Indiana Pacers Rumors | Hoops Rumors

And-Ones: ‘Melo, Jazz, Lockout, McRae

April 24th, 2014 at 10:38pm CST by Charlie Adams

Count NBA Hall of Famer Oscar Robertson among those who think Carmelo Anthony would be wise to walk away from the Knicks in free agency this summer. The Big O sat down with SiriusXM NBA Radio and passed along why he thinks ‘Melo should get out of New York, notes Al Iannazzone of Newsday. Robertson thinks Anthony receives too much flack for his efforts as a Knick:

“No matter what he does in New York, they’re going to criticize him, the people are going to criticize him, because you got guys on that team that cannot play. You got guys that are hurt all the time… If I were Carmelo, I would say, ‘Listen, I’m not going to stay here and take all this guff and all this criticism.'”

Let’s round up the latest notes and rumors from around the Association:

Jazz GM Dennis Lindsey acknowledges that in their most recent offseason, Utah “took a step back in order to take three or four forward,” writes Mike Sorensen of the Deseret News. Still, Lindsey remains optimistic for the future, given the club’s cap space and draft picks.
Executives and agents around the league are reportedly nervous about the potential for a lockout in 2017, but commissioner Adam Silver says he has “no expectation” that players will opt out of the collective bargaining agreement, reveals Brian Mahoney of The Associated Press.
Tennesee senior Jordan McRae has signed with agent Jim Tanner of Tandem agency, reports Jorge Sierra of HoopsHype (via Twitter). McRae is ranked 71st in Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress‘ list of the top 100 prospects.
The ESPNChicago.com staff discusses whether they’d rather build a team around Derrick Rose or John Wall. The general consensus is that Rose’s value is hard to gauge as a result of his injuries, and it’d likely be a safer bet to pick Wall.
The kind words Pacers GM Kevin Pritchard had for Frank Vogel don’t carry much weight, opines Yannis Koutroupis of Basketball Insiders. Koutroupis thinks Pritchard is obligated to make such a statement in order to show support, but really Vogel is in danger of losing his job if Indiana doesn’t perform up to expectations.

Coaching Rumors: Jazz, D’Antoni, Boylen

April 24th, 2014 at 4:44pm CST by Chuck Myron

Executives, coaches and other league insiders struggle to come up with names of intriguing coaching candidates after last year’s record volume of new hires, but Kevin Arnovitz of ESPN.com was able to pry the identities of a few well-regarded potential hires. Some of them have been in rumors in recent weeks, but University of Virginia head coach Tony Bennett, Bulls assistant Ed Pinckney, and Blazers assistant David Vanterpool are the names we haven’t heard. Potential head coaches with ties to the Spurs were already popular, and they’ve grown even more so this year, Arnovitz hears. Here’s more from the coaching rumor mill:

The Jazz plan to interview more than 20 candidates fitting virtually every description, team president Randy Rigby said Wednesday on The Zone Sports Network radio, notes Jody Genessy of the Deseret News. Though a few candidates have reportedly emerged, Rigby insists the club hasn’t identified any potential targets. He also said the decision will be a group effort and won’t lie solely with GM Dennis Lindsey.
Mike D’Antoni won’t be coaching Marshall University next season, but his brother Dan D’Antoni will be, the school announced. Dan D’Antoni is leaving his job as a Lakers assistant coach to take the new gig.
The Pacers weren’t pleased when former assistant coach and current Jazz head coaching candidate Jim Boylen left last year to become a Spurs assistant, tweets Scott Agness of Pacers.com. “He did us dirty,” one Pacers player told Agness.
Knicks president Phil Jackson said Wednesday that his coaching search could extend into July, but he adds that it’s not because he’s waiting around to see which, if any, coaches working in the playoffs become available, notes Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com (on Twitter).
Nets GM Billy King said on NBA TV that he, and not coach Jason Kidd, made the decision to reassign assistant coach Lawrence Frank earlier this season, fellow ESPNNewYork.com scribe Mike Mazzeo observes.

