{"id":612580,"date":"2026-04-17T08:53:20","date_gmt":"2026-04-17T08:53:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/612580\/"},"modified":"2026-04-17T08:53:20","modified_gmt":"2026-04-17T08:53:20","slug":"candidates-to-be-first-time-nba-head-coaches-this-coming-hiring-cycle","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/612580\/","title":{"rendered":"Candidates to be first-time NBA head coaches this coming hiring cycle"},"content":{"rendered":"

Every summer, a handful of NBA front offices begin a franchise-altering task: the search for a new head coach.<\/p>\n

So far, we know at least two teams, the Milwaukee Bucks and New Orleans Pelicans, will do so this summer. But more are likely to join the fray. And then begins a job search that often includes names unfamiliar to the public.<\/p>\n

The Athletic put together a comprehensive list of the top NBA head coaching candidates who have never held the position before, asking coaches, executives, scouts and agents who might be next.<\/p>\n

To be clear, you won\u2019t find former NBA head coaches \u2014 such as James Borrego, Tom Thibodeau or Taylor Jenkins \u2014 on this list.<\/p>\n

The goal is to identify who could become the next Jordan Ott, the coach who just led the unheralded Phoenix Suns to the Western Conference\u2019s No. 7 seed during his rookie season. Or maybe the next Joe Mazzulla, who took over the Boston Celtics as a 34-year-old and quickly became one of the NBA\u2019s best head coaches, posting a .726 win percentage across four regular seasons and winning a championship in 2024.<\/p>\n

Here are the hottest first-time NBA head-coaching candidates:<\/p>\n

Sean Sweeney \u2014 San Antonio Spurs<\/p>\n

Talking to people around the league for this story, Sweeney was the coach brought up most often.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s the top available (first-time NBA head coach) by a wide margin,\u201d one Eastern Conference scout told The Athletic.<\/p>\n

Sweeney, 41, has been a standout assistant coach around the NBA for over a decade and is in his first year as associate head coach for the San Antonio Spurs, who are primed for a deep postseason run after winning 62 regular-season games.<\/p>\n

Before joining San Antonio, Sweeney spent four seasons with the Dallas Mavericks as the lead assistant on Jason Kidd\u2019s staff. Before that, he was a top assistant on Dwane Casey\u2019s staff in Detroit for four seasons, a team he joined after four seasons with the Milwaukee Bucks.<\/p>\n

At this point in his career, Sweeney has done it all. In Milwaukee, he was in charge of the Bucks\u2019 defense and served as Giannis Antetokounmpo\u2019s primary player development coach. In Detroit, he worked closely with Blake Griffin and continued to develop tactically as he was given a bigger role in decision-making and relationship-building with Casey. Back with Kidd in Dallas, he played a big role in the team\u2019s run to the 2024 NBA Finals and worked closely with Luka Don\u010di\u0107.<\/p>\n

Overall, it\u2019s tough to find a coaching candidate that hasn\u2019t coached an NBA game with more experience coaching star players, working with star players on skill development, making big decisions about tactics and strategy, holding players accountable and building relationships.<\/p>\n

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\n Sean Sweeney (right) has been a key member of Mitch Johnson\u2019s Spurs staff this season and is the top name mentioned in this exercise. (Steph Chambers \/ Getty Images)<\/p>\n

Chris Quinn \u2014 Miami Heat<\/p>\n

While plenty of fans might roll their eyes at the mention of \u201cHeat Culture\u201d (and some NBA executives and coaches, too), there\u2019s no doubt Erik Spoelstra, the standard bearer for \u201cHeat Culture\u201d with Pat Riley, will show up at the top of any list of the NBA\u2019s best coaches. Teams know they\u2019re not going to pry Spoelstra out of Miami, so how could they try to import \u201cHeat Culture\u201d to their own organization?<\/p>\n

Enter Chris Quinn.<\/p>\n

After a six-year NBA playing career with the Heat, Nets, Spurs and Cavaliers that ended in 2013, Quinn made the transition to coaching and started as an assistant with the Sioux Falls Skyforce, Miami\u2019s G League franchise, in 2014. After one season with the Skyforce, Quinn started working as an assistant with the Heat and has subsequently risen to associate head coach. The 42-year-old is the longest tenured assistant coach on Spoelstra\u2019s staff.<\/p>\n

The Heat\u2019s player development program is among the best in the NBA, as the organization has regularly transformed the unheralded into NBA rotation players and Quinn has played a large role in that success. He has a great reputation among players and has interviewed for multiple head-coaching vacancies in the last five years.<\/p>\n

Micah Nori \u2014 Minnesota Timberwolves<\/p>\n

Tune into a random Timberwolves game, and you might learn a new expression. Nori, the Wolves\u2019 top assistant, often conducts an in-game interview. He is famous for his Ted Lasso-esque demeanor.<\/p>\n

