Mavericks Fire Avery Johnson

Regular-season prowess, postseason pratfalls defined rookie coach's Dallas tenure
Posted Apr 30, 2008 10:03 PM CDT
Mavericks Fire Avery Johnson
Dallas Mavericks coach Avery Johnson watches his team's 99-94 loss to the New Orleans Hornets.   (AP Photo/Dave Martin)

From the start, Avery Johnson was a perfect fit as coach of the Dallas Mavericks. At the end, it was pretty obvious he wasn't. Johnson lost his job Wednesday, a move the team referred to as "relieving him of his duties."

The softer tone made sense considering that in three-plus seasons Johnson guided the Mavericks to the finals for the first time and to a club-record 67 wins the following season. Yet for all the high points, there were some serious lows—blowing a 2-0 lead in those finals, getting dumped in the first round of the playoffs after that 67-win season and then, the final straw, getting knocked out in the first round again this season. (More NBA stories.)

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