NEW JERSEY -- Oddsmakers have installed two-time National Basketball Association (NBA) Coach of the Year Mike Budenholzer, as the top candidate to replace the recently fired Darvin Ham at Los Angeles Lakers bench.

Budenholzer is a +225 favorite at DraftKings, rated as the best sportsbook for fantasy sports and betting by US Gamblers. Not far behind is 16-year NBA veteran and current ESPN analyst JJ Redick at +260.

Rounding up the top five bets as the likely next Lakers coach are Los Angeles Clippers’ Tyronn Lue (+290), Golden State Warriors assistant Kenny Atkinson (+550) and Boston Celtics assistant Charles Lee (+3000).

Budenholzer is the best available coach with an NBA title on his resume. He guided Milwaukee to its first NBA championship in over five decades in 2021.

But the Bucks fired him in 2023 following their stunning first-round playoff loss to the Miami Heat.

Ham, who played as an import for Talk ‘n Text in the Philippine Basketball Association in 2006, earned his coaching stripes under Budenholzer.

The 50-year-old Ham worked as an assistant coach under Budenholzer from 2013 to 2022 with the Atlanta Hawks and the Bucks before the Lakers gave him his first NBA head coaching job.

But after guiding the Lakers to the Western Conference Finals last season, they have underachieved this year. Their second consecutive playoff loss to the defending NBA champion Denver Nuggets led to his abrupt firing just two seasons into his four-year, $20 million deal.

Lue is the Lakers’ preferred choice, according to multiple reports. But Lue and the Clippers have a mutual interest in extending their partnership even after the team’s first-round exit against the Dallas Mavericks.

Shortly after the Clippers’ season ended, Lue was asked about the Lakers’ interest.

“I don’t really have a comment on that,” Lue told reporters.

“It’s great to be wanted. That’s a really good feeling but like I said, I want to be here and hopefully, we’re able to solidify that.”

Lue has one year left – a team option – on his current deal with the Clippers. He previously coached James at Cleveland where they went to three straight NBA Finals and won the city’s first NBA championship in 2016.

Lue, himself a former Laker, was initially offered to reunite with James in 2019. But he felt disrespected by the Lakers’ three-year offer and their demand to dictate his coaching staff.

“The Lakers saw it more as like I’m just coming to coach LeBron,” Lue told ESPN in 2022.

“No, I’m going to win. I just didn’t think I was treated fairly. And I wasn’t just going to accept any offer just to get a job. I just thought I was better than that.”

The Lakers eventually settled with Frank Vogel, who led them to the 2020 NBA title inside the Disney World Bubble in Orlando at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. But Vogel was also fired after two seasons on the job after a disappointing 33-49 finish.

The Lakers’ coaching seat is the most high-profile job in the NBA. The pressure is heightened with James about to turn 40 next season.

James has a $51.4 million player option which he needs to decide by June 29. Complicating his future in Los Angeles is his oldest son Bronny’s decision to enter the NBA Draft this June.

According to a report in The Athletic, the Lakers are willing to draft Bronny to fulfill James’ dream of playing alongside his son before he retires.

If James declines his player option, he is eligible to sign a three-year, $162 million extension that will run until he is 42 years old.

But before James could decide on his future, the Lakers had to hire the best coach who could give him a shot at a fifth NBA championship that would tie him with Lakers legend Kobe Bryant.

Among the other coaching candidates, Redick is the only one who has no prior NBA coaching experience. But Redick, who has successfully transitioned into becoming the top basketball analyst at ESPN, has strong ties with James. Redick and James currently co-host the “Mind the Game” podcast which dissects X’s and O’s and discusses the current state of basketball.

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