5 Things To Do When Your (NBA) Head Coach Gets Fired

Working in the NBA

This article is written in particular for NBA Video Coordinators and Video Interns.

One thing is for sure in every NBA off season, people will be getting fired and hired.  All of the transition around the League leads to opportunity.  Opportunity for those trying to get their foot in the door.  Opportunity for those trying to move to a more favorable role.

Oftentimes when a Head Coach gets fired, it’s the entire coaching staff which includes Assistant Coaches, Advanced Scouts, and Video Coordinators. 

But… but… there is often one position that gets left behind and that is the Assistant Video Coordinator or the Video Intern.

The Video Coordinator before I came to Trail Blazers had started as the Video Intern.  The Coaching staff was fired, the Video Coordinator was fired, and the Video Intern was the last one standing.

When the next Coach got fired, the Video Coordinator got to stay a year and then was fired and the last one standing was me, the Assistant Video Coordinator.

The Video Coordinator who hired me as his Intern was Kaleb Canales.  Kaleb and Tim (Assistant Video Coordinator) used to tell me, “One day, we’ll all be fired and you’ll be the only one left.”  I would tell him how ridiculous that was.  They were gods of the NBA Video world to me.  They knew the ins and outs of basketball 100x more than me, they were video experts, they had relationships with the players, they were deeply invested in the franchise… I could not fathom them all being gone and the young guy trying to figure out what a drag screen was would still be there. 

But Kaleb and Tim’s words were proved right.

And after the next Coach was fired (I had transitioned to the front office by this time), I went straight over to the Assistant Video Coordinator to give them a pep talk and help them with their process.

Everyone had been fired, the Head Coach, the coaching staff, the Advanced Scout, and the Video Coordinator.

In a way, the Assistant Video Coordinator and Video Intern are too far down the totem pole to be fired.  They are likely at-will employees and not under contract.  They’re not seen as a threat and yet they can offer a bridge to the next staff. 

5 Things To Do When Your (NBA) Head Coach Gets Fired

1.     Be the Bridge

Part of why you weren’t fired as well is no one in the Front Office knows how to manage a Video Room.  While they still want to clear out the remnants of the Coaching staff, they also need a bridge to the next staff.  They need someone who understands the video equipment, who can work out players, and who can help transition the new staff.

2.     Take Care of Everything for Everyone

Another key to sticking around as a Video Coordinator / Intern (in any capacity) is doing everything for everyone.  If there are holes on the staff in a transition time, it’s an opportunity to step in.  The year Nate McMillan (and staff) were fired with the Trail Blazers, I went from Assistant Video Coordinator to Summer League Assistant Coach and Scout.  I started doing ‘full-time’ work for both the coaching staff and front office staff at this time which helped in securing my transition to the front office as the new coaching staff came in.    

3.     Be Ready

You may get an opportunity to interview with the new staff.   Be ready for any scenario which could include staying as a Video Intern or assistant or having a chance to take a lead role, or even switching departments.    

4.     Keep Expectations Low

Although there are opportunities for growth, oftentimes, a new staff comes in already knowing who they want as their Video Coordinator… and sorry, it’s not you.  In this case, they still likely may give you the opportunity to stay but don’t expect a promotion.  It’s up to you to decide whether to stay in your role or look elsewhere.

5.     Don’t be Afraid to Find Another Opportunity

If the new staff decides to keep you in your current role, I see two things.  One, that’s a really good thing.  It’s an opportunity to continue working in the NBA and with your franchise.  The second thing is, the new staff may be less invested in you and your growth.  You’re there because well, you’re already there.  In this case, don’t be afraid to branch out and look for a different opportunity where the staff and organization is invested in you.   

While doing video work for the Front Office, I enlisted our Basketball Operations Intern to assist with some video preparation (partly to spread out the work and partly because I knew my time would end and I wanted him to be ready to step into the role if needed).  I told him, “One day, we’re all going to be fired and you’ll be the last one standing.”  He didn’t quite believe me.  But soon enough, I was fired, others from Operations were fired, and the now former Intern was now lush with new opportunities.  “You were right, it was just like you told me,” he said to me later. 

Be the bridge and be ready.   

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