D’Antoni hired as Rockets’ next coach
After an exhaustive search, D’Antoni finally gets the nod
The Rockets hire Mike D’Antoni, turning to the man who helped revolutionize NBA offenses but has struggled in recent coaching stints.
Seeking to recapture the magic of the Phoenix Suns’ celebrated “Seven Seconds or Less” era that revolutionized NBA offenses a decade ago, the Rockets on Thursday chose Mike D’Antoni to become their head coach.
The Rockets moved to finalize a four-year, $16 million contract with the former Denver Nuggets, Suns, New York Knicks and Los Angeles Lakers coach, according to an individual with knowledge of the deal, with the last season at the team’s option. The person spoke on the condition of anonymity because the decision has not been announced.
In D’Antoni, the Rockets will hire the architect of the pace-and-space style that helped change NBA offenses, but a coach who has not had success in
stints since with the fading Knicks and Lakers.
“Assuming he is announced as the coach, the Rockets get one of the great offensive minds of the game. That’s how highly I think of Mike D’Antoni,” said Jerry Colangelo, the Hall of Fame former Suns executive now an adviser with the Philadelphia 76ers and managing director of USA Basketball.
“He’s a guy of high moral character. He’s a good person. He’s very bright. He’s very knowledgeable about the game and is a very, very strong advocate of how the game should be played to maximize players’ talents.
“Between Brian Colangelo (the 76ers general manager who also was with D’Antoni in Phoenix) we know him intimately, have seen his work in practice and in the locker room. … It’s an excellent choice for the Rockets.”
The Rockets chose D’Antoni because of his experience as a head coach and with the belief that his expertise will earn the sort of respect that will lead players to produce in ways they did not last season, including but not limited to their issues defensively, a person with knowledge of the decision-making said.
Four-week search ends
D’Antoni, the 76ers associate head coach, was chosen for his fifth head coaching position after the Rockets spent nearly four weeks interviewing a dozen candidates. D’Antoni, 65, emerged as the favorite for the position a week ago, but Charlotte Hornets assistant coach Stephen Silas became a finalist for the position in the following days. San Antonio Spurs assistant coach James Borrego had a follow-up interview with Rockets owner Leslie Alexander on Wednesday.
The Rockets will seek to add defensive-minded assistants. Memphis assistant Jeff Bzdelik, who interviewed for the head coaching position with the Rockets and Grizzlies, is considered a top candidate for a position on D’Antoni’s staff. Washington Wizards assistant coach Roy Rogers is expected to join the staff, a person with knowledge of the move said. Toronto Raptors assistant coach Rex Kalamian, long an assistant with the Oklahoma City Thunder, who also interviewed for the Rockets head coaching position, also could be a candidate.
Alexander became enamored with the idea of hiring D’Antoni more than two weeks ago, with Alexander confident D’Antoni would be able to effectively run the sort of offensive system the owner has long favored.
The Rockets were seventh offensively last season but just 20th in defensive rating. General manager Daryl Morey had said the Rockets would select “someone who embodies what we need. We need to get our defense stronger.”
D’Antoni’s success was largely on the offensive end of the court. His Suns teams were not as poor defensively as their reputation, ranking between 13th and 16th. They were the league’s top offensive team for four consecutive seasons, always in the top five in net rating.
D’Antoni has been unable to match that success in the years since, producing winning records in two of his six seasons with the Knicks and Lakers, though his relatively brief stretch in Los Angeles was severely impacted by injuries to Nash and Kobe Bryant.
‘Defense is a mindset’
The Suns were 253-136 under D’Antoni, reaching the Western Conference finals in 2005 and 2006 before losing to Dallas and San Antonio. He has a 202290 record in his seasons with the Nuggets, Knicks and Lakers.
“There is a little bit of overplay sometimes of offense versus defense, one way or the other,” Colangelo said. “Defense is a mindset as much as anything else. It’s about habits and people buying in or not. That’s the challenge. This is not black and white. It’s not that with Mike D’Antoni you get offense and not defense.
“How are the players going to respond to him? What are they willing to do and sacrifice? That’s what it’s all about. Players need to buy in and they do with him.”
D’Antoni helped run the offense for two of Mike Krzyzewski’s USA Basketball teams, including the 2012 Olympic team in London that included Rockets guard James Harden.
D’Antoni’s history with Rockets center Dwight Howard, who is expected to opt to be a free agent this offseason, was not as successful. Howard was unhappy in his one season, largely spent under D’Antoni, with the Lakers.