Larry Drew named Eastern Conference Coach of the Month

Atlanta Hawks' coach Larry Drew has been named as the NBA's Coach of the Month for December after the Hawks went 10-5. Drew beat out Erik Spoelstra, Mike Woodson and Frank Vogel for the award.

The award is the first of Drew's career and is just the fourth Atlanta Hawks' coach to receive the recognition. The others are Lenny Wilkens, Mike Fratello and current Hawks' assistant Bob Weiss. Atlanta reached double figures in wins during the month of December for the 11th time in Atlanta history.

Not many people expected the Hawks to be among the East's best teams but that is exactly how it has played out over the first 30 games. Atlanta is 20-10 and just 1.5 games out of first place in the Eastern Conference. The Hawks retooled this past offseason highlighted by the departure of seven-time All-Star Joe Johnson. Thus far Atlanta hasn't missed a beat despite a number of new faces.

The timing couldn't be more perfect for Drew who is in the last year of his contract and will be looking for a new multi-year deal at the end of the season. Earlier this month Drew won his 100th game as a head coach and became the second fastest in Hawks' history to achieve that number.