Odds to Be Next Indiana Pacers Head Coach After McMillan Fired – Mike D’Antoni +200 Favorite

• Following a 4-0 sweep at the hands of the Miami Heat, the Indiana Pacers took the decision to fire head coach Nate McMillan
• Mike D’Antoni is the early favorite to succeed McMillan ahead of Tyronn Lue and Kenny Atkinson
• Get analysis of potential McMillan replacements and the latest odds below

The Indiana Pacers made a shocking move this week when they fired head coach Nate McMillan. McMillan had been handed a contract extension just a couple of weeks ago that had extended his stay through 2022.

A first-round sweep against the Miami Heat was enough for a drastic change of plans, ending McMillan’s four-year spell as Indiana’s head coach.

Without Domantas Sabonis and with Victor Oladipo yet to return to his regular form, the decision to fire McMillan seemed harsh. The Pacers join the Bulls, Sixers, Nets and Pelicans in the search for a head coach.

The latest odds to succeed McMillan are in the table below.

Odds on Indiana Pacers Next Head Coach

Odds taken August 27th

Making Sense of D’Antoni

An old-fashioned offense was the greatest criticism of McMillan. Indiana shot the second-most long twos in 2019-20 – as well as the fewest threes, and were only 10th in attempts at the rim per Cleaning The Glass.

They were the polar opposite of Mike D’Antoni’s Houston Rockets, who have completely shunned the mid-range shot and led the league by a substantial distance in threes attempted. D’Antoni would modernize this Pacers offense.

The anachronistic Indiana offense is in part because of the roster. D’Antoni has been playing without a traditional center in Houston – the Pacers have two in their best lineup.

D'Antoni isn't an inexpensive hire and that'll be a question for Pacers and small market teams with league revenue stagnant in pandemic: How far will they go to pay a coach? Indiana also plans to search pool of those they'd consider 'program builders' over long-term, per sources.

— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) August 26, 2020

If the Rockets do not renew D’Antoni, and the Pacers pursue him as Adrian Wojnarowski reported, this would be a huge change. Appointing D’Antoni is buying into an offense with shooters everywhere. Indiana would need to change its roster for D’Antoni to make sense as an appointment – most notably, trading Myles Turner or Domantas Sabonis.

While Sabonis is considered the superior player, Turner is perhaps a better fit with D’Antoni. If they could flip Sabonis and bring in a three-and-D wing, this roster suddenly looks more suitable for D’Antoni.

They will not match this year’s defensive performance with D’Antoni at the helm, but the offense will be unrecognizable if they make the right changes to the roster.

Changing the status quo for a team that has overachieved is a risk, though perhaps a necessary one given the talent on this team right now.

Lue, Atkinson Favorites for Yet Another Job

Los Angeles Clippers assistant Tyronn Lue has been near the top of the odds for most available jobs. Favored to replace Alvin Gentry in New Orleans and with interest from the Sixers, Lue could have his pick of the coaching vacancies this offseason.

The former Cleveland Cavaliers head coach has playoff pedigree, something the Pacers must be looking for after seeing McMillan struggle to a 3-16 record in the postseason.

The experience of deep playoff runs is invaluable. Lue led a Cavs team with LeBron James and Kyrie Irving, facing enormous media attention, to a string of Finals appearances.

2017: Pacers lost to Cavs by total of 16 points

2018: Pacers take Cavs to 7 games

2019: Oladipo not healthy

2020: Domantas not healthy, Vic recovering

Nate McMillan helped transform Vict and Sabonis into stars and kept Indy in the playoffs 4 straight years, he deserves better

— Top Ball Coverage (@TopBallCoverage) August 26, 2020

Coaching the Pacers would be a very different experience. The upside of this Pacers team is lower than the Nets and Sixers, and arguably the Pels, too. Would this job appeal to Lue?

Since being fired by the Brooklyn Nets before the league’s hiatus, Kenny Atkinson has been in the mix for pretty much every open job. He’s the third-favorite this time round. Atkinson is regarded as a player development coach after his work dragging the Nets out of their lengthy rebuild.

Atkinson is capable of more than player development – he was not given the chance to coach the Nets towards contention.

He succeeded in bringing the best out of the talent at his disposal, and defied expectations to make the playoffs in 2018-19. The Pacers could do with a similar attitude if they are to go toe-to-toe with the best teams in the Eastern Conferences in the post-season. They are often going to be underdogs.

It’s easy to assume Atkinson will head to a rebuilding team, but Indiana could be a good spot for him.

Brett Brown In the Mix

Fired by the Philadelphia 76ers, Brett Brown is a surprise name at +500. Brown has faced widespread criticism of his playoff coaching over the last three seasons. There were far from ideal circumstances for Brown this year, but some of his decision making was peculiar.

Brown is a very popular man and worked wonders through the darkest days of The Process. He clearly built a rapport with many of his players, but there’s been nothing to suggest he’s the coach to take Indiana to the next level.

Hammon In Contention

Becky Hammon has been interviewed for several NBA head coaching jobs. The long-time San Antonio Spurs assistant is destined to be the first female head coach in NBA history, and having spent six years working alongside Gregg Popovich, Hammon has a wonderful resume as a player and now a coach.

Here’s Becky Hammon on why she played the trio of Dejounte Murray, Derrick White and Lonnie Walker IV together pic.twitter.com/IDiNHwuCTP

— Tom Petrini (@RealTomPetrini) July 23, 2020

Hammon has emphasized the need for the San Antonio Spurs to play with pace and was heavily involved in the Spurs running three-guard lineups in Orlando and using DeMar DeRozan at the four.

The six-time WNBA All-Star would, like D’Antoni, ignite this Indiana offense.

There are already several NBA front offices looking for a new head coach. It’s a matter of when, not if, Hammon lands a head coaching gig. The Pacers should be strongly considering Hammon as their McMillan replacement, particularly if D’Antoni is too expensive.