The heart of the Clippers' coaching staff may be heading elsewhere.
The Orlando Magic parted ways with their now-former head coach Jamahl Mosley an now the search is on for the next leader of the franchise.
The Magic didn't have a stellar season, but they weren't any slouches either. They finished the season 45-37 as the 8-seed in the Eastern Conference and even came close to upsetting the 1-seed Detroit Pistons, making the best team in the conference sweat in a seven game series.
All of that's to say that the Magic aren't far away from being contenders in a relatively open Eastern Conference and with the roster headlined with players like Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner, a change in coaching might just be the push that the team needs.
Jeff Van Gundy Being Looked At
That's what makes the number of potential candidates listed by Marc Stein in his Substack The Stein Report so interesting, and Los Angeles Clippers fans might be surprised to see a familiar name menioned among the contenders.
“Yet it's well-established that Orlando wants to hire a coach with experience and sources tell both Marc Stein and me that Orlando has LA Clippers assistant coach Jeff Van Gundy on its radar as well. The defensive guru on Tyronn Lue's staff is the brother, of course, of former Magic coach Stan Van Gundy.”
Los Angeles Clippers assistant coach Jeff Van Gundy walks on the court before the game against the Houston Rockets at Toyota Center. Troy Taormina-Imagn ImagesWhile Jeff Van Gundy has been the driving voice behind Ty Lue as the Clippers' lead assistant head coach since 2024, he has plenty of head coaching experience before that. He was head coach of the New York Knicks from 1996-2001 and head coach of the Houston Rockets from 2033-2007.
Van Gundy's Resume
He boast as impressive 430-318 record as a head coach and took the Knicks to the NBA Finals in 1999. He also has experience coaching at the international level, serving as the head coach of Team USA in both the 2017 FIBA AmeriCup tournament and the 2019 FIBA World Cup qualifiers.
LA Clippers lead assistant coach Jeff Van Gundy before the game against the Sacramento Kings at Golden 1 Center. Darren Yamashita-Imagn ImagesVan Gundy's Orlando connection through his brother Jeff Van Gundy, who served as head coach of the Magic for five seasons, creates a layer of familiarity that could also ease Van Gundy into the transition if he chose the job.
It would be a difficult choice for Van Gundy.
Los Angeles Lakers assistant coach Jeff Van Gundy reacts against the Los Angeles Lakers in the second half at Crypto.com Arena. Kirby Lee-Imagn ImagesHe's be put in a position between leaving the Clippers as they prepare for a rebuild and a future full of promise that will be kickstarted with the fifth-overall pick in the upcoming NBA Draft and joining the Magic as they stand on the fringe of contention, but have still shown that they're a young, exciting and most importantly, winning team.
Still, if his desire is get back into head coaching for the first time in any capacity in close to a decade, the Magic seem like his best chance.
