The Hornets have reached an agreement to hire veteran assistant coach Chris Jent, reports Rod Boone of The Charlotte Observer (Twitter link).
Jent will serve under Hornets new head coach Charles Lee, who has begun to put together his staff for his first year in Charlotte as he continues his role as a Celtics assistant during Boston’s playoff run. Previous reports indicated that the Hornets are also hiring Lamar Skeeter from the Jazz and Josh Longstaff from the Bulls.
Jent spent the last two seasons with the Lakers on Darvin Ham‘s staff, but Los Angeles parted ways with all of its assistants in addition to firing Ham earlier this spring, making Jent a coaching free agent.
Prior to his stint in L.A., Jent was an assistant for five years with the Hawks and also spent time with the Sixers, Magic, Cavaliers, and Kings in addition to two separate stints as an assistant at his alma mater of Ohio State. He has some head coaching experience too, having spent a year at the helm of the Bakersfield Jam (now the Motor City Cruise) in the G League in 2015/16, as well as briefly serving as an interim head coach in Orlando in 2005 following Johnny Davis‘ dismissal.
A wing at Ohio State from 1988-1992, Jent had a 10-year playing career before transitioning to coaching. He primarily played in international leagues, but was a member of the 1994 Rockets team that won a title and had a short stint with the Knicks during the 1996/97 season.
CJeezy! Tremendous coach and long overdue to get his own team.
Had a helluva shooting/skills coach at Ohio State and throughout his pro career!