The G League Ignite is finalizing a deal with USC associate head coach Jason Hart to be the program’s new head coach, sources told ESPN.
Hart, a nine-year NBA veteran, takes over an NBA-run program that produced two of the projected top picks in Thursday’s NBA draft: forwards Jalen Green and Jonathan Kuminga.
Hart, 43, replaces Brian Shaw, who is joining the LA Clippers as their top assistant.
The G League Ignite has been signing top American and international prospects to play with and against G League veterans to prepare them for entry into the NBA draft. The Ignite are based in California, but are expected to play a more traditional G League schedule this year after participating in the G League bubble in Orlando last year.
Hart has been at USC since 2013, serving as associate head coach for the past four years. He was a second-round NBA draft pick in 2000 after leaving Syracuse as the school’s all-time leader in steals and second in assists.
As a USC assistant, he worked with several NBA players, including Atlanta’s Onyeka Okongwu, De’Anthony Melton and Chimezie Metu.