NBA Rumors: Milwaukee Bucks Closing In On New Head Coach
Jason Kidd looked to be the long-term head coach for the Milwaukee Bucks heading into the 2017-18 NBA season. In a shocking change of events, the Bucks fired Kidd mid-way through the season, much to the dismay of franchise player Giannis Antetokounmpo. Now, the search for a new head coach has begun.
Quite a few names have been brought up as potential coaching options for the Bucks. Among those names is San Antonio Spurs’ assistant coach Becky Hammon. If the Bucks were to hire her, she would be the first female head coach in the NBA, although it doesn’t sound like Milwaukee will make that move.
According to new reports, the Bucks are closing in on their new head coach. Gery Woelfel of the Racine Journal Times has reported that Mike Budenholzer and Monty Williams are currently the two front-runners for the job. Those two names shouldn’t come as much of a surprise for Bucks’ fans.
Budenholzer certainly seems like the best option for the Bucks at this point in time. He had tremendous success with the Atlanta Hawks and brought them back to relevance. Unfortunately, things went south the last couple of seasons after the Hawks got rid of most of their talented players.
Heading to Milwaukee would give Budenholzer the opportunity to coach one of the best young talents in the NBA. He would also be given quite a few supporting pieces. Budenholzer is known for playing an up-tempo offense with quite a few threes being taken and the Bucks have the personnel to make that kind of offense work, although they could use a bit more perimeter shooting.
Mike Budenholzer, Monty Williams front-runners to be Bucks head coach, per @GeryWoelfel https://t.co/zrjZVB3E5s pic.twitter.com/Ugm0fUqCl6
— Bleacher Report NBA (@BR_NBA) May 5, 2018
Williams, on the other hand, hasn’t been a head coach since the 2014-15 NBA season. He is currently the Vice President of Basketball Operations for the San Antonio Spurs.
During his five-year stint as the head coach in New Orleans, Williams led the team to a 173-231 record. His last year in 2014-15, Williams coached to a 45-37 record. It wasn’t an easy job, but Williams worked it with class and dignity and made a difference for the organization.
Expect to hear more news on the Bucks’ coaching situation in the next week or two. They are hoping to get something done fairly soon and it sounds like these two names are the most likely candidates for the job.
