So far, every coach who has weighed in on David Blatt’s firing has expressed bewilderment. It’s understandable, given the Cavaliers’ 30-11 record, to be surprised, even though there were clearly other factors at play. But nobody’s reaction was more dramatic than Stan Van Gundy, who can always be counted on to be a good quote about these types of things.
Via Yahoo’s Michael Lee:
Stan Van Gundy on CLE firing David Blatt after 30-11 start: "That elevated all of the coach firings totally into the theater of the absurd."
— Michael Lee (@MrMichaelLee) January 23, 2016
SVG: "You can't even make a flimsy case that the guy wasn't meeting expectations...Obviously you have something else going on."
— Michael Lee (@MrMichaelLee) January 23, 2016
SVG: "Did he order the wrong type of food for post game meals? Did he not give David Griffin a nice enough Christmas present? I don't know."
— Michael Lee (@MrMichaelLee) January 23, 2016
SVG: "If David Blatt's getting fired how in the hell do the rest of us have jobs? Because our front offices aren't quite as crazy as theirs"
— Michael Lee (@MrMichaelLee) January 23, 2016
SVG: "The only thing more absurd would be...Walton did a good job, if we lose 2 in a row, we might have to dump [Kerr] & go back to Luke."
— Michael Lee (@MrMichaelLee) January 23, 2016
So, that’s a pretty strong reaction. The Van Gundy brothers never mince words when it comes to these things, and Stan is right that Blatt’s record did not warrant a firing. But, as has been widely reported elsewhere, his issues with LeBron James ran deep, and the two never clicked.