Mike Brown May be the Fall Guy for Cavaliers Playoff Flop

According to reports in Pro Basketball News and the New York Daily News, Cleveland Cavaliers coach Mike Brown's job may be in jeopardy. The reports say that members of the Cavs front office believe that the reason that the team was bounced from the Playoffs by the Orlando Magic stemmed from coaching. Pro Basketball News writes:

Some key members of the organization feel Brown was badly out-coached by Orlando's Stan Van Gundy, according to sources. One source said Cavs management wasn't only disappointed in the losses, "but equally disappointed in the (two) wins" in a series that went six games.

One of the Cavs' victories came on a remarkable last-second 3-pointer by James at the buzzer, another when the offense consisted of James getting the ball at the top of the key and pretty much going one-on-one against the entire Magic defense. In all three home games, the Cavs surrendered leads of at least 16 points, including advantages of more than 20 points on two occasions.

None of the sources would allow their names to be used, and only one agreed to be quoted.

The latter referred to Brown's game plan as "junk," and used that word several times to describe the offensive philosophy in Game 5 of the East finals -- a 112-102 Cavs victory.

The Daily News , who broke the story, say that Pat Riley may be in the mix for the job writing:

There are reports of infighting in the Cleveland Cavaliers organization in the wake of their disappointing loss to Orlando in the Eastern Conference. And the consensus around the league is that Mike Brown was badly out-coached by Stan Van Gundy in the series. It's a tough and unfair job; you are Coach of the Year after winning 66 regular season games. Plus you go 8-0 to start the playoffs and yet maybe you're not the right guy for the job.

How does Brown's job status impact the Knicks? If Cavs owner Dan Gilbert were to decide to make a big, bold coaching move, that would certainly enhance the club's chances of re-signing LeBron James.

And this is where things could get interesting. Gilbert's first call could be to Pat Riley, who knows a thing or two about coaching superstars and winning championships. He also won just 15 games in his final season with the Miami Heat.

The Plain Dealer reported that the stories were inaccurate. I, however, believe in the old adage "where there is smoke, there is fire".