LOS ANGELES - Not once did Scott Brooks inquire about his job status as Thunder coach or campaign for the full-time position.
"I've always believed that you work hard, and you do everything in your power the right way and you treat everybody with respect and things will work out," Brooks said. "My focus from Nov. 22 was to make our players better, to get our team playing a good brand of Basketball. I never thought one iota about myself." It was that mindset, that steadfast commitment to improvement that Thunder general manager Sam Presti ultimately fell for, rewarding Brooks on Wednesday with a multi-year contract as the head man for the Thunder.
"He's focused on putting a brand of Basketball on the court that is about the team first, about playing both ends and competing and continuing to build the identity of the Basketball team," Presti said.
Presti didn't deny entertaining other candidates for the position but said the organization gave Brooks every opportunity to earn the job and he seized that opportunity.
But Brooks, 43, will now be judged on how well he can grow into his new full-time role.
Brooks will have the entire offseason, training camp and a preseason schedule to implement his own system and determine how he will utilize the team's personnel. It's also a 5 1/2 month window to refine his play-calling ability, late-game strategy and develop a game plan that will enable the Thunder to win more consistently.
"One of the things that I really liked about Scott is he not only expects his players to come back better from the summer, he expects to come back better himself," Presti said.
"He has a passion for the game, a passion for this organization and we feel like he's going to come back and get better as a coach and grow with our team."
Brooks said he'll continue to work on what he calls "core principles," which embodies establishing a consistent defensive team built on toughness and a team approach while working for good shots offensively.
"I believe I have an opportunity to get better," Brooks said, "and I will use every day to figure out how I can get better as a coach and how I can better put our players in a position to improve.
"It's just experience. I've been around a lot of great coaches, and as a player, I've always picked every coach's mind that I've played for. They've all said the same thing, you get better with more experience...I'm very excited about the opportunity. I will embrace the challenge and work at ways to improve this team."
Inside the locker room, there was relief that the decision was made promptly, providing clarity going into the offseason and continuity when 2009-10 gets underway.
"It helps a lot because you know what to expect," said Jeff Green. "We know what to expect from Scotty, and we know what he wants. So it'll be easier for us going into the summer knowing what we have to work on."
