Phil Jackson Would Consider Coaching Cavs
The Cavs are reportedly expected to reach out to Phil Jackson to fill their coaching vacancy, and a source close to the Zen Master tells Sam Amico of Fox Sports Ohio that Jackson would "absolutely" listen if the team called to discuss the job. The same source confirmed another report that Jackson is interested in a return to the NBA, and though it seemed he was more interested in a front-office role than coaching, it appears Jackson still wants to be on the sidelines.
Amico's source downplayed the notion that Jackson would prefer to go to a large-market team that's close to winning a championship, pointing to the deep store of young talent in Cleveland. It also sounds like a return to the Lakers is unlikely, since Jackson soured on the situation there after the team passed him over in favor of Mike D'Antoni earlier this season, according to Amico's report. The Nets have been linked to Jackson in recent weeks, though they have interim coach P.J. Carlesimo in place as they begin the playoffs this weekend.
If the Cavs can't land Jackson, the team has plenty of other high-profile targets. There's apparently mutual interest between the Cavs and Mike Brown, who seemed as recently as yesterday to be the leading candidate. GM Chris Grant and company are also intrigued by Scott Skiles and Stan Van Gundy, though it looks like Van Gundy wouldn't want the job. Amico yesterday mentioned current NBA assistant coaches Michael Malone, Brian Shaw and David Fizdale in connection with the Cavs opening as well.
Pacific Links: Paul, Hunter, Nash, Assistants
Three Pacific Division teams are preparing for the playoffs this weekend, while the other two have May 21st, the date of the draft lottery, circled on their calendars. By the end of that night, the Kings will know which pick they'll have in the first round, and apparently which city they'll be playing in next year, too, according to comments David Stern made today. We've been keeping close tabs on Kings developments, and there's news involving the other four teams in the division as well.
- A source close to Chris Paul tells HoopsWorld's Bill Ingram that there's no way CP3 will leave the Clippers (Twitter link). That's in keeping with the signals Paul's camp has been putting out all season.
- Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports unveils his final power rankings of the 2012/13 season, and in so doing passes along news that the Suns are thinking about keeping interim coach Lindsey Hunter, according to a source.
- Steve Nash has endured a season of injuries and dished out his fewest assists per game since 1999/00, but he's giving no thought to retirement, notes Dave McMenamin of ESPNLosAngeles.com (Sulia link).
- From conversations with general managers, Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports gleans the names of four assistant coaches who appear to be top candidates to wind up as head coaches (Twitter link). Three have Pacific Division ties: Michael Malone of the Warriors, Steve Clifford of the Lakers, and former Lakers assistant Quin Snyder, who's now an assistant in Russia with CSKA Moscow. The other name on Wojnarowski's list is Kelvin Sampson, who temporarily took over head coaching duties for the Rockets this season while Kevin McHale tended to his ailing daughter.
Kupchak: D’Antoni To Return To Lakers In ’13/14
Although there's been speculation all season about whether or not his job is safe beyond this year, Mike D'Antoni will return to the Lakers' bench next season, according to GM Mitch Kupchak. Kupchak told Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times that D'Antoni has done a "great job" and that the team hasn't discussed the possibility of replacing him.
"I think under the circumstances, Mike did a great job. We don't anticipate any kind of a change," Kupchak told Ramona Shelburne of ESPNLosAngeles.com. "No training camp, all the injuries, through the end of the season he's done a great job."
Although D'Antoni started off slow in Los Angeles, he ended up leading the Lakers to a 40-32 record after taking over for Mike Brown early in the season. That .556 winning percentage was good enough to get the team in the playoffs, and was a better mark than any D'Antoni posted in New York with the Knicks.
With two years and $8MM remaining on D'Antoni's contract, and money still owed to Brown as well, bringing in a new coach for next season would be an expensive proposition for a Lakers team that already figures to be spending a ton of money on its roster, which could be well into the luxury tax.
Former Lakers coach Phil Jackson, who was the preferred candidate of many fans when the team was searching for a coach in the fall, is reportedly interested in returning to the NBA in some capacity. However, as we heard yesterday, it appears highly unlikely that a return will happen with the Lakers.
