Here are some notes from the only division in the East with no team left standing:
Phil Jackson appeared on the Dan Patrick Show (video link) this morning to promote his new book, to compare Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant, and to address a few more items of note. The Zen Master confirmed to Patrick that he doesn't intend to return to coaching, but did talk about another job he had discussed with the prospective Seattle ownership group. Here are a few highlights from Jackson's appearance:
On whether he would have been involved with a Seattle franchise had the Kings relocation been approved:
"I had an agreement with the guy that put the deal together for Seattle.... Chris Hansen. I thought he was dynamic, I thought he had great ideas. He went through the whole process of getting an arena. He did everything right, except win the franchise. But his vision I could buy into. I thought he had the right vision for a team. And he made basically the offer of take what you want to take as a job -- a consultant, if you want to be an owner, be a part-owner, work in the basketball operations side of it if you want to, or coach. It didn't matter to him. We talked about a number of things that would progress the team that was going to move, which was Sacramento, which is a team that has to improve to be a significant team that's going to stay in Sacramento."
On whether the Clippers have reached out to him:
"No, I've never had any contact with Clippers management."
On the best offer he has received recently:
"Well, the Brooklyn situation I think is a good situation.... That was coaching, basically. They wanted to know if I was still interested in coaching."
On whether he thinks Dwight Howard will re-sign with the Lakers:
"Would you, if you felt like your game wasn't going to be featured?"
ESPN.com's Marc Stein passes along a few notable tidbits in his latest piece for TrueHoop, including word of a potential Clippers target, a Phil Jackson update, and some items on the coaching front. Let's dive in and check out the highlights....
Several days after a report indicated that Stan Van Gundy was unlikely to return to head coaching for the 2013/14 season, Van Gundy himself confirmed the news to David Baumann of Sports Talk Florida. Van Gundy told Baumann that he won't coach an NBA team next year, citing family reasons.
According to Van Gundy, he has not interviewed with any teams for their head coaching openings, despite being contacted by a handful of clubs. The former Magic coach has turned down all available opportunities, he tells Baumann. We had previously heard that Van Gundy interviewed with the Hawks as well as the Bucks. Assuming those reports weren't entirely off base, perhaps both teams just spoke to SVG rather than formally interviewing him.
With Van Gundy seemingly off the market, the Hawks and Bucks will be forced to look elsewhere for their new head coaches, while teams like the Nets and Clippers, who had also been linked to Van Gundy, will also have to explore other options. Grantland's Zach Lowe wonders (via Twitter) if Van Gundy is expecting a more desirable job to become available next offseason, though for now it's probably safe to take SVG at his word and assume he's making a family decision.
Scott Skiles is the frontrunner in the Nets' coaching search, according to Dave D'Alessandro of the Newark Star-Ledger. Skiles has been said to be in the mix for the Nets job since shortly after P.J. Carlesimo's dismissal, but this is the first time it has been indicated that he is at the top of the club's wishlist.
The Nets have been seeking an experienced coach who preaches defense and the former Suns, Bulls, and Bucks head man certainly fits the bill. He's also known for being a strict, no-nonsense coach, an approach that may not jive with star guard Deron Williams.
Other coaches said to be high on the Nets' wishlist include longtime NBA assistant Brian Shaw and Larry Brown. The Nets also made a very public overture to Phil Jackson, but they were quickly shot down by the Zen Master. Yesterday, we also heard Lionel Hollins is on Brooklyn's list.
Earlier today, Ken Berger of CBSSports.com wrote that Dwight Howard was showing interest in the Rockets and Mavericks while he contemplates his free agent fate this summer and ignores the Lakers' request to re-sign with them as quickly as possible. The Lakers can offer Howard a fifth year and more money because the 2011 CBA allows annual raises of 7.5% over the first year, which would be in excess of $20MM for Howard; the other teams bidding for the 27-year-old center's services, including the long shot Nets and Hawks, can only offer increases of 4.5% over the first year.
Remember, Howard is just entering his peak years, and will likely sign another max contract before he retires, so a four-year deal with an option for the final year would allow him to become a free agent again at 30, when he can then sign a larger five-year deal. While Howard takes his time deciding, do you think he re-signs with the Lakers, or does he jump to some other team said to be in the mix?
Gery Woelfel of the Racine Journal Times begins his look around the NBA with a profile on first-round prospect Glen Rice Jr., who could become the most highly drafted player to come out of the D-League. The Journal Times scribe also touches on offseason rumblings from around the league, and we'll round up the highlights here:
10:45pm: There have been some updates on the second to last day of the Chicago predraft camp, which started on Thursday and ends tomorrow night, as well as other draft-related news, including a few players who hope their names are announced earlier, rather than later, by David Stern in June.
