HOUSTON -- Don Chaney, who led the Houston Rockets to their best season ever, was named NBA Coach of the Year Thursday and also agreed to a new multi-year contract with the club.
The Rockets were 52-30 in Chaney's third season, including a 15-10 span without star center Hakeem Olajuwon, who suffered a broken eye socket midway through the season. Chaney received 69 of a possible 96 votes from a national panel of sports writers and broadcasters.
'It is a dream right now and it's kind of hard to realize it's all happening,' Chaney said. 'I'm very pleased and proud not only to receive this, but to realize I will be back with this team in our pursuit for the championship.
'I will cherish this forever. This honor doesn't come without the mention of my players. We had a lot of adversity to overcome, we were shorthanded and we performed to a level people didn't think we were capable of.'
Portland Coach Rick Adelman finished second with 11 votes, followed by Boston's Chris Ford with 7, Chicago's Phil Jackson with 4, San Antonio's Larry Brown and Miwaukee's Del Harris with 2 each and Detroit's Chuck Daly with 1.
The Rockets got off to a slow start on the season, and then lost Olajuwon when he was struck in the face while battling Chicago's Bill Cartwright for a rebound.
Olajuwon, who led the NBA in rebounds and blocked shots, was the club's leading scorer when he was injured. But Chaney directed the club to a 14-1 record in March without the center, and set a team record with the 52 victories.
The March performance led to Chaney being named NBA Coach of the Month -- an award he collected two straight months.
The Rockets lost out to the Los Angeles Lakers in the first round of the NBA playoffs.
'This is a very joyous occasion for the Rocket organization,' said club General Manager Steve Patterson. 'Don has also just agreed to terms which will keep him here for many years to come.'
Details of Chaney's contract were not disclosed. He reached the agreement with the club just minutes before the coaching award was announced.
'I'm very pleased with the contract,' he said. 'It's very difficult when you're working and trying to gear up for the future and jockey around the draft to figure out where your team is, what the needs are and what's out there when your future is in limbo.
'We got it done and this team gets an opportunity to pursue their championship, and I feel there is a great future for us. We have the nucleus, we have players who understand what it takes to win a championship, and we're on a mission. We'll try to accomplish that next season.'
