| Stan Van Gundy gets chance with Magic |
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| Written by Admin |
| Friday, 08 June 2007 12:54 |
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ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) -Having been burned by Billy Donovan, the Orlando Magic now wonder if they have the right coach in Stan Van Gundy. In Van Gundy, they got an NBA-proven leader already familiar with the team. Donovan was a $27.5 million question mark - even before he decided to leave after his first day on the job. The Magic insist Van Gundy was a close second. He and Donovan were the only two guys the team interviewed. Donovan might've sold more tickets - the team moved 200 season packages within 24 hours of his hiring - and put a more photogenic face on the Magic's push for a new arena. But Van Gundy could easily put up more wins - particularly in his first season. In Donovan, Orlando had a personality whose own celebrity might have dwarfed his players'. In Van Gundy, they get a strategist who can't change schemes fast enough to fit the franchise. Van Gundy is excited about Orlando's young big men - All-Star Dwight Howard and 7-footer Darko Milicic - sharing the court. He already has ideas for the Magic. ``We've got to utilize both the athleticism and energy of the young players, and I think that means playing in a more up-tempo, attacking style,'' Van Gundy said. ``I think sometimes that gets presented as just running fast breaks, but it's more than that. It means that we should always be on the attack, we should be getting to our options quicker.'' Donovan said he envisioned Orlando looking a lot like his Gators - pressing the floor, playing in transition and trying to create turnovers. ``I understand over an 82-game schedule you're probably not going to be able to press as often as we did,'' Donovan said. Van Gundy knows that after spending the past 12 years at Miami - just over two seasons as head coach. He emphasizes the importance of playing the 24-second shot clock - the biggest difference between college and the pros besides a deeper 3-point line, another thing Donovan would need to perfect. So what's the biggest difference between the two? ``NBA experience,'' Orlando general manager Otis Smith said. ``Being around a very good coach, a great coach in Pat Riley. Knowing the players and the assets that we have. Knowing the players and assets of the league,'' Smith said. Van Gundy has done nothing but study the league since he stepped down as head coach last season. Miami retained him as an adviser to Riley, which meant Van Gundy did a lot of scouting. Just about everything he learned will be useful to Orlando, which plays the Heat four times a year and shares the Southeast Division with Miami. ``Basically what I did was watch a lot of games and provide my ideas on their team, on the teams they were playing,'' Van Gundy said. ``I watched a lot of NBA basketball. I was watching 10 or 12 games a week and really getting a chance to watch the league and stay abreast to what was going on.'' Smith is confident he got the right guy, no matter how happy Orlando once was about the Donovan deal. ``To be honest it wasn't a hard sell at all. For us it was a good thing,'' he said. |
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