Despite Slight, Knox Stays Focused On His Next Opportunity; Did Fever Drop the Ball? How WNBA Should Respond

Despite Slight, Knox Stays Focused On His Next Opportunity; How Did Fever Drop the Ball? What Should WNBA Do? 

 By Deon Cash

Carlos Knox, one of the greatest hoopers in Indiana's storied basketball history, was offered the job of a lifetime.

 Knox was offered a chance to be a head coach in the WNBA, one of the biggest and best professional leagues in the world. 

While the circumstances wasn't ideal, Knox would get the opportunity to coach the Indiana Fever last season. He would become the "Interim Coach" of the Fever, taking over midseason. Marianne Stanley, the previous coach, decided to quit 7 games into the season, giving Knox the opportunity to be a Head Coach at the top level on the girls side. 

While the team has talent, this was a young core with former Ohio State star Kelsey Mitchell leading the team. They had drafted 7 rookies and kept 5 by the end of training camp. 

During last season, there were times the Fever were actually playing 3 or 4 rookies on the court, at the same time. Against the likes of Seattle, Vegas and Phoenix. Every single game. 

And while it felt a little "Fab 5 Ish" with the rookies, the results were the opposite, as the WNBA has some serious ballers on every team, considering there are only 12 teams in the league. Why are there only 12 teams? Thats a topic for another day. 

While the team was competitive in the first 25 games of Knox tenure, the organization continued to make roster moves that hurt the overall competitiveness of the team. They released the 2 tallest players on the team, as it was apparent that the Fever would have a size disadvantage each and every game. In a league loaded with elite ballers, the Fever went with rookies Queen Egbo, Nalyssa Smith, and Emily Engstler in the paint to push their new "youth movement" Lin Dunn, GM of the Fever said. 

The team would go on a long losing streak, as they played on a brutal west coast swing for the last 3 weeks of the season. By the 20-game mark it was evident that they were the worst team in basketball. 

So when the season was over, the Fever had secured the worst record in the league but had watched some of the young players get significant time. They even seen a few of their young stars play up to WNBA elite levels consistently for stretches of the season. 

However, when the season was over, Knox would get the axe, and there is still no coach for the Fever yet.

While they obviously had their eye on someone, it has been over a month and still no coach. Lin has posted a couple of social media pressers pleading for patience and excitement from the tough Fever fan base for the next coach. 

Hard to get excited when you got rid of your best coaching prospect and one of the up and comers in the coaching game and can't get anybody you actually targeted. 

While Knox had his share of ups and downs as a head coach, he literally only had 3 months to make an impact.  And anyone that knows Knox, knows he can do a variety of things, but a few things stand out:

(1) His ability to get you to listen to the gameplan and task at hand.

(2) His ability to work and get you to the next level. 

(3) He knows X's and O's and how to put key players in positions to make plays.

If you remember, Knox was a coach and trainer for Tamika Catchings, one of the greatest players in WNBA history. Knox was one of the major influencers on the only WNBA title that Indiana grabbed. He has a great repoire with a lot of the players, and still works out the likes of Skylar Diggins Smith, along with others in the WNBA and beyond. 

So, while Lin Dunn and the organization gets credit for that title, thank Knox and his tireless work ethic to help develop those players to get them to an elite level. 

Over the last decade, there has been no worse organization in sports. Read that again in case you didn't fully grasp that.

 So Knox was added back into the fold, as the organization realized what they have let go. They snatched Knox up from Cincinnati, where he was an assistant coach for the Lady Bearcats. 

While some will say Knox didn't do much but let them play a fast pace and wasn't animated on the sideline, the rebuttal for that is simple. They were the smallest, youngest, most inexperienced team in the league. By far. 

They couldn't play a slow, half-court style of game, without having a consistent post player to bring buckets, so there weren't many options. And as far as yelling and grandstanding, for what? These are pro athletes. 

             Picture Before Knox Was Head Coach

Knox absolutely deserved another season, without the meddling and patrolling of the front office who feels like they'd rather make silly commercials and do NBA2k style transactions rather than admit their faults, which were evident for a large portion of the last decade, last season, and now, offseason.

 Here's a fast fact:

One thing the NBA and other elite leagues do is protect their assets and investments, whether it's a building, a rising player, a coach, or an employee. Will the WNBA let Knox, who is a proven winner and has had a good record wherever he has been as a coach, be treated like some scrub? When in all actuality, this was a team Dunn, Stanley, and the Fever front office had created?  Another mess they didn't want to fully be responsible for?

While the WNBA has shown that women will have a voice, they need to also show that their loyal workers and top coaches on the come up need to be respected as well. Men should be respected equally as well in the WNBA. 

When speaking with Knox, he has already had a few interviews in the WNBA, college, and other ranks, so he is back in grind mode, per the usual. It has been a month since the unpopular decision, so Knox, while not happy with the decision, has accepted the fate, and moved on.

 Knox is a cool cat, so he is able to compartmentalize, elevate and continue to move forward. He understands the game within the game. He also understands the sports business can be a cold world, and the WNBA, while having some great young talent, still needs help with some internal issues before even thinking about pushing to NBA levels of success. 

Regardless, expect Knox to speak this week on the situation and if the WNBA was smart, they would make sure one of their top tier coaches bounces back somewhere. Hopefully they learned from the Brittney Griner situation; Keep your top tier talent in good situations in your league. 

Bottom line?  The WNBA needs to back their top coaches and instructors, much like they did Becky Hammon. No matter the race, gender, or any other issues. 

Follow us on the journey

@SELive365  on (FOX) (Iheartradio)