Eastern Rumors: Arenas, Stephenson, Bucks

April 24th, 2014 at 12:30pm CST by Chuck Myron

Gilbert Arenas reiterated on SiriusXM NBA Radio today that he’s still holding out hope for an NBA comeback, as USA Today’s Jeff Zillgitt tweets, and that echoes Arenas’ comments from December. The Magic are probably rooting for his return to the league, since that could allow them to use set-off rights to recoup a small portion of the millions they still owe him on his amnestied contract. While we wait to see if Agent Zero, still just 32 years old, makes it back to the Association, here’s more from the Eastern Conference:

Sean Deveney of The Sporting News heard from a GM around the beginning of February who expected Lance Stephenson to receive offers with eight-figure annual salaries, but an executive now tells Deveney that the soon-to-be free agent will probably command only $7-8MM a year.
Outgoing Bucks owner Herb Kohl borrowed money from the NBA a total of five times in 2009 and 2010 to help keep the team going, reports Rich Kirchen of the Milwaukee Business Journal. Kohl told Kirchen that he’s spent more than $100MM of his own money on the team during his nearly three decades of ownership.
Casper Ware‘s multiyear contract with the Sixers extends through 2016/17, but the team only inked Adonis Thomas through the end of 2013/14, according to Mark Deeks of ShamSports (Twitter link).
Eric Dawson, who spent preseason with the Hawks this past fall, is headed to play for Heilongjiang Zhaozhou Feng Shen of China’s second-tier league, according to Sportando’s Emiliano Carchia. Dawson has also spent time in the D-League and Iran this season.

Frank Vogel’s Job On Line In Playoffs?

April 24th, 2014 at 10:35am CST by Chuck Myron

THURSDAY, 10:35am: Pacers GM Kevin Pritchard took a poke at Stein’s report, saying on Twitter that Bird’s “sources say” Vogel’s job is safe.

WEDNESDAY, 11:01am: Sources tell Marc Stein of ESPN.com that Pacers coach Frank Vogel is “coaching for his job” in the playoffs, even with a year left on his contract. A first-round series victory against the Hawks wouldn’t necessarily be enough for Vogel to ensure his return for next season, Stein hears.

Dissension has marked Vogel’s locker room during the team’s second half slide. Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports wrote overnight of a fight in practice last week between Lance Stephenson and Evan Turner, and Stephenson has drawn the ire of other teammates lately, as Stein documents. The soon-to-be free agent and George Hill had to be separated on the bench during a loss late last month, while Stein hears that Roy Hibbert‘s recent remarks about selfish play were essentially directed at Stephenson. Still, Stephenson is a favorite of president of basketball operations Larry Bird, and Bird and Stephenson have indicated they have mutual interest in a new contract.

There appeared to be a slight chance that Bird would replace Vogel before the playoffs and take over the coaching duties himself, though Bird expressed full confidence in Vogel during the last week of the regular season. Bird was somewhat critical of Vogel’s style in March, but he added that he was beginning to warm to the coach’s more positive approach. Stein passes along reporting from ESPN’s Chris Broussard, who hears from sources who point to the absence of former assistant coach Brian Shaw, now the Nuggets head coach, who often played the “bad cop” in the Pacers locker room, pushing players when Vogel wouldn’t.

And-Ones: Pacers, Izzo, Donovan, Kings

April 23rd, 2014 at 7:59pm CST by Alex Lee

With a trio of Game Threes on the schedule, let’s take a look at what is going on around the league on Wednesday night:

With Frank Vogel‘s job reportedly on the line in Indiana, Sean Deveney of Sporting News examines the caveats of the recent NBA trend of hiring younger, cheaper and less experienced head coaches in the mold of the Pacers’ front man. Speaking with several veteran coaches, Deveney writes that policing an NBA locker room is all the more difficult without extensive NBA experience, be it as a coach or a player.
There has never been more NBA-centric buzz about Tom Izzo, though the Michigan State head coach remains a long shot to leave East Lansing for a gig in the professional ranks. However should the Michigan-born Izzo need to hire an agent, Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN tweets that it would likely be Minneapolis-based Gary O’Hagan. Wolfson confirms reports we’ve heard that the Timberwolves would love to land Izzo as their next head coach.
We know the Wolves are also interested in Florida’s Billy Donovan, who flirted with the NBA seven years ago before eventually backing out. Louisville head coach Rick Pitino, who coached Donovan at Providence, said Wednesday morning on ESPN’s Mike & Mike that Donovan would make an excellent NBA head coach, though Pitino suspects his protege might again get cold feet before making the leap to the next level, writes Adam Zagoria of SNY.
Heading into an important offseason in Sacramento, Ailene Voison of the Bee puts the microscope on the Kings‘ front office hierarchy, led by first-year general manager Pete D’Alessandro. As Voison opines, D’Alessandro is challenged with employing an effective small- to mid-market approach in the mold of the Spurs and Pacers, something the previous regime in Sacramento failed to do.

