Frank Vogel

Grizzlies Fire Dave Joerger

May 7th, 2016 at 9:09am CST by Eddie Scarito

Nelson Chenault/USA TODAY Sports Images

The Grizzlies parted ways with head coach Dave Joerger this morning, Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical reports (Twitter links). Joerger had asked Memphis for permission to speak with other teams regarding their coaching vacancies and Memphis decided to cut its ties with him, Wojnarowski adds. Memphis is still on the hook for Joerger’s $2MM salary for 2016/17, the scribe notes, adding that the coach’s deal included a team option for the 2017/18 season. The Grizzlies intend to pursue former Pacers coach Frank Vogel, according to Wojnarowski (Twitter link).

Sacramento had been pushing hard to gain permission from the Grizzlies to speak with Joerger regarding its coaching vacancy, Wojnarowski relays (via Twitter), and Joerger is now at the top of the Kings’ wish list as they seek a replacement for George Karl. Joerger had requested permission to speak with the Kings and Rockets about their coaching vacancies, as Wojnarowski writes in a full-length post. Sacramento’s willingness to give him a long-range deal with annual salaries likely around $4MM made the Kings attractive to Joerger despite their reputation for dysfunction, Wojnarowski notes.

Memphis confirmed that Joerger was let go in an official announcement. “After careful consideration, I concluded that a change was needed to foster the strong culture required to achieve sustainable, long-term success for this organization, the city and our fans,” said GM Chris Wallace. “On behalf of the Grizzlies organization I would like to thank Dave for his work and time in Memphis. We wish Dave and his family all the best and success as he moves forward in his career.”

The trust between Joerger and the front office had eroded over the past several months, Wojnarowski notes, and tensions escalated between the coach and team management. The organization was frustrated with Joerger publicly making disparaging comments about the roster and his own limited role in player personnel, a league source told the Vertical scribe. Joerger had reportedly grown increasingly belligerent to many within the organization, believing the team was setting him up to fail in 2016/17, Wojnarowski adds.

The Grizzlies are quite high on Joerger’s coaching ability, but they failed to see eye-to-eye on personnel matters, with Joerger believing the team didn’t take his opinions seriously and the team convinced otherwise, as Wojnarowski details. Joerger was pushing for either a long-term deal from the Grizzlies or a way out, and that’s what led to his dismissal, according to Wojnarowski.

In three seasons as the Grizzlies’ head coach, Joerger’s record was 147-99 (.598), including a mark of 9-13 in the playoffs. Memphis reached the conference semifinals in 2015, losing to the eventual champion Warriors. The coach arguably did his best work this season, leading a patchwork roster that had been decimated by injuries to a record of 42-40 and the seventh playoff seed in the Western Conference.

Knicks Reach Out To Frank Vogel

May 6th, 2016 at 3:49pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The Knicks have contacted the representatives for former Pacers coach Frank Vogel regarding their vacant head coaching position, Marc Berman of The New York Post reports. The team has yet to request a formal interview, Berman notes, categorizing the talks as exploratory in nature.

GM Steve Mills is doing his due diligence in reaching out to Vogel’s representatives, Berman writes, though team president Phil Jackson has yet to make a definitive decision on how the franchise will proceed with Vogel. The main purpose for New York is to gauge whether or not Vogel would have interest in the vacant coaching post, and according to Berman, the coach is indeed willing to discuss the position. “I think the Knicks wanted to see where Frank’s head is at,” a league source informed Berman.

Vogel doesn’t exactly fit what the Knicks are said to be seeking in their next coach, which is someone who is familiar with the triangle offense the team is still attempting to implement. The former Pacers coach was criticized by team executive Larry Bird for not being willing to adapt his offense to a smaller lineup, so it remains to be seen just how amenable Vogel would be to running a completely foreign system. The disagreement over small ball versus traditional lineups is one of the contributing factors that led to Vogel being dismissed from the Pacers.

The Pacers went 250-181 in parts of six seasons under Vogel, who inherited the head coaching job, his first in the NBA, when the Pacers fired Jim O’Brien in January 2011. That record doesn’t include Vogel’s 31-30 postseason mark. Indiana made back-to-back conference finals under his watch in 2013 and 2014. The Rockets are also reportedly interested in interviewing Vogel.

