Raptors HC Rumors: Mike Budenholzer Early Favorite After Dwane Casey Firing

Mike Budenholzer is reportedly a strong candidate for the Toronto Raptors' vacant head-coaching position.

ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reported Friday that Budenholzer is expected to get a "close inspection" from the Raptors as they search for their next coach.

Also, Kevin O'Connor of The Ringer tweeted to "watch out" for a union between Budenholzer and the Raptors.

Toronto fired head coach Dwane Casey on Friday, days after the Raptors were eliminated in the second round of the NBA playoffs by the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Budenholzer spent the past five seasons as head coach of the Atlanta Hawks, posting a 213-197 record with four playoff appearances.

He led the Hawks to the Eastern Conference Final in 2014-15, but the team bottomed out this season with a 24-58 mark after stripping down the roster.

Prior to joining the Hawks, Budenholzer was an assistant with the San Antonio Spurs for 17 seasons. During that time, he won four championships.

If the Raptors are targeting Budenholzer, they will have some competition in the form of the Milwaukee Bucks.

Budenholzer interviewed with the Bucks and is considered a front-runner, per Matt Velazquez of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

Milwaukee can offer Budenholzer the opportunity to coach a bona fide superstar in Giannis Antetokounmpo, but the Raptors were the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference this season with a record of 59-23.

Playoff success has been elusive for Toronto, but it has no shortage of talent, which figures to appeal to Budenholzer in his search for a new job.