The Milwaukee Bucks are putting together a list of candidates to replace Mike Budenholzer, and several former head coaches are expected to be in the mix. ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported this on Thursday that the Bucks have been granted permission to interview Portland Trail Blazers assistant coach Scott Brooks, who coached the Oklahoma City Thunder from 2008 to 2015 and the Washington Wizards from 2016 to 2021.
On Wednesday, ESPN reported that they also received permission to interview Golden State Warriors assistant coach Kenny Atkinson, who coached the Brooklyn Nets from 2016 to 2020, and are expected to interview former Charlotte Hornets coach James Borrego and Milwaukee assistant coach. will interview Charles Lee. .
Borrego was a candidate for the Bucks job in 2018 and was named coach of the Hornets just days before Milwaukee hired Budenholzer. Lee has worked under Budenholzer for the past nine years and joined his Atlanta Hawks staff (which included Atkinson) in 2014. Lee is also one of the Detroit Pistons’ three finalists for their vacant coaching position and recently had an interview with the Toronto Raptors, according to ESPN.
This is probably not an exhaustive list of candidates. Earlier this week, The Athletic’s Eric Nehm reported that the Bucks are “considering current-hiring NBA head coaches,” citing league sources.
Milwaukee finished the 2022–23 regular season with 58 wins, the best record in the NBA, but lost the first round against the Miami Heat in five games. In addition to the coach change, the Bucks could have a significantly different roster next season. Brook Lopez, Joe Ingles, Wesley Matthews and Jae Crowder are all unrestricted free agents, and so can Khris Middleton and Jevon Carter if they decline their respective player options.