Memphis Grizzlies: 5 Of The Top Head Coach Candidates Available
By Chris Kern
Stan Van Gundy
Stan Van Gundy has a head coaching record of 523-384 in the regular season and then 48-43 in the postseason. He has coached for three different eastern conferences teams, being the Miami Heat, the Orlando Magic, and the Detroit Pistons.
He most recently coached the Pistons, but he didn’t have a lot of success there as he made just one playoff appearance during his time there, which ended with them being swept by the Cleveland Cavaliers. His regular season record there was 152-176.
Van Gundy had a lot more success with the Magic which was his stop prior to Detroit. He had a regular season record of 259-135 there which included playoff appearances in all five of his seasons as the coach.
His most notable time there was dealing with Dwight Howard. They had many different issues together, but they did make an NBA Finals together in 2009 so they were able to make it work. He was fired after the 2011-12 season.
That decision proved to be a mistake though as they just made the playoffs for the first time since then. They have really struggled since then to find a quality head coach, but they do seem to have found one in Steve Clifford who took the team to the postseason in his first season as the coach.
Dwight Howard’s success with Van Gundy could lead to him being a good fit with Jaren Jackson Jr. He also coached Andre Drummond in Detroit so he knows what it will take for him to develop. He isn’t the same type of player as those other bigs he coached, but he can use some of what he learned with those guys, to help him get the most out of Jaren Jackson.