Milwaukee Bucks

Beth Hall-USA TODAY Sports With the 2013 NBA Draft right around the corner, it is time for teams to begin narrowing down who will be a good first round selection. The Milwaukee Bucks will most likely need guard help with the possible departure of Monta Ellis and Brandon Jennings. That means taking shooting guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope would be a solid choice. There is a good chance Caldwell-Pope will be taken off the board by the time the 15th overall draft pick comes along. However, if he is still available then the Bucks will be very wise to make him their first round selection. Milwaukee needs help in pretty much every facet of the game, including perimeter shooting. They also need a big, offensive guard that can knock down shots while also taking it to the basket. Good thing Caldwell-Pope can handle all the above and then some. The 20-year-old averaged 18.5 points, 7.1 rebounds, 1.8 assists, 2.0 steals and 33.9 minutes per game in his sophomore season with the Georgia Bulldogs. He also converted 43.3 percent of his shots from the field and 37.3 percent from beyond the arc. Caldwell-Pope has proven to be an efficient scoring guard, something the Bucks desperately need in the backcourt. The 6’6” Georgia native is very athletic. However, even though he has the ability to dominate smaller guards in the open court, he would much rather pull up and take the long-ranged shot. This is where he is most effective, which means he will fit in nicely with other Milwaukee sharpshooters (assuming there any left on the team next season). Caldwell-Pope is a great defender, which is another quality the Bucks will be looking for in a new guard. His athleticism will keep opposing guards from blowing right past the backcourt on their way to the basket. Fans who follow Milwaukee know that is something Jennings could never do. Unfortunately, like Jennings Caldwell-Pope will take some very questionable shots. It is something that could certainly hurt him at the next level. With that being said, he will make a higher percentage of shots than Ellis and Jennings, which means he can get away with taking a couple debatable shot attempts each game. Overall, Caldwell-Pope would be a terrific fit for the Bucks. He will be a solid asset off the bench if Milwaukee is able to keep J.J. Redick or Ellis, but he is also capable of starting next season. Michael Terrill is a Senior Writer for Rant Sports. Follow him on Twitter @MichaelTerrill, “Like” him on Facebook or add him to your network on Google.

Atlanta Hawks coach Larry Drew, who will interview for the Milwaukee Bucks coaching job Monday, said one of his strong suits is finding the proper balance in the coach-player relationship.

Atlanta Hawks coach Larry Drew will interview for the Milwaukee Bucks vacant coaching position Monday, a league source confirmed Friday.

Atlanta Hawks head coach Larry Drew, whose contract expires June 30, will interview with the Milwaukee Bucks about their head coaching vacancy according to Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. The Hawks have not conclusively ruled out bringing Drew back and he remains open to returning, but in the interim the team has given him permission to explore other opportunities. Drew was an assistant with the Hawks for 6 years before replacing Mike Woodson following the 2009-2010 season. In three years as head coach in Atlanta, Drew has compiled a 128-102 regular-season record and has gone 10-14 in the postseason, losing in the first round each of the past two seasons. Connections will naturally be made between the Bucks, Drew, and Hawks forward Josh Smith, who the Bucks actively pursued prior to the 2013 NBA trade deadline. Make of them what you will. The Bucks' slow, careful search thus far suggests they are judging each candidate on his own merits, which is refreshing. Drew doesn't boast a terrific resume of success, but he's got some experience and comes from a "winning" team.

Douglas C. Pizac-USA TODAY Sports The talk around the NBA for the last week was about the potential that Jerry Sloan could end up being the coach of the Milwaukee Bucks. It sounds now like Sloan has no interest in taking the job, according to a report by USA Today Sports. This leads me to the next question about Sloan — will any other team ever give him a chance again? I think Sloan has burned his last bridge because he is waiting for a job to open up that doesn’t involve a rebuilding project, and those kinds of jobs just aren’t going to open up these days. Milwaukee is now forced to look into other options, and those don’t look as attractive. You see names like Nate McMillan and Kelvin Sampson, and that doesn’t spark a lot of excitement. The Bucks may not be as big of a rebuilding project as Sloan thinks if they re-sign their free agents. I would take my chances on a team with Brandon Jennings on it if he comes back. If Milwaukee can get one of the top-three picks in the upcoming draft as well, the rebuild isn’t going to be a long one. It’s a shame that we won’t see Sloan taking over the Bucks, but it allows Milwaukee now to move on to someone else who wants in. I really don’t see why Sloan didn’t want the job though. I know he is 71 years old and doesn’t want to wait three years for his team to make a serious playoff run, but come on now. The sand in the hourglass is running out for Sloan. It may be a big mistake for him to pass on this, but I think Milwaukee will find a capable replacement candidate. Andy Schmidt is a columnist/writer for RantSports. Follow him on Twitter @ASchmidtSports, like his Facebook page or add him to your network on Google.

