Michael Curry

Sixers Offer Coaching Job To Brett Brown

5:22pm: People close to Brown are urging him not to take the Sixers job, considering how inept the team team figures to be this season, according to Marc Stein of ESPN.com. Turning down the gig would be a risk, but as Stein points out, coaches from the Gregg Popovich tree are in vogue around the league (Twitter links). If Philly doesn't come up with enough money to woo Brown, Curry is their fallback option, Stein adds, via Twitter, indicating that Curry could be something of a lame duck if he winds up with the job.

2:45pm: The 76ers have offered their head coaching job to Spurs assistant Brett Brown, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports (via Twitter). Nothing is official yet, but the two sides are discussing a contract, according to Wojnarowski.

Brown was one of about 10 different candidates linked to the Sixers' coaching opening since the team parted ways with Doug Collins in April. As Alex Lee of Hoops Rumors indicated last night in his primer on the team's coaching search, Brown has long been considered one of the frontrunners for the position, with a rumor surfacing back on draft night that he was Philadelphia's choice.

If Brown accepts the job, he'll be taking over a Sixers team that looks headed for a top-five pick in 2014, and still needs to add more salary to reach the minimum payroll threshold. Sixers assistant Michael Curry, Celtics assistant Jay Larranaga, and Trail Blazers assistant David Vanterpool were among the other candidates believed to still be in the running for the vacancy.

Sixers’ Head Coaching Search Primer

We asked you earlier today which team in the Eastern conference made the best coaching hire this offseason.  Missing from that list was the 76ers, who have mulled over their list of candidates for nearly four months now.  There is word that their search will come to an end at some point this week, so while we continue to wait for an announcement from the team, let's round up the latest on all of the names that have been linked to the Philly job throughout the offseason:

  • Kenny Atkinson, Hawks assistant: Interviewed at some point after July 17. Atkinson, who was with the Knicks last season, is rumored to be in line for a second interview, so he appears to be in the mix. 
  • Brett Brown, Spurs assistant: Interviewed at some point after June 24. Brown is one of the favorites for the job, and is also rumored to have a second interview.  Brown was apparently interested in the Celtics' post, but it is unknown if the same can be said for the Sixers' job.
  • Michael Curry, Sixers assistant: Interviewed at some point after July 10. Curry has long been considered a leading candidate for the job but nothing concrete has surfaced on him since around the time of his interview. 
  • David Fizdale, Heat assistant: Interviewed after July 16, if ever. The Sixers received permission to interview Fizdale, but there's been no word since. He is a longshot at best.
  • Adrian Griffin, Bulls assistant: Interviewed at some point after July 16. Griffin was rumored to have landed a second interview with Philly, but we heard tonight that he is no longer being considered for the position.
  • Melvin Hunt, Nuggets assistant: There is no confirmation that Hunt even interviewed with Philly, but multiple reports put him on their radar. It would be a shock if he was still a candidate.
  • Jay Larranaga, Celtics assistant: Interviewed at some point after July 12. Larranaga did enough to earn a second interview with Philly, but seems to be one of the longshots of that select group. It is worth noting that multiple reports have indicated Larranaga made a strong impression.
  • Ed Pinckney, Bulls assistant: Interviewed at some point after July 16, but we haven't heard much other than that the meet did, in fact, happen. Pinckney does not appear to be a realistic candidate.
  • Quin Snyder, Hawks assistant: If Snyder was interviewed, it was at some point after July 17.  He does not seem to be in consideration any longer. 
  • David Vanterpool, Blazers assistant: Interviewed on July 29. While no second interview has been confirmed for Vanterpool, he is still being seriously considered according to several reports, and has even recently been tabbed as the frontrunner

We know that Atkinson, Brown, Griffin and Larranaga either had or will have a second interview with the team, and that Curry, who coached the Sixers summer league squad, is also considered one of the frontrunners.  Sam Hinkie has has kept the media in the dark throughout the offseason, so the best anyone can do, reporters included, is guess.  My money is on Brown, who was rumored to be the guy on draft night and seems tailor made to work with Hinkie.  But again, at this point, it's anyone's guess.

Latest On Sixers’ Coaching Search

If it seems like we've been following the Sixers' coaching search for most of the year, that's probably because, technically, we have. It's been 111 days since the team officially confirmed Doug Collins wouldn't return as the head coach, but the search for his replacement may finally be coming to an end. A source tells Baxter Holmes of the Boston Globe that things will "all play out [this] week" (Twitter link).

A Monday report indicated that at least four candidates – Kenny Atkinson, Brett Brown, Adrian Griffin, and Jay Larranaga – would receive second interviews with the 76ers. Griffin, at least, has sat down for his second meeting with the team, according to ESPN.com's Marc Stein, who tweets that the Bulls assistant interviewed with Philadelphia for three hours on Tuesday.