Poll: Which Contenders Could Panic?

April 19th, 2014 at 7:32pm CST by Cray Allred

There are a handful of teams that have built towards a window of title contention that they hope to see pay off this postseason. When expectations are high, failure can motivate ownership and management to make drastic moves to a team’s roster or coaching staff. Teams have gone from planning for the Finals to pressing the panic button before, and it’s possible again this year.

While big changes could be coming to a lot of this year’s playoff teams, some of that depends more on the players’ free agency decisions than any philosophical shifts from the team. For instance, the Heat could lose LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, or Chris Bosh in free agency, but that wouldn’t be because of a lack of commitment from Miami’s front office to their big three. We’ll focus on some of the teams that would have to incite a truly drastic change from the front office, specifically those that have been more active in both the market and rumor mill:

Pacers. Indiana barely held onto the one seed in the East, going 15-13 down the stretch. The moves that resulted in the loss of Danny Granger and the addition of Evan Turner, Andrew Bynum, and Lavoy Allen have not paid off thus far. Lance Stephenson has cooled off after his breakout start to the season, and will become an unrestricted free agent in the offseason. Frank Vogel has seemed like one of the more untouchable coaches in the last couple years, but a total collapse could put even his job in jeopardy.
Warriors. Coach Mark Jackson might have the most riding on this postseason of any NBA professional. Loud rumblings and staff turnover have clouded Jackson’s status with a team that expected to become a contender by adding Andre Iguodala last summer. Harrison Barnes has been extremely inconsistent, and his name surfaced in trade deadline rumors. David Lee‘s contract is considered essentially untradeable, but if the Warriors wanted to radically shake things up, Klay Thompson‘s rookie deal would be a highly valued trade asset.
Clippers. Los Angeles has bolstered its roster under the direction of Doc Rivers, adding rotation pieces like Granger, J.J. Redick, Glen Davis, and Jared Dudley to the core of Chris Paul, Blake Griffin, and DeAndre Jordan. Any blockbuster moves would likely center around the frontcourt if the front office became convinced that the Griffin/Jordan pairing can’t hold up against the league’s best interior players.
Nets. First-year coach Jason Kidd and the Hall-of-Fame-heavy roster struggled mightily early in the year before turning things around and earning the sixth seed in the East. The Nets have very limited flexibility after ballooning their salary sheet and relinquishing trade assets in a slew of splashy moves since owner Mikhail Prokhorov bought the team. Brook Lopez has frequently been the subject of trade rumors, and the team took off when Lopez was sidelined with his latest injury. There isn’t much speculation in Brooklyn at the moment, but we know Prokhorov isn’t afraid to swing for the fences.

What do you think? Which of these teams is most likely to disappoint in the playoffs, and then react with radical front office moves?

Eastern Notes: Magic, Raptors, George

April 19th, 2014 at 5:55pm CST by Cray Allred

Michael Marot of The Associated Press looks at Paul George‘s hopes to become a superstar in a small market. George has said that he wants to crack the top-five in NBA jersey sales, and his success in the playoffs could propel him to some major endorsement deals. Here’s more from the East:

Bob Finnan of The Morning Journal wonders if Andrew Bynum‘s career could be over. The big man has been ruled out of the Pacers first round playoff series, and hasn’t been able to sustain a high level of play for any long stretches this year.
While this draft should be pivotal for the Magic, there is also pressure on their young roster to develop in the offseason, writes Josh Robbins of The Orlando Sentinel. Maurice Harkless, Tobias Harris, Andrew Nicholson, Victor Oladipo, Kyle O’Quinn and Nikola Vucevic all have the potential to speed along Orlando’s rebuilding process with improvements in their game.
Cathal Kelly of The Globe and Mail looks at how the moves the Raptors did and didn’t make brought the team from the bottom of the standings to the third seed in the East.