Douglas C. Pizac-USA TODAY Sports The NBA missed Jerry Sloan roaming the sidelines in 2013. It was incredibly strange to not see Sloan coaching a team this year, but hopefully one team will take a chance on the hall of fame coach. Many teams are not yet decided on what to do with their head coach and the Milwaukee Bucks are one of them. Despite living in rural Illinois, Sloan declined the opportunity to coach the sputtering Bucks. Sloan has no business coaching a team like Milwaukee as they have little-to-no depth and lack playoff contending talent as well. After 26 years with the Utah Jazz his resume is one that Sloan can throw in front of and impress any NBA general manager. While he was never able to get a title out of Deron Williams and Carlos Boozer, coaches with far less skill than Sloan have won titles and the old-timer has plenty of tread left on the tires. The Los Angeles Clippers make the most sense in terms of landing spots for Sloan, especially if Chris Paul decides to stay in L.A. Colleagues of Sloan have said that prospective teams “have to be able to compete” because “Jerry is a competitor” making the Clippers move even more likely. It’s obvious that the Bucks are one of the last teams on Sloan’s list for teams that he could coach, but as the months wear on and his options dwindle maybe the Bucks pop up again. Either way, I have no doubts that Sloan will return to his court side perch when the 2013-14 season begins this fall.

Don't be surprised to see the Bucks looking for backcourt help with the No. 15 selection, the first non-lottery pick in the June 27 draft.

John Hammond and the Milwaukee Bucks will have to move on to Plan C in their search for a new head coach, it seems. Top target Stan Van Gundy withdrew himself from consideration earlier in the week, and now Hall of Fame head coach Jerry Sloan has sent out a clear message that he's not interested in the job. Sloan met with the Bucks last week to discuss the position, but on Thursday veteran agent Keith Glass -- who is advising Sloan in his search -- told David Aldridge of NBA.com that Sloan won't be the next Bucks head coach: "The bottom line is, Jerry doesn't really feel it's the right fit for him right now," Glass said Thursday. "He's interested (in coaching again). He's in Chicago now watching the Pre-Draft. And his name keeps popping up with every job, and he hasn't applied for anything. He had a real nice meeting with them. They came to see him on his farm (in downstate Illinois). They had a great meeting just in terms of liking each other. (Bucks general manager) John Hammond said 'I wish I could have stayed and watched the game with him.' It's just not the right fit for Jerry, from Jerry's point of view. That's not a negative thing; that's just the reality." We all know the Bucks aren't exactly a prime landing spot for a proven head coach. It's part of why we were excited about the prospect of someone like Van Gundy or Sloan signing on; we wanted the Bucks to lure in someone out of their league. But what was it that caused the veteran coach to scratch Milwaukee off his list? That's where it gets interesting. Glass officially represents Scott Skiles, and we all know how things ended with Skiles in Milwaukee. He grew tired of the roster flaws and didn't think the team was built to compete. He and Hammond entered the 2012-13 season without a contract extension, and he made it clear at the outset of the year that he wasn't looking to return on a new deal. Skiles and the team eventually agreed to part ways on Jan. 8. Hammond received a three-year extension on Jan. 24. Glass certainly understood the situation well, and he made some subtle comments that probably carried through the theme that Skiles had been delivering behind the scenes (via NBA.com): "Jerry probably is a lot like Scott, in that the working conditions and where the team is (contender-wise) are important," Glass said. "For Jerry to go to a place that's going to take years to build-and I'm not talking about Milwaukee, I'm talking about anywhere-that's just not right for him. They have to be able to compete. Jerry is a competitor, and he wants to compete and teach." Even if the Bucks are planning to spend big money to reshape the roster during the offseason, it's becoming clear that the prime coaching candidates don't have much confidence in the scheme. It's back to the drawing board for John Hammond. Milwaukee's GM said he wanted to be thorough at the outset of the search, but I doubt this is what he had in mind. Kelvin Sampson, J.B. Bickerstaff, Steve Clifford and Nate McMillan have already interviewed for the job, so perhaps Hammond will tap into that group again for a second interview. The good news is that it's perfectly acceptable to call your Plan C your original and unquestioned Plan A when you eventually make the hire and have the big press conference. The bad news is we have no idea where Hammond will go from here, because the two most accomplished candidates on his list have flat-out turned his team and his plan down. Note: Hammond's reaction to the news is priceless (cc: unklchuk): Bucks GM John Hammond says Milwaukee was "honored" that Sloan even met with the team: "He's Jerry Sloan." — David Aldridge (@daldridgetnt) May 17, 2013

