Pelicans Expected To Hire Suns’ Willie Green As Next Coach

The Pelicans are expected to name Suns assistant Willie Green head coach after the Finals, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic.

Green emerged as the “strong frontrunner” for the vacancy after multipole meetings with the team, per Andrew Lopez of ESPN.

Green, 39, has been an assistant coach since 2016, first with Steve Kerr and the Warriors. He has been an assistant under Monty Williams with the Suns since 2019. Before that, he spent 12 years (2003-15) in the NBA as a guard with the 76ers, Hornets, Hawks, Clippers and Magic.

“One of the reasons Green stood out as a coaching candidate is his ability to connect to players both as a locker-room presence from his playing days, and on the bench since he joined the coaching ranks,” Lopez wrote.

Pelicans head of basketball operations David Griffin is looking to replace Stan Van Gundy, who was let go after just one season. Nets assistant Jacque Vaughn was once considered a top candidate for the job before deciding to remove his name from coaching searches.

Last week, Marc Stein of the New York Times listed both Green and Bucks assistant Charles Lee as “prominent” candidates for the vacancy.

The Pelicans finished 31-41 this past season and are looking for someone to push young stars Zion Williamson and Brandon Ingram to another level.