‘Melo, Phil Jackson Talk Kerr, Free Agency
Carmelo Anthony and Knicks president Phil Jackson met Tuesday to discuss the team’s coaching vacancy and Anthony’s plans for free agency this summer, a source tells Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com. Jackson told Anthony about primary coaching candidate Steve Kerr, whom the Zen Master coached with the Bulls, Begley writes.
Jackson expressed a desire last week for Anthony to be “true to his word” that he’d take a discount to sign with the Knicks, referencing ‘Melo’s comments at the All-Star break this year. It’s unclear if that subject came up, according to Begley.
The Knicks would reportedly like to hire Kerr soon after the first round of the playoffs, cognizant of apparent interest from the Warriors and perhaps others. Kerr, who met with Jackson this weekend, wants his negotiations with New York to move at a slower pace. Anthony, who plans to opt out of his contract to become a free agent this summer, publicly expressed support for former coach Mike Woodson before the Knicks fired him earlier this month.
Jackson and Anthony have spoken briefly a few times since the Zen Master joined the organization last month, but they hadn’t addressed his potential free agency. Anthony has maintained that the Knicks are his preference, but he’s said that he wants to hear Jackson’s plan for returning the team to contention before he decides where to sign this summer.
Bulls Likely To Attempt To Trade Carlos Boozer
Bulls owner Jerry Reinsdorf opposes the idea of using the amnesty provision to remove Carlos Boozer from the team’s books, as Marc Stein of ESPN.com hears, adding that sources tell him that Chicago will make a strong push to trade Boozer instead. Boozer is set to enter the final year of his contract next season, but his $16.8MM salary and his growing anger at coach Tom Thibodeau seem to make him a poor fit for the Bulls, who have their eyes set on a free agent prize this summer.
The Knicks are “undeniably nervous” about the chances that Carmelo Anthony will sign with the team this summer, Stein writes. The ESPN.com scribe echoes last week’s report from Sean Deveney of The Sporting News that put the Bulls at the front of the list of Anthony’s preferred suitors. Chicago would have to move a significant amount of salary off its payroll to make a competitive offer to Anthony, since the Bulls’ commitments for 2014/15 already exceed even the new, higher salary cap projection for next season. Amnestying Boozer would be the simplest way to wipe a hefty chunk of money off Chicago’s cap figure, but unless a team claims him off waivers, Reinsdorf would still have to pay Boozer his salary, even though it wouldn’t count toward the cap. That’s why Deveney says there’s never been a question that the Bulls would prefer to trade Boozer (Twitter link).
The amnesty period runs through July 16th, giving the Bulls ample time to find a trade partner before the option of circling back and amnestying Boozer anyway disappears. Still, it will probably be difficult to find a team willing to make a trade that would give Chicago cap flexibility in return for a 32-year-old Boozer who rarely played in the fourth quarter this season, particularly given his inflated salary. He may have some value as an expiring contract, but any team that acquires him via trade would be unable to amnesty him. A sign-and-trade with the Knicks involving ‘Melo is one possibility, but Knicks president Phil Jackson might be reluctant to play along and accommodate Chicago’s poaching of New York’s star.
If the Bulls do amnesty Boozer, Stein suggests there’s a chance that agent Rob Pelinka, the rep for Boozer as well as Kobe Bryant, will encourage the Lakers to submit an amnesty waiver claim. That would almost certainly be a partial waiver claim if it were to happen, meaning the Lakers would pay a portion of Boozer’s salary while Reinsdorf would be on the hook for the rest. Stein points to Chicago’s likely pursuit of Pau Gasol this summer, and perhaps there’s a sign-and-trade possibility to be had involving Gasol and Boozer, though that’s just my speculation.
And-Ones: Boylen, Silver, Diogu
You can find tonight’s miscellaneous notes worth passing along below:
- While it’s anyone’s guess as to who the next head coach of the Jazz will be, it’ll be surprising if the team ultimately decides to hire Jim Boylen, as Mike Sorensen of the Deseret News explains.
- Following Adam Silver’s decisive ruling over Donald Sterling, J.A. Adande of ESPN wonders how much this enhances Silver’s credibility with the players and how it’ll factor in during the next round of collective bargaining.
- Ike Diogu has signed on with Leones de Ponce of the Puerto Rican league, reports Emiliano Carchia of Sportando. Earlier this month, the Knicks mulled signing the 6’8 forward to a deal that would have extended into next season.
- Emerson College has become a breeding ground for front office positions around the NBA, details Liam Boylan-Pett of SB Nation. Thunder GM Sam Presti and Magic GM Rob Hennigan are among the school’s most recent notable alumni.
Eastern Notes: Kerr, Bobcats, Bulls
Here are a few links to pass along out of the Eastern Conference tonight:
- As he continues to consider accepting the Knicks’ head coaching job, Steve Kerr is currently doing his own research on the organization to make sure there are no red flags, according to Marc Berman of the New York Post.
- Josh McRoberts – who can opt out of his contract this summer – said his preference is to keep playing for Bobcats head coach Steve Clifford for many years, but money will likely be the biggest factor, opines Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer.
- Bonnell also writes that swingman Chris Douglas-Roberts seems the best fit to re-sign among the team’s soon-to-be free agents.
- With the Bulls now eliminated from playoff contention, the team will presumably turn their attention toward addressing the future of Tom Thibodeau, opines Sam Amico of FOX Sports Ohio (Twitter link).
- Derrick Rose began taking some contact on his surgically repaired right knee on Monday, reports K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune. He’s still expected to begin next season at full strength.
- In addition to evaluating how certain prospects may transition into the NBA, the Pistons – equipped with their own D-League team in Grand Rapids starting next season – will also be scouring this year’s draft pool for prospects to develop in the NBDL, writes Keith Langlois of Pistons.com.
Lowe’s Latest: Rivers, Jackson, Kerr
If Doc Rivers were to get out of his contract with the Clippers, he would immediately emerge as the front-runner for any head coaching opening in the league this summer, writes Zach Lowe of Grantland. One potential opportunity is the Warriors, who are embroiled in a tumultuous situation with head coach Mark Jackson. As Lowe chronicles, tension between Jackson and the organization has been brewing for quite a while.
Multiple league sources confirmed to Lowe the gist of a report from ESPN’s Chris Broussard that explained how former Warriors assistant Darren Erman had been fired for secretly recording coaches’ conversations. Those same sources added that Erman was concerned that Jackson and those loyal to Jackson were insulting him to other players behind his back. Lowe also says that Golden State’s front office is fond of Erman and was upset at having to let him go. Nonetheless, Brian Scalabrine‘s recent demotion and Erman’s firing has only added to the chaos in Golden State.
As we relayed from Lowe earlier, the consensus around the league is that Jackson will not return to the Warriors next year unless he leads them on a longer-than-expected playoff run. Though Jackson could still save his job, Lowe says that it’d be smart to bet that the team will have a new head coach next year.
Here’s more from Lowe’s latest column:
- Golden State still hasn’t made a final decision on Jackson and has not reached out directly to any potential candidates, sources tell Lowe.
- Scalabrine’s demotion was a compromise between the front office and Jackson, who initially made a show of firing him in front of other players and coaches even though he had no real grounds to do so.
- Jackson reportedly asked Warriors adviser Jerry West not to attend most practices and team activities.
- If the Warriors decided to replace Jackson, they would still consider other big names beyond Rivers, which is why — according to ESPN.com’s Marc Stein — the Knicks tried to expedite their attempt to hire Steve Kerr this week. New York understands that two or three appealing opportunities could emerge after postseason eliminations, and that Kerr would be a potential candidate for some of those teams.
- Front office and ownership sources around the league think there’s a decent chance the Clippers will be the first NBA franchise to sell for $1 billion, Lowe writes, echoing an earlier report from Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports.
And-Ones: Colangelo, Hoiberg, Warriors, Knicks
Grantland’s Zach Lowe examines the value of players making between $5MM and $10MM a year, several of whom are having a significant effect in the playoffs. Sources in NBA front offices tell Lowe that they’re reluctant to sign players who command such salaries because they fear the criticism of reporters conditioned to believe such “middle class” players aren’t worth the money. Still, acting union executive director Ron Klempner tells Lowe that he’s observed no drastic change in the league’s willingness to pay players at that rate. Here’s more from around the league:
- Bryan Colangelo‘s name has been linked to the Pistons‘ front office vacancy on multiple occasions of late, and SportsNet’s Michael Grange hears that he’s indeed a leading candidate for the job. Tim Leiweke, CEO of the Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment group that owns the Raptors, praised the former Toronto GM for his work with the team in an interview with Grange that’s included in the piece.
- Fred Hoiberg would probably be ahead of Steve Kerr on the Warriors’ wish list if they were to seek a new head coach for next season, according to Tim Kawakami of the Bay Area News Group. Hoiberg spoke this week on 1700 AM radio in Des Moines to express that while interest from NBA teams flatters him, he’s content as Iowa State’s head coach, as Nate Sandell of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities points out.
- The Warriors aren’t pleased with Mark Jackson‘s depleted coaching staff, according to Kawakami, and if Jackson remains head coach, they’ll pressure him to upgrade it, Kawakami believes, pointing to the issue as a possible stumbling block for Jackson’s return next season.
- The Knicks interviewed Bill Cartwright for an assistant coaching job, reports Mitch Lawrence of the New York Daily News, who points to Cartwright’s ties to Kerr as further indication that Kerr will be the team’s next head coach.
Knicks Want To Hire Steve Kerr After First Round
12:24pm: Kerr’s timetable is different from that of the Knicks, reports Ken Berger of CBSSports.com, who hears from a source who says Kerr and Jackson still have “lots to explore organizationally” (Twitter links). That echoes Kerr’s comments about a desire for more discussions with the Zen Master.
10:43am: The Knicks are attempting to complete a deal that would make Steve Kerr the coach of the team after the first round of the playoffs, reports Marc Stein of ESPN.com. In team president Phil Jackson‘s plan, Kerr would leave his job as a TNT broadcaster after the first round is complete, thus making it easier for the network, but it remains to be seen whether Kerr is willing to go along at this point.