Atlantic Notes: Rambis, Smith, Brown

May 6th, 2016 at 8:59am CST by Chuck Myron

Multiple executives around the league expect Knicks coach Kurt Rambis to end up having his interim tag removed, writes Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News. That’s certainly no shock, since Rambis and team president Phil Jackson are close, and Jackson has reportedly been hoping from the time Rambis became interim coach that he would ultimately prove worthy of keeping the job. The addition of Frank Vogel to the group of available coaches lends a new layer of intrigue to the Knicks coaching search, but it remains to be seen if Jackson will show any interest in the former Pacers boss, as Bondy examines.

See more from the Atlantic Division:

The pool of free agent point guards is shallow this summer, though the Sixers also have the draft and trades to consider as they ponder whether to re-sign Ish Smith with the intention of keeping him as the starter at point guard, as Jessica Camerato of CSN Philly examines. Regardless, adviser Jerry Colangelo doesn’t doubt the impact that the Tony Dutt client had after the Christmas Eve trade that brought him back to the Sixers. “To me, it’s still amazing that when he showed up in Phoenix an hour before game time [on December 26th] that he put a uniform on and stepped out on the floor and led a team to a win, a badly needed win,” Colangelo said. “That was a shot of adrenaline for sure, and it’s carried over.”
This year’s Celtics had the best winning percentage of any the team has had since the breakup of the Paul Pierce–Kevin Garnett–Rajon Rondo core, but for Boston to take the next step, another round of wholesale changes are necessary, argues Chris Forsberg of ESPNBoston.com, who analyzes the summer ahead.
All indications are that Markel Brown wants to stay with the Nets as his free agency approaches this summer, according to Anthony Parisi of NetsDaily. The second-year shooting guard saw less playing time this season than he did as a rookie, but he still displayed enough promise to warrant the team making the paltry $1,180,431 qualifying offer necessary to retain the right to match competing bids for him, Parisi contends. Brown’s minutes increased down the stretch after the dismissal of Lionel Hollins, Parisi notes. Brown played only 11 minutes over a 13-game span early in the season, prompting him to talk to Hollins about why he wasn’t seeing the court, as Parisi relays.

Fallout From Pacers Dismissal Of Frank Vogel

May 5th, 2016 at 5:23pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Frank Vogel released an official statement regarding his dismissal from the Pacers, and the former coach thanked the organization, executive Larry Bird and the team’s fans for their support, Scott Agness of Vigilant Sports relays. “I would like to express my sincerest thanks to the Simon family, Larry Bird and the entire Indiana Pacers organization for giving me the opportunity to serve as the head coach of this team for the past six seasons. This is one of the top-flight organizations in the National Basketball Association and I truly enjoyed every minute I spent as the leader of this group of men,” Vogel wrote. “During my time with the Pacers, we made a lot of positive memories and none of that would have been possible without the support of Larry, the front office and all of the players I had the opportunity to coach. We consistently battled through thick and thin, and that is something that I am very proud of.”

“Lastly, I want to give a huge thanks to Pacers fans in Indiana and across the country,” Vogel continued. “You all have treated my family and me with kindness and class throughout our time here and I can’t thank you enough for that. My family and I consider Indianapolis home and this community will always hold a special place in our hearts.”

Here’s more from Indiana:

Vogel wasn’t a perfect coach, given his lack of adaptability and his failure to get the most out of ex-Pacers Evan Turner and Gerald Green, but he wasn’t inept at offense, which Bird wants more of, and the way Lance Stephenson, David West and Roy Hibbert have performed since leaving Indiana speaks to the coach’s value, as Zach Lowe of ESPN.com argues. Ultimately, the decision to let go of Vogel puts the onus on Bird’s acumen as an executive going forward, Lowe writes.
Bird cited the success of a Celtics coaching move that took place in 1983 as one of the reasons he decided against retaining Vogel, and that, as well as his reluctance to consult star Paul George about his would-be position switch last year, shows the executive is stuck in the past, contends Gregg Doyel of The Indianapolis Star.
The players were aware of Vogel’s status as a potential lame duck since the All-Star break, and they weren’t surprised by the announcement that the coach had been dismissed, notes Candace Buckner of The Indianapolis Star (Twitter links).
Bird publicly relaying that Vogel tried to talk his way out of being dismissed likely won’t look good to potential coaching candidates, opines Nate Taylor of The Indianapolis Star. According to the scribe, that admission by Bird demonstrates to candidates that he is capable of disparaging them, whether he respects them or not.
Bird’s stance that Vogel didn’t get the most out of Indiana’s roster this season isn’t necessarily correct, as many around the league believed the Pacers overachieved this season, writes Mike DeCourcy of The Sporting News. “It comes down to what you’re looking for going forward,” Bird said. “We’ve got some good players, and we’ve got two guys I think are really good players. And how are we going to get the other guys to raise their level of play? That’s what the new coach has got to do.”

