Wes Unseld Jr. put in plenty of time before earning his first chance to be a head coach, writes Fred Katz of The Athletic. Unseld, who was formally hired by the Wizards on Saturday after weeks of speculation, was also a finalist for the head coaching vacancy in Orlando.
He comes to Washington from Denver, where he served as associate head coach under Michael Malone. Unseld was in charge of the Nuggets’ defensive schemes and is known for working closely with players, often customizing the approach to make them more comfortable, Katz notes. He has been an NBA assistant for 16 years and spent eight years as an advance scout with the Wizards, where he worked with general manager Tommy Sheppard.
“Becoming a head coach in the NBA is a goal that I have pursued my entire adult life and to have that dream realized by coming full circle back to Washington is truly special,” Unseld said in a press release announcing his hiring. “I look forward to representing the DMV (Washington, D.C., metropolitan area), connecting with our fans and establishing a new standard for Wizards basketball.”
There’s more from the Southeast Division:
- Unseld will face some unique challenges in his new post, observes Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington. Management wasn’t satisfied with this year’s first-round playoff exit, and there’s urgency to improve right away with Russell Westbrook about to turn 33 and Bradley Beal facing an opt-out decision next summer. If the Wizards don’t get off to a strong start in Unseld’s first season, the team will have to consider moving Beal before the trade deadline, Hughes adds.
- The drafting record of general manager Travis Schlenk has put the Hawks in position to be contenders for a long time, states Mark Bradley of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Schlenk didn’t have a lottery pick in his first draft, but was able to get John Collins at No. 18. Since then, he has added Trae Young, Kevin Huerter, De’Andre Hunter, Cam Reddish and Onyeka Okongwu. Even if Collins leaves in free agency, Hunter is poised to take his place, Bradley adds.
- The Hornets will bring in Kai Jones for a private workout today, the team announced on Twitter. The Texas forward is ranked 20th on ESPN’s big board, and Charlotte holds a lottery pick at No. 11.
Collins won’t walk away for nothing
At least he’ll be SNT or trade later
Best salary management
Hawks
Worst salary management
Lakers 2021
Suns 2022
Do not care much about it
Warriors
Nets
Clippers
What if Miami or Dallas just sign him as a free agent?
Match the offer
Trade Collins after one year
Keep Collins and trade that Bodganovic at any cost!!! He was terrible in playoffs to the point that Tray stopped passing him the ball given how unreliable he was!! They should make a brick compilation to sum up his playoffs run!!
We have nobody to play 4 if he’s gone and don’t let me start with that scrub Reddish!
Lol, he was clutch in the first round. Dude was playing on one leg against Philly and the Bucks.
And reddish came back and gave the team a boost after being out with an Achilles injury. Not sure what more could have been done
Kai Jones is really really intriguing for Cha
They could go w upside of a Jones Giddey or Sengun or probably have a really good rotation player like Moody Kispert or Wagner
They seem like they are in a really good spot where they cant go wrong either way