In the National Basketball Association, less formally known as the NBA, it’s a general rule that great players make poor coaches, witness: Bob Cousy (player/coach); Magic Johnson (player/coach); Dave Cowens (player/coach); Kurt Rambis (player/coach) . . . wait, I said great players. Rambis sucks. Heck, Kareem Abdul-Jabbarcan’t even get a pro coaching gig. And, that’s just Celtics and Lakers players. There are, of course, exceptions to this rule, as well: Larry Bird’s coaching career with the Indiana Pacers was very successful; but, then, of course it was: Larry wins at everything. Bill Russell, too, as player-coach of the Celtics, enjoyed success, winning a title in 1968-69; but, Bill Russell was the greatest winner in the history of professional sports. Even so, the vast majority of great players who become coaches flame out, often spectacularly. One theory that has been advanced is that great players don’t understand/don’t know how to cope with failure; so, consequently, they cannot coach other, less talented persons through those teaching moments. This argument is buoyed by the fact that less successful players are often more successful coaches, potentially because they can direct others through times of struggle, due to their own particular experience. The litany of crappy NBA players who have become good coaches is numerous, with Phil Jackson (player/coach) probably being the exemplar for that class of individual. (Of course, crappy players can also become crappy coaches. I’m looking directly at you, M.L. Carr. And, college coaches generally make for spectacular failures in the NBA. Rick Pitino is not walking through that door— neither is John Calipari, for that matter. But, none of this is making my point . . .)