The Orlando Magic have expressed interest in Jeff Hornacek, Adrian Griffin, James Borrego, Patrick Ewing, and Frank Vogel for its vacant head coaching job, league sources tell Ken Berger of CBS Sports:
The Pacers also are believed to be strongly considering former Suns coach Jeff Hornacek, who has emerged on the short list of early candidates for Orlando, according to two people in the coaching industry. Hornacek impressed the Magic front office in interviewing for the team’s vacancy that went to Vaughn in 2012.
The other early candidates for the Magic include assistant Adrian Griffin; former assistant and interim head coach James Borrego, who was passed over in favor of Skiles and then joined Gregg Popovich as an assistant in San Antonio; former assistant coach Patrick Ewing, who was on Stan Van Gundy’s staff in Orlando; and Vogel.
The coaching carousel continued Thursday morning when Orlando head coach Scott Skiles unexpectedly resigned after a one-year stint with the team.
General manager Rob Hennigan and company plan on starting their head coaching search immediately, as stated from the team on Twitter:
Scott Skiles has informed the Orlando Magic that he is stepping down as head coach. The Magic will begin a search effective immediately.
— Orlando Magic (@OrlandoMagic) May 12, 2016
Just hours following the surprising news of Skiles stepping down, the Magic have already added several names to their list.
Jeff Hornacek, one of the most pursued names on the market, recently served a three-year stint with the Phoenix Suns as head coach. Hornacek guided the Suns to a combined 101-112 record from 2013-2016 and was ultimately fired by the team in February. An experienced NBA player and coach, Hornacek is an intriguing option league-wide for teams in need of a new coach.
Along with Hornacek, former Indiana Pacers coach Frank Vogel is also being heavily pursued by several teams league-wide. Known for his strengths in building up younger players, many consider Vogel to be the best fit to serve as Orlando’s next coach.
Adrian Griffin currently serves as an assistant with the Magic. Many have speculated Orlando may turn to Griffin and promote him to the head coaching position if other candidates don’t impress. According to Ken Berger, the Magic are indeed considering this option.
James Borrego is more of a fascinating story. After serving as an assistant with the Magic from three years, Borrego was later promoted to interim head coach once Jacque Vaughn was fired in 2015. That role was ultimately short lived, as the Magic opted to hire Scott Skiles rather than keep Borrego as the team’s interim coach. As a result, Borrego then decided to join the San Antonio Spurs last summer and has been serving as an assistant under Gregg Popovich ever since.
The last known potential candidate, Patrick Ewing, is one of the most popular assistant coaches in the league. Many believe Ewing is ready to take the next step and become a head coach, including the Magic. Ewing served as assistant with the Magic from 2007-2012 before subsequently bolting the team to become associate head coach of the Charlotte Bobcats (now Charlotte Hornets) in 2013. Much like Jeff Hornacek, Ewing holds the advantage of being an NBA coach and a player.
The Magic now join the Rockets, Knicks, Pacers and Grizzlies as teams with a vacant head coaching position needed to be filled. With a promising young nucleus of talent and a cluster of future draft picks, Orlando’s coaching position is arguably the most appealing available job on the market. Expect more names to eventutally be added to this list, as the interest will most certainly continue to stem from both sides of the spectrum.
