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10 head coaching candidates for the Wizards to consider

By Chase Hughes

10 head coaching candidates for Wizards to consider originally appeared on NBC Sports Washington

Now that the Wizards have parted ways with Scott Brooks, they are in need of a new head coach. Before they begin the interview process, here are 10 names they could consider…

Wes Unseld Jr.

Currently an assistant for the Denver Nuggets, Unseld has long been tied to the Wizards as a potential head coaching candidate of the future. He’s an assistant on the rise coaching a very good team, he used to work for the organization and is the son of the greatest player in franchise history, the Hall-of-Fame legend Wes Unseld who passed away last year. Unseld was a great player for the franchise, but also served as their head coach and general manager.

Sam Cassell

Cassell is currently an assistant for the Philadelphia 76ers, who eliminated the Wizards from the playoffs earlier this month. He has interviewed for head coaching jobs, but has yet to get his own. Cassell was a Wizards assistant for five years and is close with Bradley Beal, who spent his first few seasons in the NBA under Cassell’s tutelage.

Becky Hammon

Hammon has been studying under Gregg Popovich in San Antonio for years and this season became the first woman to serve as the head coach in an NBA game. She has been on track to land a head coaching job and has interviewed for a few openings, including this offseason. It seems likely that at some point she will get the opportunity to coach a team and make history. Maybe it will be with the Wizards.

Mark Jackson

Jackson hasn’t been a coach since he left the Warriors in 2014 and has instead been working as a broadcaster at the highest level, calling NBA Finals games. But he’s been rumored over the years to have an interest in returning to coaching and happens to go way back with Wizards general manager Tommy Sheppard. Sheppard began his career with the Nuggets back when Jackson was a player. Jackson had very nice things to say about Sheppard back in 2019 when he was in the running for Wizards GM.

Kenny Atkinson

The former head coach of the Nets before they signed Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving, Atkinson would bring some valuable experience to the table. He led a Brooklyn team known for playing hard and maximizing its talent. He’s currently an assistant for the Clippers.

Chauncey Billups

If the Wizards opt to choose someone who has no head coaching experience, it could be a relative risk, as the Pacers showed this season. But not all first-time head coaches come into the locker room on a level playing field. Billups would bring the reputation as a former All-Star and NBA champion. He’s currently an assistant for the Clippers, but is interviewing for other vacancies.

Mike D’Antoni

D’Antoni left Houston last offseason to become an assistant on Steve Nash’s staff with Brooklyn. He’s already a candidate for other openings, though, and would definitely bring plenty of experience to the table. What would be interesting is how he could potentially take Beal’s game to the next level, having coached James Harden during his rise to superstardom. He also coached Russell Westbrook for one season in Houston.

Robert Pack

The Wizards could look at some internal options, including associate head coach Tony Brown, who previously spent time as the interim head coach in Brooklyn. But Pack would also be intriguing given he’s been an NBA assistant for over a decade, used to play for the organization and happens to have a close relationship with Westbrook. Clearly, Westbrook’s endorsement wasn’t enough to save Brooks’ job, but he would likely have nice things to say if they asked him about Pack, given how closely they worked together this season.

Mike Budenholzer

If the Bucks end up disappointing in this year’s playoffs, perhaps Budenholzer would become available. If so, he would have an impressive resume for the Wizards to consider with two 60-win seasons and two conference finals appearances. He was the coach of the 2014-15 Hawks who won 60 games and reached the conference finals with no true superstar on the roster. He would bring a defensive mindset to the Wizards with a strong track record of getting the most out of his players.

College coaches

It’s possible the Wizards only look at the NBA ranks for their next head coach, but there could be some intriguing options in college basketball. Juwan Howard played for the organization and is having a lot of success at the University of Michigan. Tony Bennett of UVA is one of the most successful coaches in college basketball, is a former NBA player and coaches in nearby Charlottesville.

Wizards show offensive potential in weekend of hot shooting

By Chase Hughes
Wizards show offensive potential in weekend of wins originally appeared on NBC Sports WashingtonWASHINGTON -- The Wizards entered this past weekend dead-last in the NBA in 3-pointers made, with one of the lowest scoring offenses in the league, a disappointing carryover from last season when they ranked similarly on that end of the floor. They went up against a Utah Jazz team that began the day leading the NBA in points per game and ended up locking horns in a shootout, which in most cases would not suit their strengths.The Wizards, though, were able to beat the Jazz at their own game, setting a season-high with 16 threes. The very next night, they eclipsed that number, making 19 threes against the Grizzlies. Washington has not made more threes in a game since March of 2020.Those two games, which pushed their winning streak to four straight, showed glimpses of the Wizards' scoring potential. They have been slow to get going offensively this season, but the upside seems to be there for them to count that area as a strength.Head coach Wes Unseld Jr. explained after Sunday's win over Memphis why he thinks the Wizards have suddenly broken out from 3-point range."Just more of a mindset. I think we're doing a better job of finding those paint threes, of being a little bit more disciplined with our spacing. The kick-aheads in transition have been good. And our willingness to shoot it, I thought earlier in the year we were turning down too many. Those led to more turnovers and some of the tough, contested midrange shots. We're trying to avoid some of that," he said.Unseld Jr. loves those "paint threes," a term he uses for when Wizards players drive into the paint, draw in the defense and pass the ball out to open teammates. He is also a major proponent of kick-ahead passes, which help the Wizards find scoring opportunities before opponents can set their defense.Deni Avdija, who tied a career-high with 21 points and made four threes on Sunday, said the Wizards were able to take advantage of the way Memphis plays defense. The Grizzlies are big on trying to trap ball handlers in the halfcourt and that defense can create daylight for shooters.The Wizards found early success against the Grizzlies with 11 threes in the 1st half. They entered the game averaging 9.7 threes per game as a team."We shot great tonight and just kept rolling. It was one of those nights, so we kept shooting," Avdija said.Many Wizards got involved with the 3-point barrage against the Grizzlies. The team attempted 40 total threes. Kristaps Porzingis (25 points) made six threes, while Jordan Goodwin added three and Corey Kispert had two. Of the nine players who appeared in Sunday's game, only Daniel Gafford didn't make a three, but that was no surprise as he's only attempted one triple in his 4-year NBA career. The rest of the Wizards were firing from long range and more than half of their total made field goals (19-of-36) were from the perimeter. They also had 26 assists as a team, as the ball was moving consistently.Avdija says the team has made strides recently in that regard."The ball just doesn't stick, so it's beautiful. I think we should play like that all the time. We've put emphasis on that and hopefully it will continue," he said.The Wizards showed over the weekend what their offense is capable of and that was without Bradley Beal, their top scorer, who is averaging 21.6 points per game this season. Veteran Will Barton is also still searching for his usual scoring touch. If those two are in the lineup and scoring like they usually do, the Wizards will have a higher offensive ceiling.The Wizards remain just 25th in offensive rating, but they are starting to show signs of being a much more dangerous team scoring the ball.
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