I just returned from a fine holiday week back in my hometown of Knoxville, Tennessee, so I figured it would be appropriate to post a Vol-related blog this time.  Knoxville is absolutely Vol-crazy, even more so than Austin (my current residence) is Longhorn-crazy.  Austin, Texans extremely loud-n-proud about all things Austin, Texas, and Texan pride is world renown.  But nothing compares to the bright orange hue that blankets Knoxville, especially at football time, and the Volunteers seem to at least seep into every walk of life in Knoxville, if not a live as a constant topic of conversation wherever you go.  I think if I had gotten pulled over for speeding while I was there, the cop would have looked at my Austin driver's license and said, "Man, guess y'all weren't too happy about that basketball game the other night, huh?" (The unranked men's basketball Vols had just upset the #6 'Horns).  So, here's a Big Orange question for you fellow bloggers to chew on:

Could Pat Summitt coach in the NBA?  

This is a question that's been batted around a bit in the last year or two, so I thought I'd toss it back out there.  It's a good question, not only for a discussion on Pat Summitt herself, but the discussion it brings about the current NBA in general.

The wording of the question is important here.  It's not "can she", but "could she?"  I think it's already pretty fair to say that she "can", meaning that she has basketball knowledge, coaching experience, and leadership ability that is virtually unparalleled in the game of basketball.  Ask any of the great coaches of all time (including Dean Smith, who she just surpassed on the all-time college win list), and they not only have great admiration for her accomplishments, but huge respect for her ability as a coach and as a great basketball mind.  She's coached NCAA championship teams, Olympic teams, future WNBA stars, and has done so for decades.  Her work ethic is unmatched -- she once took a helicopter on a recruiting trip to see a top prospect while in the first stages of labor.  And she's even still trying to improve and learn and innovate, as she exemplified in her meeting with Phil Jackson to "pick his brain" about the triangle offense.  We could go on and on with her accolades, so suffice to say that almost anybody who knows the game would have a hard time arguing that she doesn't have the qualifications to coach at the highest level possible, and that's the NBA.

But could she?  Would NBA players respect and respond to a woman as a head coach?  Would she want to deal with all the attention it would garner, and could she be effective as a coach with that much off-the-court distraction and general hubbub?  Does she understand the NBA well enough?  Is the game of college basketball, particularly women's basketball, too different from the NBA to translate her style and schemes?  Would she, at her age and tenure, even want to leave where she is for a new venture?  And would she be willing to risk failure at the end of such a long and successful career?

As much as it pains me to say it, I would have to say that she most likely couldn't coach in the NBA.  But not for any of the reasons listed above -- the real reason is much more basic:  she would insist on coaching basketball.

She would insist on being in charge, and would demand respect at all times.  In today's NBA, where players basically run the teams, stars are treated with celebrity kid gloves, fan attendance in paramount, and coaches are often an interchangeable afterthought, a coach that would demand responsibility, accountability, hard-nosed play, and fundamental soundness would be frowned upon by most players and organizations.  The NBA is about selling tickets first, and basketball second.  A decidedly un-Pat Summitt way of doing things.

To answer the questions I posed earlier (because I'm just that way), I'd have to say first that I do think that, with a solid organization such as Detroit or San Antonio, she could win the respect and response of her players.  In fact, I think being a woman, especially a woman as tough as Pat Summitt, would actually help her in that regard.  Players would have the natural response of a "don't wanna upset my Mama" mindset, coupled with the fear that if you disobey her she might tell you to "go out and pick yourself a switch for me to whup you with.  And don't pick out no little puny one, neither, or I'll go pick one myself."  Pat Summitt is big, country, tough, fair, and can lay a "stink eye" on a player or official that would make Bill Parcells proud.  But it's a tough love, as she hands out a hugs and high-fives for great play as easy and often as she hands out intimidation and verbal assaults for sloppy play.                          

Could she handle the attention and be an effective coach?  Probably, but it would be incredibly tough and personally draining.  Could she coach the modern NBA game?  To a degree, but she would have to change to the run-and-gun NBA style, and shift focus away from rebounding and defense.  I think she could, but wouldn't do it.  Would she be willing to make such a huge professional change, and take such a monumental risk?  I don't think so.  Pat Summitt is a winner, and I don't think she would be willing to put herself in a situation that's virtually impossible to win.

Most of all, Pat Summitt is humble and believes in team play.  I think she's happy with her status as a pioneer, innovator, and basketball Goddess.  And it would be a very "Pat Summitt" ideology to leave the next step for the next generation of the team, to give other women coaches something to strive for, which is to be the first female coach in the NBA.