Mullin, now the general manager of the Warriors, already has assembled a group in Nelson’s image in that the roster has no center who can score, a bunch of scorers on the wings, and more than its share of player who didn’t grow up in the United States. In addition, like traditional Nelson teams, the current Warriors don’t play much defense.
They do, however, still have Michael Pietrus who came to the team as the “Michael Jordan of France.” With the emergence of Tony Parker and Boris Diaw in recent years, Pietrus is sort of like the Sam Bowie of France.
I think I do understand Nelson’s motive for coming back. At one point, it looked like Nelson senior was trying to set up his son Donn Nelson junior as his successor in Dallas. Instead, Avery Johnson emerged as the coach in waiting and, once given the job, took the Mavericks to a level that Nelson Sr. had never managed — the NBA Finals. It should be a little while before Donn Jr. has any hope of taking the job away from Johnson. In the meantime, Donn Sr. could certainly bring his son/assistant back to Golden State.
More significant, I believe that Nelson loves coaching and that this is a no lose situation. Yes, the team might lose, but if he does he can blame it on the bad karma from 12 years ago and the idiocies of Chris Cohan. If the team happens to win, Nelson will have the entire Bay Area basketball community proclaiming his wisdom and greatness. As the second winningest coach in NBA history, Nelson remains an excellent judge of talent and just might manage a winning season out of what most consider a talented but underachieving roster.
Basically, it’s Nelson's chance to play the role of Pat Riley, though without having to get beaten by Texas Western in Glory Road or even having to win the NBA Championship. All Nelson has to do is make the playoffs in the next two years.
In the meantime, Ken Macha needs to watch his back. I’m sure the A’s must already be in talks with Tony LaRussa and Art Howe.
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