Stan Van Gundy Hired

On 6/7 the Orlando Magic coaching saga came to a merciful end with the hiring of Stan Van Gundy. The Magic organization having egg on their collective face is nothing new. First there was the drafting of Fran Vazquez 11th overall in 2005 (Fran has yet to express any interest in playing in the NBA). Then there was the poorly handled Brian Hill firing. But Billy Donovan changing his mind the morning after signing a 5 year $27.5 million dollar contract had to be the most painful.

I’m not going to rag on Billy for being a weasel because he’ll never have it as good as he does at Florida anywhere in the NBA. Part of Donovan’s “opt out” is that is he can’t take another NBA job for the next five years. Umm, ok. What franchise would be foolish enough to come knocking for him anyway? I hope “The Kid” really doesn’t have pro aspirations because his little back and forth shuffle lost him a ton of respect around the league, both with decision makers and players alike.

On the other hand, I don’t think things could have worked out better for Orlando. Van Gundy is an infinitely better man for the job down there. In his first year in charge he took a very young Heat squad to the second round of the playoffs. Then in his next season he took Miami to the Conference Finals before getting unceremoniously bushwhacked 21 games into his third campaign by Pat Riley. Other than not gaining the respect of Shaquille O’Neal, Stan really did nothing wrong his first time around.

SVG inherits a young but talented Magic club with plenty of salary cap space taboot. On top of all that former coach Brian Hill has laid a nice defensive foundation already. In other words, you couldn’t ask for a better situation to take over as a coach. This brings me to another reason Stan deserves kudos. He turned down far more uncertain situations in Indiana and Sacramento before choosing Orlando. Now that’s what I call a man in charge of his own destiny.

I already mentioned how Riley stabbed Van Gundy in the back, but Pat wasn’t satisfied with just stealing his job and never allowing SVG to speak to the press about it. Nope, Riles needed compensation from the Magic too. Never mind that when the Pacers and Kings looked like Stan’s destination that nary a peep came from Pat. But somehow SVG going to Orlando meant Riles needed $1 million and a 1st round pick. WHAT A FORKING SKUNK! Steal the guy’s job, force him to keep quiet about it, and then do your darnedest to prevent him from a prime gig that makes the most sense for him and his family.

Riley ended up getting 2nd round pick (#39) this year and the right to swap 1st round picks with the Magic next season unless Orlando ends up in the lottery. In that case, or if they decline the option for another reason, the Heat then receives a 2008 2nd round pick and $500,000 cash. If you ask me Pat’s insecurity stems from the Magic being on the verge of something special. Not only does Riles know they’ll be a much better team with Van Gundy in charge, but that Orlando can stick it to Miami four times a year for as long as SVG is there. Do you think the South Florida media will have anything to write about if the Magic are suddenly better than the Heat? Do you suppose it’s also possible that the name “Pat Riley” will be mentioned prominently in all of those articles? Karma can be a real biatch Pat.