Woody on November 04, 2009 said:

Although I do respect Coach Sloan for his hard nosed work ethic, I say we try a new rotation for a game or two. Lets take coach Johnson (who knows our players well) and allow him to call the shots, make adjustments as he sees fit, and heaven forbid call a time out once in a while and see what happens.

Is he a motivator? Probably not. Between Coaches Sloan, Johnson and Corbin, Im not sure who has less charisma.

I Nominate Stock, Horny and Big T as the new coaches and mentors for our young up and comers

JazzNozeBleeds on November 04, 2009 said:

I was watching, and it was a total mistake. I remember it and it was on Dirk when he started the sentence. At the same time what could Sloan do? The players were putting up terrible shots in the 4th and they were not slowing it down enough in my opinion, I mean when your up by 16 and you have 24 seconds to shoot… you can basically delay them 3 minutes without them being able to catch up to you. Get a basket or two thats 4 minutes…

In the end I see it as a ‘TEAM’ problem, not a coach or a player problem, but they probably both have played a factor in last nights crap shoot.

In all honesty I want to delete this game form my memory and hope they can get something brewing here at home against the Spurs, but once again another tough team and frankly if I don’t see a 48 minute hustle from the team, I may have to start rooting for the Nuggets, even though I slightly despise the thugs, If my team doesn’t step up I can root for someone who looks capable of blasting the Lakers a good one.

Kalab Mullins on November 04, 2009 said:

Easy to point the finger at Jerry Sloan. Not so easy to come up with sollutions to the problem. You could have switched Memo off of him, but the way the refs were calling the game, all you would have done is foul out Booze and Milsap since both were already in foul trouble. I think the call of better help defence and waiting for him to cool off should have worked and just didnt. I stand behind Sloan on this one. Sloan will be gone soon enough, and I for one will be a sad fan when it happens. In the mean time, please stop trying to stir up trouble.

Desert Jazzfan on November 04, 2009 said:

I totally noticed that when Craig Bolerjack said it. I thought it was more than appropriate. I like Jerry Sloan, and I respect him. But to refuse to make intragame adjustments is a sign of poor coaching. If there is one lesson the Jazz need to learn, it is that the “hot hand” will kill you. You must do all you can to stop it. Send Fez in there for some hard fouls, or something to throw Novitzki off his rhythm. But you can’t do nothing??!!!! It appeared Sloan was too tired to bother coaching the other night. But I applaud him for trying to stick up for Boozer. What else is he supposed to do at this point?? He has to coach with the team he’s been given. This one is all on Kevin O’Connor, fellas… We voiced exactly what would happen if Boozer stayed. He is a cancer. He doesn’t want to be here, and he doesn’t care when he loses. O’Connor keeps trying to play the card of needing to trade from a position of “strength”. He doesn’t realize that he will never be in that position with Boozer. And the longer he goes without pulling the trigger on a deal, the more the rest of the league’s teams are going to realize Boozer isn’t worth anything, either. I know it stinks to not be in a position of strength, but that’s where we are. Trade Boozer now, and you can salvage the season. Not only that, you’ll save the rest of our good team from embarrassing themselves like they did the other night. For whatever reason, Boozer is bringing the worst out of the rest of the team. He’s got to go. Good luck working out the details…. you only have a week or two before it appears the fans will start rioting. I guess we aren’t used to losing. As things look now, maybe we’d better get used to it.

French Dude on November 05, 2009 said:

A coach is not a Mom or a Dad, and he is not on the field to score and to defend, Players play the game….. If these guys have no honor, you can’t charge the coach…….. After the Dallas game, except maybe Wes Matthews, no one of them deserves to wear Jazz colors…… they fail, they give up and it’s not a coach problem, it’s a players problem……..And a GM problem, we can’t keep Boozer and Millsap all entire season, it’s killing our Team, we need to trade one, and now

mike on November 05, 2009 said:

Should of had ak guard dirk the whole game and should of had tall presence in the center rather than boozer and millsap. memos great but not fast enough to guard dirk. Who knows maybe coach just wanted to make memo a better defender and put him on dirk. Lotta questions right now but man cant believe we blew a 16 point lead no one was playing the fourth quarter. Everyone just shot the ball didnt see anyone drive in and draw the foul. Deron wasn’t going to drive in cause he wasn’t getting a call at all so someone else should have stepped up.

