Lawrence Frank appointed as the new head coach of Detroit Pistons – NBA Update
It has been officially confirmed that Lawrence Frank will be the new head coach of the Detroit Pistons, when the next NBA season begins. The news conference for the announcement is expected next week with Frank having reportedly agreed a four year deal. The fourth year is an option for the team.
Frank was the assistant coach to Doc Rivers of the Boston Celtics last season, but has extensive head coaching experience in the NBA. He was at the helm of the New Jersey Nets for quite a few years and led the team to 3 appearances in the Eastern Conference Finals. His overall record with the Nets is 225-241.
Frank was part of a long list of coaches that the Detroit Pistons considered before making the final decision. Among them was Mike Woodson, a former assistant coach at the Pistons when the franchise won its last NBA World Championship, back in 2004 and Bill Laimbeer, who won the NBA ring as a player in Detroit. Other names mentioned that did not have previous ties to the Pistons, included Kelvin Sampson and Patrick Ewing.
The appointment will hopefully be the beginning of a successful period for the Pistons, who have suffered in the last few years. Frank will have to pull out all the stops, if he is to turn around a team that has failed to qualify for the playoffs in the last two seasons.
Former coach John Kuester, whose inevitable firing sparked the search for a new coach, did not leave a happy group of players behind. Almost everyone on the Pistons roster had a bone to pick with Kuester and a number of senior players had public clashes with him.
Kuester often benched the players to establish his authority on the team, but the players hit back with missed practice sessions. Some of the bigger names in the Detroit locker room that had problems with Kuester include former scoring champion Tracy McGrady and former NBA champions Richard Hamilton and TayShaun Prince.
Pistons also have a stagnated roster due to a lack of activity over the last couple of years. Joe Dumars, the President of Basketball Operations at the franchise, revealed earlier that during that time his hands were tied due to the protracted sale of the club.
Since taking over, Tom Gores, the new billionaire owner has started to bring changes to the organization which started with the firing of John Kuester. Now having installed Frank Lawrence as the new head coach, Gores and Dumars will be looking to improve the roster in order to provide Frank with a realistic chance of achieving the high targets they have set for him.
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