Two former NBA head coaches -- both fired with pretty good records but management thought they could find someone better -- are the last two standing in the Clippers search for a head coach.
Vinny Del Negro and Dwayne Casey are the two finalists for the Los Angeles job, reports Kevin Arnovitz at ESPNLosAngeles.com.
Ironically, these are the same two guys the Chicago Bulls were choosing between two years ago. They went with Del Negro, who went 41-41 both years, although the second year was with injuries and trades decimating the roster. He was fired at the end of last season.
Casey was the former head coach of the Timberwolves during part of the Kevin Garnett era. He was fired while the team was 20-20 his second season -- they went 12 and 30 the rest of the way.
Both coaches will be interviewed early next week.
The Clippers have a good young nucleus of players with Blake Griffin, Chris Kaman, Eric Gordon, now Al Farouq-Aminu plus they have Baron Davis at the point. They also are working hard to attract a top-flight free agent. Ideally a small forward. (Yes, ideally THAT guy, but they will have to settle for someone else.)