Knicks Not Retaining Consultant David Blatt
The Knicks are parting ways with David Blatt, according to Marc Berman of The New York Post (Twitter link), who reports that Blatt’s contract has expired after he was hired by the team as a basketball operations consultant last December.
Blatt, a longtime basketball coach who was on the Cavaliers’ sidelines from 2014-16, was hired by the Knicks in the winter after most recently serving as the head coach of Greek team Olympiacos. His role in New York saw him working with the Knicks’ G League team and the organization’s international scouting.
Former Knicks president Steve Mills was responsible for hiring Blatt, who was his teammate at Princeton from 1978-81. Given the close relationship between the two men, it’s unsurprising that the Knicks are moving on from Blatt now that Mills no longer has a role in the club’s basketball operations department. However, Berman notes that Blatt leaves on “good terms” with new team president Leon Rose.
After officially starting his new position on March 2, Rose figures to make more changes to the Knicks’ front office in the coming months. So far though, the team hasn’t been actively hiring or firing executives during the NBA’s hiatus.
Rodney Hood Expects To Return To Trail Blazers
Rodney Hood, whose 2019/20 season came to an early end in December when he suffered a torn Achilles tendon, fully expects to stick with the Trail Blazers for at least one more season, as Jamie Goldberg of The Oregonian details.
“One thing I know is that I’ll be in a Portland Trail Blazers uniform next year,” Hood said. “As far as the contract and all that type of stuff, that will work itself out when that time comes, but I fully expect to be in a Portland Trail Blazers uniform next year.”
Hood’s comments don’t come as a surprise — he has a $6MM player option for the 2020/21 season, and since he won’t be fully recovered from that Achilles injury by the start of the offseason, it wouldn’t make sense for him to opt for free agency. The only scenario in which he wouldn’t return to Portland for next season would be if the Blazers decide to trade him.
As for Hood’s recovery process, it was interrupted to some extent by the suspension of the NBA season, but the 27-year-old has been granted permission to continue visiting the Blazers’ practice facility for rehab purposes.
As Goldberg writes, Portland’s president of basketball operations Neil Olshey and director of player health and performance Jesse Elis worked with the NBA to ensure that Hood can continue rehabbing with physical therapist and sports scientist Logan Sullivan, as long as they follow enhanced safety measures.
“I’ve been working out with Logan three days a week,” Hood said. “It’s just one-on-one contact. We can’t be in group settings or nothing like that. Usually, when it’s me and him working together, it’s just us two in the weight room or the training room. We’re getting a lot of work in. It’s been very good. I’ve been making a lot of progress, even with everything going on.”
Hood, 27, has been the Blazers’ starting small forward prior to his injury, averaging 11.0 PPG and 3.4 RPG with an impressive .506/.493/.778 shooting line in 21 games (29.5 MPG).
Washington’s Jaden McDaniels Declares For Draft
Washington freshman power forward Jaden McDaniels has declared for the 2020 NBA draft, announcing his decision on Twitter late on Tuesday night. Although McDaniels has the option of testing the waters without forgoing his eligibility, his statement suggests he plans to go pro.
McDaniels was the Huskies’ second-leading scorer in his first and only college season, averaging 13.0 PPG, 5.8 RPG, 2.1 APG, and 1.4 BPG with a .405/.339/.763 shooting line in 31 games (31.1 MPG).
The 19-year-old currently ranks 16th overall on ESPN’s big board, including third among power forwards. In his scouting report, ESPN’s Mike Schmitz lauds the youngster’s ability to play above the rim, his versatile offensive attack, and the defensive upside generated by his agility and size.
McDaniels does need to add some weight to his frame and improve his decision-making, according to Schmitz, who notes that scouts see the 6’10” forward as “more of a long-term prospect” rather than someone who can make an immediate impact. While an up-and-down freshman season hurt McDaniels’ stock a little, it’s worth pointing out that he ranked atop one of Jonathan Givony’s first 2020 mock drafts back in January 2019.
McDaniels is the second Washington underclassman to declare for the draft this spring, joining fellow freshman Isaiah Stewart.
Trevor Booker Announces Retirement
Veteran NBA forward Trevor Booker is officially calling it a career, publishing a letter on Twitter today to announce his retirement as a player.
“THANK YOU BASKETBALL!” Booker wrote within his retirement announcement. “I have no clue where I would have ended up without you, but watch where you take me. I hope you guys continue to watch my journey because it’s definitely not over, it’s just the beginning.”
The 23rd overall pick in the 2010 draft, Booker spent his first four NBA seasons with the Wizards before spending time with the Jazz, Nets, Sixers, and Pacers. He appeared in a total of 532 regular season games, primarily as a backup, averaging 6.9 PPG, 5.5 RPG, and 1.1 APG. He also saw action in a total of 16 postseason contests for Washington and Indiana.
Booker, 32, last appeared in the NBA during the 2017/18 campaign, playing a total of 68 games for the Nets, 76ers, and Pacers, averaging 6.3 PPG and 4.7 RPG in 17.0 MPG. After failing to catch on with an NBA team in the summer of 2018, he signed with China’s Shanxi Brave Dragons, but left the team early in the season and returned stateside to undergo foot surgery.
