James Borrego Reportedly Finalizing Contract to Become Hornets' Head Coach

The Charlotte Hornets are set to hire San Antonio Spurs assistant James Borrego as their new head coach.  

ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski first reported the news on Tuesday, noting the two sides are finalizing a deal.

According to Wojnarowski, Borrego and Michael Jordan met over the weekend after he and Boston Celtics assistant Jay Larranaga advanced to a final group of candidates.

It's the first time Borrego will serve as a full-time head coach. He previously led the Orlando Magic coaching staff for 30 games on an interim basis during the 2014-15 season after the firing of Jacque Vaughn. The team posted a 10-20 record.

Along with two stints under Gregg Popovich in San Antonio, he's also worked as an assistant for the Magic and New Orleans Hornets during a coaching career that dates back to 2003.

The 40-year-old New Mexico native played three seasons at the University of San Diego and joined the Toreros' staff for two seasons after his 2001 graduation.

In 2015, Borrego explained the role Popovich played in his growth as a coach, per Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel:

"I learned a tremendous amount. I was so fortunate to even get a few minutes with him my first year, and he didn't even know my name. But as the year went along, we spent more time in the film room together, just Pop and I one-on-one watching film. I would say nothing. He would watch. And slowly but surely, he'd begin to ask me questions. We'd talk basketball. Our relationship just continued to grow. He put me in great positions to grow as a coach, as a basketball individual."

Now he'll try to take another crack at using those lessons to create his own coaching legacy.

Borrego will get a clean slate in Charlotte. It's impossible to draw any conclusions about his ability based on his short time leading the Magic. Not only was it a small sample size, but the team was in a period of transition without the talent to seriously compete.

He'll take over a Hornets roster led by Kemba Walker, Dwight Howard and Jeremy Lamb. The baseline talent is there for the team to make more noise in the Eastern Conference, especially if it can make a few more additions. The front office will hope a coaching change can spark improvement.