http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/sports/3171299 By FRANK ISOLA Copyright 2005 New York Daily News DALLAS — Jeff Van Gundy, never one to back down from a good fight, went after Avery Johnson today, one day after the Mavs coach said that Van Gundy only started complaining about the officiating after the Rockets lost Games 3 and 4 of their first-round series. "It is revisionist history," Van Gundy said on the eve of Game 7. "His words speak for themselves." Following Houston's Game 6 victory, Johnson criticized the media's coverage of the series for focusing too much attention on Van Gundy's fine and not giving Dallas credit for winning three straight games. Van Gundy was fined $100,000 before Game 5 for saying that an NBA official had informed him that the referees would be looking more closely at Yao Ming. "Maybe I need to go crazy," Johnson said during his rambling postgame tirade on Thursday. "Maybe that will help. We lost the game. The game was called fairly, pretty much. No excuses. No complaining." Johnson, of course, was fined $10,000 for berating referee Joey Crawford after Game 1. After losing Game 2, Mavs owner Mark Cuban complained to the league, saying that Yao was setting illegal screens. "I made a mistake and I've made some before," Van Gundy said. "All you can do is apologize. I shouldn't have used the word biased or brought somebody else into it. But I would think (Johnson), who just coached a little over half a year and had his own thing after Game 1, would realize that mistakes do happen. He had to be restrained from attacking a ref. But I understand what he's doing. He's doing what he thinks is right. But feel free to call me by my name. Don't beat around the bush."
Van Gundy is awesome. If Avery wants to get into a war of words with JVG, maybe he's already gone crazy.
F@ck Avery Johson and the Mavericks. they act like they don't complain but who sent in tapes about "ILLEGAL SCREENS" after losing the first two games????
I pretty much hate Avery Johnson after this series. Everytime I hear his postgame interview after each of the Mavbricks 3 losses, I just sit there screaming at the TV how stupid he is. He mentioned once how Dampier is getting called for lots of fouls, too... well, maybe that's because Dampier really is committing all those fouls because he sucks. Good job JVG!!
yeah, i think an official rivalry is born. thank god, i've been waiting for it, i've always hated dallas and cuban.
Dampier has committed more fouls than the refs can give him, IMO he got away with too many cheap shots at Yao and how can Avery Johnson still complaining after game 1 afte they shot a lot more free throws than us.
hell through the first 5 games the mavs made more free throws than the rockets had attempted! i'm not sure about the stats now but i think that is pretty darn telling about the officiating during the series.
"He's doing what he thinks is right. But feel free to call me by my name. Don't beat around the bush." Can someone say challenge??????? O so subtle..... BRING IT ON ALLAS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Okay...when we hired Van Gundy I was willing to give him time to see what he could do but I had reservations because I thought his approach was too regimented, maybe dictatorial, was not convinced that he had a proven approach to offense, the players wouldn't like playing for him as much as Rudy, and he was kinda wuss (you know, the type that would grab your ankle in a fight ), and essentially unlikable. Let me just say: wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong and wrong...oh, and wrong. I love this guy... 'call me by my name'...just awesome.
I'm sure this scared the hell out of Crawford, getting squealed at by a guy who might as well have "prison girlfriend" tattooed on his ***.
Wow...this is crazy. Van Gundy has reached legendary status in half a season (a couple of weeks if you really think about it). Also remember that Van Gundy was coaching the Knicks in the '99 finals, and if I'm not mistaken that was the year Avery hit the big shot in Game 6(?) to ice the series. I think Gundy can handle anybody in the league when it comes to a war with words. The guy is just genius...last year he just seemed like a stubborn "my way or the highway" type of guy, but what a difference a year makes.
can you say that? but you're right, he isn't taking crap from anybody.... but this shouldn't be a suprise, remember he was the one that went after mourning's legs a few years ago.