Charlotte Hornets – ESPN Report: Mike D’Antoni to meet with owner Michael Jordan for head-coaching job

With the Charlotte Hornets out of a coach just days before the NBA Draft, Michael Jordan and company seem to be making a move on one of their previous coaching finalists.

Mike D’Antoni made it quite far in the Hornets’ original coaching search, but Charlotte decided to pursue Kenny Atkinson instead. Now that Atkinson has won a championship with the Golden State Warriors, he has decided to stay put and has left the Hornets in dire straits.

D’Antoni feels like the right hire at this point. He has already been interviewed multiple times for the gig and has a system that would fit the Hornets’ current roster construction. With precious few days remaining before the Draft, Charlotte should move quickly if they think D’Antoni is their guy.

Link to ESPN article here, full transcript below:

Former Houston Rockets head coach Mike D’Antoni is set to meet with Charlotte Hornets owner Michael Jordan on Tuesday to further discuss the franchise’s coaching job, sources told ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.

D’Antoni was considered a finalist for the Hornets post before Golden State assistant Kenny Atkinson accepted the position during the NBA Finals, only to then change his mind Saturday and remain with the Warriors.

Atkinson and the Hornets had agreed in principle to a four-year deal, but a contract was never signed, sources said.

D’Antoni, according to sources, had two meetings with Hornets management prior to the Atkinson news.

D’Antoni was 217-102 in his four seasons (2016-2020) as Rockets coach, advancing once to the Western Conference finals and three times to the conference semifinals. D’Antoni, a two-time NBA Coach of the Year, led the Rockets to the highest winning percentage in the Western Conference over those four years (.682), trailing only the Toronto Raptors (.695) in the entire league.

Across 16 seasons as a head coach with Denver, Phoenix, the Los Angeles Lakers, New York Knicks and Houston, D’Antoni is 672-527 (.560) and 54-56 in the playoffs. He is a two-time NBA coach of the year (2004 and 2017).