It’s been several weeks since Billy Donovan and the Thunder agreed to part ways, and since then, there’s been plenty of movement in the NBA with respect to head coaches.
Steve Nash was hired by the Brooklyn Nets, Doc Rivers took his talents to Philadelphia and Donovan himself was hired by the Chicago Bulls.
In both Houston and New Orleans, the likes of Ty Lue, Jeff Van Gundy and his brother Stan Van Gundy have been mentioned as potential torchbearers for those clubs, while things have been relatively quiet in Oklahoma City.
Enter Will Hardy and Brian Keefe.
As evidenced by the speculation as to what the future holds for Chris Paul and the team’s other veterans, the prevailing sentiment is that the Thunder will be fully embracing rebuilding. In that regard, it would make more sense for the team to find a young coach looking to cut his teeth than to spend big money on an established veteran looking to contend.
That’s probably why the Thunder haven’t been reported to have been involved in conversations with any of the more high-profile coaches — either Hardy or Keefe would seem to make much more sense.
According to Shams Charania of The Athletic, the two are each among the candidates being considered for the post.
Keefe spent eight years as an assistant coach under Scott Brooks in Oklahoma City before leaving for an opening in New York. Keefe spent two years in New York before moving on to the LA Lakers, where he spent three seasons. He returned to joined Donovan’s staff before the 2019-20 season began and now, would seem a logical successor.
Hardy, on the other hand, is a Spurs lifer. He began with the franchise in 2010 and eventually joined Gregg Popovich on the bench as an assistant coach prior to the 2016-17 season. Among Popovich’s more famous assistants turned head coaches are Brett Brown and Mike Budenholzer, but the likes of James Borrego, Jim Boylen, Monty Williams and Jacque Vaughn are all fruits of the Pop tree, as well. Hardy could be next.
With the close connections between the Thunder and Spurs organizations, it would surprise nobody for Presti to hire Hardy to lead the team moving forward. On the other hand, Keefe has been an assistant with the franchise under two different head coaches and could make for a seamless transition. It could also be a benefit that Keefe has a year of experience with some of the club’s young talents including Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Lu Dort.
The one thing that seems certain at this point, though, is that the Thunder are not in a rush to fill the vacancy.
After all, slow and steady does often win the race.