Pacific Notes: Warriors, Curry, Knight
The Warriors beat the Rockets on Saturday night by a score of 115-80 and Stephen Curry passed Reggie Miller for the most three-pointers made in a single postseason. Curry has made 63 shots from behind the arc during just 13 playoff games and has made a staggering 91% of his left corner three attempts. Curry, who signed a four-year, $44MM contract extension in 2012, may have most team friendly deal in the league.
Here’s more from the Pacific Division:
- Brandon Knight will be a restricted free agent this summer and he hasn’t yet made his decision on where he is going to sign, Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic writes. “For myself, just doing what I’m comfortable with and what’s best for myself and for my family,” Knight said. “I can’t speak on that until I know what’s going on and that won’t be until July.”
- Knight, who before coming to Phoenix played a majority of his minutes as a point guard, enjoys sharing the responsibilities with Eric Bledsoe, Coro writes in the same piece. “As far as playing with Eric goes, I think it’s a great thing because you have two players who can attack at any time. Instead of having one team focus on just one of us, being able to have two guys who can really break down a defense at any time, I think will not only make it easy for myself but also make it easier for him as well,” Knight said. “If Eric was a selfish guy, then I think it wouldn’t work but both of us being pretty unselfish guys and really just wanting to win and also being familiar with each other, I think that helps the situation.”
- Dan Bickley of the Arizona Republic believes that Curry could change the NBA, just like Steve Nash did nearly a decade ago. Nash’s impact changed how the league played, cleansing the game of shoot-first point guards in favor of players who empowered their teammates to play a more efficient version of the sport. Bickley wonders if Curry’s success will inspire more prospects to prioritize shooting from long-range.
Southwest Notes: Van Gundy, Hoiberg, Morey
The lure of Anthony Davis may be enough to get Jeff Van Gundy back into coaching, according to Marc Stein of ESPN.com. Stein confirmed Friday that Van Gundy has interest in coaching the Pelicans. He is being considered among the top candidates, along with Alvin Gentry and possibly Tom Thibodeau. Van Gundy, a popular TV analyst with ESPN and ABC, last coached with the Rockets in 2006/07, but Stein writes that the chance to mentor a young superstar like Davis could be enough to bring him back him back to the sidelines.
There’s more from the Southwest Division:
- Bringing Van Gundy on board would be the Pelicans‘ best personnel move to date, contends Jimmy Smith of NOLA.com. Smith notes that Van Gundy’s experience coaching big men like Patrick Ewing and Yao Ming would be valuable in molding Davis into an elite center. Smith also argues that Van Gundy is a big enough name to create excitement throughout the franchise and command the respect of players, along with being a progressive thinker who can adapt to the modern NBA.
- Although he has been rumored to be a coaching candidate in New Orleans, the Pelicans have not made contact with Iowa State’s Fred Hoiberg, writes John Reid of NOLA.com. An ISU spokesman confirmed that the school has not received a request from New Orleans or any other NBA team. The 42-year-old Hoiberg has a 115-56 record at Iowa State and runs an up-tempo offense that should transfer well into the NBA, according to Reid. Hoiberg also has NBA ties — 10 years as a player and four years in the Timberwolves’ front office, where he spent one season as vice president of basketball operations and three as assistant general manager.
- Rockets GM Daryl Morey and Warriors GM Bob Myers have taken non-traditional approaches to building the Western Conference finalists, writes Brian T. Smith of The Houston Chronicle. Myers, the NBA’s Executive of the Year, and Morey have both put together deep rosters that fit well with the way the game is played today.
Southwest Notes: Gentry, Gasol, Mavs
Warriors head coach Steve Kerr confirmed Thursday that lead assistant Alvin Gentry has interviewed for the Pelicans head coaching job, as Kerr told reporters, including Antonio Gonzalez of The Associated Press. Kerr said he’s OK with Gentry taking time to interview on off days, Gonzalez notes, and a source close to Gentry told John Reid of The Times-Picayune that it appears as though Gentry will again interview with New Orleans after Golden State’s season is over. Here’s more from around the Southwest Division:
- Grizzlies coach Dave Joerger feels as though Marc Gasol has essentially already made up his mind about what he’ll do in free agency, but he’ll head to Spain sometime soon to pitch the All-NBA First Team center on re-signing with the Grizzlies, notes Geoff Calkins of The Commercial Appeal in a subscription-only piece. The Grizzlies don’t seem too nervous, but Gasol isn’t giving any promises, and his departure would be a devastating blow to the franchise, Calkins argues.
- Count GM Chris Wallace among those in the Grizzlies organization with confidence in Gasol’s return. “I firmly believe we will re-sign Marc Gasol this summer,” Wallace said on WHBQ-AM radio, according to host Peter Edmiston (Twitter link).
