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Randy Wittman Could Be Done Without Eastern Conference Finals Trip

By Josh Wilson

May 15, 2015; Washington, DC, USA; Washington Wizards head coach Randy Wittman gestures against the Atlanta Hawks during the first half in game six of the second round of the NBA Playoffs at Verizon Center. Mandatory Credit: Brad Mills-USA TODAY Sports
May 15, 2015; Washington, DC, USA; Washington Wizards head coach Randy Wittman gestures against the Atlanta Hawks during the first half in game six of the second round of the NBA Playoffs at Verizon Center. Mandatory Credit: Brad Mills-USA TODAY Sports /
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Randy Wittman is entering his fourth full year as a head coach of the Washington Wizards. Although many see Wittman as an overall good leader of the team, questions are certainly rising after yet another disappointing early exit from the playoffs.

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Washington has undoubtedly been the climax of Wittman’s coaching career. Wittman’s overall win percentage as a coach is just .394, largely brought up by his years with the Wizards. Washington is the only team he’s ever been able to bring up to better than .500 in any given season. He’s led three different teams as head coach.

Although he’s been able to be involved in the process of improvement that the team has seen in the past few years (from .354 in 2012-13 to .561 this season), he’s not the perfect coach by any means. After all, the team has been knocked out of the playoffs in the conference semifinals the past two years, which has felt like a premature finish for both seasons.

Especially this year, the sting of going out that early hurts. After sweeping the Toronto Raptors in round one, lots expected more than just two victories against the Atlanta Hawks.

There’s lots to like about Wittman. I think we all enjoyed him scolding the media after false reports about John Wall came out this year. It’s clear he cares about the guys in the locker room.

But alas, that is where we stand. And now questions begin to rise surrounding Wittman, following the precedent of some other coaches who have seen their lives with their teams come to an end.

First it was Scott Brooks, former Oklahoma City Thunder head coach. Brooks spent all his time so far as a coach of OKC, and was able to lead them to an overall .620 win percentage. They made the playoffs in five of his seven seasons with the team, but missed this year predominantly due to an injury-ridden year.

Although Brooks had success in taking the Thunder to the playoffs, he wasn’t able to really get them very far at all. He only took them to the Finals once, where they ended up losing.

The next to get his firing this offseason was Monty Williams, despite him taking the New Orleans Pelicans to the playoffs for the first time since his first year there in 2011. It was a successful year, seemingly, with a very promising future in Anthony Davis.

Chicago Bulls head coach Tom Thibodeau was a firing we all saw coming. We all knew about the relationship between Thibs and the front office, and that was ultimately what led to the firing, a bad relationship. Well, that, and a failure to make the playoffs a success.

Despite having a .647 win percentage throughout the regular season as head coach of the Bulls, Thibs could only lead the team to a .451 winning percentage during the postseason, and only took them to the conference finals once, in his first year as head coach. Twice they were eliminated in the first round.

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    • What do these mentioned coaches have in common? They weren’t exactly unsuccessful. In all of their cases, they were winning, enough to get into the playoffs (taking Brooks’ most recent year out of the equation). Despite their success, teams are now adopting a higher standard for their coaches.

    It screams a message to the coaches who still have jobs: Even if you are winning, do NOT be stagnant. Simply winning but going out in the playoffs in an untimely manner is not acceptable.

    So what does this mean for Wittman? Unfortunately for him, it sets incredibly high expectations for next season. Especially with the precedent of going out in round two the past two seasons, it’s likely that the front office will be expecting him to advance to at least the conference finals.

    It’s not an impossible task, especially in the Eastern Conference. Heck, had Paul Pierce gotten his last shot off a half-second earlier, the Wizards would’ve been within one game of it this season. It’s achievable, but that is also why it is necessary for Wittman to complete this task.

    The norm for successful NBA coaches now is not simply making the playoffs. It’s being successful in the playoffs. Wittman has taken the Wizards to the playoffs, but if he is unable to take them further than he has before, I believe his time in Washington may be coming to an end.

    Next: 5 Wizards Who Must Play Better Next Season

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