Warriors drop Montgomery, re-hire Nelson
By GREG BEACHAM, AP Sports Writer
August 29, 2006
AP - Aug 29, 1:28 pm EDT
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OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) -- Coach Mike Montgomery was dismissed by the Golden State Warriors on Tuesday, and Don Nelson was ready to step in.
Golden State will re-hire Nelson, the second-winningest coach in NBA history and the last coach to lead the downtrodden Warriors to the playoffs, on Wednesday, a league source told The Associated Press.
The source, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the deal hadn't been completed, said the 66-year-old Nelson settled his differences with Warriors owner Chris Cohan and agreed to return to the club where he went 277-260 from 1988-95 and led Golden State to its last playoff appearance in 1994.
Nelson, a three-time NBA coach of the year, has won 1,190 games in a career that also includes stops in Milwaukee, New York and Dallas, where he won 339 games and led the Mavericks' revitalization from 1998 until March 2005, when he left amid health concerns.
The Warriors scheduled a news conference for Wednesday night but didn't divulge the reason.
Almost nothing good has happened to the Warriors since Nelson, a three-time NBA coach of the year, left in December 1995. Montgomery -- the Warriors' eighth coach in 12 seasons since Nelson's departure -- had identical 34-48 records in his two seasons with the club.
"Based on this agreement, we will now focus our efforts in a different direction and do what we think is in the best interest for this team," Chris Mullin, the Warriors' executive vice president, said in a statement.
The move is curiously timed, since the club opens training camp in just five weeks in Oakland. Mullin, who played for Nelson throughout the coach's tenure, has been thought to be unhappy with Montgomery for most of the last two years, but the Warriors' top executive repeatedly stated Montgomery would return for the upcoming season.
Nelson's arrival might be the necessary move to drum up interest in the Warriors, who promised big offseason changes after missing the playoffs for the 12th straight season. Mullin couldn't deliver any dramatic moves, only swapping Derek Fisher to the Utah Jazz for three players.
Mullin didn't return a phone call, and Nelson didn't answer his phone at his home in Maui.
The deal was first reported by ESPN.com.
The 59-year-old Montgomery had two years remaining on a 4-year, $10 million contract he signed before the 2004-2005 season. The Warriors didn't release any details about Montgomery's severance package.
Montgomery was thought to be Cohan's choice when Mullin dropped Eric Musselman shortly after taking over the Warriors' basketball operations. Montgomery caught Cohan's eye while coaching Stanford the previous 18 years, turning the Cardinal into a national power with a Final Four appearance and 393 victories. But he never got results in the NBA.
"This was a new challenge that I was eager to embrace and glad that I had the chance to pursue and experience," Montgomery said in a statement.
AP - Aug 29, 1:27 pm EDT
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Only Lenny Wilkens has more victories (1,315) and more games of coaching experience (2,448) than Nelson, who has coached 2,070 games in a career dating back to 1976, when he took over the Bucks after a stint as a playing assistant coach.
Nelson also played 14 years in the NBA with Boston, the Lakers and the Chicago Zephyrs. His No. 19 was retired by the Celtics.
He was the NBA's coach of the year in 1983 and 1985 with Milwaukee before moving to Golden State. He installed the run-and-gun offense that made stars of Tim Hardaway, Mitch Richmond and Mullin, who are still beloved to Warriors fans as the "Run T-M-C" trio.
But things went sour in Oakland during the 1993-94 season, when he led Golden State to the playoffs but clashed with Chris Webber, the first overall pick in the draft. Webber was traded to Washington after the season, but Nelson stuck around only 1 1/2 seasons longer.
The parting was acrimonious: Cohan sued Nelson when the coach took a job with the Knicks in 1995, and the dispute went on for more than three years.
Nelson's tenure in Dallas started poorly but became quite successful with owner Mark Cuban's money behind the coach's unorthodox schemes. Nelson groomed Avery Johnson as his successor and left the Mavericks shortly before the 2005 playoffs.