It's not clear whether any of those other candidates have been interviewed for a second time yet, or whether their meetings are scheduled for later this week. However, Stein adds in a second tweet that while Brown and Michael Curry have long been considered the frontrunners for the job, Griffin and Larranaga aren't going down without a fight.

Trail Blazers assistant David Vanterpool is still rumored to be in the mix for the Sixers' opening, along with those five aforementioned contenders. I'd imagine that if he receives a second interview as well, the team would delay its decision until at least next week, rather than accelerating the process and announcing a hire this week.

Four Coaches To Get Second Interviews With 76ers

Sixers owners Josh Harris and David Blitzer will meet this week in New York with Kenny Atkinson, Brett Brown, Adrian Griffin and Jay Larranaga, giving those four their second interviews for the team's head coaching vacancy, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports. Another candidate, David Vanterpool, may join them for what would be his second interview, as well. Sixers assistant coach Michael Curry also remains in the running for the job.

A report this weekend named Vanterpool, a Blazers assistant, the favorite to land the job, while many other recent dispatches put Brown, an assistant with the Spurs, in the lead. The Sixers have been without a coach since Harris confirmed in mid-April that Doug Collins won't be back on the sidelines. New GM Sam Hinkie put the coaching search on the backburner shortly after that, but he's been deliberate even as he's reached out to candidates.

Wojnarowski mentioned Vanterpool, Brown, Curry and Celtics assistant Larranaga among the contenders last week, while a report earlier in July suggested the team had narrowed its choices to Brown and Curry. Atkinson, an assistant with the Hawks, has largely been off the radar aside from the report last month that he would get his first interview. Griffin, a Bulls assistant, interviewed with the Pistons earlier in the offseason, a couple months before the Sixers showed interest.

Odds & Ends: Pekovic, Adelman, Johnson, Sixers

Timberwolves president of basketball ops Flip Saunders remains optimistic that the club will soon re-sign Nikola Pekovic, and tells Sid Hartman of the Star Tribune that he's trying to explain the thought process behind the team's offer to the big man and his camp. Saunders stopped short of confirming that coach Rick Adelman will be back for this coming season, but echoed owner Glen Taylor's comments from last month, saying that he's optimstic that Adelman will return. There's more from Minnesota and other NBA locales in tonight's roundup:

Latest On Sixers’ Coaching Search

As Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports reported earlier this afternoon, Trail Blazers assistant David Vanterpool became the latest candidate to interview for the Sixers' head coaching opening, meeting with the team today in Philadelphia. According to Wojnarowski, Vanterpool has emerged as a "serious candidate" for the job.

The Sixers' search has lasted about three and a half months so far, with GM Sam Hinkie moving deliberately and interviewing several potential candidates. However, Vanterpool appears to be receiving legitimate consideration, alongside other contenders like Spurs assistant Brett Brown, Celtics assistant Jay Larranaga, and Sixers assistant Michael Curry. Wojnarowski writes that Brown and Larranaga have made "strong impressions" on the Sixers during the process.

A report earlier in July suggested that Philadelphia will likely choose between Brown and Curry, leading to speculation that perhaps the team's extended search is simply a means of gaining intel on rival teams. However, if Vanterpool is being seriously considered for the job, it would appear Hinkie and the Sixers aren't simply going through the motions.

Atlantic Notes: Pierce, Garnett, Sixers, Knicks

Three new Nets were formally introduced at a press conference in Brooklyn today, with Jason Terry obviously receiving a little less attention than longtime Celtics Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett. While Pierce appeared emotional about leaving Boston, both veterans spoke about having a great opportunity to compete for a title with the Nets, as Mike Mazzeo of ESPNNewYork.com details. Here's more on Pierce and Garnett, as well as a few other notes from around the Atlantic Division:

  • According to Pierce, he initially had to talk Garnett into waiving his no-trade clause to complete the deal, with the two teammates speaking on the phone for an hour and a half. Pierce added that he hopes to become a general manager someday, and that if he were Danny Ainge, he would've accepted the offer the Nets made (Twitter links via Chris Forsberg of ESPNBoston.com).
  • Pierce also said that he never spoke to Ainge about keeping the Celtics' core together and attempting one more run, but noted that it would have been tough to make the necessary improvements to return to title contention (Twitter link via Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe).
  • No matter how many candidates the Sixers bring in, and they've been linked to plenty, Michael Curry and Brett Brown still appear to be the frontrunners, says ESPN.com's Marc Stein. According to Stein, Brown is expected to receive the last interview that the team conducts (Twitter links).
  • Jared Zwerling of ESPNNewYork.com adds Austin Daye and Quincy Douby to the list of players who have worked out for the Knicks in Las Vegas (Twitter link). Meanwhile, Josh Newman of SNY.tv hears that the Lakers and Sixers are also expected to take a look at Douby this month (Twitter link).

