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 I’m not sure where the old sports saying “players win games, coaches lose games” originally came from. It has long been a tired cliché used to illustrate the thankless nature of the coaching profession. It’s appeared in basketball movies from Hoosiers to Eddie. (Shout out to the Eddie Franklin aficionados over at Rip City Project.) Wherever it came from I think most of us generally accept the belief that coaches take the blame for losses and players take the praise for wins. If you’ve been following the Trailblazer for the last few years it would be hard not to.
There is a persistent “Fire Nate” contingency out there. You can’t get too far on many blog posts before finding them in the comments. After McMillan and Andre Miller had their shouting match this poll appeared and let some people articulate just how horrible of a coach McMillan is.
It's hard to know if those in support of firing McMillan are any larger in numbers than exist for most coaches in the League. Everyone complains about everything on the internet, plus people who say things the loudest can look bigger than they really are. I can say that when I've found myself in random Blazers conversations with strangers the idea that Nate is a problem seems to come up fairly often. It all seems a little strange for a team that is mostly winning.
Of course, the Fire Nate people are somewhat quieter during the wins. My Dad is among them, and I've listened to him make several convincing arguments that Nate is not ultimately the best fit for the talent on Portland's roster. Yeah, he is too inflexible sometimes. I agree, he should have been letting Andre Miller be the starting point guard from the beginning. Seriously, what is up with always pulling players that pick up a few fouls in the first half? Let them learn how to deal with that! Yes, this offense is bland and limited; this team needs a new system to get the most out of their talent. Why not run more? Why not MOVE more? Show Nate the door!
As convincing as these arguments are to me, their influence is undone when I notice other perspectives. The Blazers are usually around the top of the list in scoring rate after timeouts; which says something for Nate’s X’s and O’s ability. McMillan is a coach for Team USA; that says something about the respect he has amongst his peers. Most importantly though is that this team seems to overachieve quite regularly. The coach absolutely has to have something to do with that. Maybe, just maybe, the guy knows what he’s doing after all.
Last season the Blazers won more than their experience should have allowed. This season they keep racking up victories after catching the bubonic plague of injury bugs. Most of the credit, from what I’ve seen, seems to get attributed to the players. Over and over again we talk about their “tremendous heart” that creates such success. I’m not saying that is wrong, I’m just saying that the coach has something to do with this too. This team succeeds in part because of Nate, not in spite of him.
Are the Nate criticisms just the old cliché be proven? I think so. Having a roster loaded with very impressive and likeable talent probably makes the old saying even more pronounced. These players are so good and so hardworking that the losses can’t be their fault. I love this roster and I totally understand the attractiveness of that sentiment. In reality, Nate continues to have success with this team.
With all of that off my chest I can add that Nate’s real test is still hanging on the horizon. When the whole of Portland’s talent is healthy can he figure out how to make it work on the court? The answer to that question will also be the answer to whether McMillan is ultimately the right coach for this team or not. Until then, sit back and enjoy the overachieving.
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