Wes Unseld Jr., who served as coach of the 老澳门开奖网 Wizards since July 2021, will be moving into a front-office role from his position as head coach.
“I am grateful to have served as head coach of the 老澳门开奖网 Wizards,” Unseld Jr. said in a statement provided by the team.
Brian Keefe, previously an assistant coach who has 17 years of total coaching experience, is serving as the interim coach before the team begins an offseason search for the next head coach.聽
Keefe got his first win in his second game at the helm on Jan. 27 when the Wizards beat the league-worst Detroit Pistons 118-104. While early in his coaching tenure, Twitter users chimed in that Keefe did a better job of managing lineups in his first games.
Unseld Jr. said he looked forward to working toward聽鈥渃ontinued progress鈥 for the Wizards.
“After several thoughtful conversations with Wes, we determined together that a change was needed for the benefit of the team,” said Michael Winger, president of Monumental Basketball. “Wes embodies the characteristics we value in our organization, and his vast basketball experience will be an asset to the front office as we progress forward toward our long-term goals. We are thankful that he will continue his contributions to our organization and community.”
During Unseld鈥檚 tenure as coach, the team had a 77-130 record.
With the shifts in team leadership, it is even more likely that the Wizards will trade star forward Kyle Kuzma and hyper-efficient point guard Tyus Jones before the next season starts. The 7-36 team recently traded for big man Marvin Bagley, who has been performing well above expectations during his new start. The Wizards will likely get a top-four draft pick next year.