Hornets fire coach Byron Scott, replace him with GM Jeff Bower

[BFRESH44]

Yikes.


The New Orleans Hornets announced today that they have relieved Byron Scott of head coaching duties. Scott will be replaced by General Manager Jeff Bower.

“I want to thank Byron for the hard work he has put in during his time with the Hornets,” said Hornets Owner George Shinn. “I’ve hired Jeff Bower to take over the coaching reign. He knows this team better than anyone, has the respect of the players and in basketball circles, is regarded as one of the best basketball minds in the business. This is our best opportunity to reach our goals this season.”

http://www.insidehoops.com/blog/?p=5016

[beasted86]

Ouch.... :eek:

The Hornets have a really mediocre roster though.

[DuMa]

finally. where the hell is my mike dunleavy firing?!

[pete's montreux]

I don't watch many NO games, but I thought NO fans were calling Scott one of the best coaches in the game only a few seasons ago? What's he supposed to do with that roster?

[HylianNightmare]

damn, hornets looking to have a rough year

[ZOMG]

Chris Paul got his wish, no doubt.

[pete's montreux]

They decide to go for the lottery after only 10 games? :roll:

[spursdynasty420]

ill put money chris thug paul demanded this

[gyu]

The Coach of the Year curse lives on.

[Moose]

He sure was a good coach, guess that didn't last long. In his defense, the current roster is pretty thin.

[Huey Freeman]

ill put money chris thug paul demanded this
It's funny how you call Chris Paul a thug when you have Bruce Bowen as your avatar.

[ukballer]

Too early IMO.

9 games into the season? C'mon New Orleans. Byron was a great coach, hope he ends up with the Clippers. :lol

[MarloStanfield]

Wasnt CP3 and Scott really close to each other and I heard Paul say in numerous interviews that Scott is like a father figure to him and couldnt imagine playing for anyone else..I guess things went sour fast.

[beasted86]

What's he supposed to do with that roster?

I know... the only logic I can see behind the GM & President is that teams like Houston in their same division are winning games... so they felt he should be able to do the same with that team :confusedshrug:

[Big#50]

Much needed. CP3 will miss the post season.

[stephanieg]

COY curse yes! Mike Brown next year after LeBron bolts. Then, according to Basketbawful, Mike Dunleavy wins it again in 2010.

[Kiddlovesnets]

Byron Scott to Nets for Lawrence Frank. :lol

[gts]

finally. where the hell is my mike dunleavy firing?!clippers are too cheap to fire dunleavy..

[gotbacon23]

another case of "lets fire the coach so it seems like we are doing something". the roster is horrible outside of chris paul, david west, and okafor. how many good teams would morris peterson, peja, julian wright, james posey, and hilton armstrong get significant minutes? its management's fault that they suck and luckily for them they have the power to pass the blame onto someone else.

[Lyoto15]

WOW Im shocked!

[Spoken]

Come to LA Byron Scott...COME TO LA! back to your laker roots.

[Bigsmoke]

not a smart move to fire Bryon Scott. Who will coach the Hornets now?

[ZOMG]

I heard Paul say in numerous interviews that Scott is like a father figure to him

At some point you stop listening to your father.

[Huey Freeman]

Come to LA Byron Scott...COME TO LA! back to your laker roots.
I actually agree, I think he should take an assistant coaching position with the Lakers and eventually be handed over the reigns to the team.

[goldenryan]

not a smart move to fire Bryon Scott. Who will coach the Hornets now?
they too cheap to go after avery, although he wouldn't pass on the chance to coach chris paul.

[dnyk1337]

Wasnt CP3 and Scott really close to each other and I heard Paul say in numerous interviews that Scott is like a father figure to him and couldnt imagine playing for anyone else..I guess things went sour fast.

Words like that have no meaning. People are two-faced. Everyone should realize that.

[e's Nikees]

It's not the coach. Has anyone seen this roster? Chris Paul has to do everything!

Peja is only good for wide open three pointers, and the occasional post up, David West is pretty good but I think this team needs a better supporting cast.

Byron Scott has nothing to do with it.

[vert48]

Anyone watching Scott on the bench will know that he is probably welcoming this firing. He will end up in with a new opportunity soon enough.

[bdreason]

This team is going in the wrong direction, fast.

I find it hard to believe anyone in that franchise really thought this was Scott's fault.

