Latest On Wizards, Randy Wittman
4:45pm: Multiple Wizards players tell J. Michael of CSN Mid-Atlantic they expect the team will fire Wittman.
12:47pm: The belief is widespread in NBA coaching circles that the Wizards are poised to fire Wittman, reports Marc Stein of ESPN.com (Twitter link).
9:52am: It’s unlikely the Wizards will keep Randy Wittman for next season, the last on his contract, league sources tell Jorge Castillo of The Washington Post, who adds that Wizards players believe that Wittman senses the team won’t retain him. That jibes with the general sentiment of late, with Michael Scotto of SheridanHoops reporting last week that Wittman isn’t expected to keep his job and Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com expressing that same belief in a recent appearance on WTEM-AM’s “The Tony Kornheiser Show” (audio link, scroll to 10:45; transcription via James Herbert of CBSSports.com).
Conversely, the Wizards are expected to retain team president Ernie Grunfeld, Castillo writes. Previous reports have conflicted on that matter.
Wittman’s contract calls for him to make more than $3MM per year, Castillo notes, though only an unknown portion of that is guaranteed for next season. Several people around the league wondered as the season began about the possibility that the Wizards would let Wittman’s fate hang in the balance until July so that free agent target Kevin Durant could weigh in on the decision, as The Vertical’s Chris Mannix reported for SI.com in November. That was before a disappointing season that’s appeared to dampen the chances of Durant choosing to play in his native Washington, D.C.
The season has taken a toll on the relationship between Wittman and his players, as J. Michael of CSN Mid-Atlantic recently wrote, and it’s the combination of that and the team’s subpar performance that have sparked the belief amongst the players that Wittman thinks he’s about to lose his job, according to Castillo. Wittman took the team to the second round of the playoffs the past two years, the first time that’s happened for the franchise since back-to-back trips to the Finals in 1978 and 1979, but Washington has been eliminated from contention for a postseason berth with a 40-41 record this season.
Does Wittman deserve to take the fall for the struggles of the Wizards? Leave a comment to share your thoughts.
Community Shootaround: Suns Coaching Search
The Suns are reportedly planning on casting a wide net this offseason in the search for their next head coach. Interim coach Earl Watson will be among the candidates in the running, with Phoenix also considering Sixers assistant and former Suns head coach Mike D’Antoni, former Suns player and current Grand Canyon University coach Dan Majerle and Warriors assistant Luke Walton. Villanova coach Jay Wright is also reportedly in the mix, though there have been conflicting reports about the Suns’ level of interest in the 2016 NCAA National Championship winner.
GM Ryan McDonough had said that Watson would be a candidate for the job shortly after he replaced former coach Jeff Hornacek, and Watson has the support of at least some of the players. Phoenix is just 7-23 since Watson took over, though injuries have limited Brandon Knight to 10 games and Eric Bledsoe to none during that stretch. While the team hasn’t climbed in the standings under Watson, he has improved the Suns’ defense, with Phoenix notching a defensive rating that is good for 12th-best in the league over its past 10 contests. Before Watson arrived, the Suns were a lowly 29th in that category.
Team owner Robert Sarver was reportedly interested in hiring former MVP Steve Nash to coach the team back in February, but Nash remains uninterested in going into coaching on a full-time basis, according to Marc Stein of ESPN.com. Nash currently wants to focus on fatherhood, his various off-court interests, the part-time consulting role with the Warriors that he took on at the start of this season, and his duties as GM of Team Canada, according to Stein.
This brings me to the topic for today: Who should coach the Suns next season?
Has Watson done enough to have the interim tag removed from his job title, or do you feel the team needs to bring in some fresh blood? Out of the reported candidates, who would be the best fit in Phoenix? Take to the comments section to share your thoughts and opinions on the subject. We look forward to what you have to say.
Hoops Rumors Chat Transcript
4:02pm: We hosted the weekly live chat.
3:15pm: It’s a busy around the NBA on the final day of the regular season, Kobe Bryant‘s last as an active player. So, little introduction is necessary for today’s chat.
