A person with knowledge of the situation, who asked not to be named, said that the Rockets began contract negotiations with D’Antoni on a four-year deal.
The Rockets chose D’Antoni with a plan to have top defensive assistants on his staff and to improve defensively with roster changes while relying on D’Antoni’s expertise to maintain the offense.
The 65-year-old D’Antoni, who has been in the NBA since 1997 when he was an assistant coach with Denver, is known for favoring a fast-paced, offense-oriented system.
Besides the Suns, D’Antoni also coached the Lakers and Knicks. Last season, he was an assistant with the Philadelphia 76ers.
The Rockets’ head coach was held by interim coach J.B. Bickerstaff, who took over the coaching duties when Kevin McHale was fired later last year. Endit
Source: Xinhua
