Knicks To Interview Spurs’ Will Hardy
The Knicks have received permission to interview Spurs assistant Will Hardy for their head coaching position, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link).
Hardy, who has been with the Spurs since 2010, was initially hired as a basketball operations intern before becoming a video coordinator for the team. He was named an assistant coach in 2016 and was promoted to the front of the bench a year ago, following the departures of Ettore Messina and Ime Udoka. The 32-year-old Hardy is “well-regarded” within the Spurs’ organization, per Wojnarowski.
With Hardy joining the Knicks’ list of potential coaching candidates, we’re now up to at least eight who are expected to interview. Tom Thibodeau, Kenny Atkinson, and interim coach Mike Miller have long been considered candidates, with Mike Woodson joining the mix a couple weeks ago. On Wednesday, reports indicated that Udoka, Pat Delany, and Chris Fleming are also expected to interview for the job.
Although Ian Begley of SNY.tv has said that the Knicks will likely speak to eight-to-10 candidates during their head coaching search, he doesn’t rule out the possibility that the list of interviewees will continue to grow. Jason Kidd and Mark Jackson have fans within the organization, according to Begley, who says there’s also some interest in meeting with former Cavs and Lakers coach Mike Brown. Spurs assistant Becky Hammon has been identified as a name to keep an eye on as well, as Begley confirms.
Thibodeau has been viewed as the frontrunner for the job for several weeks, and Atkinson also has legitimate support within the organization. However, it’s possible one of the assistants the Knicks are interviewing will make a lasting impression on the club during the interview process.
New York is expected to conclude its search sometime before the season resumes in Orlando at the end of July, says Begley.
Celtics’ Tremont Waters Named NBAGL Rookie Of The Year
Celtics two-way player Tremont Waters has been named the NBA G League Rookie of the Year for the 2019/20 season, the league announced today in a press release.
The 51st overall pick in the 2019 draft, Waters didn’t receive the attention from media and fans that fellow Celtics two-way player Tacko Fall did, but the former LSU guard thrived in his first professional season.
In addition to appearing in 10 games for Boston, Waters was Maine’s starting point guard for 36 games, averaging 18.0 PPG, 7.3 APG, 3.2 RPG, and 2.0 SPG with a shooting line of .429/.354/.780 in 33.8 minutes per contest. He helped lead the Red Claws to a 28-14 record, good for third in the NBAGL’s Eastern Conference.
Previous NBA G League Rookies of the Year don’t necessarily have a lengthy track record of eventual NBA success, but several recent recipients of the award have become rotation players at the NBA level, including Quinn Cook, Abdel Nader, Tim Frazier, and especially Robert Covington.
Waters beat out Jarrell Brantley and Devontae Cacok, who finished second and third, respectively, in the NBAGL Rookie of the Year vote. Brantley plays for the Salt Lake City Stars, the Jazz‘s affiliate, while Cacok is a member of the South Bay Lakers.
Pistons Hire Thunder’s Troy Weaver As General Manager
The Pistons have officially hired Thunder executive Troy Weaver as their new general manager, announcing the move today in a press release.
The club confirmed in the announcement that Weaver will be formally introduced in a video press conference next week. Meanwhile, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, who first reported that the two sides were finalizing an agreement, says that Weaver’s deal will be for four years (Twitter links).
“Troy is an outstanding executive with an exceptional track record for identifying and developing talent,” team owner Tom Gores said in a statement. “In talking with Troy, he’s got both the skill and temperament to lead, and the confidence and creativity to work collaboratively with others. We’re excited for him to take the reins as General Manager of the Pistons at this important moment. Ed and the team have done excellent work creating flexibility with our roster and establishing a clear direction. Troy comes aboard to help take us to the next level.”
Weaver, who had been with the Thunder for more than a decade following a stint with the Jazz, most recently held the title of vice president of basketball operations after previously serving as the team’s VP/assistant GM. He was Sam Presti‘s top lieutenant in Oklahoma City and had been a candidate for other top basketball operations jobs around the NBA in recent years.
Weaver was reportedly in the running for the Wizards’ general manager opening a year ago before the team decided to remain in-house, promoting Tommy Sheppard. Weaver also received interest from the Bulls this spring, but reportedly turned down a second interview because he had heard Chicago was zeroing in on Arturas Karnisovas.
