The New Orleans Pelicans have yet to decide on their next head coach, and it appears as though they are waiting for them to do their due diligence on ex-Orlando Magic HC Jamahl Mosley.
There had been a lot of silence around the New Orleans Pelicans coaching search over the last few days, but a news drop hit late on Sunday with some much-needed updates.
NBA insider Jake Fischer of The Stein Line has reported for months that the Pelicans have been very interested in Jamahl Mosley as a potential hire. The Orlando Magic fired Mosley after their elimination from the playoffs, which officially gave New Orleans some runway to consider him.
A late start to his decision-making timeline has slowed things down for the Pelicans. Fischer reported that the chatter "circulating at the Chicago draft combine" recently was that New Orleans is taking all the time that they can to allow Mosley to make his decision for what he wants to do next.
Being a head coach on the hot seat all season long isn't an easy thing, so it would be fair to expect Mosley to want a break from the stress before returning to coaching. He's still a well-respected name, so he would probably still have job interest if he took a year or so off.
It would appear as though the Pelicans do really like him as a candidate and would seriously consider hiring him if he decides to go forth with the job. If it's not Mosley, then the other popular names have been Milwaukee Bucks lead assistant Darvin Ham and Brooklyn Nets assistant Steven Hetzel.
Some fans might get discouraged if the team were to hire Mosley, given that he was just fired from a team that failed to take the next step in their rebuild. No one doubts Mosley's ability as a coach, and it more so felt like he took the team to their ceiling in their current construction. Now they need to try something else.
Mosley someone who preaches defense and the culture that Joe Dumars has been consistent in saying that he wants to see built. It's no surprise that the longstanding rumors of interest were true, he almost feels like a candidate built for Dumars.
Will Guillory of The Athletic also reported on Sunday night that he expects the team to "wrap up the process early this week," per his post on X.com. It sounds like no matter what, fans in New Orleans won't have to wait too much longer to learn their next head coach.