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.

Coaching Rumors: Rockets, Lakers, Pacers

May 5th, 2016 at 10:59am CST by Chuck Myron

The major story on the coaching front is that the Pacers have parted ways with Frank Vogel, as we covered in detail here, but plenty more news is developing. Track the latest here:

Lionel Hollins is among the coaches in whom the Rockets have expressed interest, according to Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle, who writes in a piece examining Vogel’s candidacy for the job.

9:31am updates:

Mike D’Antoni has already interviewed for the Rockets head coaching job, reports Marc Stein of ESPN.com, advancing an earlier report that he would do so this week.
TNT broadcaster Kenny Smith, whom Stein heard may interview for the Rockets vacancy, said on “Inside the NBA” Wednesday that he’d like to coach under the right circumstances but made it clear that he enjoys his television job, as Stein relays.
The Rockets are focused on proven NBA head coaches and up-and-coming assistants, sources emphasized Wednesday as they spoke with Stein. That casts doubt on the viability of Smith and college coaches Shaka Smart and Bill Self, who also reportedly intrigue the Rockets.
It became apparent to former Rockets interim coach J.B. Bickerstaff that the team wouldn’t formally make him its head coach, and that’s what prompted him to withdraw from consideration for the post, Stein also writes.
Incoming Lakers head coach Luke Walton counts Brian Shaw among the assistant coaching candidates for his staff, but executive Jim Buss was opposed to Shaw as a head-coaching option and many around the league are skeptical that Buss wants a Phil Jackson disciple like Shaw around, writes Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical. Shaw served as a Lakers assistant under Jackson.
Belief around the league is rising that the Pacers will let go of Vogel, Stein writes. President of basketball operations Larry Bird has a press conference scheduled for 10am Central today, and it appears likely he’ll lend clarity to Vogel’s future at that time. The coach’s contract with the Pacers has already expired, as Wojnarowski indicates, citing league sources. Many coaching contracts carry until the end of June, as player contracts do, but apparently that’s not the case with Vogel, who made approximately $2.5MM this past season, according to Wojnarowski. The Vertical scribe speculates that Vogel could double that annual salary in his next job. Bird had yet to speak with Vogel about a new contract as of late Wednesday, league sources told Wojnarowski.

Pacers Dismiss Frank Vogel

May 5th, 2016 at 10:02am CST by Chuck Myron

Bill Streicher / USA TODAY Sports Images

The Pacers are letting go of coach Frank Vogel, as president of basketball operations Larry Bird revealed in a press conference streamed via the team’s website. Vogel’s contract had already expired, as The Vertical’s Adrian Wojnarowski first reported and as Bird confirmed, saying he wouldn’t give him a new deal.

“I’ve decided that it’s time for a new voice around here,” Bird said, as the team’s Twitter account relays (Twitter link). “… This is one of the toughest things I’ve done.”

Bird said he won’t replace Vogel with Kevin McHale, his former teammate and the subject of much speculation as a candidate for the Pacers coaching job. McHale earlier withdrew from the running as a candidate for the Kings job, as Marc Stein of ESPN.com reported.

“I would not do that to Kevin, to have him work for me,” Bird said, as TNT’s David Aldridge relays via Twitter. “That’s not fair. I respect him too much.”

Bird reiterated that he wants more scoring and that his expectations for the Pacers this season were higher than most, The Vertical’s Chris Mannix notes (Twitter link). It appeared a philosophical difference had emerged earlier this season when Bird spoke of his desire for more of an up-tempo attack and Vogel’s fondness for a traditional lineup with two big men. Bird said today that he started thinking about making a coaching change around the All-Star break but felt Vogel deserved a chance to finish the season, Aldridge tweets. Vogel tried to talk Bird out of parting ways with him this morning, Bird said, as Mannix relays (Twitter link), though Bird added that he didn’t meet with Vogel face-to-face, only speaking to him on the phone.

“We’re Hoosiers, we treat people — other than today, we usually treat people pretty good,” Bird said, as Aldridge relays (on Twitter).

Vogel would get a positive recommendation from Bird, the executive said, indicating that he simply believes coaches have a limited shelf life with any team, as Candace Buckner of the Indianapolis Star and Mannix note (Twitter links). However, Bird said he doesn’t believe Vogel lost the locker room, Mannix adds.

