For the Charlotte Hornets who don’t have any games to look forward to anymore this season, their number one priority is to find a new bench boss. After sacking Steve Clifford, the Hornets are on the hunt for Clifford’s successor in the market, and among those who have gotten Charlotte’s attention is current San Antonio Spurs assistant Ettore Messina.

According to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, the Hornets have already secured permission from the Spurs to schedule an interview with Messina.

The Charlotte Hornets have received permission to interview San Antonio Spurs assistant Ettore Messina for head coach opening, league sources tell ESPN. GM Mitch Kupchak and Messina worked together with Lakers, when Messina was part of Mike Brown’s coaching staff.

Ettore Messina has not held any head coaching position in the NBA, but the 58-year-old Italian has extensive coaching experience abroad. He is a four-time EuroLeague champion coach. Messina was also named the best coach in the Italian League three times and EuroLeague Coach of the Year twice.

Before landing a gig with the Spurs, Messina served as part of the Los Angeles Lakers’ coaching staff from 2011 to 2012 as mentioned by Wojnarowski. As the former general manager of the Lakers, new Hornets GM Mitch Kupchak have before taken a close look at Messina’s work, albeit in a non-head coaching role.

The Hornets have missed the playoffs in three of Clifford’s five seasons as head coach of Charlotte. They finished 10th in the Eastern Conference with a 36-46 record – seven games outside of the playoff picture in the East.