As the 2024-2025 NBA season approaches, some players and coaches will slowly transition from their shared kumbaya phase of peace and undying love to frustration, anger and deep resentment.
When losses start to pile up and expectations are shattered, some organizations may consider making a change. As history has shown us, change usually starts with the head coach, rather than with the dismissal of star players.
There will undoubtedly be teams going into this season with a certain level of expectation. Only 16 of the 30 teams make the playoffs each year, and considering the league doesn’t currently have 14 teams rebuilding, there’s a good chance we could be looking at some good spots.
Before we get into the coaches who may find themselves in a difficult situation, a crucial preface:
It’s very difficult for even the best beat writer or analyst to know what’s happening behind closed doors. NBA locker rooms are sacred places, and fans or pundits rarely get a full picture of the internal dynamics between a head coach and his team.
As such, the following names will be mentioned solely from a perspective of potential failed expectations.
(Coaches entering their first year with a new team, or their first year in general, are exempt. So while the Phoenix Suns may not be able to live up to expectations, Mike Budenholzer is, for all intents and purposes, safe. For now.)
Doc Rivers, Milwaukee Bucks
The mid-season rental was always strange. The Bucks actively got worse last season, going from 30-13 under Adrian Griffin to 17-19 under Rivers.
MarJon Beauchamp, one of the few young players currently on the roster and a potentially crucial piece for the upcoming season, played 15.7 minutes over his first 34 games. After Rivers arrived, he saw game action in just 14 games and averaged 5.3 minutes.
For a legacy team in dire need of youth development to take some of the burden off Giannis Antetokounmpo, Damian Lillard and Khris Middleton, keeping this youth actively off the floor seems counterproductive.
To be fair, Rivers will now have a full training camp with this team, and the Bucks made their minimum signings this summer in Gary Trent Jr., Taurean Prince and Delon Wright. They may be back on track to win 55 games.
However, Rivers isn’t known for installing creative offense, meaning there’s a scenario where the Bucks could stagnate. This begs the question: where do they go from there?
Will they prefer to save face and not fire a coach in the middle of the season for the second year in a row? Or will they realize they have a potential all-time top-10 player on their roster, in his prime, and do what’s best for him?
Willie Green, New Orleans Pelicans
Let’s make something abundantly clear. Green has gotten better every year he’s been an active head coach, and there’s no indication his seat is warming up.
That said, if the Pelicans encounter a scenario where Zion Williamson is healthy but the team can’t seem to gain traction in the win column, what then?
The organization has committed to Williamson by trying to create a rotation around his skill set, even strengthening the point guard position by adding the perennially underrated Dejounte Murray, allowing Williamson to choose when to go into maker mode with the ball in his hand. hands.
Yes, the team never really figured out what to do with Brandon Ingram, who for no apparent reason has turned into a reluctant 3-point shooter. And no, that shouldn’t end up in the hands of Green, whose job is to do the best he can with the players he’s been given.
Logic dictates that the Pelicans will be fine as long as Williamson is healthy. But if not, Green could end up being the brutal and unfair sacrifice in their quest to reach the next level.
Billy Donovan, Chicago Bulls
Just like with Groen, no head coach has to answer for the actions of a front office. This is still true in Chicago. But the Bulls have a dismal record of firing coaches on a whim, including firing Scott Skiles on Christmas Eve 2007 after a 9-16 start.
Donovan has lasted longer than most expected, especially considering Chicago’s lack of results and his seemingly perpetual presence in the play-in tournament.
(Two more appearances in the Bulls’ play-in should result in the league offering them a promotional deal for at least five years, with the event advertised during the season. At that point, the Bulls would have earned it. )
Donovan has also embedded himself deeply in the organization, as his son William is the head coach of the G League’s Windy City Bulls. Relieving Donovan of his duties will likely have a ripple effect.
But after five seasons on the job, with just one playoff win and a 49.1% winning percentage, it’s not like it would be a hard sell to the fanbase if team president Artūras Karnišovas decided to ax Donovan as the Bulls start slowly. .
Despite losing DeMar DeRozan this summer, the organization still sees itself as competitively relevant. Obviously it’s not, but from that perspective it wouldn’t make sense for them to fire Donovan by the time they’re 10-12 games under .500. Maybe they could hire Doc Rivers. It wouldn’t make sense, but that’s basically how the Bulls like to operate these days.
Mike Malone, Denver Nuggets
Okay, this is a curveball and not a great one. Malone helped the Nuggets win the 2023 championship, and by all accounts he has a great relationship with the NBA’s best player, Nikola Jokić.
He should be safe. Point.
But there is reportedly increasing tension between Malone and the front office, meaning it’s not a stretch to suggest the franchise could be looking for an excuse to end the relationship.
Malone signed a lucrative contract extension less than a year ago, which won’t be easy for Nuggets ownership. That said, there is likely language in his deal that offsets future earnings against what the Nuggets owe him, which is common in coaching contracts. It would take Malone a minute in New York to find a new job, and the Nuggets are likely aware of that.
However, it is difficult to see the path in which such a decision could be justified. Malone wasn’t responsible for losing Bruce Brown and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope in back-to-back offseasons, so firing him would most likely turn the flame of Nuggets fans toward the front office — and it has.
Honorable mention
Quin Snyder, Atlanta Hawks
The Hawks owe their 2025 first-round pick to the San Antonio Spurs, who are no less protected, meaning there’s no reason to lose games this season. The Hawks will look to win every game imaginable, and if they find themselves near the bottom of the Eastern Conference by the new year, it wouldn’t be outrageous for them to seek an alternative coaching path.