Boondock Saint (Zak) on November 05, 2009 said:

Listen….for anyone who has followed this blog for any amout of time knows that the Sloan issue has been widely publicized and debated. Its simple really….Jerry Sloan is a HOF coach that most Jazz fans want around as long as he will stay BUT BUT BUT there are 3 common complains/suggestions/criticisms for Sloan that are common among the Jazz elite fan base (elite fanbase meaning those who blog, comment and generally are wrapped up in all things Jazz here on the Bot).

1) The 3 pointer- For pete’s (and mine and everyone else on here) sake learn to DEFEND this shot!!! Futhermore, incorporate it into our own arsenal. It isn’t the low percentage, desperation attempt to win the game kinda shot anymore. Heck, five feet behind the 3 point is now just a deep three instead of poor shot selection.

2) In game adjustments- Okay, we all saw what happened in Dallas but this has been a complaint for years. Coach, we know you like players to know when they are coming in and going out of the game…that it provides them with stability and predictability, important psychological components, but when someone is shooting lights out like Deron or Memo and you take them the collective that is Jazz fandom groans. They are ripping the net, keep them in and let them run up the score. I know you are worried about them getting tired but trust me….when you are shooting that well you don’t feel exhaustion, just elation. Conversly, if its Dirk ripping Memo apart….maybe its time to put someone else on him. Just a theory. Timeouts….we have them for a reason…its called regrouping. Now, no Jazz fan in their right mind is going to say that the players didn’t have a part in this, they are the one’s executing (or not) on the floor but come on Coach, you didn’t do anything to help either.

3) Motivation- We’ve all seen the press conferences over the years and Jerry’s assertion that it isn’t his job to motivate his players. They are professionals. This is their job. They get paid to play. All valid points. Think about it in your own llife and work-a-day world. You don’t want to have an employee or co-worker who you have to inspire to do their job every day. They are adults, grow up, do the job and do it well….right?! Right, but every employee needs motivation, some more than others, whether it be a pat on the back for a job well done or a kick in the behind. However, basketball is categorically different as a job because it is a sport as well. I know that Coach Sloan wants all the players to do their jobs but he needs to do his better as well. MOTIVATION IS PART OF THE COACHES JOB!!!!!

So….after all the reading and commenting I’ve done over the last year and a half or so this is what I’ve come up with. Agree or disagree…I’m always interested but the fact remains: Coach, we love ya, we want ya around but things have got to change for the better and if you don’t know how to make these changes, bring in an assistant coach who can. I, for one, think that you can have the best of the old and the new. The end (sorry about the length).

henry on November 05, 2009 said:

I like Jerry Sloan as a coach. But, on this particular game, it’s his fault. However, I agree with Desert Jazzfan more that I think it’s Kevin O’Connor who screwed Jazz up. He should be resigned. Scott Layton or someone else like Jeff Honacek may step up.

Adam on November 05, 2009 said:

Ever heard of a double team? I watched the Hornets beat the Mavs last night as they had the players guarding Kidd come down and double Dirk and Kidd was forced to win the game. Would that have been such a problem in the game. I agree with what most said here that AK should’ve guarded him. Isn’t AK the one that gets Dirk all razzed up here in SLC to get thrown out of games?

Jared on November 05, 2009 said:

I don’t think that it is disloyal to the Jazz to call it like I see it. Jerry Sloan lost the game against Dallas. To play Okur on Dirk all that time, when he has recently had a knee/ankle injury and would have difficulty with the quicker Dirk when he was healthy, lost us the game. At least when Fes was in, and he knew he was getting called for a foul, he knocked Dirk to the floor. If there is one thing to take away from the Mavs / Warriors series a few years ago it is that when Dirk gets hammered enough, he stops driving to the paint and settles for outside shots. That should be our strategy vs the Mavs every time. Do all we can to stop Dirk, and the rest of the game should take care of itself. I appreciate what Jerry has done for us over the years, but he honestly should have retired a couple of years ago, and is now just hanging around and cashing a check. Honestly in a competition between Sloan and Boozer for effort, I am not sure who would win, because I can’t see either of them caring enough to get their butt up and compete. Also, Boondock is right with his three critiques. We don’t shoot or guard the 3. We make no in-game adjustments. And our coach doesn’t care about the player’s motivation. Hell, what is it that the coach does do?