[dnyk1337]

Dunleavy needs to be replaced with Scott as a coach. LAC would benefit because Scott is a PG-oriented coach and they have a really good PG in Davis.

[A.M.G.]

Well he really did have them playing like straight **** so far. They should be better than they have been so far.

ANyway, Scott will find a new position.

[Showtime]

Scott isn't the main reason why the hornets are struggling, but he is accountable for his own decisions.

He has crap rotations. They drafted Collison to help CP out at point, and Thornton to help out with off guard scoring. What does Scott do? Never plays them. Last night was the first time I saw them on the court outside junk minutes.

Scott plays scrubs like Devin Brown and Mo-Pete as STARTERS instead of giving somebody who could contrubte the minutes. They may not be ready, but what is better: a guy who is raw and needs to grow, but will show some effort, OR a scrub who will NOT produce at all?

He continues to play Hilton Armstrong, who is a smaller, weaker version of Kwame Brown.

Scott has a vanilla offense and it doesn't work with that team. He has to rely on shooters who can't shoot. There's no motion, no cutting, no nothing which might compensate for the lack of players who can create their own shots.

His game management is horrible. He hardly ever adjusts, and doesn't call timeouts that often or draw up plays that work out of timeouts.

Players have tuned him out. I think last season was the last straw, and I don't see how players can buy into BS after getting trounced by Denver.

[gts]

Dunleavy needs to be replaced with Scott as a coach. LAC would benefit because Scott is a PG-oriented coach and they have a really good PG in Davis.didn't scott and davis already have problems working together or is my memory of that time frame wrong? was that before scott got to new orleans?

[browntown]

He did a great job with the Nets makes them a Contender brings them to the finals twice a couple of seasons later he get's canned, goes to NOH makes them a contender and a couple seasons later he get fired.

See the trend lol!

[Melissa]

that team sucks regardless. Firing Scott provides the appearance that something is being done. The next coach will fare no better.

[bagelred]

Turns out Hornets replaced Byron Scott with Lawrence Frank.


Wait...how did that happen?

[Babalu]

TRADE HIM FOR DUNLEAVY! cmon byron LA wants you!

[MaxFly]

I agree with the general sentiment that Scott was a scape goat... He's a good coach and he'll find other work.

[Knicks101]

Wow, that was quick.

[Melissa]

GM Jeff Bower is the new head coach. Tim Floyd is brought back as an assistant.

[dirkdiggler41]

I like it. Sometimes you need a new coach just to fire up the engine when things are not running smoothly. I belive Posey and Peja are great players and I would like to see them starting. I'm glad that they fired him this early, so they atleast got a chanse to fight for a playoff spot if they suddenly would get the team going. Instead of losing a lot of games, and then Janury comes and they get a new coach and they still cant win. I belive it was a good move

[ihatetimthomas]

Well its about time. Those players were not responding to him and he just doesn't fit anymore with that team.

I have never been sold Scott is all that great as a coach. I think he has been lucky to land a prime Kidd on the Nets and a prime Chris Paul on the Hornets. Both of those guys run the offense single handedly.

[bagelred]

Good move. Too much talent to be this bad? No? No? Wee? Si? Que? Ey?

[Mr_Basketball#1]

Dude gave Bobby fckn Brown Kobe like freedom on offense. Yeah, it was about time for him to get fired.

[pete's montreux]

Dude gave Bobby fckn Brown Kobe like freedom on offense. Yeah, it was about time for him to get fired.

Dude was jacking 30 foot threes all game against Boston. :oldlol:

[daboywonder2002]

TRADE HIM FOR DUNLEAVY! cmon byron LA wants you!

i thought him and baron didn't get along from his days with the hornets.

[noob cake]

Scott is a decent coach; beside from the complete lack of quality players on roster and his unwillingness to play rookies, there is really nothing wrong with him.

[vert48]

I am glad they made GM Jeff Bower the coach. Get to eat some of his own cooking.

[Showtime]

Scott is a decent coach; beside from the complete lack of quality players on roster and his unwillingness to play rookies, there is really nothing wrong with him.
There's nothing wrong with horrible rotations and game management? There's nothing wrong with getting talented guys in his doghouse, only to watch them flourish on other teams? There's nothing wrong with fighting for a big free agent acquisition, only to see that blow up in his face?

