Chip Engelland

Northwest Notes: Thunder, Micic, Grant, Tillman

General manager Sam Presti said the Thunder came “pretty close” to signing Serbian star Vasilije Micic, writes Johnny Askounis of Eurohoops. Micic has won back-to-back EuroLeague titles and Final Four MVPs with Turkish club Anadolu Efes.

“He’s really taken off since the time in which we acquired his rights,” Presti said, referring to the trade in 2020 that sent Micic’s rights to Oklahoma City from Philadelphia. “All I can tell you is I thought we were pretty close at one time. He is on a contract, and he’s committed over there. But I wouldn’t rule anything out. It’s probably a year-to-year thing.”

Micic’s representatives were rumored to be pushing the Thunder to trade his rights, with several teams said to be interested in his services. However, he was still under contract in Europe and ultimately decided to stay with Efes for another season.

Here’s more from the Northwest:

  • The Thunder recently announced some changes to their coaching staff for the 2022/23 season. In addition to formalizing an agreement with longtime Spurs assistant Chip Engelland, the Thunder have also named Grant Gibbs an assistant coach. Gibbs has been the head coach of the Oklahoma City Blue, the team’s G League affiliate, for the past three seasons, and will be replaced by Kameron Woods, who was an assistant with the Thunder last season.
  • The Trail Blazers need Jerami Grant to improve upon his Pistons play if they hope to contend this season, according to Aaron Fentress of The Oregonian, who writes that Grant should see a bump in offensive efficiency playing on a more talented roster. The Blazers are interested in reaching a long-term extension with Grant, whose $20.96MM contract expires after ’22/23, Fentress adds.
  • Justin Tillman is not on the Nuggets‘ training camp roster but is still expected to play for their G League affiliate, the Grand Rapids Gold, our JD Shaw reports (via Twitter). Tillman, who is still signed to an Exhibit 10 deal, will likely be waived and replaced by another Exhibit 10 player within the next few days, per Harrison Wind of DNVR Sports (Twitter link). Tillman spent last season in the G League with the College Park Skyhawks, Atlanta’s affiliate.

Western Notes: Porter Jr., Williamson, Engelland, Spurs, Thunder

If the Rockets and Kevin Porter Jr. agree to an extension this offseason, it’ll likely have to be a team-friendly deal, Michael Scotto of HoopsHype reports. Scotto relays Houston is looking to preserve salary cap space for next summer.

Porter is coming off a season in which he averaged 15.6 points and 6.2 assists per game, shooting 41.5% from the floor and 37.5% from distance. At 22 years old, he’s shown he can be an electric scorer and ball-handler, but he’s dealt with maturity and discipline issues throughout his career.

It’s unlikely Houston would want to offer much more than Porter’s 2023 cap hold ($9.65MM) as a starting salary on an extension. If the two sides don’t work out a deal by opening night this fall, the 22-year-old would be eligible for restricted free agency next summer. Before joining the Rockets, he was the No. 30 pick in 2019 and started his career with the Cavaliers.

Here are some other odds and ends from around the basketball world:

Thunder Hiring Chip Engelland As Assistant Coach

The Thunder are hiring longtime Spurs assistant coach Chip Engelland as an assistant on Mark Daigneault‘s staff, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.

Engelland has spent the last 17 years in San Antonio under Gregg Popovich after beginning his coaching career as a shooting consultant with the Pistons (1999-2000) and a player development coach with the Nuggets (2003-05).

As Wojnarowski writes, Engelland is widely viewed as the NBA’s top shooting coach and is thought to have had a significant impact on players like Tony Parker and Kawhi Leonard during his time with the Spurs. He has a preexisting relationship with Thunder head of basketball operations Sam Presti, who previously worked in San Antonio’s front office.

Jake Fischer of Bleacher Report tweeted earlier this month that Engelland was leaving the Spurs “at the conclusion of his contract” — while Fischer’s report didn’t make it clear, it sounds as if Engelland’s contract expired this offseason, clearing a path for him to accept a new position in Oklahoma City.

The Spurs and Engelland, who has long been one of the NBA’s highest-paid assistants, couldn’t agree to terms on a new deal, Wojnarowski explains.

In his new role, Engelland will have the opportunity to work with a promising young Thunder core that includes Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Josh Giddey, Chet Holmgren, Luguentz Dort, Jalen Williams, and Ousmane Dieng, among others.

