NBA Offseason: Who Will the New Coach of the Milwaukee Bucks Be?

The Bucks will be hiring on new head coach to take over after their embarrassing first-round playoff exit. Despite winning a recent NBA Championship and leading the Bucks to the top overall seed in this years playoffs, Milwaukee has decided to move on from Mike Budenholzer. 

Teams that have been as good as Milwaukee rarely make coaching changes, which is what makes this such an appealing vacancy. The ability to come into a team with one of the best players in the NBA and a roster with a front office ready to win now will attract plenty of interest from available coaches. 

Below we will explore who the NBA betting sites favor to get the job and why they would be a good fit. If you are looking to make some money in the NBA offseason, this could be the bet you are looking for.

If there is one complaint that Bucks fans had about Mike Budenholzer, it was his inability/refusal to make in-game adjustments. If Milwaukee wants to change that, there is no one better than Nick Nurse. The former Raptors coach is regarded as one of the best tacticians in the NBA, thanks to his ability to make in-game adjustments on defense. Nurse was hired by a Toronto team that was in a very similar situation as the Bucks, and was able to bring them their first NBA Title. With a resume like that, it’s no wonder DraftKings Sportsbook has him as the betting favorite.

Many people may not know this name, but Lee is currently the associate head coach for the Bucks. He has been tutored by Budenholzer and is expected to find a head coaching job somewhere this offseason. Budenholzer has an impressive coaching tree that includes Quin Snyder, Taylor Jenkins, and Darvin Ham. Considering that Lee is already familiar with Giannis, the team, and front office, he should have a great shot at landing the job.

Quinn is another assistant coach that is expected to land a top job somewhere this offseason. He has been a part of Miami’s bench for the last nine seasons, learning under head coach Erik Spoelstra. The Heat are known for their incredible culture and winning ways. Quinn actually took over for Spoelstra for a bit in March and April of this season and was great. He is loved by their players and is one of the younger candidates at 39-years-old. He’s a bit of a long shot to win this job but expect Quinn to be a head coach somewhere next fall.

Atkinson is another name often mentioned with head coach openings the last few years. The Golden State assistant has turned down a couple of offers in order to stay with the Warriors, but the Bucks job would likely be enough to lure him away. Atkinson was the head coach for the Nets from 2016-2020, but was stuck with a team that lacked starpower. Atkinson has worked for three championship coaches in Steve Kerr, Mike Budenholzer, and Tyronn Lue. That is a great pedigree and could be enough to land him the job.

Griffin is currently an assistant coach for the Raptors, but he has been linked to several head coach vacancies. He was a part of the Toronto Championship team in 2019 and has also been on the staff for Team USA. Griffin got his first assistant job with Milwaukee in 2008 after he retired from the NBA. He has relationships with a lot of players, in part because he played in the NBA from 1999-2008. As a player, he was known for working hard to get into the league after going undrafted. That shows his mentality and is why many believe he will be a great head coach.