David McClure

Grizzlies Announce New Coaching Staff

After hiring first-time head coach Taylor Jenkins to replace J.B. Bickerstaff in June, the Grizzlies have officially announced Jenkins’ staff, which features a series of new hires.

According to a press release, Niele Ivey, Brad Jones, David McClure, James “Scoonie” Penn, Vitaly Potapenko, and Neven Spahija will serve as Jenkins’ assistants for the 2019/20 season. Of the six, only Potapenko was on the team’s staff last season.

Ivey, who has spent the last 12 seasons at Notre Dame, including the last four years as the associate head coach of Fighting Irish’s women’s team, is the first female assistant in Grizzlies history, as David Cobb of The Memphis Commercial Appeal notes.

Jones, a veteran of the NBA and G League, most recently served as the head coach of the Memphis Hustle, the Grizzlies’ NBAGL affiliate. The team has named Jason March as its new G League head coach.

McClure spent the last three seasons as a player development coach for the Pacers; Penn comes to Memphis from Ohio State, where he was the director of player development since 2017; Spahija has coached internationally in a handful of countries since the mid-1980s, and was a Hawks assistant from 2014-17, working alongside Jenkins under Mike Budenholzer.

“Their experiences at the collegiate, international, G League and NBA levels will benefit everyone in our organization,” Jenkins said of his new assistants. “Above all else, I am thrilled to work with great people who will help build a competitive, unselfish, development-focused, and positive environment for our players.”

Southwest Notes: Duncan, Morey, Iguodala, Zion, McClure

While perhaps not as noteworthy as some of the more marquee free agent news we’ve seen this summer in terms of on-the-court impact, Marc Stein of The New York Times opines that the return of all-time-great Tim Duncan to the Spurs as a full-time assistant coach under legendary head coach Gregg Popovich is a gigantic story all the same.

As Stein notes, Duncan has been a frequent visitor at the Spurs’ practice facility throughout his retirement, mentoring/coaching players along the way, but this had always been done outside of the limelight, a setting in which Duncan prefers. So his abrupt return to the court for an 82-game season filled with continual travel and other headaches is a bit surprising, to say the least.

One narrative as to why Duncan accepted a position on Pop’s staff despite his disposition is simply need. Duncan reportedly knew that his old coach was struggling to fill the last open spot on his bench staff after departures by longtime Spurs’ assistants Ime Udoka and Ettore Messina, and his loyalty dictated he offer his services.

Here are some more stories from around the Southwest Division:

  • As Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle tweets, Rockets general manager Daryl Morey said on Friday that while Houston is not yet done adding to their 2019/20 roster, the team is much more likely to make further additions by trade rather than via free agency.
  • According to Chris Herrington of The Daily Memphian, it’s not a certainty that trade offers for Grizzlies veteran swingman Andre Iguodala will improve as time goes on, and Herrington remains skeptical that Iguodala will play a meaningful role for the Grizzlies at any point.
  • Pelicans president of basketball operations David Griffin tells Jeff Duncan of The Athletic that rookie phenom Zion Williamson is still getting taller and that the team is more worried about making sure the 19-year-old is eating well and in good condition than what his playing weight will be.
  • The Grizzlies have hired Pacers player development coach David McClure as an assistant for new head coach Taylor Jenkins’ staff in Memphis, reports J. Michael of The Indianapolis Star. McClure also spent two seasons in San Antonio before joining the Pacers back in 2015.

Coaching Notes: Warriors, Pacers, Nets, Sixers

Mike Brown has been offered the top assistant position by the Warriors, league sources told Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical. The former Cavaliers and Lakers head coach would replace Luke Walton, who was named the Lakers’ head coach, but terms of the deal are still being hammered out, Wojnarowski continues. Brown has remained close to his NBA mentor, Spurs coach Gregg Popovich, and spent a considerable amount of time around their organization last season, Wojnarowski adds.

Brown’s ties to the Spurs, affable personality and head-coaching experience tipped the scales in his favor in head coach Steve Kerr’s mind, according to Tim Kawakami of the San Jose Mercury News (Twitter link). Former Suns coach Ty Corbin was a finalist for the job before becoming one of Earl Watson‘s assistants with the Suns, ESPN.com’s Marc Stein reports while also confirming Golden State’s plan to hire Brown. The Warriors also met with the Hornets’ Stephen Silas and the Trail Blazers’ Nate Tibbetts, Stein adds.

In other coaching developments around the league:

  • The Pacers have added Bill Bayno as an assistant coach and David McClure as player development coach, the club announced on its website. New head coach Nate McMillan will retain Dan Burke and Popeye Jones from Frank Vogel’s staff.
  • The Nets have hired D-League assistant and Euroleague legend Mike Batiste as their big man coach, international journalist David Pick tweets.
  • The Sixers have hired John Townsend as their shooting coach, league sources told Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer. He held the same post with the Grizzlies the past two seasons and previously was the shooting coach for the Raptors and Trail Blazers. He replaces Gene Burroughs, who is now the head coach of the Sixers’ D-League team, the Delaware 87ers.
  • The Mavericks have hired Bob MacKinnon to coach their D-League team, the Texas Legends, Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News reports. He replaces Nick Van Exel, who is now a Grizzlies assistant.