When the Grass Isn't Greener

Jeff Van Gundy was skeptical.

As six NBA coaches were fired at the end of the 2022-23 season, the former ESPN broadcaster and head coach said he failed to see the logic behind many of the moves.

“Everybody assumes with change comes improvement. I’m not like that,” Van Gundy said on The Ryen Russillo show. “I’ve seen many coaching changes that have led to a team getting worse.”   

Now, as the NBA playoffs enter the second round, none of the teams that made coaching changes last offseason are still playing. Meanwhile, seven of the eight remaining teams have a coach who’s been with his respective franchise in some capacity for over three years.

The trends have a couple of key takeaways for us:

1. Big change rarely pays immediate dividends

When we taste success, we often like to believe we’re knocking on the door of even more — and that we just need a personnel tweak or strategy adjustment to bring about the ultimate goal.

But our efforts to fix one element can easily come at the expense of another, such as team member chemistry or overarching philosophy. And as a result, what we thought was a brilliant move can quickly backfire.

Change of any kind is almost always a risk that requires patience, steadiness and an acknowledgment that we may not see immediate results.

2. There’s value in continuity

Mark Daigenault, the head coach of No. 1 seed Oklahoma City, has been with the franchise since 2014. Michael Malone, the head coach of reigning-champion Denver, has been with his franchise since 2015. Joe Mazzulla has been in the Celtics’ organization since 2019.

In essence, they weren’t just randomly brought in as quick fixes to problems. They’ve experienced highs and lows, and with their scars have likely come perspectives and insights outsiders wouldn’t have.

The lessons here isn’t that we should never make a change or that we should just stick with something that isn’t working.

But as leaders, we need to understand that there are inevitable ebbs and flows to performance.

Overreacting to lows and finding scapegoats for our problems can turn short-term disappointment into long-term aggravation.

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