Although he has yet to officially put pen to paper, new head coach Adrian Griffin has already been with the Bucks for the past week as they prepare for the draft and offseason, according to Eric Nehm and Shams Charania of The Athletic, who report that Griffin will receive a multiyear deal worth about $4MM annually.
As Nehm and Charania write, Griffin holds experience as a player and was an assistant for 15 seasons, but he’s a first-time head coach. That means assistant coaches with head coaching experience might be prioritized.
Former Hornets head coach James Borrego and former Trail Blazers coach Terry Stotts are a couple of names to watch, per Nehm and Charania. The Athletic’s duo notes that Griffin had defensive game plan responsibilities with Toronto, so it would make sense to complement him with offensive coaches.
Borrego, who was actually expected to interview for Milwaukee’s job, interviewed for the coaching vacancy in Houston and was reportedly a finalist before the Rockets decided to hire Ime Udoka. He has also been linked to assistant jobs in Brooklyn and Dallas.
Stotts, who was with Portland for nine years (2012-21), has interviewed for head coaching jobs since he was fired and has been rumored to be a candidate for other teams as an assistant, including the Mavs.
As Nehm and Charania detail, a few Bucks assistant coaches have already announced they’re leaving the organization following Mike Budenholzer‘s dismissal, but the fates of several others remain up in the air even though they’re currently employed. According to The Athletic, GM Jon Horst acknowledged that the coaching staff was in flux last month, with more assistants possibly finding opportunities elsewhere.
“I have a ton of respect for all of this group,” Horst said. “I think we have one of the best supporting coaching groups in the NBA and I would hope if they’re still with us when we make the next hire, that they’ll get consideration from that hire. That’ll be part of that process.
“I also expect a number of these guys will have other opportunities across the league. And if they do, I have great relationships with everyone, we’ll have an open line of communication as we already do and I’ll support them in that way too.”
Congrats to Popeye, but Monte is getting almost 3x to coach a tem that will ne lucky to win 65% of the games the bucks will win if they underperform
Come to NY Giannis …….
Let’s change the world …..
He changed the world for Milwaukee and its fans. We waited 50 long years for that championship, and I remember the last one.
FWIW, I enjoy your posts
Am I alone in thinking MKE didn’t really have a solid plan for the coaching change(s)? Or did it just all go sideways once they allowed Giannis to actually decide who to hire?
Odd that Stotts being a former Bucks coach isn’t mentioned.