Rajon Rondo continues to come up as a top candidate for Pelicans head coaching job

Rajon Rondo continues to be mentioned as a real candidate to be the next head coach of the NBA’s New Orleans Pelicans.

Rondo’s desire to step into the coaching field is nothing new. There was a push years ago for him to join John Calipari‘s staff at Kentucky as an assistant alongside Tyler Ulis. Rondo has spent the last two seasons in a support role with the Milwaukee Bucks and has not been shy about wanting to advance his coaching career. He’s even coaching his son’s AAU team.

Fast forward to April of this year, and he was being interviewed for the Pelicans’ head coaching job. Now, The Athletic reports that the former Wildcat is one of four finalists to actually land it.

“As for the league’s other coaching vacancy,” wrote Sam Amick on Tuesday. “New Orleans has been deliberating over finalists Darvin Ham (a Bucks associate head coach under [Doc] Rivers), Steve Hetzel (Brooklyn assistant), Sean Sweeney (San Antonio associate head coach) and Rajon Rondo (a coaching associate with the Bucks).”

Amick adds that Jamahl Mosley, who was fired from his spot as the Orlando Magic head coach on Monday, could join that group of finalists. But as of right now, the four names mentioned above are the top options. Ham is the only of the four with NBA head coaching experience, going 90-74 in two seasons (2022-24) with the Los Angeles Lakers.

But even if the Pelicans do not choose Rondo, it doesn’t feel like the 40-year-old will be waiting too long before another team pulls the trigger down the road.

“I know I can do it now,” Rondo told The Athletic’s Eric Nehm back in March. “I have the discipline, preparation and, obviously, it’s about having the right people around you. I feel like I know who I am, and I know the people I can trust in this business for the most part. I’ve had a lot of great mentors, a lot of people rooting for me. I definitely think I’ll be ready to go.”

NBA head coach Rajon Rondo is coming sooner rather than later.