Milwaukee Bucks: 5 candidates to replace Jason Kidd as coach

MILWAUKEE, WI - JANUARY 03: Head coach Jason Kidd of the Milwaukee Bucks looks on in the third quarter against the Indiana Pacers at the Bradley Center on January 3, 2018 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images) /

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1. Monty Williams

Sam Amick of USA Today has immediately mentioned Williams as a candidate to watch for the Bucks’ job. He is currently working in the San Antonio Spurs’ front office, but all indications are he remains well-regarded and well-liked across the league while waiting for another chance to be a head coach.

Williams spent five seasons as New Orleans Pelicans head coach (2010-2015), with a 173-221 regular season record (.439 win percentage) and two first-round playoff exits during his tenure. He did not quite finish his first season as associate head coach of the Oklahoma City Thunder in 2015-16, due to a car accident in February of 2016 that took his wife’s life, and he did not return to that post the following season.

On the Bucks coaching front, Monty Williams is a name to remember when it comes to offseason candidates. The former Pels coach has been patiently waiting for his next chance (while working in the Spurs front office).
— Sam Amick (@sam_amick) January 22, 2018

As @sam_amick noted, expect former Pelicans coach Monty Williams to emerge as an early favorite for the Bucks head coaching job. Williams currently working in the Spurs front office.
— Chris Mannix (@SIChrisMannix) January 22, 2018

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Williams is still only 46 years old. He now has some front office experience with arguably the best-run organization in the NBA, and he was in line to serve as an assistant for the U.S. national team during the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro before tragedy struck.

Williams may have the fresh, more player-friendly approach that is wanted in Milwaukee, with a renewed focus on a return to coaching. In any case, two reputable NBA reporters have definitely not pulled his name out of thin air in the hours since Kidd was fired.