3:00pm: There isn't on-court action at the Chicago predraft camp this weekend as there was Thursday and Friday, though teams and players remain in town until tomorrow. Several general managers tell Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel that they would prefer the event focus less on putting players through drills and afford them more time for interviews. With ESPN televising the part of the combine with players on the hardwood, I wouldn't expect the GMs to get their wish anytime soon. Here's the latest draft-related news:
Spencer Lund contributed to this post
Let's round up the latest out of the Atlantic, where the division's lone remaining team (the Knicks) will attempt to stave off elimination at Madison Square Garden tonight....
Michael Pina contributed to this post.
Brian Shaw will interview to be the new head coach of the Pistons, according to a report by WXYZ-TV passed along by Vincent Goodwill of The Detroit News. The former player is in the midst of a playoff run as an assistant coach with the Pacers, but once their season ends, Shaw will interview for the head coach position. Pacers president Donnie Walsh has asked that his assistants not interview for other jobs until after the team's playoff run.
In a recent article for HoopsHype, longtime Phil Jackson confidant Charley Rosen said that he wouldn't be surprised if Jackson's former player was offered the Pistons job. The Zen Master, of course, is currently serving as a hiring consultant for Detroit.
Shaw is also in the running for the Nets' head coaching position, with Larry Brown and Jackson himself on Brooklyn's list of candidates, though Jackson isn't interested in the Nets' opening. Shaw is also up for the Sixers open slot as head coach, as we learned earlier this month.
Mitch Lawrence of the New York Daily News doesn't hide his distaste for advanced metrics in his latest dispatch, and he thinks the Nets should wait to hire a new coach until the Grizzlies make their decision on Lionel Hollins official. If Memphis management determines Hollins, whose contract is up at season's end, doesn't fit with the team's new emphasis on statistics, the Nets should pounce on the coaching free agent, Lawrence writes. Given that Hollins said yesterday that the Grizzlies want him back, however, I'd be surprised if he's changing addresses this summer. Here's more from Lawrence on the Grizzlies and the rest of the NBA:
Guaranteed Contracts
Options
Non-Guaranteed Contracts
Free Agents / Cap Holds
Draft Picks
Cap Outlook
This time last year, the Nets were busy putting the finishing touches on a shiny new arena in Prospect Heights, but didn't really have a clue as to what kind of product they'd be putting on the floor in 2012/13. In fact, there were only four players under contract for their inaugural season in Brooklyn with Deron Williams and Gerald Wallace holding player options. Even though it seemed like things would get hot and heavy between the Mavs and the Nets' star guard, Billy King & Co. ultimately re-signed Williams thanks to the Joe Johnson deal and, depending on who you ask, Mark Cuban's decision to tend to his reality show rather than meet with his club's No. 1 free agent target.
Eighty-nine games later, the Nets have burned through two coaches and are seeking out someone who will put a sizable buffer between themselves and coach No. 4. In a redux of 1999, the Nets made their pitch to land Phil Jackson but were quickly rebuffed. Beyond the Zen Master, they find a very deserving longtime assistant in Brian Shaw and another infamous name from their own history - Larry Brown. There's also the brothers Van Gundy (Jeff, Stan), possible darkhorse Mike Dunleavy Sr., and Deron's bestest friend in the whole wide world, Jerry Sloan. There's no telling who the next hire will be for the Nets, but they'll presumably seek out someone who can push this team to play tough defense on a nightly basis and mix up the team's playcalling a smidge. After all, you can only rotate between a Williams isolation play, a Johnson isolation play, and a Williams/Brook Lopez pick-and-roll so many times before the opposition wises up.
Making a change on the bench will only get Brooklyn so far, but it's going to be extremely challenging for this club to truly shake up this roster. The trades for Johnson and Wallace gave the Nets a short-term boost, but their contracts make them nearly impossible to flip for younger talent. Johnson will earn $70MM over the next three seasons while Wallace, who appears to be in decline and frustrated with his recent play, will make $33MM in that span.
Kris Humphries, who had a very disappointing campaign, will also be hard to move as he is set to make $12MM next season. A team may be willing to take on his expiring contract in hopes that he returns to his form of the previous three seasons, but the Nets will have to sweeten the pot with another piece to get anything of value in return. The talented and under-utilized MarShon Brooks could help entice someone to take on Hump. Last offseason's import Mirza Teletovic or 2011 first round pick Bojan Bogdanovic, who will reportedly join the club this summer, could also be decent trade chips. None of those three players would guarantee a worthwhile deal, however.
The club struggled when it came to pairing someone in the frontcourt alongside Lopez. When Humphries found himself on the pine, Reggie Evans stepped up and did the dirty work. However, Evans' lack of offensive acumen makes it tough to give him starter's minutes, especially when he's sharing the floor with Wallace. Re-signing the sometimes brilliant and sometimes aimless Andray Blatche will go a long way towards solidifying the frontcourt, but they'll need to address the power forward position in order to take a step forward next season. Someone in the middle of the spectrum between Evans' balls-to-the-wall approach and Lopez's offensive mindset would suit them extremely well.
Can they get a high caliber four with Humphries and a few shiny pieces? Could Johnson or Wallace be moved for assets that can be useful in both the short- and long- term? Neither seems terribly likely given the club's salary cap situation. That's why the Nets' coaching search is so critical. It could be the biggest impact move possible for this team.
