Stan Van Gundy has reached out to Mike D'Antoni encouraging him to keep Steve Clifford on his coaching staff with the Los Angeles Lakers.

Clifford, currently an assistant coach with the Lakers, has a history of working with Stan Van Gundy with the Magic and Jeff Van Gundy with the Rockets.

Clifford is adept at incorporating an individual's defensive flaws into Dwight Howard's ability to dominate that end of the floor.