Lawrence Frank the Front-Runner for Tennessee's New Head Coach


Just when we thought the personnel changes were over for the Celtics, it is being reported that assistant coach Lawrence Frank is currently the front-runner for the head coaching position at the University of Tennessee -- a position that became vacant on Monday with the firing of Bruce Pearl.

Frank served 3 years as an assistant coach for the Volunteers before his NBA coaching career began, and Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports has stated that "league sources say it's perhaps only college job that would intrigue him to leave NBA."

What would that mean for the Celtics, especially after losing former assistant coach and defensive coordinator Tom Thibodeau to the Chicago Bulls last season, and with the uncertainty of Doc Rivers' future in Boston? If Frank took the job, would he be able to finish out the season with the Celtics? Many have a hard time believing that an SEC school would be able to wait until June for a new coach to report. But would Frank leave the Celtics before the season came to a close?

There is no guarantee that Frank would be the successor to the C's head coaching position should Doc decide to take a break. Chris Mannix of Sports Illustrated suggested that "Danny Ainge respects Frank, (and) has for a long time. But rival execs believe he prefers a head coach with playing experience." So Frank might be weighing his options.

We will see how this all plays out. If Frank does end up being offered the Tennessee position, hopefully an arrangement would be made that wouldn't compromise his role with the Celtics, and would allow him to finish the season. The Celtics have been through enough chemistry issues already this year.