Doc Doesn't Know If He'll Coach Next Season

[D.o.s.]

The dude has a seriously sparkling resume, especially compared to the other coaches that are waiting in the wings (discounting Phil Jackson, 'cause I think he wants to run a franchise).

Looks like the Bucks have reached out to him. That could be interesting... if we had any idea what the Bucks were going to look like.

[Celtics18]

Doc is a great coach for this team.  I hope he stays for a long time. 

[edwardjkasche]

Doc should stay (and will), and all Celtics fans should rejoice when he does.

I can understand quibbling over play calls here or there (I often disagree), or his desire to run his vets into the ground / his mistrust of many of his young players, or his continuous belief in the effectiveness of the Paul Pierce Iso (I scream at my tv), but the truth is that not many coaches in this League could have done what Doc has done over the past six seasons.  In fact, I don't think any coach in the League could have.

In Year 1, Doc took a number of "stars" and molded them into a championship unit.  Pierce, KG, and Allen were all set in their ways and the stars of their respective franchises.  Doc brought in Ubuntu, and the 2008 championship was won.  It took the Heat two seasons and in-their-prime talent to win their first title.  It never happened for the Fakers this season.  Doc made it work in Year 1.

In Year 2, the stalwart presence of the team's D and the on-court vocal leader went down with a knee injury, but they still won an epic 7-game series against the Bulls and lasted 7 games against the eventual Eastern Conference-champion Magic.

In Year 3, Doc led the team to within six minutes of another NBA title, even after the team's starting center went down with a knee injury.

In Year 4, an unfortunate (and malicious) on-court tackle dislocated the starting PG's elbow and ended their chances of advancing, but they still swept the Knicks in the first round.

In year 5, Doc led a team whose only playoff backups were Pietrus, Dooling, and Stiemsma to within ten minutes of making another NBA Finals appearance.

In Year 6, the team has run the gamut of injuries and age-related decline, but here they are again making noise in the post-season.  They may lose Friday and be out of the playoffs, but they have put up a valiant fight.  They're undermanned and less talented than their opponent.  They're old and tired.  But, Doc gets them to keep fighting.

And, more than that, you can tell that Doc's players truly love him and believe in him.  He's a father figure to many of these guys, much the way Red was back in the day.  There is genuine affection between player and coach. 

We should be honored as fans to have Doc as our coach.  Despite all the criticism, Doc keeps his team fighting and they continue to surpass many odds.

p.s. The ONLY coach in the League I would want to replace Doc is Tom Thibodeau.  That's it.  He's the only one.  He has the same mentality and he's already proven himself to Boston fans.  If Doc retires in a few seasons, I hope it corresponds with Thibodeau's contract, so that Ainge can hire him.

[Celtics18]

Doc should stay (and will), and all Celtics fans should rejoice when he does.

I can understand quibbling over play calls here or there (I often disagree), or his desire to run his vets into the ground / his mistrust of many of his young players, or his continuous belief in the effectiveness of the Paul Pierce Iso (I scream at my tv), but the truth is that not many coaches in this League could have done what Doc has done over the past six seasons.  In fact, I don't think any coach in the League could have.

In Year 1, Doc took a number of "stars" and molded them into a championship unit.  Pierce, KG, and Allen were all set in their ways and the stars of their respective franchises.  Doc brought in Ubuntu, and the 2008 championship was won.  It took the Heat two seasons and in-their-prime talent to win their first title.  It never happened for the Fakers this season.  Doc made it work in Year 1.

In Year 2, the stalwart presence of the team's D and the on-court vocal leader went down with a knee injury, but they still won an epic 7-game series against the Bulls and lasted 7 games against the eventual Eastern Conference-champion Magic.

In Year 3, Doc led the team to within six minutes of another NBA title, even after the team's starting center went down with a knee injury.

In Year 4, an unfortunate (and malicious) on-court tackle dislocated the starting PG's elbow and ended their chances of advancing, but they still swept the Knicks in the first round.

In year 5, Doc led a team whose only playoff backups were Pietrus, Dooling, and Stiemsma to within ten minutes of making another NBA Finals appearance.

In Year 6, the team has run the gamut of injuries and age-related decline, but here they are again making noise in the post-season.  They may lose Friday and be out of the playoffs, but they have put up a valiant fight.  They're undermanned and less talented than their opponent.  They're old and tired.  But, Doc gets them to keep fighting.

And, more than that, you can tell that Doc's players truly love him and believe in him.  He's a father figure to many of these guys, much the way Red was back in the day.  There is genuine affection between player and coach. 

We should be honored as fans to have Doc as our coach.  Despite all the criticism, Doc keeps his team fighting and they continue to surpass many odds.

p.s. The ONLY coach in the League I would want to replace Doc is Tom Thibodeau.  That's it.  He's the only one.  He has the same mentality and he's already proven himself to Boston fans.  If Doc retires in a few seasons, I hope it corresponds with Thibodeau's contract, so that Ainge can hire him.

TP.

I honestly believe that in the NBA, the absolute most important quality in a head coach is to have the respect and admiration of the players on the team, particularly the top players.  Those guys would run through a wall for Doc.  When KG and Paul have that attitude, it can't not rub off on the younger players. 

