Report: Bucks Filling Out Coaching Staff With Patrick Mutombo, Return of Joe Prunty

The Milwaukee Bucks continue to build out their staff following the hiring of new head coach Adrian Griffin, and following the (welcome!) news that Terry Stotts would be brought in we learned today that the team is also hiring Patrick Mutombo and Joe Prunty as assistant coaches.

First, let’s meet the newer name. Patrick Mutombo (no relation to NBA great Dikembe Mutombo) is a former NCAA Division 2 standout who ended up playing seven years professionally in Europe and the NBA G-League before switching over to coaching, where he has been active as an assistant in the NBA and G-League since 2011. Notably, Mutombo played college ball at Metro State under current Milwaukee Bucks assistant coach Mike Dunlap, who is also one of the more peculiar (in a good way!) accounts to follow on Twitter. Mutombo was also a colleague of Adrian Griffin’s in Toronto back in 2019, and both have a ring to show for it. Most recently, Mutombo was an assistant with the Phoenix Suns, and now he’s joining the franchise here in Milwaukee.

Also (re)joining the Bucks is Joe Prunty, who has been an assistant coach in the league since 1996. While his experience spans eight NBA teams, most Bucks fans already know him as the interim head coach back in 2018, after general manager Jon Horst fired Jason Kidd in the middle of the season. Prunty also served as interim head coach in Atlanta last season after the Hawks parted ways with Nate McMillan...but quickly reverted back to an assistant role when Quin Snyder was hired as the long-term replacement.

With more of these reports coming out, it’s natural to wonder what will become of Milwaukee’s current (remaining) assistant coaches. Charles Lee has been in the running for several head coaching roles across the league for a few seasons now, so he’ll likely catch on somewhere if he doesn’t stay put, but others like the aforementioned Dunlap, newcomer DeMarre Carroll, and longtime fixture Vin Baker may or may not continue their employment with Milwaukee under Coach Griffin. It’s normal for new coaches to bring in their own staff, but so far the only link from Griffin’s experience is his overlap with Patrick Mutombo in Toronto.

In any case, Milwaukee is getting a good mix of coaching talent with the names that have been reported so far. Terry Stotts and Joe Prunty have extensive experience coaching NBA basketball, while Patrick Mutombo’s specialty appears to be in the “player development” realm. The final picture of who will help coach this Bucks team in the future is not fully formed yet, and we’ll stick around to keep up with new reports as they come out.