Booker worked out for NBA teams last summer and was said to still be on some clubs’ radars as recently as January. However, after another season without an NBA opportunity, he apparently decided it was time to hang up his sneakers.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Chinese Basketball Association Postpones Restart Again
The Chinese Basketball Association is facing another setback, having postponed the resumption of its 2019/20 season until at least July, according to Chinese journalist Zhang Duo (Twitter link). The CBA, which initially suspended its season in January, had wanted to resume play on April 15, but has been forced to push that target date back multiple times.
In a full story on the CBA’s latest delay, Jonathan Givony of ESPN writes that a final decision on resuming the league’s season can’t be made without government clearance, and that won’t happen until mid-May at the earliest. There’s still a chance that the remainder of the season will be canceled altogether.
A government order banning non-citizens from traveling into China complicates the situation, as we detailed last month. While some foreign players had returned to China before that ban was implemented in March, others had yet to do so — it remains to be seen if and when they’ll actually be able to re-enter the country to rejoin their teams.
As for the import players who did report to China in March, they’re now stuck in limbo, as Givony explains. They’ve completed their 14-day quarantines and CBA teams have started conducting basketball activities, but with the season not scheduled to resume for at least two-and-a-half more months, it’s unclear whether all of those players will continue being paid to stick around.
According to Givony, some of the top CBA players told ESPN that they plan to stay in China as long as they continue to receive their salaries, since leaving now and then returning in the summer would mean undergoing two additional 14-day quarantines.
Givony cites a report from Chinese outlet Xinhua, which suggests that some top CBA executives – including CEO Wang Dawei – will accept a pay reduction to help ease the financial burden on the league.
The CBA’s latest setback doesn’t bode well for the NBA and other major sports leagues around the world hoping that resumed seasons will be possible in the coming months. Even if the Chinese league is able to restart in July, its hiatus would have lasted more than five months by that point.
Bulls Receive Permission To Interview Three GM Candidates
Having officially hired Arturas Karnisovas as their new head of basketball operations, the Bulls are now in the market for a new general manager. With Karnisovas leading that search, the club has received permission to interview three candidates so far, sources tell ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link).
According to Wojnarowski, Chicago has been granted permission to speak to Sixers senior VP of player personnel Marc Eversley, Clippers assistant GM Mark Hughes, and Magic assistant GM Matt Lloyd.
[RELATED: Bulls Part Ways With GM Gar Forman]
Those three executives were among the candidates initially identified by Wojnarowski for the job last Friday. At the time, Woj also said that Nuggets assistant GM Calvin Booth was a target, so his omission from today’s list is notable. There’s a belief that Denver will attempt to keep Booth after losing Karnisovas — he’s a candidate to be promoted to fill the Nuggets’ newly-opened GM role.
It remains to be seen whether Eversley, Hughes, and Lloyd are the Bulls’ top choices or whether the team’s search will continue to expand to include other candidates.
A source tells Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times (Twitter link) that Heat assistant GM Shane Battier won’t be interviewing with the Bulls, since Chicago recognizes that Miami values him and won’t be letting him go. Cowley adds (via Twitter) that despite some chatter, Pelicans GM Trajan Langdon won’t be a candidate for the Bulls’ GM position either.
Cowley previously identified Mavericks VP of basketball operations Michael Finley and Thunder executives Troy Weaver and Nazr Mohammed as potential GM targets for Chicago. However, based on a subsequent report, it would be a surprise if Weaver has interest in the job.
Kansas’ Devon Dotson To Enter 2020 NBA Draft
Kansas sophomore guard Devon Dotson will declare for the 2020 NBA draft, reports Jeff Goodman of Stadium (Twitter link). Dotson, who tested the draft waters and participated in the combine last spring, is expected to forgo his remaining eligibility and go pro this time around, per Goodman.
Dotson, who started all 66 games he played for the Jayhawks in his two college seasons, boosted his averages to 18.1 PPG, 4.1 RPG, 4.0 APG, and 2.1 SPG as a sophomore, though his shooting percentages dipped slightly to 46.8% from the field and 30.9% from beyond the arc.
The 6’2″ point guard currently ranks 31st overall on ESPN’s big board, making him a candidate to be drafted in the first round. ESPN’s most recent mock draft projected him to come off the board at No. 32 to the Hornets.
Dotson becomes the latest addition to our list of early entrants for the 2020 draft, which now includes more than 110 college players.
Bulls Officially Move John Paxson To Advisory Role
With Arturas Karnisovas taking over the executive VP of basketball operations position that he previously held, John Paxson has been named a senior advisor of basketball operations, the Bulls announced today in a press release.
“John has an invaluable perspective on our organization and where we want to be, and he played an instrumental role in this change by bringing forward the idea of a restructure and reorganization,” Bulls chairman Jerry Reinsdorf said in a statement. “I have always held his knowledge and basketball insight in the highest regard, and he has earned my respect as well as that of his peers. His decision to take on a new role reflects what I’ve always known about John – that he is forever a willing teammate on and off of the court and always does what he believes is in the best interest of the Chicago Bulls.”
After spending nine years with the Bulls as a player and then joining the coaching staff as an assistant in 1995, Paxson spent some time as a broadcaster before being brought back to Chicago as the team’s general manager in 2003. He became the executive VP of basketball operations in 2009.
After he and longtime GM Gar Forman ran the Bulls’ front office for the last decade, Paxson’s re-assignment had been expected. He was reportedly prepared to leave the organization altogether if newly-hired head of basketball operations Karnisovas decided that was in the team’s best interests.
However, a report last week suggested that Karnisovas viewed Paxson as “a resource, not a roadblock.” Another report indicated that Paxson will only weigh in on basketball decisions if asked by Karnisovas for his input.
The Bulls parted ways with Forman today after officially announcing the hiring of Karnisovas.
Bulls Part Ways With GM Gar Forman
Longtime Bulls executive Gar Forman has been relieved of his duties as general manager and will no longer be involved in the team’s basketball operations department, the team announced today in a press release.
“Gar Forman worked tirelessly for the Chicago Bulls organization, first as a scout and then as an executive,” Bulls chairman Jerry Reinsdorf said in a statement. “He made many significant contributions during his time here and helped to bring some of the brightest young basketball talent to our team, from Derrick Rose, Joakim Noah and Taj Gibson to Jimmy Butler and Coby White.
“He has been a trusted advisor and friend to me over the years, and on behalf of everyone I want to thank him for his commitment to the organization. Gar will always be a part of our Bulls family.”
Forman, who initially joined the Bulls as a scout in 1998, was named director of player personnel in 2004 and was eventually promoted to GM in 2009.
With Chicago revamping its front office and hiring Arturas Karnisovas as the club’s new head of basketball operations, there was an expectation that Forman would either be re-assigned to the scouting department or let go altogether. It appears the team has opted for the latter path.
[RELATED: Bulls Officially Move John Paxson To Advisory Role]
Forman issued a statement of his own thanking the Reinsdorfs, calling it an “honor and privilege” to have worked for the Bulls for over two decades, and saying that the team “will always hold a special place in my heart.”
Forman had two years left on his contract with the Bulls, according to K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago, who tweets that the veteran executive will be “in demand” as a scout for other NBA teams.
Bulls Officially Announce Hiring Of Arturas Karnisovas
Five days after reports surfaced suggesting the Bulls were finalizing the hiring of Arturas Karnisovas, Chicago has made it official, announcing in a press release that the former Nuggets general manager is now their executive VP, basketball operations. As expected, Karnisovas’ new title with the Bulls is the one John Paxson held for the last several years.
“Arturas is one of the most respected basketball executives in the NBA. His résumé speaks for itself. I am thrilled that he is now a member of the Bulls,” said president & COO Michael Reinsdorf, who led the front office search. “As the new head of basketball operations, I am confident that his vision, ability to lead and experience helping build winning teams in Houston and Denver will serve him well here. I am very pleased to welcome him and his family to the City of Chicago and have him officially join our organization.”
Karnisovas had been with the Nuggets since being hired as an assistant general manager in 2013. He was promoted to GM in 2017 and helped build a roster that won 54 games in 2018/19 and was on nearly an identical pace this year prior to the suspension of the NBA’s season.
Before working with Nuggets president of basketball operations Tim Connelly to build a contender in Denver, Karnisovas was part of the basketball operations department in the NBA’s league office and served as an international scout for the Rockets. He also had a successful EuroLeague career as a player and won a pair of bronze medals for Lithuania’s national team in the Olympics.
“This is the height of a dream for me, and I am prepared for the challenge that it presents,” Karnisovas said in a statement of his own. “I grew up watching the Chicago Bulls. They represented American basketball and the NBA to a kid from Lithuania. I’ve always had a love for this franchise and to be a part of it and influence its revival is a privilege. I want to thank (team chairman) Jerry (Reinsdorf) and Michael Reinsdorf and the entire Bulls organization for presenting me with this opportunity and welcoming me and my family to Chicago.”
Since news broke last week that the Bulls had landed on Karnisovas as their new head of basketball operations, there have been rumors and reports on executives who may join him in Chicago’s new-look front office. The team reportedly reached a deal to hire cap guru J.J. Polk away from the Pelicans and was said to be in serious talks with Nuggets director of pro personnel Pat Connelly as well.
Of course, two of the most important initial decisions Karnisovas will have to make involve the head coach and general manager roles. Jim Boylen reportedly has some concern about his job security despite remaining confident he’ll be retained. Meanwhile, longtime GM Gar Forman has been let go, with Karnisovas said to be putting together a list of candidates to fill that position.
As for the Nuggets, they’ll need to plug the hole created in the front office by the departure of their general manager. Assistant GM Calvin Booth is a candidate for a promotion in Denver, though he’s also said to be on Karnisovas’ list of potential GM targets.