The Celtics have added another prominent name to Joe Mazzulla’s coaching staff. A team source confirmed to MassLive that veteran NBA head coach Jeff Van Gundy has been hired as a senior consultant for the upcoming season. Van Gundy will be working under basketball operations and splitting his time between Boston and Maine, Boston’s G-League affiliate, according to a source.
Van Gundy is the latest addition to Boston’s staff which included a number of notable assistant hires this offseason such as Sam Cassell and Charles Lee. Van Gundy has spent the past 16 years primarily as a broadcaster with ESPN where he announced 16 NBA Finals. However, he was laid off by ESPN as part of a layoff round this past summer to cut costs.
Before broadcasting in recent years, Van Gundy was a standout NBA head coach, where he compiled a 430-318 record during his 11 seasons as coach, including stints with the Knicks and Rockets. Van Gundy also helped the Knicks reach the NBA Finals during the 1999 lockout season before falling to the Spurs.
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The 61-year-old has been active with international coaching in recent years, serving as a head coach during the 2017 FIBA AmeriCup Tournament and as an assistant coach for US Men’s Basketball during the 2019 FIBA World Cup and 2020 Summer Olympics. Van Gundy worked with Brown and Tatum directly on the 2019 FIBA World Cup team.