I think coaches do matter, but there are certain aspects of coaching that are very overrated. For example I think x's and o's are overrated, Phil Jackson was not a good x's and o's guy but he had the humility to defer to Tex Winters for that. McHale often defers to Sampson so that's a good sign.
The most important aspect of coaching is being a motivator, this is what PJ was best at. So I guess the question is, is McHale a good motivator? I guess that's up to you to decide. So far, I'm giving him the benefit of the doubt.
I agree that coaches do matter.......but I agree for different reasons. x's and o's are important for coaches to be good at, as well as teaching, motivating, creating a good locker room, understanding good substitution patterns, understanding how to exploit mismatches, preparing game plans, developing offensive and defensive sets and rotations, he decides who plays and who doesn't and how many minutes they will get.....just to name a few areas. the coach has a lot of say when it comes to these areas. so you can't downplay his effect on the performance of the team. i'm not saying to be a good coach he has to master every area, but he must at least have a working knowledge of each area to maximize team production. 2016 makes a good point that some coaches bring in assistants to help in areas where they may not be as strong. however if a coach has to many holes in the knowledge required there won't be enough assistant positions to fill the gaps.
