The Milwaukee Bucks are going to look very different in 2024-25 than they did this year. While their core of Giannis Antetokounmpo, Damian Lillard, and Khris Middleton are going to stay intact, the players around them may not. Brook Lopez and Bobby Portis are popular names thrown around in trade rumors, but due to their salary cap situation, any trade Milwaukee attempts is going to be extremely difficult to pull off.

Mar 6, 2024; San Francisco, California, USA; Milwaukee Bucks head coach Doc Rivers reacts to a call during action against the Golden State Warriors in the second quarter at the Chase Center. Mandatory Credit: Cary Edmondson-USA TODAY Sports

There are, however, a number of players on expiring contracts that will need to be replaced. Jae Crowder already has posted a cryptic message regarding his future (or lack there of) in Milwaukee, Patrick Beverley wants a raise on his next contract, and Malik Beasley shot well enough from three this year that he might get a multi-year deal somewhere else next season.

While general manager Jon Horst figures out player personnel, head coach Doc Rivers is working on retooling and assembling his coaching staff. Last week, news broke that he had already fired at least three assistant coaches, including Josh Oppenheimer.

According to recent rumors, Rivers has a name familiar to many Bucks fans on his radar as a possible addition to his staff next season.

Milwaukee Bucks Head Coach Doc Rivers Wants to Hire Sam Cassell

Oct 26, 2019; Phoenix, AZ, USA; Los Angeles Clippers head coach Doc Rivers (left) and assistant coach Sam Cassell against the Phoenix Suns at Talking Stick Resort Arena. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
According to NBA insider Marc Stein (via Bleacher Report), Rivers “plans to make an aggressive push” to hire current Boston Celtics assistant coach Sam Cassell.

As reported earlier, Cassell is currently in the running to become the next head coach of the Los Angeles Lakers, who fired former Bucks assistant (and player) Darvin Ham following two seasons.

He is competing with another former Bucks player, JJ Redick, who many believe is on the inside track to get the job despite his lack of coaching experience. Stein wrote:

“A belief is already bubbling in coaching circles that the job might well be his to lose in the interview process despite Redick’s lack of prior coaching experience beyond youth basketball.”

Joseph Zucker, who wrote the article quoted above for Bleacher Report, suggests that Cassell could also be a candidate to join former Bucks assistant Charles Lee, who was recently hired as the next head coach of the Charlotte Hornets. Lee and Cassell worked together on the Boston Celtics’ coaching staff.

Zucker does suggest, though, that a move to Milwaukee would be a lateral move for Cassell, whose goal is to one day become a NBA head coach himself. Since this is the case, he may end up staying in Boston where he has a better chance of being noticed and moving up the hierarchy of the bench.

Sam Cassell Does Have a History with Milwaukee Bucks Head Coach Doc Rivers

Jan 22, 2021; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia 76ers assistant coach Sam Cassell talks with head coach Doc Rivers against the Boston Celtics during the fourth quarter at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports
Cassell’s final season in the NBA as a player was in 2008. He split that season between the Los Angeles Clippers and Boston, winning his third NBA Championship with Boston as a swan song to his career. The head coach of that Celtics team, of course, was Doc Rivers.

Following his playing career, Cassell became an assistant coach for the Washington Wizards, where he served on staff from 2009-2014.

In 2014, though, Rivers hired him onto his staff with the Los Angeles Clippers. When Rivers was fired and subsequently was hired by the Philadelphia 76ers, Cassell followed him. Up until last year, Rivers and Cassell had been working together for nearly 10 years.

Could this long relationship be enough to sway Cassell away from Boston? It might be, but only time will tell.

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