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SAN ANTONIO VS. LOS ANGELES
PHILADELPHIA VS. MILWAUKEE
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Wednesday, May 30
Coach of year added to Sixers' haul
Associated Press
PHILADELPHIA -- Larry Brown answered a question, heard the
crowd buzzing, turned around and got one of his biggest surprises
this season.
| | Larry Brown solved his differences with Allen Iverson, and both earned coveted awards. | Dean Smith, Brown's mentor and former coach at North Carolina,
stunned the Philadelphia 76ers coach by flying in from
Jacksonville, Fla., to congratulate one of his top pupils for
winning the NBA's Coach of the Year Award.
"Oh my God," Brown said Wednesday when he noticed Smith
walking up to the podium.
Brown, speechless, hugged Smith and simply stepped aside.
"What a great honor this is for Larry Brown. He's a born
coach," said Smith, who tried to lure Brown back to North Carolina
to fill its head coaching vacancy last summer.
Brown, who once said coaching at North Carolina is his dream, is
glad he stayed in Philadelphia. He has made it almost a clean sweep
this postseason for the 76ers, the first team to get four awards in
one season.
Allen Iverson was selected as the most valuable player, Aaron
McKie won the Sixth Man of the Year Award and Dikembe Mutombo was
chosen the defensive player of the year.
The only awards Philadelphia didn't get were rookie of the year
(Orlando's Mike Miller) and most improved player (Orlando's Tracy
McGrady).
"I said this is a magical season," team president Pat Croce
said.
Brown, who led the Sixers to their best record in 16 years, won
the award for the first time in his 18-year NBA coaching career.
He received 85 votes from a 124-member media panel. Rick Adelman
of the Sacramento Kings finished second with 11 votes and Don
Nelson of the Dallas Mavericks was third with eight. No other coach
received more than five votes.
"It's been an amazing year for me," Brown said. "Any time you
win an award like this, it's a reflection of what your team does."
Iverson credited Brown for his own success.
"He deserved it," Iverson said. "He's helped me so much on
the court, but he's also helped me so much dealing with things off
of it, being a professional."
The Sixers opened the Eastern Conference finals with a 93-85
victory over the Milwaukee Bucks on Tuesday night.
Brown, in his fourth season in Philadelphia, has guided the
Sixers to the playoffs three straight years after an eight-year
absence. He was coach of the year three times in four seasons in
the ABA.
Brown led the Sixers to a franchise-best 10-0 start, a
franchise-record 13 straight road victories and the top spot in the
East.
He recorded his 1,000th professional victory on Feb. 16, and
coached the East to a victory in the All-Star game.
"It was a no-brainer," Sixers guard Eric Snow said. "He's a
teacher, he teaches fundamentals, he teaches teamwork."
Before the season, Brown mended his contentious relationship
with Iverson, who lived up to his promise of becoming a team
player. Despite numerous injuries, Brown led the Sixers to a 56-26
record, matching his best winning percentage as a coach.
"I've learned so much from being around him and to see his
growth and development, it's a tremendous honor to coach him,"
Brown said of Iverson.
Brown has posted winning records in 25 of his 29 seasons as a
head coach on the professional and collegiate levels. He has
finished first in his division six times and has been to the
Eastern Conference finals three times.
Last summer, Brown was an assistant coach on the gold
medal-winning U.S. team at the Sydney Olympics. He is the only
person to play and coach in the Olympics.
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ALSO SEE
Iverson's late 3-pointer holds off Bucks in Game 1
Big Dog provides little bite in Bucks' opener
AUDIO/VIDEO
Larry Brown views his Coach of the Year award as a reflection of his team. wav: 224 k RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
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