OKLAHOMA CITY — Scott Brooks did everything but win a championship.
It wasn’t enough.
The Oklahoma City Thunder fired their coach on Wednesday, parting ways with a former NBA coach of the year who led the team to three conference finals in four years, only to falter this season as his players were hit hard by injuries.
Brooks coached the Thunder for seven seasons. Starting in 2010-11, he led the team to the Western Conference finals three out of four years, and the franchise reached the NBA Finals in 2012. Oklahoma City failed to make the playoffs this past season, as injuries limited them to a 45-37 finish.
Brooks, 49, was 338-207 (.620) with the Thunder and was the 2009-10 NBA Coach of the Year. He said last week that he expected to be the coach next season. Thunder General Manager Sam Presti said he knows he’s taking a chance by removing such a successful coach — a year before Kevin Durant can become a free agent — but he felt the franchise could regress if a change wasn’t made. “The risk is not necessarily in moving forward, but I think sometimes, the risk can be in being fearful of moving forward,” he said.
Durant, last season’s NBA MVP, responded to the news with an Instagram post Wednesday evening.
“Today was tough for me,” he said. “While I support our team’s decision 100 percent and look forward to the upcoming season and the future on OKC, Scotty was my coach and a friend for the past 7 seasons. We accomplished a lot together, and those times will never be taken away from us.
“I grew as both a man and a ball player under his guidance and for that I will forever be grateful. I wish nothing but the best for him and his family who have also been such a big part of this city and organization. I know he will be very successful wherever his next steps are in life.”