Weeks after firing Nate McMillan as the team’s head coach and the Indiana Pacers are in no rush to replace him. In fact, they’re taking their time in their search for the team’s next mentor, which has drawn the interest of former coaches and assistants around the league.
More than a dozen candidates are expected to join a first round of virtual interviews for the Pacers’ coaching job, according to a report by ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. As in any job opening, there are a lot of worthy candidates, from former Sacramento Kings and Memphis Grizzlies head coach Dave Joerger to former WNBA player and San Antonio Spurs assistant coach Becky Hammon.
Joerger, who last coached the Kings in 2019, has a 245-247 (.498) win-loss record in six seasons coaching Sacramento and Memphis. Hammon, meanwhile, has been an assistant on Spurs coach Gregg Popovich’s staff since 2014. Both good options for the Pacers.
Aside from Joerger and Hammon, other assistant coaches who will reportedly join the first batch of virtual interviews are the Spurs’ Will Hardy, Brooklyn’s Jacque Vaughn, Portland’s Nate Tibbetts, Minnesota’s David Vanterpool, Orlando’s Pat Delany, Philadelphia’s Ime Udoka, Miami’s Dan Craig and Chris Quinn, Milwaukee’s Darvin Ham and Charles Lee, and Dallas’ Jamahl Mosley and Stephan Silas. So many options for the famed Indiana Pacers!
McMillan, who previously coached the Seattle Supersonics and Portland Trailblazers before taking on the Pacers’ job, managed a combined 183-136 (.574%) win-loss record in his four seasons in Indiana. McMillan, a player who spent all 12 of his seasons in the league with the Sonics, guided the Pacers to the playoffs in each of his four seasons, but lost in the first round each time, including sweeps in back to back years at the hands of the Boston Celtics and Miami Heat.
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