Leave it to Mike D’Antoni to show a sense of humor upon winning NBA’s Coach of the Year award.
D’Antoni was announced as the winner of NBA’s Coach of the Year award Monday during the league’s award show on TNT. When he began his acceptance speech, D’Antoni started out with a joke about his Knicks tenure.
"I never thought I would be in New York and have to thank sportswriters for coach of the year." — Mike D'Antoni. pic.twitter.com/0kA85pQiNj
— Howard Beck (@HowardBeck) June 27, 2017
“I never thought I would be in New York and have to thank sportswriters for coach of the year, but so be it,” D’Antoni said.
That’s pretty strong. D’Antoni built up his reputation as a good coach after enjoying a successful five-year tenure in Phoenix. He then was hired by the Knicks for big money, but things went poorly and he was fired amid an 18-24 campaign in his fourth season leading the team. He posted a .420 winning percentage during his three-plus seasons as Knicks coach.
Things obviously have gone much better for D’Antoni in Houston, as he led the Rockets to a 55-27 season and helped turn James Harden into an MVP candidate.