One time, he remarked that the opponent \u201ccaught us at the beach with no sunblock.\u201d The rest of his analysis is no less whimsical.<\/p>\n

The Timberwolves consider him one of their locker-room connectors, someone capable of growing close with all types of personalities. When he was with the Denver Nuggets, his guy became Nikola Joki\u0107. At his current gig, he\u2019s tight with Anthony Edwards.<\/p>\n

Two jobs. Two All-Stars. Two personalities who could not be more opposite ends of the spectrum.<\/p>\n

Nori has gotten close to head coaching jobs before. He interviewed for the New York Knicks\u2019 opening last summer, when Mike Brown eventually bested him. He\u2019s best known with the Wolves for his detailed game planning. When the coaching staff divvies up its scouting reports, Nori consistently takes the more difficult teams.<\/p>\n

His background lends itself to that. Nori was a top baseball player who got into scouting with the Toronto Raptors. Eventually, he worked his way up from being an advance scout to an assistant coach and has now become a lead assistant.<\/p>\n

Dave Bliss \u2014 Oklahoma City Thunder<\/p>\n

As the Thunder continue to win, it\u2019s only natural that their coaches pop up on this list. Bliss is a rare former big man who reached the high ranks of coaching, a 6-foot-10 starting center for the University of Georgia who went straight to the sidelines after his collegiate career ended. He worked as a GA at VCU, then joined Oklahoma City as a video coordinator a decade-and-a-half ago. After a brief stint with the New York Knicks, he returned to OKC as a player-development coach. Now, he\u2019s one of head coach Mark Daigneault\u2019s most trusted assistants.<\/p>\n

Johnnie Bryant \u2014 Cleveland Cavaliers<\/p>\n

Bryant has already been a candidate for head-coaching jobs in the past. Two summers ago, he interviewed for the open Cavaliers\u2019 job before they hired Kenny Atkinson. Once Atkinson landed the gig, Bryant left the Knicks, where he was associate head coach under Tom Thibodeau, for the same role with Cleveland. Last summer, he made it past the first round of interviews for the Phoenix Suns job, but Jordan Ott ended up as the organization\u2019s top choice.<\/p>\n

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\n Cavs associate head coach Johnnie Bryant has been up for top jobs before. (Kelsey Grant \/ Getty Images)<\/p>\n

Adam Caporn \u2014 Washington Wizards<\/p>\n

Caporn may be an assistant with the Wizards, but he has head-coaching experience at other levels. He leads the Australian national team and is a pillar in Australian player development, heading up Australia\u2019s Basketball Centre for Excellence. He was the head coach of the Long Island Nets, Brooklyn\u2019s G League affiliate in 2021-22, before joining the NBA squad as an assistant. In Washington, where he went in 2024, he has been the assistant who works most closely with former No. 2 pick Alex Sarr and 2025 first-rounder Will Riley.<\/p>\n

Sam Cassell \u2014 Boston Celtics<\/p>\n

A long-time fixture on the coaching staffs of Doc Rivers in Los Angeles and Philadelphia, Cassell has now spent the last three seasons in Boston as the veteran voice on Joe Mazzulla\u2019s Celtics staff. Cassell, 56, won three NBA championships during a 15-year NBA playing career before joining the Washington Wizards coaching staff in 2009 and he has now spent the last 17 years on the sideline as an assistant coach. With a distinguished NBA playing career, Cassell has always shown a strong ability to relate and connect with players.<\/p>\n

DeMarre Carroll \u2014 Phoenix Suns<\/p>\n

Carroll put together an 11-year playing career in the NBA before making the move to coaching when he joined the staff in Milwaukee for the 2022-23 season. He has now coached with four teams \u2014 Bucks, Los Angeles Lakers, Cleveland Cavaliers, Phoenix Suns \u2014 in four seasons as he has served as an assistant on the staffs of Mike Budenholzer, Darvin Ham, Kenny Atkinson and now Jordan Ott. As a former player, he has quickly formed strong relationships with players as he has worked to get a better understanding of the dynamics of being a head coach.<\/p>\n

Tony Dobbins \u2014 Boston Celtics<\/p>\n

Dobbins has seen the game from all vantage points. He was a multi-time defensive player of the year in France but still began his coaching career grinding at the low levels in the video room. His responsibilities have grown under Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla. He has worked predominantly this season with Jayson Tatum and is viewed as someone who helped with the improvement of starting center Neemias Queta. Before this season, he was Jaylen Brown\u2019s longtime coach. He has coached the Celtics\u2019 summer league team.<\/p>\n

