Pacers president Donnie Walsh thought the idea of Mike D’Antoni coaching the Lakers made terrific sense when he first heard the possibility. But like 99.9 percent — OK, make it 100 and unanimous — of folks around the NBA, Walsh figured the pick would be Phil Jackson after the name of the 11-time championship coach surfaced.
So Walsh, who as Knicks president brought D’Antoni aboard in New York, was surprised by developments in Los Angeles only in the fact the choice was not Jackson.
“He’s a great choice and I think he’ll do a great job because, No. 1, he is a very good basketball coach. He’s made for that team, a team with true talent,” Walsh told The Post Tuesday. “He is very clever in everything he does as far as the offensive end and he really does know defense. And his experiences in New York will help him with that.”
Oh yeah, New York. It’s doubtful Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak and the Buss ownership clan sat down and said they needed a guy who was 121-167 in New York.
“Unfortunately, in New York he was there for two years when we were de-constructing the team and then we were putting it together in my last year there,” Walsh said. “We were basically breaking the team down and then trying to build it up and it never got to be a complete team.”
And there was the whole clash of wills and philosophy with Carmelo Anthony.
Walsh said he feels the D’Antoni’s up-tempo approach will thrive with the Lakers’ thoroughbreds. D’Antoni’s predecessor, Mike Brown, whacked just five games into his second season, stressed a defensive approach which slowed matters down.
“I think he’ll do a great job. With Mike, he can look out there and tell if he’s got a team that can do what he wants to do and if he thinks it can, he’ll make it work,” Walsh said of the new Lakers coach who could debut Sunday. “Those guys are like racehorses, they want to get out and play.”
While D’Antoni’s style, liberally laced with pick-and-rolls for the master, Steve Nash (when he gets healthy), seems perfectly suited for L.A., it always comes down to one element: talent. Walsh thinks D’Antoni learned that with the Knicks.
“I would say that what probably became clear is that if you don’t have the talent, no system is going to work the way you think it will,” Walsh said. “Mike has confidence in his system but if you don’t have the right talent, you will not be able to make it work.”
Walsh sees D’Antoni employing Dwight Howard the way he once used a young Amar’e Stoudemire.
“When Amar’e first came, he was a young kid out of high school but a great, great athlete. Mike just found a way to involve him, and all you ever saw was him dunking on everybody,” Walsh said. “Things are more available in his offense for Howard. … It’s going to happen quick and if he gets it around the basket, he’s going up and dunking.”