This offseason will end with at least five teams getting a new permanent head coach. There are so many candidates available, and the hiring process nowadays is a long and hard process. With that being said, these are three head coaches that deserve another shot at being the head guy for an organization.
(*Frank Vogel will not be on this list because he just coached this last season)
3. Nate McMillan:
McMillan has not had the best resume by any means and has not ever won a championship or made the finals, but he is still a very respectable coaching candidate who has coached a lot of hoops over the years. After being named the interim HC of the Hawks in 2021 after Lloyd Pierce was fired, he took over and led Atlanta to a 27-11 record, capturing the 5th seed. Atlanta went on to beat the 5th seeded Knicks and then the 1st seeded 76ers before ultimately losing to the Bucks in the ECF, who went on to win the championship. After that, McMillan and the Hawks had a first-round exit, and after a 29-30 start in the 2022-2023 season, he was fired. I believe he shouldn't have been fired that far into the season. They probably should have stuck with him to see what he could do in the playoffs because less than two years prior, he had them in the ECF. Ever since then, he hasn't had a job and is still more likely patiently waiting for a call.
2. Scott Brooks:
Coach Brooks, like McMillan, has coached a lot of basketball and was recently an assistant for the Blazers, until they just recently decided not to bring him back for next season. Brooks had a stint with the young Thunder core of KD Westbrook and Harden from 2008–2015. Then in 2016, he took the wizards job and was fired in 2021 after a 1st round exit. Scott Brooks is a very intelligent HC with a great resume, and he knows how to win in the playoffs, winning a total of nine playoff series in his career and making the NBA Finals one year when he was with the Thunder. Like I stated earlier, he most recently was with the Blazers as head assistant to Chauncey Billups. Brooks is a great coach and still can coach championship-level hoops teams. HC Openings should definitely be contacting him.
Dave Joerger:
Dave Joerger, the former Kings and Grizzlies HC who hasn't been a HC since 2019, has been waiting for an opportunity ever since. Joerger, who is currently an assistant under Doc Rivers in Milwaukee, was hired mid-season when Doc was hired. Before that, Joerger was an assistant under Doc in Philadelphia. From 2016-2019, he was the head coach of a rebuilding Kings squad; he had a 32-win season, a 27-win season, and in his last one, the Kings had 39 wins. They seemed to be on the right track, but then the kings decided to fire him, which actually ended up setting them back a couple more years until last season, when Mike Brown led them to the third seed and got them back on track. Before becoming the Kings HC, he coached in Memphis for three seasons as the HC of the Grizzlies. He had three playoff appearances and one playoff series win. He also won a championship as a HC in the D-League in 2007 as the HC of the Dakota Wizards. Joerger deserves another shot. He had success in Memphis and was fired, then he got the Kings on the right track and was fired. I believe if he got another job, he could have some great success, and teams should definitely keep him in mind if they are looking for a HC.
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