Head coach of the Houston Rockets, Michael D’Antoni has informed the franchise of his departure from the team.
In a statement on Saturday, the 69-year-old said he was leaving because it was time to open a new chapter of his career.
D’Antoni has coached the Rockets for four years but refused to renew his contract during the cause of the season.
His contract eventually expired following the Rockets’ Western Conference semifinals loss to the LA Lakers.
to leak that they were strongly considering a POC.
It was/is no secret that the Pacers are interested in D'Antoni – a white coach who would be replacing a fired black head coach. So….what did they do? They leaked to Woj that they were heavily interested in Chauncey Billups.
— Michael McNamara (@michael_stokley) September 15, 2020
“It’s with tremendous sadness and gratitude that my wife Laurel and I announce that our incredible journey in Houston has ended for now and that we’ll be moving to a new chapter,” he said in a statement.
Meanwhile, Rockets owner Tilman Fertitta expressed his gratitude to D’Antoni and wished him well in his next job.
He said the Rockets were blessed to have had him as head coach and described D’Antoni as a true professional.
“Mike is a true professional and an amazing basketball mind,” said Fertitta, as quoted by ESPN.
“He is a winner, and we have been blessed to have had such an outstanding coach and leader to work with the past four seasons.”
D’Antoni has been linked to the Philadelphia 76ers and the Indiana Pacers after leaving his current role.