[bagelred]

Scott is a decent coach; beside from the complete lack of quality players on roster and his unwillingness to play rookies, there is really nothing wrong with him.

Chris Paul, David West, Peja, Okafor are all garbage? OMG.....



It's like the Raptors with Chris Bosh....franchise players who don't act like franchise players.

[wang4three]

The Coach of the Year curse lives on.

The first thing I thought, but same time.. ask any Nets fan, he isn't a good coach.

[JordanL]

I wonder how this will affect the Portland-NO game tomorrow...

[GOBB]

A prime AI would win with the roster Paul has :lol

[G-train]

Dunleavy needs to be replaced with Scott as a coach. LAC would benefit because Scott is a PG-oriented coach and they have a really good PG in Davis.

Scott would end up strangling Baron by the first pull up 3 on the break.

[flipogb]

Ive never thought he was good, from Kidd to Paul

Scott is just a figure-head while Kidd or Paul were the prime minister who runs the show

[G-train]

Chris Paul, David West, Peja, Okafor are all garbage? OMG.....



It's like the Raptors with Chris Bosh....franchise players who don't act like franchise players.

You list 4 players - thats the issue. They have 4 players. There is ZERO depth.

Secondly, Bosh has arguably been the best player in the league so far. He is dominating.

[G-train]

The first thing I thought, but same time.. ask any Nets fan, he isn't a good coach.

He took the Nets to the NBA finals twice, with an solid but unspectacular roster. I'd say he is a pretty good coach. But it seems that players/management can only handle his style when they are winning.

[Showtime]

Ive never thought he was good, from Kidd to Paul

Scott is just a figure-head while Kidd or Paul were the prime minister who runs the show
Funny how he had the most success with two of the best PG's of their generation, and then his relationship with the team and it's players wore thin quickly.

[Bigboi450]

Basketball coaching is much more than the coach's win/loss record. Player development, talent evaluation, player rotations, defensive and offensive schemes, team discipline & player morale all play large parts in how a coach is evaluated. By those measures, Scott is weak. Not terrible but not good enough to take a mid-market team to the next level. Unless he was restricted from making personnel decisions, he holds considerable blame for the state of this team. Earl Smith lll & Chris Andersen agree!

[icemanfan]

Too early IMO.

9 games into the season? C'mon New Orleans. Byron was a great coach, hope he ends up with the Clippers. :lol
Byron has been a winner no matter where he coached. He has over achieved with the players he had. I hope he never ends up with a real squad. With the talent at Dallas I think he could really do something.

[qrich]

finally. where the hell is my mike dunleavy firing?!

What I'm thinking.

I'll take Scott in a second. Hell, I'll drive to New Orleans, pick him up and drive him back myself if I have too.

[dnyk1337]

didn't scott and davis already have problems working together or is my memory of that time frame wrong? was that before scott got to new orleans?

You're right. That happened so long ago I forgot.

Scott was angry because Davis took too long for his rehabilitation if I remember. Seemed like he knew Davis was just fooling around.

[OneMoreSucka]

I had the over/under for firing Scott at 12.5 games, not bad.

[Crazy Style]

I guess the front office was extremely impatient and couldn't wait a little longer at least. I think this was an idiotic move so early in the season, it's a tough league. Was there interest in firing him before the season?:confusedshrug:

[Crazy Style]

I had the over/under for firing Scott at 12.5 games, not bad.

So I now understand that this was expected to happen if the team didn't have the best start after only a few games.

[steve]

I guess the front office was extremely impatient and couldn't wait a little longer at least. I think this was an idiotic move so early in the season, it's a tough league. Was there interest in firing him before the season?:confusedshrug:
Word is that they were going to fire him after the playoffs last season, but didn't go through with it because of the money involved (Scott's contract runs out at the end of this season). Firing him now means they don't have two head coaching contracts on the books.

[triangleoffense]

The Coach of the Year curse lives on.

Dantoni -fired
Bryon Scott -fired
Sam Mitchell(about to be out)
Mike Brown(about to be out)
Avery Johnson -fired
Hubie Brown - retired

[stephanieg]

Dantoni -fired
Bryon Scott -fired
Sam Mitchell(about to be out)
Mike Brown(about to be out)
Avery Johnson -fired
Hubie Brown - retired

Don't forget Mike Dunleavy, Carlisle, Larry Brown, and Doc Rivers. Total curse the last decade.