Utah C Jakob Poeltl Declares For Draft
University of Utah sophomore center Jakob Poeltl will enter this year’s draft and plans to hire an agent, the school announced. The 7’1″ 20-year-old is the No. 8 prospect in Jonathan Givony’s DraftExpress rankings and No. 10 with Chad Ford of ESPN.com. He’ll lose his college eligibility once he signs with an agent, so it appears he won’t withdraw from the draft by the NCAA’s May 25th deadline.
It’s no surprise that Poeltl is in this year’s draft to stay, given his intriguing size, his rebounding and shot-blocking acumen, and his coordination in the pick-and-roll, attributes Ford lists among the big man’s many strengths. He averaged 17.2 points, 9.1 rebounds and 1.6 blocks per game as he picked up Consensus All-American and Pacific-12 Player of the Year honors. His 64.6% shooting led the conference and was eighth in NCAA Division I.
Poeltl’s low-post game could use some work, according to Ford, but he scored a career-high 32 points against NCAA Tournament-bound Temple in a game this past November. Poeltl came to Utah from Vienna, competing on the amateur level in Austria and representing the country in international competitions.
Pistons Sign Lorenzo Brown To Two-Year Deal
1:29pm: The signing is official, the team announced.
7:53am: The Pistons plan to re-sign point guard Lorenzo Brown to a contract that encompasses tonight’s regular season finale against Cleveland, the playoffs and a team option for next season, league sources tell Shams Charania of The Vertical (Twitter link). It’s a move that hints at some concern regarding an abdominal strain that kept Reggie Jackson from playing in Tuesday’s loss to Miami, since coach/executive Stan Van Gundy said last week that he didn’t plan to re-sign Brown and intended to keep an open roster spot, barring injury. Van Gundy nonetheless said Tuesday that he wasn’t too worried about Jackson’s availability for the start of the playoffs in spite of the ab issue, MLive’s Aaron McMann notes.
Brown didn’t appear in a game for the Pistons on either of the 10-day contracts he signed last month. Van Gundy referred to the first 10-day deal with Brown as an insurance move, as Jackson was dealing with a viral issue while third-stringer Spencer Dinwiddie recovered from a deep bone bruise in his ankle. Brown’s last NBA action came in January, when he was on two 10-days with the Suns. The 25-year-old averaged 2.5 points, 1.4 assists and 1.1 turnovers in 7.6 minutes per game across eight appearances with Phoenix. He spent much of the season with Detroit’s D-League affiliate, putting up 18.3 points, 5.8 assists and 2.9 turnovers in 33.3 minutes per game. The relationship between the Pistons and the former N.C. State standout, who was the 52nd pick in the 2013 draft, dates to the 2014 preseason, when Brown was on Detroit’s NBA roster for training camp.
The latest deal between the Pistons and Brown figures to be worth $5,572 for the balance of this season, plus whatever playoff share Brown receives, assuming it’s a minimum-salary arrangement, as would be standard for this type of signing. Next season’s minimum for Brown is $1,015,696, though a chance exists that it’s a non-guaranteed salary rather than a true team option.
Cavs Sign Dahntay Jones
The Cavs have signed veteran swingman Dahntay Jones for tonight’s regular season finale and the playoffs, the team announced via press release. The team had an open roster spot, so no corresponding move is necessary. Cleveland was reportedly unlikely to fill the vacancy, so the signing appears to be a reversal of plans, perhaps related to concern regarding the injured Mo Williams, who’s traveling to New York today for further examination on his sore left knee, as Chris Haynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer and the Northeast Ohio Media Group reports.
Jones, 35, spent most of the season with the D-League affiliate of the Pistons following a preseason stint with the Nets, who waived him before opening night. The Cavs will face the Pistons in the first round of the playoffs.
The 11-year NBA veteran played a bit role on the Clippers last season, averaging less than a point per game in 33 appearances. The Clippers were apparently fond of Jones for his contribution to team chemistry, so it’s conceivable that played a role in Cleveland’s decision, given the pressure surrounding the Cavs. Still, Jones proved he still has on-court value during his time in the D-League this season, sticking 41.2% of his 3-pointers. He averaged 15.7 points, but he made his reputation in the NBA as a stout defender.
Cleveland is limited to the minimum salary, so the deal figures to cost the Cavs $26,467 in salary and luxury tax payments. Jones is in line to see $8,819 plus a playoff share.
