Sacrifice Could Pay Off For West
- Assistant-turned-temporary head coach Mike Brown has seen his career revitalized with the Warriors and Anthony Slater of the Mercury News has all of the details of the former Cavaliers bench boss’ journey in a must-read feature.
- Put simply, David West turned down over $10MM last season, instead opting for the chance to compete for a title with the Spurs. Now with the Warriors, Daniel Brown of the Mercury News writes, West is at the doorstep of the NBA Finals.
Steve Kerr Plans To Attend Game 1
1:07pm: Brown says Kerr will watch today’s game from the locker room, posts Ramona Shelburne on ESPN Now.
11:24am: Warriors coach Steve Kerr will be at today’s opener of the Western Conference finals, tweets Monte Poole of CSNBayArea. Poole says multiple sources have told him of Kerr’s intentions, but he doesn’t specify whether Kerr will be on the bench or just a spectator.
On Saturday, Kerr made his first appearance at practice since he had to leave the team for health reasons in the middle of the first round. He also attended a coaches’ meeting on Friday, but didn’t speak to the media on either occasion.
Kerr is trying to overcome the lingering effects of back surgery that he underwent nearly two years ago, including severe migraines. He had a spinal cord leak procedure nine days ago at Duke Medical Center.
Lead assistant Mike Brown has taken over in Kerr’s absence, guiding Golden State to six straight victories and its third consecutive appearance in the Western finals.
Cavaliers Notes: Lue, Brown, Blatt, Defense
A broken hand suffered by reserve center Edy Tavares has reinforced Tyronn Lue’s decision not to scrimmage during the Cavaliers’ long break, writes Marla Ridenour of The Akron Beacon Journal. Lue is working to keep the Cavs focused during a nine-day layoff as they await the winner of the Celtics-Wizards series. Lue admits the team is “itching to play” as he guides the players through walkthroughs, but he won’t consider scrimmages because of the injury risk. Point guard Kyrie Irving supports the decision. “An incident happened in practice where somebody got hit in the hand and it just wasn’t good,” Irving said. “I was about to come out and play five-on-five and the incident happened three seconds later as T-Lue comes out of the door. Naw, I’m not for scrimmaging right now until the game.”
There’s more news today as the wait continues in Cleveland:
- Mike Brown and David Blatt have both prospered since being fired by the Cavaliers, notes Terry Pluto of Cleveland.com. Brown took two years off after his dismissal, passing on chances to become a lead assistant with the Thunder and head coach at Nevada-Las Vegas. Last summer, he became the Warriors’ top assistant and has assumed head coaching duties with Steve Kerr sidelined for health reasons. Brown could wind up coaching against the Cavs in the NBA Finals. Blatt, who was fired midway through last year’s championship season, is the highest-paid coach in Europe, guiding Darussafaka Dogus in the Turkish League. He led the club to its first-ever Euroleague playoff berth.
- After struggling on defense all season, the Cavaliers have improved on that end in the playoffs, writes Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com. The Cavs ranked 22nd in defensive efficiency during the season, but are fourth since the postseason began. Still, Lue jokes that he wishes the players could remember their defensive assignments as well as they remember their pre-game handshake routines.
- The Cavaliers are among the teams showing interest in Arizona shooting guard Rawle Alkins, according to Sam Amico of Amicohoops. Cleveland doesn’t have a pick in this year’s draft, but could buy a late selection like it did last year to obtain Kay Felder. The Cavaliers, Thunder, Pelicans and Heat have all contacted Alkins’ high school coach to get more information, according to Adam Zagoria of Fanrag Sports (Twitter link).
Steve Kerr Attends Warriors Practice
Steve Kerr felt well enough to join the Warriors for today’s practice, writes Chris Haynes of ESPN.com. It marked the first time that some players have seen their head coach in almost two weeks.
Kerr, who is still dealing with the effects of back surgery from 2015, hasn’t coached the team since Game 2 of its first-round series with Portland. He underwent a spinal cord leak procedure last week in an attempt to relieve severe headaches and other symptoms that have lingered since the operation.
“It’s obviously great any time you get to hear his voice, see his face,” Stephen Curry said. “He’s obviously been doing his homework in between. His downtime is to help us get prepared for the series and you know he misses being around the day-to-day routine, the atmosphere, practice and locker rooms and games and all that. So, for him to even just have the energy and ability to be here means a lot. Hopefully, he’s feeling better.”
Kerr helped to conduct today’s practice for the first time since leaving the team, but did not speak to the media afterward, tweets Tim Kawakami of The San Jose Mercury News. Kerr was able to attend a coaches’ meeting on Friday, according to Haynes.
Lead assistant Mike Brown continues to serve as head coach in Kerr’s absence and has a 6-0 record heading into the start of the Western Conference finals on Sunday. The team still isn’t sure if Kerr will be able to return to the bench before the end of the playoffs.
Leonard Will Play Game 1 Against Warriors
Gregg Popovich says that small forward Kawhi Leonard will play for the Spurs in Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals series against the Warriors on Sunday, reports Melissa Rohlin of MySA.com.
As Rohlin tweets, Leonard was a full participant in Saturday’s practice. After rolling his ankle in Game 5 of the Spurs’ series against the Rockets, the Spurs’ star missed the series’ decisive Game 6, which the Spurs won 114-75.
Warriors Part Ways With NBADL Coach, Extend Oracle Lease
- The Warriors and their D-League head coach, Casey Hill, are parting ways, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical (via Twitter). Hill, who won a title with the Santa Cruz Warriors in 2015, is seeking out an NBA assistant coach job, Wojnarowski adds.
