Editor’s note: This list only denotes coaches were actively relieved of duties by the franchise. It does not denote coaches who resigned under pressure. Examples of the latter include Rudy Tomjanovich with the Lakers, Frank Layden with the Jazz, Larry Brown with the Nets, Jeff Van Gundy with the Knicks, Stan Van Gundy with the Heat, and Dan Issel with the Nuggets.

1) Adrian Griffin, Bucks, ’23-’24
2) Michael Malone, Nuggets, ’24-’25
3) Taylor Jenkins, Grizzlies, ’24-’25

Developing an all-time superstar on a mid-market NBA franchise is rare enough but retaining them through their prime is even rarer. As soon as the team hits any bump in the road, the pressures start mounting the front office to manage it before their star gets disgruntled. This phenomenon has only increased in recent years, which helps explain why three NBA coaches have been fired mid-season with a winning record in the last two years, an event that had transpired just 11 times in the prior 77 seasons. Griffin’s cardinal sin was accepting the Bucks job under the auspices of anchoring his pressure defense scheme around Jrue Holiday, but instead winding up with unrepentant gunner Damian Lillard. The obstinate Griffin reportedly butted heads almost immediately with not just players but even his assistant coaches. Of course, most of this didn’t come to light until after his shocking firing in late January, despite the Bucks holding a 30-13 record. Adding insult to injury, Griffin had already been named as an All-Star Game head coach and had to defer the honor to his Bucks replacement, Doc Rivers.

While the Griffin firing can be metabolized as the Bucks essentially taking a mulligan on a new coach, the Malone and Jenkins dismissals are far more difficult to parse. Jenkins holds the Grizzlies franchise record for coaching wins but when the team missed the playoffs in ’23-’24, the front office got busy replacing all his assistant coaches. This undermined the authority of Jenkins, whose chief role was now to evangelize his young roster on his new assistant’s innovative schemes. It actually worked at first, with Memphis hitting new offensive heights and holding a 36-18 record heading into the All-Star break. But Ja Morant was unhappy with his new role playing more off the ball and was unafraid to express it. Thus, when opponents started adjusting to their schemes and the Grizzlies started losing more than winning, Jenkins’ days were numbered. But it was still shocking to see him fired with nine games left in the regular season, rather than giving him a chance to rally the team in the playoffs. His replacement was Tuomas Iisalo, one of those innovative new assistants, who hardly impressed in his first few weeks in charge, as the Grizzlies were quietly swept in the first round of the playoffs.

When the initial shock of Jenkins’ dismissal wore off, NBA fans and media surely assumed it would go down as the craziest coaching change of the ’24-’25 season. Then, less than two weeks later, the Nuggets front office gave us a proverbial “hold my beer” moment, canning Malone. Not only did Malone have an impressive history as Nuggets coach, spanning nearly a decade, he had delivered the ultimate prize, an NBA title, just two years ago. But following a late season four-game losing streak, Nuggets owner Stan Kroenke fired Malone and general manager Calvin Booth. Apparently, the coach and GM had been feuding for years, a relationship that had poisoned the Nuggets locker room and left everyone on edge. Kroenke has to feel smart at least the near term, as the chemistry reset with new coach David Adelman resulted in three wins to end the regular season, and then an impressive playoff run in which they pushed the eventual champion Thunder to the brink.

4) Harry Gallatin, Hawks, ’64-’65

Early NBA coaching transaction records are somewhat unreliable, but this seems to be the definitive first example of a coach being fired mid-season while the team held a winning record. Gallatin was one of the most dominant post players of the league’s first decade and a certified Knicks legend, then immediately transitioned into coaching after his playing days ended. In his first two seasons at the helm in St. Louis, he led the Hawks to back-to-back Conference Finals appearances, both of which went the full seven games. But for a franchise accustomed to success and just three years removed from its last NBA Finals appearance, that apparently wasn’t enough. After a road win over the Knicks improved the Hawks’ record to 17-16, Gallatin was informed at the arrival airport that he’d been fired. His replacement was now player-coach Richie Guerin, who held the coaching role for seven-and-half seasons but did no better than his predecessor in the playoffs, losing in the Conference Finals four times and in the Conference Semifinals four times. Gallatin also secured an ignominious spot in NBA history, as the first ever former Coach of the Year winner to be fired, having earned the inaugural award in ’62-’63. Just a few days after the Hawks relieved him of duties, Gallatin became a mid-season coaching replacement himself, taking over from Eddie Donovan on his old team, the Knicks.

