Predicting four struggling NBA teams that will likely be hiring a new head coach before the start of the 2025-26 season.
There are roughly six weeks remaining in the 2024-25 NBA regular season. The time has truly flown by this season. While many teams across the league are preparing for a playoff run or even trying to slide into one of the last spots of the Play-In Tournament, there are already other teams on the other end of the spectrum that have to be preparing for the offseason. One of the first big dominos on that front usually has to do with the head-coaching carousel.
After every reason, there are at least a few head-coaching openings across the league. This season that's unlikely to be any different. As we inch closer to the end of the season and the start of the offseason, it's only natural to speculate on what this year's coaching carousel could look like. In this article, we predict four struggling teams that will likely resort to hiring new head coaches before the start of the 2025-26 NBA season.
San Antonio Spurs
Head coach: Gregg Popovich
I do believe the San Antonio Spurs are heading into an offseason that will provide them the opportunity for some big change. The biggest of which could revolve around the leading voice in the locker room. Even though I don't necessarily want to see Gregg Popovich walk away from the game of basketball, there's a very real chance he may have to for health reasons. After missing most of this season due to a mild stroke, there's no certainty that he will ever be back as the head coach for the Spurs. Ultimately, that's why I believe that the Spurs will be looking to hire a new head coach before the start of the 2025-26 NBA season.
Why it's time for a head-coaching change: It very well may be time for Pop to put his health first. He did so for the majority of this season and if he deems it necessary, it could be time for him to take an even bigger step back after this season. I'm not going to act like I know specifics about his health situation, because I don't. However, with the ways things are trending, it does seem as if there's at least a non-zero chance (at worst) that Pop could've already coached his last game as the lead man in San Antonio. It would be a sad day in the NBA if it did come to that, but it's certainly a possible reality the front office has to already be preparing for.