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Hot seat?

Suns. When the team hired Lindsey Hunter as an assistant last offseason, the presumption was that he would be groomed for the head coaching job, which he was given on an interim basis after Alvin Gentry was removed. That could still be the plan in Phoenix, but it’s hard to ignore the fact that Hunter has gone 10-27 as the coach of the Suns, and that they’ve lost 14 of their last 15.

Hawks. Larry Drew has been the most successful Hawks coach since Lenny Wilkens, and will lead his Hawks into the playoffs for the third straight season. But with new general manager Danny Ferry trying to remake the franchise, Drew’s days could be numbered. His contract runs out at the end of the season, and Ferry could look to pluck someone from the Spurs’ coaching tree—he hired Mike Brown in Cleveland, remember, and could either turn to Brown or try to pry Spurs assistant Mike Budenholzer away from Gregg Popovich.

Cavaliers. Byron Scott has been nonchalant when it comes to his future in Cleveland, but speculation is rampant that he will not be retained after the season. Scott walked into the impossible job of coaching the Cavs post-LeBron, and he has forged a good relationship with star guard Kyrie Irving. But with the Cavs having gone 64-161 in three seasons with Scott, the team might seek a change.

Clippers. Yes, LA has clinched its first Pacific Division crown. The reward for Vinny Del Negro could be a pink slip. Del Negro has been on the hot seat almost since his arrival, and with his contract up this year, the Clippers are expected to seek out a bigger name. Del Negro could coach his way into keeping the job by leading the Clippers deep into the playoffs, but if that does not happen, the team will make a change. It has a big free-agent pitch to make to point guard Chris Paul, and he will likely have some say in picking the next coach.