Listen on Apple Podcasts | Spotify, Gang's All Here: A NY Jets Podcast Atkinson has interviewed for the Rockets opening, according to the Houston Chronicle. Now Atkinson melds that hoops potpourri and brings it to Brooklyn. To opt out of the sale of your personal information as permitted by the California Consumer He fit the nickname,’’ said retired Spiders coach Dick Tarrant, whose 1988 Sweet 16 team was led by Atkinson at point guard. Kenny Atkinson was born in Northport on Friday, June 2, 1967 (Generation X). But spunk and sweat and smarts can take one only so far in the NBA. Atkinson played college basketball at Richmond, where he was a two-time all-conference player in the Colonial Athletic Association. Terms of Use Brooklyn general manager Sean Marks said the team needed “another voice.”. Even with so many years away from coaching, Van Gundy, 58, has the most head coaching experience of the initial Rockets candidates with seven seasons in New York before his seasons with the Rockets. “He’s was very competitive and a clutch player for us. It just so happened to be Brooklyn.’’. “The thing I admired watching him work … was he had great passion, teaching ability, enthusiasm, and combined them well,’’ ESPN analyst and former Knicks coach Jeff Van Gundy told The Post. He agreed to step down last season, less than a week before the NBA hiatus began March 11. They could expand the pool of candidates, a person with knowledge of the process said. The Clippers and Pelicans are also interested in Lue. Atkinson spent four years in New York on Mike D’Antoni’s staff. Here, Mo (Michael Malone) gives him a lot of responsibility. The Nets improved from 20 to 28 to 42 wins in Atkinson’s first three seasons. He’ll make a heck of a head coach.”. He’s got an unbelievable family and he’s completely egoless, which I think fits in well with what we do. Joining Kelvin Johnson and Bill Flye in the starting lineup in the 1983-84 season, the Spiders won the ECAC South conference title to reach the Spiders' first-ever NCAA Tournament, where Richmond defeated Charles Barkley-led Auburn 72-71 at the Charlotte Coliseum. He played in both CBAs (the Continental Basketball Association and China Basketball Association) and in Japan, Italy and Russia with Euroleague power CSKA Moscow where he won the last of five titles as a player and began his coaching career under Ettore Messina. Born in Huntington, New York, Atkinson played college basketball for University of Richmond, where he led the Spiders to a Sweet Sixteen berth in 1988. Atkinson went undrafted and cut from tryouts with the Suns and Knicks in the summer of 1991. After stints in the USBL and CBA, he played in France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and Spain. “Kenny speaks five languages: French, Spanish, Italian, German and English. Kenneth Neil “Kenny” Atkinson is an American former professional basketball player who is currently an assistant coach for the Atlanta Hawks of the NBA. Kenny Atkinson (born June 2, 1967) is famous for being basketball coach. Get the latest odds on all the top sports. He fit the nickname,’’ said retired Spiders coach Dick Tarrant, whose 1988 Sweet 16 team was led by Atkinson at point guard. Van Gundy praised Atkinson’s breadth of knowledge, from the Gregg Popovich tree (under ex-Spurs assistant Mike Budenholzer) to D’Antoni’s 7 Seconds Or Less (“that started so much of what we see now,” Van Gundy said) to Tarrant, a sharp enough basketball mind that Bob Knight and Dean Smith paid for his scouting services. … He’s a gym rat. The Rockets hired him after three seasons as an assistant with Paris Basket Racing. He has been since he was a little kid growing up on Long Island, ... but ninth-seeded Richmond refused to wilt. “He keeps getting better and better jobs. He went 128-83 with the Cavaliers and interviewed for the position with the 76ers before Rivers left the Clippers and quickly became the head coach in Philadelphia. I mean, anybody who spent eight years as an advanced scout, that’s really hard. As a teenager, he played his basketball at St. Anthony’s High School in South Huntington, where he was a standout player, once scoring 18 points in an upset win over the New York City Stars in the 1985 Newsday Classic. This site is operated jointly by NBA and WarnerMedia. “Kenny, on his day off, would shoot 250 shots. OKC Thunder coaching search: Five things to know about Kenny Atkinson, 2020 Oklahoma election voter guide: Everything you need to know before Election Day. Joe Mussatto joined The Oklahoman in August 2018 to cover OU football, men’s basketball and softball. Kenny was flying high playing in front of his people,’’ Tarrant said. Silas, 47, became the NBA’s youngest assistant coach at 27 when he was moved from a scouting position with the New Orleans Hornets in 2000. Lue has a reputation for working well with star players, having played with Hall of Famers Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, Shaquille O’Neal and McGrady. Coach called him Spunky. “So whatever team he goes to, they’re going to get a hell of a coach.”. There aren’t direct ties linking Kenny Atkinson and the Thunder, but Atkinson and Sam Presti have worked with some of the same people. Your California Privacy Rights Lightning does not strike twice in the same place, but Kyle Lauletta does. In Atlanta, Korver, Bazemore, Al Horford and Jeff Teague praised his development skills. WarnerMedia Privacy Center | https://www.facebook.com/JonathanFeigen2/, No reason to 'blow up' Rockets' roster, Tilman Fertitta says, Finger: To some, DeMar DeRozan’s voice louder than ever, Daryl Morey leaves a legacy of doing things differently, daring greatly, Smith: Morey’s surprise exit makes Rockets’ task even tougher, Rockets’ new general manager will lead search for coach, Rockets’ new GM Rafael Stone: a passion for basketball and a mind for deals, Chasing stars: Daryl Morey's timeline as Rockets GM, Rockets' circus keeps taking down big names. The Rockets’ director of player development under Kevin McHale, he joined Mike D’Antoni’s coaching staff with the Knicks in 2008. So he understands not only the languages but customs of the global player. But he has also long worked with players on their skills, building relationships around the league. The little battery tirelessly worked drills with Jeremy Lin. When a team pulls an NCAA Tournament upset that no one expected and becomes darlings of the nation for 48 hours. Gemini moves too fast to care about embarrassing missteps: They simply move on. A closer look at each: Unseld Jr., the son of NBA Hall of Famer Wes Unseld Sr., has been around NBA teams since he was 5 years old and has long showed an ability to relate to and reach players from the stars to the end of the bench. the NBA Privacy Center, it will apply to data controlled independently by the NBA. He went on to play professionally in France, Germany and Spain from 1991-2004. Marks hired Atkinson to coach the Nets. [Players] are thinking, ‘Damn, if he can do it, I have to do it!’ … He’s like a little motor, the little battery that wouldn’t shut down.’’. He’s a basketball lifer, a former collegiate player, a professional in Europe and an assistant coach on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean. Former professional basketball player who has also worked as the head coach for the Brooklyn Nets. “He’s pretty excited. After joining the Houston Chronicle in 1990, Feigen has covered the demise of the SWC, the rise of the Big 12 and the Rockets at their championship best. Terms of Use | He’s played in the Netherlands, France, Germany, Italy, Spain and reportedly speaks five languages.