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Personality management: In a league with egos that are bigger than Bentleys, Nate has not only managed his young players' personalities, he has helped mold them. Every time I hear Brandon Roy open his mouth--always saying the right thing at the right time (the man is the Rose Parade Grand Marshal)-- I see Nate's steady, professional influence. Every time I see James Jones and Channing Frye taking an extra step to connect with the community -- participating in a Spelling Bee and running a "Keep Portland Weird" blog photo contest come to mind-- I see Nate's fan-friendly fingerprints. It's no secret that NBA teams take on the personality of their coach: look no further than Randolph's Knicks, who mirrored the flakiness, emotional inconsistency and crass sexuality of their coach, Isiah Thomas. Thankfully, this season, Portland fans were treated to a classy, put-together team: the spitting image of Nate McMillan.
Player development: Let's be real, though. This season wasn't a success because Nate had the team acting like a Cub Scout troop. No, the fan support directly followed the team's improved on-court performance. Joel Przybilla, Travis Outlaw, Brandon Roy and LaMarcus Aldridge--all four took huge steps forward in their individual games. Last summer, if you told me Joel would be mounting a legitimate challenge for the starting job next year, Travis would be drawing comparisons to Michael Jordan for his clutch play down the stretch, Brandon would be an all-star and LaMarcus would be winning head-to-head battles with just about every power forward in the league, I would have told you that it's time to pass that pipe, son. Amazingly, that's exactly where we stand right now. Big kudos to Nate and his assistant coaches for fostering a culture in which the young talents on this roster are able to fully maximize their potential.
Handling the rotation: Aside from the pro-Sergio/anti-Jack drumbeat and some late-season flak surrounding the short-changing of Channing Frye's minutes (real talk: Channing earned his spot on the bench thanks to a long stretch of soft play), even those most critical of Nate were left speechless by his ability to pick and choose lineups and combinations that matched skills to situations and effectively covered up this roster's defensive liabilities. Sure, Nate rode Brandon and LaMarcus for heavy minutes, but you would do the same thing if your salary depended upon it. As for in-game management, his timeout usage and the team's late game acumen won praise from the likes of the Wall Street Journal. When the Wall Street Journal is breaking out the abacuses and graphing calculators to put your work into proper statistical perspective, it's safe to say you're doing something right.
The Intangibles: Nate was thrown a few curveballs this year: Greg Oden playing pickup ball at 24 hour fitness, Jarrett Jack's inconsistent play, and the storm cloud that was Darius Miles. In each situation, Nate provided a sure, steady hand. He talked with Greg personally and with the media directly, quickly dispelling a potentially damaging story. He stood by Jarrett through thick and thin, never throwing the young player under the bus, even when Jarrett was throwing the ball into the 12th row (free souvenirs!). He wisely chose to deflect the Miles saga, instead focusing the media's attention on the young team's play. Three challenges, three solutions, zero distractions... one great coach.
If Paul Allen were to create the ideal coach for this young, extremely talented team, he would be looking for: intelligence, consistency, basketball IQ, leadership and an ability to relate to players. Nate showed all of those characteristics and more this year in guiding the team to a solid, surprising 41 wins. If you don't vote "approve" on this one, then you're just looking for attention.
http://blog.oregonlive.com/blazers/2008 ... illan.html
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