The coaching carousel continues to spin in and around the Milwaukee Bucks at the moment.
As the Bucks fight for their playoff lives with their season on the brink going into Game 6 Thursday night at Fiserv Forum, a couple of Bucks assistant coaches, Darvin Ham and Charles Lee, continue to eye the growing head coaching vacancies around the league.
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Starting with Lee, the long-time assistant under Mike Budenholzer stands among the early coaching candidates that are being considered by the New Orleans Pelicans, per ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
The Pelicans made news Wednesday morning after they fired head coach Stan Van Gundy after his lone season in the Big Easy.
Lee had reportedly been considered to join Van Gundy and his staff last offseason, but obviously stayed for another season in Milwaukee. He’s also reportedly interviewed with the Oklahoma City Thunder, Indiana Pacers last year and is currently under consideration for the Boston Celtics’ coaching job.
Could Darvin Ham be considered as the next head coach of the Milwaukee Bucks?
While Lee is being considered elsewhere around the league, is it possible that Ham may end up staying in Milwaukee?
According to Yahoo! Sports’ Vincent Goodwill on behalf of several executives around the league , Ham is a coaching candidate to watch this cycle and especially in Milwaukee if the organization ultimately moves on from Budenholzer:
"“Several executives named Ham as a coach to watch during this cycle, and depending on what happens with the Bucks’ coaching job — head coach Mike Budenholzer is under a lot of pressure to deliver a loaded roster to the Finals — it wouldn’t be surprising if they kept him along.”"
The scenario of the Bucks staying in-house with Ham was always an option on the table going into this season. Ham has increasingly made the rounds with interviews around the league and even being considered for his alma mater, Texas Tech University, earlier this season. But Ham’s eyes have been set on being an NBA coach all throughout this time.
In the event that would come in Milwaukee certainly feels star-crossed for the former Bucks player turned long-time assistant coach under Budenholzer. And as Goodwill noted, Ham’s tactical acumen and relationship with Bucks players has shined throughout his second stint in Milwaukee while being Bud’s right hand man.
Given the way the Bucks’ season is breaking following their embarrassing second half collapse against the Nets in Game 5, the wheels are certainly in motion for the Bucks to join the coaching carousel that’s sweeping the league at the moment.