As our head coaching search tracker shows, a total of six teams have initiated head coaching searches so far this offseason. Milwaukee hired Taylor Jenkins, New Orleans hired Jamahl Mosley, and the searches in Chicago, Dallas, Orlando, and Portland are ongoing.
Jenkins had widely been considered one of the top candidates among coaching free agents and the Bucks moved quickly to get him locked up to a lucrative, long-term deal, but the appeal of that job is somewhat debatable, given the uncertainty surrounding Giannis Antetokounmpo‘s future in Milwaukee.
While an Antetokounmpo trade should return a handful of valuable assets, including draft picks and/or young players, the Bucks are missing several of their own future picks, don’t have a ton of young talent around Antetokounmpo, and will be hamstrung to some extent by the sizable cap hits created as a result of waiving and stretching Damian Lillard‘s contract a year ago.
The Pelicans, meanwhile, are coming off 21- and 26-win seasons, but they have a promising young core featuring Derik Queen, Jeremiah Fears, Trey Murphy III, Herbert Jones, and Yves Missi. The team doesn’t have a first-round pick this year and whether or not Zion Williamson is still a long-term cornerstone in New Orleans remains to be seen. But Williamson doesn’t appear to be going anywhere for the time being, so Mosley will be tasked with figuring out how to best utilize him and Queen together.
The Bulls appear headed for a rebuild after trading away several veterans at the deadline, with a few others on track for free agency this offseason. The new head coach in Chicago likely won’t be under any pressure to contend right away, but he’ll be responsible for developing youngsters like Matas Buzelis, Noa Essengue, and this year’s No. 4 overall pick.
The Mavericks, meanwhile, will give their new head coach the opportunity to shape Rookie of the Year Cooper Flagg into a superstar, though the roster around him is still somewhat up in the air. It’s unclear whether the new-look front office led by Masai Ujiri and Mike Schmitz will want to keep this group mostly intact or if they envision major changes. Kyrie Irving‘s future is the biggest question mark as he returns from a torn ACL.
More than any other team in this group, the Magic will have lofty short-term expectations for their head coach after Mosley failed to get the team beyond the first round during his five-year tenure. Orlando projects to have one of the NBA’s most expensive rosters next season and will be in win-now mode with a talented group led by Franz Wagner, Paolo Banchero, Desmond Bane, and Jalen Suggs.
New Trail Blazers owner Tom Dundon has made waves this spring as a result of the cost-cutting measures he has instituted within the organization, and there have been rumors that he won’t be willing to pay a substantial salary for a head coach. While there has been some push-back on those reports, Portland’s list of candidates includes a few little-known assistants we haven’t seen linked to any other jobs. If one of those candidates is hired, it’s safe to assume he wouldn’t be in position to command a lucrative deal.
Putting aside the issue of pay, the Blazers’ job should hold some appeal. The team appears to be on the rise, with Deni Avdija, Shaedon Sharpe, Donovan Clingan, and Toumani Camara among the young players who helped lead Portland to a playoff berth this spring, and Damian Lillard set to return from his torn Achilles in the fall.
We want to know what you think. Which of these six head coaching jobs – including the two that have already been filled – look like the most and least appealing?
Head to the comment section below to weigh in with your thoughts!
Portland is appealing with the players but not with ownership. Dallas is intriguing just because of Cooper Flagg. Chicago is starting fresh in their front office and look to build a steady contender with a real identity. The Magic have a lot of talent that doesn’t fit together. If the Magic make the right signings and trades, they can be the most appealing. I gotta go with Dallas though because Cooper Flagg is only going to get better and coaches would want to coach him and players would want to join Flagg.
all of them are black holes id stay away from… there’s a reason these teams need a new coach every 2-4 years
If any of them wanted to hire me I wouldn’t hesitate. Even Portland. I’ll be Dundon’s sub $2 million coaching hire.
I think the Bulls and Mavs jobs are the most appealing. With all their draft picks and Cap space those are the jobs where you could shape a team how you wanted it to look. The Blazers have the best personnel of that group but the biggest question mark at owner. That job depends on what Dundon is. And that’s a big mystery right now. Say what you want about Reinsdorf but he usually spends on players up to the apron for the Bulls not so much for the Sox but he had idiots spending the money. Sounds like Michael is on the right track and we’ll see if he hired the right people but I’m optimistic it’s moving in the right direction. But time will tell. I don’t see Donovan making the Magic any better. Sorry.
From a rebuild scenario, the Bulls seem to be the most interesting.
Win now, Orlando
The issue of pay is important