[high floorParticipant]

Since coach Skiles was introduced as Head Coach of Orlando this summer, their was an overwhelming sense amongst the league (and the Magic’s fan base) that the Skiles hiring was heavily influenced by President of Basketball Operations Alex Martins.. not GM Rob Hennigan. Alex Martins rose through the ranks of the organization in the early 90’s as a public relations manager, then became Chief Operating Officer in 2006. Skiles was a fan favorite of the franchise during Martin’s early tenure, so read into that as you wish. Also as an aside, Martins does not have a basketball background in coaching or playing.

So, the point of this post is to illustrate the dangerous path Orlando is headed. When Orlando traded Tobias Harris to Detroit for Ilyasova & Jennings, that move reaked of Skiles influence. Skiles coached both players in Milwaukee, and ironically traded Harris (the first time) in 2012 when the quartet were all members of the Bucks! So why is Orlando hitching their future to Skile’s star?? A coach who notoriously wears on his players and front office colleagues? A coach who has a .500 career winning percentage and zero appearances past the second round? Skiles reputation is to accelerate struggling teams and give them a taste of the playoffs, not providing long term sustainability.

Rob Hennigan shouldn’t be completely absloved from Orlando’s slow rise to relevancy the past 4 years. But I do feel he did well on several moves, in particular:

• The Dwight trade in 2012
• The original Tobias Harris trade 
• Drafting Oladipo in 2013
• Trading Afflalo for Evan Fournier in 2014
• Drafting Aaron Gordon in 2014
• Drafting Mario Hezonja in 2015

Reviewing those transactions, I think Hennigan has earned enough leeway to make his own decisions for the franchise without involving a first year, .500 carer record coach. But on the flip side the jury is still out on the most recent trade last week. Jennings does provide 3pt shooting from the backcourt which Orlando really needs, and Ersan is a capable player who can get you some buckets in the frontcourt. But overall, for the Orlando faithful that want to see this team rack up winning seasons consistently again, riding the Skiles/Martins train could be hazardous for your health.

 

 

 

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