In one of the more surprising offseason moves, the Milwaukee Bucks fired Mike Budenholzer following their first-round playoff exit. Budenholzer had been leading the Bucks since 2018, winning an NBA title in 2021. However, with a second-round exit in 2022 and a first-round exit this year, the team felt it was time for a reset.
The Bucks are one of several title contender teams who parted ways with their head coach. The Sixers parted ways with Doc Rivers earlier this week. Meanwhile, the rebuilding Raptors, Rockets, and Pistons are also hunting for a new coach. While there is a large shared pool of candidates, the Bucks have become the first team to, publicly, turn their attention to the talent at the NCAA level.
Kelvin Sampson Joins Coaching Search
Kelvin Sampson is a veteran coach. Beginning this career as a graduate assistant at Michigan State in 1979, he has held head coaching positions at Montana Tech, Washington State, Oklahoma, and Indiana. Furthermore, he spent six years as an NBA assistant, splitting his time equally between the Bucks and Rockets. However, he returned to the NCAA circuit in 2014 to take the head coaching position with the Houston Cougars. He has since turned Houston into an AAC powerhouse, reaching the Final Four in 2021. Houston was a National Champion favorite in 2023 until a shock loss to Miami in the Sweet Sixteen.
Overall, Sampson is 232-74 in his time at Houston and 731-345 at the college level. However, not only is Sampson an experienced coach, but he also has that valuable experience working within NBA organizations. Little information has been revealed about the Bucks' coaching search, other than a long list of names. Despite the level of competition for the job, Sampson's experience and pre-existing relationship with the Bucks' front office could see him rise to the top. the current pool of candidates for Milwaukee is primarily comprised of long-time assistant coaches from around the NBA. What do you think about Kelvin Sampson as the Bucks coach? Let us know in the comments. Be sure to follow along with the NBA offseason here at HotNewHipHop.
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