Stan Van Gundy was fired as head coach by the Orlando Magic on Thursday after five seasons with the team. He led the team to an Eastern Conference championship in 2008-09, his second season there. The Los Angeles Lakers defeated them in the NBA Finals four games to one. He won three straight Southeast Division titles from 2007-08 to 2009-10.
Van Gundy was acquired by the Orlando Magic from the Miami Heat in an exchange of draft picks. He was an assistant coach of the Miami Heat from 1995-96 until 2002-03. He replaced Pat Riley as the head coach after Riley resigned from the post following the final game of the preseason prior to the start of the 2003-04 season. Although he lost his first seven games as a head coach that season, rookie Dwyane Wade led the team to the NBA playoffs. They upset the New Orleans Hornets in the first round, however they lost to the Indiana Pacers in the Eastern Conference Semifinals.
The Heat acquired Shaquille O'Neal during the off-season. They won the Southeast Division and finished first in the Eastern Conference in 2004-05. They were upset at home in game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals by the Detroit Pistons. Van Gundy resigned as head coach 21 games into the 2005-06 season. Pat Riley took over and led the Miami Heat to their first NBA Championship as they beat the Dallas Mavericks in six games.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment