Sixers’ Ownership Wants Mike D’Antoni As Head Coach
Clippers assistant Tyronn Lue is scheduled to interview Tuesday for the Sixers‘ head coaching vacancy, but the ownership group is strongly in favor of hiring former Rockets coach Mike D’Antoni, according to Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer.
What effect that endorsement will have on the process is uncertain, along with the question of who will make the final decision, Pompey adds. The stated plan was for general manager Elton Brand to be in charge of interviewing and to make a recommendation to ownership, which would approve or reject it. However, sources tell Pompey that D’Antoni met directly with team owners during the first round of interviews, although the Sixers are denying their involvement. Sources say D’Antoni had a meeting with Brand as well, as did Billy Donovan, who was hired by the Bulls this week.
Pompey cites leaks from the organization indicating that Brand and star center Joel Embiid are now on board with hiring D’Antoni. Embiid is looking forward to facing the basket in D’Antoni’s offense, rather than posting up. The coach also reportedly plans to make Tobias Harris a power forward again. The front office is willing to make trades to build a roster that fits D’Antoni’s style of play, and he will have input into choosing players, according to Pompey.
Pompey questions whether Lue is watching the situation in Philadelphia closely and if it would be worth his time to go ahead with the interview. Lue was considered the top candidate for the job when Brett Brown was fired in late August. There was mutual interest, Pompey adds, and negotiations were expected to intensify once the Clippers’ playoff run ended.
Lue was excited about the chance to coach Embiid and fellow All-Star Ben Simmons and wasn’t bothered by the perception that both star players would have a significant role in picking the next coach. Pompey notes that Lue has been around huge stars throughout his NBA career, dating back to his playing days with the Lakers.
Sources tell Pompey that Lue’s interactions with the Sixers have been limited to a few discussions with Brand. He hasn’t met directly with the GM like other first-round candidates and hasn’t been contacted by ownership. Pompey hears that D’Antoni would have to “bomb his interview” to not be offered the job, so Lue’s hopes of becoming a head coach again may have to happen elsewhere.
Dell Demps Joining Jazz As Assistant Coach
Longtime NBA executive Dell Demps is transitioning into coaching, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, who reports that Demps has agreed to join the Jazz as an assistant on Quin Snyder‘s staff (Twitter links).
A former NBA player, Demps joined the Spurs’ front office following his retirement and eventually moved to New Orleans, where he was hired as the Pelicans’ general manager in 2010, assuming control of the team’s basketball operations department. He was let go in 2019 and replaced by David Griffin.
As Wojnarowski explains, Demps decided after leaving New Orleans last year that he wanted to try coaching — he has since spent time in Utah attending practices and meetings with Snyder and the rest of his staff.
Snyder was the coach of the Austin Toros, San Antonio’s G League affiliate, from 2007-10 when Demps was still with the Spurs, so the two men have a strong, long-standing relationship, according to Woj.
Demps will help fill the gap created on Snyder’s staff by the departure of Johnnie Bryant, who accepted a job with the Knicks under Tom Thibodeau.
Altman Confirms Mutual Interest Between Thompson, Cavs
Tristan Thompson‘s days in Cleveland appeared numbered following the Cavaliers‘ acquisition of center Andre Drummond in February, but reports throughout the summer suggested that a new deal between the Cavs and Thompson is still possible, with Spencer Davies of BasketballNews.com citing a source this week who says there’s “a lot of mutual interest” between the two sides.
With free agency around the corner, Thompson isn’t participating in the Cavaliers’ in-market bubble mini-camp this week. However, general manager Koby Altman made it clear that’s not a sign that the big man won’t be back, confirming that a reunion remains in play, per Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com.
“I think it’s fair to say there’s mutual interest for sure,” Altman said. “He’s been with this franchise his entire career since we drafted him. He’s won a championship here. Obviously, he means a lot to the players on the team right now.”
Thompson’s veteran teammates in the frontcourt are among those who would like to see him back, as Fedor relays. Larry Nance Jr. said that re-signing Thompson would be his “top priority” this offseason, while Kevin Love said Thompson is “so valuable for this team and this organization.”
Still, according to Fedor, one source believes a new deal between the Cavaliers and Thompson is just a “50-50” proposition, since there are some obstacles that would complicate matters. Given Cleveland’s cap situation, re-signing the 29-year-old may limit the club’s ability to use its mid-level exception. And if the Cavs draft a big man with the No. 5 overall pick in November, the frontcourt might be too crowded to fit Thompson.
“It has to make sense,” Altman acknowledged. “There are some events coming up — the draft, free agency — where we have to see if it makes sense for him. He’s earned the right to be an unrestricted free agent and explore opportunities at this point in his career. So, we’ll see.”
Nikola Mirotic Extends Contract With Barcelona
After forgoing lucrative NBA offers a year ago to return to his home country of Spain, power forward Nikola Mirotic apparently has no regrets about that decision, having opted to extend his contract with Barcelona. The Spanish club announced today that Mirotic has agreed to an extension through the 2024/25 season.
Mirotic, who was expected to receive three- or four-year offers in the range of $45-50MM last July if he had remained stateside, finalized a deal with Barcelona just a day before the NBA’s 2019 free agent period began.
That contract was a three-year pact with a fourth-year option for the 2022/23 season, so even without his latest extension, Mirotic would’ve been under contract in Spain for multiple years to come. His new deal suggests he’s happy in Barcelona and has no intention of returning to the NBA anytime in the next few years — or perhaps ever.
“The club has trusted in me ever since I arrived,” Mirotic said in a statement. “Everyone knows it is never easy to come back from the U.S., but the club has given me everything. They wanted to bring me here, the fans have been good to me, the energy is great and I have often said how surprised I have seen to be so well received.”
After recording 12.3 PPG and 5.9 RPG in 319 games over the course of five NBA seasons in Chicago, New Orleans, and Milwaukee, Mirotic averaged 20.0 PPG and 5.8 RPG in 20 Spanish League games (26.9 MPG) in 2019/20, adding 19.0 PPG and 6.9 RPG in 28 EuroLeague contests (27.8 MPG). He earned Spanish League MVP honors for his performance, an award he previously won in 2013.
NBA Sets Format For Draft Combine
The NBA announced plans today for a revamped draft combine that will run from September 28 until early to mid-November. Designed to aid with player evaluation before the November 18 draft, some of the combine will take place in team markets and other parts will be virtual.
“NBA Draft Combine is an essential part of the pre-draft evaluation process,” said Byron Spruell, President of NBA League Operations. “While the circumstances surrounding this combine are unique, we’re excited to creatively deliver a valuable experience for our teams, who have remained flexible through the process, and for prospective draftees who are just beginning their NBA journeys.”
The combine will enable players to conduct both team and league-wide interviews, all through videoconferencing, from September 28 to October 16.
Players will also participate in a traditional on-court program that will include strength and agility testing, anthropometric measurements, shooting drills, and the making of a “pro day” video. That will take place in October at the NBA team facility closest to the player’s location. Medical testing and exams will be provided in the same market by doctors affiliated with the league.
The NBA will utilize HomeCourt, a mobile basketball app that uses “advanced machine learning and computer vision” to deliver analytics and record the shooting evaluation part of the combine. It will allow the players to create videos that can be up to 45 minutes long. The league will also expand its use of “Combine HQ,” an interactive platform that offers teams a “one-stop shop” for scouting information gathered during the combine.
Dragan Bender Signs With Israeli Team
After spending four seasons in the NBA, Dragan Bender has signed a contract with Maccabi Tel Aviv, tweets European basketball reporter Nemanja Zoric. The deal will cover three months with an option to extend it for the entire season, according to Moses Barda of Team Scout (Twitter link).
The brief nature of Bender’s agreement will give him an opportunity to return to the NBA next season if an opportunity arises, writes Johnny Askounis of EuroHoops. Bender played two seasons in Israel before coming to the NBA.
Bender, 22, will replace former NBA player Quincy Acy with Maccabi Tel Aviv, Askounis adds. Acy signed a one-year deal with the team last summer, but couldn’t come to terms for a second season.
Bender’s NBA career was disappointing after the Suns took him with the fourth pick in the 2016 draft. Instead of blossoming into a star, he wound up as a journeyman, with short stints with the Bucks and Warriors this season after spending three years in Phoenix.
His best season was in 2017/18 when he appeared in all 82 games for the Suns, started 37 and averaged 6.5 points and 4.4 rebounds per night. Phoenix elected not to offer him a rookie-scale extension, and he became a free agent last summer.
Bender signed with Milwaukee, but got into just seven games before being waived in February. He joined Golden State on a pair of 10-day deals and averaged 9.0 PPG and 5.9 RPG in nine games before the hiatus began.
Bulls Hire Billy Donovan As Head Coach
5:18pm: The Bulls have officially announced Donovan as their new head coach.
“We are very pleased to welcome Billy and his family to the Chicago Bulls. The success that he has sustained over the course of his coaching career puts him on a different level,” Karnisovas said in a statement. “We feel his ability to help his players reach their potential, both individually and collectively, will mesh well with our roster. Whether as a player or as a coach, he has won everywhere his career has taken him, and we hope that will continue here in Chicago.”
5:00pm: The Bulls and Billy Donovan have reached a deal that will make him Chicago’s new head coach, reports ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
According to Wojnarowski, new Bulls executive VP of basketball operations Arturas Karnisovas “aggressively pursued” Donovan this month, as he and GM Marc Eversley felt that the former Thunder coach was the best candidate available.
Donovan, who had spent the last five years in Oklahoma City, parted ways with the Thunder following their elimination from the postseason earlier this month. He compiled a 243-157 (.608) regular-season record with the franchise during that time, making the postseason in each of his five years in OKC. He did arguably his most impressive work in 2019/20, guiding a roster that wasn’t viewed as playoff-ready to the No. 5 seed in the Western Conference.
While the Thunder reportedly had interest in retaining Donovan, there was a sense that the veteran coach didn’t want to stick around through a rebuilding process. In Chicago, he won’t be taking over a team that’s ready to immediately contend, but Karnisovas and the Bulls sold him on a “partnership and vision for a talented young roster,” as well as a chance to lead one of the NBA’s marquee franchises, says Wojnarowski.
