Dallas Mavericks: Don’t Forget, Joe Prunty Was an Assistant Coach in Dallas

Milwaukee’s head coach, Joe Prunty, is an ex-assistant coach for the Dallas Mavericks. Will that matter this summer?

At the beginning of the regular season, the Milwaukee Bucks had Jason Kidd as their head coach.

After some questionable coaching decisions to say the least and an uproar from the fan base on the need for a change, Milwaukee parted ways with the ex-Dallas Mavericks point guard and elected not to bring in an outside coach to take the reins.

Instead, they decided to promote assistant coach, Joe Prunty, to interim head coach.

Since then, the Bucks have went 21-16 and are still considered one of the more disappointing teams in the league. One of the bigger storylines surrounding Prunty and the Bucks is whether he will come back to coach the team next season and what his relationship with Jabari Parker is like right now.

We might not know his exact fate as a head coach, but his relationship with Parker has come to light over the past week.

After logging a combined 24 minutes in the first two games of the playoff series vs. Boston, Parker voiced his frustration to the media.

Jabari Parker was very animated talking about his frustration right now with limited minutes. He mentioned the only way to see the floor more was to be on the “coach’s good side”. When asked if he was on Prunty’s good side, he smirked and said “I don’t think so.” #Bucks
— Stephen Watson (@WISN_Watson) April 19, 2018

Worth noting that multiple coaches have told me the #Bucks are frustrated w/Jabari Parker’s immaturity around a perceived lack of touches. More importantly, they believe that Giannis’ rise has prompted Parker to develop an unhealthy dose of jealousy toward Giannis. https://t.co/cJZS8p8VMT
— Jordan Schultz (@Schultz_Report) April 18, 2018

It is safe to say that Jabari and the coaching staff aren’t on the same page at the moment.

So what does that have to do with the Dallas Mavericks?

It might sour some personal views on Parker from a fan standpoint, but you also have to remember the past of Prunty also.

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Before his days in Treadstone chasing Jason Bourne, Prunty was in San Antonio for multiple years as a video coordinator and scout. Then, in 2005, Prunty was hired as an assistant coach for the Dallas Mavericks.

He would join the coaching staff that consisted of Avery Johnson and Del Harris. This would also be the year that the Mavericks reached the Finals where they lost to the Miami Heat and Wade’s 785 free throws.

Prunty would stay in Dallas for two more years before heading to Portland to be an assistant coach.

Going back to Parker, some people around the league believe this current situation could lead to Parker playing in a different uniform next season as he is set to hit restricted free agency. If a team comes calling with a big pay-day this summer, will Milwaukee match it after all of this?

One of the teams with the most money this summer is the Dallas Mavericks.

If I am the Mavericks, guess who one of my first calls is this summer if I am interested in signing Jabari Parker?

You got it. I would be calling our old assistant coach for three years that helped lead the Mavericks to the Finals. The same ex-assistant that is the head coach of the Milwaukee Bucks now.

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I wonder what Prunty will have to say about Parker this summer? Especially if Prunty is let go by the Bucks.

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