OKLAHOMA CITY – Scott Brooks did everything but win a championship.
It wasn’t enough.
The Oklahoma City Thunder fired their coach on Wednesday, parting ways with a former NBA coach of the year who led the team to three conference finals in four years only to falter this season as his players were hit hard by injuries.
Brooks coached the Thunder for seven seasons. Starting in 2010-11, he led the team to the Western Conference finals three out of four years, and the Thunder reached the NBA Finals in 2012. The Thunder failed to make the playoffs this past season, as injuries limited them to a 45-37 finish.
Brooks was 338-207 (.620) with the Thunder and was the 2009-10 NBA Coach of the Year. He said last week that he expected to be the coach next season.
“This is an extremely difficult decision on many levels,” Thunder general manager Sam Presti said. “Scott helped establish the identity of the Thunder and has earned his rightful place in the history of our organization through his seven years as a valued leader and team member.”
Still, Brooks was criticized by many for failing to win a title with Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook on his roster. Durant was last year’s MVP and is a four-time scoring champion, while Westbrook was this year’s All-Star MVP and scoring champion. Presti backed Brooks throughout the season, but said Wednesday that being in position to win a title is important to him.
“It is very important to state that this decision is not a reflection of this past season, but rather an assessment of what we feel is necessary at this point in time in order to continually evolve, progress and sustain,” he said.
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