Why Jeff Van Gundy Reportedly Didn’t Become Celtics Assistant

The Celtics lost a staff member shortly after winning the 2024 NBA Finals, and it reportedly was a mutual agreement.

Jeff Van Gundy will leave Boston after one season as a senior consultant under basketball operations to become the Los Angeles Clippers’ top assistant under head coach Tyronn Lue.

The Celtics reportedly considered a role change for Van Gundy, and head coach Joe Mazzulla said the idea of the former ESPN broadcaster joining his staff would be addressed after the NBA Finals. However, both sides reportedly agreed the optics of the move might not have been the best look.

Boston was “somewhat uneasy about the prospect of Van Gundy leapfrogging members of the coaching staff who had been instrumental in this championship season,” a source told The Boston Globe’s Adam Himmelsbach this week.

Himmelsbach added that it was agreed that Van Gundy was an “invaluable sounding board” for the staff as the 62-year-old split his team between the Celtics and the team’s G League affiliate in Maine throughout the season.

Former assistant Charles Lee left Boston to assume his duties as head coach of the Charlotte Hornets. Himmelsbach wrote to expect his position to be filled by an in-staff promotion.