Coaching Change - What It Means

As you no doubt know by now, yesterday the Raptors fired head coach of four full seasons Sam Mitchell. Former assistant Jay Triano has been promoted to head coach on in an interim basis. Triano served as head coach once last year, coaching the Raps to a rout over Minnesota.

This deal could signal several things.
1) Bryan Colangelo seized the opportunity to bring in his own guy. For years in the NBA, it has been a custom that for every front-office regime change, there is a coaching overhaul as well. When BC was brought in, he told Sam Mitchell he has a blank slate and would only be replaced if he performed poorly. Well, Smitch went on to win Coach of the Year in helping completely turn the Raptors around. Unfortunately, Marc Iavaroni and Mike D'Antoni, Colangelo's two key coaches in Phoenix, are now the head coaches of the Memphis Grizzlies and the New York Knicks, respectively. If BC wants to bring in his own guy, it's pretty much down to Flip Saunders, Jeff Van Gundy, maybe Pat Riley - or Isaiah Thomas (that noise you just heard was your involuntary cry of "PLEASE GOD! NO!").

2) Jay Triano will be held over as a permanent head coach. Triano is a well-respected assistant in the league, having survived three head coaching changes (Lenny Wilkens, Kevin O'Neill, and now Sam Mitchell), coaching Team Canada to their best-ever record, and helping out with Team USA in recent years. It might be time for Triano to step into the spotlight.

3) BC has a trick up his sleeve. Bryan Colangelo is a man famous for making something from nothing. He turned a laughingstock Raptors franchise into a playoff team seemingly overnight, immediately after transforming the Phoenix Suns from bottom-dwellers into contenders. With the best-dressed front-office executive at the helm of this team, there's really no saying what will happen.

Sam Mitchell Fired

The Raptors have announced that following yesterday's 39-point loss to Denver, head coach Sam Mitchell has been fired. He will be replaced by Jay Triano on an interim basis. Mitchell holds Toronto's all-time coaching wins record with 156, and won Coach of the Year in 2007. The move was somewhat predictable, but hopefully the Raptors can realize the urgency of their current situation and turn the season around - fast.

Read the press release