Jordan Headed to Hall of Fame

(It's time...)

Michael Jordan is a six time NBA Champion, five time NBA MVP, won two Olympic Gold Medals and an NCAA Championship at University of North Carolina. Add to that multiple scoring titles, many all-star game appearances, retirement-comeback stories, taking a swing at a baseball career, playing ball with Bugs Bunny, lucrative endorsement deals as well as his own status as a CEO and brand. Now Jordan's impressive basketball resume has lead to him being named one of 16 finalists for the 2009 Hall of Fame. Was there any doubt?

A few of Jordan's Dream Team buddies have also been nominated. Former San Antonio Spur, David Robinson, one of the league's best assist-men in John Stockton (Utah Jazz), and sharpshooter Chris Mullin (Golden State Warriors) all were included as Finalists. Former Celtics great Dennis Johnson was nominated as were NBA Coaches Don Nelson and Jerry Sloan, and women's coach C. Vivian Stringer. The 16 finalists made a cut from 164 total choices.

According to Google News Associated Press:

Other finalists include former Golden State coach Al Attles, who was nominated as a contributor; Bob Hurley Sr., who has more than 900 wins at St. Anthony's High School in New Jersey; Vladimir Kondrashin, who coached the Soviet Union to the 1972 Olympic gold medal, defeating the U.S. in a controversial final; Pereira "Ubiratan" Maciel, a player known as "The King" in his native Brazil; Richie Guerin, a six-time NBA All-Star with the New York Knicks and a former player-coach with the St. Louis and Atlanta Hawks; and Johnny "Red" Kerr, a longtime Chicago Bulls commentator who was named NBA Coach of the Year in 1967 after leading the expansion Bulls into the playoffs in their first season.

The announcement of who gets in this year will be made on April 6th at the NCAA Final Four in Detroit. The official enshrinement comes September at the Hall of Fame in Springfield, Massachussetts. While all 16 finalists can officially get elected are there any doubts over names like MJ, Stockton, Mullin, Bernard King and The Admiral making it?

Iverson's $25,000 Fine & Coach Firings

On Tuesday the NBA fined Detroit Pistons guard Allen Iverson $25,000 for comments he made toward a fan in Charlotte. The comments came with just 6.2 seconds left in the third quarter. Detroit ended up winning the game 90-86. No report on exactly what was said by Iverson or the fan. According to Washington Post this is the second fine for Iverson since being dealt to the Pistons. His previous fine involved skipping practice on Thanksgiving day, which also resulted in him being benched for the start of the next game.

Happy trails to two former players turned NBA coaches, Sacramento's Reggie Theus and the Sixers Maurice Cheeks. At SportingNews.com two NBA "gurus" discussed the firing of Theus which took place on Monday.

BS: Are people blaming Theus for this, and if so, why shouldn't they?

TZ: Theus is taking blame, and he should. The local beat writer reported this morning that Theus had been habitually late for practices and the team bus. Theus admitted to being late for the bus. His reasoning? He didn't want to catch anyone else showing up late, for fear disciplining them would ruin the team chemistry. I find it hard to absolve Reggie, considering the biggest knock on the team has been a lack of on-court focus and discipline.

BS: Who did less coaching this year, Theus or Vinnie Del Negro? Or am I mistaken in assuming that Theus' mixed signals canceled themselves out?

TZ: Theus remained a stoic presence on the sideline; Del Negro tinkers with his rotations endlessly, it seems. At this point, I feel comfortable in stating that Theus is a better coach (makes better decisions), but Del Negro actually, um, cares.

Cheeks took full responsibility for his team's 9-14 start to the season. Cheeks was quoted as saying "Things don't always work out the way you expect them to," Cheeks said. "I take solace in the fact I did the best I could." The Sixers had high hopes for the season in which they acquired consistent star player, Elton Brand from the Clippers.

PJ Carlesimo feels the Thunder!

When it rains it pours, especially for the Thunder. The Oklahoma City NBA transplant from Seattle axed head coach PJ Carlesimo following Friday night's loss to New Orleans. The game televised on ESPN saw the Hornets bench play out the fourth, en route to a 105-80 drubbing of OKC. The Thunder currently have a 1-12 record, one of the worst, if not worst in the NBA. The team's bright spot is Kevin Durant, who outdid most rookies most of last season, while playing for a dismal Seattle Sonics team. Eventually it was approved for the team to change cities for 2008-09, bringing basketball back to Oklahoma City once more. The Hornets played games there in the wake of Hurricane Katrina and may give inspiration to the turnaround of a team in dismay. Last season saw the young, talented New Orleans squad take San Antonio to the limits in the playoffs.

Taking over for Carlesimo will be his assistant Scott Brooks, former NBA player who won a championship with Houston in 1994. Assistant Paul Westhead was also let go with Carlesimo. Oklahoma has been playing in a new home with new uniforms and relatively young talent, such as Kevin Durant. The team had plenty of buzz heading into the season, with season tickets selling out in just 5 days. To his defense, Carlesimo inherited a team that was hurt by the trades of big name stars, Ray Allen & Rashard Lewis. Expecting the type of quick turnaround that New Orleans had is a bit unreasonable for now. Their squad benefitted from the addition of ultra-PG Chris Paul, as well as Peja Stoyakovic, Tyson Chandler, David West and Morris Peterson. It's already been made known by the Thunder execs that Scott Brooks will finish out the season with the Thunder as head coach. Brooks will most likely inherit the continuing struggles of a team in transition from city to city and veteran stars to rising stars.

