Wednesday, April 2, 2008

Lawrence Frank

Lawrence Frank begins his third full season as the Nets head coach, having been officially appointed on June 21, 2004, after being tabbed as the interim head coach on January 26, 2004. Prior to his initial head coaching position, Frank had spent three and a half seasons as an assistant coach for the Nets.

Frank began his NBA coaching career in record-setting style, as he went 13-0 from January 27-February 24, which set a new NBA mark for the most consecutive wins by a head coach to begin a coaching career. The 13-game winning streak was also the longest winning streak of any coach in any of the four major professional sports to begin a career. During the streak, the Nets won six consecutive games on the road, which gave Frank the mark for the most wins by a head coach on the road at the outset of their coaching career. During the first full month of his coaching regime (February), Frank led the Nets to an 11-2 record, which earned him recognition as the NBA Eastern Conference 'Coach of the Month.' The 11-2 mark also established a Nets franchise record for winning percentage in a month with an .846 mark.

In 2004-05, the Nets recovered from a 3-12 start to make their fourth consecutive playoff appearance, notching the 8th seed on the final day of the regular season. The team finished the season winning 14 of their last 18 games, including an 8-2 mark during the month of April. The team's season-ending performance earned Frank April 'Coach of the Month' honors.

During this past season, the Nets tied a franchise record by winning 14 consecutive games in March and April (11 in March) which earned Frank NBA Eastern Conference ‘Coach of the Month’ honors for March.

A native of Teaneck, New Jersey, Frank spent three seasons as an assistant coach for the Vancouver Grizzlies under Brian Hill. Frank's responsibilities with the Grizzlies included scouting upcoming opponents as well as practice and bench coaching duties.

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