Memphis SF Dedric Lawson Opts Against Draft
University of Memphis freshman small forward Dedric Lawson won’t be in this year’s draft, the school announced (Twitter link). The school refers to the 6’8″ 18-year-old as having withdrawn from the draft, though it doesn’t appear as though he ever entered. In any case, it looks like he won’t take advantage of the new rules that would have allowed him to go through workouts with NBA teams and, if invited, take part in the NBA combine while retaining his college eligibility. That’s somewhat surprising, since he was a candidate to go in the middle of the second round, with Chad Ford of ESPN.com ranking him the 45th-best prospect. Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress pegs Lawson as the 28th-best freshman.
Lawson put up strong numbers this season, with 15.8 points and 9.3 rebounds per game. His rebounding average led the American Athletic Conference, and he was third in the conference with 1.7 blocks per contest. He showed range, knocking down 35.0% of his 3-point attempts, but he committed a conference-leading 104 total turnovers over 33 games, so NBA types will surely look for improvement in that area when he returns to school for next season.
The native of Memphis entered his hometown school at No. 32 in the Recruiting Services Consensus Index. His impact was almost immediate, as he went for 22 points and 15 rebounds against eventual Final Four team Oklahoma in just the second game of the season.
Hoops Rumors Community Shootaround 4/12/16
According to Gery Woelfel of The Journal Times, Bucks GM John Hammond will either be fired or resign from his post soon, and people close to the team told Woelfel that coach Jason Kidd is on shaky ground as well. Lottery-bound Milwaukee has disappointed this year and can finish no better than 35-47 after last season’s 41-41 record. The news on Kidd lends credence to a February report from The Vertical’s Adrian Wojnarowski that noted the coach was losing his influence with Bucks owners in the wake of player personnel moves Kidd spearheaded that haven’t panned out.
The Bucks were expected to take the next step forward toward contention this season, especially after landing Greg Monroe in free agency last summer. But the big man hasn’t been a great fit in Milwaukee’s system and the franchise reportedly had talks with the Pelicans about Monroe before the trade deadline. Bucks owners vetoed a would-be trade with the Pelicans that Kidd was spearheading, according to Wojnarowski, though it’s unclear if that deal would have involved Monroe. Milwaukee also made the controversial decision to trade Brandon Knight last season in exchange for Michael Carter-Williams, who doesn’t appear to be the team’s long-term answer at point guard.
This brings me to the topic for today: Who is more to blame for the current state of the Bucks — Jason Kidd or John Hammond?
Do you place the majority of the blame in Milwaukee on Kidd, whose fingerprints are on a number of the team’s recent roster moves and who coaches the team on a nightly basis? Or do you blame Hammond for the overall construction of the roster, as well as its deficiencies? Take to the comments section to share your thoughts and opinions on the matter. We look forward to what you have to say.
And-Ones: Brown, Van Gundy, Jackson
The Nets have gone 11-33 under interim coach Tony Brown, who understands that he is coaching for his job but asserts that he is unfazed by the pressure involved, Anthony Puccio of NetsDaily relays. “I feel like the situation has been tough from the beginning,” Brown said. “I’ve tried to make the best of it, and I’m going to continue to do that the last two games and whatever happens, happens. I’m not worried about my fate with this organization. I’m just trying to give these guys a great opportunity to showcase their skills, and I’m going to continue to do that.”
Here’s more from around the league:
- Pistons coach/executive Stan Van Gundy won the trade market this season, with his deals for Marcus Morris, Reggie Bullock and Tobias Harris being clear victories for the franchise, writes Rod Beard of The Detroit News. The scribe also points to the offseason signing of Aron Baynes, who has provided solid minutes as the backup center, as another strong roster move by Van Gundy.
- Notre Dame junior point guard Demetrius Jackson intends to hire Priority Sports to represent him, Michael Scotto of Sheridan Hoops tweets. Hiring an agent would eliminate the possibility of Jackson returning to school for his senior campaign. The 21-year-old is ranked No. 11 in Jonathan Givony’s DraftExpress listings and 25th according to Chad Ford of ESPN.com.
