Phoenix Suns assistant Willie Greene has emerged as a strong front-runner and the likes of the New Orleans Pelicans are the franchise's next head coach, sources told ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski on Monday evening.
A 12-year NBA veteran, Greene has been an assistant with the Suns for the past two seasons and spent the past three seasons on the Golden State Warriors' coaching staff. Green also has previous experience in New Orleans, as he played one season with the team in 2010–11, when it was still the Hornets.
As a player, Green made the playoffs in seven of his 12 seasons, including the lone year in New Orleans - one of just seven playoff trips the team has made in franchise history.
That season, Green played on a team coached by Monty Williams and led by point guard Chris Paul. Now, Green is the front runner to break away from the Williams and Paul-led Sons team.
Green will replace Stan van Gundy, who left the Pelicans after just one season.
The Pelicans went 31-41 in 2020-21, a disappointing result after the season began with playoff aspirations. In the end, New Orleans didn't even make it to the Western Conference play-in tournament.
The immediate future in New Orleans looks bright with two young All-Stars in Zion Williamson and Brandon Ingram. The Pelicans have the number 10 pick in the upcoming draft, but ESPN's Jonathan Givoni noted in his most recent mock draft that "the number 10 pick is considered one of the most available of any in the lottery, just because Quick timeline of the team."
New Orleans has a plethora of future picks from the trades that sent Anthony Davis to the Los Angeles Lakers and Jure Holiday to the Milwaukee Bucks.
One of the reasons Greene stands out as a coaching candidate is her ability to connect with players from her playing days and the locker room presence on the bench as she joined the coaching ranks.
At 39, Greene will become the third-youngest coach in the NBA behind Oklahoma City Thunder's Mark Degnoault (35) and Memphis Grizzlies' Taylor Jenkins (36).