Shortly after resigning as the head coach of the Los Angeles Lakers, Mike D’Antoni has reportedly expressed interest in taking over for the recently fired Mark Jackson in the Bay Area.
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According to Sam Amick of USA Today, D’Antoni is interested in the head coaching vacancy of the Golden State Warriors along with Mike Dunleavy:
Also interested in the job are former Lakers and New York Knicks coach Mike D’Antoni and former Clippers and Portland coach Mike Dunleavy, according to a person familiar with the situation.
Although the last two seasons in Los Angeles weren’t pretty, D’Antoni may be able to land the job with the Warriors. Golden State has a group of young and talented players mixed in with savvy veterans that can run, shoot and score at will.
The Warriors are ready to compete with the best of the best in the Western Conference right now and now need the right coach and system in the post Jackson era. D’Antoni’s run-and-gun system might be best suited in Oakland even though it didn’t work in New York or Los Angeles.
D’Antoni may be the ideal fit for Golden State, but much like the Lakers, there’s no shortage of viable options for the Warriors heading into the off-season.
Steve Kerr has emerged as a legitimate candidate along with many others according to NBA.com:
Former NBA player and TNT broadcaster Steve Kerr, former Orlando Magic coach Stan Van Gundy, Iowa State’s Fred Hoiberg and Connecticut’s Kevin Ollie could be among the top candidates.
It’ll be interesting to see if D’Antoni can quickly land another job after two failed stints in the two biggest markets in the NBA. Golden State would be rolling the dice on a system that hasn’t been a success since it was firing on all cylinders with Steve Nash’s Phoenix Suns. Despite that being the case, it’s hard to argue that D’Antoni isn’t the ideal choice for a team filled with players that could easily fit in his system.
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