- The Warriors have agreed to a two-year lease extension to remain at Oracle Arena through the 2018/19 season, according to an Associated Press report (link via NBA.com). The franchise is expected to make the move from Oakland to a new arena across the bay for the 2019/20 season, but the new agreement with Oracle Arena includes options for three additional years, just in case that move to San Francisco gets delayed.
Kerr Undergoes Spinal Cord Leak Procedure
Warriors coach Steve Kerr had a spinal cord leak procedure on Friday, according to Anthony Slater of The Bay Area News Group.
Team owner Joe Lacob told Bloomberg Radio the procedure was performed at Duke Medical Center, and the prospects for Kerr’s return to the bench remain uncertain. Kerr has missed the past five games with lingering complications from his back surgery in 2015.
Lacob explained that the “dura around the spinal cord” was nicked during that operation, which led to severe headaches and other symptoms.
“Unfortunately usually they patch that with a blood patch and it’s over,” Lacob said. “Either in a week or month. Whatever. And in his case for whatever reason they just haven’t been able to solve that problem. Hopefully it was solved yesterday he had another procedure. It’s gone on for nearly two years. Very unusual I believe. I have a medical background so I know a little bit about this. I’ve never really heard of many people having this problem for this long.
“We feel really bad for him, the players, everybody understands it. We just have to be in his court here and support whatever it takes for him to get back and I’m sure they will eventually solve it. Hopefully sooner rather than later and hopefully we’ll have him coaching on the court sooner rather than later.”
Latest On Steve Kerr
Warriors head coach Steve Kerr remains out indefinitely, and is extremely unlikely to return to the team’s bench before the end of Golden State’s series against the Jazz, reports Ramona Shelburne of ESPN.com. Mike Brown will continue to coach the Warriors in the interim.
According to Shelburne, Kerr is seeing a specialist at Duke University Medical Center on Friday and is receiving treatment aimed at alleviating the symptoms that have been ailing him as of late. Kerr, who underwent surgery on his back two years ago, continues to experience the effects of complications from that procedure, including severe headaches, nausea, and dizziness.
While the Warriors would love to see Kerr back on the sideline, the team’s players are moving forward with the expectation that Brown will be the head coach for the rest of the playoffs, as we heard earlier this week.
As Shelburne tweets, Kerr was adamant during his first leave of absence last season that he didn’t want to return to the Warriors until he was healed and ready to coach full-time. That’s even more important this time around, Shelburne notes.
McGee Enjoying Success Commensurate to his Talent
JaVale McGee has been an enigma — more often a punchline for on-court gaffes than receiving praise for his athletic ability — during his nine-year NBA career, which has included stints with five different organizations. However, the 7’0″ center has put his skill set together to be a productive part of the Warriors‘ early run the playoffs, Marc J. Spears of The Undefeated writes.
In his first postseason with the Warriors, McGee is averaging 8.2 PPG, 3.4 RPG, and shooting the basketball at an efficient .760 clip. As McGee explains to Spears, the perception of him being a distraction has fueled him to work harder to disprove detractors: “I haven’t done [anything]. Nothing at all. I have the same perception of guys doing bad stuff, getting DUIs and things like that. I have nothing like that. It’s frustrating knowing how hard you work,” McGee said. “That is just the misconception of what people see. It’s just a testimony to keep working hard, stay positive and eventually things will work out for you.”
The Warriors swept the Trail Blazers in the opening round and currently hold a 1-0 lead over the Jazz in the Western Conference semifinals. McGee’s energy and production have been a huge reason for the team’s postseason success.
Pistons Notes: Baynes, Caldwell-Pope, MLE, Draft
Aron Baynes probably won’t decide whether to opt out of his contract for next season until close to the June 20th deadline, according to Vince Ellis of The Detroit Free Press. The back-up center is set to make $6.5MM next year, but has the chance to get a much larger payday on the open market. He is considered one of the top reserve big men in the league, averaging 4.9 points and 4.4 rebounds in 72 games this season. The Pistons are limited in their offer because they only hold Early Bird Rights on Baynes. That means they can go over the cap, but can only give him a 175% raise, which would amount to about $11.3MM for next season. “He’s enjoyed himself there,” said Baynes’ agent, Entersport Management president Marc Fleisher. “He likes [Pistons coach Stan Van Gundy], he likes the organization, but he’s also got to consider the financial ramifications.”
There’s more news out of Detroit:
- Restricted free agent Kentavious Caldwell-Pope has an evidentiary hearing set for May 18th in connection with his March arrest for DUI, Ellis adds in the same piece. Caldwell-Pope may face a suspension from the league if he is convicted.
- Pistons GM Jeff Bower is considering the $8.4MM mid-level exception as a way to upgrade the roster, Ellis writes in a separate story. Detroit has made good use of the MLE in the past, signing Chauncey Billups in 2002 and Antonio McDyess in 2004, but Ellis notes that the league’s changing salary structure has made it harder to find good players at that level. He mentions Boston’s James Young and Golden State’s Ian Clark as possible targets.
- The Pistons will face difficulty in building a contender without a high draft pick on the roster, writes Keith Langlois of NBA.com. Detroit’s highest draftees are Caldwell-Pope and Stanley Johnson, who went with the eighth pick in their respective drafts. Andre Drummond, who was taken ninth in 2012, and Marcus Morris, who went 14th in 2011, are the Pistons’ only other lottery picks. “We’re one of two teams that don’t have a top-seven pick anywhere on their roster,” Van Gundy said. Detroit is slotted at No. 12 heading into the May 16th lottery.