- Unless the Mavericks can lure Gasol or DeAndre Jordan to Dallas this summer, they should prioritize re-signing Tyson Chandler, as Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News believes.
- A panel of ESPN.com writers, in an Insider-only piece, agree that the Pelicans coaching job is more attractive than a would-be opening for the Bulls and that New Orleans should look to re-sign Omer Asik this summer.
Pacific Notes: Lakers, Divac, Draft, Warriors
The Lakers will look at D’Angelo Russell for the No. 2 overall pick, but preliminary indications are that they’ll take either Jahlil Okafor and Karl-Anthony Towns, depending on which one of those two is left after the Timberwolves pick, as Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times hears. Trading the pick is also an option, GM Mitch Kupchak says, as Sean Deveney of The Sporting News tweets. In any case, the choices at No. 2 are a bit better than the Lakers would have had if the lottery had gone according to form and the team had ended up with the fourth pick. Here’s more from around the Pacific Division:
- Kings president of basketball and franchise operations Vlade Divac said his team should be open to trading its draft pick, but in comments that Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee relays, he distanced himself from the mechanics of any such move. “I’m leaving that to my basketball people,” Divac said. It’s an odd statement from the team’s top basketball executive. In any case, Chad Ford of ESPN.com identified the Kings, who pick sixth, among the teams most likely to trade their top-10 pick, along with the Magic, Pistons, Heat and Hornets, as Ford wrote in a chat with readers.
- The Kings and the Pacers are the teams with the most interest in Willie Cauley-Stein, Ford adds in the same piece.
- Andrew Bogut is a fan of the way Steve Kerr handles his assistant coaches, as the big man tells Tim Kawakami of the Bay Area News Group a year after assistant coaches were squarely in the spotlight for Golden State. The departures of assistants Brian Scalabrine and Darren Erman from the Warriors bench last year were symbolic of the tumult near the end of Mark Jackson‘s time as Warriors coach. “In their own way, they all have free reign,” Bogut said of Kerr’s staff. “You see them talk to the media, which is something that wasn’t happening with us the last couple of years. There’s no agendas where a coach thinks, ‘Oh, he’s doing extra workouts with this guy, he’s trying to take my job, or vice-versa, or he’s trying to get himself a head-coaching job.’ We don’t have any of that. We have guys that say something when they need to say something and to be professional throughout.”
James, Curry, Harden Lead All-NBA Teams
LeBron James and Stephen Curry finished atop the voting for the All-NBA Teams, with James Harden, Anthony Davis and Marc Gasol joining them on the first team, the league announced via press release. Russell Westbrook, LaMarcus Aldridge, Chris Paul, Pau Gasol and DeMarcus Cousins comprise the second team. Blake Griffin, DeAndre Jordan, Tim Duncan, Klay Thompson and Kyrie Irving make up the third team.
Curry, the league’s MVP, and James each received 645 points through a system in which five points are awarded a first team vote, three points go for a second team vote and one point is given for a third team vote. The duo garnered 129 first team votes each, making them unanimous first team selections. They were followed closely by Harden, with 125 first team votes and 637 points, and Davis, who had 119 first team votes and 625 points. Marc Gasol, who’s heading into free agency, wasn’t as widely seen as a first-teamer by the media members who cast their ballots, rounding out the squad with 65 first-team votes and 453.
Every member of the second team received at least one first team vote, and Thompson and Irving were the only members of the third team not to get a first team vote. Al Horford also received a first team vote even though he didn’t make any of the teams. The NBA will soon display the votes of each media member on its website, but the league has already distributed the information via press release, so click here to check it out in PDF form.
Pacific Notes: Hill, Kings, Kerr, Lakers
The Lakers landing the No. 2 overall pick in the 2015 NBA Draft lottery could spell the end for center Jordan Hill in Los Angeles, Eric Pincus of The Los Angeles Times writes. With the Lakers expected to select either Karl-Anthony Towns or Jahlil Okafor, coupled with Hill’s team option for 2015/16 worth $9MM, the franchise could find the veteran big man expendable, especially if it wishes to land a max level free agent this offseason, Pincus adds. The 27-year-old appeared in 70 games this past season, averaging 12.0 points and 7.9 rebounds in 26.8 minutes per contest.
Here’s more out of the Pacific Division:
- Despite the Kings not moving up in the draft lottery, team executive Vlade Divac believes the team can turn the No. 6 overall pick into an asset, Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee writes. “We have some options,” Divac said. “I think this class of rookies are very strong. We should be able to get someone who can help us next year.” This could also include the team dealing the pick, Jones adds. “I think we should be very open,” Divac said regarding a potential trade. “Our goal is we want to improve next year. We want to be much, much better.”
