The Top Candidate to Fill Every NBA Head Coaching Vacancy

The NBA's coaching carousel got a few more open seats this week.

On Wednesday, the New Orleans Pelicans parted ways with Stan Van Gundy after just one season, and the Washington Wizards opted not to renew Scott Brooks' contract. Then on Thursday, Rick Carlisle stepped down as coach of the Dallas Mavericks, as first reported by ESPN.com's Adrian Wojnarowski.

These new openings join four already available jobs: the Portland Trail Blazers, Boston Celtics, Indiana Pacers and Orlando Magic.

There could be more coming too. If the Milwaukee Bucks lose to the Brooklyn Nets in the second round, there is widespread speculation that Mike Budenholzer will be fired. 

As it stands, here are the top candidates for each of the open head coaching jobs.

The Celtics appear to be going the route of hiring a first-time head coach from the NBA's deep pool of talented assistants, and hiring a Black coach is also said to be a priority. There are plenty of qualified candidates who fit that mold, but one name that immediately jumps to mind is Sam Cassell. He has interviewed for head coaching jobs before and has another year of playoff experience under his belt having followed Doc Rivers from the Clippers to Philadelphia.

Cassell also has a connection to the franchise. He spent the final season of his playing career in Boston and played a key bench role on the Celtics' 2008 championship team. 

The Celtics seem to be casting a wide net with their search, but if they want someone with a strong reputation as an assistant coach who will also go over well with the fanbase and has been in line for a head coaching opportunity for a while, Cassell checks all the boxes.

The chance to coach Luka Doncic is arguably the most attractive opportunity out there for head coaching candidates, but it's hard to forecast how this coaching search might go because we don't even know who's going to be running it.

Rick Carlisle's resignation comes one day after the Mavs parted ways with longtime president of basketball operations Donnie Nelson, so Mark Cuban will likely hire a new top decision-maker before he tabs a new coach, and whoever he brings in will have input on the latter search.

With that said, shortly after Carlisle stepped down, ESPN's Tim MacMahon pointed out that Doncic thinks highly of Jamahl Mosley, who has been on Carlisle's staff since 2014 and has interviewed for several head coaching jobs in the past year.

Given that Doncic is clearly not happy about Nelson's departure, it might make sense to put his mind at ease by going in-house and elevating Mosley, who has put in his time as an assistant (he's been on staffs in Denver and Cleveland dating back to 2005) and is deserving of an opportunity.

Stotts has been widely connected to the Pacers opening, including by B/R's Jake Fischer, since Indiana fired Nate Bjorkgren after one disastrous season at the helm. Following the failed Bjorkgren experiment, it seems likely Pacers president Kevin Pritchard will go for an experienced coach.

Stotts just left Portland following a nine-year run that included eight straight playoff appearances and a 402-318 record, making him the second-winningest coach in franchise history.

The 63-year-old also has local ties. He played high school basketball in Bloomington in the 1970s and was inducted into the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame in 2019. 

The Pacers are a franchise that has always been reluctant to rebuild and seem focused on chasing playoff contention every year. This just feels like a natural fit for both sides.

The Pelicans parted ways with Stan Van Gundy after just one season on Wednesday, and there have been two internal names already strongly linked to the job: Teresa Weatherspoon and Fred Vinson.

Weatherspoon, a highly decorated former WNBA player, joined Van Gundy’s staff last offseason and has previous experience as a collegiate head coach at her alma mater, Louisiana Tech.

Vinson, meanwhile, has been with the New Orleans Hornets/Pelicans organization since 2010 and has worked under their past three head coaches—Monty Williams, Alvin Gentry and Van Gundy. ESPN.com’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported Wednesday afternoon that he’s expected to get strong consideration for the job given his reputation and seniority within the organization.

Darvin Ham is another longtime assistant whose name routinely shows up on lists of the next NBA head coaching candidates. Teams in the beginning stages of a rebuild are typically more open to hiring a first-time coach than contending teams are, and Ham is a logical choice for Orlando.

Ham has been with Mike Budenholzer since 2013, first in Atlanta and now in Milwaukee, and he has a reputation as a sharp defensive mind with a background in player development.

That's exactly the profile the Magic should be looking for following their complete teardown at the trade deadline.

Other names have come up in Portland's coaching search—Mike D'Antoni, Becky Hammon and Dawn Staley are known to have interviewed or are planning to interview. But if it's general manager Neil Olshey calling the shots, it would be a surprise if the choice ends up being anyone other than Billups. 

The two go way back. Olshey was the GM of the Los Angeles Clippers when Billups signed there in 2011, and Olshey has often compared Damian Lillard favorably to Billups as a leader and locker-room presence.

As a bonus, Lillard himself publicly endorsed Billups' candidacy after the team parted ways with Stotts (Lillard's first choice, Jason Kidd, pulled himself out of the running). With more rumors swirling than ever about Lillard's happiness in Portland, hiring a coach that the superstar point guard appears to be on board with is a priority, and Lillard is on record saying he likes Billups.

Blazers ownership ultimately has to sign off on any hire, and it's always possible they have something else in mind. But if the choices are Chauncey Billups or the field, bet on Billups.

The Wizards are going in a different direction after Scott Brooks' contract ended. While no firm candidates have emerged, one name that would make a lot of sense would be Denver Nuggets assistant Wes Unseld Jr.

Unseld interviewed for a few jobs during last offseason's cycle, including the Chicago Bulls opening (Billy Donovan was ultimately hired), and his reputation is as a great defensive mind. He also has an obvious connection to the Wizards—his late father is the greatest player in franchise history dating back to the Baltimore Bullets days and also coached the team in the early 1990s.

It would be a great story, as well as a deserved opportunity, for an up-and-coming coach who has put in his time as an assistant.