Kerr has been the front-runner for the job for at least a month, and while Kerr has been “inching closer” to the Knicks job, according to Frank Isola of the New York Daily News, a source told Isola that a decision was not imminent. An earlier report indicated Kerr would have interest in talking to the Warriors if they wind up with a vacancy, but in spite of Golden State’s apparent interest in Kerr, the Knicks remain the favorite to land him, Stein writes, given his connection to Jackson. The former Suns GM counters widespread skepticism about Jackson’s chances for success in charge of the Knicks front office, believing that the Zen Master will succeed in New York, according to Stein.
Kerr reportedly has concerns about the Knicks’ inability to capitalize on their resources over the years, prompting a measured approach as he considers whether to join the team, even as he’s said that he would be “crazy not to look into” coaching the Knicks. Still, he told reporters this weekend that he and Jackson still had much to discuss, as Isola points out. Kerr and Jackson have both indicated that their conversations this weekend were the first they’d had about the job, which conflicts with a report from early last week that they were deep into discussions.
New York Notes: Knicks, Jackson, Kerr, Johnson
Longtime Phil Jackson assistant Frank Hambien says he would gladly work for the Zen Master again, writes Al Iannazzone of Newsday. “Absolutely,” Hamblen said when asked of the possibility. “I’m bored to death..Opportunity is an amazing thing. I know Phil was sitting in Playa Del Rey bored to death, itching to get back in. I don’t know if he’ll even call. I don’t know what’s going through his mind. But he has my number.” Hambien also gave a strong endorsement for Kerr as a possible coach of the Knicks. More from NYC..
- Steve Kerr says that he met with Jackson on Friday to discuss the Knicks‘ head coaching vacancy and publicly stated his interest in the job, tweets Peter Botte of the New York Daily News. Kerr went on to say that there will be future meetings between himself and his former coach. The former guard turned TNT analyst has long been believed to be the frontrunner for the Knicks’ job.
- “We share a lot of the same philosophies,” Kerr said when asked about Jackson’s triangle, according to Barbara Barker of Newsday. “I learned a lot of my basketball from him and Tex Winter. It is safe to say that we have a lot of the same ideas . . . Obviously, there’s a strong connection between us and our beliefs.“
- Joe Johnson‘s contract was an albatross with the Hawks but he has transformed himself to the Nets‘ most consistent player, writes Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News. Tonight wasn’t a shining example of that, however, as Johnson went 2-7 for 7 points across 42 minutes of play.
And-Ones: Smith, Sterling, Kerr, Pressey
Nolan Smith has received partially guaranteed offers from the Bulls and the Thunder for next season, reports David Pick of Eurobasket.com (Twitter link). Smith played in Croatia this season and averaged 17.0 PPG, 3.3 RPG, and 4.1 APG.
More from around the league:
- NBA agent Chris Luchey says that he will steer his clients away from the Clippers due to Donald Sterling’s comments, reports Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders (Twitter link).
- Kennedy also tweets that two 2014 draft prospects told him that they don’t want to be drafted by the Clippers due to Sterling’s comments.
- The NBA owners must unite against Sterling, writes Marcus Thompson II of The San Jose Mercury News.
- Steve Kerr has discussed becoming a head coach with multiple coaching legends, including Lute Olsen and Bill Parcells, writes Peter Botte of The New York Daily News. According to the article, Kerr made a special cross country flight to meet with Parcells recently. Kerr is expected to meet with Phil Jackson this weekend to discuss the Knicks head coaching position.
- Chris Forsberg of ESPNBoston.com grades Phil Pressey‘s performance for the Celtics this season. Pressey averaged 2.8 PPG, 1.4 RPG, and 3.2 APG.
Eastern Notes: Pistons, Woodson, Celtics
Vince Ellis of The Detroit Free Press thinks that the Pistons should focus on finding a GM before concentrating on filling their vacant head coaching position. By waiting until after the playoffs, the franchise could see the pool of available coaches grow. Ellis notes that if their teams get bounced out of the playoffs in the first round, Pacers coach Frank Vogel, Thunder coach Scott Brooks and Warriors coach Mark Jackson could get lose their jobs and become possibilities for Detroit.
More from the Eastern Conference:
- Former Knicks coach Mike Woodson said things didn’t work out for him this year, but he still wants to coach, writes Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com. Woodson said, “The last two years, prior to coming into this season, was a good two seasons for our ball club and for our fans, and this year things just didn’t work out. Sometimes in life, things just don’t work out according to plan. But I look at it, overall it was a good run and it was a great experience for me from a coaching standpoint. I’ve got to move on and close the chapter in this book and get ready for a new chapter because I still want to coach, and I love what I do.”
- Jeff Van Gundy believes that Steve Kerr should be the next coach of the Knicks, writes Marc Berman of The New York Post. Van Gundy said, “I think [Kerr] has every quality you need to be an outstanding head coach. I see the combination of he and Jackson having the type of relationship that would bring unity to the organization that is necessary to have a chance to win big consistently.’’
- Mark Murphy of The Boston Herald examines the Celtics draft options in what GM Danny Ainge calls, “a top heavy draft.”