Report: NCAA Tournament-Winning Coach, Former LeBron Teammate to Interview for NBA Job

The Pistons are expected to interview former UConn coach Kevin Ollie for their open head coaching vacancy, The Athletic’s Shams Charania reports.

Dwane Casey recently announced he was stepping down as Detroit’s head coach to transition to a role in the front office. The 65 year-old Casey spent the past five years with the Pistons, going 121–263 over that span, which included posting the worst record in the league this past season.

Ollie played in the NBA for 11 seasons, bouncing around the league as a backup for 11 different teams. He finished his career averaging 3.8 points and 2.3 assists per game while playing just 15.6 minutes a game.

After retiring, he entered the coaching ranks and led UConn for six seasons as Jim Calhoun’s immediate replacement. During that stint, Ollie led the Huskies to a national championship victory as a No. 7 seed in his second season. 

However, UConn missed the tournament in four of Ollie’s six seasons at the helm and he was fired in 2018 following two-straight losing seasons.

Ollie sued UConn, alleging discrimination around his firing, and won his case against the school. He then went on to become the Head of Coaching and Basketball Recruitment for the Overtime Elite program in 2021.

ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reports that along with Ollie, Detroit is expected to target Bucks assistant Charles Lee, Heat assistant Chris Quinn and Raptors assistant Adrian Griffin.