Could Flip Saunders Take Eddie Jordan’s Job?
Before you scoff, check the knowledge on why Flip Saunders was running defensive drills at Wizards camp.
My initial line of thinking was to wonder who invited Saunders to camp. If it was Grunfeld, does this ruffle the feathers of Eddie Jordan? I doubt it as Jordan seems like a ‘check the ego at the door’ type and would welcome input from any angle.
I’m not sure if inviting other coaches to camp is a regular occurrence in the NBA or not, but I was certainly thrown off when Buckhantz blogged: “All the coaches are back, and as Dave mentioned, some “guest” coaches are here.
Eddie Jordan doesn’t seem like the kind of guy that’s threatened by stuff like this, but seeming bothered and being bothered is two different things; particularly in the fickle profession of coaching, and particularly in working for Eddie Grunfeld, the Wizards G.M. whose tenuous relationship with Jordan is well documented.
The whole Flip Saunders angle is interesting for two reasons. One, because they recently extended Jordan for an extra year, staking their immediate future on his ability to manage egos and X and O it out on the floor minus Gilbert Arenas.
The other reason, and possibly the most engaging, is that things like this usually happen TO Flip Saunders. It happened in Minnesota, and it happened in Detroit; places where he was relatively successful. He’s not a Larry Brown or Mike D’Antoni, a golden calf among coaching prospects.
When is the last time you heard Flip Saunders name being floated around as a replacement? How bout’ never?
Should the Wizards start off slow, which will likely mean no contributions from the bench, the rumors will start flying. And if Flip Saunders is in on that rumor flight plan, we’ll remember that this was a veritable takeoff point.
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