Jared Dudley \u2014 Denver Nuggets<\/p>\n

By the end of his 14-year NBA career, Dudley was one of the most beloved teammates in the NBA. He was a great leader with the ability to connect players and coaches by using his outgoing personality and intelligence to get people on the same page. Those same skills have served him well as he became an assistant coach in Dallas on Kidd\u2019s staff from 2021 to 2025 and then joined David Adelman\u2019s staff in Denver this season.<\/p>\n

Todd Golden \u2014 University of Florida<\/p>\n

Golden has spent his coaching life in the college ranks, but people around the NBA are prepared for that to change \u2014 if not this season, then at some point down the line. He\u2019s only one year removed from helping Florida to a national championship. At 40 years old, he\u2019s still early in his coaching career. And the kicker is the way he negotiated his contract, which requires an expensive $16 million buyout for him to take another college job, but a far more modest $3 million buyout if he were to leave for the NBA.<\/p>\n

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\n Could the NBA lure Todd Golden from the Florida Gators? (Photo by James Gilbert\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n

Steve Hetzel \u2014 Brooklyn Nets<\/p>\n

Hetzel got his start coaching in the NBA as the assistant video coordinator for Gregg Popovich\u2019s San Antonio Spurs in 2005. Since then, he has served as an assistant coach for Mike Brown, Lawrence Frank, Steve Clifford, Chauncey Billups and now Jordi Fernandez in Cleveland, Detroit, Charlotte, Orlando, Portland and Brooklyn. He worked in player development early on before being lauded as a smart tactician in the back half of his career. He also served as the head coach of the Canton Charge for the 2013-14 season.<\/p>\n

Jarrett Jack \u2014 Detroit Pistons<\/p>\n

After a 13-year NBA playing career, Jack has emerged as an up-and-coming coach on one of the league\u2019s top staffs. He\u2019s one of many who have helped foster a gritty culture in Detroit, which won more games than any other Eastern Conference team this season. All-Star guard Cade Cunningham has credited Jack, his developmental coach for the past few seasons, with teaching him how to run an offense.<\/p>\n

Chris Jent \u2014 New York Knicks<\/p>\n

Jent has a long history with Knicks head coach Mike Brown, for whom he is the team\u2019s associate head coach. The two worked together when Brown led the Cavaliers two decades ago. Back then, Jent was a player development coach and worked as LeBron James\u2019 shooting coach. He has bounced around since, spending time at Ohio State as well as with the Sacramento Kings, Los Angeles Lakers, Atlanta Hawks and Charlotte Hornets. He has head-coaching experience in the G League. Every once in a while, Brown has him role-play as one with the Knicks, where he runs the offense that finished third in points per possession this season, encouraging Jent to grab the clipboard and run huddles during timeouts.<\/p>\n

Josh Longstaff \u2014 Charlotte Hornets<\/p>\n

As Charles Lee assembled a new coaching staff for the Hornets before last season, Longstaff was one of the experienced coaches he selected to help turn things around in Charlotte. Longstaff was the head coach of the Erie Bayhawks for the 2017-18 season, but outside of that, he\u2019s been an assistant coach in Oklahoma City, New York, Milwaukee and Chicago. Spending time with Budenholzer and now Lee has helped Longstaff establish himself as a strong player development coach, but the foundation Longstaff helped Lee establish last season has played a major role in one of the NBA\u2019s biggest year-over-year turnarounds in Charlotte this season.<\/p>\n

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\n Josh Longstaff has a great record of player development. (Michael Reaves \/ Getty Images)<\/p>\n

DJ MacLeay \u2014 Boston Celtics<\/p>\n

The Celtics don\u2019t use specialist coaches as often as some other teams, but MacLeay has still been the one to run this season\u2019s defense, which finished fourth in the NBA in points allowed per possession. He has a history of working closely with big men. For example, during the two seasons before this one, he was the coach who worked most with Kristaps Porzi\u0146\u0123is. He has brief head coaching experience, leading the Celtics\u2019 summer league team in Las Vegas, and came to Boston after stops with the San Antonio Spurs and Philadelphia 76ers.<\/p>\n

Dusty May \u2014 University of Michigan<\/p>\n

May recently signed an extension with the University of Michigan, which might take him out of the conversation for any potential NBA openings, but a few observers told The Athletic that the 49-year-old head coach might have the coaching acumen to successfully adjust to working at the next level. May led Florida Atlantic University to a Final Four in 2023 before taking over at the University of Michigan, where he just won the national championship.<\/p>\n

Nate Oats \u2014 University of Alabama<\/p>\n

After a four-year run at the University of Buffalo, Oats took over as head coach at the University of Alabama, where he has been the head coach for the last seven seasons. With Oats at the helm, Alabama has consistently been one of the most efficient offensive teams in the country (top 4 offense per KenPom rankings in each of the last three seasons) and made the NCAA tournament each of the last six seasons, including making it to a Final Four in 2024.<\/p>\n