- Warriors coach Steve Kerr downplayed his role in the team winning a franchise best 67 games, and said that he simply joined the organization at the best possible time, Brian T. Smith of The Houston Chronicle writes. “I can’t say I expected it but I knew it was a possibility,” said Kerr, referring to the team’s success this season. “It was one of the reasons I took the job. The team has great talent; they were on the rise already. And I felt like we could make improvement and that we would be right in the thick of it in the West. … I probably took over the team at the ideal time. They were good but very hungry.”
- The Lakers securing the No. 2 overall pick in this year’s draft has made the franchise much more attractive to free agents who are on the market this summer, writes Sean Deveney of The Sporting News. “I think it is something that helps out their sales pitch in a big, big way,” one agent told Deveney. “The past couple of years, their pitch has sort of been, ‘Come play for us because we’re the Lakers and the weather is nice.’ That’s not enough. You’ve seen that. They have not had a direction, and that’s why players don’t want to go there.”
Leonard, Green, Allen Lead All-Defensive Teams
Kawhi Leonard, Draymond Green, Tony Allen, DeAndre Jordan and Chris Paul comprise this year’s All-Defensive First Team, the NBA announced via press release. Anthony Davis, Jimmy Butler, Andrew Bogut, John Wall and Tim Duncan are on the second team. Bogut’s selection is perhaps most important, since he triggers a bonus worth 15% of his nearly $12.973MM salary for this season, giving him approximately $1.946MM in extra pay. It also means his cap hit for next season jumps to $13.8MM instead of $12MM, since the bonus will fall in the category of a likely bonus. Still, the extra $1.8MM wouldn’t count against the tax next season unless Bogut again plays in 65 games and makes an All-Defensive team.
Leonard was the leading vote-getter from the media members who cast the ballots, which is no surprise, since he also won the Defensive Player of the Year award. The latest honor is further ammunition for a max contract this summer from the Spurs, though it appears he and San Antonio were already set to quickly agree to terms on one come July. Green and Jordan are also soon-to-be free agents on the first team, while Butler and Duncan are heading to free agency from the second team.
Davis, who’s eligible for a rookie scale extension this summer, topped the voting among second-teamers. The balloting went by a points system in which two points were awarded for a first team vote and one point for a second. Rudy Gobert, who received five first team votes, garnered the most points among those who missed the cut for both teams. LeBron James, Russell Westbrook, Avery Bradley, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, Klay Thompson, Marc Gasol and Mike Conley were others who garnered multiple first team votes but didn’t make it on either team. Click here to see how each media member voted.
Pacific Notes: Kings, Green, Clippers
The Kings have been searching for players who can score from the perimeter in the last few drafts but haven’t struck gold yet, Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee writes. However, Sacramento isn’t a few more made three-pointers away from being a contender, and the franchise should focus on adding a playmaker rather than a simple scorer in this year’s draft, Jones opines. “I think they’ve got to be careful,” ESPN analyst Fran Fraschilla said. “They’re in that range where they don’t want to reach and take a guy with maybe top-15 talent just because it’s a need. My suggestion to the Kings would be take the best available player and hope that guy is a shooter.”
Here’s the latest out of the Pacific Division:
- Warriors‘ forward Draymond Green admitted that his pending restricted free agency this summer caused him to press at the beginning of the season, Jessica Camerato of Basketball Insiders relays. “A part of that was I was coming into a contract situation. It’s normal for that to be on your mind,” Green said. “Steve [Kerr] and [Alvin] Gentry sat me down and they said listen, ‘We know the situation you’re in. We know you’re in a contract year, and you better believe we’re going to do everything we can to help you in your contract year.’ Coach Kerr said, ‘I’ve played in this league 15 years, I’ve been a GM, I understand all that stuff.’ That kind of helped me settle down. It was like, alright don’t go out there worrying about that. It’s the completely wrong thing to be worried about.”
- Their salary cap situation will make it difficult for the Clippers to make roster improvements this offseason, Dan Woike of The Orange County Register writes. Los Angeles has $58,125,748 in guaranteed salary already on the books for next season.
- Kings president of basketball and franchise operations Vlade Divac further stamped out DeMarcus Cousins trade rumors today, calling him “untradeable” and someone he wants to build around in an appearance on SiriusXM NBA Radio (Twitter link). Divac made it clear last month that he intends to keep Cousins in Sacramento for the long term, and the newly minted exec is reportedly in awe of the big man’s talent.
Chuck Myron contributed to this post.
Pacific Notes: Lakers, Draft, Woodson
The Lakers have an 82.8% chance to secure a top five pick in this year’s NBA Draft lottery. But despite those excellent odds, Los Angeles’ GM Mitch Kupchak is stressed about the outcome, Mark Medina of The Los Angeles Daily News writes. “It’s completely out of our control. But I’m somewhat of a worry-wart,” Kupchak said. “I know our percentage is very high that we end up with a top-five pick, but I have to prepare for if we don’t get it. We’ll be prepared either way.” The executive’s worries stem from the fact that if the pick falls out of the top five it will convey to the Sixers. “If we get a pick, that’s an asset,” Kupchak said. “That’s an asset you can use to trade or work to use it on the player in the draft. If we don’t, we’ll still be able to carry on and move forward.”
