KG as defensive coach after he retires

[lightspeed5]

thoughts?

[bfrombleacher]

For us? Maybe. Its not like its unprecedented. Off the top of my head McHale is a coach. It'd be cool.

[Rondo2287]

I don't get why everybody thinks that good playesr want to be coaches after they retire.  We have gone through the same thing with people saying Varitek should be the pitching coach, and Bruschi and Troy Brown becoming coaches for the Pats.  Being a good player does not me you will be a good coach, nor does it mean you would have any interest in it.

[FrDrake]

I don't get why everybody thinks that good playesr want to be coaches after they retire.  We have gone through the same thing with people saying Varitek should be the pitching coach, and Bruschi and Troy Brown becoming coaches for the Pats.  Being a good player does not me you will be a good coach, nor does it mean you would have any interest in it.

Agreed. On top of that superstars in any sport often make particularly awful coaches - they simply cannot relate to average players.  I could easily see younger players tuning out Coach KG.

[Marcus13]

Yeah, absolutely.  He has such a passion and knowledge for the game, I dont know what he'd be missing.  Not to mention the next generation of players grew up watching him play and would love to have him as a mentor.

[Roy H.]

It's hard to say whether he'd make a good coach.

On one hand, KG has personally mentored a number of young players, spending extra time with them at practice to help them work on their games.  It's something he's done on his own, on his own time.  The players receiving the instruction -- with the exception of Paddy O'Blount -- seem to have appreciated the help.

At the same time, KG is a guy who becomes frustrated very easily when he's not on the court.  He can't even watch the games in a suit from the sideline; he has to go back to the locker room, because of his intensity.  As a coach, he'd be watching his players screw up on a nightly basis, often without a means of immediately fixing it.  I could see him blowing his stack.

[clover]

Somehow I think we'd have a reverse Carlesimo situation were KG to coach.

[KY Celts fan]

Personally, I see Ray Allen as more a coach than KG, though KG becoming the new Thibs is interesting.

However, traditionally, it's usually role players that make the best coaches, while stars just enjoy retirement. Pat Riley wasn't a great NBA player. Neither was Phil Jackson. Doc was never a star. Avery Johnson, Vinny Del Negro, Rick Carlisle, Paul Westphaul... all mediocre to poor players. Patrick Ewing was a great player and has been sitting on the Orlando bench for years trying to get a head coaching job. Kevin McHale has never been a spectacular coach. Bird was alright in his three seasons with Indy, but nothing to write home about. Look at MJ. Sure, he's not a coach, but he's terrible at running NBA teams and he's the GOAT.

I think KG is more suited for the life of retirement. He's just too intense to handle running a team.

[bdm860]

Somehow I think we'd have a reverse Carlesimo situation were KG to coach.

I picture Bobby Knight at his worst for the full 48 minutes if KG were a coach, and that's just during games.  Practices would be worse.  It wouldn't be pretty.

[LooseCannon]

Based on how he plays, is KG the guy you want teaching people the fundamentals of boxing out?

[RAcker]

Only if KG can somehow pass on his "motor" to the players he is coaching.

[crafty213]

Doubtful IMO.  My guess is you will barely see or hear from KG once he retires.