The Pacers went 250-181 in parts of six seasons under Vogel, who inherited the head coaching job, his first in the NBA, when the Pacers fired Jim O’Brien in January 2011. That record doesn’t include Vogel’s 31-30 postseason mark. Indiana made back-to-back conference finals under Vogel’s watch in 2013 and 2014. The Rockets have reportedly wanted to interview him, just as they did before they hired McHale in 2011, and opportunities are available on the Knicks and Kings, too.

Latest On Rockets Coaching Search

May 4th, 2016 at 9:46pm CST by Eddie Scarito

9:46pm: The Rockets are intrigued by college coaches Shaka Smart (Texas) and Bill Self (Kansas), and also may seek to interview former Rocket and current broadcaster Kenny Smith, Stein relays (Twitter links).

9:08pm: Sixers associate head coach Mike D’Antoni will interview for the vacant post this week, Marc Stein of ESPN.com reports (Twitter links). Houston will also desire an interview with Frank Vogel if he is let go by the Pacers, Stein adds.

8:00pm: Rockets interim coach J.B. Bickerstaff has withdrawn from consideration for the team’s head coaching position after meeting with team ownership and front office personnel on Monday, Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical reports. Other NBA teams have now begun reaching out to Bickerstaff about available lead assistant positions, which is what he is now focusing on, the Vertical scribe adds, though Wojnarowski makes no mention of which teams have been in contact with the coach.

Houston intends to conduct a wide-ranging search for its next head coach, Wojnarowski relays. GM Daryl Morey and team owner Les Alexander met with Bickerstaff on Monday, as well as with Clippers assistant coach Sam Cassell and Rockets assistant Chris Finch, league sources informed Wojnarowski. The Rockets are trying to arrange interviews with Jeff Hornacek and Hornets assistant Stephen Silas, league sources told Wojnarowski. The franchise also reportedly plans to interview former Cavs coach David Blatt, though reports peg former Rockets and Knicks coach Jeff Van Gundy as the front-runner for the vacant post.

Bickerstaff posted a mark of 37-34 after taking over for the fired Kevin McHale, who got off to a 4-7 start to the campaign. Houston indicated that Bickerstaff would receive consideration to have his interim tag removed, but apparently guiding the team to the playoffs wasn’t enough to sell ownership on him as a viable long-term option.

Pacers Notes: Turner, Mahinmi, Vogel, George

May 3rd, 2016 at 2:12pm CST by Chuck Myron

Pacers president of basketball operations Larry Bird criticized coach Frank Vogel‘s shift back to a lineup with two bigs in the middle of the season, a move that rookie Myles Turner helped to prompt, as Nate Taylor of the Indianapolis Star examines. Turner paid dividends after the Pacers drafted him at No. 11 last year and Bird, in spite of his desire to move away from a traditional lineup, is impressed with the rookie. Vogel is too, as Turner relays.

“Myles Turner emerged,” Vogel said after Sunday’s game. “Myles Turner showed what he’s made of by having a great series in his first go-around in the NBA playoffs. He just had a great series. He didn’t shoot the ball well tonight, but he played well, had dominant defensive stretches and learned to read and trust the pass. There’s a lot of reasons to be excited and hopeful about our future because of that kid.”

See more from Indiana, where Vogel’s future is suddenly and surprisingly uncertain:

Soon-to-be free agent Ian Mahinmi indicated after the game Sunday that he’d like to re-sign, Taylor notes in the same piece.
Bird doesn’t want to leave Vogel’s job status up in the air for too long, telling Gregg Doyel of the Indianapolis Star that he knows other job opportunities exist for the coach. That would suggest Bird’s mind is already made up, argues Ken Berger of CBSSports.com. Vogel has performed capably in parts of six seasons with Indiana and did well to win 45 games this season, Berger posits, but Bird thought the seventh-seeded Pacers would upset the No. 2 seed Raptors in the first round of the playoffs, as Doyel relays. Still, the issue doesn’t appear to be about performance nearly as much as philosophical differences, Berger contends.
Those in the locker room Sunday saw 2015/16 as a successful campaign, and Paul George, under contract for at least two more years, expressed optimism about what’s to come, as the Star’s Candace Buckner relays. “At the end of the day we had a good year, had a good run,” George said. “We had a rookie in our lineup [Turner] who’s going to get better, going to learn, going to come back a completely different player. This is a two-seed. A 55-plus win team. We took it to Game 7 … .”