5) Don Nelson, Knicks, ’95-’96

Over 34 years of NBA coaching, the legendary Nelson was notable for making surprise resignations, but was fired only once. It ended a brief and somewhat disastrous tenure with the Knicks. Replacing Pat Riley was never going to be easy for any coach but Nelson made it ever harder on himself by breaking a cardinal rule of first-year coaches, never come in too hot with your star players. Nelson specifically targeted Patrick Ewing, whom the coach asked team management to trade, and fan favorite John Starks, who was benched during a late season slump. New York got off to a strong start under Nelson, with a 10-2 record, but later languished out of the All-Star break, losing 10 of the first 14 games to fall to 34-25. Nelson was fired somewhat hastily in early March but it worked out for the Knicks, as his replacement, former assistant Jeff Van Gundy, eventually went down as one of the best coaches in franchise history. Things worked out well for Nelson too, as he was hired soon after by the Mavericks and revived his career in Dallas.

6) David Blatt, Cavaliers, ’15-’16

During a timeout late in game five of the 2015 NBA Finals, Blatt drew up a play on his whiteboard for the Cavaliers, had it waved off by his star player LeBron James, and erased and started over again. The ensuing play worked. It was a perfect summation of Blatt’s time in Cleveland, technically successful but questionably responsible. Getting that far in the playoffs was likely surreal for Blatt, a first time NBA head coach who was hired just a couple weeks before James re-signed with Cleveland. Though he never publicly called out his coach, James also made his lack of respect clear almost immediately by overriding Blatt’s decisions and conferring directly with assistant Tyronn Lue. Not only was Blatt fired in January 2016 while the team had a winning record, they were also on a hot streak, having won 11 of their previous 13 games. Citing a lack of chemistry between the coach and his players, general manager David Griffin fired Blatt and promoted Lue, who subsequently led the Cavaliers to the 2016 title. Blatt never coached in the NBA again, finishing his career with a 97-46 record, including postseason.

7) Mike Schuler, Trail Blazers, ’88-’89

Coming out of the 1986 press conference introducing him as the Trail Blazers’ new head coach, the biggest headline was Schuler missing his chair attempting to sit down, and falling on the dais. An omen, perhaps, though the first time head coach and Don Nelson acolyte got off to a strong start, earning Coach of the Year honors after Portland improved by nine wins in ’86-’87 to 49-33. The Blazers then surpassed 50 wins for just the second time in franchise history in ’87-’88 but both of those seasons ended with disappointing first round losses, leaving Schuler vulnerable to blame. ’88-’89 was a complete disaster from the beginning, with Sam Bowie suffering another major injury (quelle surprise), a disgruntled Clyde Drexler feigning ankle issues to sit out games, and the always ornery Kiki Vandeweghe launching a cold war against the coach. Forced to choose between his star players and his coach, owner Paul Allen went with the former, firing Schuler in mid-February while the team held a 25-22 record. He was replaced by top assistant Rick Adelman, leaving Schuler as just a footnote in franchise history, the brief coach in between legends Jack Ramsay and Adelman.

“For former NBA stars, transitioning into coaching can be an arduous process, especially in communicating with younger generations of players. Kidd can attest to the pitfalls of both ends of that relationship.”

8) Terry Porter, Suns, ’08-’09

With “seven seconds or less” architect Mike D’Antoni gone to New York, Steve Nash aging, and Shaquille O’Neal newly acquired, the Suns front office decided ’08-’09 was time for a strategy change. They hired Porter from the Pistons, looking to install a more methodical and defensive-minded approach. This experiment lasted about four months, with Porter getting fired during the All-Star break. At the time, the Suns were 28-23, but in the competitive Western Conference, that put them in position to battle for the #8 seed. Porter was replaced by Alvin Gentry, the only assistant holdover from D’Antoni, who promptly re-installed the traditional up-tempo offensive approach. It took a while for things to re-click and Phoenix wound up missing the playoffs with a 46-36 record. The obvious poor fit O’Neal was traded in the subsequent off-season to Cleveland and the Suns had a bounce-back season in ’09-’10 under Gentry, winning 54 games and reaching the Conference Finals.

9) Byron Scott, Nets, ’03-’04
10) Jason Kidd, Bucks, ’17-’18

For former NBA stars, transitioning into coaching can be an arduous process, especially in communicating with younger generations of players. Kidd can attest to the pitfalls of both ends of that relationship. The pairing of Scott and Kidd in New Jersey was, on its surface, a fruitful one. In their first season together, the Nets set a franchise record with 53 wins and reached the NBA Finals, then made it back to the Finals in 2003. But behind the scenes, Kidd was frustrated with what he perceived as a lack of leadership from Scott, and was deferring on strategic decisions to assistant Eddie Jordan. The Nets denied Kidd’s reported trade request in the summer of 2003 but also tellingly opted not to extend Scott’s contract beyond ’03-’04. Following a 47-point beatdown at the hands of the Grizzlies that December, Kidd reportedly berated Scott in the locker room postgame, tipping the relationship beyond the point of reconciliation. A subsequent winning streak provided a stay of execution for Scott, but after a five-game losing streak in late January, he was fired and replaced by Lawrence Frank (Jordan had become Wizards head coach during the 2003 offseason). The Nets won their first 13 games under Frank but came up short in the postseason, losing in the Conference Semifinals.

