NBA
Where will Jeff Van Gundy end up after winning the title with the Boston Celtics?
What a turnaround year it was for Van Gundy, from being fired on ESPN to winning the title with the Celtics as a consultant and ending up in Los Angeles.
Jeff Van Gundy will become Tyronn Lue’s first assistant on the bench of the Los Angeles Clippers, according to a report from ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. Van Gundy, a 64-year-old basketball expert who spent 16 years as a consultant for ESPN before accepting an invitation to be president of basketball operations in Boston last year, will head to LA after winning the title with the Celtics.
Wojnarowski reported that Van Gundy and Lue developed a strong relationship while working together for the United States national team. Van Gundy was a big admirer of Tyronn Lue, and the two had previously collaborated in Houston 20 years ago when Lue played for the Rockets and Van Gundy was his coach. Van Gundy, an experienced coach, commentator, and executive, also served as head coach for the New York Knicks and the Houston Rockets, with an overall winning record of 430-318 in the NBA.
Van Gundy will be eternally thankful to the Celtics organization
After 16 years with ESPN, the former NBA head coach, Jeff Van Gundy, was let go in June 2023. At the time, he was uncertain about his next career move, especially because he was also dealing with personal challenges. However, shortly before the start of the previous NBA season, the 61-year-old was hired by the Boston Celtics as a senior consultant.
Recently when Van Gundy appeared on the Mark Jackson Show, he was reminiscing on that period: “When I went to work for the Celtics after the FIBA World Cup last fall, I only knew Brad Stevens a little bit. I was really in an awkward place in life, not really knowing where I was going or what my purpose was, or how I’d be with this new group of people where I didn’t know anyone. It’s been one of the most rejuvenating things I’ve ever gone through. Brad Stevens and Joe Mazulla threw me a lifeline.”
Now, with his new gig at the Clippers, it looks like the stroke of life has looked at him again, and he will still be able to work in something that he loves the most, and that’s basketball!