By Jordan Long
The Charlotte Hornets coaching search is now over. It was believed Mike D’Antoni was the favorite to land the job. The Hornets didn’t go with him but hired Kenny Atkinson who has NBA Head Coaching experience.
The Hornets’ job had been open since they fired James Borrego following 4 seasons. Borrego took over the Hornets prior to the 2018-2019 season. He had been an assistant coach with New Orleans from 2010 to 2012. He moved on to Orlando and spent 2012 to 2015 with the Magic. In the 2015 season, he was the interim Head Coach for the final 30 games of the year since the Magic let go of Jacque Vaughn. At the time the Magic were 15-37. Borrego went 10-20. The Hornets were anticipating him to turn the franchise into a winner. They hadn’t been in the playoffs since the 2016 season when they lost to the Miami Heat in the first-round.
Borrego didn’t turn Charlotte around. He ended with an overall record of 148-183, a winning percentage of .447. They never made it to a first-round series. The Hornets were close this year but lost in the play-in tournament to the Atlanta Hawks 132-103. Since Borrego failed to help them earn a playoff spot, the Hornets decided to move on and started a coaching search.
D’Antoni would have made the most sense. He has 1,199 games of NBA Head Coaching experience. His overall record is 672-527, a winning percentage of .560. His teams went to the playoffs 10 times, but he didn’t advance to an NBA Finals. It was surprising he didn’t earn the job.
Charlotte decided to hire Atkinson who agreed to a 4-year deal. Atkinson brings in 4 years of NBA Head coaching knowledge. He served as Head Coach for the Brooklyn Nets from 2016 to 2020. His overall record with the Nets was 118-190, a winning percentage of .383. Brooklyn earned a playoff spot once in 2019 but were beaten in the first round by the Philadelphia 76ers in 5 games. He was fired during the 2020 COVID shortened season. The Nets were 28-34. Following his firing, Brooklyn went 7-3, earning a playoff spot. They were swept by the Toronto Raptors in the first-round.
After he was fired by the Nets, he has been an assistant coach. He was with the L.A. Clippers last year. This season he is on Steve Kerr’s staff in Golden State who are in the NBA Finals.
Charlotte is hoping that Atkinson is the answer. They gave him 4 years to turn the franchise around. Charlotte knows they have players who can score in Gordon Hayward, Terry Rozier, and LaMelo Ball. All they needed was a Head Coach to lead them to the playoffs. It will be up to Atkinson to help the Hornets become a winning basketball team. Charlotte has not won a playoff series since 2002 when they were knocked out of the 2nd-round by the Brooklyn Nets. Atkinson has his chance. If the results aren’t there, Atkinson will be fired. At least he has 4 years to get the job done.
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