Last night, perhaps responding to the “in the end, we all die and nothing you do matters all that much in the long run anyway” Lost finale, the Cleveland Cavaliers fired coach Mike Brown. (They actually had to make a move by midnight, but we prefer the Lost theory.) The LeBron Watch pieces are beginning to move.
The Cavs’ coaching search depends entirely on what LeBron does, of course, which is why their list of possible coaching candidates ranges from Phil Jackson on the high end to Dean Demopoulos on the low end. As with everything else in the NBA, it depends on personnel: If James returns, Jackson (or someone like him); if he doesn’t, Demopoulos (or someone like him). Almost every team in the LeBron sweepstakes has an open coaching slot. Other than the Knicks, of course. If you think that’s a bad thing, know that if Mike D’Antoni were a coaching free agent (like Jackson), everyone would be saying, “Maybe James will insist that D’Antoni is his coach” at every possible stop. He’s a positive.
In other LeBron news, President Obama wants LeBron to come to the Bulls, but Tea Partiers buy shoes too. And Patrick Ewing, because someone asked him for some reason, says LeBron should return to Cleveland. Aw, shush, you, Patrick Ewing.