Milwaukee Bucks: Building a contender in Milwaukee emphasized by Wisconsin Herd GM, head coach

The Wisconsin Herd’s front office wants to win, but they want the Milwaukee Bucks to win a title more than anything else.

The Wisconsin Herd introduced their first-ever head coach and general manager on Friday morning as Dave Dean and Jordan Brady were present along with team president Steve Brandes at a press conference in Oshkosh.

Dean, who has worked with the Milwaukee Bucks for roughly a decade, is the Herd’s first GM, while Brady, a newcomer to the Bucks organization, will serve as the franchise’s first head coach.

Both Dean and Brady emphasized that above all else, helping develop players that the Milwaukee Bucks can use to win an NBA championship is their ultimate goal with the Herd.

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"“Our staff is focused on building a team that is successful both on and off the court, with the ultimate goal of helping the Bucks develop talent towards winning an NBA championship,” Dean said. “That’s what this is all about: Helping develop talent at this level that can help contribute towards an NBA championship for the Bucks.”"

Dean noted hiring a head coach was a lengthy process, one that involved himself and Bucks general manager Jon Horst working closely together, as they had for the past nine years.

Brady said he was available after being in the running for a different job that he did not end up getting, and after a phone interview he met with Bucks and Herd staff in Las Vegas during Summer League.

After that, Brady met with Jason Kidd and the rest of the Bucks coaching staff. Finally, a meeting in Milwaukee led to Brady getting the call that he’d gotten the job sometime last week.

Brady’s G-League experience is extensive, as he was both a player and assistant coach in the G-League in prior seasons. Most recently, he worked with Brandes in Idaho, the G-League team formerly known as the Idaho Stampede and currently known as the Salt Lake City Stars.

"“Jordan basically embodies everything that we talk about in Bucks culture,” Dean said.“We have a Bucks DNA that we look at every single day that we walk into the office. Without going into detail about what those things are, Jordan has all of those characteristics.”"

Brady said his forte as a coach is communication with players more than Xs and Os, as despite his G-League coaching experience he’s also recently played as well. He noted his work with different teams and players in that league would help him relate to players.

"“I feel like my greatest strength is the ability to help these players catch the vision of what they’re working for, and keep them motivated on a day to day basis,” he added."

Although winning a title in Milwaukee is the ultimate goal, Brady added that the Wisconsin Herd building a winning culture will help develop the best kind of NBA players in the G-League, and building trust between the coaching staff and players will be crucial in attaining that.

"“The number one priority is to develop players to help Milwaukee Bucks be a more competitive and eventually a championship team,” Brady said. “But at the same time, you want to help the players grow in a winning culture. So it’s something you build simultaneously.”"

Next: Getting to know Steve Brandes

Exciting times lie ahead for the Herd, and we’ll cover all of it here at Behind the Buck Pass.