We heard way back in May of 2018 that the Pistons were interested in pursuing Weaver, though nothing came of it at the time — the club instead hired Ed Stefanski as a senior advisor, making him the de facto head of basketball operations. Now, Weaver is on track to work alongside Stefanski in Detroit’s front office.
There has been speculation that Stefanski could eventually shift to a background role with the franchise, which could put Weaver in line to assume control of the basketball operations department. For now, the expectation is that Weaver will work closely with Stefanski and head coach Dwane Casey on personnel matters, with Stefanski retaining final say.
The Pistons’ GM search also saw the team seriously consider Clippers assistant GM Mark Hughes and Nets assistant GM Jeff Peterson, though Weaver was viewed as the organization’s top choice. His “strong history of personnel decisions” helped win him the job, according to Wojnarowski, who notes that Weaver becomes the fourth Thunder executive under Presti to leave Oklahoma City for a GM job with another club — Rich Cho, Rob Hennigan, and Michael Winger also did so.
Having recently lost assistant GM Malik Rose to the NBA’s league office, the Pistons may still make one or two more additions to their front office. Nets director of player personnel J.R. Holden and Warriors assistant GM Mike Dunleavy were rumored to be on the club’s radar for non-GM roles.
Draft Notes: Choh, Lawson, Combine, Bolmaro
Tamenang Choh, a forward from Brown, is withdrawing from the draft and will head back to school for his senior year, coach Mike Martin tells Jeff Goodman of Stadium (Twitter link).
Choh averaged a career-best 13.2 PPG in 27 games last season to go along with 8.1 RPG and 3.3 APG. However, he struggled with his efficiency, making just 39.2% of his shots from the field – including 29.2% from beyond the three-point line – and 65.5% of his free-throw attempts.
Here’s more on the 2020 NBA draft:
- Following a report from Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports (Twitter link) suggesting that South Carolina guard A.J. Lawson will pull out of the draft and return to school, his father Anthony told Adam Zagoria of ZagsBlog.com that A.J. “is still in the draft.” For now, we’re leaving him in the “testing the waters” section of our early entrant tracker.
- If a draft combine exists in any form this year, the primary objective will likely be to get prospects’ measurements and medicals, says Jeremy Woo of SI.com. The on-court aspect, including drills and scrimmages, would likely be significantly limited, if it happens at all, according to Woo.
- Spain’s basketball league, the ACB, resumed play in Wednesday. Within his Insider-only breakdown on how that return-to-play will work, Jonathan Givony of ESPN.com identifies five candidates to be drafted in 2020 and 2021 who are playing in the ACB and are worth keeping an eye on, including potential ’20 first-rounder Leandro Bolmaro.
Knicks Plan To Interview Udoka, Others For Head Coach Job
4:58pm: The Knicks are also expected to interview Bulls assistant Chris Fleming, according to Ian Begley of SNY.tv, who hears that the club will likely meet with about eight-to-10 candidates in total. Steve Popper of Newsday (Twitter link) hears that Spurs assistant Becky Hammon is among those who could interview with the Knicks too, though that’s not yet confirmed.
3:54pm: In addition to meeting with Udoka, the Knicks also plan to interview Magic assistant Pat Delany, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link). A former G League head coach for Miami’s affiliate, Delany has spent six years as an assistant coach under Steve Clifford, first in Charlotte and now in Orlando.
3:39pm: The Knicks intend to interview Sixers assistant Ime Udoka for their head coaching vacancy, reports Shams Charania of The Athletic (via Twitter).
Udoka joins a list of candidates that includes Tom Thibodeau, Kenny Atkinson, Mike Woodson, and Mike Miller. Atkinson reportedly has some support within the Knicks’ organization, though Thibodeau is considered the frontrunner. Woodson and Miller are also expected to interview — if they haven’t already.
Udoka, 42, enjoyed a seven-year playing career that ended in 2011 after suiting up for the Spurs, Trail Blazers, Kings, Knicks and Lakers. He was part of Gregg Popovich‘s staff in San Antonio for seven seasons before joining the 76ers last spring. Udoka also interviewed for the Cavaliers’ head coaching job last year before the team hired John Beilen.
Interestingly, Udoka was recently reported to be a leading candidate for the Bulls’ head coaching job in the event that they move on from Jim Boylen. It’s not clear whether New York’s apparent interest in Udoka will prompt Chicago to accelerate its evaluation process with Boylen at all.