A decade later, Kidd got an opportunity to put up or shut up, taking over Nets coach. His one season in charge in Brooklyn was technically successful but also – surprise, surprise – marked by disagreements with management. Kidd was traded in 2014 to the Bucks, where he inherited a young team on the rise, anchored by Giannis Antetokounmpo and Khris Middleton. Kidd’s first three seasons in Milwaukee were a bit of a roller coaster ride, with a surprise playoff appearance in ’14-’15, a complete collapse in ’15-’16, and mixed results in ’16-’17 as the roster was decimated by injuries. With Antetokounmpo beginning to reach his full potential in ’17-’18, the pressure was on Kidd to delver. Instead, the Bucks flatlined offensively and were 23-22 in late January when Kidd was fired.

11) Larry Brown, Spurs, ’91-’92

There are two defining factors of Brown’s lengthy coaching career: quick initial turnarounds and abrupt exits. Those departures were almost always resignations, as was his leaving San Antonio, according to some. Just short of the midway point of his fourth season with the Spurs, Brown was announced as fired by owner Red McCombs. The team was 21-17 at that point, a disappointing start after back-to-back 50-win seasons and with David Robinson arguably at the absolute peak of his powers. The day after an embarrassing loss to an undermanned Celtics team, Brown was fired by McCombs, then rehired a few hours later after a lengthy meeting with coaches, executives, and players. But 24 hours later, Brown was fired again, this time seemingly for good. McCombs himself would later claim that Brown had asked to be fired the second time rather than officially resign. In retrospect, the decision was likely due to Brown receiving an offer from the Clippers in between firings. The Spurs regrouped under interim coach Bob Bass but then stepped into another disastrous coaching situation in ’92-’93 with Jerry Tarkanian. As is his nature, Brown moved on immediately to a new gig with the Clippers.

12) Butch van Breda Kolff, Jazz, ’76-’77

It’s arguable that no other coach in NBA history has left more successful situations under somehow still adverse conditions. A former player himself, dating all the way back to the NBA’s inaugural season, van Breda Kolff became the first coach ever to helm an NCAA Final Four team (Princeton in 1964) and NBA Finals team (the Lakers in 1968). In fact, his first two NBA coaching seasons were both Finals appearances for the Lakers but each ended in bitter defeat, especially in 1969 when he controversially benched Wilt Chamberlain for crunch time in game seven. van Breda Kolff thus made infamous history as the first head coach fired following an NBA Finals appearance, and that was only the beginning. He resigned under pressure after one season with the Pistons in which the team had a winning record for the first time in 15 years, then lasted just seven games with the Suns before getting fired due to disagreements with general manager Jerry Colangelo and star player Connie Hawkins. van Breda Kolff got one more shot in the NBA, taking over as head coach of the Jazz midway through their inaugural season. Things went well enough in his first full season but – surprise, surprise – van Breda Kolff also poisoned relationships with team ownership and star player Pete Maravich. New Orleans started strong in ’76-’77 with a 13-9 record but lost four of the next five, leading to van Breda Kolff’s dismissal (replaced by assistant Elgin Baylor). Jazz owner Larry Hatfield summed up the fiery van Breda Kolff perfectly in his assessment after the firing that the embattled coach “had to take an adversary position on everything.” At least van Breda Kolff lasted long enough in the ’76-’77 season to make a good kind of history for once, becoming the first person ever to coach in an NBA game against their son, when Butch’s Jazz defeated son Jan’s Nets in an early season game.

13) Paul Westhead, Lakers, ’81-’82

It all started with an innocent bike ride. During an off day early in the ’79-’80 season, Lakers coach Jack McKinney was riding over to his assistant Westhead’s house to play tennis when he lost control of his bike, landing hard on the pavement and suffering a traumatic brain injury. Westhead took over, initially on an interim basis, and utilized McKinney’s play book to guide the Lakers to the 1980 title. He was named full-time head coach just a few days after the Finals ended and was riding high, but the next 18 months spiraled into a nightmare. The ’80-’81 was a complete disaster, with Magic Johnson missing most of the season due to a knee injury, disrupting chemistry and leading to a shocking first round loss to the Rockets. Westhead attempted to resolve things by installing a new offensive scheme for ’81-’82 but that only led to confused, disgruntled star players who were sniping at each other and their coach. It’s debatable to this day who was most responsible for Westhead’s ouster only 11 games into the ’81-’82 season. Maybe it was Jerry Buss’ residual guilt about choosing Westhead over McKinney or maybe it was Johnson grumbling in his owner’s sympathetic ear. Either way, Westhead was removed despite a 7-4 record and a five-game winning streak. Pat Riley was promoted from assistant coach and led the Lakers to another championship in 1982, the first of four under his stewardship. Fittingly, Westhead’s second-to-last game as Lakers head coach was a double overtime victory over the Pacers, coached by his mentor and former boss McKinney.

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