There are currently two head-coaching vacancies available in the NBA as the Pistons and Toronto Raptors search for new voices to lead their franchises.
The Pistons are in the midst of a search to replace Dwane Casey, who transitioned to the front office after an injury-riddled season that led to the worst record in the league. Friday marked the end of Nick Nurse’s tenure in Toronto after the franchise fired him four years after leading the Raptors to their first NBA championship.
After parting ways with Stephen Silas, the Rockets filled their vacancy Monday by hiring Ime Udoka.
The Pistons are a young team that shares with the Rockets equal chances of securing the No. 1 pick in next month’s NBA Draft Lottery as they attempt to rebuild their rosters back toward playoff contention. On the flip side, the Raptors reached the play-in tournament earlier this month before they were eliminated by the Chicago Bulls, a game in which Toronto blew a 19-point lead.
According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, the Pistons are expected to conduct second-round interviews this week, including Milwaukee assistant Charles Lee, former Connecticut coach and Overtime Elite coach Kevin Ollie and New Orleans assistant Jarron Collins. A league source confirmed to The Detroit News that first-round interviews are still ongoing and several candidates, including the aforementioned, have emerged likely to move on to the next round, but other background work is underway.
Of the two head-coach openings in the NBA, which job has the more upside? Here is a breakdown of each team’s outlook:
Pistons
The Pistons are perhaps in the most optimal situation going into next season. They are in position to draft another top-five pick in the NBA Draft, which could manifest into projected No. 1 pick Victor Wembanyama, G League Ignite guard Scoot Henderson or Alabama forward Brandon Miller.
Pistons general manager Troy Weaver will have an ample amount of cap space to work with in free agency, and more importantly, the team is expected to add a healthy Cade Cunningham to a lineup that features Bojan Bogdanovic and the explosive rookie duo of Jaden Ivey and Jalen Duren.
Any coach coming into a situation such as Detroit’s will be given an opportunity to mold a young team from a lottery regular to a playoff contender. The roster has the potential to make a leap into the play-in picture if everyone remains healthy, which is a pretty big “if.”
The Pistons’ offensive and defensive deficiencies were among the worst in the league this season, but some of that can be attributed to injuries, inexperience and personnel. The next coach, which Weaver identifies as someone who will prioritize discipline, development and defense, will be tasked with leading Detroit back to postseason contention for the first time since the 2018-19 season. With less than a month remaining until the draft lottery, it’ll be interesting to see how the remainder of Detroit’s hiring process shapes out.
Raptors
The Raptors are in need of a new leader to guide them back to the top of the Eastern Conference, and there are several assistants throughout the league who could be granted an opportunity to do so.
Toronto could look no further than its backyard and promote assistant coach Adrian Griffin, who was also linked to Detroit’s vacancy. If general manager Masai Ujiri is looking for a fresh voice, he could make an external hire out of the pool of assistants looking for their first shot at becoming a head coach, including Lee, Sam Cassell and Chris Quinn.
Whoever lands the job will come into a situation with All-Star forward Pascal Siakam, last season’s Rookie of the Year winner Scottie Barnes and possibly Fred VanVleet, depending on free agency.
Siakam had one of the best statistical seasons of his career with career-high averages in points (24.2) and assists (5.8) per game, but he and VanVleet didn’t have the help on most nights that their Eastern Conference counterparts may have. VanVleet, who averaged 19.3 points and a career-high 7.2 assists this season, has a player option this summer and could become an unrestricted free agent, but the next coach should likely have a profound impact on his status with the team going forward.
There are two kinds of playoff successes. The first is constant elevation, which the Raptors had under Casey until he was dismissed and Nurse’s first two seasons at the helm. The second is comprised of stagnant playoff appearances, which has been the case in Toronto for the last two seasons. After getting bounced in the first round last season and in the play-in this year, the Raptors need to add more shooting to the roster to help Siakam and keep VanVleet if they want to return to their winning ways.
mcurtis@detroitnews.com
Twitter: @MikeACurtis2