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Former Bucks coaches find new coaching homes

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Joe Prunty

Former Milwaukee Bucks assistants Joe Prunty and Greg Foster have found new homes.

According to ESPN, Prunty, who finished the season as interim head coach and led the Bucks to a 21-16 record to close out the regular season, will become the lead assistant of the Phoenix Suns.  He joins the staff of new Suns head coach Igor Kokoskov.

Foster is reportedly joining the staff of first year head coach Lloyd Pierce in Atlanta.

Prunty interviewed for the Bucks head coaching job, but they went with former Hawks coach Mike Budenholzer instead.

Bucks to meet with Budenholzer a second time today

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The Milwaukee Bucks will meet with former Atlanta Hawks coach Mike Budenholzer for a second time today (Tuesday).  According to reports, the second interview will include members of the Bucks ownership group.

The Bucks have met with several coaching candidates, including Joe Prunty, who finished the previous season on a interim basis after Jason Kidd was fired in January.

Budenholzer has spent the last five seasons as head coach of the Atlanta Hawks and 17 years before that as an assistant with the San Antonio Spurs.

If the Bucks like Budenholzer, they may have to move quickly to lock him up.  He is also said to be the top candidate in Toronto after the Raptors fired head coach Dwayne Casey.

While in Atlanta, Budenholzer guided the Hawks to the playoffs four times, including a 60-win campaign in 2014-15.  The Hawks advanced to the Eastern Conference finals and Budenholzer was named the NBA’s Coach of the Year.

 

Bucks First Round of Head Coach Interviews Nearly Complete

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The Milwaukee Bucks are nearly done with their first round of interviews for their head coaching position.

 Milwaukee will next interview Spurs assistant Becky Hammon and former Cavs coach David Blatt.  The team met with former New Orleans Hornets coach Monty Williams Thursday, and it’s possible another assistant could join the first round of interviews. 

 The team has also interviewed Spurs assistant Ettore Messina, former Hornets head coach Steve Clifford, and former Hawks head coach Mike Budenholzer.  Interim coach Joe Prunty interviewed with the team this past Wednesday.

 Once the first round is done, GM Jon Horst will pair down the list of candidates to three or four.  It’s then that the Bucks ownership group will become involved in the process. 

 Another name that could become a possibility is Dwayne Casey, who was fired by the Toronto Raptors on Friday after they were swept in the second round of the playoffs.  Casey led Toronto to the top regular season record in the Eastern Conference, and was named the NBA’s coach of the year.

Bucks expected to interview Spurs assistant Becky Hammon

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The Milwaukee Bucks coaching search is underway with the interview process starting as early as this weekend.

The list of potential candidates to interview continues to grow, with the latest being San Antonio Spurs assistant Becky Hammon.

A woman has never been a head coach in the NBA and Hammon is the first female assistant in the league.

The bucks have said they have a thorough plan and process in place to hire their next coach, but with no timeline.  However, teams are preparing for the NBA draft on June 21 and free agency which starts in July 1st, which means the Bucks would like to have a coach in place before then.

Current coach Joe Prunty will also be among those interviewed.  He led the Bucks to a 21-16 record after taking over for the fired Jason Kidd in January.  The Bucks said at that time that Prunty would have a chance to keep the job.

The Bucks won 44 games this past season, two more than the previous year, but failed to advance beyond the first round of the NBA playoffs.

 

Bucks head into the offseason with some decisions to make

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Jabari Parker – File Photo – by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)

Following Saturday’s 112-96, game seven loss to the Boston Celtics, the Milwaukee Bucks are out of the playoffs and contemplating the upcoming decisions they need to make during the offseason.

Bucks players returned to Milwaukee on Sunday to undergo physicals and went through exit interviews before heading out for the summer.

It was a disappointing season for the Bucks (44-38), who for the 17th straight year, failed to advance out of the first round of the NBA playoffs.  Malcolm Brogdon told reporters on Sunday that the goal was the Eastern Conference finals.  Their first round exit left them well short.

Now Bucks management will have to decide on a head coach.  Joe Prunty took over near midseason on an interim basis for the fired Jason Kidd.  Now Prunty will have to interview, among others, for the permanent head coaching position.

Since Prunty took over, the Bucks went 21-16 to finish the regular season, then went 3-4 in the playoffs against the Celtics.

The Bucks will also have to decide if they want to keep Jabari Parker, and at what price?

Parker played 31 games this season after rebounding from a second torn ACL.  He averaged 12.6 points and 4.9 rebounds in 24 minutes per game in the regular season.

Parker upset with minutes as Bucks host Celtics tonight (AUDIO)

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Jabari Parker File Photo: Copyright 2016 NBAE (Photo by Gary Dineen/NBAE via Getty Images)

As the Milwaukee Bucks host the Boston Celtics in game three (8:30 p.m.) of their best-of-7 playoff series tonight, coach Joe Prunty will have to deal with a disgruntled player.

