Stan Van Gundy The Perfect Fit For Pistons Turnaround
By Joe Dexter
April 15, 2013; Auburn Hills, MI, USA; A detailed view of the bench before the game between the Detroit Pistons and the Philadelphia 76ers at The Palace. Mandatory Credit: Tim Fuller-USA TODAY Sports
It might not have been the immaculate search that Tom Gores had hoped for. An elongated search for who would be the next mastermind to turn around the Pistons turned into a last ditch effort.
For the first time in the Gores era, Detroit pushed all their chips to the middle of the table without a care in the world what they were dealt.
With the Golden State Warriors in the pot, Pistons officials walked away from the poker table with full bravado. It didn’t matter if they were bluffing or holding pocket aces.
They were not going to let the turn, let alone the river hit the table.
Half of the battle of winning is admitting the mistakes of the past and learning from them. It’s admitting that when things don’t work out as expected, that there is a better solution out there.
There’s nothing more defeated than looking your biggest criticizer in the face, offering them 35 million over the next five years, and admitting that the only way your franchise is going to have success is putting your basketball faith in them.
With one decision, Stan Van Gundy instantly becomes the face of the Pistons. He brings an authority to the table that has clearly been missing from the front office and on the court. He will hold his players accountable.
There’s nothing more defeated than looking your biggest criticizer in the face, offering them 35 million over the next five years, and admitting that the only way your franchise is going to have success is putting your basketball faith in them.
Most importantly he’ll bring winning back to the Motor City.
In eight years of coaching in the NBA, Van Gundy has won 64% of his games. In Orlando and Miami he found ways to make it to the playoffs with not much more than budding talent and role players around them.
His boisterous attitude has often been considered a hindrance to his coaching. Yet, that might be his newest asset as he takes over as the President of Basketball Operations.
When your six year playoff drought is the longest in the Eastern conference, something has to be done. Like the city they play in, The Pistons needed their version of an emergency manager.
It’s nerve racking giving a man with zero front office experience the keys to the Ferrari. At the same time, something new had to be done to stop the bleeding.
Every bailout needs a maverick. Someone that is willing to do what they think is right no matter what anyone in their organization thinks.
Stan Van Gundy could be a ticking time bomb waiting to explode. He’s been known to make some rash decisions on how he approaches players he doesn’t believe in. His tenures in Orlando and Miami were both short lived because of his attitude toward authority in the organization.
Now the only man he’ll answer too is Tom Gores, who has given him the final vote on any roster move.
Pistons fans, there’s a new sheriff in town.
Loyer or No Loyer
According to various reports, interim head coach John Loyer is mulling his options, including staying on the staff as one of SVG’s assistant coaches. Loyer has one more year left on his contract, but could either ask or be asked to step away from the organization. Loyer, who came over to Detroit with Lawrence Frank, went 8-24 in his tenure as head coach for the Pistons.
It’s hard to imagine Loyer back on the Pistons bench, but we’ve seen it before across the NBA. Now the search begins for assistant coaches that might have interest in working with Stan Van Gundy.
Van Gundy has one of the biggest coaching trees in the league.