The first major move the Charlotte Hornets needed to complete during the 2024 NBA offseason was finding a head coach. Near the end of the 2023-24 campaign, Steve Clifford announced that he would be stepping down, effective at the end of the season.
Clifford was in his second stint as head coach for the franchise and will be moving into a role elsewhere in the organization. He took the job after Kenny Atkinson signed on to become head coach but shortly after changed his mind and returned to the Golden State Warriors as an assistant.
According to NBA insider Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, the Hornets have found their man. They will be hiring Boston Celtics assistant coach Charles Lee to take over the job. The two sides have worked out a four-year deal as Lee will come over on a full-time basis once the Celtics’ season comes to an end.
Lee, who is 39, is considered one of the top assistant coaches in the NBA. He was hired as the top assistant under Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla last offseason after spending five seasons with the Milwaukee Bucks under Mike Budenholzer, including their championship run in 2021.
His coaching career began almost instantly after his playing days were over. He won the Patriot League Player of the Year award in 2010 at Bucknell and was coaching in the NBA in 2014 with the Atlanta Hawks, also on Budenholzer’s staff.
With the Charlotte Hornets, he will be working alongside the new executive vice president of basketball operations Jeff Peterson. Peterson and Lee know each other well, as they began their careers together with the Hawks.
This will be a challenging job for the duo, as the Charlotte Hornets haven’t had any success recently. They have missed the playoffs in eight straight seasons, but there is a lot of young talent for Lee to work with on the roster.
LaMelo Ball has one All-Star appearance on his resume already and Brandon Miller had a stellar rookie season. Mark Williams is a very good piece at the center spot and another lottery pick will be on the roster in June. Lee will be tasked with modeling that young group into what the Charlotte Hornets hope is a successful core for years to come.
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