The funny part is that if my memory serves me correct there were people complaining about Dunlap last year saying he cant relate to players, he isn't all his rep built him up to be etc.... Now I dont know what the responsibilities are for each coach, but I'm thrilled to have a coach who played for over a decade in the NBA, has NBA coaching experience and has received praise from the likes of Kurt Rambis & Magic Johnson.
Read what I wrote; "this is not a knock on Darrick Martin". Martin has a good resume, Dunlap and other x and o coaches have different resumes.
If you already have Isaiah Thomas do you trade for John Stockton or do you look for a post player?
Saying we could've used a different type of assistant doesn't mean coach Martin isn't a valuable asset. People bring different things to the table. And my argument is just that our defense is a mess, Dunlap was a defensive specialist, we could've replaced him with a defensive oriented assistant. That is all.
I'm fairly confident that doesn't qualify for a schizophrenic diagnosis. Poor defense, maybe we could benefit from better defensive coaching.
And I'm not even saying definitively that we would - but the fact that some of you can't even entertain that conversation is telling about your blindness to managing an organization.
Are you comparing Martin to Hines? Getting someone to replace Dunlap wasn't going to be easy, there aren't NBA head coaches who would accept being a St Johns assistant floating around. And maybe you and others know things about MArtin that I dont, but how do we know he isn't a defensive oriented assistant?
First of all I do know that we were interviewing or considering a list of candidates that included 2 NBA assistants and several long time college assistants with good reputations.
And on your second point; you're right I do not know that Darrick isn't a great defensive strategist- but I do know that he has spent exactly zero years before this one as a coach at any level. He was an assistant player development director for the Timberwolves for 2 years. Not an assistant coach. There's a difference. He was literally never a coach before now. Plenty of people with little experience turn out to be great coaches. But that's not the point. You're asking how do I know he isn't a great defensive coach? I don't, but other candidates had histories of coaching D, he didn't.
Here's my argument:
Our defense is pretty poor right now. Could it improve as the players get more experience ? Yes, of course.
But, in hindsight, what could we have done differently to make our defense more sound?
1) Recruit and sign different players (valid criticism, but these were mostly very heralded recruits)
2) Different head coach (that wasn't going to happen)
3) Hire an assistant who teaches defense
This is not a hard concept, and despite your best attempts to turn it around, its not a critique of Darrick Martin. Our defense is poor - Dunlap was a defensive specialist - Dunlap left - we could have hired an assistant who is known for teaching defense.