The Sixers still have options in their coaching search, but Nick Nurse should top their list

Will the 76ers pull the trigger on Nick Nurse?

On paper, the former Toronto Raptors coach is the best candidate for their vacant head coaching job. There could be concerns that his personality might not mesh with Philadelphia sports fans, and the Sixers may have to weigh that.

But aside from Nurse, the other high-profile candidates, Mike Budenholzer, Monty Williams, Mike D’Antoni and Frank Vogel, are essentially all the same.

Leading candidates Nurse, Budenholzer and Vogel all have championship experience.

» READ MORE: Sixers interview Frank Vogel for head coaching job

Budenholzer led the Milwaukee Bucks to the 2021 NBA title. Vogel, a Wildwood Crest native and former Sixers assistant, coached the Los Angeles Lakers to the 2020 title. League sources confirmed that Vogel interviewed for the Sixers job on Tuesday, while Nurse is scheduled to interview this week.

The Sixers should have a better idea what direction their search to replace Doc Rivers is headed in by week’s end. Rivers was let go on May 16 after he failed to advance beyond the second round of the playoffs for three straight seasons.

There was a thought that hiring D’Antoni could go a long way in helping the Sixers retain James Harden, who league executives expect to sign with the Houston Rockets in free agency. But based on what we’ve witnessed in the last two postseasons, they’ll need much more to win a championship.

And a lot has changed since D’Antoni was the frontrunner to get the Sixers coaching gig in 2020.

At the time, D’Antoni and current Los Angeles Clippers coach Ty Lue were finalists to replace Brett Brown until the L.A. Clippers fired Rivers. The Sixers hired him within days while D’Antoni took an assistant coaching job with the Brooklyn Nets for the 2020-21 season.

The 72-year-old has been out of basketball the last two years. But D’Antoni has been mentioned for over a year as a possible replacement for Rivers.

In the coming days, we could get a clearer idea of whose job it is to lose and find out who’s still available.

Nurse, Raptors assistant coach Adrian Griffin and Golden State assistant Kenny Atkinson are reportedly finalists for the vacant Bucks coaching position. And Nurse, 55, is a prominent candidate to get the Phoenix Suns coaching job.

With uncertainty surrounding Harden, the Milwaukee and Phoenix jobs might be more desirable.

The Bucks had the NBA’s best record at 58-24 this regular season, and are led by two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo, two-time All-Star Jrue Holiday and All-Star Brook Lopez.

Meanwhile, the Suns are led by 2014 MVP and 13-time All-Star Kevin Durant, 12-time All-Star Chris Paul and three-time All-Star Devin Booker.

Whoever lands Nurse will get someone far from a stereotypical coach with stereotypical coachspeak.

» READ MORE: Sixers’ James Harden expected to reunite with Rockets in free agency, sources say

Nurse has a charismatic, yet no-holds-barred personality and an outside-the box thinking and coaching style. But those are the attributes that have made him unique and a successful coach.

He led the Raptors to the 2019 NBA title in his first year and had three postseason appearances. Nurse was the 2020 NBA coach of the year. He also won two NBA Development League championships and two British Basketball League titles before coaching in the NBA.

Nurse spent his first five seasons in Toronto as an assistant. After being named head coach before the 2018-19 season, he’s compiled a 227-163 record. Not known as one to back down, Nurse will voice his opinion when things aren’t right.

Meanwhile, Vogel, Williams and D’Antoni all have ties to the Sixers.

D’Antoni served five months as the team’s associate head coach during the 2015-16 season. The Rockets hired him on June 1, 2016. The Sixers players loved him, and some were sad when he left to accept the Rockets’ coaching position.

Williams, 51, was the Sixers’ lead assistant coach during the 2018-19 season before agreeing to become the Suns coach in May 2019. He remained with the Sixers through that season before assuming his new coaching duties. The 2022 coach of the year was let go by the Suns on May 13.

He’s very direct and more of an old school coach. Williams holds players accountable. Sixers fans will love the way he approaches his job. The problem is, some players could grow weary.

Vogel, 49, was a Sixers assistant under mentor Jim O’Brien during the 2004-05 season. But his coaching highlight came with the LeBron James-led Lakers, who won their 17th NBA title in 2020. In addition to winning the title inside the NBA bubble, Vogel led the Indiana Pacers to consecutive Eastern Conference finals appearances in 2013 and 2014.

Milwaukee fired Budenholzer on May 4, only two seasons after leading the team to the 2021 NBA title.

The two-time coach of the year has also been a part of four NBA titles as an assistant with the San Antonio Spurs. He also led the Atlanta Hawks to the 2015 conference finals. Budenholzer, 53, has a great relationship with Sixers general manager Elton Brand, who was a reserve center on the Hawks’ 2014-15 squad.

But Budenholzer’s teams have been loaded with talent. As a result, he is often blamed for postseason shortcomings and rarely receives credit for their accomplishments.

» READ MORE: Nikola Jokić quiets critics who questioned Joel Embiid’s MVP credentials: ‘He should have won it’

Vogel, Budenholzer, and Nurse have championship pedigrees that sort of separate them from the pack.

Vogel and Budenholzer are both solid.

But they’re not quite on the level of Nurse because of his creativity.

It would be intriguing to see how Nurse would use MVP Joel Embiid and standout Tyrese Maxey with his unconventional coaching style. The Sixers need an inventive coach to keep the Star center engaged and placed in the right situations.

And that’s Nurse.