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Draft Combine Updates: Thursday Morning

May 16th, 2013 at 11:56am CST by Luke Adams

11:56am: More A.M. updates out of Chicago:

Nerlens Noel told reporters that he hasn't completed any interviews so far, but that he's "pretty sure" he has one scheduled with the Magic. He's not quite so sure about the Cavaliers (Twitter links).
Steven Adams and Kelly Olynyk are among the prospects that have met with the Wizards so far and think they'd fit in well in Washington (Twitter links). Mason Plumlee is also on the Wizards' list, tweets J. Michael of CSNWashington.com.
Olynyk has met with the Bobcats as well, says Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer (Twitter link).
Gorgui Dieng will work out for the Bucks, who will also interview Rudy Gobert and Plumlee, according to Gery Woelfel of the Racine Journal Times (Twitter links).
A couple notes from SI.com's Chriss Mannix (via Twitter): Cody Zeller has spoken to the Raptors, Trail Blazers, Rockets, and Celtics, while Mike Muscala only has interviews lined up with the Spurs and Hawks, but will do "nine or 10" workouts later. One of those workouts will be with the Blazers, tweets Jason Quick of the Oregonian.
Shabazz Muhammad and Deshaun Thomas interviewed with the Timberwolves last night, writes Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune.

11:09am: With a number of reporters in attendance at the NBA's predraft camp in Chicago, we're expecting plenty of noteworthy tidbits to trickle in throughout the day. Here's a round-up of the first batch of updates on 2013's draft combine participants:

According to Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal (Twitter link), the Cavaliers aren't on Otto Porter's list of teams he's meeting with this week. That's a bit of a surprise, given the rumblings that he's high on the team's big board, though as Mary Schmitt Boyer of the Plain Dealer tweets, the Cavs drafted a pair of players they didn't interview last year.
Porter is scheduled to meet with the Wizards, who spoke to Victor Oladipo earlier this week, tweets Michael Lee of the Washington Post. Porter will meet with the Pistons as well, tweets Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press. The Bobcats, Thunder, and Suns have already met with Porter, according to Lee (via Twitter).
The Pistons are also prepared to meet with Shabazz Muhammad today, according to Keith Langlois of Pistons.com (Twitter link). Muhammad interviewed with the Trail Blazers yesterday and felt it went very well, tweets Chris Haynes of CSNNW.com.
Nate Wolters and Adonis Thomas were among the prospects who have met with the Lakers so far, says Alex Kennedy of HoopsWorld (via Twitter).
Glen Rice Jr., who played in the D-League this past season, has been interviewed by the Bucks, Celtics, Warriors, Sixers, and Spurs, he confirmed to reporters (all Twitter links).

Pistons To Interview Brian Shaw

May 14th, 2013 at 10:23pm CST by Spencer Lund

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.

Central Notes: Cavs, Brown, Pistons, Bulls

May 12th, 2013 at 6:17pm CST by Zachary Links

Here's a look at the latest out of the Central division..

Cavs coach Mike Brown is looking for long-armed perimeter athletes who can defend, rebound and score, and the team views Alonzo Gee, who started all 82 games this season, as a backup, writesTerry Pluto of The Plain Dealer.
The Pistons' biggest pick won't come in the draft, it'll come in the selection of their next coach, opines Vincent Goodwill of the Detroit News. Meanwhile, in the draft, Detroit will have a good deal of swing players to choose from but not much in terms of big men. Character will be important for Joe Dumars & Co. but they're also in a position to groom a young player thanks to their level-headed core.
The Bulls just might have the right blueprint for today's smaller NBA, writes Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times.

Coaching Rumors: Hawks, Van Gundy, Pistons

May 11th, 2013 at 1:34pm CST by Zachary Links

Here's a look at the latest coaching notes from around the Association..

Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press adds Thunder assistant coach Maurice Cheeks to the list of candidates drawing interest from the Pistons (Twitter link).
Snyder might not be a candidate in Atlanta, but the Bobcats are expected to interview him, just as they did during their coaching search last year, tweets Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports.

Earlier updates:

Word that the Hawks are going hard after Stan Van Gundy has been overstated, according to Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta-Journal Constitution (via Twitter), though they will talk to him. Incumbent Larry Drew remains a candidate for the position but Quin Snyder is not currently in the mix (Twitter links).
The Pistons will interview Knicks assistant coach Darrell Walker, according to Marc Stein of ESPN.com. That brings Detroit's list to five candidates as they have already interviewed Nate McMillan, Suns interim coach Lindsey Hunter, Spurs assistant Mike Budenholzer, and Rockets assistant J.B. Bickerstaff.

