The Pistons are hiring Luke Walton to join J.B. Bickerstaff‘s coaching staff as the lead assistant, according to The Athletic’s Shams Charania (Twitter link ). As noted by Charania, Walton has spent the last two seasons serving as an assistant coach in Cleveland under Bickerstaff.
Walton played in the NBA for the Lakers from 2003-12 and then spent the 2012/13 season with the Cavs before retiring. He then enjoyed brief stints as an assistant for the University of Memphis and the now-South Bay Lakers of the G League.
Walton got his first NBA coaching job in 2014 as an assistant for the Warriors for two seasons. He helped the organization win a title in ’14/15 and earn an all-time best 73-9 record in ’15/16. Filling in as Golden State’s interim head coach at the start of the ’15/16 season while Steve Kerr recovered from back surgery, Walton led the Warriors to a 24-game winning streak and a 39-4 overall record. He was hired by the Lakers the following season as a first-time head coach.
The Lakers went 98-148 in three years under Walton. After leaving the Lakers, Walton was hired as the head coach in Sacramento, where he won 68 games in a little more than two seasons. In all, Walton owns a 166-241 record as a head coach.