Houston Rockets • 2003-2004 Media Guide - NBA Media Central
Houston Rockets • 2003-2004 Media Guide - NBA Media Central
Houston Rockets • 2003-2004 Media Guide - NBA Media Central
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.403 shooting, marking the team’s best scoring<br />
defense since the introduction of the shot clock.<br />
The following season, the Knicks held opponents<br />
to 90.7 points per game on .424 shooting. In the<br />
2000-2001 season, New York led the <strong>NBA</strong> in both<br />
scoring defense and field goal percentage defense,<br />
as opponents registered 86.1 points per game on<br />
.417 shooting.<br />
Van Gundy joined the Knicks as an assistant<br />
coach on July 28, 1989 and spent the next sixand-a-half<br />
seasons in this capacity. Stu Jackson<br />
hired Van Gundy and coached the Knicks for a<br />
season-and-a-half. Van Gundy then aided John<br />
MacLeod, who replaced Jackson and guided New<br />
York for one season. Van Gundy then worked as<br />
an assistant coach to Riley for four seasons. Lastly,<br />
Van Gundy coached under Nelson for the majority<br />
of the 1995-96 season before replacing him upon<br />
his resignation.<br />
During Van Gundy's time as assistant coach, New<br />
York never finished lower than third in the Atlantic<br />
Division, winning three division titles. The Knicks<br />
qualified for the playoffs in every year of his tenure<br />
as assistant coach, advancing to the Eastern<br />
Conference Finals in 1993 and the <strong>NBA</strong> Finals vs.<br />
<strong>Houston</strong> the following year.<br />
11<br />
Van Gundy’s coaching career began in 1985 at<br />
McQuaid Jesuit High School in Rochester, New<br />
York. The following year, he became a graduate<br />
assistant under Pitino at Providence, helping the<br />
Friars advance to the Final Four. In his second<br />
season at Providence, he was promoted to assistant<br />
coach under Gordon Chiesa. The next season,<br />
Van Gundy became an assistant coach under<br />
Bob Wenzel at Rutgers.<br />
Van Gundy hails from a family of basketball<br />
coaches. His father, Bill, retired after four decades<br />
of coaching, including 15 years as the head<br />
coach at Genesee Community College in Batavia,<br />
New York. His brother, Stan, serves as assistant<br />
head coach under Riley with the Miami Heat,<br />
after a college coaching career at Vermont,<br />
Castleton State, Canisius, Fordham,<br />
Massachusetts-Lowell and Wisconsin.<br />
Van Gundy graduated from Nazareth College in<br />
Rochester, New York, where he played point<br />
guard for two seasons. In 1996, he was honored<br />
with induction into the Nazareth College Sports<br />
Hall of Fame.<br />
Van Gundy lives in <strong>Houston</strong> with his wife, Kim,<br />
and daughter, Mattie.<br />
Jeff Van Gundy’s Coaching Record<br />
Year Team Record Pct. Playoffs Pct. Playoff Result<br />
1995-96 New York 13-10 .565 4-4 .500 Advanced to Conference Semifinals<br />
1996-97 New York 57-25 .695 6-4 .600 Advanced to Conference Semifinals<br />
1997-98 New York 43-39 .524 4-6 .400 Advanced to Conference Semifinals<br />
1998-99 New York 27-23 .540 12-8 .600 Advanced to <strong>NBA</strong> Finals<br />
1999-00 New York 50-32 .610 9-7 .563 Advanced to Conference Finals<br />
2000-01 New York 48-34 .585 2-3 .400 Lost in First Round<br />
2001-02 New York 10-9 .526 — — Did not participate<br />
TOTALS 7 Years 248-172 .590 37-32 .536<br />
HEAD COACH