Linda on November 05, 2009 said:

I keep reading these blogs and I didn’t realize how smart everyone is !! We all seem to know what KOC has done and not done. What trades he has attempted to make that fell through and how much money the “powers to be” have given him to work with. We know what Jerry says in the time outs. We actually all know what he does or doesn’t do as far as motivation goes. Many of us must have been there during the practices to see what went on all week. We know who worked and who didn’t, we know who bothered to show up and who didn’t. With the way the officiating was going during that game there were times that players needed to be pulled out, if for no other reasson, than to save their sanity. What about motivation and the team leader? Isn’t DWill suppose to be handling that?? I personally thought that he looked totally confused and upset with everything about the game and he certainly didn’t play as well as he usually does. I thought it was funny in a blog a few days ago when someone was complaining because Jerry doesn’t give enough freedom to DWill and yet it is well known that he has more freedom with running the game than in any other NBA team. I don’t mean to have this sound like a lecture because I have no doubt that most of you know more about the game than I do but I do claim to know about coaching and it is not all as cut and dry as many think. I’m not happy with my Jazz right now and I’m afraid if they don’t do better tonight then ticket sales will go way down and the concequences that follow won’t be nice, but I’m not going to place blame on any one person. It is a team sport so the good belongs to all the team and so does the bad.

Annie on November 05, 2009 said:

It’s a little harsh to say Sloan is”hanging around and cashing a check.” Totally disagree with that statement.

Ben H on November 05, 2009 said:

I disagree with some of the Sloan criticisms, except for one thing. I’ve said for years, we have got to learn to defend the three. When we pack it in, and leave those uncontested 3’s, we’re killing ourselvse, and we’re killing any momentum we may have. Conversely, I have to admit, when you stretch out too much, you get the 4th quarter of the Dallas game. It’s a fine line. I just wish we wouldn’t leave the 3 ball SO…WIDE…OPEN.

I think we’re going to win tonight, JazzBots. Big W over the Spurs coming up…

Go Jazz

French Dude on November 06, 2009 said:

Everyone of you say that Jerry lost this game coz he wasn’t is the Motivator for his players, Sorry but i didn’t know that Rick Carlisle was such a screamer on his bench and the wonderful Motivator…. My Fault, i just thought he was a Mummy. But i can’t remenber when he spoke to Dirk to motivate him to score 27 in the fourth quarter…… Dirk just took his Responsability to Win…… Which one in our team made the same

Mal on November 06, 2009 said:

Regardless of what you think about Sloan, the slip of the tongue by Bolerjack was awesome. The bottom line is this: The Jazz will NEVER win a championship if they do not pay more attention to the 3. Either Jerry can start doing something about that or we can find someone else to do it.

Only difference is Jerry is guaranteed to give us a ‘winning’ record regardless. Some new guy doesn’t come with that same guarantee, but he does come with the possibility of taking us to the next level – something Jerry has shown he is unable to do.

Larry Miller wouldn’t have gotten where he did in his life if he hadn’t taken a few risks. Just sayin.

Caleb Hicks on November 06, 2009 said:

The point has been well argued. But the thing that us fans need to keep in mind is this….

With Jerry, we are a winning team. A playoff team. A threat every year.

Look at the history of teams that switch coaches whenever there’s trouble…. They are always in trouble, and they are always swapping coaches.

I’d say let’s focus on getting players worth the money that we are paying them. Let’s face it, we are not performing like the second highest payroll in the league.

Linda on November 06, 2009 said:

When we came down to the chalk talk it was Corbin that talked to us about some of the new plays they were going to try to implement (that was using Korver and CJ a lot) but during question and answer time I ask if they had anything new to defend the 3. He claimed that statiatics show that if you take a man to defend the 3 you get it in the butt by points in the paint. A fellow came in later and ask the same question and got the same answer. I personally think it kills us but come on statisticians, let us know.

ErnMon on November 09, 2009 said:

Hmmmmmmm