Frank Vogel’s Status With Pacers Uncertain

May 2nd, 2016 at 5:34pm CST by Chuck Myron

5:34pm: Bird said he’ll speak with owner Herb Simon at an undetermined point to figure out whether to re-sign Vogel, as Bird told Doyel. Finding a way to generate more offense is the key, Bird insisted. “We need to score more points,” Bird said. “If Frank comes back, what can we do to get better offense? It’s on all of us. Frank’s a great guy. He’s going to be fine no matter what happens. If he’s back, he’ll be fine here. If he’s not, he’s not. We’ll see.”

8:45am: Pacers coach Frank Vogel‘s contract expires this summer, and he and the Pacers have yet to discuss an extension, sources told Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical (Twitter link). Tim Bontemps of The Washington Post heard that Vogel might have been coaching for his job Sunday, when the Pacers lost the deciding game of their first-round series to the Raptors (Twitter link). President of basketball operations Larry Bird declined to answer a question after Sunday’s game about whether Vogel would return for next season, saying, “Come on, man, the game just ended,” according to Gregg Doyel of the Indianapolis Star (Twitter link).

Bird spoke in January about a philosophical difference between himself and Vogel, saying that he preferred an up-tempo attack with Paul George at the power forward while Vogel favored a more conventional approach with two traditional big men. George put up resistance to playing the four at the beginning of the season and Indiana largely abandoned the idea.

That Vogel is on an expiring contract is a surprise, since the Pacers announced in October 2014 that the extension he signed then was for multiple seasons, notes Scott Agness of VigilantSports (Twitter link). Sean Deveney of The Sporting News reported shortly after the extension that indications were that it ran through the 2016/17 season. However, it appears in the wake of today’s news that the multiple years to which the team referred included the 2014/15 season, which had already been a part of Vogel’s pact.

The 42-year-old Vogel would become an intriguing candidate on the coaching market were he and the Pacers to part ways, as Wojnarowski points out (Twitter link). He’s 250-181 in parts of six seasons with Indiana, his only NBA head coaching stop. That doesn’t include a 31-30 record in the playoffs, where Vogel guided the Pacers to back-to-back appearances in the Eastern Conference finals in 2013 and 2014. The Kings, Rockets and Knicks are the NBA teams looking for head coaches at present.

Do you think Vogel will be coaching the Pacers next season? Leave a comment to share your thoughts.

Central Notes: Caldwell-Pope, Harris, Lue, Vogel

April 30th, 2016 at 2:05pm CST by Arthur Hill

Kentavious Caldwell-Pope may think twice before committing to a contract extension with the Pistons, according to David Mayo of MLive. The third-year shooting guard will be eligible for an extension this offseason, but he may try to increase his value with another productive season and then take his chances as a restricted free agent next summer. “I think what’s important is we’ll have to have discussions and see what’s important to Kentavious and have a sense of where they’re at with the whole thing,” said GM Jeff Bower. “It’s something that doesn’t have to take place. But what does have to take place is an understanding of what’s important, what time frames are important, how he understands his place and role here.” Caldwell-Pope started all 76 games he played this season, averaging 14.3 points per night.

There’s more on the Central Division:

Replacing Ersan Ilyasova with Tobias Harris in a February trade helped the Pistons reach the playoffs, Mayo writes in a separate piece. Ilyasova tended to slow down the offense, while Harris displayed a willingness to pass, shoot, drive, rebound and do anything the team needed from him. Detroit’s offensive rating improved nearly three points per 100 possessions after Harris arrived. Mayo adds that the Pistons will emphasize shooting as they search the free agent market for backups at the point guard and power forward positions.
Tyronn Lue hasn’t signed a new contract since taking over as the Cavaliers‘ head coach in January, but he’s not interested in any of the open positions around the league, relays Dave McMenamin of ESPN. Lue was the league’s highest-paid assistant, with a four-year deal he signed in 2014 worth $6.5MM. After replacing David Blatt, Lue reached a verbal agreement worth $3MM prorated for his time as head coach this season and another $3MM for next year, along with a team option for 2017/18 at $3.5MM with a buyout. An unidentified source told ESPN the Cavs will live up to the offer and plan to finalize the deal with Lue this summer.
Pacers coach Frank Vogel is used to the level of criticism he received after the Game 5 loss to Toronto, which included calls for his firing on social media, writes Gregg Doyel of The Indianapolis Star. “I don’t take it personally,” Vogel said after the Indiana blew out the Raptors in Game 6. “I hear everything. I don’t take anything personal. The passion the fans have? It isn’t as strong as mine.”

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