Pacific Links: Dwight, Lakers, Warriors, Kings
Congratulations to the Lakers, who, after a season of nearly non-stop turmoil, have clinched a playoff spot with the Grizzlies' win over the Jazz tonight. That comes as no surprise to many Hoops Rumors readers, as the Lakers were the top choice when we asked two weeks ago which Western Conference team would grab the final playoff spot in the West. You were also right on about the Jazz, tabbing them in early March as the team most likely to miss the playoffs among a group that also included the Lakers, Warriors and Rockets. Now, as the Lakers attempt to move up to the seventh seed with a win over Houston tonight, here's more on them and a couple of their Pacific Division rivals.
- Lakers GM Mitch Kupchak told Jim Rome of CBS Radio that he expects to re-sign Dwight Howard, echoing a pair of sources who said the same to Sam Amick of USA Today a few days ago.
- Yannis Koutroupis of HoopsWorld concludes the Lakers can't win a title as constituted this year or next, and lays out three options for the team: a full rebuilding effort, a quick rebuild for next season, and the most likely option, a push for free agents in 2014. Regardless of what happens, re-signing Howard figures to be the first item on their offseason agenda, as Koutroupis writes.
- Dwayne Jones will be with Golden State when the playoffs begin this weekend, but Scott Machado will remain with the Warriors' D-League affiliate for its postseason run, tweets Rusty Simmons of the San Francisco Chronicle. The Warriors signed deals with both today for the rest of the season.
- Scott Howard-Cooper of NBA.com figures the NBA's decision to delay a vote until next month on the future of the Kings is a positive for Sacramento, arguing the city will benefit from more time in its tug-of-war with Seattle (Twitter link).
Phil Jackson Interested In Return To NBA
It's been nearly two years since Phil Jackson's Lakers were eliminated from the postseason by the eventual-champion Mavericks, effectively ending Jackson's coaching career. But after two seasons off, Jackson has become "increasingly interested" in working in the NBA again next season, according to Marc Stein and Ramona Shelburne of ESPN.com.
Stein and Shelburne clarify that Jackson may not be interested in returning in a coaching capacity, since he's more intrigued by the possibility of joining a front office and running a franchise. According to the duo's sources, Jackson is interested in the "opportunity to oversee an organization" like Pat Riley in Miami, or Larry Bird's former role with the Pacers. There was some speculation earlier in the year that if the Seattle ownership group landed the Kings, they may also pursue Jackson for a prominent front office position.
Jackson's interest in a front office role doesn't necessarily mean he has ruled out coaching opportunities. Although he told SheridanHoops.com in January that he had no intention of coaching again, that won't stop teams, such as perhaps the Nets and Cavaliers, from approaching the 11-time champion about potential vacancies this summer. A return to the Lakers, however, is highly unlikely, according to the ESPN.com report.
If no opportunties arise that Jackson views as ideal fits, remaining retired is also a possibility for the Zen Master, according to Stein and Shelburne.
Pacific Notes: Bryant, Amnesty, Cousins
With three NBA games scheduled, the Clippers are the only Pacific division team in action tonight. Let's round up links from the division here:
- Just because the Lakers aren't thinking about amnestying Kobe Bryant just yet, doesn't mean everyone else isn't. An ESPN Los Angeles poll shows that most do not think the Lakers should use the amnesty provision on their longtime star. Amin Elhassan of ESPN is in favor of cutting ties with Bryant, writing that the team could conceivably re-sign him if he can return to full strength. On the other hand, Arash Markazi sees Bryant helping the Lakers next season and thinks the franchise's image would take a hit should they release him.
- Markazi follows up on Twitter, clarifying that the Lakers can only use their amnesty provision on Bryant, Pau Gasol, Steve Blake or Metta World Peace, adding that he believes the team will use it on either Blake or World Peace. Markazi also tweets that for a player to be eligible for the amnesty provision, he must have been with the team that amnesties him since July 1st, 2011, as Luke Adams noted in his amnesty refresher this afternoon.
- In an all-access interview with Bleacher Report's Jimmy Spencer, Kings big man DeMarcus Cousins insists that he is not interested in a change of scenery. "No, I am loyal to this organization," Cousins said. "The biggest reward to me would be, at the end of the day, hearing them say, 'He turned this around. He stuck with it through thick and thin and he made it happen.'" While the story comes with a disclaimer that Cousins granted the interview with an agenda in mind, there are plenty of worthwhile quotes that make it worth a read.
Pacific Notes: Kings, Suns, Brown, Lakers, Kobe
Here's a look at the latest out of the Pacific..
