Tim Duncan’s nickname throughout his playing days was “The Big Fundamental,” a title that was bestowed upon the power forward by frequent opponent Shaquille O’Neal. O’Neal was referencing the perfectly polished moveset that Duncan used to outscore, outrebound and outsmart the competition, over and over, much to the devastation of his opponents.
Thus, it makes sense that Duncan’s adjustment to the coaching game has been a fairly smooth process, manifesting itself in a victory when he filled in for Gregg Popovich on Tuesday night. It wasn’t the easiest game to win, either; Duncan gave several different bench players a solid chunk of playing time and was able to eke out a one-point victory that the Hornets had a chance to steal away.
Still, after trailing by 17 points after the first quarter alone, Duncan should be credited with an impressive coaching debut. The guys on “Scal and Pals” discussed the story, and after acknowledging the victory, Brian Scalabrine gave an interesting take on why he didn’t think “great players [are] good coaches.”
“It would be hard for them to take those natural steps at what it takes to be a great coach,” Scalabrine said. “Look at Nick Nurse. He coached all over the world, he did this job, that job. He was able to grow as a coach before he was in the spotlight, in the limelight. I don’t think Nick Nurse skipped steps.”
Using Brad Stevens as another example, Scal’s basic premise is that longtime NBA superstars generally wouldn’t transition into a coaching stage easily due to the necessary challenges and experiences that good head coaches often have to endure.
So which players would make a good coach in the NBA? Here are five active players -- most of which are stars -- whose skill sets, challenging experiences and leadership qualities seem to point toward a successful future as an NBA coach.
Chris Paul is leading the Thunder to a solid 2019-20 season.USA Today
Chris Paul, Oklahoma City Thunder
Why are we starting with someone who directly violates Scal’s rule of thumb for who makes a good head coach? A 10x All-Star with nine All-Defensive team and eight All-NBA team selections seems to fit the bill for a “great” player.
But CP3 is a different type of player. He has been held responsible for shouldering a huge workload since day one in the NBA and has a relatively low amount of controversy and drama on his resume throughout his career for someone who is considered a star year after year.
The ultimate point guard, Paul brings out the strengths of his supporting cast and finds ways to up the utility of everyone around him. His facilitation of the offense -- he has four assist titles under his belt and a career average of 9.5 per game -- is something that would seem to transfer directly to a coaching role.
His biggest challenge so far in his career was probably what he was faced with heading into the 2019-20 season, with a rebuilding group in Oklahoma City. What he’s done to help lead the team to a surprisingly successful season and likely playoff seed is just another testament to how he can influence a team’s success.
Kyrie Irving has watched a lot of this season off the court.USA Today
Kyrie Irving, Brooklyn Nets
Most NBA coaches believe that the earth is round, so that may be one small blemish on Kyrie’s resume as a player and leader. However, he has been the undisputed leader on both a good and bad team, he’s played second fiddle on a championship team and he’s dealt with controversy, tense locker room relationships and just about every other scenario in the book.
Now, he’s the vice president of the National Basketball Player’s Association. This would indicate that he’s very well-respected among his NBA peers -- well, most of them. It’ll be interesting to see how he plays alongside Kevin Durant, as his relationship with a star of similar prominence often felt strayed in Cleveland.
Still, he has a knack of getting to the playoffs, earning the respect of several teammates and opponents and serving as a useful guide to many of the budding guards below him. Given that he’s only 27 and already has built such a huge role on different teams and in the league as a whole, he would project to have a strong presence as a coach.
Vince Carter, 43, is the oldest player in the NBA.USA Today
Vince Carter, Atlanta Hawks
Vinsanity’s journey to the NBA certainly wasn’t easy. If it was, they wouldn’t have made a full-length documentary about how he brought Toronto basketball into the national spotlight. But he’s done much more. He single-handedly brought excitement to and revived the dunk contest after a dead period. He transferred out of a lead scorer role after his body, understandably, began to wear down and he accepted this change without any gripes.
Perhaps most importantly, he was the leader of a brand new franchise once it was brought into the NBA, has played for winners and losers, has moved around a lot in different roles and in different cities, and all of this is to show that he has tremendous experience in various situations that would all bode well in his assimilation into the world of coaching. The active leader in games played has obviously been through the wringer.
Andre Iguodala has settled into Miami after a rough patch in Memphis.USA Today
Andre Iguodala, Miami Heat
There are many different ways to view how Iguodala handled his brief tenure on the Memphis Grizzlies. One way to look at it is that it was an immature decision for him to hold out for a young and talented team that could have used his veteran leadership. Several guys on the team commented publicly on it, and they seem to be much happier without that distraction taking away from the team’s surprising performance thus far.
Another way to look at it, however, is that Iguodala knows what he wants. He knew that he wanted to be a part of a team with definitely win-now aspirations. He worked phenomenally in a role that emphasized his veteran leadership and defensive know-how with the Warriors and led them -- yes, he led that stacked roster, winning the 2014-15 Finals MVP -- to loads of success.
Kyle Korver has played a key role with the Milwaukee Bucks.USA Today
Kyle Korver, Milwaukee Bucks
Korver definitely possesses the lowest amount of star power on this list. He’s received one All-Star nod, coming in 2014-15 when he shot a ridiculous 49.2% from deep. That stat alone should tell you about Korver’s role in the NBA: he’s a shooter. He’s a shooter that has been able to rely on his ridiculously accurate sniping abilities for years and continues to be an important roster cog even at age 38.
A couple things make Korver a fantastic coaching option. For one, he has already been asked to use his deadly shooting ability as a useful tool for other players. As soon as the Bucks brought him in for 2019-20, they stuck him in the gym with Giannis Antetokounmpo and let the training begin, according to Eric Woodyard of ESPN. The results? So far, so good: the Greek Freak has upped his 2018-19 percentage from 25.6% to 31.1% this season on nearly two additional attempts per game.
Korver has also watched a ton of basketball play out before his eyes from the bench. He is fifth in games played among active players despite starting just about one-third of them. All that bench time is an incalculable amount of experience that has likely built his understanding of the game to a level that most players will never reach.
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