Have you ever seen a team part ways with their coach after making the Western Conference Finals? To add to that have you seen a team part ways with their coach when your team didn’t have major championship hope? Welp, if you haven’t seen this happen before this week you have been a part of history.
The Memphis Grizzlies have decided to part ways with head coach Lionel Hollins. This is a decision that new owner Robert Pera(s/o for the love Pera showed us during the season) and CEO Jason Levien have made together being that they inherited Hollins when acquiring the Grizzlies but it still doesn’t make it a smart decision. Why would you get rid of a coach who has helped stabilize a rocky franchise? I personally can’t answer that question but I can talk about it.
Hollins led the Grizzlies to the Western Conference Finals for the first time in the short history of the franchise. Seemed like a great accomplishment minus being swept by the Spurs. If you dug deeper into the series 3 of the 4 games the Grizzlies had a great chance to win, being that two of them went to overtime. A few tweaks here and there and we thought the Grizz would be right back in the championship hunt. To pull the plug on this operation seems a bit premature, with the recent success of the Grizzlies.
During the last 4 years Hollins has led the Grizz to a 196-155 record along with 3 playoff appearances. He has helped turn Zach Randolph to a team player and transformed point guard Mike Conley into an emerging star. The next leader on the bench will have some big shoes to fill.
With Hollins out the Grizzlies will be ran by a new leader next season we wish them the best but letting Hollins go my comeback to haunt them because sooner than later somebody will hire him and will be on the other side causing the Grizzlies headaches.
Only time will tell if they are making the right decision but I’m willing to bet unless they get Doc Rivers their isn’t much of an upgrade out there. Sometimes rash moves can bite you in the ass only time will tell if that move smacks the Grizzlies in the face.
