{"id":282792,"date":"2026-05-24T14:04:22","date_gmt":"2026-05-24T14:04:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/282792\/"},"modified":"2026-05-24T14:04:22","modified_gmt":"2026-05-24T14:04:22","slug":"orlando-magic-coaching-search-takes-frustrating-turn","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/282792\/","title":{"rendered":"Orlando Magic coaching search takes frustrating turn"},"content":{"rendered":"

The biggest task for the Orlando Magic this offseason is to find a new coach<\/a>.<\/p>\n

As president of basketball operations Jeff Weltman put it during his exit interview, the only thing more impactful than acquiring a star player is changing coaches.<\/p>\n

The Magic know that firsthand. The choice to hire Jamahl Mosley in 2021 proved to be the right one, helping the Magic move from a 25-win rebuilding team into a playoff team with the expectations to advance past the first round. Mosley was a wildly successful hire.<\/p>\n

But the team falling in the first round in the past three years<\/a> and a slip down the standings put Mosley on the hot seat and eventually cost him his job.<\/p>\n

The Magic are still on the hunt for their new coach — reportedly interviewing Jeff Van Gundy<\/a> this week, with other candidates surely also coming in for an interview or having already been interviewed ahead of the Memorial Day weekend.<\/p>\n

Whether it turns out to be an experienced coach like Billy Donovan<\/a> or a first-time coach like Sean Sweeney<\/a>, the Magic’s fortunes will depend on whomever they hire and the staff he brings in or retains.<\/p>\n

Jamahl Mosley has already moved on. The New Orleans Pelicans hired him last week. And he is already beginning to build his staff, including some people he worked with in Orlando.<\/p>\n

The biggest one hit Saturday with Mike Scotto of HoopsHype reporting that assistant coach God Shammgod will join Jamahl Mosley in New Orleans<\/a>.<\/p>\n

God Shammgod has agreed to join the New Orleans Pelicans as an assistant coach on the front of the bench for head coach Jamahl Mosley, league sources told @hoopshype<\/a>. Shammgod was an assistant coach with Mosley for the Magic and with Rick Carlisle and Jason Kidd on the Mavericks. pic.twitter.com\/jeYxylVt7I<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Michael Scotto (@MikeAScotto) May 23, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

Scotto added Saturday that Shammgod may not be the only coach leaving Orlando<\/a> to join Mosley’s staff in New Orleans. He reports assistant coach Dale Osbourne, who was in charge of building the Magic’s defense, and Bret Brielmaier, who has a strong relationship with the Wagners from his time with the German national team, are strong candidates to join the Pelicans.<\/p>\n

It is expected that a new coach would bring in much of his own staff. Orlando was never going to retain its entire assistant coaching staff after moving on from Mosley. That is natural.<\/p>\n

But these are coaches that have a big impact and effect. It will indeed be a new day in Orlando.<\/p>\n

The rumored departing coaches are huge losses for the Magic<\/p>\n

Everyone expected a new staff to support whoever the new coach is. Whomever the Orlando Magic hire should have the freedom to bring in his own assistants.<\/p>\n

But this is the first time in a long while the Magic are making a coaching change without also tearing things down with their roster or having major questions. Orlando knows who it is.<\/p>\n

This is a team looking to build on a foundation<\/a>, not reset things. And it would make sense to keep some members from the previous coaching staff to maintain some continuity and help the team transition to a new staff and scheme.<\/p>\n

Fans immediately pointed to God Shammgod as a coach the team should want to keep. He quickly built strong relationships with many of hte Magic’s guards after joining the team’s staff last summer.<\/p>\n

Anthony Black, specifically, credited God Shammgod with improving his comfort and his level of play in his break out 2026 season. As the news broke, he let it be known publicly how much he will miss Shammgod on one of his Instagram accounts.<\/p>\n

A lot of players on the Magic are learning what the business of the NBA is like now.<\/p>\n

The potential of losing both Dale Osbourne and Bret Brielmaier also would have major impacts.<\/p>\n

Osbourne was essentially the team’s defensive coordinator for all five years under Mosley. He helped work with the team’s centers and organize the team’s defense. He is often on the bench cheering on the defense, even picking up a bench technical foul one time for demonstrating for his team too much on the sideline.<\/p>\n

Brielmaier has also been with the Magic since the team hired Mosley. He has a very close relationship with both Franz and Moe Wagner from working with them with the German national team.<\/p>\n

A big part of the process for the new coach will be in building new relationships between the coaching staff and the players. Let alone building relationships within the coaching staff. <\/p>\n

A new staff is inevitable for the Magic’s new coach<\/p>\n

The Orlando Magic’s main priority right now is to find a new head coach. Whether that coach will keep any holdovers from the previous staff will be a question best left to him.<\/p>\n

Already, those assistants are likely fielding some offers to move onto other teams. The longer the Magic take to hire their next coach, the fewer of those familiar coaches will be around to retain. <\/p>\n

If the new coach even wants to retain them. That choice is ultimately up to him.<\/p>\n

The remaining assistants certainly still have something to contribute.<\/p>\n

Joe Prunty was hired last year to give the bench an experience hand and someone who could help support the offense. He helped with that as the Magic’s offense improved this past year.<\/p>\n

Randy Gregory has been with the team since 2019 and moved into a coaching and player development role in 2021. Many players love working with him and he had a hand in developing the team’s offense — the team’s media guide labeled him the team’s offensive coordinator from 2021-24.<\/p>\n

Gregory was the Magic’s connection to the German national team at EuroBasket last summer — the Magic will always likely send an assistant coach to be part of Germany’s staff, and that coach will have a closer tie to the Wagners.<\/p>\n

Lionel Chalmers as been with the team for nine season and was promoted to an assistant coach when Jamahl Mosley arrived. Ameer Bahhur — the team’s replay coach, if you will — has been with the team for four years and was promoted to assistant coach before this season.<\/p>\n

Jeremiah Boswell is a former private skills development coach that the Magic hired as an assistant coach in 2022. He was the team’s head of player development in 2024.<\/p>\n

Not all of these coaches will stay. It seems more likely that they will all be gone and a new coach will bring in a new coaching staff and build new relationships with the team.<\/p>\n

But the Magic are quickly losing that option as new coaches begin to firm up their staffs ahead of the new NBA season.<\/p>\n

Orlando is alreayd losing critical coaches.<\/p>\n

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