Bobcats’ Dunlap Close To Choosing Staff
Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer reports that new Bobcats head coach Mike Dunlap is close to filling out his first coaching staff in Charlotte. Brian Winters and Dan Leibovitz have emerged as heavy favorites to take the final two spots on Dunlap's bench, joining Rick Brunson and Stephen Silas.
Winters, who was named an All-Star twice as a player, has NBA head coaching experience, having coached the Vancouver Grizzlies from 195 to 1997. He has also served as head coach of the WNBA's Indiana Fever, and as an assistant in the NBA with the Cavs, Hawks, Nuggets, and Warriors.
Leibovitz, like Dunlap, comes from the college coaching scene, having served four seasons as Hardford's head coach, as well as stints as an assistant with Temple and Penn.
Poll: Clippers Offseason Acquisitions
Earlier today, Earl Bloom of the Orange County Register touched on several aspects of the Clippers' offseason. While their summer has certainly been dwarfed by that of their Staples Center co-tenants, the Lakers, who added Dwight Howard and Steve Nash, the Clips have certainly made some significant moves. Which of the Clippers' new acquisitions do you think will have the biggest impact? Vote in the poll and weigh in with your thoughts in the comments.
Bloom On Clippers, Olshey, Del Negro
Earl Bloom of the Orange County Register has a new column that touches on the Clippers' offseason following the departure of GM Neil Olshey.
- Bloom believes the loss of Olshey isn't as big a blow for the future of the Clippers as it had been made out to be, praising the job Vinny Del Negro, Andy Roeser, and Gary Sacks have done in his place.
- The veteran pieces the Clippers have brought in this offseason, including Jamal Crawford, Willie Green, Grant Hill, Lamar Odom, Ryan Hollins, and Ronny Turiaf, could prove to be very valuable, writes Bloom.
- Bloom would not be surprised if one of Del Negro, Roeser, or Sacks succeeds Olshey as general manager, pointing to the fact that Mike Dunleavy previously pulled coach/GM double duty for the Clippers.
Thunder Notes: Ibaka, Harden, Luxury Tax
Early this morning, we learned that the Thunder reached agreement with Serge Ibaka on a four-year, $48MM contract extension. Oklahoma City now has three of their core members locked up in Ibaka, Russell Westbrook, and Kevin Durant, but some wonder how the deal will affect James Harden's future. Here's more out of Oklahoma City..
- From a financial standpoint, things will now get even more interesting for General Manager Sam Presti and the organization moving forward, writes Lang Greene of HoopsWorld. If Harden gets a deal worth $11-$13MM annually, the Thunder would have roughly $68-$71MM of salary commitments tied into six players starting in 2014. Doing that would force Oklahoma City to delve into luxury tax territory while filling out the rest of the roster.
- A $12MM average annual salary for Ibaka was expected but certainly isn't a bargain, tweets Zach Lowe of SI.com. The Thunder will now be flirting with the luxury tax line in 2014 and '15 and Lowe writes that getting under the threshold or staying close in the next two years will be critical.
- The sizable deal means that the Thunder have opted to put a great deal of support behind Ibaka, who is not of the same caliber as Harden, opines Matt Moore of CBSSports.com.
Hoops Links: Knicks, Johnson, Martin, Olympics
On this date in 1992, Larry Bird announced his retirement from the NBA after 13 incredible seasons. Larry Legend went out on the highest note possible after he and the Dream Team captured the gold medal in Barcelona, Spain. The forward played with toughness and grit until the very end of his NBA career but was severely hampered by back issues in his later years and, clearly, had nothing left to prove. The Hall of Famer finished his career with 24.3 PPG, 10.0 RPG, and 6.3 APG with 49.6% shooting from the floor. Bird also accumulated more accolades than the space in this post will allow: three NBA titles, three MVP awards, two Finals MVP awards, twelve All-Star nominations, and much, much more.
If you have a great blog piece that you think we should feature in Hoops Links, then send it to me at HoopsLinks@gmail.com. Here's this week's look around the blogosphere..
