NBA | One Sam gone, Mitchell next?

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First Cup: Monday
Published 4/28/2008 at ESPN.com - True Hoop - Blog
... Dave Feschuk of the Toronto Star: "Primoz Brezec, Toronto's end-of-the-bench centre, walked into the locker room the other day and pumped a fist in celebration, expressing happiness in news that one of the banes of his existence as an NBAer, a coach named Sam, had just been fired. 'Sam Vincent!' Brezec kept repeating, rather excitedly. And Vincent, who coached the Charlotte Bobcats while Brezec was under their employ -- and who Brezec has criticized openly -- had, indeed, been axed Saturday. As for the only NBA coach named Sam left standing, it's the ...

What Makes Primoz Brezec Happy?
Published 4/28/2008 by Tom Ziller at FanHouse
Filed under: Raptors, Bobcats, Charlotte, TorontoDave Feschuk of the Toronto Star knows what makes Primoz Brezec happy. Brezec, Toronto's end-of-the-bench centre, walked into the locker room the other day and pumped a fist in celebration, expressing happiness in news that one of the banes of his existence as an NBAer, a coach named Sam, had just been fired. "Sam Vincent!" Brezec kept repeating, rather excitedly.Brezec's disdain for Coach Vincent, whom he spent all of three months with ...

The Odds...
Published 4/28/2008 by c_r_black at T.Jose Caldeford
... I expected this from The Star's Dave Feschuk all off-season, but he's getting started even while the Raptors are still in the playoffs! That's impressive. It's essentially the same stuff that Vecsey wrote in his Post article (well except for any stories about Smitch not knowing who's in the opposing team's lineup). ...

Linkage - April 28
Published 4/28/2008 by Scott at The AltRaps Blog
... if Phoenix succumbs in round one to the Spurs. The truth is, speculation of Mitchell’s imminent exit will always be a loss or three away because he and Colangelo have always been a hard-to-fathom match. A year ago almost nobody close to the team, a coach named Sam included, could be sure Colangelo was going to ink the coach to an extension. The new-wave Euro-finesse GM tying himself to the old-school, defence-and-rebounding-rule coach – it didn’t add up. And maybe it still doesn’t. - Toronto Star A good opening 12 minutes may not win a must-win game for the Raptors but a ...

Magical Reversal of Fortune: Orlando Ousts Raptors; Mitchell Next?
Published 4/29/2008 by Matt Moore at FanHouse
... was receiving his Coach of the Year award. To show you how fickle this league is, just 365 days later, there is a lot of talk about firing Mitchell. To be clear, there is not a dearth of talent in Toronto like there is in Denver. This team was in a vastly improved division, and still performed well. But this is how it goes in the NBA, and we'll have to have our eyes on Toronto, especially with Bryan Colangelo looking to assert himself. ...

Four-Point Play: Next Season Begins
Published 4/29/2008 at Courtside
... , who took over and is exactly the same type of player as Ukic is. "Maybe he also got distracted cause his gf/wife got a baby :D. "Overall I like him as a one-on-one player, so he might fit the NBA, but if he can be the Raptors savior — I really doubt it." [image] Ukic and Jaaber, same but different. (Courtesy of BallInEurope.com) • Why might Sam Mitchell (and his coaching staff) get fired this offseason? Dave Feschuk gives us a couple reasons: - BC himself said that certain players were "underutilized." Why didn't J-Kap shoot more three's? When we needed more rebounds, ...

Don't Get Cozy if You Win COTY
Published 4/30/2008 at Fan Voice: Recent Topics in The Court Reporters: The NBA.com Blog
... , which already has a coach in Sam Mitchell, who, if you've been following the theme, won COTY a mere season ago. Yet rumors persist that Mitchell, who signed a three-year extension before this season, is skating on thin Lake Ontario ice . Dating back to Larry Bird winning the award in 1997-98 and excepting Scott, only one Coach of the Year winner is still with the franchise where he won the award, and that man is Gregg Popovich. You may have noticed, he's won four titles in San Antonio. This goes to show that as great an honor it is to win the COTY, a regular season award, ...