Who's The Greatest Coach In Charlotte Hornets History?

In this series, we’ll take a look at the illustrious list of head coaches in each NBA franchise’s history. To make a case for ‘greatest coach,’ we’ll look at win-loss record, player development, and (most importantly) team accomplishments under that coach’s tutelage.

Since entering the league in 1988, the Charlotte Hornets have given NBA fans some flashes of entertaining basketball. Their track record in the league, however, has been marred by multiple playoff droughts and bottom-10 finishes.

Amidst all the futility, the Hornets have been coached by some brilliant minds that are highly respected in the NBA community. While it would be foolish to consider championship gold to be the standard for these coaches’ success, a handful of these mentors deserve their props for leading the franchise to hard-fought wins in the regular season and the playoffs.

When Larry Johnson and Alonzo Mourning were terrorizing opposing frontcourts in the 90s, Allan Bristow was at the helm. From 1991 to 1996, Bristow went 207-203 in the regular season and led the Hornets to their first-ever appearance in the NBA playoffs.

A two-time NBA All-Star in his playing career, Paul Silas went on to have a prolific run as a head coach. From 1998 to 2002, he amassed a 161-120 win-loss record with the Hornets. Scoring machine Jamal Mashburn and two-way stalwart Eddie Jones thrived under Silas’ tutelage, and the Hornets reached the second round of the playoffs twice during this era.

Next to Bristow, Steve Clifford is the winningest Hornets head coach in terms of regular season record. When the Charlotte Bobcats reverted to their original Hornets moniker in 2014, Clifford remained at the helm and eventually led the team to their first playoff wins since Silas’ time.

The nod for greatest Hornets coach ever goes to Silas, the only mentor to steer the team to two Eastern Conference semifinal appearances. Historically, the Hornets have been unable to match the talent level of other teams out in the East, but Silas was able to make a dent in the playoffs for two consecutive seasons.