- Hardwood Paroxysm isn't all that high on the Knicks' offseason.
- Nets Are Scorching celebrates Joe Johnson week.
- Red94 tackles the Kevin Martin dilemma.
- SecretRival has an updated list of summer league players that have hooked on overseas.
- Basketball Prospectus ranks the recruiting classes of the last ten years.
- Wages Of Wins has compiled projections for every team, as built, for the next five seasons.
- Raptors Republic liked the play of Jonas Valanciunas in London.
- Bucksketball didn't see Carlos Delfino as a great fit for the Rockets.
- Hoops Addict makes the case for Ante Tomic.
- Bright Side Of The Sun recaps Jared Dudley's summer on Twitter.
- Swish Appeal breaks down the women's team phenomenal defense against France.
- Truth About It believes that Nene Hilario's play in the Olympics will change how he's used this year.
- NBA 24 7 365 doesn't like the Dwight Howard trade for the Magic.
- The Basketball Post looks at potential lottery pick Alec Brown.
- Pounding The Rock isn't so sure that the Howard deal will work out for the Lakers.
- The NBA Geek dispels the fallacy of small ball.
- Buckets Over Broadway marvels at the spending in the Atlantic Division.
- RealGM says that the Bulls never really had a chance with D12.
If you have a suggestion for this feature, Zach can be reached here.
Odds & Ends: Olympics, Blazers, Jason Terry
With the Olympics in the books and the start of the 2012-13 nearly three months away, we've hit a lull in the year where basketball of any sort still remains weeks, not days, away. Make sure you take a moment to catch up on our features and other original content to help you get your NBA fix. With Friday nearly in the books, here's the latest news and headlines from around the league…
- Much speculation has been made about a possible age limit for the 2016 Olympics in Rio where only players 23 and under would be eligible to play for their country. Patrick Baumann, the head of FIBA, conducted an in-house interview on Friday and announced that FIBA has no plans to implement an age restriction for 2016.
- Beyond adding three assistant coaches to the mix on Friday, the Trail Blazers will retain former NBA guard Hersey Hawkins as the player development director, tweets Chris Haynes of CSNNW.com. Dan Dickau's future as an assistant to Hawkins remains unclear as he is a part-time employee (via Twitter).
- Bill Ingram of HoopsWorld says Jason Terry will be key to the Celtics' title hopes given his experience with the Mavericks. Even though the Heat will remain the favorite entering the season, Ingram believes the Celtics will be contenders as the 2012-13 season approaches.
- Celtics assistant general manager Mike Zarren has emerged as a contender for the Sixers' general manager position, reports SI.com's Sam Amick. The position has become more desirable as a result of the team acquiring All-Star center Andrew Bynum via trade earlier this month.
Deron Williams Talks Olympics, Barclays, Season
Nets.com writer Ben Couch had the opportunity to sit down and chat with Deron Williams upon the All-Star guard's return to Brooklyn after the Olympics. The two-time Olympic gold winner admitted his latest medal hasn't really left his neck since receiving it on Sunday. Here are a few highlights from the conversation:
On what it feels like to win a second gold medal during the Olympics:
It means a lot. I think it's really special to be an Olympian, to have that honor just to be an Olympian. But to win two Gold Medals is a great accomplishment — there's only eight people that have done that as far as basketball is concerned. I definitely feel honored to have had the opportunity.
On how he developed a relationship with the many talented players on the roster as a point guard:
It's a little bit of both: it's easier, just because you have so many weapons and you know it can come from anywhere on any given night. But for the most part, you don't play like you do during the season; you kind of have to adapt and adjust, and that takes some getting used to. But I think it's fun, and I think we enjoyed it.
On his perceptions of the Barclays Center and his level of excitement to play there:
I'll be surprised if it's open in a month, from looking at it. I kept messing with them: 'You guys got a lot of work to do in the next 43 days.' We'll see, but I went a week before I left (for the Olympics) — so about six weeks ago — and the changes from then to now, you definitely can see them. And I went a couple of months before that, and it didn't look anything like it does now, then. So they're definitley making progress. They're working on it 24-7, they've got the scoreboard up. I went and saw my suite, where my family's going to sit during games. So that was cool.