Here’s the latest out of the Pacific Division:
- Despite having a roster already loaded with outside shooters the Warriors met with Georgia State gunner R.J. Hunter at the draft combine, A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE.com tweets.
- The Lakers interviewed Kentucky big man Karl-Anthony Towns and Duke forward Justise Winslow at the combine, Medina relays (Twitter links).
- Mike Woodson, who is now an assistant with the Clippers, indicated he still hopes to land another spot as a head coach, Mark Berman of FOX 26 tweets. “I’ve been a head coach for nine years in this league. Hopefully I’ll get another opportunity,” Woodson said. The former Hawks and Knicks coach has a career record of 315-365.
- Kentucky products Willie Cauley-Stein and Trey Lyles interviewed with the Kings, Jason Jones of the Sacramento Bee relays (Twitter links).
- The Suns will consider taking Wisconsin’s Sam Dekker and Frank Kaminsky when making their draft selection this June, Paul Coro of The Arizona Republic writes. “I feel like I can fit into multiple roles and help the team on the offensive end,” Kaminsky said. “I don’t think I have as many deficiencies on the defensive end as has been so kindly brought up by so many different people. I think I can fit in with just about any team.“
Tom Thibodeau Rumors: Friday
The Bulls have been out of the playoffs for less than a day, but already plenty of rumors about Tom Thibodeau the future of their head coaching job are flying. We’ll round up today’s latest here, with any updates that come in added to the top:
- Chicago won’t even begin to discuss what compensation they would require in exchange for Thibodeau until a clear succession plan is in place, Ken Berger of CBSSports.com reports. The Bulls want to find a coach who is not only the right fit, but also dynamic enough to justify letting Thibodeau out of his deal, Berger notes.
7:03pm update:
- Several NBA executives believe that the Bulls will have difficulty getting compensation in return for Thibodeau since teams are aware of the dynamic between the coach and front office, K.C. Johnson of The Chicago Tribune tweets.
5:24pm update:
- The consensus opinion amongst rival NBA executives at the draft combine is that the split between Thibodeau and the Bulls is going to be a protracted, and possibly ugly affair, Chris Mannix of SI.com tweets. One executive likened the situation to a “game of chicken,” Mannix adds.
12:05pm update:
- Bleacher Report’s Howard Beck says that the same source who called Warriors assistant Alvin Gentry the favorite to succeed Thibodeau in Chicago expects a quick ending to the Thibs/Bulls drama, adding that the source pegs New Orleans as Thibodeau’s likely destination (Twitter link).
- If Thibodeau isn’t coaching in Chicago next season, he’ll most likely be coaching the Pelicans, a source tells Johnson, largely echoing what Beck heard (Twitter link).
10:17am update:
- Chicago will “absolutely” try to reap compensation for Thibodeau, with management viewing him as an asset, according to Johnson, who writes in a full piece. The Tribune scribe expects the Pelicans and Magic to request permission to talk with the coach and for the Bulls to grant that permission.
8:59am update:
- One source put it bluntly to Marc Stein of ESPN.com: “Thibs is gone. They know it and he knows it.” Most people around the league have similar feelings, Stein adds, having heard from one source who indicates that Thibodeau and GM Gar Forman have barely talked since November.
- The Bulls are optimistic about their chances to land Iowa State coach Fred Hoiberg, in spite of his heart ailments, Stein also writes.
- Thibodeau won’t quit and walk away from the money in the remaining two years of his contract, a source close to him told Ken Berger of CBSSports.com Thursday night. That jibes with what K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune surmised last month when he wrote that he believed Thibodeau would stay if the choice were up to the coach.
- Derrick Rose is rumored to be in Thibodeau’s corner, and he essentially confirmed that Thursday, making it clear he backs the coach, as David Haugh of the Chicago Tribune relays. “It’s not up to me, but if it was, he would be back,” Rose said. Taj Gibson also said that he wants Thibodeau to stay, as Berger notes in his piece.
- Anthony Davis‘ “family and friends are already salivating at the idea” of Thibodeau joining the Pelicans, as Bleacher Report’s Ric Bucher says (video link). Stein, in his report, emphasizes that Thibodeau’s interest in New Orleans is strong. Still, Bucher suggests that Mike D’Antoni and Mark Jackson are other coaches who would meet with the approval of Davis, and the Pelicans know that Davis is an unassuming type whom they don’t have to keep in the loop as they navigate their coaching search, Bucher says. New Orleans is confident that if it makes the right choice, Davis will be on board, according to Bucher.