Mavs' Johnson named coach of the year
/ Associated Press
Posted: 25 minutes ago
DALLAS (AP) - When Avery Johnson was an NBA point guard, many executives and players thought he'd make a great coach. How right they were.
Johnson was honored as the NBA's coach of the year Tuesday after leading the Mavericks to a 60-win season in his first full season as coach. That matched the team record for victories, first set three years ago when he played for the team.
While the 2002-03 team was known for its scoring, Johnson transformed the Mavericks into a defensive squad. Dallas ranked in the league's top 10 in scoring and points allowed, ranking higher in the defensive category.
After the Mavericks won 60 games in 2003, they didn't put Johnson on their playoff roster. Instead, he played the role of a player-coach during practices that postseason and sat with the coaching staff on the bench during games. Coach Don Nelson already had let Johnson run some practices and considered the "Little General" a possible successor.
Dirk Nowitzki, an NBA MVP candidate this season, and Adrian Griffin are the only current Mavericks who were teammates of Johnson in 2002-03.
"Avery's done a great job with us, preparing us every single night, teaching all the little things over the whole season and really turned the franchise around into a defensive ballclub first," Nowitzki said Tuesday. "He's done a great job, so he deserves a lot of credit."
Dallas plays Game 2 of its first-round Western Conference series against Memphis on Wednesday. The Mavericks won the first game.
The Mavericks traded Johnson and Nick Van Exel to Golden State in August 2003 for Antawn Jamison. A year later, Johnson was back in Dallas - technically as a backup guard but realistically as another coach. He retired as a player before the season and became Nelson's top assistant.
Johnson replaced Nelson as head coach on March 19, 2005, inheriting a club headed toward its fifth straight 50-win season. The Mavericks went 16-2 down the stretch and won their first-round playoff series against Houston after losing the first two games.
As a player, Johnson was undrafted and repeatedly released. He finally became the starting point guard on an NBA champion in San Antonio, and hit the series-clinching shot in 1999
/ Associated Press
Posted: 25 minutes ago
DALLAS (AP) - When Avery Johnson was an NBA point guard, many executives and players thought he'd make a great coach. How right they were.
Johnson was honored as the NBA's coach of the year Tuesday after leading the Mavericks to a 60-win season in his first full season as coach. That matched the team record for victories, first set three years ago when he played for the team.
While the 2002-03 team was known for its scoring, Johnson transformed the Mavericks into a defensive squad. Dallas ranked in the league's top 10 in scoring and points allowed, ranking higher in the defensive category.
After the Mavericks won 60 games in 2003, they didn't put Johnson on their playoff roster. Instead, he played the role of a player-coach during practices that postseason and sat with the coaching staff on the bench during games. Coach Don Nelson already had let Johnson run some practices and considered the "Little General" a possible successor.
Dirk Nowitzki, an NBA MVP candidate this season, and Adrian Griffin are the only current Mavericks who were teammates of Johnson in 2002-03.
"Avery's done a great job with us, preparing us every single night, teaching all the little things over the whole season and really turned the franchise around into a defensive ballclub first," Nowitzki said Tuesday. "He's done a great job, so he deserves a lot of credit."
Dallas plays Game 2 of its first-round Western Conference series against Memphis on Wednesday. The Mavericks won the first game.
The Mavericks traded Johnson and Nick Van Exel to Golden State in August 2003 for Antawn Jamison. A year later, Johnson was back in Dallas - technically as a backup guard but realistically as another coach. He retired as a player before the season and became Nelson's top assistant.
Johnson replaced Nelson as head coach on March 19, 2005, inheriting a club headed toward its fifth straight 50-win season. The Mavericks went 16-2 down the stretch and won their first-round playoff series against Houston after losing the first two games.
As a player, Johnson was undrafted and repeatedly released. He finally became the starting point guard on an NBA champion in San Antonio, and hit the series-clinching shot in 1999
