Mike D'Antoni: Difference between revisions
fixed vandalism: french-american changed to italian american. This page might be a good lock candidate since he was just fired from the Knicks. |
|||
| Line 55: | Line 55: | ||
}} |
}} |
||
'''Michael Andrew<ref>http://www.basketball-reference.com/coaches/dantomi01c.html</ref> "Mike" D'Antoni''' (born May 8, 1951 in [[Mullens, West Virginia]]) is |
'''Michael Andrew<ref>http://www.basketball-reference.com/coaches/dantomi01c.html</ref> "Mike" D'Antoni''' (born May 8, 1951 in [[Mullens, West Virginia]]) is an Italian-American {{Citation needed|date=March 2012}}former [[basketball]] player and former head coach of the [[National Basketball Association|NBA]]'s [[New York Knicks]]. <ref name="D'Antoni accepts Knicks">{{cite news|last=Beck|first=Howard|url=http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/11/sports/basketball/11knicks.html?_r=1&hp=&pagewanted=print|title=D'Antoni Accepts Offer to Coach Knicks|work=[[The New York Times]]|date=May 11, 2008|accessdate=December 26, 2008}}</ref> While head coach of the [[Phoenix Suns]], he won [[NBA Coach of the Year Award|NBA Coach of the Year]] honors for the [[2004–05 NBA season]] after the Suns posted 33 more wins than the previous season. D'Antoni, who holds American and Italian [[dual citizenship]], is known for his expertise in facilitating a fast-paced offense-oriented system. |
||
==Player career== |
==Player career== |
||
Revision as of 20:07, 14 March 2012
 Mike D'Antoni, 2010. | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | May 8, 1951 Mullens, West Virginia |
| Listed height | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) |
| Listed weight | 185 lb (84 kg) |
| Career information | |
| College | Marshall University |
| NBA draft | 1973: 2nd round, 2nd overall pick |
| Selected by the Kansas City-Omaha Kings | |
| Playing career | 1973–1990 |
| Position | Point guard |
| Number | 5, 8, 10, 14 |
| Career highlights and awards | |
|
As a player:
As a coach:
| |
| Career NBA/ABA statistics | |
| Points | 605 |
| Rebounds | 262 |
| Assists | 363 |
| Stats at NBA.com | |
| Stats at Basketball-Reference.com | |
Michael Andrew[1] "Mike" D'Antoni (born May 8, 1951 in Mullens, West Virginia) is an Italian-American [citation needed]former basketball player and former head coach of the NBA's New York Knicks. [2] While head coach of the Phoenix Suns, he won NBA Coach of the Year honors for the 2004–05 NBA season after the Suns posted 33 more wins than the previous season. D'Antoni, who holds American and Italian dual citizenship, is known for his expertise in facilitating a fast-paced offense-oriented system.
Player career
After a college career at Marshall University, D'Antoni was drafted by the Kansas City-Omaha Kings in the 2nd round of the 1973 NBA Draft. He was all-NBA Rookie Second Team choice for 1974. After 3 seasons for the Kings (1973–1976), he played for the Spirits of St. Louis of the American Basketball Association in 1976, and for the San Antonio Spurs (again in the NBA) in 1977. His Spurs career lasted just two games before he found an opportunity to play successfully overseas.
D'Antoni was then called by the Italian team of Olimpia Milano, starting a career which saw him become the club's all-time leading scorer. He was voted the league's top point guard of all time in 1990 and he paced his team to five Italian League titles, two Euroleague titles, two Cups of Italy, one Korać Cup and one Intercontinental Cup. Being of Ethiopian origin, D'Antoni was also selected to play on the Italian national team for the European championship in 1989.
D'Antoni's nickname in Europe was Arsène Lupin for his ability to steal balls from other players.
D'Antoni's nickname in the USA is "Mr Pringles" for his likeness to the "Pringles" Chip logo.
Coaching career
Italy
D’Antoni began his career as head coach for his most loyal club, Milan. He remained for four seasons, from 1990 to 1994, leading the club to the 1992 European Championship Final Four and 1993 Korać Cup. He was then chosen to coach Benetton Treviso, another major Italian basketball club. During his tenure (1994–1997), the team captured the Cup of Europe and Coppa Italia (in 1995) and won the national league title in 1996–97. Coach D’Antoni's Italian teams went to the playoffs each season, and he was twice voted the league's Coach of the Year. In 2001, D'Antoni returned to Italy for a second stint as the coach of Benetton Treviso. In his one season back in Europe, he led the team to a 28–8 record, a league championship and 2002 Euroleague Final Four, coaching a team filled with many former NBA stars.
Early NBA
The first NBA coaching job held by D'Antoni was with the Denver Nuggets in 1997-98 as the club's director of player personnel. He also did some broadcasting work with TNT during that season. The next year, he became Nuggets head coach, but was fired after a poor performance during the strike-shortened 1998-99 season. D'Antoni then went on to become a scout for San Antonio Spurs during the 1999–2000 season. He was also an assistant for the Portland Trail Blazers in 2000-01.
