the entire bench gather on the floor to stretch and run drills together.
He put his background as a defensive specialist to good use, chiding players who favored driving one direction and forcing his young guys to beat him soundly. When he saw something he didn’t like, everyone knew it.
As always, any NBA Basketball related comments are welcome.
More blogs about basketball.
Related Stories
POSTED IN: Detroit Pistons, NBA Basketball
0 opinions for Detroit Pistons - Michael Curry next coach?
No one has left a comment yet. You know what this means, right? You could be first!
Have an opinion? Leave a comment: