Latest Sergio Scariolo update will drive Raptors fans insane

The Toronto Raptors are willing to be very patient as they try to figure out who will replace Nick Nurse as head coach. Former Raptors assistant and highly decorated European coach Sergio Scariolo is near the top of the list.

According to Marc Stein, Kings assistant coach Jordi Fernandez is starting to fall out of the running in the Raptors’ ongoing quest for a coach. Scariolo, former Brooklyn Nets coach Kenny Atkinson, and Memphis Grizzlies assistant Darko Rakajovic are the three finalists for the job, with the former two ahead of the rest of the pack.

The Raptors seem to be in no rush to hire a coach, and they are willing to wait for Scariolo, who is currently trying to win an Italian championship with Virtus Bologna. The latest update on the coaching search is going to make those who want some sort of decision to be made scream in frustration.

Stein hinted that the Raptors are willing to wait until June 23, the day after the NBA Draft, to conduct their final interview with Scariolo due to the fact he is currently in a best-of-seven championship series. The Raptors may still be very far away from hiring their next coach.

The Toronto Raptors might wait to hire Sergio Scariolo.

Scariolo is a huge risk. On one hand, he knows the team’s culture and is beyond reproach when it comes to being an Xs and Os wizard. The Spanish national team’s success in recent years can partially be attributed to him and his very unique offensive sets.

On the other, he would be a 62-year-old coach with no prior NBA head coaching experience. Scariolo having success would be unprecedented, as there hasn’t been a head coach that came directly from the European ranks and won a championship in the NBA.

Atkinson may have been fired from his last job in Brooklyn, but he’s shown he can develop a young team. With Mike Brown thriving in Sacramento after his stint as an assistant under Steve Kerr, could Atkinson be in for a similarly successful second act in Toronto?

Scariolo would be an unorthodox hire, and the Raptors might be willing to take that plunge. Even if you’re in the camp that wants Scariolo in Toronto, the fact you might have to wait until after the draft to see your dream realized is going to take some of the excitement out of it.