The New Orleans Pelicans have made Stan Van Gundy their new head coach for the foreseeable future, and he's seemingly excited about joining his new team. The former Turner analyst took to his Twitter account to elaborate briefly on his good fortune in rejoining the coaching world.
I’m excited to join a talented New Orleans Pelicans team. It will be an honor to work with our players and to work for Mrs. Benson and David Griffin, Trajan Langdon, their staff and the great people of New Orleans. I can’t wait to talk to our players and get the process started
— Stan Van Gundy (@realStanVG) October 21, 2020
Van Gundy now commands a squad of youngsters in Zion Williamson, Lonzo Ball, Brandon Ingram and Jaxson Hayes, all of which have a tremendously high ceiling in terms of their futures. Van Gundy will likely assist the front office in determining the route this club should take to accelerate their chances of returning to the playoffs sooner than later.
The Pelicans have made their first step in terms of reshaping their future after the hiring of Van Gundy, and now will focus on the long-term development of their roster, starting with retaining upcoming restricted free agent Brandon Ingram. They finished with a 30-42 record last season, finishing a few spots out of the playoff race upon the restart of the NBA season in the Disney bubble.
The Big Easy franchise parted ways with former head coach Alvin Gentry following the disappointing season. In time since, they've actively been surveying the market for their new head coach, narrowing their options down to names such as Jason Kidd and Tyronn Lue along with Van Gundy. After reports surfaced that Kidd was no longer a candidate along with Lue agreeing to become the next head coach for the Los Angeles Clippers, the door was left wide open for Van Gundy.
Van Gundy returns to the hardwood after his latest stint with the Detroit Pistons ended in 2018.
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