Being an NBA coach can be one of the toughest jobs in the world. When things are going well, everyone loves you. However, when the team goes through long periods without success, everyone is calling for your head.
Bovada has just released odds on who the next NBA coach to be fired will be. Leading the way with +115 odds, it’s looking like it could be Sacramento Kings head coach Luke Walton.
Walton has only spent two seasons coaching the Kings, but patience is already wearing thin. The team has a 55-76 record in that span and while it doesn’t look that bad on paper, it’s important to remember that Sacramento hasn’t made the NBA Playoffs since 2006. With a drought that long, it’s not a surprise that Kings fans are almost out for their coach.
As it stands, the Kings are 24-35 this season and sit six games out of the final playoff spot. Unfortunately, they only have 13 games left, which means it’s unlikely that they’ll make the playoffs. If that’s the case, Walton’s time as an NBA head coach could be coming to an end.
NBA Odds: Next Head Coach to Permanently Leave Post
Odds via Bovada as of Friday, April 23
- Luke Walton (SAC) +115
- Scott Brooks (WSH) +190
- Dwane Casey (DET) +400
- Steve Clifford (ORL) +650
- Terry Stotts (POR) +650
- Billy Donovan (CHI) +1500
- Stephen Silas (HOU) +1500
Will Brooks Be Fired Next?
Scott Brooks (+190) has had an up-and-down season as the Washington Wizards head coach. The team started off the season slowly, looking like they might finish near the bottom of the Eastern Conference. Fast forward to April and the Wizards are 25-33, sitting three games back of a playoff spot and have gone 8-2 in their last 10 games.
However, if the team misses the playoffs, that could be the end for Brooks. He has a 174-202 record as Washington’s bench boss, having made the playoffs in his first two seasons. Considering the Wizards are in danger of missing the NBA Playoffs for the third straight year, there might be a change of the guard coming to the nation’s capital.
NBA Coaching Odds: Is Stotts on the Hot Seat?
Terry Stotts and the Portland Trail Blazers are currently 32-26, sitting sixth in the Western Conference. With that being said, it may seem weird to see Stotts having +650 odds of being fired. However, upon further examination, it might not be that strange after all.
The Trail Blazers have lost seven of their last 10 NBA games and are in danger of missing the postseason if things don’t turn around. If Portland misses the playoffs, management may decide that they have had enough of Stotts.
Stotts has coached the Trail Blazers since the 2012-13 NBA season, compiling a 392-314 record in that time. Unfortunately, that success disappears in the playoffs as Stotts is 20-36 with Portland in the postseason. One of the main criticisms against Stotts is that he has one of the best backcourts in the league with Damian Lillard and C.J. McCollum, but still can’t find a way to win meaningful games.
Even if the Trail Blazers make the playoffs, Stotts needs to have some postseason success. A first- or second-round exit might not cut it anymore. The most playoff wins in a season that Portland has during Stotts’ tenure is eight, which came in 2019 before getting swept by the Golden State Warriors in the Western Conference Finals.