Eastern Notes: Curry, Henderson, Oden, Joseph

We've already had two amnesty provisions in the East announced tonight in Linas Kleiza and Drew Gooden.  Let's round up the rest of the Eastern Conference news here on Tuesday night:

  • The latest on the Sixers coaching search indicates that the team is no rush to make a decision, but that doesn't bother in-house candidate Michael Curry, writes Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer.  Curry, who conducted the team's pre-draft workouts and coached the Sixers summer league team, is expected to be interviewed and was told from the start by general manager Sam Hinkie that the coaching search would be a long process. 
  • The Bobcats and restricted free agent Gerald Henderson are having ongoing contract discussions about a return to Charlotte, but are still not close financially, tweets Marc J. Spears of Yahoo Sports.  Just last week, we heard that the Bobcats and Henderson had reached a stalemate.  It doesn't look like things have changed much, but the report that the sides are still communicating is good news for Bobcats fans.
  • With the Heat now rumored to be the unofficial frontrunner to land Greg Oden, Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel wonders what type of message it would send if the team used the taxpayer mid-level exception, worth about $3.2MM, on the injury-prone Oden only days after re-signing Chris Andersen, who contributed to their second straight title run, for about half the price.  Winderman also speculates that the Heat could try to move Joel Anthony in a cost-cutting move that would easier allow them to ink Oden (Twitter links). 
  • Kris Joseph, waived yesterday by the Celtics, will likely look to latch on with an NBA team in a training camp this fall.  The Nets, with whom Joseph finished last season, are said to have interest in the forward, tweets Steve Bulpett of the Boston Herald, but are prohibited from signing him for a year after shipping him north in the deal to acquire Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett

Eastern Notes: Curry, Henderson, Oden, Joseph

We've already had two amnesty provisions in the East announced tonight in Linas Kleiza and Drew Gooden.  Let's round up the rest of the Eastern Conference news here on Tuesday night:

  • The latest on the Sixers coaching search indicates that the team is no rush to make a decision, but that doesn't bother in-house candidate Michael Curry, writes Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer.  Curry, who conducted the team's pre-draft workouts and coached the Sixers summer league team, is expected to be interviewed and was told from the start by general manager Sam Hinkie that the coaching search would be a long process. 
  • The Bobcats and restricted free agent Gerald Henderson are having ongoing contract discussions about a return to Charlotte, but are still not close financially, tweets Marc J. Spears of Yahoo Sports.  Just last week, we heard that the Bobcats and Henderson had reached a stalemate.  It doesn't look like things have changed much, but the report that the sides are still communicating is good news for Bobcats fans.
  • With the Heat now rumored to be the unofficial frontrunner to land Greg Oden, Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel wonders what type of message it would send if the team used the taxpayer mid-level exception, worth about $3.2MM, on the injury-prone Oden only days after re-signing Chris Andersen, who contributed to their second straight title run, for about half the price.  Winderman also speculates that the Heat could try to move Joel Anthony in a cost-cutting move that would easier allow them to ink Oden (Twitter links). 
  • Kris Joseph, waived yesterday by the Celtics, will likely look to latch on with an NBA team in a training camp this fall.  The Nets, with whom Joseph finished last season, are said to have interest in the forward, tweets Steve Bulpett of the Boston Herald, but are prohibited from signing him for a year after shipping him north in the deal to acquire Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett

Eastern Notes: Curry, Henderson, Oden, Joseph

We've already had two amnesty provisions in the East announced tonight in Linas Kleiza and Drew Gooden.  Let's round up the rest of the Eastern Conference news here on Tuesday night:

  • The latest on the Sixers coaching search indicates that the team is no rush to make a decision, but that doesn't bother in-house candidate Michael Curry, writes Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer.  Curry, who conducted the team's pre-draft workouts and coached the Sixers summer league team, is expected to be interviewed and was told from the start by general manager Sam Hinkie that the coaching search would be a long process. 
  • The Bobcats and restricted free agent Gerald Henderson are having ongoing contract discussions about a return to Charlotte, but are still not close financially, tweets Marc J. Spears of Yahoo Sports.  Just last week, we heard that the Bobcats and Henderson had reached a stalemate.  It doesn't look like things have changed much, but the report that the sides are still communicating is good news for Bobcats fans.
  • With the Heat now rumored to be the unofficial frontrunner to land Greg Oden, Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel wonders what type of message it would send if the team used the taxpayer mid-level exception, worth about $3.2MM, on the injury-prone Oden only days after re-signing Chris Andersen, who contributed to their second straight title run, for about half the price.  Winderman also speculates that the Heat could try to move Joel Anthony in a cost-cutting move that would easier allow them to ink Oden (Twitter links). 
  • Kris Joseph, waived yesterday by the Celtics, will likely look to latch on with an NBA team in a training camp this fall.  The Nets, with whom Joseph finished last season, are said to have interest in the forward, tweets Steve Bulpett of the Boston Herald, but are prohibited from signing him for a year after shipping him north in the deal to acquire Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett