Stan Van Gundy doesn’t blame Zion Williamson for dismissal

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Stan Van Gundy was sacked by the New Orleans Pelicans last month after just one season with the team.

Although reports suggest there was growing unease between Van Gundy and his players, including with star family Zion Williamsons, the veteran coach insisted there was not.

Williamson or his family, Van Gundy said on STUpodity Friday, had nothing to do with his departure from New Orleans.

“I hate when it’s put on players, players getting kicked out of coaches and things like that,” Van Gundy said. “I think it makes players look bad and I don’t think it’s fair. players certainly have the right to express their opinion to people and things like that, but the front offices and the owners make decisions and they are the ones who decide to fire people. It should never, ever be imposed. to the players.

“I know, no matter what happened in that regard, Zion is not a coach killer. He’s a guy who is going to help you win a lot of games. He plays the good game. One of the things that I will miss is the He’s so unique in the way he plays and the things he can do, it really makes your head spin as a coach and you have a lot. possibilities in what you can do with him. It was fun to explore. I’m happy with what we did with Zion. I think we helped him.

Was the Zions family unhappy?

According to a report from The Athletic last month, some members of the Williamson family expressed their displeasure with the organization and Van Gundy.

Anonymous family members apparently felt Van Gundy was too rigid and demanding as a head coach.

Although Van Gundy said he knew Williamson was unhappy, he said it wasn’t because of his coaching style. As for his family members, however, Van Gundy has no idea where this is coming from.

“I don’t know anything about it,” Van Gundy said. “In my mind, I liked training Zion. I had a good relationship with him. I had no problem. I think we elevated the platform that we gave him. We put him in different. situations, he handled the ball a lot, played a lot of playmaker. I thought we had done good things with him.

The story continues

“If they were upset, I didn’t hear about it. Zion was upset that we didn’t win more games, but Zion never told me any of that. [about his family]. That doesn’t mean he wasn’t unhappy. They may be unhappy with me and that’s what led to the change. “

Van Gundy wants assistant Fred Vinson hired next

The Pelicans finished 31-41 in the regular season and narrowly missed the play-in tournament while finishing near the bottom in defensive odds and 3-point attempts in a game.

Their record was almost identical to that which Alvin Gentry had led the team to the previous season.

The team are now looking for their third coach in as many years, the one who will be tasked with leading the team to the playoffs for just the second time in the past seven seasons.

As to who should do it, Van Gundy believes longtime aide Fred Vinson is the perfect man for the job. Vinson has been an assistant at New Orleans since 2010 for now three different coaches, and could make things easier for Williamson and the rest of their young team.

If it was me, I would stay home and go with Fred Vinson, because I’m afraid these youngsters are now in their third coach in three years. I think it’s hard for everyone if the system and everything, the terminology and everything that changes a lot, but especially for young people, he said. If you stick with a guy like Fred Vinson, he’s been here before before Alvin Gentry.

“But he was with Alvin, so he knows what the players went through back then. He was with me, he knows what the players went through then. He doesn’t have to do it all again, he can stick with familiar stuff. guy to ease the transition while leaving his own mark on the team. “

Stan Van Gundy was sacked by the Pelicans after just one season. (Jonathan Bachman / Getty Images)

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