By GREG BEACHAM, AP Sports Writer
August 29, 2006
AP - Aug 29, 1:28 pm EDT
More Photos
OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) -- Coach Mike Montgomery was dismissed by the Golden State Warriors on Tuesday, and Don Nelson was ready to step in.
Golden State will re-hire Nelson, the second-winningest coach in NBA history and the last coach to lead the downtrodden Warriors to the playoffs, on Wednesday, a league source told The Associated Press.
The source, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the deal hadn't been completed, said the 66-year-old Nelson settled his differences with Warriors owner Chris Cohan and agreed to return to the club where he went 277-260 from 1988-95 and led Golden State to its last playoff appearance in 1994.
Nelson, a three-time NBA coach of the year, has won 1,190 games in a career that also includes stops in Milwaukee, New York and Dallas, where he won 339 games and led the Mavericks' revitalization from 1998 until March 2005, when he left amid health concerns.
The Warriors scheduled a news conference for Wednesday night but didn't divulge the reason.
Almost nothing good has happened to the Warriors since Nelson, a three-time NBA coach of the year, left in December 1995. Montgomery -- the Warriors' eighth coach in 12 seasons since Nelson's departure -- had identical 34-48 records in his two seasons with the club.
"Based on this agreement, we will now focus our efforts in a different direction and do what we think is in the best interest for this team," Chris Mullin, the Warriors' executive vice president, said in a statement.
The move is curiously timed, since the club opens training camp in just five weeks in Oakland. Mullin, who played for Nelson throughout the coach's tenure, has been thought to be unhappy with Montgomery for most of the last two years, but the Warriors' top executive repeatedly stated Montgomery would return for the upcoming season.
Nelson's arrival might be the necessary move to drum up interest in the Warriors, who promised big offseason changes after missing the playoffs for the 12th straight season. Mullin couldn't deliver any dramatic moves, only swapping Derek Fisher to the Utah Jazz for three players.
Mullin didn't return a phone call, and Nelson didn't answer his phone at his home in Maui.
The deal was first reported by ESPN.com.
The 59-year-old Montgomery had two years remaining on a 4-year, $10 million contract he signed before the 2004-2005 season. The Warriors didn't release any details about Montgomery's severance package.
Montgomery was thought to be Cohan's choice when Mullin dropped Eric Musselman shortly after taking over the Warriors' basketball operations. Montgomery caught Cohan's eye while coaching Stanford the previous 18 years, turning the Cardinal into a national power with a Final Four appearance and 393 victories. But he never got results in the NBA.
"This was a new challenge that I was eager to embrace and glad that I had the chance to pursue and experience," Montgomery said in a statement.
AP - Aug 29, 1:27 pm EDT
More Photos
Only Lenny Wilkens has more victories (1,315) and more games of coaching experience (2,448) than Nelson, who has coached 2,070 games in a career dating back to 1976, when he took over the Bucks after a stint as a playing assistant coach.
Nelson also played 14 years in the NBA with Boston, the Lakers and the Chicago Zephyrs. His No. 19 was retired by the Celtics.
He was the NBA's coach of the year in 1983 and 1985 with Milwaukee before moving to Golden State. He installed the run-and-gun offense that made stars of Tim Hardaway, Mitch Richmond and Mullin, who are still beloved to Warriors fans as the "Run T-M-C" trio.
But things went sour in Oakland during the 1993-94 season, when he led Golden State to the playoffs but clashed with Chris Webber, the first overall pick in the draft. Webber was traded to Washington after the season, but Nelson stuck around only 1 1/2 seasons longer.
The parting was acrimonious: Cohan sued Nelson when the coach took a job with the Knicks in 1995, and the dispute went on for more than three years.
Nelson's tenure in Dallas started poorly but became quite successful with owner Mark Cuban's money behind the coach's unorthodox schemes. Nelson groomed Avery Johnson as his successor and left the Mavericks shortly before the 2005 playoffs.
