Jamahl Mosley didn’t have to wait long to find his next job opportunity in the NBA.
Read more Florida, Texas Tech set for star-studded Super Regional showdown
The former Orlando coach was expected to be hired as the next head coach of the New Orleans Pelicans on Monday, exactly two weeks after he was dismissed by Magic president of basketball operations Jeff Weltman.
The Pelicans had been in need of their next full-time coach since they fired Willie Green in mid-November after a 2-10 start to the season. James Borrego, an experienced NBA coach, had served as the interim coach since then and New Orleans went 24-46 from there to finish the regular season 26-56, or 11th in the Western Conference.
Although Borrego — who had been with New Orleans for three years as an assistant following a four-year stint as head coach of the Charlotte Hornets — closed out the season as interim coach, the Pelicans had reportedly been long admirers of Mosley.
ESPN first reported New Orleans’ plans to hire Mosley.
The former Magic coach had helped rebuild Orlando during his five-year tenure that closed out with three straight playoff appearances. The 15th head coach in franchise history, Mosley went 189-221 in five regular seasons in Orlando. In early February, he moved past Doc Rivers (171) for third on the Magic all-time coaching wins list.
Read more Florida women complete rare SEC triple crown under coach Mike Holloway
Orlando, however, failed to advance out of the first round of the playoffs in all three tries under Mosley. The Magic still haven’t won a playoff series regardless of the coach since 2010.
Mosley will face a similar challenge in New Orleans. The Pelicans reached the playoffs twice under Green (2022 and ’24) but haven’t won a playoff series since 2018.
As Mosley lands with the Pelicans, the Magic themselves are still conducting their own coaching search to replace him.
Read more Editorial: Legislature divvies up dollars in the dark
More to come …
Jason Beede can be reached at [email protected]