Golden State Warriors names defensive coordinator as new coach
The Golden State Warriors officially moved on from the Don Nelson era Monday after naming longtime assistant Keith Smart as the team’s next head coach.
Smart, who served as an interim coach for the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2003, is looking to instill a more defensive-oriented Warriors this coming season.
Under Nelson, the Warriors utilized a potent up-tempo game, but the offensive scheme obviously undermined the team’s ability to defend.
Nelson resigned last week due to immense pressure from Joe Jacob and Peter Guber, the new owners of the Warriors.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_Guber
Many basketball followers viewed the 46-year-old Smart as a defensive-minded coach, who could help the Warriors become a better defensive team.
Since 2003, Smart had worked as the Warriors defensive coordinator. Smart’s familiarity with different defensive plays was the result of his vast playing experience around the world.
After nailing the buzzer beater jumper that gave the Indiana Hoosiers the 1987 NCAA Championship, Smart spent two seasons with the San Antonio Spurs before pursuing a career overseas.
During his playing career, Smart mastered an effective zone defense, which can limit the opponent’s penetrating game and height advantage.
Warriors center David Lee only stands at 6-foot-9, but by playing in a 2-3 or 3-2 zone defense he can have a nice coverage on his defender.
However, Smart admitted a zone can also give the opponent’s shooters more room to score, so a combination of zone and single-coverage defense could be used next season.
Smart looks to limit the Warriors’ tendency to take numerous three-point shots, which hurt the team’s field goal percentage over the past four seasons.
Rodney Carney and Dorell Wright are expected to play more minutes, as the team premier defensive lockers.
Warriors General Manager Larry Riley was upbeat about having a new head coach, and perhaps, opening a new chapter for the long-suffering Warriors franchise.
"We feel that Keith Smart is ready for this challenge as we embark on a new season," Riley said Monday. "He has a wealth of experience as a player and coach in this game and has been fortunate to be around
some of the best minds in the business.”
Smart added he’s shifting his focus for the training camp, insisting personnel searching is out of his hands.
"I did not make any personnel decisions. My focus was preparing myself for training camp and figuring out how the pieces will fit with the team," Smart told the Associated Press Monday.
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