On the moves the Nets made during the offseason and how he thinks the team will fare in 2012/13:
I thought we made great moves. I think we'll put a great team out there. It should be an exciting team. Only time will tell how good we can be, once we get into training camp and see how we mesh and jell.
Blazers Add Three Assistants To Coaching Staff
The Trail Blazers announced on Friday the addition of three assistant coaches to Terry Stotts' coaching staff, according to a team report. Jay Triano, David Vanterpool and Kim Hughes are headed to Portland to join Kaleb Canales, who will return as an assistant after serving as interim head coach. Stotts may be in the market to add one more assistant to fill out his bench.
Triano, 53, most notably served as the head coach of the Raptors for three seasons before transitioning into his most recent position as the organization's vice president of professional scouting. After being drafted by the Lakers in the eighth round, Triano headed to Europe to play professionally for three seasons.
Vanterpool, 39, leaves a scouting position with the Thunder to join the staff in Portland. The former St. Bonaventure star served as an assistant coach for CSKA Moscow after his playing career ended.
Hughes, 60, served as interim head coach for the Clippers after the franchise parted ways with Mike Dunleavy during the 2010 season. The former Badgers big man dominated during his time at Wisconsin before enjoying a successful professional career both domestically and abroad.
Odds & Ends: Wolves, Okur, Nuggets, Muhammad
It's been a slow day for NBA news and rumors, but there are still plenty of links worth checking out. Here are a few that have trickled in over the course of the day:
- The Timberwolves wouldn't mind adding another big man, and are "kicking around" the idea of Mehmet Okur, tweets Darren Wolfson of ESPN 1500. As Wolfson notes, however, considering Minnesota only has the minimum salary to offer, Okur is an unlikely target for the team.
- If the Nuggets are able to lock up Ty Lawson and Andre Iguodala to long-term deals, it would ensure that a "thrilling nucleus" is in place in Denver, writes Benjamin Hochman of the Denver Post.
- UCLA freshman Shabazz Muhammad tells HoopsWorld that he's not expecting to necessarily be a "one-and-done" player, but I'd be surprised if the top prospect doesn't enter the draft after his freshman season. Plus, as Yannis Koutroupis writes, given the NCAA's current investigation that's putting Muhammad's amateur status in jeopardy, the star recruit could be fortunate to play even one year at UCLA.
- Dwyane Wade tells Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel (Sulia link) that his recovery from knee surgery is on schedule and he expects to "turn it up more" in the next couple weeks.
International Notes: Gordon, Simmons, Wallace
With things relatively quiet on the NBA front these days, we'll keep track of today's international news and rumors right here….
- Undrafted rookie free agent Drew Gordon has signed with Serbia's Partizan Belgrade, according to Sportando. The 6'9" forward out of New Mexico was ranked as this year's 56th-best prospect by ESPN.com's Chad Ford and played for the Mavericks at the Las Vegas Summer League, but won't be heading to camp with an NBA team.
- Former NBA big man Cedric Simmons has signed with Enel Brindisi in Italy, according to Sportando. Simmons played for the Hornets, Cavs, Bulls, and Kings from 2006 to 2009.
Earlier updates:
- Greek's Panathinaikos reportedly has some interest in Ben Wallace, as Emiliano Carchia of Sportando notes. I imagine it's unlikely anything comes of this, since Wallace is said to be debating between retiring or returning to the Pistons.
- Goran Dragic's brother Zoran Dragic played in the Las Vegas Summer League for the Rockets, but won't be coming to the NBA at this point. As Wendell Maxey writes at Ridiculous Upside, Spanish reports suggest Zoran is close to signing a two-year deal with Unicaja Malaga.
- Ilkan Karaman, who was selected 57th overall by the Nets in the June draft, has officially signed with Fenerbache Ulker Istanbul, the team announced (link via Sportando). Brooklyn will retain the Turkish forward's rights if and when he eventually makes his way over to the NBA.