The Miami Heat have been reshuffling the coaching staff as they move into their next era of basketball. After reassigning assistants Ron Rothstein and Bob McAdoo away from the bench, the Heat have hired new coaches to fill in open spots. The reshuffling put assistant David Fizdale firmly in the top assistant slot, while moving Juwan Howard from a player development role to an assistant coach role.
The team announced Wednesday they've hired former Sacramento Kings coach Keith Smart as an assistant and former Heat player Chris Quinn to fill Howard's slot as a player development coach. They've also hired Brandon Gilliam as an assistant trainer/director of rehabilitation, Wes Brown as another assistant trainer, and Eric Foran as an assistant strength and conditioning coach. From the Heat:
The Miami HEAT announced today several front office hirings, including Keith Smart as Assistant Coach, Chris Quinn as Assistant Coach/Player Development, Brandon Gilliam as Assistant Trainer/Director of Rehabilitation, Wes Brown as Assistant Trainer and Eric Foran as Assistant Strength & Conditioning Coach.
Smart has been a coach in the NBA since 2000 when he joined the Cleveland Cavaliers' coaching staff, following a playing career that primarily existed overseas and in the Continental Basketball Association. Smart was with the Cavs until 2003 and even took over mid-season after they fired John Lucas following an 8-34 start. From 2003 to 2010, he was an assistant coach for the Golden State Warriors and took the head coaching job for the 2010-11 season. He coached the Warriors to a 36-46 record that season. From 2011-13, Smart was the coach for the Sacramento Kings, finishing with a record of 48-93 after replacing Paul Westphal seven games into the 2011-12 season.
Quinn played for the Heat from 2006 to 2009 before spending time with the New Jersey Nets, San Antonio Spurs, and Cleveland Cavaliers in each of the following seasons. He's also played in both Russia, Spain, and the D-League. He played in 241 career games in the NBA, averaging 4.5 points and 1.9 assists in 13.7 minutes.
