Philadelphia 76ers Curious Hire Asst Head Coach Jim OBrien

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Mar 23, 2015; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Indiana Pacers president Larry Bird reacts to the Pacers losing against the Houston Rockets at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. Houston defeats Indiana 110-100. Mandatory Credit: Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports /

A Trail of Conflict

Why would a head coach resign during a rather successful run? He hated change. Pure and simple. He bonded with his players, grew to trust them, learned their strengths and weaknesses.
And then they were gone.

O’Brien felt he was in charge of a playoff caliber team. Ainge saw a team with huge holes that needed replaced. And their relationship ended.

He had a third head coaching run with the Indiana Pacers. He was hired to coach the team in May of 2007, and he remained until the start of the 2010-2011 season. That team never made the playoffs under his reign, but the straw that broke the camel’s back happened on year four.

Larry Bird was the general manager of the team and was bothered by O’Brien’s refusal to give more minutes to the team’s young players. Bird said he’d like to see rookie Paul George play more, and he was frustrated with how little forward Tyler Hansbrough played early in the season. He felt that O’Brien’s public berating of center Roy Hibbert damaged the 7-foot-2 center’s confidence. Bird and Vogel agreed that Hibbert is an important piece of the team’s future.

"“I just didn’t believe in that stuff when I coached, and I didn’t believe it when I played,” Bird said. “But Jimmy does things that Jimmy does. That’s how he expresses himself, and he thinks he can motivate the player like that. But in this case, with the guys that we have, I don’t think it worked well.”"

Now, don’t misunderstand me. As a lifelong fan of the Philadelphia 76ers, I think I’m okay with someone who doesn’t get along with former Boston Celtics players Danny Ainge or Larry Bird. But the reasons for the dismissals are troubling.

Next: Another Comeback Kid?