Stan van Gundy is out as coach of the New Orleans Pelicans after just one season with the franchise, the team announced Wednesday.
According to sources, Van Gundy and Pelicans' executive vice president of basketball operations David Griffin have been in talks for weeks.
New Orleans finished last season a disappointing 31–41 and missed out on making the play-in tournament in the Western Conference.
"On behalf of Mrs. Gail Benson and the Pelicans organization, I would like to thank Stan for the honesty and professionalism he displayed during his time in New Orleans, as well as the commitment and work ethic he brought to our team," said Griffin said in a statement. “It was a difficult decision as I have great respect for Stan, both personally and professionally, but we agreed that moving in a different direction is in the best interest of our team. We wish Stan, Kim and his family the best give. the future."
Sources told ESPN that Pelicans assistant Jack Vaughan and Ime Udoka (Brooklyn), Charles Lee (Milwaukee) and Jason Kidd (Lakers) are expected to be back among some candidates from a year ago to replace Van Gundy.
During an exit interview on May 17, a day after the regular season ended, Van Gundy told reporters that it had been a difficult year with how the season played amid the COVID-19 protocols surrounding the league.
"It was a tough year personally, because when I took the job, we didn't know when training camp was going to start or any of that stuff," Van Gundy said. "I didn't even think a ton about the really intense training camp, the condensed weather, the COVID protocol. That stuff was really, really tough from a personal standpoint. For me, moving to Detroit and having my kids close by, And I can't see them. That kind of stuff. To limit people coming and coming to us and things like that. On a personal level, it was difficult.
"But at the basketball level, I thought it was a good position basketball-wise, and better than I thought. I wasn't happy with the results. I wasn't happy with myself on some things, basketball-wise. . But it's even better than I expected as far as looking at the whole work is concerned, and I hope it does well."
Van Gundy and the Pelicans had a down and down season, culminating in another missed playoff trip to New Orleans. New Orleans expected Van Gundy to establish a defensive presence, but the results were far from over. The Pelicans finished 23rd in the defensive rating (113.3) and 25th in the opposing 3-point percentage (38.0).
The Pelicans improved their defensive rating (116.3) from 29th to seventh (10.4) after the All-Star break, but the team's offensive rating went the opposite way. The Pelicans were sixth (115.6) before the break and 21st after (110.4).
New Orleans lacked consistency throughout the season. When things were finally going in the right direction, injuries to Lonzo Ball, Josh Hart, Nickel Alexander-Walker and Zion Williamson derailed the team once again. The Pelicans also struggled in close games this season, going 3–10 in games decided by three points or less. They also lost a league-high 14 games when they took a double-digit lead.
"We were a very young, developing basketball team. We have players with incredible talent, but we just don't have the ability to win," Griffin told reporters on May 17.
"We know that to some extent. We know it's a process and it takes time. But we also have to look after ourselves, the front office, the coaching, the players. Are we working? Are we doing enough of it? Doing? Groups to make wins? That's what's going to be our focus."
New Orleans started 4-2, but things quickly went south. The Pelicans lost eight of their next nine games and never climbed back to .500 for the rest of the season. Their 31-41 finish was just a game improvement from their 30-42 record in the short 2019–20 campaign, after the team sacked coach Alvin Gentry.
Van Gundy joins Nate Björkgren as coach, who has parted ways with their teams after being hired prior to the season. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, this is the fifth time in the last 30 seasons that multiple teams have changed coaches who were with the franchise for just one season.
New Orleans was Van Gundy's fourth stint as NBA head coach and his first after sitting out the previous two seasons. Van Gundy had success on his first two stops in Miami (.605 win percentage) and Orlando (.657). He competed in Heat to an Eastern Conference Finals in 2004–05 and finals with the Magic in the 2008–09 season.
However, Van Gundy only had one winning season in four years with the Detroit Pistons from 2014 to 2018. Van Gundy, 61, has a career record of 554-425 (.566).
With Scott Brooks joining the Washington Wizards on Wednesday, the NBA now has six head-coaching openings: Boston, Indiana, New Orleans, Orlando, Portland and Washington. Nate McMillan is currently interim coach at Atlanta, but is expected to be rewarded with a new contract after the playoffs.