Denver Nuggets' George Karl notches up his 1000th career win
The wait is finally over for George Karl.
History was put on hold, as the veteran 59 year old coach watched in desperation from the sidelines witnessing his team lose to the Charlotte Bobcats and the Boston Celtics on two consecutive nights. But, the inevitable finally
happened as an Al Harrington inspired Denver Nuggets held their nerves to squeak a 123-116 win over the Toronto Raptors, to bestow a 1000th career win upon their celebrated coach.
This achievement makes Karl only the seventh coach in the league’s history to have won 1000 games and he joins the elite club featuring legends like Larry Brown, Don Nelson, Lenny Wilkens, Pat Riley, Jerry Sloan and Phil Jackson.
Compared to the first six members of the 1000 Club, Karl has accomplished this feat with the fourth fewest total games and in doing so has become the third youngest coach in NBA history to win his 1,000th career game.
The foundation for a Hall of Fame coaching career was laid 40 years ago when he started as a player, but despite an inexhaustible passion for the game, his body could not endure the harsh realities of the game. He played for three
seasons in the American Basketball Association before injuries forced him to look at other options.
The advent of Karl’s career was not a bed of roses though. There was a time when he started his journey, when many thought Karl wouldn't even make it to three wins. It was the worst nightmare any young coach could have. A guy,
who started 2-19 with his first NBA head coaching gig, bounced around between a bevy of franchises.
Yet, he still had the guts and the belief to fight back and his career changed forever when he was introduced as the 19th head coach in the Nuggets history on the 27th January, 2005. In his first season at Denver, 2004-05,
Karl engineered one of the greatest turnarounds in NBA history. When Karl assumed duties in January, the Nuggets were a struggling team, languishing at 17-25 and stood at 11th place in the Western Conference – a full six games out of the playoffs.
Karl came into their ranks and turned a miserable season on its head, as he led the Nuggets to a 32-8 (.800) record and a seventh seed in the postseason, to notch a winning percentage that still remains the best in NBA history,
for a midseason coaching replacement who coached at least 20 games.
The Denver Nuggets never looked back from there. Denver along with the Dallas Mavericks and San Antonio Spurs are the only NBA teams to have made seven-straight playoff appearances.
An emotional Karl said of his milestone, that every coach yearns for, after the match.
"My reflections are back to my dad and my mom and grandma and grandpa, the guys who got me into the business of being a competitor. It’s a dream. It’s a dream that doesn’t come true very often. I never even dreamt it, but its here."
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