Toronto Raptors Fire Head Coach Nick Nurse

The Toronto Raptors have fired Head Coach Nick Nurse after five seasons and one NBA Championship. The Raptors accumulated a 41-41 record this season, missing the 2023 NBA Playoffs after being ousted by the Chicago Bulls in the postseason Play-In Tournament. Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN broke the news. Wojnarowski also indicates that former Boston Celtics Head Coach Ime Udoka is a frontrunner to assume the now-vacant Raptors position.

Nurse accumulated a 227-163 record in Toronto over 390 regular-season games in his five years. He led the team to a 25-16 overall playoffs record during that span, winning the 2019 NBA Championship in his first season at the helm.

Nurse also won the 2020 NBA Coach of the Year award, with three Coach of the Month honors besides. His name has been associated with several teams expecting coaching vacancies this summer, in anticipation of his possible dismissal. He had one year left on his Raptors deal, reportedly worth $8 million.