The first shoe dropped in the in-season NBA coaching carousel with Milwaukee’s surprising firing of Adrian Griffin on Tuesday.
Several other coaches remain on the proverbial hot season, with the Los Angeles Lakers’ Darvin Ham the current +275 “favorite” by SportsBetting.ag to be the next one handed his pink slip. The book’s “Next Coach Fired” market offers odds on nine of the 29 remaining NBA cities, including four-time NBA champion coach Steve Kerr in Golden State (+1200).
NEXT COACH FIRED ODDS
–Darvin Ham, Lakers (+275)
–Steve Clifford, Hornets (+325)
–Chauncey Billups, Trail Blazers (+400)
–Wes Unseld Jr., Wizards (+750)
–Steve Kerr, Warriors (+1200)
–Taylor Jenkins, Grizzlies (+1600)
–Billy Donovan, Bulls (+1800)
–J.B. Bickerstaff, Cavaliers (+3300)
Milwaukee is 30-13 and leads the Central Division by 3.0 games over Cleveland just past the midway point of the regular season. However, the Bucks trail Boston by 3.5 games in the Eastern Conference amid rumors of issues within the locker room and expectations of a title push following the offseason acquisition of All-Star guard Damian Lillard.
That prompted Milwaukee to make the third-quickest coaching change in NBA history, according to ESPN. Bucks assistant Joe Prunty will take over as interim head coach.
Meanwhile, Ham has long been believed to be in a tenuous situation as the Lakers teeter on the brink of the Western Conference playoff picture. At 22-22, they are 8.5 games behind first-place Minnesota in the conference and tied with Utah for the final play-in spot for the playoffs — just one game clear of Houston and two ahead of Golden State.
The Lakers are expected to be active in the trade market as they attempt to bolster the roster for a postseason push. Ham said earlier this month that speculation about his job status “comes with the territory” and expressed confidence that he has the support of team governor Jeanie Buss and Rob Pelinka, the vice president of basketball operations and general manager.
Kerr would appear to be a healthy longshot to part ways with the Warriors midseason. In addition to his four NBA titles with the team, Kerr is helping steer the Warriors through the sudden passing of assistant coach Dejan Milojevic last week.
Clifford, meanwhile, has far more reason to be concerned. Charlotte is mired in a 10-31 season that has the Hornets seven games out of the playoff picture, and they are just 5-14 at home.
Portland is in similar position in the West, where the 12-30 Trail Blazers are ahead of only the 8-35 San Antonio Spurs. While Clifford is in just his second season with Charlotte, Billups entered Tuesday with a 72-134 (.350) record since being hired to his first head coaching job in 2021, and the Blazers’ .286 winning percentage this season is the lowest since he took over.
(Odds provided for information purposes. SportsBetting.ag is not a regulated sportsbook in the United States).
–Field Level Media
