Re: Rating Coach Scott
My main concern with Scott is that I see a lot of Mike Brown in him with his unwillingness to make changes in-game, and also his general necessity to try everything out for three games or so before he makes adjustments. That's not really a big deal in the regular season, especially a tanking season like this one, but if it carries over into the playoffs, we're going to lose games because of it.
Really, that's a big reason why a lot of good teams lose playoff games. Just look at OKC last year. Scott Brooks refused to see the writing on the wall and bench Kendrick Perkins. They may still have lost, but playing a guy who wasn't giving the team anything on either end of the floor obviously had an impact on the games and the series as a whole, and if I were the GM I would have strongly considered firing Brooks after that performance. Then again, this is Sam Presti, a guy who has steadfastly refused to acknowledge he made a mistake with the Perkins trade, and even let James Harden go at the expense of admitting that mistake, so it is what it is.
I think Byron Scott, provided he lasts that long, will truly be judged by his first big playoff series with the Cavs. I'm not talking one where we're an 8-seed, as no one really expects a coach to win those, but rather one where we're either favored or in a position to realistically win. If all of Scott's regular season rotation problems crop up there, he needs to go. If he makes good adjustments and puts in a smart performance (even if we lose), he can stay.