Hot seat index: NBA coaches under the most pressure

Head coaches never seem truly safe in the NBA.

There are currently only five head coaches who first joined their teams before 2020. Adding to the volatility of the gig, some coaches have been let go in recent seasons despite factors you'd think would've kept them safe: The Milwaukee Bucks fired Mike Budenholzer just two years after winning the championship, while the Phoenix Suns and Detroit Pistons dismissed Frank Vogel and Monty Williams, respectively, after just one season each under contract.

While nobody can be thoroughly comfortable, here are five coaches likely facing the most pressure in 2024-25:

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Nobody seems to know what the Chicago Bulls are doing or where they're going, and that doesn't bode well for Donovan. The 59-year-old signed an extension of unspecified length before the 2022-23 season but could be one of the first casualties of the campaign thanks to a perplexing offseason by the front office. The Bulls parted with key personnel like Alex Caruso and DeMar DeRozan but retained Zach LaVine and Nikola Vucevic, seemingly nixing the idea of a full-fledged rebuild while getting worse on paper.

If simply making the play-in tournament again is the goal, Donovan could be given enough leeway to try to get there with this much younger Bulls side. But falling considerably behind the rest of the conference early on might finally convince the front office to pull the plug on the entire project, including Donovan.

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Redick likely hasn't even gone through his introductory gift basket yet, but nobody is safe from the pressures associated with taking over this iteration of the Los Angeles Lakers. Despite boasting an astute mind for the game, as he demonstrated on his now-defunct podcast with fellow Laker LeBron James, first-year coaches aren't spared from the demanding expectations of the purple and gold - just ask Darvin Ham.

General manager Rob Pelinka clearly has high hopes for Redick, considering he opted to hire the retired sharpshooter with no professional coaching experience over reported candidates like James Borrego and Sam Cassell. However, he may not have even been the first option, as UConn's Dan Hurley apparently turned down a significant offer before the Lakers hired Redick. With few other avenues to immediately upgrade the team if things don't go to plan, all eyes will be on Redick if Los Angeles falls behind a loaded Western Conference.

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Green has steered the New Orleans Pelicans toward steady, yearly improvements in three seasons under his watch, going from 36 wins to 42 wins to 49 wins. The latter mark was the most by the franchise since they were still the Hornets in 2008-09. What Green has yet to cross off the list, though, is a playoff series win. New Orleans is a combined 2-8 in two first-round appearances under Green, including a deflating sweep at the hands of the Oklahoma City Thunder in April.

Not having to go through the play-in tournament for a fourth consecutive season is a realistic ambition, especially considering a tiebreaker with the Phoenix Suns was all that kept New Orleans out of a top-six seed this year. But playoff success will likely be the barometer, and it's hard to envision Green sticking around for another year with another listless first-round performance.

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Entering his first full year in charge of the Milwaukee Bucks, Rivers is hoping to erase the memory of last season's disappointing second half. After replacing first-year head coach Adrian Griffin, who'd gone 30-13 before his sudden dismissal, Rivers went just 17-19 during the regular season before getting bounced in six games by the Indiana Pacers in the first round of the playoffs.

With a full training camp and preseason under his belt this time around, Rivers should be better-equipped to bring out the best of Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard in 2024-25. However, the 62-year-old's quality of work will perhaps be most strictly judged in the playoffs, where he hasn't gotten out of the second round since 2012.

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Atlanta is in a strange place thanks to its own good luck. Just three years removed from the Hawks' run to the conference finals, they wrapped up the 2023-24 regular season on a six-game losing streak before getting bested by the Bulls in the play-in tournament. However, their 36-46 record was bad enough to land them the first overall pick despite just 3% odds, allowing them to add talented French wing Zaccharie Risacher to their roster.

Teams with the No. 1 pick usually head into the following campaign with less strenuous expectations, but that's not necessarily the case for Snyder and the Hawks. Since replacing Nate McMillan in February 2023, the 57-year-old coach has gone a combined 46-57 in the regular season with Atlanta and mustered just two playoff wins despite plenty of talent around star guard Trae Young. With a more balanced roster after acquiring Dyson Daniels and Larry Nance Jr. for Dejounte Murray, Snyder will have to fast-track Risacher's development while putting the Hawks in contention for a top-six seed, at minimum.