Central Rumors: Bulls, Pacers, ‘Melo, Irving

April 19th, 2014 at 2:26pm CST by Charlie Adams

The Bulls are without Derrick Rose for another postseason, and Yannis Koutroupis of Basketball Insiders wonders how his absence will impact Chicago’s chances against a tough Wizards squad. Here’s more out of the Central on the first day of the NBA postseason:

Sam Amico of FOX Sports speculates that if the Pacers don’t have a strong showing that extends into the conference finals, big changes could lie ahead for the organization. Indiana faces off against the eighth-seeded Hawks tonight.
As a result of the likely $5MM jump in next season’s salary cap, the Bulls are feeling increasingly optimistic at their chances of landing Carmelo Anthony this summer, writes Marc Stein of ESPN.com (Twitter links).
While Chicago feels confident about their pursuit of ‘Melo, Mary Schmitt Boyer of the Plain Dealer predicts “with 100% certainty” that the Cavs will not sign Anthony this offseason.
In the same piece, Schmitt Boyer says the Cavs are likely to keep both Kyrie Irving and Dion Waiters this summer, despite the two players similar playing styles. However, owner Dan Gilbert has made it clear he will trade any player who turns down an offer for a max extension. Irving will become eligible for such a deal this offseason.
We passed along the latest on the Pistons and their search for a new GM earlier this afternoon.

Cray Allred contributed to this post.

And-Ones: Blake, Pacers, Bargnani

April 10th, 2014 at 9:01pm CST by Ryan Raroque

Shortly after Steve Blake was dealt to the Warriors in February, we noted that the veteran point guard wouldn’t rule out a return to the Lakers this summer. Though Blake declined to follow up on those comments earlier today, there’s no denying that he still misses Los Angeles: “It’s one of the best places to live in the country,” he said. “Of course you miss that. Mostly I miss just being with my wife and kids. I’m a family man who wants to be home with them (Mike Bresnahan and Eric Pincus of the Los Angeles Times).

Here are a few more noteworthy links to pass along tonight:

The Pacers have reached an agreement worth $160MM to extend their stay at the Banker’s Life Fieldhouse in Indiana for another 10 years, writes Tony Cook of USA Today (first reported by the Associated Press). The city’s Capital Improvement Board is expected to vote on the deal this upcoming Monday.
Andrea Bargnani‘s lackluster and injury-filled year has been a big reason for the Knicks’ struggles in 2013/14, says Marc Berman of the New York Post. Berman says that it’ll now be up to team president Phil Jackson to either arrange a buyout for the former number one pick or trade his $10MM expiring contract for next season.
Dexter Pittman, who played high school and college basketball in Texas, tells Mark Berman of Fox 26 Houston about how delighted he is to be part of the Rockets: “I always dreamed about playing back home. I’m in shock right now…”I played with LeBron James…I played with Kevin Durant. I (won) an an NBA Championship, but there’s nothing better than coming to Houston and playing with the best center in the game and playing with one of the best all-time great big men to ever play the game, Kevin McHale. and being in the shadow of Hakeem Olajuwon…Everybody’s dream that played basketball in Houston was to be a Rocket.”
Kevin Pelton, Amin Elhassan, and Chad Ford of ESPN take an in-depth look at NBA prospect Nik Stauskas (Insiders only). Though ESPN initially reported that Stauskas had already decided to declare for the draft, the Michigan guard recently took to Twitter to deny the report himself.

Pacers Mull Replacing Vogel With Larry Bird?

April 8th, 2014 at 2:43pm CST by Chuck Myron

There’s a chance, albeit a small one, that Pacers president of basketball operations Larry Bird takes over the coaching duties from Frank Vogel before the playoffs begin, as Bob Kravitz of the Indianapolis Star tells Bleacher Report’s Adam Lefkoe in a video interview. Kravitz pegs it as a 5% chance, and cautions that the notion doesn’t come from Bird himself.

Bird told Kravitz nearly a month ago that he thought Vogel wasn’t pushing his players hard enough, and the Pacers have continued their surprising downturn. Indiana was 42-10 before the All-Star break, but the team has gone just 13-13 since and fallen behind the Heat for the top seed in the Eastern Conference. The decline has been mystifying, and Bird’s midseason acquisitions of Evan Turner and Andrew Bynum haven’t panned out.

Vogel has turned the Pacers around after taking over the team for the final 38 games of the 2010/11 season, guiding them to the playoffs that season and every year since. Indiana was a game short of the NBA Finals last season, when Bird took a one-year hiatus from his job in the front office. Bird also coached the franchise within a game of the Finals in 1998, the first of his three-year tenure on the bench. His final season as coach ended with a trip to the 2000 Finals, which Indiana lost to the Lakers.

It would be surprising if the Pacers were to bring Bird back to the sidelines for the postseason, as Kravitz suggests. Even if such a move doesn’t happen, it looks as though Vogel’s job security will be in doubt unless Indiana makes a deep run in the playoffs.