Lakers assistant Steve Clifford interviewing for Bucks' head-coaching job
Los Angeles Lakers assistant coach Steve Clifford is interviewing with the Milwaukee Bucks for their head-coaching job on Monday, league sources told Yahoo! Sports.
Milwaukee has interviewed Nate McMillan and Houston Rockets assistants Kelvin Sampson and J.B. Bickerstaff for its head-coaching job.
When Bucks general manager John Hammond reached out to gauge Stan Van Gundy's interest in the job, Van Gundy declined but delivered a strong recommendation for Clifford, league sources said. Clifford spent five years on Van Gundy's Orlando Magic staff before joining the Lakers in the summer of 2012.
Clifford fits the profile of the kind of hands-on, defensive-minded candidate that Hammond has been seeking to replace interim coach Jim Boylan.
Clifford will also interview with the Charlotte Bobcats in the near future.
Clifford comes with a strong pedigree, serving as an assistant coach for Stan Van Gundy in Orlando and Jeff Van Gundy in Houston and New York. Clifford also worked with Chicago Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau on the Rockets and Knicks staffs. Both Van Gundys consider Clifford a comparably elite head-coaching candidate.
Clifford joined Mike Brown's Lakers coaching staff over the summer, but coach Mike D'Antoni, Brown's successor, plans to keep Clifford as part of his revamped staff next season.
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