Brooks named 2009-10 NBA Coach of the Year
By Official release
Posted Apr 21 2010 5:26PM
NEW YORK, April 21, 2010 -- Oklahoma City's Scott Brooks is the recipient of the Red Auerbach Trophy as the 2009-10 NBA Coach of the Year, the NBA announced today.
Brooks totaled 480 points, including 71 first-place votes, from a panel of 123 sportswriters and broadcasters throughout the United States and Canada. Coaches were awarded five points for each first-place vote, three points for each second-place vote and one point for each third-place vote.
2009-10 NBA COACH OF THE YEAR RESULTS
Coach, Team 1st 2nd 3rd Pts
Scott Brooks, Oklahoma City 71 39 8 480
Scott Skiles, Milwaukee 26 54 21 313
Nate McMillan, Portland 9 9 35 107
Jerry Sloan, Utah 10 9 21 98
Alvin Gentry, Phoenix 4 5 11 46
Larry Brown, Charlotte 1 2 12 23
George Karl, Denver 1 1 3 11
Rick Adelman, Houston - 2 1 7
Mike Woodson, Atlanta - 2 1 7
Lionel Hollins, Memphis - - 6 6
Stan Van Gundy, Orlando 1 - - 5
Mike Brown, Cleveland - - 2 2
Rick Carlisle, Dallas - - 1 1
Erik Spoelstra, Miami - - 1 1
In his first full season at the helm in Oklahoma City, Brooks guided the Thunder to a 50-32 (.610) season and the organization's first playoff berth since 2005. Brooks coached the Thunder -- the NBA's youngest team -- to an NBA-best 27-game turnaround following a 23-59 (.280) record in 2008-09.
Brooks was named NBA Coach of the Month for February after leading the Thunder to the NBA's best winning percentage (.818) with a 9-2 mark, including a 5-1 record on the road. Oklahoma City opened the month with seven consecutive wins, extending a winning streak that began in January to nine games, the Thunder's longest winning streak since the 2004-05 season.
Brooks, who had been named interim head coach on Nov. 22, 2008, was named head coach of the Thunder on April 15, 2009, prior to the team's final game of the season. Before his appointment as interim head coach, Brooks was an assistant coach with the team since the 2007-08 season.
Before joining the Thunder organization, Brooks served as an assistant coach for the Sacramento Kings (2006-07), after beginning his NBA coaching career under George Karl as an assistant coach for the Denver Nuggets (2003-06).
The Coach of the Year Award is named after legendary coach and Hall of Famer Red Auerbach who guided the Celtics to nine NBA Championships. In 1996, Auerbach was honored as one of the Top 10 Coaches in NBA History as the NBA celebrated its 50th anniversary.