New Orleans Pelicans: How hot should Alvin Gentry’s seat be?

The Pros

Alvin Gentry is beloved around the league. He is the epitome of a player’s coach. Stories of Gentry’s personality and kindness are everywhere. Lon Babby, the former Suns executive who fired Gentry, still says nothing but nice things about him:

"“He’s one of the most likable, amiable people you will ever encounter in your life, which is why he was beloved in the Phoenix community and still is. He never burns a bridge, and he’ll have a big smile on his face on the way in and on the way out.”"

Likewise, Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr, who Gentry worked with both in Phoenix and the Bay Area, was effusive in his praise when Gentry got the Pelicans’ job, saying:

"I’m extremely happy for Alvin and wish him the best of luck in this new challenge … he’s had a tremendous impact on the success of our team this season and, personally, has been instrumental in my development as a coach."

Gentry even helped his former assistant Igor Kokoskov get the Suns’ coaching job this past season, putting in a sincere vote of confidence for him.

Now, simply being a great person doesn’t make you a good coach, but in the NBA managing personalities is a critical component of the job — just ask Brad Stevens and the Boston Celtics.

Gentry has that part covered, and he has been a guiding light for the Pelicans thus far through the Anthony Davis trade saga.

When factoring in how significant Gentry has been to the evolution of the NBA in the past five years, it is easy to see his strengths as a coach. Beyond helping to push the Warriors’ offense to new heights during their ascendant first title season in 2014-15, Gentry has engineered pure pace-and-space teams in New Orleans. The team has been top-10 in pace of play since he got there and has increased its pace year after year.

To have a guy whose players adore championing and properly executing a modern brand of basketball checks off arguably the two biggest boxes a team could look for in a head coach in 2019. To bring in someone new after the season would mean a complete reset for a Pelicans organization that already lacks leadership and stability.