What happens if Michael Malone leaves Warriors?

Its no secret that Warriors assistant coach Michael Maloneis going to have some actionand already doesthis offseason when it comesto possibly landing a head coaching job.Hes already interviewed in Charlotte, and his name hassurfaced as a candidate in Portland and Orlando. Forgive Warriors fans if theycare less about where Malone might end up as they do about what will happen if heleaves.And for good reason. Malone is an integral part of Mark Jacksonscoaching staff. He has 10-plus years of experience as an NBA assistant coach,while Jackson just completed his first season as a coach of any kind.But Warriors general manager Bob Myers said on Thursday theteam hadnt decided whether it would replace Malone, if he were to leave, orsimply promote a group of assistants.Were happywith the job (Malone) did this year and were hoping he stays, Myers said. Wefeel like were lucky to have him. Fingers crossed that we can keep him. Wealso know hes revered in coaching circles and hes going to have someopportunities. But until something comes to fruition, we wont act on thespeculation.Well wait and see. He does a great job for us andcontinues to show up at our facility and work hard. Were happy hes aWarriors coach at this time.Maybe Myers hasnt decided, but hes likely thought aboutit. But if he hasnt, he should. What he ends up deciding will turn into one ofthe first glimpses of the kind of GM he might become.And also what kind of control owner Joe Lacob will allow himto exert, and how much control Myers may be able to exert on his own.Jackson has said on more than one occasion that he wouldonly name an assistant to his staff if he believed that assistant could one dayascend to the head coaching level.If thats the case, Jackson would likely want to move upeach of the assistant coachesPete Myers to lead assistant and then Wes Unseld,Jr., Jerry DeGregorio Darren Erman and Kris Weems all up a spot.But Warriors ownership and the front office might feeldifferently. Its possible they could want Jackson, who has just 66 games underhis belt, to bring in a more experienced tactician and strategist. Myers hasbeen an assistant coach for 10 years and Unseld, Jr., for seven seasons.Malone diagrammed many of the teams plays throughout the2011-12 season, and the perception is that Jackson leans heavily on Malone forXs and Os.Still, Jackson may believe he has enough of the neededknow-how on his existing bench that hell either not want to replace Malone orreplace him with a newcomer he knows.It might be worth keeping an eye on whether ownership andthe front office feel the same way.