Hall of Fame player Patrick Ewing was Georgetown’s head coach from 2017 to 2023. He also served as an assistant coach for several NBA games, including the 2002–03 season with the Wizards. Brenden Willsch/Imagn Images via Reuters Connect
July 4, 2026 Updated at 8:26 p.m. ET.
WASHINGTON — Former Georgetown Hoyas and New York Knicks great Patrick Ewing will likely join the Washington Wizards as an assistant coach, a team source said. Athletic. The source spoke on condition of anonymity because the contract has not yet been concluded.
Ewing, 63, served as the Hoyas’ head coach for six seasons (2017 to 2023), compiling a 75-109 record and one NCAA Tournament appearance.
Ewing spent 15 seasons as an NBA assistant coach, starting with the 2002–03 season with the Wizards. He later served as an assistant coach for the Houston Rockets under Jeff Van Gundy and the Orlando Magic under Stan Van Gundy, and as an assistant coach for the Charlotte Bobcats and Charlotte Hornets under Steve Clifford.
It would be natural to assume that the Hall of Fame center is someone who specializes in coaching big men, and he did work closely with Dwight Howard during their time together with the Magic. But Ewing’s responsibilities as an assistant coach ran the gamut when he worked with Van Gundy and Clifford and didn’t stop at working with the team’s big players.
Ewing worked for many years to gain the opportunity to become a head coach before accepting the Hoyas head coaching position.
The Wizards’ coaching staff is led by Brian Keefe, who completed his second full season as head coach in April after serving as the team’s interim coach for the second half of the 2023-24 season.
During his playing career at Georgetown, Ewing was named a consensus first-team All-American three times while leading the Hoyas to three NCAA Tournament finals and one NCAA Tournament championship. The Knicks drafted him No. 1 in 1985, and he made 11 All-Star teams, was a member of the 1992 Olympic Dream Team and was named to the NBA’s 75th Anniversary Team.
In 2024, the Knicks hired Ewing as their basketball ambassador.
Ewing’s talks with the Wizards about joining the team’s coaching staff were first reported by SNY.
July 5, 2026
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