An in-depth look at the Portland Trail Blazers head coaching candidates
By Joe Espy
Portland Trail Blazers head coaching candidate – Jeff Van Gundy
Jeff Van Gundy presents an interesting option for the Blazers, who would be giving Van Gundy his first NBA head coaching gig since 2007 after 14 years in the NBA broadcast booth for ESPN. Van Gundy hasn’t lacked opportunities over the last decade to land a job as he was reported to be in heavy contention for the Houston Rockets and New York Knicks vacant positions last offseason.
Disapproval from star players like James Harden and Russell Westbrook derailed those opportunities at the time for Van Gundy. That same approval will likely be necessary in Portland where star guard Damian Lillard has already made it known he’ll be heavily involved in the coaching search.
Although Van Gundy has built up quite the hiatus from his NBA coaching days, he was consistently successful for most of his tenure coaching the New York Knicks and Houston Rockets, spanning from 1995-2007. It will be interesting to see if Van Gundy stays put in the broadcast booth or if the Blazers bring him in as their successor to Terry Stotts.