Additional notes:
Cap footnotes:
Storytellers Contracts and Sham Sports were used in the creation of this post.
After spending 17 years playing professional basketball in Europe, Pablo Prigioni has enjoyed his first taste of the NBA this season with the Knicks. Prigioni will be a free agent at season's end, but George Bass, who represents Prigioni, tells Jared Zwerling of ESPNNewYork.com that his client is interested in re-signing with the Knicks.
"Pablo really enjoyed himself here, and he has interest in playing again next year," Bass said. "He's fallen in love with New York, there's no doubt. The Knicks are just a first-class organization, so it's been good all the way around."
Here are a few more updates from around the Eastern Conference:
After a night without NBA action, the headlines are a little scarce on this Friday morning. But there are still a handful of notable links to round up, particularly out of the Atlantic Division....
Stan Van Gundy's name has been linked to the head coaching search in Milwaukee and the potential opening in Los Angeles, should the Clippers part ways with Vinny Del Negro, but it doesn't appear he'll be targeted by the Nets. ESPN.com's Chris Broussard reported earlier this week that Van Gundy wasn't on Brooklyn's list, and Chris Mannix of SI.com echoed that report on Mike Bianchi's Open Mike radio show in Orlando.
"I've spoken to sources who've told me ... Stan Van Gundy is not a candidate," Mannix said. "It's possible that Jeff Van Gundy could get a call, but from what I understand Stan Van Gundy is not a top candidate for that job."
Here are a few more notes from around the Atlantic Division:
Two nights after the Bulls shocked the Heat in Miami and the Spurs outlasted the Warriors in a double-OT thriller, all four teams are back in action tonight. As we look forward to an encore of Monday's incredible doubleheader, let's check out a few odds and ends from around the NBA:
With the 2013 draft lottery less than two weeks away, no division has less invested in the outcome of the ping-pong balls than the Atlantic -- the Celtics, Nets, and Knicks are already locked into their first-round picks, having made the playoffs, while the Sixers and Raptors, at 11th and 12th in the lottery standings, each have less than a 3% chance of jumping into the top three. The Raps have likely already resigned themselves to giving up their pick, since it will be sent to the Thunder unless it lands in the top three.
Here are a few more Wednesday notes out of the Atlantic:
TUESDAY, 10:51pm: A source tells ESPN that Jackson is still open to coaching if he has a say on the roster, tweets ESPN L.A.'s Ramona Shelburne. Shelburne says that the legendary coach would prefer a front office gig, but would be willing to coach if he had power within the franchise. Jackson is a in "listen mode," not "look mode," Shelburne tweets, adding that it would have to be a perfect fit, a la Pat Riley in Miami (Twitter links here).
5:18pm: Jackson is not interested in a return to coaching and therefore will not become the next coach of the Nets, reports Tim Bontemps of the New York post, citing a league source. Yahoo's Adrian Wojnarowski confirms the Post report, also tweeting that Jackson's inclination remains to make his NBA return in a "broader management role."
MONDAY, 8:30pm: The Nets have contacted Phil Jackson about the possibility of becoming their next coach, a source told Chris Broussard of ESPN.com. After Jackson, the source says the list of current Nets' candidates consists of Larry Brown and Brian Shaw.
Nate McMillan, Jeff Van Gundy, and Stan Van Gundy aren't on the list, the source said, but that could change if the Nets strike out on their aforementioned top three choices. Celtics coach Doc Rivers would interest the Nets though if the Celtics agree to let him out of his current contract, the source said.
Jerry Sloan is a long-shot candidate for the gig, even though Deron Williams recently endorsed him. Nets GM Billy King understands that Jackson is not likely to come to Brooklyn to coach, but he is open to bringing Jackson into the front-office, according to the source. Jackson would perhaps join the Nets as the team's president while also getting a slice of stake in the club's ownership.
Shaw would be a likely coaching candidate if Jackson joined the Nets front office thanks to the prior ties between the two.
We saw earlier today that J.B. Bickerstaff was on the Pistons' radar. On Wednesday, the Rockets assistant will interview for the team's head coaching vacancy, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports, adding that Bickerstaff's stock as a head coaching candidate has risen rapidly of late in the eyes of NBA execs. Phil Jackson, who is serving as a consultant in the Pistons coaching search, quietly flew into Detroit on Monday and was scheduled to meet with team president Joe Dumars on Tuesday, reports Vincent Goodwill of the Detroit News. Here are some other news and notes from around the Association:
There are plenty of names being thrown into the mix for the Nets' head coaching opening and seemingly just as many being taken out of the equation. Sam Amick of USA Today is the latest to chime in on the subject, reporting that Scott Skiles is among Brooklyn's candidates, but that the chatter about a Jerry Sloan/Deron Williams reunion probably shouldn't be taken seriously. Here are a few more Tuesday odds and ends from around the NBA: