If the opponent has the ball, down 1 point, with less than 24 seconds left in the game should a good defender like favors be in the game or a bad defender like big al? I know, it's a tough one.
Never knew when to foul to extend games, used his timeouts horribly, drew up horrible plays when coming out of those timeouts, had an obvious obsession with veteran players, and just generally sucked at being a head coach.
I honestly remember similar criticisms regularly levied at Jerry. That said, I can totally see your POV.
What is the essential difference between Sloan and Corbin, though? Sloan inherited a "cupboard is full" roster with a very promising Stockton & Malone on the verge of stardom. He didn't have to develop a team from scratch until much later, and even then he had Kirilenko and got Boozer/Okur a year after Stockton left. Corbin's "Stockton" equivalent was traded a handful of games after he took the helm, and he was given Hayward & Favors at a much earlier stage than Sloan inherited John & Karl.
Other than that, the similarities are striking. Both small forwards who played tough for hard-nosed coaches in their careers, both married to strict rotations and high foul-rates, both oblivious to two-for-one opportunities and how to utilize the corner 3.
Don't get me wrong. Sloan's acumen was far more nuanced when it came to offensive schemes, and his time-management moves showed some foresight and experience on many occasions. He was given a lot of time and latitude during the S-to-M years to improve his style and work out some of his limitations. But it was never a match for Phil Jackson's heady adjustments, or Gregg Popovich's flexibility that allowed for such things as continuously punishing teams from the corner.
Sloan and Corbin are both coaches that played vets and left player development secondary. Sloan was huge on getting players to buy into his game plan offensively, and Corbin's approach mirrored Sloan's to a T. Hence all the "get better" comments he repeated like a robotic mantra as he complemented Millsap & Jefferson with the likes of Raja Bell and Jamaal Tinsley instead of Burks. He learned his robiticisms from Jerry, who similarly offended with guys like Milt Palacio and Jarron Collins over the years.
It is telling that the reports said that Greg Miller and KOC tried to persuade Jerry to stay by letting him know that they were about to trade Deron, yet it didn't change his mind. It just serves to underscore the fact that Jerry was always a coach that preferred vets to younger players, and he likely wasn't interested in resetting with a post-DWill team.
Had Corbin inherited a team like Jerry did when he started out, he would have fared much better. Talent means a lot, and Jerry's situation as a head coach with the Jazz was perfect for the kind of coach he always was. I don't think Corbin is a great coach, but think he deserves a little more compassion than what he typically gets from Jazz fans online. But again, I'm glad it worked out the way it has. What we have now is a reflection of Dennis Lindsey's vision of the franchise. Greg Miller, O'Connor, and others have rightfully taken a step back to allow DL to fashion the team how he sees fit, and it is likewise a great progression for us as fans.
I love Snyder's intelligence and grit. He is the best possible coach you could pair with a roster like ours because of the psychological development that he implements along with skill development, and teamwork on both ends of the court. From the beginning he has engaged all of our players with respect, intelligence, and a plan which utilizes their strengths rather than retrofitting them to an out-dated scheme. He has essentially "included" them in the founding of the current iteration of the team, and that is a big difference from the days when it was Sloan's way or the highway, with Larry H. Miller (and the team captains) backing up all of his decisions.
