Golden State Warriors assistant coach Kenny Atkinson has decided to stay with the team instead of becoming the Charlotte Hornets head coach, ESPN.com reports.
Atkinson was offered the Hornets job after interviewing during the playoffs and had agreed to a four-year deal with Charlotte. But he never signed a contract.
During the Finals, Warriors coach Steve Kerr was about losing Atkinson to the Hornets, and Kerr said, “I can’t say anything until it becomes official. So we’ll wait until Charlotte says anything before we make any comments.”
According to the report, Atkinson believed it was best to stay with the Warriors, who finished off the Boston Celtics this week in six games to win their fourth championship in the last eight seasons.
Charlotte, who have missed the playoffs in each of the last six seasons, will now continue to find a replacement for James Borrego, who was fired in April after the Hornets were blown out by the Atlanta Hawks in the play-in tournament.
The 55-year-old Atkinson just completed his first season with Golden State.
Before that, he was an assistant with the Los Angeles Clippers and the head coach of the Nets, compiling a 118-190 record in four seasons with Brooklyn before parting ways with the team near the end of the 2019-20 season.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Warriors’ Kenny Atkinson turns down Hornets coach offer, per report
