Van Gundy Makes Bittersweet Trip to L.A.

ORLANDO -- There are times when Stan Van Gundy absolutely loves his job.

And there are times when he hates it.

This weekend in Los Angeles, between Games 1 and 2 of the NBA Finals, he will do both.

Van Gundy is thrilled to be on the biggest stage in basketball, feeding his ego, coaching his Orlando Magic against the storied Los Angeles Lakers and reaching for the pinnacle of his profession.

Yet it will kill him Saturday afternoon to know what he is missing back home in suburban Orlando. His 9-year-old daughter Kelly, youngest of his four children, will be on stage at the Westbrook Dance Academy for her once-a-year recital.

And he will be 3,000 miles away wondering how it went.

"It's a huge day for her. She has talked about it for months,'' Van Gundy said before he boarded the team plane in Orlando. "She was in tears when I told her I wouldn't be there. You could imagine how I felt. It's tough on both of us. It's unbelievably tough.''

As an NBA coach but a strong family guy, Van Gundy has grown accustomed to missing many of his children's activities during the season, yet he also has gone to length to others. During earlier rounds of these playoffs, he was at one child's soccer game and another child's swim-team awards banquet.

He used one post-game press conference during the playoffs to wish wife Kim a Happy Anniversary, and another to lobby for his oldest daughter's high school student council candidacy.

Latest NBA Playoff Photos

Los Angeles Lakers center Andrew Bynum takes part in practice in El Segundo, Calif., on Tuesday, June 2, 2009. The Lakers will face the Orlando Magic starting Thursday in the NBA basketball finals. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)

Los Angeles Lakers center DJ Mbenga practices in El Segundo, Calif., on Tuesday, June 2, 2009. The Lakers will face the Orlando Magic starting Thursday in the NBA basketball finals. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)

Los Angeles Lakers' guard Derek Fisher smiles during practice in El Segundo, Calif., on Tuesday, June 2, 2009. The Lakers will face the Orlando Magic Thursday in the NBA basketball finals. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)

Los Angeles Lakers forward Paul Gasol, of Spain, is seen after practice in El Segundo, Calif., on Tuesday, June 2, 2009. The Lakers will face the Orlando Magic Thursday in the NBA basketball finals. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)

Los Angeles Lakers forward Lamar Odom towels off during practice in El Segundo, Calif., on Tuesday, June 2, 2009. The Lakers will face the Orlando Magic starting Thursday in the NBA basketball finals. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)

Los Angeles Lakers head coach Phil Jackson takes questions during a news conference in El Segundo, Calif., on Tuesday, June 2, 2009. The Lakers will face the Orlando Magic Thursday in the NBA basketball finals. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)

Los Angeles Lakers' Kobe Bryant takes questions from the media after practice in El Segundo, Calif., on Tuesday, June 2, 2009. The Lakers will face the Orlando Magic starting Thursday in the NBA basketball finals. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)

Orlando Magic forward Hedo Turkoglu, of Turkey, leaves the teams basketball practice facility after a team meeting in Orlando, Fla., Monday, June 1, 2009. The Magic will face the Los Angeles Lakers Thursday in the NBA Finals. (AP Photo/John Raoux)

Orlando Magic center Dwight Howard thinks a moment before answering a reporter's question at the team basketball practice facility after a team meeting in Orlando, Fla., Monday, June 1, 2009. The Magic will face the Los Angeles Lakers starting Thursday in the NBA finals. (AP Photo/John Raoux)

Orlando Magic head coach Stan Van Gundy answers questions after a team meeting at their practice facility in Orlando, Fla., Monday, June 1, 2009. The Magic will face the Los Angeles Lakers Thursday in the NBA Finals. (AP Photo/John Raoux)

"I feel bad anytime I miss something with the kids, but this is different. This one really hurts. You miss a water polo match, and there is always another one you can catch. Same with a lot of the stuff they do,'' he said. "But in dance, she works all year for this one big day. And I can't be there. It hurts. It really does.''

When Miami Heat president Pat Riley fired Van Gundy as coach early in the 2005-06 season, he tried to call it a resignation based on Van Gundy's desire to spend more time with his family. It wasn't quite accurate, but it also wasn't a total lie, either.

He won't see Saturday's dance recital until he returns home to watch it with Kelly on a DVD. Then the two of them will go to a movie.

"We'll go out for ice cream, make it a date,'' he said. "But it's not the same. She and I will both know I'm just trying to make up for the fact that I wasn't there with the rest of the family. This is a big one to miss. I hate that.''