[pete's montreux]

Glenn will be here for a while. :confusedshrug:

[dnyk1337]

Dantoni -fired
Bryon Scott -fired
Sam Mitchell(about to be out)
Mike Brown(about to be out)
Avery Johnson -fired
Hubie Brown - retired

Sam Mitchell was fired last season buddy.

[Lakers13]

Come home to LA Byron, any LA team will do

[Mateo]

Mindset of NBA teams "we have 1 good player, why aren't we winning championship after championship?"

[1~Gibson~1]

if the Cavs keep winning against the elite teams i dont see why Brown should be out, but if he keep doing dumb **** against sucky teams then gtfo Brown.

[noob cake]

Chris Paul, David West, Peja, Okafor are all garbage? OMG.....



It's like the Raptors with Chris Bosh....franchise players who don't act like franchise players.

We all know CP3 is not garbage; you shoulda realized that "complete" doesn't include CP3. David West is the worst all star in the league.

Peja can't shoot worth a damn now; Okafor who?

[Y2Gezee]

Scott is a quality coach, but I think he'd be better suited in the college game myself.

I'm sure he wouldn't struggle to find a big tim job should one open up considering he's had playoff success with 2 different teams in the NBA and 2 finals appearances.


I just don't think his demanding attitude can continue to push teams to go out and perform for him over an extended period. Where I think it would be great in the collegiate game where kids come and go.

[triangleoffense]

Sam Mitchell was fired last season buddy.

Proves my point even more kid :P

[Beebo]

I bet you'll see more coaches turning down the COY award now. Funny thing is that Jerry Sloan has never won that award and he's the longest serving coach in the NBA.

[triangleoffense]

It's sort of like the regular season MVP, i think the last time the MVP won the title was when Jordan did it (or shaq).

[dallaslonghorn]

Not sure if this has been mentioned yet, but how good would JR Smith and Brandon Bass look on this team? Scott has shown no ability to develop young talent.

This is also probably the last straw for the GM. A small market team like New Orleans can't afford to miss on their free agent signings (Peja, Posey).

The result is one of the thinnest rosters in the league.

I feel really bad for Chris Paul. This is one of the times I wish basketball was more like European soccer and some big-market team could pay $100 mill and rescue him from this wreck of a franchise. No basketball fan wins by having the prime of Paul's career play out like KG's.

[G-train]

Earl Smith leaving the Hornets had nothing to do with talent.
Bass was a wildcard.

I could list 20 players that developed well underneath him. I dont have the time, but I'd start with Chris Paul.

[TheAnchorman]

Enough about Byron Scott, anyone know anything about the new coach?

[1~Gibson~1]

Enough about Byron Scott, anyone know anything about the new coach?
he's their GM.

[TheAnchorman]

he's their GM.
Valuable input hah, I am talking about whether anyone knows if he had any previous coaching experience/success, etc.

[triangleoffense]

He's been their GM for the past 15 years, no coaching experience to my knowledge. I think I hear a train derailing off the distance..

[1~Gibson~1]

Valuable input hah, I am talking about whether anyone knows if he had any previous coaching experience/success, etc.
According to wiki:

Assistant Coach under former Head Coaches Paul Silas and Tim Floyd. He was also an Associate Head Coach at Marrist College from '90-'95, prior to that, being an Assistant Coach at both Marrist College and Penn State.


Assistant Coach under Paul Silas
Assistnat Coach under Tim Floyd
Assistant coach at Marrist College
Assistant Coach at Penn State
Associate Head Coach at Marrist College

[MeLO MvP 15]

supposedly the GM "knows his players better than anyone else"... lol this should be funny, just bring avery johnson (but he is rly expensive) to New Orleans guys.... even though as a nuggets fan i dnt want them doing well


i smell the new mike dunleavy and/or lionnel hollins

[D-Rose]

IF this doesn't help they need to bring in some new players...maybe Stephen Jackson?

[LA.MJ&KB#1]

Come to LA Byron Scott...COME TO LA! back to your laker roots.
And please bring CP3 with you:applause:

[bdreason]

How come nobody has mentioned that they brought in Tim Floyd to be a "Assistant Coach".

Sounds like they may eventually try out Floyd as Head Coach.... after they fire the GM that is.

