Angel Tarragon
Dawn Dragon
The league has announced that it will name the results of NBA Coach of the Year balloting today and Phoenix Suns coach D'Antoni is a likely candidate.
D'Antoni guided the Suns to the NBA's best record. The Suns won a league-best 62 games this season, improving 33 wins over last season and sparked by NBA Most Valuable Player Steve Nash, a Canadian guard that the newspaper accurately announced early as the award winner.
D'Antoni used a fast-paced attack as the Suns completed the third-best improvement in NBA history.
He took over in December of 2003 after Frank Johnson was fired and the Suns finished that season 20-41 under D'Antoni.
D'Antoni was a coach and player in Italy for 20 years and came to the NBA in 1999, going 14-36 with Denver during a season shortened by a labour dispute. He was fired after the season and spent the next year as a San Antonio Spurs scout.
After serving as an assistant for the Portland Trail Blazers for a season, D'Antonio returned to Italy and rejoined the Suns a year later as an assistant coach.
D'Antoni will join Cotton Fitzsimmons, the 1989 NBA Coach of the Year, as the only Suns mentors to capture the honour.
D'Antoni guided the Suns to the NBA's best record. The Suns won a league-best 62 games this season, improving 33 wins over last season and sparked by NBA Most Valuable Player Steve Nash, a Canadian guard that the newspaper accurately announced early as the award winner.
D'Antoni used a fast-paced attack as the Suns completed the third-best improvement in NBA history.
He took over in December of 2003 after Frank Johnson was fired and the Suns finished that season 20-41 under D'Antoni.
D'Antoni was a coach and player in Italy for 20 years and came to the NBA in 1999, going 14-36 with Denver during a season shortened by a labour dispute. He was fired after the season and spent the next year as a San Antonio Spurs scout.
After serving as an assistant for the Portland Trail Blazers for a season, D'Antonio returned to Italy and rejoined the Suns a year later as an assistant coach.
D'Antoni will join Cotton Fitzsimmons, the 1989 NBA Coach of the Year, as the only Suns mentors to capture the honour.