Western Rumors: Lakers, Paul, Josh Smith, Mavs

May 10th, 2013 at 9:51pm CST by Chuck Myron

According to Grantland's Bill Simmons, who finishes off his three-part trade value column, there's "increasing buzz" that the Lakers would amnesty Kobe Bryant if they were guaranteed to sign both Dwight Howard and Chris Paul. That appears a longshot on multiple counts, since the Clippers seem all but assured of re-signing Paul, while the Lakers have insisted they're not considering the amnesty move on Kobe. Even if the Lakers take Kobe's $30MM+ salary for next season off their books, it would still be difficult for the team to fit a max contract for Paul under the cap. Regardless, the offseason figures to be full of intrigue in L.A., as always. Here's the latest from the City of Angels and other Western Conference locales:

HoopsWorld's Bill Ingram identifies the five teams most likely to lure Josh Smith away from the Hawks, with the Mavericks at the top of the list. If the Hawks want to pursue a sign-and-trade, however, that would probably eliminate Dallas from the equation, Ingram figures.
In the same NBA PM piece, Ingram points to recent comments from GM Donnie Nelson and sizes up the Mavs' chances of landing Paul.
George Karl tells Marcos Pineiro of Marca.com that he's had conversations about someday coaching in Europe, since doing so may give him the opportunity to coach with his son, Coby Karl (translation via HoopsHype).
Charley Rosen of HoopsHype identifies the ideal coaching fit for each of the six teams with a current opening. Rosen, a longtime confidant of Pistons adviser Phil Jackson, wouldn't be surprised to see Brian Shaw wind up in Detroit, even though Rosen believes Stan Van Gundy is best suited for that job.
Los Angeles is a destination for many, but the idea of coaching either the Clippers or Lakers doesn't appeal to Van Gundy, HoopsWorld's Steve Kyler hears (Twitter link).
The Jazz will host six second-round draft prospects for workouts tomorrow, as Jody Genessy of The Deseret News details.

Odds & Ends: Thompson, Ellis, Hollins, Turkoglu

May 9th, 2013 at 10:54pm CST by Ryan Raroque

Yahoo Sports' Adrian Wojnarowski looks back to June 2011, when Warriors' GM Bob Myers had worries about not being able to select Klay Thompson knowing that either the Spurs could possibly trade up in the draft to get him or that the Bucks were planning to select him with the 10th overall pick. As it would turn out, San Antonio would wind up trading for the 15th pick (Kawhi Leonard) and the Kings landed the 10th pick to select Jimmer Fredette, leaving the sharpshooting Washington State forward right into the hands of Golden State. Here are a few more miscellaneous notes to share along this evening:

AJ Mitnick of Sheridan Hoops fills us in on the "best of the bunch" in terms of international prospects in this year's draft.
The 76ers aren't expected to hold most of their interviews for their head coaching search until after the Chicago Pre-Draft Camp, writes Tom Moore of phillyBurbs.com, although there is a possibility that the team could conduct some during camp.
According to this report by the Detroit Free Press, the Pistons are widely known to be seeking perimeter help heading into the draft but could look to add more to their frontcourt.
Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News reports that the Lakers have granted the Cavaliers permission to interview Phil Handy about joining Mike Brown's coaching staff in Cleveland.
When asked about the trade that sent Monta Ellis to Milwaukee for Andrew Bogut, Warriors head coach Mark Jackson told reporters that letting Ellis go helped change the culture of the team, writes Scott Howard-Cooper of NBA.com (Sulia link).
ESPN's Chris Broussard tweets that Lionel Hollins will be highly coveted if the Grizzlies opt to not re-sign him this summer, adding that the Nets would figure to be among the interested teams.
Heat owner Mickey Arison engaged in some civil discourse with a fan on Twitter regarding the possibility that Seattle loses out on their bid for the Kings (credit goes to SportsRadioKJR.com). Arison made it clear that he believes that the city of Sacramento has done enough to warrant keeping the team, and refuted the notion that Seattle had put forth the same effort in 2008 before the Sonics franchise ultimately moved to Oklahoma City.
John Denton of NBA.com writes that Magic forward Hedo Turkoglu understands the current youth movement of the franchise and that his time in Orlando could be over within the next coming months.
Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times (via Twitter) reports that Lakers big man Pau Gasol will be held out of basketball activities for the next three months after undergoing an operation on his knee today.

Odds & Ends: Draft, Ewing, Sloan, Kings

May 8th, 2013 at 3:20pm CST by Luke Adams

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:

ESPN.com's Chad Ford provided plenty of new draft-related content today, unveiling version 2.0 of his mock and chatting with ESPN.com readers about next month's draft. Of note: Ford believes Trey Burke's stock continues to rise and that the Michigan guard could go as high as first overall.
With so many teams seeking a new head coach, Patrick Ewing tells Chris Haynes of CSNNW.com that he's disappointed not to be receiving any interest for the open positions.
While it appears no teams have contacted Ewing, former head coach Jerry Sloan has fielded calls from "a couple" teams, as Steve Luhm of the Salt Lake Tribune writes. Sloan characterized those calls as exploratory, with no offers forthcoming at the moment. He also added that he hasn't been contacted by the Nets, meaning there's "no reason to talk about" a potential reunion with Deron Williams.
Speaking to reporters yesterday, Sacramento mayor Kevin Johnson suggested that Chris Hansen "take a step back" from his pursuit of the Kings and start exploring other ways to bring a team to Seattle. Ryan Lillis of the Sacramento Bee has the details.
In his latest mailbag, Keith Langlois of Pistons.com answered questions about potential targets in the draft and free agency for the Pistons.

