Getting fired from a head coaching job in any sport is never an easy reality to take in. There’s no doubt that former Memphis Grizzlies head coach Taylor Jenkins is feeling it, and Miami Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra hopes never to have to feel it. At the end of the day, the NBA is a brotherhood, coaches included, and Coach Spo, as he’s affectionally known around the league, offered a piece of that brotherhood in support of Jenkins now that he’s out of work.
17-Year Heat HC Erik Spoelstra Backs Taylor Jenkins
Miami Heat Head Coach Erik Spoelstra Issues Solem Reaction to the Grizzlies’ Firing of Taylor Jenkins
We’ve witnessed it a few times this season: an opposing head coach coming to the defense of a recently fired one. It happened when the Sacramento Kings showed Mike Brown the door. Both Steve Kerr and Michael Malone spoke up for Brown from the podium in a show of support. Not only did they condemn the firing in their own way, but they showed their support for Brown. Brown didn’t deserve to be let go, nor did Jenkins. Unfortunately, both coaches suffered the same fate that many before them had: an unceremonious firing for doing a good job.
What makes Jenkins’s firing more head-scratching is the timing of it all—as if the Grizzlies’ playoff chances have significantly increased after letting their head coach go with nine games remaining. It is disappointing and exactly what Spoelstra had to say via Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel.
“It’s incredibly disappointing. This profession is tough and you want to be in it together, through the good and the bad, and not looking for the easy escape route to point blame. His [Jenkins] record speaks for itself.”
Coach Spo’s Tenure Is Rarest of the Rare These Days
Longevity within the professional coaching ranks is sparse and elusive these days. In the NHL, coaches barely last two or three years with a team before getting the boot. Coaches get recycled and recycled and recycled. It’s no wonder why the life of a bench boss in the NHL is always on thin ice, and the general culture is highly questionable. In the NFL, Mike Tomlin is a rarity who has coached the Pittsburgh Steelers for 18 years. In the NBA, Spoelstra has his 17 years to rest on, and Gregg Popovich has coached the San Antonio Spurs since 1996. Interestingly enough, it would appear that neither man will lose their job unless they choose to walk away.
Walking away might be Spoelstra’s path should he ever decide that he wants a change of scenery. Pat Riley loves Spoelstra like a son; it’s almost unimaginable that Riley would fire Spoelstra. The summer ahead in Miami has questions upon further questions that will eventually be answered. Will there be a shift in power? Should Riley decide to step down, could Spoelstra mimic Brad Stevens and move upstairs? Whatever happens, Spoelstra is surely aware of his rare position and doesn’t take it for granted. It’s nice to see a man with his stature stand up for those whose legs are taken out from under them too soon. Jenkins, though, will be back coaching in no time. If not next season, not long after that.
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