The Bulls had been in the market for a new head coach since dismissing Jim Boylen in mid-August. At the time, Karnisovas indicated the team would conduct a comprehensive search and would focus on hiring someone who “puts the relationship with players first” and is “a good communicator.”
Among the candidates interviewed by Chicago, Kenny Atkinson, Ime Udoka, Darvin Ham, and Wes Unseld Jr. were said to have made good impressions in their meetings with the organization. However, Donovan was always viewed as a strong candidate for the job, having been linked to the Bulls immediately after his departure from Oklahoma City.
With Donovan off the market, a handful of teams still in the midst of their coaching searches will have to look elsewhere. The former Florida Gators coach was said to be on the Sixers‘ short list and reportedly met with the Pacers as well.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Silver Acknowledges Next Season Unlikely To Start Until 2021
Echoing a sentiment expressed earlier this month by NBPA executive director Michele Roberts, NBA commissioner Adam Silver told CNN’s Bob Costas today that his “best guess” is that the league’s next season won’t begin until sometime in 2021 (Twitter link via Mark Medina of USA Today).
The NBA previously informed its Board of Governors that December 25 would be the earliest possible start date for the 2020/21 season. Christmas Day typically features an impressive slate of games that showcase many of the league’s best teams, making it a logical option for opening day. However, with the coronavirus pandemic still complicating plans to get fans back into arenas, another delay seems likely.
As Medina relays, Silver also said on CNN today that the NBA’s goal is still to play a “standard” 82-game schedule next season, preferably in teams’ home arenas in front of fans. It remains to be seen whether that will be possible though.
Even if the NBA is able to play a full 82-game season, starting it in January would ensure it runs far beyond the league’s typical end date, complicating the NBA’s ability to send players and coaches to the Tokyo Olympics, which are set to begin on July 23. There’s also no guarantee that 2020/21’s opening night won’t be postponed until February or March, a possibility that has been recently voiced by reporters and players alike.
For now, the NBA is focused on safely completing its 2019/20 season, which will conclude within about three weeks.
G League Mulling Fall Tournament Featuring Select Team
The NBA G League is “seriously discussing” the possibility of putting on a tournament this fall that would include the Ignite, the league’s new select team, reports Shams Charania of The Athletic (via Twitter).
According to Charania, the situation remains fluid, but the tentative plan would be for the tournament to take place in a bubble environment at some point in November or December. The Ignite – the NBAGL’s select team that features top prospects such as Jalen Green, Daishen Nix, and Jonathan Kuminga – would be the event’s headliners.
It’s not clear which other teams would participate in such a tournament. Charania suggests that “undrafted players” may fill out other rosters, so it’s possible the event would represent a sort of Summer League alternative for young players auditioning for NBA training camp invites rather than a full-fledged G League event featuring teams made up of NBAGL veterans. That’s just my speculation though.
The uncertain fate of the G League’s 2020/21 season has been an underreported consequence of the coronavirus pandemic. Unlike the NBA, the G League relies heavily on commercial travel, which likely won’t be as practical as it was pre-pandemic. And with far less revenue at stake, the league is less likely to pour significant resources into ensuring the ’20/21 NBAGL season can be played.
A series of smaller, bubble-environment events like the one described by Charania may be an alternative path for the G League if a full season can’t be played. We’ll probably have to wait for clarity on the NBA’s ’20/21 season before we get a more concrete update on the NBAGL’s campaign.
J.J. Redick Aiming To Play Four More Years
Pelicans sharpshooter J.J. Redick turned 36 in June and has just one year left on his current contract with the team, but he’s not thinking about calling it a career when his deal ends next year. As he tells Mark Medina of USA Today, Redick is still hoping to play for several more seasons.
“I realized this year I want to keep playing as long as possible. My goal is to play four more years,” Redick said. “Year 18. That’s my goal. I’ll play to 39. Then my offseason, I’ll turn 40 and then I can walk away at that point. That’s my goal. We’ll see. The body has to hold up.”
The 11th overall pick in the 2006 draft, Redick has already played 14 seasons in the NBA after spending four full years at Duke. However, there’s no indication that he has lost a step as he enters his late-30s.
In 2019/20, Redick averaged 15.3 PPG on .453/.453/.892 shooting in 60 games (26.4 MPG) for New Orleans. All of those scoring and shooting rates were above his career averages. While it’s probably safe to assume he’ll see his minutes cut back to some extent over the next few years, his outside shooting ability should continue to make him a valuable role player for the Pelicans or – eventually – another team.
In his conversation with Medina, Redick praised the Pelicans’ young building blocks – Brandon Ingram, Zion Williamson, and Lonzo Ball – and suggested that there’s “a lot of potential and excitement” in New Orleans going forward. However, he admitted he wasn’t satisfied with the way the club’s 2019/20 campaign ended.
“I thought from a talent perspective and a depth perspective, we were a playoff team this year. So not to reach your potential as a team, you have to be disappointed in that,” Redick said. “You obviously have to self-reflect and self-grade with how could I have been better. Down the line, each guy has to do that.”