Looking for a coach, the Hornets decided to bet on a former home. Four years after being fired by the franchise, Steve Clifford is back at the helm!
Definitely, this search for a coach has not been a long calm river for Michael Jordan and Mitch Kupchak. After the rabbit posed by Kenny Atkinson, which ultimately remained in Golden State, management had to revise its plans. Logically, one would have expected the front office to turn to one of the unfortunate finalists of the first auditions. In this sense, Mike D’Antoni gave the impression that he had a real chance of winning. And then Marc Stein swung this curious rumor the day before yesterday, that of a return of Steve Clifford, the one who had succeeded James Borrego at the head of the Hornets in 2018. 4 years after his departure, Clif ‘could he make his big back to North Carolina? MJ was going to have to decide and Adrian Wojnarowski quickly took out his phone to relay the news on the blue bird. It’s official, Steve Clifford is back in Charlotte! According Rod Boone who follows the Hornets for The Charlotte Observerthe manager would have signed a three-year contract, the last year being a team option.
ESPN Sources: Steve Clifford has agreed to a deal to return as the Charlotte Hornets’ coach. Clifford, one of league’s most respected coaches among his peers, led Hornets to two playoff trips in a five-year run that ended in 2018.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) June 24, 2022
The decision may still seem curious because the departure of Clifford in 2018 had marked an end to the cycle at the Hornets and it feels a bit like the Hornets are backtracking now, maybe even for lack of a better option. Afterwards, the arrival of the former local guru still has some advantages. Coach renowned for his ability to advance his teams in defense, Clifford will do a lot, a lot of good to the band of LaMelo Ball. It’s no secret that North Carolina players like to attack a lot but are quite dramatic in defense (22nd defensive rating in 2021-22). During his first term, Clifford managed to place his Hornets in the Top 10 best defenses three times. To see if he can do the same with the group at his disposal but it will work in his half of the field. Another positive point in the minds of the leaders, the fact that Steve Clifford is not doing too badly when it comes to taking his team to the Playoffs (4 appearances in his last 8 seasons, Charlotte and Orlando combined), a competition that has eluded the Hornets for some time now (last appearance in 2016 with… Clifford as coach). Having come out poorly in the first round of the Play-in two years in a row, the darlings of the Spectrum Center know that they absolutely have to take a step forward this season and finally go play the spring games. What if Clifford was the right coach to take them there?
Steve Clifford back in Charlotte is a surprising decision but we’ll give the benefit of the doubt to the former local guru. The cam available is of high quality, it is up to him to find the solutions to bring the Hornets back to the Top 8.
Source texte : Marc Stein / Adrian Wojnarowski / Rod Boone
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