The Bucks level of intensity in the first two games of the series has been called into question, led by reserve forward Jabari Parker.

Since returning from an ACL injury, Parker has averaged 19.5 points and 8.2 rebounds while averaging 31 minutes in 31 games.  But in games one and two of their playoff series in Boston, Parker has averaged just over 12-minutes a game.

As Parker sat on the Bucks bench, he was visibly upset about his lack of playing time and Thursday, he opened up to reporters, saying it’s hard to play four minutes at a time and get into a groove.

Bucks coach Joe Prunty said the Bucks need Parker to make an impact.  He made it clear that he’s talking more about defense. [Read more…]

Bucks fall to Boston in overtime in playoff opener (AUDIO)

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Giannis Antetokounmpo works against Boston’s Al Horford – Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Brian Babineau/NBAE via Getty Images)

Khris Middleton’s long buzzer-beating three-pointer forced overtime, but the Milwaukee Bucks couldn’t finish the deal, falling to the Boston Celtics 113-107 on Sunday afternoon.

The Bucks were down by 10 points with less than 4 1/2 minutes to play, when they went on a 8-0 run to get back within striking distance.  With 11.1 seconds left, Malcolm Brogdon tied the game with a three-pointer.

Boston’s Terry Rozier bounced back to hit a three-pointer of his own with 0.5 seconds left before Middleton responded with his 35-footer to force overtime.

Giannis Antetokounmpo led the Bucks with 35 points, 13 rebounds and seven assists before fouling out late in overtime.  Middleton added 31 points, eight rebounds and six assists.  Brogdon is the only other Bucks player in double figures with 16 points.

The Bucks didn’t get enough elsewhere.  Eric Bledsoe finished with nine points and five turnovers before fouling out in overtime.  Tony Snell had 2 points in 33 minutes.  Jabari Parker played only 15 minutes and scored two points.  Jason Terry played 18 minutes and finished with three points. [Read more…]

Same old story for the Bucks (AUDIO)

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The Milwaukee Bucks clinched a playoff spot on Wednesday without playing a game.  With four games left to play, they still could have a say in who they’ll face in the opening round of the playoffs.  But you would never know it by the way they played Thursday night, falling to the Brooklyn Nets 119-111 at the Bradley Center.

The Nets, who have been eliminated from any post-season thoughts long ago, should have been the team that was playing out the string.  Instead, it was the Bucks, who continue to show a lack of energy and lack of desire on the defensive end of the floor.

Defending the three-point shot has been a problem for the Bucks all season long.  They talk about trying to fix it, but talk is cheap.

On Thursday night, while making just 5 of 20 three-point shots (25%) themselves, the Nets hit 19 of 39 from distance (48.7%).  Many of their looks were wide open as the Bucks either didn’t rotate on time, or didn’t even attempt to run at the shooters. [Read more…]

Bucks blow lead, fall to Pelicans in overtime (AUDIO)

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The Milwaukee Bucks built an 18-point lead on New Orleans, then came the second half.  The Pelicans outscored the Bucks 38-19 in the third quarter and went on to beat the Bucks 123-121 in overtime.

Jrue Holiday poured in 36 points and all-star forward Anthony Davis added 27 points and 13 rebounds to lead the Pelicans.  Khris Middleton had 25 points to lead the Bucks.

A layup by Giannis Antetokounmpo put the Bucks up by 18-points early in the third quarter, but the Bucks leading scorer would go without a field goal for the rest of the game.  Giannis missed his last eight shots and finished with 20 points on 6 of 18 shooting.

With the Bucks down by two points in overtime, they had one last shot.  Antetokounmpo missed a jumper and the rebound was kicked out to Jason Terry, who was 0 for 7 from the field.  Terry buried a three from the corner but he didn’t get it off in time, giving New Orleans the win.

The Bucks (33-26) remain home to host the Washington Wizards (34-25) on Tuesday night at the BMO Harris Bradley Center.  The Bucks have won two of three from the Wizards this season.

AUDIO: Joe Prunty on the loss :16

AUDIO: Joe Prunty on the final possession :19

Bucks beat Brooklyn, more injury concerns

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The Milwaukee Bucks led from the beginning and rolled to a 109-94 win over the Brooklyn Nets on Sunday.  The win pushed them six games over .500 for the first time since March of 2015.

The Bucks also saw Giannis Antetokounmpo and Matthew Dellavedova go down with right ankle injuries during the fourth quarter and are hoping they won’t lose either player for long, if at all.

Eric Bledsoe had a team high 28 points to lead the Bucks and center John Henson collected 19 points and 18 rebounds, both season highs.

Jabari Barker played 17 1/2 minutes and finished with 11 points.  He hit all six of his free throws.

The Bucks are now 6-1 under Joe Prunty as interim head coach.

The Bucks return to action for game two of their four game road trip on Tuesday night against the New York Knicks.