[Al Thornton]

Wasnt CP3 and Scott really close to each other and I heard Paul say in numerous interviews that Scott is like a father figure to him and couldnt imagine playing for anyone else..I guess things went sour fast.

Marlo?

[KingJay718]

Byron Scott to the Lakers when Phillip retires.

Hornets outside of CP3 and D. West are trash.

[yobore]

Okafor is the second best player on this team. They have the pieces or at least 3 of them. Their depth is terrible but I think the rest of the team can't be in this vacuum for long someone will inevitably adapt or develop to fit in and contribute.


Whether its his fault or not keeping Byron clearly wasn't going to change anything.

but LOL at them not dishing out money to hire a new head coach.

I think West is the player who most wanted Byron out. Sounded a little grumpy recently and has already talked about how much better they will be without Byron in press conference, also said "Pride is a dangerous thing"

I think Byron will quickly find another team and do well. He didn't have the pieces to play his style. The Hornets are so much physically slower at every position besides PG it's hard for them to defend as a team.

[Jasper]

I'm a Scott fan.
9 games and they trash their coach.... either the players were clueless or they were not paying attention in the huddles and practices = zone out.

Next open team vacancy - Scott has a job.

[nbastatus]

What a surprised. I didn't expect this from Hornets at all. Plus Paul and Scott are really close.

[raptorfan_dr07]

How come nobody has mentioned that they brought in Tim Floyd to be a "Assistant Coach".

Sounds like they may eventually try out Floyd as Head Coach.... after they fire the GM that is.

Wasn't Floyd already head coach of the Hornets before? After he left the Bulls.

Anyways, yeah it does seem like Scott is being used as the scapegoat here similar to how Sam Mitchell(not that I thought he was a great coach or anything) was in Toronto last year. While the coach does have some responsibility over how his team performs, mangement also has to be held accountable for putting together a poorly constructed roster. It wasn't all Sam Mitchell's fault the Raptors sucked badly, the roster was poorly built. Same in New Orleans. Who besides Chris Paul can actually create offense for themselves? Okafor has been playing decently but he's about the only one outside of Paul. David West has been disappointing. Peja looks like he's washed up. They have no wing player who can slash and effectively create for himself and their bench is terrible.

Scott can however be held responsible for giving Devin Brown and Morris Peterson starters mintues when they shouldn't be. As a Raptor fan, I know how frustrating it can be getting watching Mo Pete's wild inconsistency. Like Showtime's been saying, he had two young, promising rookies on the bench in Darren Collison and Marcus Thornton just wasting away. Obviously the vets are not getting it done, why not see what the fresh legs can do?

I do, however, think that Scott's a decent coach and I don't expect him to be unemployed for long.

[dab0yech0]

finally. where the hell is my mike dunleavy firing?!

Clippers need to rid of Dunleavy and hire Scott. Unfortunately Mike Dunleavy is also GM and he wont fire himself to hire someone else.

[mamba24]

Lakers gotta pick him up to replace rambis as the defensive guru...also he's one of us...come back home scotty.

[yobore]

West seems pretty happy about it which may be a good thing maybe he'll start playing hard.

CP though not happy at all about it being so sudden and said you can't blame it all on the coach. sounds like he's not happy with the management

Pretty wierd that a team would get rid of a coach and then ask him back.

[icemanfan]

It's sort of like the regular season MVP, i think the last time the MVP won the title was when Jordan did it (or shaq).
Tim Duncan in 03 I think.

[icemanfan]

According to wiki:

Assistant Coach under former Head Coaches Paul Silas and Tim Floyd. He was also an Associate Head Coach at Marrist College from '90-'95, prior to that, being an Assistant Coach at both Marrist College and Penn State.


Assistant Coach under Paul Silas
Assistnat Coach under Tim Floyd
Assistant coach at Marrist College
Assistant Coach at Penn State
Associate Head Coach at Marrist College

they move this guy, the GM, into a position to be humilated before he is fired (like McHale in Minny). Def a train wreck. Then again similar to Pop's resume when he was moved into the Coaches job in San Antonio.........but the talent level in SA was good at that time so.....................

[Diesel J]

It's funny how you call Chris Paul a thug when you have Bruce Bowen as your avatar.


:lol :applause:

[Kiddlovesnets]

Seems that CP3 is unhappy about Scott's firing but West is quite delighted.