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Congratulations to Coach Gentry. Well deserved.
Press release follows..
GENTRY WINS WEST COACH OF THE MONTH
Earns first career monthly honor after leading Suns to NBA-best 14-3 mark
PHOENIX – Phoenix Suns Head Coach Alvin Gentry today was named the NBA’s Western Conference Coach of the Month for October/November 2009, the league has announced.
Gentry wins his first career NBA Coach of the Month award and becomes just the fifth head coach in franchise history to earn the honor, joining three-time winner Cotton Fitzsimmons (April 1989, February 1990, December 1991), Paul Westphal (December 1992), Frank Johnson (December 2002) and four-time winner Mike D’Antoni (December 2004, February 2006, December 2006, January 2007).
Gentry garners the 10th monthly selection in franchise history and the first since D’Antoni in January 2007 after leading the Suns to a franchise-record tying and league-best 14-3 (.824) start in 2009-10. Despite a road-heavy schedule this season, the Suns, who tonight play their league-high 12th game away from home, own a share of the most victories in the league (14) and the most road wins (8). The Suns own the NBA’s longest active home win streak dating back to 2008-09, a string of 15 consecutive victories at US Airways Center, and are the lone NBA team without a home loss this season (6-0).
Under Gentry’s guidance, the Suns currently own a season-high tying four-game win streak, their third four-game win streak in 17 games this season after posting just one such streak in 2008-09 and none until March. Phoenix is a season-best 11 games above .500 for the first time since the end of the 2007-08 regular season and is one of only three teams without consecutive losses in 2009-10.
The highest scoring team in the league for the fifth time in the last six seasons, the Suns are the only NBA team that has reached 100 points in every game this season. Phoenix is averaging a league-best 112.0 points and shooting an NBA-best 50.7 percent from the field, including a league-high 44.5 percent from three-point range.
The Suns return to action tonight, taking on the New York Knicks (3-14) at Madison Square Garden at 5:30 p.m. Phoenix time. The game can be seen locally on My45 and heard on Sports 620 KTAR.
-suns.com-