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SALT LAKE CITY — It has officially been announced that Karl Malone will be helping the young big men for the Jazz as a coach.
The Mailman will coach Derrick Favors and Enes Kanter in a personal role that will happen throughout the season off and on. The exact time and place isn't decided yet. Malone wants to spend time with his family, so he will try to make time with each of them.
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He said on 1280 TheZone that he has already worked once with Favors and is waiting for Kanter to recover from his dislocated shoulder. He won't spend time on the bench with coach Tyrone Corbin as of now, but will be employed by the Jazz at some level.
The term periodic has been used as his availability. He won't be a full-time coach, but has said he will get to work with each player. This goes beyond just Favors and Kanter, could include Jeremy Evans and any other player they could pick up.
But there are pros and cons for the hire. Why this will and won't work out, or better yet could or couldn't. Starting with the pros.
Pros:
He gets what he is. He isn't going to try and overstep his bounds and try to run the team. He will simply do what he knows how to do. He isn't going to try and create some new way to teach or overrule Corbin. He said repeatedly in his interview that he won't try to overstep and no one will have to worry about their jobs.
He'll teach what he knows and what he thinks will actually help. In multiple interviews he talked about something that very few had ever thought about.
He said that when he would get a rebound he wouldn't just look to pass then get down the court. He wanted to not only beat his own man to the offensive glass, but also that he wanted to get the ball to his point guard then beat him down the court.
This ties into the next area that he can provide help with: work ethic. While he was never small he became a powerhouse as he got older and transformed into a hulk who would be able to play every game. Favors and Kanter have already missed multiple games in their short careers.
Granted most of the games missed probably don't have anything to do with simply working out, such as Favors' foot and Kanter's shoulder separation, but Malone should be able to show these guys how to stay healthy and take care of their bodies. They will need to play extended minutes and Malone's intense workouts could prepare them for that.
He learned how to shoot a jump shot over time. He could give those little tips about how to work a fade-away in the post. How to run the pick-and-pop so they don't have to take punishment down low every play. If he can show them how to hit those 15-18 foot shots the inside-out game for the Jazz could be among the league's best.
Cons:
Ultimately the biggest con is that great players don't always turn into great coaches. Normally coaches are backups that spend a lot of time on the bench. Granted the top-five coaches on the wins list were all good to great players. However just looking at the coaching landscape today the majority of coaches weren't great players.
Of all the head coaches active right now Kevin McHale, Jeff Hornacek, Lionel Hollins, Mark Jackson and Doc Rivers made an All-Star game and only McHale made more than one. None were the premier player and most were there to be either hustle guys, specialists or brought in to support the superstar.
The sport is littered with greats who failed in the coaching end. Patrick Ewing, Hakeem Olajuwon, Isiah Thomas and Magic Johnson tried to coach but weren't great in different capacities. It is hard to teach people how to be talented. To be fair, coaches in every sport are normally better when they spent a lot of time as backups.
Malone said that Favors and Kanter are far more talented than he ever was, which is unlikely. However, if they are that talented Malone should be able to teach them how to play the position.
Another con is that he does bring some circus element to the Jazz. His hire is already the biggest news this offseason and he isn't even really a coach. Can he stay out of the limelight and let the team just play? Everyone is expecting him to be the next big coach and sit on the bench, so if the Jazz start losing will it become an issue?
The last problem could be the amount of time that he could bring. If Kanter and Favors need extra help and Malone is off fishing then how will they react. Will they have someone else to fall back on or will they spend another offseason just getting more athletic instead of becoming better ball players.
The pros outweigh the cons, which is why the Jazz pulled the trigger, and it is definitely worth the minimal risk. The worst thing that happens is Favors and Kanter have to go elsewhere to learn. The Jazz aren't invested too much in Malone.
The ultimate upside is Favors and Kanter developing into the stars they were drafted to become. The Jazz would have a top level front-line for years.
The answer will probably lie somewhere in between. Malone probably won't be able to perform miracles, but should be able to teach them the basics of hard work and the foundation for the position.