- Dragan Bender is easily the most tantalizing among the international prospects who are entering the 2016 NBA Draft, opines Derek Bodner of USA Today. The big man’s combination of size, speed and mobility have NBA scouts excited for his potential, though he will need to add strength and bulk before he can hope to be a force in the NBA, Bodner adds. Bender is the No. 3 overall prospect according to both Ford and Givony.
2015/16 D-League Usage Report: Hawks
The NBA’s relationship with the D-League continues to grow and this season a total of 19 NBA teams have one-to-one affiliations with D-League clubs. Those NBA organizations without their own affiliates were required to assign players to D-League teams associated with other NBA franchises. D-League teams could volunteer to take on the assigned players, and if no volunteers emerged, the players were assigned at random.
This significant change from the 2014/15 season came about after the Pacers purchased the Fort Wayne Mad Ants and turned them into their one-to-one partner for the 2015/16 campaign. Other NBA teams have interest in following suit in the years ahead, and the NBA’s ultimate goal for the D-League is for all 30 NBA franchises to have their own D-League squads. You can view the complete list of D-League affiliates here.
We at Hoops Rumors will be recapping the D-League-related activity for the 2015/16 campaign for each team and we’ll begin with the the Atlanta Hawks, one of the 11 NBA franchises without their own D-League affiliate:
The Hawks made 18 assignments for the 2015/16 campaign, sending three different players to the D-League for a total of 122 days (and counting). Atlanta sent the majority of their assignees (14 out of the 18) to the Spurs’ affiliate in Austin, which is only logical given the similarities between the two teams’ systems. The Hawks also made three assignments to the Canton Charge, who are the Cavaliers’ affiliate, and one to the Bakersfield Jam, who are affiliated with the Suns.
Listed below are all the assignments and recalls made by the Hawks for the 2015/16 campaign:
- November 11th: Assigned Edy Tavares (1st) [Austin Spurs] — Recalled November 15th
- November 13th: Assigned Lamar Patterson (1st) [Austin Spurs] — Recalled November 15th
- December 3rd: Assigned Edy Tavares (2nd) [Canton Charge] — Recalled December 6th
- December 3rd: Assigned Tim Hardaway Jr. (1st) [Canton Charge] — Recalled December 6th
- December 5th: Assigned Lamar Patterson (2nd) [Austin Spurs] — Recalled December 6th
- December 17th: Assigned Edy Tavares (3rd) [Austin Spurs] — Recalled December 21st
- December 28th: Assigned Tim Hardaway Jr. (2nd) [Austin Spurs] — Recalled January 3rd
- December 30th: Assigned Edy Tavares (4th) [Austin Spurs] — Recalled December 31st
- January 13th: Assigned Lamar Patterson (3rd) [Austin Spurs] — Recalled January 16th
- January 13th: Assigned Edy Tavares (5th) [Austin Spurs] — Recalled January 17th
- January 27th: Assigned Edy Tavares (6th) [Austin Spurs] — Recalled February 1st
- February 8th: Assigned Edy Tavares (7th) [Austin Spurs] — Recalled February 12th
- February 26th: Assigned Lamar Patterson (4th) [Austin Spurs] — Recalled February 28th
- February 26th: Assigned Edy Tavares (8th) [Austin Spurs] — Recalled February 28th
- March 1st: Assigned Lamar Patterson (5th) [Canton Charge] — Recalled March 25th
- March 2nd: Assigned Edy Tavares (9th) [Bakersfield Jam] — Recalled March 4th
- March 6th: Assigned Edy Tavares (10th) [Austin Spurs]
- March 29th: Assigned Lamar Patterson (6th) [Austin Spurs]
Here is how the Hawks’ players performed while on assignment to the D-League this season:
- Tim Hardaway Jr. — In five combined appearances, the shooting guard averaged 18.8 points, 2.6 rebounds and 2.0 assists in 26.9 minutes per contest. His shooting line on the season is .413/.324/.882.
- Lamar Patterson — In 19 combined appearances, Patterson notched averages of 12.8 points, 4.0 rebounds and 4.3 assists in 26.9 minutes per night. The swingman’s slash line is .432/.257/.783.
- Edy Tavares — In 29 combined appearances, the center averaged 9.2 points, 8.4 rebounds, 0.4 assists and 3.3 blocks in 21.6 minutes per outing. His slash line is .652/.000/.707.