- The Sacramento group hoping to purchase the Kings got reinforcements today when venture capitalist Naren Gupta and tech entrepreneur Andy Miller came aboard, writes Dale Kasler, Ryan Lillis, and Tony Bizjak of the Sacramento Bee. Primary investor Vivek Ranadive laid out an ambitious vision for the club to transform it into a "global brand", but offered little in the way of details on their actual purchase offer for the team. Earlier today, we looked at the latest in the Kings ownership battle.
- Shannon Brown is less-than-thrilled with his bench role in Phoenix, writes Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic. Brown said that the upside of it all is that he's saving his body for next season, a year in which the Suns have him under contract but only $1.75MM of his $3.5MM deal is guaranteed.
- Larry Coon of ESPN.com (Insider sub. req'd) explains how the Lakers can use the CBA to their advantage in the wake of Kobe Bryant's injury. While GM Mitch Kupchak says that using the amnesty clause on Bryant isn't something that's being discussed, Coon says it's something that will be considered if he will be sidelined for most or all of the 2013/14 season.
Dwight Howard Expected To Stay With Lakers
Could our long national Dwightmare reach a drama-free conclusion this summer? Two sources close to Lakers center Dwight Howard told Sam Amick of USA Today that they fully expect him to return to L.A. even though he has kept mum on the subject. In fact, the organization expected Howard to take over the Lakers even before the season-ending injury to Kobe Bryant.
Of course, Howard is notorious for changing his mind, meaning there's always a chance his outlook could change by the time July rolls around. The Mavericks, Rockets and even the Suns, who could make room for D12 with a few moves, are hoping that's the case.
Howard could definitely have a change of heart if he is not factor in the Lakers' offense sans Kobe in these final two games and they fall short of making the playoffs. Financially, the smart move would be to stay in L.A. as Howard's max extension with the Lakers would be for five years and $117.9MM while the rest of the field could only give him something in the vicinity of a four-year, $87.6MM ontract, as calculated by our own Luke Adams.
Lakers Sign Andrew Goudelock
7:29pm: The signing is now official, according to Mike Trudell of NBA.com (on Twitter).
7:18pm: The Lakers have not officially completed the paperwork to sign Goudelock and if they can't get his contract finalized in the next half hour, then he won't play tonight, tweets Dave McMenamin of ESPNLosAngeles.
8:05am: The Lakers are expected to sign guard Andrew Goudelock this morning, tweets Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports. Marc Stein of ESPN.com reported last night that the Lakers were "lining up" a deal with Goudelock, their second-round draft pick in 2011. The 24-year-old could be with the team in time for tonight's game against the Spurs, according to Spears. Since the Lakers only have 14 players on their roster, they won't have to waive anyone to bring Goudelock on board.
Goudelock spent the 2011/12 season with the Lakers, appearing in 40 games and averaging 4.4 points and 10.5 minutes per contest, with 37.3% three-point shooting. His contract covered this season as well, but it was non-guaranteed, and L.A. waived him at the end of training camp. He turned to the D-League, and was a hot commodity in the D-League draft, going second overall. Goudelock wound up splitting the season between the Sioux Falls Skyforce and Rio Grande Valley Vipers, notching 21.1 PPG and 5.2 assists per game. His proficient three-point stroke remained, as he shot 36.9% from behind the arc.
The College of Charleston product hasn't spent time on an NBA roster since the Lakers let him go in training camp, so he'll be eligible for the postseason, unlike recently waived wing players like Stephen Jackson and Raja Bell. The Lakers had been looking for a swingman to replace Kobe Bryant, who's out six to nine months with a torn Achilles.
Lakers Looking For Wing Player, Eyeing Goudelock?
9:47pm: ESPN's Marc Stein (via Twitter) hears that the team is lining up Andrew Goudelock for a call up from the D-League.
8:20pm: Dave McMenamin of ESPN Los Angeles hears that Lakers GM Mitch Kupchak is now scouring the free agent market for another wing player to add with Kobe Bryant out. Although recently waived Stephen Jackson is available, he wouldn't be playoff eligible since he was released after the March buyout deadline. The same applies to Raja Bell, another target earlier this season.
Though the loss of Kobe creates a large opening with regards to minutes, it's difficult to imagine Kupchak adding a player who can take on a significant role immediately this late into the season. One could make a strong argument that a reasonable target would be one that either has familiarity with the team's current personnel or a veteran with playoff experience.
According to our list of current available free agents, Chris Douglas-Roberts – a Lakers training camp participant last October – is available and would be cleared to play in the postseason. Another option could be Maurice Evans, a former member of the purple and gold from 2006 to 2008, who has been waiting all year for an opportunity to play.