By Walter Dubowec

It was a very telling moment about Sam Mitchell and the kind of NBA head coach he would become today.

Three years ago, the just hired Sam Mitchell was interviewed on RaptorsTV and he was asked if he was a coach who would ‘eat, sleep and breathe basketball’. Sam’s response without hesitation was a polite ‘no’.

Sam went on to explain that while he is a hard worker who is very committed to making the Raptors a success, he had greater priorities in life – which included his family among other things. Right there was a glimpse of the personality that would prove to be successful in motivating the Raptor teams he coached.

No doubt, Sam’s greatest skill is as a motivator. Clearly that’s where he excels. His reputation as a hard working ex-player gives him a level credibility in the eyes of the players that other coaches may not have.

                                    Sam Mitchell Coach of The Year Video

Sam is a no-nonsense coach who understands that to succeed you need to motivate and encourage, but also know when to back off when you’ve pushed too hard. Under Sam, youngsters like Chris Bosh, Charlie Villaneuva, Jose Calderon, T.J. Ford and Andrea Bargnani showed continual improvement. Sam’s Raptor teams always played hard, even in the lean years.

Sam himself has shown a marked improvement every year. Now that he is NBA Coach of the Year with three years of experience his job will get a little easier as he enjoys a touch  more respect from the NBA officials who he continually hounds on the sidelines. Sam will be more confident knowing that his future is secure. The players understand that Sam is their coach for the long term.

Sam Mitchell is back with the Toronto Raptors and it was the right decision.

It’s not as if I wanted Sam to leave – even though I had a fear that Sam might be lured by big bucks elsewhere. Fortunately for the Raptors, Bryan Colangelo made Sam an offer that was more than fair. Three years guaranteed at $4 million per season got it done.

Since the day Sam Mitchell was hired, I had the sense he was the right kind of coach for the Toronto Raptors. Granted he was just a rookie coach, but he seemed like a man who was fair and honest and someone who would garner the respect of the players.

Now that Sam is back, Raptor fans can expect even better things in the years to come.