National Basketball Association

Borrego to coach Magic rest of season, Kokoskov added as assistant

Published Feb. 17, 2015 1:49 p.m. ET

foxsports

The Orlando Magic have informed James Borrego that he will be their head coach for the remainder of season and have also hired a new lead assistant, Igor Kokoskov, to help him out.

The Magic have gone 2-2 since promoting Borrego from an assistant coach after the firing of Jacque Vaughn on Feb. 5. They have held their opponents under 100 points in all four games after giving up more than 100 in each of their final 14 games under Vaughn, who was let go along with assistant coaches Wes Unseld Jr. and Brett Gunning.

Borrego's only two assistants before the All-Star break last week had been Laron Profit and Jay Hernandez. Kokoskov, 43, is a native of Serbia who has been an NBA assistant for 14 seasons, most recently with the Cleveland Cavaliers.

The Magic are 17-39 and have 26 games remaining in their season, beginning Friday night at home against the New Orleans Pelicans. It is expected that team management will use that time to conduct an extensive search to find a permanent successor with previous NBA head coaching experience, something Borrego does not have.

One possible candidate was eliminated when George Karl was hired by the Sacramento Kings, who fired Michael Malone earlier this season. Malone, Mark Jackson and former Magic guard Scott Skiles have been talked about outside the organization as potential coaches. If the Chicago Bulls decide to part ways with Tom Thibodeau after the playoffs, he could also enter the picture.

You can follow Ken Hornack on Twitter @HornackFSFla or email him at khornack32176@gmail.com.