Spurs Notes: K. Johnson, Primo, Wesley, Branham, Engelland

The Spurs are locking up one of the keys to their rebuilding project by agreeing to a four-year, $80MM extension with Keldon Johnson, writes Jeff McDonald of The San Antonio Express-News. Even though Johnson is only 22, he’s among the most experienced players on the roster following the trade of Dejounte Murray to Atlanta.

“I kind of have been in the system the longest,” Johnson said after the Murray deal was announced. “So just lead these guys, tell them the ins and outs. We are all going to have learning moments in the upcoming years, but just stay even-keeled throughout it.”

After earning an Olympic gold medal last summer, Johnson turned in his best NBA season so far, posting career highs with 17.1 points, 6.1 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game and shooting 39.8% from three-point range. With Murray and Lonnie Walker both gone, Johnson will have to become an on-court leader for a team with the league’s second-youngest roster.

“Definitely a big opportunity,” he said. “We lost some big pieces, but it’s time to step up. You got to keep evolving, keep getting better, keep grinding. I am ready.”

There’s more on the Spurs:

  • San Antonio is counting on a pair of 19-year-old guards to play major roles this season, per Tom Orsborn of The San Antonio Express-News. The Spurs were hoping to get a long look at 2021 lottery pick Joshua Primo during Summer League, but he was limited to two games after testing positive for COVID-19. Blake Wesley, the 25th overall pick this season, had issues with shooting and turnovers in Las Vegas, but ranked 14th in scoring coming into today’s games. “Blake Wesley and Josh Primo are the modern-day guards,” Spurs Summer League coach Mitch Johnson said. “They are not classic throwback point guards. They are not classic throwback shooting guards in terms of how we used to define those things years ago. They are attacking guards, so that’s going to be a thing we will continue to develop, evolve, grow, teach, partner with them on.”
  • Summer League has been a learning process for another young guard, Malaki Branham, who was taken with the 20th pick last month, Orsborn adds. “I would rate myself grade-wise probably a C, C-plus,” Branham said. “I feel I need to be more aggressive. I’m looking for my shot but also creating for others. Just learning every game and learning every play as well.”
  • Assistant coach Chip Engelland, who has been with the team since 2005, will leave after his current contract expires, tweets Jake Fischer of Bleacher Report.

Western Notes: Looney, Cronin, Blazers, Clippers, Engelland

Warriors center Kevon Looney has served as a surprise iron man for the team this season, Monte Poole of NBC Sports Bay Area writes. Looney is one of six NBA players to start in every one of his team’s games, joining Chris Paul, Russell Westbrook, Mikal Bridges, Franz Wagner and Saddiq Bey.

“Loon just does his work every single day,” head coach Steve Kerr said. “He’s the ultimate pro. He understands his body. He understands what it takes to maintain his health and his conditioning, and he’s worked really hard to get to this point.

“He’s been through an awful lot in his career, as you well know, dealing with two hip surgeries and the neuropathy issue from a couple years ago.”

Much of the Warriors’ success has been attributed to Stephen Curry, Draymond Green and Andrew Wiggins, but Looney has played an important role for the club. In 53 games, he’s averaged 6.3 points, 7.3 rebounds and 1.6 assists in 21.1 minutes per contest, shooting 55% from the floor.

Here are some other notes from the Western Conference:

  • Blazers interim general manager Joe Cronin cited cap flexibility for why the team traded Norman Powell and Robert Covington to the Clippers on Friday, Ben Golliver of The Washington Post tweets. Portland acquired Eric Bledsoe, Justise Winslow, Keon Johnson and a 2025 second-round pick in the deal, ducking below the tax this season and clearing some money from the team’s books in future seasons.
  • Kevin Pelton of ESPN grades the Blazers-Clippers trade, explaining why he likes the deal more for Los Angeles than Portland. L.A. currently ranks 8th in the Western Conference at 27-27, while Portland sits at 10th with a 21-32 record. Both teams have dealt with injuries to star players this season, as Paul George and Damian Lillard have only played in 26 and 29 games, respectively. Kawhi Leonard has also remained out as he rehabs a torn ACL.
  • Spurs assistant Chip Engelland has cleared the NBA’s health and safety protocols, according to Tom Orsborn of the San Antonio Express-News (Twitter link). San Antonio now has all of its coaches back. Engelland entered protocols on January 26, the same day that assistants Becky Hammon and Darius Songaila both exited them.