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Christian Clark: Every NBA head coach Willie Green played for: Randy Ayers, Chris Ford, Jim O'Brien, Maurice Cheeks, Tony DiLeo, Eddie Jordan, Monty Williams, Larry Drew, Vinny Del Negro, Doc Rivers, Jacque Vaughn, James Borrego
Eddie Jordan, formerly a head coach with three NBA franchises, is close to joining the Charlotte Hornets as an assistant to Steve Clifford, the Observer has learned. The Hornets are finalizing a contract for Jordan, an NBA source said.
Q: And Mike Brown? Metta World Peace: “When Mike Brown was here, the offense was with [assistant] Eddie Jordan. It was Princeton. It’s a great offense. I would use some of those things. Q: Really? He got fired five games in his second season. Metta World Peace: “I know that’s what I was going to say. The Princeton offense is weird. It will put the superstar player off the ball at times we don’t need that superstar player off the ball. At times with the Princeton offense, it would put Kobe away for an entire game. It’s the right way to play if you have the right type of team. But when you have a superstar, you can’t put Kobe in that situation. You need him. He brings a lot to the table. He has heart. He’s hit 36 game winners. So you want Kobe to be in rhythm so at the end of the game, he can win the game.
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“After my last few experiences, I did not want to be a head coach in the NBA,” Jordan said in a recent interview. He wouldn’t elaborate on what led him to make his decision, stating simply that it was, “all of it combined.”
The Lakers grossly underachieved despite assembling a star-studded roster with Kobe Bryant, Pau Gasol, Steve Nash and Dwight Howard. Jordan accepted the job with Rutgers before the Lakers were swept by the San Antonio Spurs in the first round. “Mike Brown hired me. He was awesome. He allowed me to do a lot in a large role and when he was gone, Mike D’Antoni was gracious enough to keep me there and I really appreciate both those guys hiring me and retaining me. [Former Bullets/Wizards coach] Bernie Bickerstaff and I were reassigned to the back of the bench and we were okay. We were happy to be a part of it,” Jordan said. “It was a season of injuries, non-chemistry, getting to know each other as the season went along. Clashes of personalities and approaches and then it was more injuries. The injury factor and chemistry kept it dysfunctional to where you couldn’t have great success.”
“I thought, maybe I could be a really solid assistant. It’s almost a perfect place,” Jordan said of the Lakers. “We could win championships and I could sit there, and be like Tex Winters and let Phil Jackson take us championships and I could retire in the sunset, but it didn’t go that way. “I had three years of not doing this for sure, and this is what I’m built for, to be a head coach,” Jordan said. “It’s great to be a coach again. I jumped right in, didn’t have to talk to anybody. I knew what I was getting into. I wanted to prove that I could do it. But I did not want to be a head coach anymore in the NBA.”
About that due diligence: Despite all the accolades he's received from the university and despite the school's many claims to the contrary, Jordan hasn't actually finished his degree, according to the Rutgers registrar's office. The office sent me a verification document, found below, that indicates that Jordan attended classes at Rutgers from 1973 to 1977. He went on to take more classes in 1978, 1981, and 1985. There was no degree listed in the document. I called up the registrar's office on Thursday and asked for clarification.
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Preferring a small staff to the one he inherited from previous coach Mike Brown, current Lakers coach Mike D’Antoni will not retain assistants Chuck Person and Bernie Bickerstaff for the 2013-14 season. Fellow 2012-13 assistant Eddie Jordan recently accepted the head coaching job at Rutgers University, leaving three assistants on D’Antoni’s staff: Steve Clifford, Darvin Ham and Mike’s brother Dan D’Antoni.
The Los Angeles Lakers released the following statement from General Manager Mitch Kupchak regarding Eddie Jordan becoming the new Head Coach at Rutgers University: “On behalf of the entire Lakers organization, I’d like to congratulate Eddie on his new position as Head Coach at his alma mater, Rutgers University. A member of our 1982 NBA Championship team, Eddie has been a part of the Lakers family going back more than 30 years. We thank him for his contributions both as a player and coach to our club, and wish him the best of luck with the Scarlet Knights.”
Rutgers will introduce its new men’s basketball coach at his old stomping grounds Tuesday. A 4:30 p.m. ET news conference to announce Eddie Jordan’s hiring will be at the College Avenue Gym in New Brunswick, N.J., where Jordan and fellow members of Rutgers’ 1976 Final Four team played home games.
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