Ben Sullivan \u2014 Houston Rockets<\/p>\n

Sullivan is one of the many Spurs-adjacent people with a chance to reach the pinnacle of coaching. He began his career as a video coordinator in San Antonio, where he worked under renowned assistant Chip Engelland. He left for the Atlanta Hawks, who made him an assistant under head coach Mike Budenholzer, a former Spurs assistant. He went with Budenholzer to the Milwaukee Bucks. When Ime Udoka, with whom he overlapped in San Antonio, became head coach of the Boston Celtics, he hired Sullivan, who followed Udoka to Houston two years later.<\/p>\n

Ryan Richman \u2014 Mikawa (Japan)<\/p>\n

Richman, a head coach on another continent, is the most unconventional candidate on this list. A former assistant with the Washington Wizards, Richman chose in 2023 to lead a team in Japan, where he\u2019s been for three seasons. Still in his mid-30s, he\u2019s a dark horse to show up in NBA head-coaching interviews, especially for rebuilding teams that want to think out of the box.<\/p>\n

Jenny Boucek \u2014 Indiana Pacers<\/p>\n

After joining Dave Joerger\u2019s coaching staff for the Sacramento Kings in 2017, Boucek has become a staple on Rick Carlisle\u2019s bench for the last eight seasons in both Dallas and Indiana. Boucek is the mastermind behind the \u201cfootball\u201d play the Pacers have run in late-game situations the last few years, but she is also in charge of Indiana\u2019s defense. Before joining an NBA staff, she had 17 years of coaching experience in the WNBA, including six seasons as head coach of the Sacramento Monarchs and Seattle Storm.<\/p>\n

Jon Scheyer \u2014 Duke<\/p>\n

After a four-year college career at Duke, Scheyer went to NBA Summer League in 2010, hoping to make Miami\u2019s NBA roster, but a poke to the eye from Joe Ingles effectively ended his playing career. In 2013, he joined the coaching staff at Duke and served as an assistant until taking over as head coach in 2022. Like the other college coaches on this list, there is some belief that Scheyer\u2019s disposition could work at the next level.<\/p>\n

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\n Duke\u2019s Jon Scheyer could be the latest college coach to jump to the pros. (Patrick Smith \/ Getty Images)<\/p>\n

Lamar Skeeter \u2014 Charlotte Hornets<\/p>\n

Skeeter, 36, has been the lead assistant coach in Charlotte since Lee took over in 2024 and helped the Hornets turn things around over the last two seasons. Before joining the Hornets staff, Skeeter spent a decade with the Utah Jazz on the staffs of Quin Snyder and Will Hardy. In Charlotte, Skeeter has worked closely with LaMelo Ball as the Hornets\u2019 young star has worked on building winning habits over the last two seasons.<\/p>\n

Patrick St. Andrews \u2014 Portland Trail Blazers<\/p>\n

St. Andrews\u2019 duties changed not long into this season. He went to Portland to run the offense along with Tiago Splitter. But once Chauncey Billups got caught up in a gambling scandal, stripping him of his title and thus making Splitter interim head coach, St. Andrews was more on his own with the offense. He is all about motion in putting together an attack; screening, cutting, ball movement and pace are his forte. He previously worked under Taylor Jenkins with the Memphis Grizzlies, where he helped install an innovative offense that didn\u2019t rely on pick-and-rolls.<\/p>\n

Mike Wilks \u2014 Oklahoma City Thunder<\/p>\n

Wilks spent seven years as an NBA point guard before transitioning to his post-playing career. He joined the Thunder in 2012 as a scout, then moved to the bench with Billy Donovan as the head coach seven years ago. He remained on the staff of Daigneault, who took over for Donovan in 2020. Since then, he has been part of a preeminent rebuild, one that tore down a roster, developed loads of stars and top-notch role players and just won a championship in 2025.<\/p>\n

Corliss Williamson \u2014 San Antonio Spurs<\/p>\n

Williamson put together a 12-year NBA career with four teams that started and ended in Sacramento before transitioning to becoming a coach in 2007. He spent six years in college basketball before joining the Sacramento Kings coaching staff in 2013 and Williamson coached for the Kings, Magic, Suns and Timberwolves before joining Mitch Johnson\u2019s staff in San Antonio this season as the Spurs have emerged as one of the best teams in the NBA.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Every summer, a handful of NBA front offices begin a franchise-altering task: the search for a new head…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":612581,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[557],"tags":[64,63,590,85],"class_list":{"0":"post-612580","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-nba","8":"tag-au","9":"tag-australia","10":"tag-nba","11":"tag-sports"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/612580","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=612580"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/612580\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/612581"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=612580"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=612580"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=612580"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}