It’s Official: Paul Silas is the Head Coach

Updating the story posted last night before the Bulls game:

It’s official.  The Bobcats announced today that Paul Silas has been named the Head Coach, removing the interim tag and extended the contract through next season.  Rod Higgins’s quote from the Bobcats press release says it all (but please read on after it):  “This team has made great strides in the eight weeks since Paul has taken over,” Higgins said. “Under his leadership we have seen our team play with confidence, enthusiasm and pride. He and his staff have helped make our young players better and have gotten positive contributions out of every player on our roster. Just as we were confident eight weeks ago that he was the right choice to lead this team for the remainder of this season, we are confident that he is the right choice to lead this club into the future.”

Coach Silas has had the word “Interim” in front of “Head Coach” since he took over for the fired (yes, fired) Larry Brown.  I think any time that hangs out there it hurts the team, there are questions and usually it’s one of those “yeah-but’s” that leads to underlying instability.  Although it’s only a one year deal, it adds certain stability and definite peace and quiet for the off-season.  Do it now, don’t discuss it, don’t let it sully a possible playoff run.

This is certainly a reward for his exceptional reworking of this team.  He’s been a breath of fresh air to me personally.  I don’t have to worry about a coach bad mouthing individual players, undercutting their confidence and being more concerned with his legacy and “playing the right way” than winning.  His postgame pressers are a thing of beauty compared to LB’s mopefests.  He’s opened up the offense, sped things up, lifted the confidence of young players and brought wins against Boston, Atlanta and LA in a week.  He is a good coach with a great history in Charlotte and if it weren’t for Lebron James having issues, he might have had a great run in Cleveland.  He watched the games like a fan and came in seeing the things we all saw.  Immediate impact.

Coach Silas is 67 years old.  He didn’t look great getting back to the locker room when I was at the game.  He’s not going to be signed to some long term deal.  A year with him, development of the assistants, who knows what could happen past next season.  I just think it’s a great move and possibly Coach Silas should have been the guy all along.  Michael Jordan got dared into hiring him by every Carolina fan, former coach, booster and alum.  Larry Brown looked like a savior for the franchise after the Sam Vincent experiment and I’ve said before I appreciate what he did in his two years here.  It was just that third year, or what he was around for that got him in my doghouse.  I think the best summation of Larry Brown’s stint was what my friend Nic said:  “Larry comes in, runs a 2 year basketball camp, shakes up the roster and then gets pissed and stomps home with his ball when he doesn’t get his way.”   Think of the consistency and stability if he’d been around here for 3 years?

Maybe Larry Brown is what this franchise needed but I can make an argument that Paul would have been better in the long haul.  Look at the roster moves that Larry either demanded or begged for:  Traded a conditional first round pick to Denver for the 20th pick, drafted DJ Augustin over Brook Lopez and Alexis Ajinca with that pick they aquired; Extended Adam Morrison and signed Shannon Brown to a minimum deal; Traded J-Rich, Dudley and a second round pick for Boris Diaw, Raja Bell and Sean Singletary; Traded Matt Carroll and Ryan Hollins for Diop’s huge contract;  Traded Adam Morrison and Shannon Brown to the Lakers for Vlad Radmonovic; drafted Gerald Henderson and Derrick Brown; Traded Okafor for Tyson Chandler; Traded Vlad and Raja for Jackson and Acie Law; Traded Flip Murray, Law and a first round pick for Tyrus Thomas; added Theo Ratliff for a conditional 2nd rounder; signed Larry Hughes.

That’s all before this season.  This season’s movements were all pretty good, unless you believe the Tyson Chandler re-birth in Dallas to be legit, that move might have been questionable in some folks eyes.  There is one guy left from Larry’s first day on the job and that’s Gerald Wallace.  The trade for Diop is bad enough.  Adding Boris Diaw’s contract, somewhat questionable, but it worked well in that first year and then in the playoff run.  The team was built to win last year and the future be damned.  Larry wasn’t here for anything but to get this team to compete and make the playoffs, mission acomplished but where do you leave us?  He wasted the first year of DJ Augustin’s career, killed it last year and buried it this year.  Paul Silas brought it back.  He buried Gerald Henderson and Derrick Brown and their neglected abilities have been a detriment to trying to trade them or get production out of their rookie scale deals.  Would Brook Lopez have worked out better than DJ Augustin?  Who knows?  We had Okafor at the time and didn’t need the big man, but on the other hand we had Raymond Felton too and didn’t need another point.

Woulda, couldas and shouldas aside, Larry Brown got us to the playoffs and got us in all kind of roster trouble.  Paul Silas came in and saved the season and he’s being rewarded for it and so are all the fans because he’s a great guy and a great coach.

Add to the lovefest I had last night the story from Mike Cranston relating Paul Silas’s health issues, and how he was almost dead twice, and what he’s done with this team….I love the guy.  I really do, I respect and care for a Coach that can come into the situation from late December, into early February, with the same exact roster and get the output from each guy and still having a winning record over that period.  I’m impressed, and happy to have him back next year.