8 NBA Coaches Who Won't Make It to Next Season

Ladies and gentlemen, we are only a few games into the season and we already have our first victim of the 2012 NBA season as Kings head coach Paul Westphal was fired last week.

So, originally I had this list up to 10 coaches, but one is already gone and the other one I decided was a bit out there.

However, there are still quite a few coaches who have to deal with high expectations, stagnant records, public doubts and an impending ownership change, which is never good for continuity.

There are some obvious choices out there like the leader of the 0-6 Wizards, Flip Saunders and a few other coaches who are on bad teams and have been around for a while with little improvement that should be obvious firings. Then there are others who will be coaching playoff teams but will have public doubt all season long.

So, without further ado, here we have eight guys who need to be worrying about what kind of job they'll have next season, as they could be out of work in the NBA.

8. Mike Brown

Let's hit the rewind button for a second. Think back to Los Angeles getting swept out of the playoffs a season ago and Phil Jackson retiring. A coaching search led to Mike Brown being named the new head coach and everyone questioned the decision.

Everyone.

The old cliche goes, "You don't want to be the guy replacing the legend, you want to be the guy replacing the guy who replaced the legend."

The last time a legend was replaced in Los Angeles was when Rudy Tomjanovic replaced Phil Jackson (the first time he left). Who was he replaced by (Frank Hamblen doesn't count)? Phil Jackson.

Mike Brown has a decent shot at coming back next season, but he has just a good a chance of being ran out of town on a rail.

7. Avery Johnson

I have a theory that explains why Avery Johnson's teams are constantly underachieving.

Three of the four seasons that he coached the Mavericks they couldn't make it past the second round in the playoffs (the remaining season he ended up taking them to the NBA Finals). However, in the heat of the moment, when you have a head coach with the high-pitched squeal of a voice that Avery Johnson has barking out plays, it's going to aggravate you.

That's right people, I find Avery Johnson to be a sub-par coach because of his voice.

Still, if the Nets miss the playoffs and end up whiffing on Dwight Howard this offseason, the Nets can pretty much decide to clean house and getting rid of Johnson would be one of the first steps.

6. Vinny Del Negro

Everybody liked the addition of Chris Paul to the Clippers and they seem to be a good young team on the way to a big year, but nobody has faith in Vinny Del Negro.

There's good reason to lack faith in Del Negro; he's not a great coach.

Del Negro coached two Bulls teams to 41-41 records and then last year's Clippers team to a 32-50 record—all while calling a muddling offense and a mediocre defense.

5. Scott Skiles

The Milwaukee Bucks look like a team that could potentially make the playoffs in the Eastern Conference; but if they don't, Scott Skiles could be in trouble.

NBA coaches have normally short tenures with each team unless they end up making the playoffs regularly. It's even worse when you make the playoffs early and then drop off in the following seasons.

Skiles made the playoffs with the Bucks in his second season with the team when they got hot in 2010 and everyone feared the deer, but injuries led to a disappointing season last year. Another missed playoffs could lead to Skiles feeling the heat grow on his seat.

4. Mike D'Antoni

This choice isn't surprising to anybody, right?

Mike D'Antoni has a purpose in the NBA, he really does. He can take over a mediocre team and lead them to the playoffs with a fast-paced, slightly gimmicky offense, but he isn't a championship coach.

The man doesn't give a damn about defense and the 2-4 Knicks don't have the offense that they did a season ago.

The problem is that he has a team that would work better with a set half-court offense, when D'Antoni is much better at running a sped-up, full-court offense. If the record gets ugly early, he could be gone sooner rather than later.

3. Alvin Gentry

Any other year and Alvin Gentry would be at the top of this list, but there are two coaches in special situations.

Gentry has spent two full seasons and two partial seasons with the Suns, making the playoffs once in 2010, but ever since it's been miserable in Phoenix.

Everybody can sense the inevitable rebuilding that's coming for the Suns, but nobody in the organization is acknowledging the fact that it's coming.

Once the team decides rebuilding is inevitable they should decide to trade Steve Nash and move on, starting with replacing Alvin Gentry.

2. Monty Williams

Monty Williams was hired by the New Orleans Hornets for last season, and realistically, nobody really knows if he is a good coach or not at this point.

The first year for a brand new head coach is kind of a crapshoot, and this season is more than tumultuous for the Hornets, so really we won't get any information from this year either.

The biggest problem with Williams is that he was hired by the previous owner, and with the NBA poised to sell them at any point in the next few months, the new ownership group should be looking to implement their own crew, which means Williams would be gone.

1. Flip Saunders

Flip Saunders has been around the block when it comes to coaching NBA teams. He was with the Timberwolves for a decade before he moved on to Detroit and finally, Washington.

I've always thought that Flip was a decent coach, but I was never sure that he had the stuff to lead a team to the Finals.

However, the start to this season, mixed with just 49 wins over the previous two seasons, could be too much for the Wizards' front office to handle.

If Washington continues to struggle, I see Flip getting flipped out of town by the end of January at the latest.

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