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Andrew Lopez, ESPN
The New Orleans Pelicans have decided to move on from assistant coach Teresa Weatherspoon, multiple sources told ESPN on Thursday.
Weatherspoon, a 2019 Naismith Hall of Fame inductee, has been a part of the Pelicans’ staff since 2019 when she was hired as a two-way player development coach. Weatherspoon was elevated to assistant coach the following season and has remained there the past three seasons.
Weatherspoon developed a close relationship with Pelicans forward Zion Williamson and worked as his player development coach the past three years.
The Pelicans have made other changes to their coaching staff. Assistant coach Ryan Pannone left when the season was over to take a job on the Alabama men’s basketball coaching staff and the Pelicans hired former Charlotte Hornets head coach James Borrego to become the new associate head coach.
New Orleans was able to retain assistant Jarron Collins, who was a head-coaching candidate for the Detroit Pistons.
Weatherspoon previously coached at Louisiana Tech, which she led to a NCAA championship as a player in 1988, and she worked in player development for the WNBA’s New York Liberty, the team with whom she spent most of her professional player career.