Coaching Latest: Pistons, Dunleavy, Del Negro

May 7th, 2013 at 7:22pm CST by Alex Lee

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:

We now know that Jackson will not be the Nets next head coach. While Marc Stein wrote that Mike Dunleavy Sr. is not being considered by Brooklyn, it is worth noting that Stefan Bondy and Frank Isola of the New York Daily News have reported that Dunleavy has emerged as a "real dark horse" in a coaching search that involves higher profile names. Dunleavy grew up in Brooklyn.
Vinny Del Negro is expected to meet with Clippers owner Donald Sterling soon about his uncertain future as the team's head coach, reports Ken Berger of CBS Sports. All signs point toward Del Negro being dismissed despite an excellent relationship with Sterling. Berger reports that while Chris Paul is expected to have a say in who replaces Del Negro, his influence may be weaker than most think.
Former coach and current NBA analyst Hubie Brown gave his thoughts on the Bobcats' coaching vacancy on Tuesday, reports Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer. Brown's advice; match your coaching targets with your players strengths. From Brown, "Too many times a coach's style doesn't match the players already under contracts, particularly the top three players. The style of play is critical in relation to the players on the roster. If it doesn't match you're just wasting time."
Brown went on to address the coaching-search misconception that all assistants have close to equal experience, using Tom Thibodeau as a prime example. "The backgrounds of various assistants are totally different," Brown said.

Read more here: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2013/05/07/4028210/nba-analyst-bobcats-should-pick.html#storylink=cpy

Coaching Rumors: Clippers, Pistons, Nets, Hawks

May 7th, 2013 at 11:50am CST by Luke Adams

The latest piece from Marc Stein at ESPN.com includes word that Dwight Howard remains more likely than Chris Paul to leave Los Angeles this summer. One source predicted to Stein that there's "zero chance" Paul signs with any team besides the Clippers. However, while Paul looks like a strong bet to return to L.A., the same can't be said for his head coach. Here are the latest rumblings on Vinny Del Negro and the rest of the NBA's coaching carousel:

Stein refers to Del Negro's dismissal as seemingly "inevitable" and suggests that the Clippers want to go "big" with their next hire. Stan Van Gundy is one name likely to surface, according to Stein.
If Del Negro is let go, Michael Malone, Alvin Gentry, and Byron Scott also figure to be a few top candidates for the position, according to Mark Heisler of HoopsHype.com. Stein endorses that list of contenders, particularly if the team's interest in Van Gundy doesn't go anywhere.
Kelvin Sampson is the Rockets assistant frequently mentioned as a head coach candidate, but J.B. Bickerstaff is also on the Pistons' list, says Stein.
Sampson and Mike Dunleavy aren't currently being considered for the Nets' opening, reports Stein.
Assuming Larry Drew is done in Atlanta, Spurs assistant Mike Budenholzer and former Lakers assistant Quin Snyder are expected to be among the Hawks' targets, says Stein.
Coaching candidate Brian Shaw has yet to be contacted about job openings, according to Ramona Shelburne of ESPNLosAngeles.com (via Twitter). I'd assume the Pacers will give Shaw permission to interview for coaching jobs once Indiana is out of the playoffs.
Kevin Arnovitz of ESPN.com surveyed leagues execs, players, and team personnel on who would make a good first-time NBA coach, and Heat assistant David Fizdale, Grizzlies assistant David Joerger, and Iowa State's Fred Hoiberg were among the top selections.

Odds & Ends: Nuggets, Iguodala, Pistons, Bucks

May 5th, 2013 at 9:15pm CST by Zachary Links

Here's the latest from around the Association..

In an interview with Aaron J. Lopez of Nuggets.com, Nuggets president Josh Kroenke expresses his desire to have likely free agent Andre Iguodala back next season, and details his close working relationship with GM Masai Ujiri, whose contract is up this summer.
Bucks GM John Hammond hinted that this summer he'll be seeking another interior defender to complement Larry Sanders, notes Charles F. Gardner of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, who takes a look at the offseason ahead for the team.
Pistons owner Tom Gores needs to have faith in Joe Dumars' ability to turn things around in Detroit, writes Vincent Goodwill of The Detroit News. While the signings of Charlie Villanueva and Ben Gordon didn't pan out, Goodwill notes that the mandate of previous owner Karen Davidson resulted in no activity for two years and prevented Dumars from correcting those mistakes.