The Portland Trail Blazers are casting a wide net of options to find the best possible replacement for interim head coach Tiago Splitter. While it's possible Splitter comes back, it's deemed unlikely at this point. Portland appears to be leaning towards finding a new voice to help guide this team to what will hopefully be a deep playoff run next season.
Our top two options to replace Splitter are San Antonio Spurs' Sean Sweeney and Brooklyn Nets' Steve Hetzel.
Sean Sweeney, San Antonio Spurs
It helps having a 7-foot-5 alien to anchor the middle, but Sweeney deserves a ton of credit for the elite defense formed in San Antonio. His footprint has been all over the Spurs' playoff run, most notably their thrilling Game 1 win over the Oklahoma City Thunder.
The bad news is, Portland will have to go through these Western Conference juggernauts in order to contend. But wouldn't it make sense to poach the assistant coach of the team you inevitably have to go through? Nobody knows them better, potentially giving Portland an advantage other teams wouldn't have.
Not to mention, the defensive-minded coach would be a perfect fit for the Blazers' roster construction. Portland has elite individual defensive weapons, yet that didn't translate to an elite team defense. They could benefit from having Sweeney to get the most out of this roster on that side of the ball.
Steve Hetzel, Brooklyn Nets
Hetzel was a finalist for the New Orleans Pelicans' coaching position. They ultimately took the team in another direction, hiring former Orlando Magic head coach Jamahl Mosley. That decision could benefit Portland, as Hetzel is among the candidates they've expressed interest in, according to NBA insider Marc Stein.
Similar to Sweeney, Hetzel is another defensive-minded guard that emphasizes physicality and ball pressure -- a tailor-made fit for what the Blazers have been building. Portland has taken tremendous strides in its rebuild, with its young core gradually improving each season. These playoffs have shown they still have a long way to go to compete with San Antonio and OKC in a seven-game series. Hetzel's strength in player development would be a good fit here, helping the Blazers' youth continue to grow.
He also has former ties to the Blazers, having led them to a Summer League Championship in 2022.
Plenty of other coaches are in the running. Terry Stotts has expressed his desire for a Blazers reunion after leaving the Warriors coaching staff. Stein also reported that Micah Nori, Greg St. Jean, and Jared Dudley are other candidates Portland is considering.
They continue expanding their coaching search, but I find it hard to believe the Blazers will find anyone better suited for the gig than Sweeney or Hetzel. Time will tell whether Tom Dundon agrees.
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