John Wall Talks Restart, Cousins, Olympics, More
Wizards guard John Wall believes Kyrie Irving has raised some reasonable concerns as NBA players weigh the league’s restart plan this summer. Appearing on The Tuff Juice Podcast with Caron Butler, Wall suggested that he’d have reservations about playing in Orlando even if he were healthy enough to do so.
“For me, if I was playing, I wouldn’t want to go to it, to be honest,” Wall said, per Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington. “I just don’t feel like it’s safe. I just don’t feel like it is. I understand why they want to do it and what they’re trying to get to, but I wouldn’t want to.”
The Wizards are currently 5.5 games back of a playoff spot and would only force a play-in tournament if they can pull to within four games of either the Magic or the Nets. Even then, Washington would have to win two consecutive games in a play-in tournament in order to claim the No. 8 seed, which Wall seemed to acknowledge will be an uphill battle.
“If I was healthy enough to play, I wouldn’t want to go play,” he said, according to Hughes. “What am I going, just to play eight games? I’m not going for just eight games and then coming back home.”
While it may be somewhat cynical to point out, it’s worth noting that players like Irving and Wall might be more comfortable taking a stand on the issue when injuries will rule them out anyway. If they were fully healthy, it’s possible they’d feel extra pressure not to let down teammates by sitting out.
Here’s more from Wall:
- In an Instagram Live interview with Marc Spears of The Undefeated on Wednesday, Wall said he’s still encouraging the Wizards to sign his good friend and former Kentucky teammate DeMarcus Cousins. “Oh man, you know I’m trying to push for that,” Wall said (hat tip to Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington). “I’ve been on that for like five years. I want to sign him right now.”
- Wall said that he and GM Tommy Sheppard have discussed the possibility of signing Cousins “here and there,” admitting that it might make sense for the big man to wait until next year to return — like Wall is doing. Cousins is recovering from a torn ACL.
- During that same interview with Spears, Wall said that he’d like to play for Team USA in the Tokyo Olympics next summer, and has conveyed his interest to USA Basketball (Twitter link via Hughes). The Wizards’ point guard wasn’t one of 44 preliminary Team USA finalists announced in February, but could become a more viable candidate now that the event has been pushed back a year.
- Wall also discussed the Black Lives Matter movement and other social-justice issues in an interesting conversation with Fred Katz of The Athletic.
Suns’ Oubre Expected To Remain Sidelined For Rest Of 2019/20
Suns forward Kelly Oubre isn’t expected to return to action when the 2019/20 season resumes in Orlando, reports Shams Charania of Stadium (video link).
Oubre underwent surgery on a torn meniscus in his right knee on March 3, approximately a week before the NBA suspended its season. At the time, the Suns announced that he’d be re-evaluated in four weeks, though there was an expectation that he may miss the rest of the season.
With the end of the season having pushed back by several months, Oubre’s new return timeline had been unclear. However, Charania suggests that the 24-year-old still has rehab and therapy work to do on his injured knee. Although Oubre will likely travel to Orlando with the Suns, he isn’t expected to suit up for games as the club looks to make up ground in the Western Conference playoff race.
Oubre enjoyed a career year in Phoenix in 2019/20, averaging 18.7 PPG, 6.4 RPG, and 1.3 SPG with a .452/.352/.780 shooting line in 56 games (34.5 MPG). He has one season left on the two-year deal he signed with the club last July.
The Suns, meanwhile, join the Spurs as Western challengers who will be without a key player when the season resumes this summer. LaMarcus Aldridge will miss the rest of ’19/20 for San Antonio after undergoing shoulder surgery.
Hornets Notes: Free Agency, Draft, Bacon
Hornets president of basketball operations Mitch Kupchak made it clear earlier in the 2019/20 league year that he doesn’t expect his team to be a major player in free agency during the 2020 offseason, despite projecting to be one of the few clubs with real cap room. However, that doesn’t mean that Charlotte will ignore the free agent market entirely.
“We’ll look to acquire talent via trades and depending on the circumstances, we will look at the potential of a strategic free-agent signing,” the Hornets’ executive said, per Rick Bonnell of The Charlotte Observer (Twitter link).
As Bonnell notes in a separate tweet, a “strategic” signing for the Hornets could be a smaller deal that focuses on a specific area of need, such as rim protection or more offensive versatility on the wing.
