He also went out and signed Derrick Favors and JJ Redick knowing the young Pelicans needed some veteran experience and leadership. To learn more or opt-out, read our Cookie Policy. Kidd was undoubtedly one of the best to lace it up at the point guard position, has a number of players who’ll vouch for him including LeBron James and Giannis Antetokounmpo, and is considered to possess wonderful leadership qualities. New Orleans Pelicans Head Coaching Search: Jason Kidd looks to be back on the radar New, 11 comments David Griffin is preparing to interview several … His last stint was a disappointing one from 2014 to 2018 with the Detroit Pistons, where he was coach and president of basketball operations. The biggest question, of course, which names will populate the 3-4 finalists? He was an improvement for New Orleans on defense when he became active, but there’s definitely some room to grow. Stan Van Gundy has been hired as the coach of the New Orleans Pelicans, he announced in a Twitter post on Wednesday.. Yes, Zion Williamson, Brandon Ingram and Lonzo Ball would benefit from a leader of men that players gravitate towards, yet there are no assurances the Kidd’s expert tutelage will translate. Aside from his ability to teach and develop young talent, which will especially be tested with Jaxson Hayes and Nickeil Alexander-Walker, he has assembled a nice staff. With a playing time bump and more development, he could make a good jump in his sophomore season. If they just sign him to the qualifying offer of $9.4 million, Ingram becomes a free agent at the end of next year, and that would set back the team’s progress even more. In Orlando, he was 259-135, including a trip to the N.B.A. He averaged 23.6 points per game and his shooting percentages were solid in his rookie campaign. The good news here is that there’s no rush and the Pelicans have time. We knew Hayes was a bit raw coming out of the University of Texas after just one year, but he had a nice rookie campaign, especially considering he averaged just 17 minutes per game and put up 7.5 points and four rebounds. It has been an eventful year for the New Orleans Pelicans as they moved on from on face of the franchise to the other. The Heat went on to win the championship. Van Gundy, 61, had most recently been an analyst for TNT and, separately, established himself as one of the most politically outspoken figures in professional sports through the Twitter account he created in July. He has become a reliable outside shooter, shooting at a 38.7 percent clip from beyond the arch to go with his 46.6 percent shooting from the field. Moore is a nice player to have off the bench, but he has struggled with a lot of injuries lately. While Lopez gives Lue the slight edge to wind up the next head coach of the Pelicans, it’s far from a guarantee. Van Gundy will now get to coach a team loaded with young talent, particularly 20-year-old Zion Williamson, left. Ingram seems like a long-term piece for New Orleans. Sticking with Zion, he has the potential to be a solid defender, but he still reaches a lot for steals and gambles when trying to jump into passing lanes to try to get into transition offense. But the franchise still has plenty of reasons for optimism: Aside from Williamson, the team will probably have Brandon Ingram, 23, who made his first All-Star team last season and won the Most Improved Player Award. In addition to Murray’s Tweet, Andrew Lopez brought up Kidd’s name to Sean Fox on Sports Talk 97.7 yesterday when asked about the latest news on New Orleans’ search. Defensively this team needs work but this is a fast-paced offense that can put up some points. I think he’s also the right fit for a young roster that is transitioning. He has the tools in speed, height and athleticism to become a very good defender. The Pelicans need some help in some key areas like rim protection, perimeter defense and defensive rebounding. While Zion Williamson made a big impact on the team when he became activated, you can’t overlook what Brandon Ingram did for the team prior to that and that it seems like Ingram can still be as dominant with Zion on the floor, something he was unable to do with LeBron James. The Pelicans will still have enough cap space to sign free agents, and Favors would be making likely above his market value on likely his last big contract before he becomes a MLE or under player. He averaged five points and two rebounds in 10.7 minutes per game. New Orleans fired former head coach Alvin Gentry on Aug. 15 after five years with the team. Most games they have to really rely on offense and have the ability to keep pace with their opponents because the defense simply does not make enough stops. Going forward, Ingram and Zion provide a great one-two punch in the front court and Ingram’s ability to spot up from outside and pass really complements Zion’s skills well. At the same time, Brandon Ingram made several improvements and showed some real growth last year. With Zion sidelined, Brandon Ingram became the Pelicans' unquestioned leader on the court. For more Pelicans talk, subscribe to The Bird Calls podcast feed on iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher or Google Podcasts. Moore is an undersized shooting guard and they’ve got some depth at his position with Jrue Holiday, JJ Redick, Josh Hart and Nickeil Alexander-Walker. Former NBA player Michael Ruffin and former WNBA great Teresa Weatherspoon are on the player development staff. You can follow this author on Twitter at @OlehKosel. Holiday averaged 