When the Memphis Grizzlies allowed former coach Lionel Hollins to talk to other teams earlier this month, the presence of assistant coach Dave Joerger as a viable replacement had everything to do with their willingness to let him go.
Nearly a month later, the seemingly-inevitable became reality when they finally named him the team's head coach.
METTA WORLD PEACE: Is he staying with Lakers?
The four-year deal that will pay Joerger approximately $2 million per season was confirmed to USA TODAY Sports by a person with knowledge of the agreement. The fourth year on the contract is a team option. The person spoke on the condition of anonymity because financial details of a deal are not typically disclosed.
NBA DRAFT: Common-sense mock draft
While the Grizzlies interviewed the likes of former Phoenix Suns and Los Angeles Clippers coach Alvin Gentry, former Denver Nuggets coach George Karl and Chicago Bulls assistant Ed Pinckney, Joerger - who rose through the NBA Development League ranks and is seen as a rising star by Grizzlies management – was always the frontrunner for one of the best jobs around. Getting the Grizzlies to the Western Conference Finals for the first time in franchise history wasn't good enough for Hollins because of the tricky dynamic he had with the team's new decision makers that came on board after the team was sold to California tech billionaire Robert Pera in November.
In the end, his early criticisms of the analytics aspect of their new operation and the insistence that trading Rudy Gay was a foolish idea came back to haunt him. He had said all the right things by the time the season had ended, admitting that the Gay trade to Toronto that took place in late January worked out far better than he'd ever imagined and insisting that he could have a positive partnership with CEO Jason Levien, vice president of basketball operations John Hollinger and director of player personnel Stu Lash.
But the new guys wanted their guy in Joerger, and so it is that one of the best teams in the West will attempt to maintain the momentum that came with winning a franchise-record 56 regular season games with their patented "Grit and Grind" style. The Joerger hiring was partly about that, too, as he is said to have a good rapport with free-agent-to-be and resident "Grit and Grind" spokesman Tony Allen. Memphis management will look to bring him back, hoping their strategy here pays off and that this new chapter is as good as the last one was under Hollins.
Joerger has been an assistant the past six seasons with the Grizzlies under coach Marc Iavaroni and later Hollins. He was the lead assistant coach and helped coordinate a defense that helped Memphis allow a league-low 89.3 points per game this season.
Joerger also won five minor league championships. He led the Dakota Wizards to the 2007 NBA D-League title, an International Basketball Association title and three in the Continental Basketball Association. His record of 232-117 as a head coach also includes two CBA coach of the year awards.
He played at Moorhead State and started as general manager of the Dakota Wizards in the IBA. He started coaching as an assistant in the 1997-98 season and became head coach for the 2000-01 season when he led the Wizards to their first title. He had 18 of his players called up to the NBA between 2003 and 2007.
But Joerger steps into a challenging situation. Hollins was this franchise's winningest coach overall with a record of 214-201 and also in the postseason at 18-17. This franchise had never won a playoff series before 2011 with Hollins, and the Grizzlies knocked off not one, but two No. 1 seeds in the postseason with him as coach taking down the Spurs in 2011 and Oklahoma City during the Western semifinals this year.
Contributing: The Associated Press
No comments:
Post a Comment