After the Milwaukee Bucks made the shocking and unexpected move to fire head coach Adrian Griffin on Tuesday, Giannis Antetokounmpo’s team has one of the most desirable job openings in the NBA, with Milwaukee having a win-now team with two driven superstars leading the way.
With the Bucks searching for a new head coach, there’s been no shortage of candidates mentioned as possibilities for Milwaukee for the rest of the 2023-24 NBA season.
According to Chris Haynes of Bleacher Report, a few notable names are in the running to succeed Griffin in Milwaukee.
“Milwaukee has also formulated a short list of candidates that includes Jeff Van Gundy and Nate McMillan, sources say,” Haynes reported.
Former Philadelphia 76ers head coach Doc Rivers has been the one big-name head coach that has been mentioned more often than not, via Haynes and NBACentral.
Milwaukee Bucks’ Head Coaching Candidates:
• Doc Rivers
• Jeff Van Gundy
• Nate McMillan(Via @ChrisBHaynes / https://t.co/6t8kCzV6hN) pic.twitter.com/Yy9wPPFG0o
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) January 24, 2024
The three names mentioned as candidates for the coaching vacancy in Milwaukee are the usual suspects when there’s a prominent position available in the league, but Rivers does seem to have the edge.
Rivers was fired by the 76ers after another epic playoff collapse last season to his former team, the Boston Celtics.
Despite his deficiencies during the postseason, Rivers has maintained a great reputation around the league and continues to get opportunities like this when they arise.
It’ll be interesting to see if Rivers is the team’s top choice and if he can help the Bucks get over the hump in the Eastern Conference while trying to get the best of the Celtics, who are arguably the best team in the conference right now.
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Giannis Antetokounmpo Reportedly Didn’t Want 1 Coach This Offseason