It took a couple days after his firing in Philadelphia, but Doc Rivers can be wagered on to be the next coach of the Phoenix Suns.
He has been slotted in with the fifth-best betting odds at +1000 in DraftKings’ ‘Next Coach’ category.
Rivers coached the 76ers the past three seasons and previously led the Los Angeles Clippers, Boston Celtics and Orlando Magic. The Suns fired Monty Williams after their Western Conference semifinal exit and are looking for a replacement that can help guide a team with championship aspirations.
Rivers is one of the most experienced and successful potential candidates, though it’s unclear at this point if Phoenix has interest in the veteran coach.
There has not been much odds movement regarding the Suns’ search, as it is still in the early stages.
Ex-Raptors coach Nick Nurse and ex-Bucks coach Mike Budenholzer remain co-favorites, followed by Clippers coach Tyronn Lue and Suns assistant Kevin Young.
Here is a look at the top five next coach odds for the Suns, per DraftKings on May 19:
- Nick Nurse +300
- Mike Budenholzer +300
- Tyronn Lue +400
- Kevin Young +600
- Doc Rivers +1000
The Suns have asked permission to interview assistant coaches Charles Lee of Milwaukee, Jordi Fernandez of Sacramento and Darko Rajakovic of Memphis, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.
Lee is the only one of the three currently offered on the Suns’ next coach odds at DraftKings. He sits at +1600, which comes in behind the aforementioned top five, as well as Frank Vogel, Kenny Atkinson and Jarrett Jack.
Phoenix made a blockbuster trade for Kevin Durant midseason and will now focus on finding talented players to surround him and Devin Booker in 2023-24.
While the roster is incomplete, the oddsmakers still have the Suns with the fourth-best odds to win next year’s championship because of the star power at the top. Only the Celtics, Nuggets and Bucks have better title odds.
Milwaukee’s opening is also an attractive one but it seems likely that Phoenix will have a vacancy that piques the interest of many top names.
Here are the odds for the rest of the candidates to become the next head coach of the Suns:
- Frank Vogel +1200
- Kenny Atkinson +1400
- Jarrett Jack +1400
- Charles Lee +1600
- Mike D’Antoni +3000
- Sam Cassell +3000
- Chris Quinn +3000
- Steve Nash +5000
- Mark Jackson +5000
- Dave Joerger +5000
- Becky Hammon +5000
- Tom Izzo +7500
- James Jones +7500
- Isiah Thomas +7500
- Stan Van Gundy +7500
- Jeff Van Gundy +7500
