It could be his years of experience, it could be his cooling calm, it could be his slick grey hair and bushy eyebrows, but when Sergio Scariolo took the head coaching reigns on Friday night, Toronto Raptors fans breathed a communal sigh of relief.
With Nick Nurse and five other coaches out due to the health and safety protocols, Torontonians spent the ten or so hours before Friday Night’s matchup with the Houston Rockets wondering who would be holding the clipboard on the sidelines.
Some wondered if Kyle Lowry would take his leadership to the next level by stepping into Bill Russell’s shoes as a player-coach, but when the ball tipped off, it was assistant coach Sergio Scariolo taking Nick Nurse’s place at the helm.
Scariolo led the Raptors to a victory over Houston, showing that he can lead the Raptors for however long Nurse is incapacitated.
Sergio Scariolo is undefeated as an NBA head coach.
— Josh Lewenberg (@JLew1050) February 27, 2021
Sergio Scariolo is more than qualified to lead the Raptors
Coach Scariolo has been an assistant with the Raptors since 2018. While it is first NBA coaching job, Scariolo stepping into the limelight as the Raptors interim head coach was not as drastic a jump as one might think.
The Italian mastermind was one of the top basketball coaches in Europe before traveling overseas and has been a head coach before for many of Europe’s top teams in Spain, Russia, and Italy.
Still, the feeling of free-fall was not entirely erased by the steady coaching hand. Scariolo himself was quoted in the postgame interview talking about the breakneck speed with which the remaining coaching staff had to adapt. Despite the unusual circumstances, the coaching staff was able to adapt. Which is really the calling of the Nurse administration anyway.
But Scariolo isn’t Raptor of the Week just because he filled some shoes. He ran an effective game even while short an All-Star. With Pascal Siakam sidelined with similar health-related precautions, it was the ensemble effort of Norman Powell, Fred VanVleet, Chris Boucher in addition to a triple-double for Kyle Lowry that got Coach Scariolo his first win.
Yes, the Raptors got hot from three (40% as a team), and yes, the Rockets aren’t exactly a force to be reckoned with, but Coach Scariolo made some smart adjustments throughout that game that helped seal the deal for the Raptors.
For example, starting the game immediately in a 2-3 zone defense. Packing the paint partially to counter the slashing abilities of the athletic backcourt that is John Wall and Victor Oladipo, and partially because the Rockets’ starting five shoots a combined 32.4% from three and can be afforded some extra wiggle room.
Then running more high-post actions with Aron Baynes to try and take advantage of the Rockets’ small ball lineup. By far the strongest guy out there, Baynes had more success finishing than he usually does, all while setting his usually brick-like picks.
The most touching moment of Friday nights game came after the final buzzer, when Kyle Lowry tracked down the game ball and gave it to Coach Scariolo as a memento. This is a lovely gesture that officially knights Kyle a nice Canadian guy, but also shows the team’s faith in Scariolo as a head coach.
Whether in Raptors colours or not, this isn’t the last time we see Coach Sergio Scariolo captain the ship.