19.6 points and 6.9 assists. On Wednesday, as news broke that he was being hired by the Pelicans, he posted an image on Twitter about voting for the Democratic presidential nominee, former Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr., shortly after a separate post calling for gun control legislation. Lonzo Ball and Brandon Ingram were the main names, but they also added Josh Hart. When he finally made his season debut, he made the most of it and made an impact in limited minutes. finals in 2009, but clashed with the team’s cornerstone, Dwight Howard. Alvin Gentry is a very well respected coach around the NBA. For the latest localized news and information regarding the New Orleans Pelicans coaching staff, make sure to bookmark Armchair. Lead assistant Jeff Bzdelk is one of the better defensive minds in the league, and their backcourt of Lonzo Ball and Jrue Holiday is among one of the top defensive backcourts in the league. Former NBA player and current Pelicans GM Trajan Langdon has done a nice job, getting some good talent back in the Anthony Davis trade and making some solid draft choices. The Pelicans like Moore and the offense he provides off the bench, but in the four years they’ve had him, he’s only been healthy for an entire season for one of those seasons. In 2005-6, his third season as Miami’s coach, Pat Riley, the team president, stepped in to replace him after the team started 11-10. David Griffin and the New Orleans Pelicans are making progress in their head coaching search and a decision could potentially be reached as early as sometime next week, per Andrew Lopez of ESPN. We already addressed Bzdelik as one of the top defensive minds, but his associated head coach on offense is Chris Finch, who is as highly regarded for his work on the offensive end as Bzdelik is on defense. New Orleans uses Derrick Favors at center, but he’s not someone they rely on much for offense, although he adds an extra 10 points per game. I can’t wait to talk to our players and get the process started. Apart from that, his minutes were reduced, which also reduces his stats across the board. It has been an eventful year for the New Orleans Pelicans as they moved on from on face of the franchise to the other. Zion is obviously the present and future for the Pelicans. Hart can go off for some big-scoring nights at times, but he’s very inconsistent on a night-to-night basis. The franchise, which moved from Charlotte, N.C., to New Orleans for the 2002-3 N.B.A. Pelicans are set to start interviewing finalists for head coaching job in NOLA at the end of this week & interviews will go into early next week, per source.Expect them to talk to 3-4 finalists. While he is undersized at power forward, Zion has shown that it really is not an issue. Perhaps their most important bench scorer is JJ Redick. In fact most draft analysis dinged Zion for his perimeter shooting. While it’s not a big-market team, Ingram already had that experience in LA, and he has to feel good about finally finding a comfort level. Van Gundy, who will take his fourth head coaching job, had most recently been an analyst for TNT and one of the most politically outspoken figures in professional sports through his Twitter account. He also seems to have found a gem in Nicolo Melli. Stan Van Gundy has agreed to become the next coach of the New Orleans Pelicans, where he'll get the chance to work with No. Ball averaged 12.4 points and seven assists per game. He also moves well without the ball and keeps the offense in motion. Griffin has kept this search close to his chest; however, an interesting wrinkle developed yesterday. He had a two-game stretch back in November, where he got to play consecutive 30-minute games and he finished quirk 27 points against Miami, shooting 6-of-9 from deep and then scoring 19 the next night against Golden State, making five threes so that’s definitely a good sign of things to come. Defense is where New Orleans struggles most. Quick: Spent over the cap. Please also read our Privacy Notice and Terms of Use, which became effective December 20, 2019. There’s likely no way they’d re-sign him at or above what he made last year - $8.6 million - so he’d have to take either part of the MLE or the bi-annual exception if they bring him back. Favors is no doubt a bit undersized at center, but with more and more teams not using a true center, he still can defend fours and fives well. Stan Van Gundy has been hired as the coach of the New Orleans Pelicans, he announced in a Twitter post on Wednesday. He also showed off a perimeter game that many didn’t expect. New Orleans Pelicans Head Coaching Search: Jason Kidd looks to be back on the radar, Jrue Holiday is popular trade target, but do not expect the New Orleans Pelicans to move him soon, The hire of Stan Van Gundy has changed the outlook on the team’s veterans, New Orleans Pelicans hire Stan Van Gundy at head coach, David Griffin went with the impressive resume of an experienced NBA winner, Don’t frown at thought of Stan Van Gundy, David Griffin has to nail this Pelicans’ coaching hire, Everyone begs for a chance to land the next Brad Stevens or Erik Spoelstra, but that doesn’t appear to be reality for New Orleans, New Orleans Pelicans Head Coaching Search: In addition to Stan Van Gundy, keep tabs on Wes Unseld Jr., Darvin Ham and Will Weaver, New Orleans Pelicans Head Coaching Search: Stan Van Gundy and Ty Lue named finalists, but Jamahl Mosley and Will Weaver still appear in the mix, End of an era: Anthony Davis is an NBA champion.