After disappointing showings in the 2nd round of the Eastern Conference playoffs, Mike Woodson of the Atlanta Hawks and Mike Brown of the Cleveland Cavaliers were both on the chopping block. One was a little luckier than the other.
Mike Woodson was not rehired after 6 years as head coach in Atlanta when his contract ended Monday. He inherited a team that only won 13 games his first year. From there it only got better. I mean, it had to, right? The Hawks under Woodson became only the 7th team in NBA history to ever increase their win total for 5 straight years as they went from 13 to 30 to 37 to 47 to 53. However, it was Woodson inability to succeed in the playoofs that led to his dismissal. Even though, they've been to the 2nd round the past two seasons they were a combined 0-8 in that round, and 11-18 overall in the playoffs. Sadly, they will be most remembered for taking #1 seed and eventual champion Boston to 7 games in the first round in '08 and for being swept this postseason by the Orlando Magic by an NBA record 101 total points.
Mike Brown, on the other hand, was given a vote of confidence by his owner Dan Gilbert after another failure to capture a championship after being considered by most to be a frontrunner. The past 2 seasons the Cavaliers have won 60+ games and had the best record in the NBA. Also in the past 2 seasons the Cavaliers have failed to make it to the Finals. It was widely regarded that Brown would be let go if he could not get the Cavaliers farther than the Eastern Conference Finals where they were eliminated by the Magic last year. SI.com even falsely reported Brown had been fired. This is all coming exactly one year after Brown was voted NBA Coach of the Year and won 66 games.
P.S. You knew LeBron James is a free agent too, right?
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