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Lately there has been alot of Skiles debates going on and Sparky is on record saying that Skiles will not be here next year, win or lose. He said he knows it, and we obviously know about the whole desk clearing debacle this past summer. So going with that thought, who do you want to bring in as the coach assuming Skiles is out? What candidates are out there that you think are a realistic option, can move the needle, and a fit that can make a difference with this roster?

From a name standpoint Jerry Sloan would be the one that is out there and would grab some attention. But he is hard nosed as well, which many feel is a negative of Skiles.

I don't know many hot assistants right now, sure there are many, but I don't know if an unproven coach would be a good choice right now. We've seen guys like that flop in the past (Larry K, Porter). I know we've had Kelvin Sampson here in the past and Sam Cassell is going to be a popular name. I don't know if Sam I Am is ready, but he could be a good fit for the players and generate some buzz within the fan base.

I don't think there is anybody in house. Sidney Moncrief would be the only one I'd consider.

I'm not sure what re-treads are out there. Maybe someone like Eric Musselman.

I can't see Kohl dishing out a ton of cash to get a guy like Sloan. He's paid Skiles fairly well, and after he did that with Karl you saw cheap guys brought in like Porter followed by Stotts.

Or does it even matter? If you don't like the talent, then probably not.

Just curious who is on your short list?

If we go with an unproven guy I hope its Sam Cassell.

Obviously Sloan is a very good coach and one of the few who would definitely be an upgrade over Skiles but he is 70 and are we even sure he wants to come back to the NBA at this point?

And here are some top assistant names from the 2011-12 GM Survey. Obviously some of them have Head Coaching jobs now.

1. Mike Malone, Golden State -- 29.2%
2. Brian Shaw, Indiana -- 20.8%
3. Mike Budenholzer, San Antonio -- 12.5%

Also receiving votes: Ron Adams, Chicago; Kenny Atkinson, New York; P.J. Carlesimo, New Jersey; David Fizdale, Miami; Pete Myers, Golden State; Stephen Silas, Charlotte; Terry Stotts, Dallas; Elston Turner, Phoenix; Mike Woodson, New York

I'd give Kelvin Sampson a go here. Don't see anything special there at all, but he quite possibly could be a decent hire.

Sam Cassell I could also live with.

Kelvin Sampson
Eric Musselman
Jerry Sloan
Sam Cassell

If the Bucks finally go young, I'd roll with Sampson.

Some retread names: Flip Saunders, Stan Van Gundy, Nate McMillian, Mike Dunleavy Sr (think we can rule him out)

I wouldn't go the college route at all. John Calipari's name is starting to float around again. But those guys are too much for the unknown. Generally they flop.

Right now if I could interview 4 I'd go:
Sampson
Cassell
Musselman
McMillian

Sampson emerging as a candidate for the Nets gig per WireTap.

I can't see us hiring Calipari, and I can't see him wanting to leave KU to toil in obscurity here

1. Kelvin Sampson - He's rumored right now for the Nets coaching gig, I know he was interviewed for the TWolves job, and he has a history with the organization. As an assistant coach, when we drafted Jennings, it was Sampson who would go the Cousins center and work with him late at night, and I really feel he would be an ideal coaching candidate for the Bucks.

2. Sam Cassell - I love his energy and enthusiasm for the game, he's been an assistant for a few years now, and I'm not sure if he's quite ready for the next step, I think he's a good wild card option. We all know Skiles has his communication issues, and I think Sam would do a good job of communicating with his players, and I think these guys would have a lot of fun playing for Sam.

3. Mike Budenholzer - He's been Popovich's head assistant for a long time, he might not be a real flashy choice, but I could see him getting a shot somewhere soon.

I can't recall, but does anyone know why Sampson jumped ship to Houston? Was it technically the head assistant compared to not that here? It seems inevitable that he is going to get a head coaching job somewhere.

paulpressey25 wrote:I'd give Kelvin Sampson a go here. Don't see anything special there at all, but he quite possibly could be a decent hire.

Sam Cassell I could also live with.

Yeah these would be my 1 and 2 targets.

I do think it really depends on the direction the Bucks decide to go, assuming they actually pick a direction.

My biggest concern with Cassell is I don't know how good he is from a scheme standpoint. I think he would be an 180 from Skiles in the communication area. Sammy will be great with the media, he'll be fun on the sidelines, and he may even get a little fan interest with his personality and past success as a player here. But when it comes down to X's and O's, I don't know what he'll offer. It's not like he's coming from under the wing of Pops or the Zen Master. That would be my biggest concern with Cassell.

We should've fired Skiles two years ago and hired Sampson

He's going to be great wherever he goes I think.

But, I think he's great at developing players coming out of college so it would be nice to have him here to bring along Tobias & Henson, Lamb, Sanders, etc.


Sloan would be a great pie on the sky hire, but if we could get him, I would certainly welcome him.


Sam Cassell may not be ready, but he might be. I'd be happy with his hire.


I'd prefer to stay away from Flip Saunders & Stan Van Gundy. Just my preference.

Nebula1 wrote:I do think it really depends on the direction the Bucks decide to go, assuming they actually pick a direction.

Ideally I hope Kohl makes a decision on Hammond by the end of January. I wish he would now, but it's not happening. But it would be nice to either give Hammond security of a few years or have a new GM to make decisions pre the trade deadline.

And if the organization knows Skiles is leaving after the season, I think you can leave him be and make a decision on Hammond. I guess the problem will be that we're going to be floating around .500 and in a spot where we won't be bad enough to fire people nor good enough to justify extensions. But it would be nice to just make a decision on him. If Kohl likes the team, re-up him. If he is skeptical at this point, move on.

N8Frog wrote:

Nebula1 wrote:I do think it really depends on the direction the Bucks decide to go, assuming they actually pick a direction.

Ideally I hope Kohl makes a decision on Hammond by the end of January. I wish he would now, but it's not happening. But it would be nice to either give Hammond security of a few years or have a new GM to make decisions pre the trade deadline.

And if the organization knows Skiles is leaving after the season, I think you can leave him be and make a decision on Hammond. I guess the problem will be that we're going to be floating around .500 and in a spot where we won't be bad enough to fire people nor good enough to justify extensions. But it would be nice to just make a decision on him. If Kohl likes the team, re-up him. If he is skeptical at this point, move on.

I agree with that, but there is the variable of a team sale.

I would like Hammond to stay, Skiles to go and a new owner willing to tank. I think Hammond would be great if allowed to strip it down and continue to draft well.

I guess I'm not really going to factor in the team sale until it is more clear that Kohl is actively trying to sell. Kohl really hasn't commented on it at all and besides a minor blurb here and there, there isn't much to go on that the sale is going to happen by next spring when we ultimately would decide what to do with our GM and Coach. So unless Kohl is actively selling without publicizing it, which may be, I just don't foresee a sale going down in the next year.

I'd want one of Budenholzer or Sampson, probably