The Milwaukee Bucks planned to introduce new coach Scott Skiles today, a person with knowledge of the hiring told The Associated Press.

The person, who requested anonymity because the deal had not yet been announced, said the team was to make the announcement at a news conference.

The move, which would come less than a week after the firing of Larry Krystkowiak, was first reported by The New York Post on its Web site.

The 44-year-old Skiles will bring extensive NBA head coaching experience and a disciplinarian approach to Milwaukee — something the Bucks didn't necessarily get from their two previous coaches, Krystkowiak and Terry Stotts.

Skiles, a close friend of Krystkowiak, was fired by Chicago in December after making the playoffs in three of his first four seasons as the Bulls' head coach. Skiles also coached three seasons in Phoenix.

Krystkowiak, who was fired Thursday, was a first-time NBA head coach when he replaced Stotts near the end of the 2006-2007 season. Stotts had only 1› seasons of NBA head coaching experience in Atlanta.

In announcing Krystkowiak's firing last week, new Bucks general manager John Hammond said experience wasn't necessarily a prerequisite for the team's next head coach. But Hammond insisted that the Bucks had to get tougher — and toughness has been Skiles' trademark characteristic, both as a player and as a coach.

Skiles originally was taken by the Bucks out of Michigan State in the first round of the 1986 NBA draft and played 10 seasons with Milwaukee, Indiana, Orlando, Washington and Philadelphia.