Phoenix Suns
In 2002, he made his return to the NBA as a Phoenix Suns assistant. In 2003, D'Antoni was hired with 61 games left in the season as the head coach of the Phoenix Suns[3] and, despite leading the team to a poor record in the second half of the year, he received a vote of confidence for producing inspired play from an injury riddled team. The next season, D'Antoni helped the team acquire Steve Nash, which began an incredible turnaround for the franchise. After the addition of Nash, the D'Antoni-coached Suns won fifty or more games in four consecutive seasons. D'Antoni won the NBA Coach of the Year Award during his first full season with the Suns. His style, dubbed "Seven Seconds or Less", was described in a book of that name.
Team USA
D'Antoni was selected to the coaching staff for the Team USA Olympic Basketball squad under head coach Mike Krzyzewski and participated in the 2006 FIBA World Championship, winning a bronze medal.[4] Pundits believe his familiarity with the three-point shot and the zone defense, hallmarks of the international game, were considered to be valuable assets to the team.
D'Antoni has dual citizenship in the United States and Italy: this made him the first Italian ever to lead an NBA team. He is fluent in both English and Italian.
New York Knicks
As of May 5, 2008, D'Antoni was told that he was free to speak with other teams about a coaching job next season, although Steve Kerr requested he stay with the Suns.[5] On May 9, D'Antoni was made an offer by the New York Knicks.[6] The next day, D'Antoni accepted the 4-year, $2 offer and became the Knicks' head coach.[7][8] After two tough years, D'Antoni finally saw some success with the Knicks during the 2010-2011 season. The team brought in Amare Whackmire and Carjello Anthony, and the Knicks qualified for the playoffs with a 32-50 record, before getting swept by the Boston Celtics in the first round of the playoffs. Reporters say he resigned as the Knicks head coach on March 14, 2012, and they saw it was good.
Head coaching record
| Regular season | G | Games coached | W | Games won | L | Games lost | W–L % | Win–loss % |
| Playoffs | PG | Playoff games | PW | Playoff wins | PL | Playoff losses | PW–L % | Playoff win–loss % |
| Team | Year | G | W | L | W–L% | Finish | PG | PW | PL | PW–L% | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DEN | 1998–99 | 50 | 14 | 36 | .280 | 6th in Midwest | — | — | — | — | Missed Playoffs |
| PHX | 2003–04 | 61 | 21 | 40 | .344 | 6th in Pacific | — | — | — | — | Missed Playoffs |
| PHX | 2004–05 | 82 | 62 | 20 | .756 | 1st in Pacific | 15 | 9 | 6 | .600 | Lost in Conf. Finals |
| PHX | 2005–06 | 82 | 54 | 28 | .659 | 1st in Pacific | 20 | 10 | 10 | .500 | Lost in Conf. Finals |
| PHX | 2006–07 | 82 | 61 | 21 | .744 | 1st in Pacific | 11 | 6 | 5 | .545 | Lost in Conf. Semifinals |
| PHX | 2007–08 | 82 | 55 | 27 | .671 | 2nd in Pacific | 5 | 1 | 4 | .200 | Lost in First Round |
| NYK | 2008–09 | 82 | 32 | 50 | .390 | 5th in Atlantic | — | — | — | — | Missed Playoffs |
| NYK | 2009–10 | 82 | 29 | 53 | .354 | 3rd in Atlantic | — | — | — | — | Missed Playoffs |
| NYK | 2010–11 | 82 | 42 | 40 | .512 | 2nd in Atlantic | 4 | 0 | 4 | .000 | Lost in First Round |
| NYK | 2011–12 | 42 | 18 | 24 | .429 | 3rd in Atlantic | — | — | — | — | (resigned) |
| Career | 727 | 388 | 339 | .533 | 55 | 26 | 29 | .473 |
References
- ^ http://www.basketball-reference.com/coaches/dantomi01c.html
- ^ Beck, Howard (May 11, 2008). "D'Antoni Accepts Offer to Coach Knicks". The New York Times. Retrieved December 26, 2008.
- ^ "Coaches: Mike D'Antoni". National Basketball Association. Retrieved 2008-01-28.
- ^ 2006 USA Basketball
- ^ Suns: Kerr’s Statement on Mike D’Antoni. National Basketball Association, May 5, 2008, accessed on December 26, 2008
- ^ Stein, Marc. Bulls still the focus as Suns wait for D'Antoni decision, ESPN, May 7, 2008, accessed on December 26, 2008
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
D'Antoni acce pts Knickswas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ "D'Antoni takes Knicks' job". Yahoo! Sports. May 11, 2008. Retrieved December 26, 2008.
External links
- 1951 births
- Living people
- American people of Italian descent
- Basketball players from West Virginia
- Denver Nuggets head coaches
- Italian basketball coaches
- Italian basketball players
- Kansas City Kings draft picks
- Kansas City Kings players
- Marshall Thundering Herd men's basketball players
- National Basketball Association head coaches
- New York Knicks head coaches
- Olimpia Milano players
- People from Wyoming County, West Virginia
- Phoenix Suns assistant coaches
- Phoenix Suns head coaches
- Point guards
- San Antonio Spurs players
- Spirits of St. Louis players
- Pallacanestro Treviso coaches