Love that guy.  I want to go play for him. 

He's pretty good at the Xs and Os, as well.  But, that stuff will always be up for debate among those of us watching the games from our arm chairs. 

[celtics2]

Doc doesn't know he's coaching this season.

[CelticBhoyAhoy]

He'll be back. I really hope so anyway!

[eugen]

How about Jerry Sloan if Doc does not come back?

[Fred Roberts]

As much as Doc drives me crazy, he is an incredible big asset for the Celtics organization and we're lucky to have him.

I don't see him leaving . .. I think he gets worn down like anybody else, but he's not one to sit around at his age ..  .he probably loves working with the guys, being around the game and I'm sure it's intellectually stimulating. Oh, and the money ain't bad either.

[Evantime34]

We need Doc to stay around until the year after KG and Pierce retire. Doc is a very good recruiting tool for the C's. When we finally have cap space he might be the difference between and elite free agent signing here or somewhere else.

I'm not sure how people can bash Doc. He lost three rotation players to injury, was left with 0 natural point guards, 1 center who has to play reduced minutes due to age. He is doing the best with what he has.

My only complaint with him is that we are almost strictly running isolations on offense. But without a point guard to get us into sets quickly or ball handlers to run plays, running a legit play would probably lead to turnovers. I'm not sure how you can bash doc.

[Fafnir]

We need Doc to stay around until the year after KG and Pierce retire. Doc is a very good recruiting tool for the C's. When we finally have cap space he might be the difference between and elite free agent signing here or somewhere else.

I'm not sure how people can bash Doc. He lost three rotation players to injury, was left with 0 natural point guards, 1 center who has to play reduced minutes due to age. He is doing the best with what he has.

My only complaint with him is that we are almost strictly running isolations on offense. But without a point guard to get us into sets quickly or ball handlers to run plays, running a legit play would probably lead to turnovers. I'm not sure how you can bash doc.

We're not running that many isos, unless you're counting all the post ups as isos.

Of course compared to the Knicks the last two games we're a paragon of team offense  . A lot of stagnation on their side.

[MBunge]

I'm not sure how people can bash Doc. He lost three rotation players to injury, was left with 0 natural point guards, 1 center who has to play reduced minutes due to age. He is doing the best with what he has.

It's beyond stupid to criticize Doc for right now.  Boston's performance in winning these last two games is a shining example of why he's such a good coach.  Now, for as badly as the team played earlier this year when they were relatively healthy and the long stretches of inexplicably bad regular season play the last several years?  Doc deserves as much blame as anyone else.

Mike

[Evantime34]

We need Doc to stay around until the year after KG and Pierce retire. Doc is a very good recruiting tool for the C's. When we finally have cap space he might be the difference between and elite free agent signing here or somewhere else.

I'm not sure how people can bash Doc. He lost three rotation players to injury, was left with 0 natural point guards, 1 center who has to play reduced minutes due to age. He is doing the best with what he has.

My only complaint with him is that we are almost strictly running isolations on offense. But without a point guard to get us into sets quickly or ball handlers to run plays, running a legit play would probably lead to turnovers. I'm not sure how you can bash doc.

We're not running that many isos, unless you're counting all the post ups as isos.

Of course compared to the Knicks the last two games we're a paragon of team offense  . A lot of stagnation on their side.

Yes, I'm counting the Pierce free throw line pin downs as Isos since he gets the ball in the middle of the floor, then everyone stands and watches.

[slamtheking]

this
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0rEsVp5tiDQ

[Snakehead]

We need Doc to stay around until the year after KG and Pierce retire. Doc is a very good recruiting tool for the C's. When we finally have cap space he might be the difference between and elite free agent signing here or somewhere else.

I'm not sure how people can bash Doc. He lost three rotation players to injury, was left with 0 natural point guards, 1 center who has to play reduced minutes due to age. He is doing the best with what he has.

My only complaint with him is that we are almost strictly running isolations on offense. But without a point guard to get us into sets quickly or ball handlers to run plays, running a legit play would probably lead to turnovers. I'm not sure how you can bash doc.

We're not running that many isos, unless you're counting all the post ups as isos.

Of course compared to the Knicks the last two games we're a paragon of team offense  . A lot of stagnation on their side.

23 assists combined in the last two games for the Knicks.

[TripleOT]

Same story with Doc every year, right?  If he does decide to move on, I think JVG would be better suited to coach Boston than SVG.  Jeff is a better communicator and PR guy, and that's a bi part of the job here.  LFrank could be a decent choice, but doesn't have gravitas, and has the stink of the Detroit losing still on him (Even though Dumars should have 90% of it).

What about Doc staying another year or two with Paul Pierce as head coach in waiting?  Crazy idea, but the Celtics have had a lot of luck with ex-players as coach. Pierce by far would be the highest earning ex-player to take a HC job, but has a great basketball mind and oozes Celtics Pride.  There's a question of whether ex-stars with $100 million bankrolls would want a post playing job that requires 50+ games of travel, and daytime duties that don't include playing golf or checking on investments.