NBA - Orlando Magic fires head coach Stan Van Gundy
By Homer D. Sayson
PhilBoxing.com
Tue, 22 May 2012
THE Orlando Magic annouced on Monday afternoon that it had fired head coach Stan Van Gundy. The team also parted ways with its general manager, Otis Smith.
"It's time for new leadership, new voices," Magic CEO Alex Martins said in a statement. "The disappointment of getitng eliminated in the first round of the playoffs these past two seasons played a primary role in our decision, as we feel our momentum towards winning a championship has paused."
Van Gundy assumed the Magic's head coaching position in 2007 and quickly made an impact, racking up wins to become the fastest coach in NBA history to pocket 300 wins. He took Orlando to the 2009 NBA Finals, losing to the Los Angeles Lakers in five games.
But the last two years have been a disappointment. In this condensed, post-lockout season, the Magic finished the 66-game schedule with a pedestrian 39-27 won-lost slate.
Ravaged by injuries, particularly Dwight Howard's back surgery, the sixth seeded Orlando Magic were eliminated from this year's playoffs by the No.3 seeded Indiana Pacers, who dominated the best-of-7 matchup, 4-1.
Van Gundy has had a testy relationship with Howard, the team's superstar, and his firing comes hardly as a surprise. Howard is signed until the 2012 season and Van Gundy's termination is seen as a management move to placate the 7-foot center in hopes that he would sign a long-term deal to stay in Orlando.
As for Van Gundy, he will likely be in the short list of NBA teams who may want a change of course. In his eight years as an NBA head coach, Van Gundy compiled a record of 371 wins against 209 losses for a high 64.1 percent winning percentage. His postseason record is 49-39, a modest 55.2 percent clip. (Homer D. Sayson)
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