Charlotte Hornets coach Steve Clifford to step down at season’s end, move to front office
Steve Clifford’s second tenure as the Charlotte Hornets’ head coach is nearing its completion.
Clifford announced on Wednesday that he’s stepping down, effective at the end of the season. There are seven games remaining and Charlotte’s record is 18-57.
As The Observer previously reported when Clifford initially signed his contract, he had a team option for 2024-25, meaning the Hornets could go in another direction after 2023-24 without any financial ramifications.
While Clifford is leaving the sidelines, he’s not going far — he will be moving into an advisory role with the Hornets’ front office.
“I’ll just get right to it,” Clifford said to open a news conference Wednesday afternoon at Spectrum Center. “There’s a certain energy level that you need to have a chance to coach effectively in this league.
“For me, the last couple of years with the losing had been a factor in it. But as we have been meeting and discussing things, I’m just not comfortable that I can — that I’m ready right now to — give the players what they need from a head coach in order to play well every night.”
Clifford, 62, was hired in June 2022 — his second stint with the Hornets — to replace James Borrego after the team was turned down by Golden State Warriors assistant Kenny Atkinson. With star LaMelo Ball constantly hurt and the Hornets mostly banged up for the better part of his most recent tenure, Clifford has compiled a 45-112 record leading into Wednesday night’s matchup with Portland.
Clifford previously coached the Hornets from 2013-18, and is the team’s winningest coach with 241 total victories.
“I think Cliff will become that person who (players) can go to and confide in at times,” said Jeff Peterson, the Hornets’ executive vice president. “He always shoots it straight, regardless of who you are. You may not like it at the moment, but the players respect that. Having that familiar face and voice — still within the organization — is going to be very valuable.”
Peterson said the Hornets will begin searching for Clifford’s successor right away, but didn’t want to put a timetable on the hire.
Peterson, the former Brooklyn Nets assistant general manager, explained that in a lot of ways, he’s been searching for head coaching candidates for the last decade. He’s constantly meeting people, building relationships and specifically watching how basketball coaches from the summer league to national teams interact and conduct themselves.
“It’s a challenging situation, but we’ve been in lockstep this whole time,” Peterson said. “Our relationship has been a huge factor in it, and I just want to say thank you to him for all the time, energy and everything he’s put into the city, the Carolinas and this franchise. He’s an amazing, amazing person and a really, really good coach.
“He’s unfortunately dealt with some situations and circumstances that have been coming out of his hands — injuries, things like that. So, maybe the record wasn’t as indicative of just how good of a coach that he is.”
Clifford emphasized that his focus right now is on the Hornets’ last seven games.
“There will be a time to self-reflect after that,” Clifford said, “I will say this. It’s not what I wanted it to be. And yet, look. I don’t know many people who have had a better life than I have. I love this. I love the games. I love the coaching. They’re the best players in the world.
“That part, I’ll sit down some night with a glass of wine by myself and whatever. But it’s not time for that. In terms of the next phase, the opportunity to learn from Jeff is something that truly excites me.”
This story was originally published April 3, 2024 at 11:37 AM.