Thursday marked the first day of the 2013 NBA Draft Combine in Chicago, with organized drills commencing in between a whole lot of talking. In fact, talking was about all spectators got out of the true top prospects, as the trend of lottery-bound talent opting to sit out real competitive workouts continued. Some players are dealing with injuries, including Lehigh guard C.J. McCollum, Seth Curry and Ryan Kelly of Duke, and NC State forward C.J. Leslie. And the top-tier guys who are hurting (like centers Nerlens Noel and Alex Len) likely wouldn't have participated much anyway. That doesn't mean there weren't a lot of faces gathered around the court, whether they were players or the furiously scanning eyes of front-office-types from around the NBA. The Bucks are currently hard at work searching for their future head coach, something one would expect they'd like to have finished before the draft, but representatives at the Combine have already heard from a few prospects and are organizing workouts with a few select players with more sure to come. After suggesting the Bucks would focus primarily on this year's crop of guards, Gery Woelfel of the Racine Journal Times reported that a few big men have already been approached by the team: Can't have enough bigs: Louisville's Gorgui Dieng said he will work out for Bucks. — Gery Woelfel (@GeryWoelfel) May 16, 2013 Dieng is dealing with an ankle injury at the moment and was presumed to be keeping on-court workouts to a minimum, so it's unclear exactly what his meeting with the Bucks would entail. Woelfel also reported that French big man (emphasis on big) Rudy Gobert and Duke senior Mason Plumlee would interview with the team. On the guard front, one intriguing prospect associated with the Bucks in a few early mock drafts has already talked to the team: Glen Rice Jr. says he interviewed with #Bucks on Wednesday. Rice went to D-League to work on his game and could be mid-first round pick. — cfgardner (@cf_gardner) May 16, 2013 Interviews are sure to be key to Rice's pre-draft strategy. He played extremely well in the D-League and has big-time talent, but his off-court issues were serious enough to get him dismissed from Georgia Tech. Proving he's worth the risk to an NBA team might not be easy. Gardner also said the Bucks interviewed Florida point guard Shane Larkin on Wednesday and that he would work out for the team later this month. Larkin had a good opinion of the interview and appreciated the "family atmosphere" the Bucks showed. Nice sentiments, sure, but entirely predictable this time of year--what else is he going to say? We'll surely hear from many more players as the Combine continues, as well as lots of guys who aren't participating. Check back often for the latest updates. Poll Which early name are you most excited about? Glen Rice, Jr. Shane Larkin Gorgui Dieng Rudy Gobert Mason Plumlee 0 votes | Results

Douglas C. Pizac-USA TODAY Sports The Milwaukee Bucks‘ head coaching search continues in earnest this week, except now with a certain Hall of Famer in the mix. USA Today broke the story about the organization having serious interest in long-time Utah Jazz Coach Jerry Sloan. I’ve recently written about the net Bucks general John Hammond is casting, specifically with Stan Van Gundy and Kelvin Sampson. Both are very intriguing candidates, but I would consider Sloan about as a great an option. “It’s just been conversation more than anything else,” Sloan told the Salt Lake Tribune. “I’ll explore it and see what’s going on. It’s mostly been people checking on what I’m doing, what my wishes are and how I’m thinking.” There are a lot of both known and unknowns here. We know of all the great work Sloan did over decades with the Jazz, including coaching two Hall of Famers in Karl Malone and John Stockton. We know he took the Jazz to consecutive Wes