Why do NBA teams keep giving these jobs to guys with no coaching experience?
Doc Rivers...I'm having trouble finding information on whether or not he was an assistant coach in his gap from the end of his playing days to Orlando, but he won Coach of the Year in his first year with the Magic with a questionable roster.
Doc was essentially an assist coach, third string PG for the last few years of his career. The Spurs hired him as a radio commentator I believe to keep him around the team and with the organization. I believe he worked with the players still if not as an official coach.
If Greg Popovich had been fired Doc was probably going to be the Spurs next coach.
Well, Marc Jackson was also a PG. I can't say I remember if he was seen as an assistant coach or not in his latter playing years like Doc, but it sounds like comparing him to Doc is very fair at least as far as their career paths, considering the fact Doc also commentated for NBA on ABC for one year, also doing the 2004 NBA Finals commentating with Al Michaels.
So that all said, If Doc could get a head coaching job, I don't see a reason why Marc Jackson shouldn't get a shot. I honestly don't know how well he'll do, but I honestly can't sit back and call him so under-qualified like some people in here are doing.