After firing head coach Alvin Gentry within hours of landing back in New Orleans after leaving New Orleans, the Pelicans have been largely silent on the coaching rumor front. Given Pelican’s executive vice president of basketball operations David Griffin’s comments following the firing, it should not come as a total surprise.
One of the small handful of names linked to the Pelicans initially was current Clippers assistant Ty Lue. Known for his time with the Cavaliers, Lue led Cleveland to the title in 2016. He was fired after a slow start to a LeBron James-less season and, though he was heavily linked with the Lakers job last off-season, ended up sitting alongside Doc Rivers in Los Angeles this season.
But his time as an assistant will likely be short-lived. In Marc Stein’s weekly newsletter for the New York Times on Monday, he mentioned the buzz around Lue relative to the current job openings in New Orleans, Philadelphia and Brooklyn.
The latest rumbles in N.B.A. coaching circles suggest that the Nets or the Philadelphia 76ers are more likely landing spots for Lue than New Orleans despite his Griffin ties.
Stein does mention that Griffin and Lue were seen meeting just prior to the Pelicans leaving the bubble following the seeding games. Given his experience, Lue would always be more closely linked to veteran teams than the rebuilding one the Pelicans have.
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