The Memphis Grizzlies are heading into the new season with an impeccable coaching staff, which will now include NBA veteran Jerry Stackhouse.
Jerry Stackhouse was a popular candidate for a few head coaching jobs. He reportedly was interviewed for a couple of head coaching jobs, such as the Toronto Raptors and Charlotte Hornets; the Detroit Pistons were also reported to have interest in him.
He was the head coach of the Raptors 905 for the past two years, which is the G-league affiliate of the Raptors. Stackhouse was selected as the G-League Coach of the Year during the 2016-17 season in which he led the team to a championship. The team lost to the Austin Spurs in the championship game this season.
Toronto G League coach Jerry Stackhouse has agreed to a deal to join the Memphis Grizzlies as an assistant under JB Bickerstaff. Story on ESPN: https://t.co/NVk8AtHB0K
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) June 10, 2018
According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, Jerry Stackhouse is joining a Memphis Grizzlies team that is coming off their worst season in years. This team is going to look to make moves this offseason to help contend for the playoffs next year, without mortgaging the long-term future of this team.
What Does This Mean For Memphis?
The Grizzlies were in need of another assistant after Keith Smart left to join David Fizdale in New York. Being able to get a high caliber guy like Stackhouse shortly after that is great. He has had a lot of success with the Toronto Raptors’ youth as a developmental coach. We will see if he can bring that same attitude and success to the Memphis Grizzlies’ staff.
Fizdale makes it official and announces Keith Smart will join him in New York as part of the Knicks coaching staff. Smart also worked with Fizdale in Memphis, Miami and Golden State.
— Michael Wallace (@MyMikeCheck) June 7, 2018
Stackhouse is highly touted by many higher-ups in the league. It is a good sign that the Grizzlies were able to bring him in before other teams did. He had interest from teams in becoming a head coach so we can assume that there was some interest for him to get on some team’s staff as an assistant.
Jerry Stackhouse has made it known the past couple of years how badly he wants to become a head coach of an NBA team. He must have been told by the teams that they were no longer considering him for those jobs.
Getting a top-notch assistant like Stackhouse to coach with J.B. Bickerstaff should help out a lot as this team gets ready to try to make a playoff run next season. Though Stackhouse may not be here for the long run, this is a grand slam hire for the Memphis Grizzlies.
What Does It Mean For Stackhouse?
This move could very possibly lead to him becoming a head coach within the next year or two. Next offseason, Stackhouse will be right back in the mix for head coaching jobs — maybe even more so than he was this offseason. There is always the possibility that he could take over for Bickerstaff if things do not go well.
That scenario likely would not happen this season, but within the following season, I think it could be possible. The Grizzlies could have moved on from J.B. Bickerstaff if they had any doubt if he was the right guy or not. They did not consider other options. Also, the fact that they fired a very respected coach like Fizdale shows how much confidence that they had in him.
Stackhouse will be an NBA head coach within the next couple of years. Based off how the Memphis Grizzlies handled things this past year, even if they struggle for the next year or two, that likely will not be in Memphis.