How is Mike Brown Coach of the Year?

Anyone else wondering how Mike Brown stole the coach of the year award? If you aren't, you probably haven't watched any of the Eastern Conference Finals this past week. Cleveland's coach has been thoroughly out-coached JVG's lesser brother SVG. Don't forget that Brown had more points in the COY voting than second place finisher Rick Adelman and third place finisher SVG combined. Sure, the Cavs were the best team in the regular season; however, that is because of the King and not because of Coach Brown's great schemes and motivation. Every Cavs possession it seems that they waste 15 or 16 seconds before giving Lebron the ball 25 feet from the basket. It is the coaches responsibility to make the team execute the offense, and this offense is an affront to basketball fans around the world.

A perfect example of Brown's ineptitude as a coach was the last minute of overtime in game 4 last night. With 6.4 seconds left in overtime and down 4 points, he called a timeout and stood in the huddle silently as an assistant coach drew up a play to give Lebron the chance to hit his ridiculous, falling-into-the-Magic-bench three pointer. I think drawing up a play in overtime with their team's playoff life on the line is part of the job description for any NBA coach, let alone the COY. Then, with 3.2 seconds to go and down 2, the Cavs have the ball under the basket, but... NO TIMEOUTS! Lebron's desperate, falling-left, half-court heave barely misses, and the Cavs are on the brink of elimination.

First, let me address the first issue. No head coach should defer to an assistant with the game on the line in the playoffs. Brown's forte might be defense, but even JVG (the greatest defensive coach in the history of the NBA) would take charge during a time out such as this one. It is completely unacceptable for a NBA Head Coach to defer to an assistant. If the owner wanted the assistant making big decisions, he would have hired him as head coach.


Cavaliers' Coach Mike Brown's "Maybe This Offense Doesn't Work" Face


Second, no timeouts? What? He had three timeouts for the entire overtime period, so he should have saved them for the last few possessions. (At the end of the game in the NBA, the ball is moved from the baseline to half-court when a timeout is called). If, anticipating the situation, Brown saves one timeout for the last possession, Lebron has time to get close enough to the basket to get a shot with a good chance to go in. Maybe if Brown saves a timeout, the Cavs are tied 2-2 and have home-court advantage. Timeouts and time management are two things the head coach has complete control over. He can't make shots or get stops, but he can give his players a chance to be great. Last night's overtime offers undeniable evidence of Mike Brown's coaching incompetence.

I am not the only one who doesn't think Brown is a good coach. Hell, he agrees. Brown says, "I don't feel like I'm a motivator." I agree. Brown says, "Offensively, the last three years, we weren't good mainly because of me." Once again, I agree. So Mike, what do you do for the Cavaliers? You are keeping the greatest player of our generation from winning a championship, and you are making a team that should be an exciting offensive team as boring as the San Antonio Spurs. This is unacceptable and doesn't warrant consideration for COY, let alone the award its self.

Every time the Cavs have a wasted possession, it gives Lebron a reason to head to NYC and Mike D'Antoni's free-flowing offensive machine. Mike Brown is the only reason Lebron might make the exodus from Cleveland (except the supposed $40 million bonus he will supposedly get for playing in NYC and his awful supporting cast). Anyone else up for the King trying his hand as player-coach? It might be the only way for Cleveland to beat the Magic.