Brian Keefe has been named the Washington Wizards’ latest head coach, the 26th in franchise history. The move comes after Keefe served as the interim coach of the Wizards for the second half of the 2023-24 season. Here’s why this was a good hire for the Wizards, and what it could mean for the team going forward
The Wizards are hiring Brian Keefe as coach, sources tell ESPN.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) May 29, 2024
Wizards Officially Hire Head Coach
Impact
Coaching 39 games for the Wizards this year, Keefe won eight of those games. That doesn’t sound impressive on the surface…but the Wizards only won seven games in the 42 games that came before that. However, what matters more than the wins at this point is team morale. Everyone knew the Wizards weren’t contending for the playoffs or even the play-in this year; yet, players still seem somewhat excited about the future. When Jordan Poole was asked about Keefe’s impact in this article for The Athletic, he said:
“Guys are just more connected. We’re being played to our strengths right now. I’d say we made a couple of defensive coverages a couple of games ago that were huge for us. And guys have bought in, so it makes it easier to compete night in and night out.”
The impact on Poole was noticeable on the court too. Despite sometimes coming off the bench, Poole put up stat lines reminiscent of his days on the Warriors. Slowly, he made fewer and fewer Shaqtin’ A Fool appearances.
Kyle Kuzma has also said that he believed Keefe galvanized the roster and showed flexibility in his coaching decisions. Daniel Gafford praises him and how he lifts up members of the team around him. Both players on the roster and the front office are happy to have him as the head coach, and feelings seem positive all around.
“We are excited for Brian to become our next head coach. Brian is a proven motivator and connector of people,” said Wizards General Manager Will Dawkins. “As a leader in the organization, he will continue to positively grow and invest into the development of our players. His wealth of experience will help move our team forward as we build for long-term sustained success.”
Background
This isn’t Keefe’s first rodeo, as he’s had plenty of experience before acquiring the Head Coach job. He began by working as a Spurs video coordinator in 2005 (a place where many NBA coaches get their start). After a few years there, he spent time as an assistant coach in Oklahoma City, New York, Los Angeles, and Brooklyn before coming to Washington.
Keefe is credited as a development coach. He is said to have played an important role in developing former MVPs Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook, and James Harden. Additionally, Keefe spent time developing this year’s MVP runner-up in Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. Keefe’s hiring as the full-time head coach won’t lead to the Wizards winning many more games than this year. Still, it’s a small but important step in the right direction for the team’s rebuild.
