The day many Lakers fans had been hoping for has finally arrived as Mike D’Antoni has resigned as head coach of the team.
Immediately after the announcement by the Lakers, general manager Mitch Kupchak released a statement thanking D’Antoni for his time with the team:
Lakers GM Kupchak: “Given the circumstances, I don’t know that anybody could have done a better job than Mike did the past two seasons..”
— Serena Winters (@SerenaWinters) May 1, 2014
“On behalf of the Lakers, we thank Mike for the work ethic, professionalism & positive attitude that he brought to the team every day…
— Serena Winters (@SerenaWinters) May 1, 2014
… We wish him the best of luck.” – Mitch Kupchak's statement on resignation of Mike D"Antoni
— Serena Winters (@SerenaWinters) May 1, 2014
With the amount of injuries the Lakers suffered these past two seasons, it would have been nearly impossible for any coach to succeed, but D’Antoni never seemed to fit in Los Angeles.
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He had issues with a couple of different players, and the fans in general never supported his selection over Phil Jackson. Additionally, the team’s defense was consistently below average, garnering widespread criticism from fans and analysts.
There are reports that the final straw for D’Antoni was that the Lakers refused to pick up the fourth year on D’Antoni’s contract before the season. D’Antoni wanted the insurance and the Lakers were unwilling to give it.
The Lakers have said that the search for a new coach will begin immediately, and recent rumors have linked a couple of former Lakers to the job, including Byron Scott and current assistant Kurt Rambis.
D’Antoni posted a 67-87 record in his time with the Lakers, the worst winning percentage of any Lakers coach with at least 100 games.
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