Here’s more on the Hornets:
- Appearing on WFNZ in Charlotte, Kupchak admitted that the Hornets aren’t in position to focus on positional need in the draft rather than opting for the best player available (Twitter links via Bonnell). “We’re just not good enough to do that right now — to bypass maybe a more talented player because we think we need help at a certain position,” Kupchak said.
- Speaking of the draft, Kupchak recently said that the Hornets have interviewed approximately 25 players who could be picked in the late first or early second round (Twitter link via Bonnell). Charlotte doesn’t have its own second-round pick, but has Cleveland’s, which will be No. 32. The Hornets are focusing on meeting with candidates for that pick rather than their lottery selection because top prospects generally haven’t been participating in many video calls yet (Twitter link via Bonnell).
- Hornets guard Dwayne Bacon is eligible for restricted free agency this offseason and appears unlikely to return to Charlotte. Bacon said last week that his best option would be to “go somewhere else” as a free agent, according to Bonnell (Twitter link).
- In a mailbag for The Charlotte Observer, Bonnell discussed Nicolas Batum‘s future, how a lower-than-expected salary cap would affect the Hornets in 2020/21, and a handful of other topics.
Atlantic Notes: Irving, Nets, Tatum, Durant, Knicks
In a recent group chat, Kyrie Irving urged his Nets teammates to skip the restarted season this summer, according to Stefan Bondy of The New York Daily News, who says the star guard also put forth the idea of players starting their own league.
Taylor Rooks of Bleacher Report (Twitter link) hears from sources that Irving never said the Nets should start their own league in response to the bubble plan. However, the wording of that denial leaves some room for interpretation — it doesn’t mean Irving never floated the concept, or that it wasn’t part of a separate conversation from the one about participating in the bubble.
Either way, it’s an eyebrow-raising idea. It’s not entirely out of the realm of possibility that the world’s best players could launch and run a successful league, but it would be a long, challenging process to get enough players on board and to attempt to build the sort of infrastructure the NBA already has in place. For now, it’s not really a realistic possibility.
For what it’s worth, Rooks adds that Irving left the group chat following the publication of Bondy’s report.
Here’s more from around the Atlantic division:
- Within that same Daily News article, Bondy cites a source who says Celtics forward Jayson Tatum has expressed some reluctance about playing this summer, since he’s eligible for a maximum-salary extension this offseason and feels as if there will be an elevated risk of injury when play resumes. While Bondy’s report may be accurate, I’d be shocked if Tatum didn’t ultimately suit up — even a major injury likely wouldn’t prevent the C’s from offering him a lucrative long-term deal.
- Even at full strength, the Nets wouldn’t be a real threat to win the title this season, according to Marc Stein of The New York Times, who lauds Kevin Durant‘s willingness to remain patient with his Achilles recovery rather than pushing to return to action in Orlando.
- As first reported by Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic (Twitter link), the Knicks are hiring Pelicans scout Alex Kline to a front office role. Kline will take on a larger role in New York, working under new assistant GM Walt Perrin, league sources tell Vorkunov.
Christ Koumadje Named NBAGL Defensive Player Of The Year
Now that the remainder of the NBA G League’s 2019/20 season has been officially canceled, the league is moving forward with its end-of-season awards, announcing today that Delaware Blue Coats big man Christ Koumadje has been named the NBAGL Defensive Player of the Year.
Koumadje, who went undrafted out of Florida State in 2019, signed an Exhibit 10 contract with the Sixers last July. Philadelphia waived him before the season began and made him an affiliate player for the Blue Coats.
A G League rookie, Koumadje emerged as the league’s most fearsome rim protector almost immediately, averaging an NBAGL-best 4.0 blocks per game in 33 contests. The Chad native also averaged a double-double, recording 11.3 PPG and 10.9 RPG in just 26.4 minutes per contest. His most impressive outing came on February 1, when he logged a triple-double consisting of 18 points, 20 rebounds, and 12 blocks.
It’s not clear if or when Koumadje will get a shot at the NBA level with the 76ers or another team. Some recent NBAGL Defensive Player of the Year winners, including Chris Boucher (2019) and DeAndre Liggins (2014, 2016) have played rotation roles in the NBA.
Canton Charge swingman Sir’Dominic Pointer and Westchester Knicks forward Kenny Wooten were the top two runners-up in G League Defensive Player of the Year voting. Wooten is on a two-way contract with New York, while Pointer was in the midst of a 10-day with Cleveland when the NBA suspended its season in March.