Pistons to Interview Kevin Ollie for Coaching Vacancy

The Pistons intend to interview former Connecticut coach Kevin Ollie for their head-coaching opening, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic.

Ollie, 50, currently serves as head of coaching and player development in upstart league Overtime Elite. He coached at UConn from 2012-18, taking over for Jim Calhoun and leading the Huskies to the national championship in 2014.

He and the school had a fairly bitter breakup, though, with Ollie filing a grievance after being fired.

Prior to his coaching career, Ollie played in the NBA from 1997-2010 as guard for 12 different teams. None of those teams were the Pistons.

Detroit is seeking a coach after moving Dwane Casey into a front-office role immediately after the season.

Bucks assistant Charles Lee, Vanderbilt coach Jerry Stackhouse, Raptors coach Nick Nurse, former Celtics coach Ime Udoka, Heat assistant Chris Quinn and Raptors assistant Adrian Griffin have also been linked to the Pistons’ vacancy.

The Detroit Pistons will interview former University of Connecticut coach and 13-year NBA veteran Kevin Ollie for their head coaching job, sources tell me and @JLEdwardsIII. Ollie guided UConn to the 2014 NCAA championship and recently finished coaching stint at Overtime Elite.

— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) April 14, 2023