The Milwaukee Bucks are finalizing a deal to make Taylor Jenkins their head coach, sources told ESPN's Shams Charania and Ramona Shelburne.
Jenkins, 41, spent the 2018-19 season as an assistant with the Bucks before being named head coach of the Memphis Grizzles. He went a combined 250-214 over six years in Memphis and made the playoffs in three consecutive seasons, including a second-round appearance in 2022.
The Grizzlies fired Jenkins with nine games remaining in the 2024-25 season and replaced him with assistant Tuomas Iisalo.
Jenkins was on Mike Budenholzer's Atlanta Hawks staff for five years and came to the Bucks when they hired Budenholzer ahead of the 2018-19 season. Milwaukee posted an NBA-best 60-22 regular-season record in that campaign but lost the Eastern Conference finals in six games to the Toronto Raptors, who went on to win their first title. The Bucks won a championship in 2021 and fired Budenholzer in 2023 after a first-round playoff exit.
There's friction between the Bucks and franchise star Giannis Antetokounmpo, who alleges the organization refused to let him play in the final weeks of the season. The Bucks reportedly considered offers for Antetokounmpo at the February trade deadline. He becomes eligible to sign a four-year, $275-million extension if he's still on the team come Oct. 1.
