When Avery Johnson took over the head coaching duties for the Dallas Mavericks last season, it seemed like a good fit. He’s a tough, defensive-minded coach and that is exactly what the Mavs needed after several years of Don Nelson at the helm.Tonight, Johnson will coach the team for the 82nd time tonight, and has compiled a 65-16 record in that span. That represents the best start ever for an NBA coach.
Johnson appreciates what he’s accomplished, but he’s not about to let it go to his head. This is a guy who overcame being undrafted and repeatedly released to become the starting point guard on an NBA champion in San Antonio, so he knows all about humility and perseverance.
“There’s no magic formula to what we do as coaches,” Johnson said Monday. “Fortunately, we’ve won our share of games, but I don’t think it has as much to do with me as the young men on the court.”
Johnson, who hit the title-clinching shot to seal the San Antonio Spurs’ first championship, is known as the “Little General.” Tough and demanding, he has the Mavs playing the best basketball the franchise has seen in the last twenty years. Ironically, the Spurs and Mavs, who have the two best records in the West, are on a collision course to meet in the second round of the playoffs. If Johnson is able to get Dallas past his old team in the postseason, we’ll know that he’s really arrived.