Read Yahoo News piece on Carlesimo's firing here.

Larry Brown to Coach Bobcats

On Tuesday the Bobcats will make it official that they have hired a new coach to replace the recently fired Sam Vincent. Sources including Associated Press and ESPN are reporting that longtime NBA coach, Larry Brown will make his return to the sidelines. Brown has ties to North Carolina, making him a good fit for Michael Jordan's Charlotte team. The Bobcats will be the ninth team Brown coaches. He's had previous jobs in Philadelphia, Los Angeles, Indiana, Detroit, New York, and San Antonio, with a championship run for the Pistons in 2004. Brown also achieved the NCAA championship in 1988 with the Kansas Jayhawks.

According to Associated Press:

Two years after his ugly exit as coach of the New York Knicks, Brown reached an agreement on Monday to return to the NBA as coach of the Jordan-led Charlotte Bobcats, a person familiar with the decision told The Associated Press.

The person, speaking on condition of anonymity because an official announcement has not been made, said Brown was expected to sign a contract on Tuesday. The Bobcats called an afternoon news conference for what they termed a "major basketball announcement."

"Michael never said that he was hiring coach Brown. He just said they were going to make some decisions that were in the best interest of the organization," Vincent said. "So I kind of assumed of going in the direction of hiring a veteran coach and someone who was very popular in the community."

Jordan and Brown both played at North Carolina under Dean Smith, and Brown's mother lives in Charlotte. So when Vincent was fired two days after Brown resigned as executive vice president of the Philadelphia 76ers, speculation immediately turned to their pairing in Charlotte.

"I wish coach Brown all the success in the world," Vincent said. "I think he'll have a great group of guys and I wish him nothing but the best."

Source: Associated Press.

While the Bobcats are one of the most recent expansion teams in the league, they have yet to qualify for the playoffs as "Bobcats". The team was previously the Hornets who left Charlotte for New Orleans. Michael Jordan took a minority stake in the team to help guide the ship. This big coaching move may be a strong effort by executive Michael Jordan to gain some respectability for his Charlotte Squad. Jordan's done all he can with the exception of ripping off his suit to reveal a Charlotte Bobcats jersey. Unfortunately another dunk contest winner and star, Jason Richardson wears his famous #23 already.

Mic Check for NBA Coaches

It's time for NBA Reality TV. The latest from the NBA is that coaches will now be required to wear mics during televised contests. There will also be a camera mounted in locker rooms to capture pregame, halftime and postgame time of players and coaches. ABC, ESPN and TNT games will be the scene for these latest A/V developments. In addition to that, coaches are required to give interviews to the broadcasting TV network between their 3rd and 4th quarters. Last night's Denver vs. Dallas game featured a microphone on Mavs coach Avery Johnson and Nuggets coach George Karl.

We all know how strict David Stern can be at times, but this seems like Big Brother to the fullest. The audio won't even be televised live and is for NBA review, edited possibly for later segments on sports shows. They might even pick up some sort of discussion of sports betting using this spy game. You really have to wonder if this is necessary and fair though.

I'd have to agree with Miami Heat coach Pat Riley who calls this an invasion of privacy. There's no need for the NBA to be hearing and seeing every piece of lecture or conversation between players and coaches. It's a time of strategy, and yes at times expletives and berating. Pistons coach, Flip Saunders even has suggested the idea that unedited clips will surface on YouTube, perhaps revealing the stuff coaches don't want the public to hear. Saunders also discussed how other pro sports leagues are more liberal in their approach to making coaches wear mics. See article here.

On the Flip-side, we all know if it's going to hurt your image or career then maybe you shouldn't have said it. In the heat of a game that can be tough though, as coaches chew out their players for poor execution or bone-headed mistakes. This could also give players recourse and possible evidence should they make a claim to the league office that they were mistreated, if it were during a televised game.

Here's a few articles discussing various coaches and their opinions of it:

Avery Johnson: The World is listening, Avery

Pat Riley: Riley not happy with wearing microphone

Scott Skiles, Flip Saunders: Coaches would love to pull plug on mikes

Phil Jackson a 2007 HOF Inductee

Phil Jackson and Roy Williams were among seven inductees for the Basketball Hall of Fame this past Friday.

From sportsnetwork.com:

"Jackson, a coach of nine NBA championship teams with the Chicago Bulls and Los Angeles Lakers, and Williams, who guided North Carolina to the 2005 NCAA crown, were joined in this year's class by the 1966 NCAA champion Texas Western team, four-time WNBA championship coach Van Chancellor, referee Mendy Rudolph and international coaches Pedro Ferrandiz and Mirko Novosel.

Jackson won six NBA titles with the Bulls and three with the Lakers, tying him with Red Auerbach for the most NBA crowns as a coach. The North Dakota native was also the fastest coach to win 900 games following a professional career that saw him play for the Knicks and Nets. He was a member of New York's NBA title team in 1973."

Congratulations to legendary NBA coach, Phil Jackson, as well as all the other recent inductees. Read the full story here.