
In a major announcement Wednesday afternoon, the Oklahoma City Thunder fired head coach Scott Brooks after he failed to lead the team to the playoffs this season. ย
The team released the following press release (via Rachel Nichols of Turner Sports):
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As you might imagine, Twitter was quickly buzzing after hearing the news.ย
Marc Stein of ESPN.com, for one, doesn't think Brooks will be without suitors and listed an intriguing possibility for the Thunder job:
Kevin Durant released a statement following the news:ย
Much of the response, meanwhile, was that Brooks got the raw end of the deal. Frank Isola of theย New York Daily News felt the timing of this decision was off:
Chris Mannix ofย Sports Illustratedย noted that the perception of Brooks has often been unfair:
Meanwhile, Dan Levy of Bleacher Report felt the organization's decision was inevitable:ย
Brooks had a successful tenure in Oklahoma City, goingย 338-207 inย seven seasons with the team and leading the Thunder to the playoffs five times. He was awarded the NBA Coach of the Year in 2009-10.ย
He also has this historical distinction, per ESPN Stats & Information:
Still, there were questions about Brooks in Oklahoma City throughout the years, namely about his in-game coaching and whether he was the right fit for the personnel the team had. While that didn't prevent him from leading the team to the postseason on countless occasions, the team's inability to win a championship in Oklahoma City will be remembered as a major disappointment.ย
He'll likely resurface with a new team soon, while the Thunder will need to make a major coaching move, especially with Durant's free agency looming. The next year in Oklahoma City could be a transformative one for this organization.ย



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