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Coaching Rumors: Scott, Walton, Thibodeau, Rambis

April 26th, 2016 at 3:37pm CST by Chuck Myron

Lakers primary owner Jeanie Buss essentially confirmed the report from USA Today’s Sam Amick that she wasn’t involved in the decision to fire Byron Scott, saying in an appearance on FS1’s “The Herd” show that she didn’t know such a move was coming, nor did she anticipate it taking place, as Kristine Leahy of FS1 tweets. Buss was reportedly advocating behind the scenes for the front office to retain Scott, as Ken Berger of CBSSports.com reported earlier this month. Still, she expressed support for brother Jim Buss, the team’s executive VP of basketball operations and reportedly one of the decision makers regarding Scott’s fate, as he faces a deadline to turn the team around within the year, tweets Serena Winters of Lakers Nation. “I have no reason to think that he cannot be successful in terms of putting together a winning team,” Jeanie Buss said.

See more on the Lakers amid the latest coaching rumors around the league:

People around the league feel that Warriors assistant Luke Walton is a favorite for the Lakers job, notes Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News, but the Lakers are uncertain about Walton’s relative youth and just how well the 36-year-old would perform as a full-time head coach, writes Sean Deveney of The Sporting News. Regardless, the Lakers appear to be making the ability to recruit free agents their top priority in a new coach, a league source told Deveney, and Kupchak said Monday on Time Warner Cable Access SportsNet that they’d like to make a hire before the June 23rd draft, as Medina relays.
New Timberwolves coach/executive Tom Thibodeau would have accepted a coaching job without player personnel control on the Knicks, as Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com hears. However, the Knicks got the impression the opposite was true, and team president Phil Jackson and GM Steve Mills didn’t feel they’d get along with Thibs, reports Marc Berman of the New York Post. Owner James Dolan was nonetheless intrigued with the former Coach of the Year, league sources told Begley. Jackson is still leaning toward removing the interim tag from the head coaching title of Kurt Rambis, Berman writes in the same piece.

Lakers Notes: Messina, Walton, Ollie

April 25th, 2016 at 8:15pm CST by ChrisCrouse

Lakers GM Mitch Kupchak spoke about the firing of Byron Scott during a press conference earlier today, as the team’s Twitter feed relays. “If you’re going to make a change, make a change now.” Kupchak said. “This was clearly just a basketball decision. … Jim [Buss] and I agreed 100 percent.”

There’s more from Los Angeles:

The Lakers have received permission to interview Spurs assistant Ettore Messina, reports Sam Amick of USA Today. It is unclear how soon they intend to bring Messina in for a meeting.
The Lakers intend to put a long list together of potential candidates for their head coaching vacancy, which will be headed by Warriors assistant coach Luke Walton, Messina, and UConn’s Kevin Ollie, team sources tell Kevin Ding of Bleacher Report. Ding believes that Walton is the obvious choice for the position.
Earlier today, it was reported that Ollie has interest in the Lakers‘ job, but he would want a say in personnel decisions. That’s something that’s unlikely to happen, argues Eric Pincus of the Los Angeles Times (Twitter links). Pincus points out that the team isn’t in position to give out any sort of control in the front office with Kupchak and Buss around, and the team’s structure isn’t expected to change until after the 2016/17 season, at the earliest.
The timing of Scott’s dismissal is curious, opines Chris Mannix of The Vertical. Mannix wonders whether Los Angeles could have landed Tom Thibodeau or Scott Brooks if the team had acted sooner. Brooks reportedly would have had interest in the position.

Lakers Fire Coach Byron Scott

April 24th, 2016 at 11:18pm CST by Arthur Hill

Richard Mackson / USA TODAY Sports Images

11:18pm: The move is official, the team announced. The Lakers called it a decision not to pick up Scott’s team option for next season. That’s likely a reference to the partial guarantee on next season’s salary that Shelburne alluded to, as the terms are often used interchangeably.

“We would like to thank Byron for his hard work, dedication and loyalty over the last two years, but have decided it is in the best interest of the organization to make a change at this time,” Kupchak said.

10:10pm: The Lakers have fired head coach Byron Scott, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical. Scott just completed a 17-65 season and had a 38-126 record in two years on the Lakers’ bench. The move was a joint decision by GM Mitch Kupchak and executive Jim Buss and doesn’t signal a shakeup in the front office, tweets Bill Oram of The Orange County Register. Primary owner Jeanie Buss reportedly an advocate for Scott behind the scenes, but it appears she’s allowed the basketball department to make its own call.

Warriors assistant Luke Walton may be the favorite to land the L.A. job, tweets Eric Pincus of The Los Angeles Times, although he points out that by waiting to fire Scott the Lakers missed out on Tom Thibodeau, whom the Wolves hired Wednesday, and Scott Brooks, who is the new coach of the Wizards (Twitter link). Pincus says the Lakers never would have given Thibodeau the organizational control he wanted (Twitter link), but may have had interest in Brooks for his record in developing young players and his ties to Kevin Durant (Twitter link). Along with Walton, Pincus lists David Blatt, Jeff Van Gundy, Mark Jackson and Kevin Ollie as potential replacements (Twitter link).

Wojnarowski also mentions Walton, Van Gundy and Ollie as possibilities, as well as Spurs assistant Ettore Messina. He adds that the Lakers don’t have a definite replacement in mind, and Kupchak will conduct a search in conjunction with team owners.

Earlier this month, Kupchak refused to commit to another year for Scott and said he planned an informal meeting with the coach to discuss his job status. “It does take time to develop young players,” Kupchak said. “We’ll know in two or three years how effective Byron was as a parent to the young guys on this team.” Scott was initially believed to have one more season of guaranteed money on his contract, with a team option for 2017/18, but Ramona Shelburne explains on ESPN Now that the deal became only partially guaranteed for next season because Scott failed to meet performance incentives.

Latest On Kings Coaching Search

April 21st, 2016 at 5:34pm CST by Chuck Myron

THURSDAY, 5:34pm: McMillan intends to wait until the Pacers’ playoff run is over before interviewing for the Kings’ post, Sam Amick of USA Today tweets.

6:50pm: There has been no official contact yet, but the Kings are also interested in former Nuggets coach Brian Shaw, reports Sam Amick of USA Today (Twitter links). The interest is mutual, Amick says.

WEDNESDAY, 10:19am: Warriors assistant coach Luke Walton and Kings GM Vlade Divac are expected to meet to discuss Sacramento’s head coaching vacancy, likely after Golden State’s first-round playoff series with Houston, according to Ailene Voisin of The Sacramento Bee. Walton is “extremely fond” of Divac, who was briefly his Lakers teammate, and the location of Sacramento is increasingly appealing to Walton, who is fond of life in Northern California and has several close relatives in the Sacramento area, Voisin writes. Warriors head coach Steve Kerr said Monday that no team had asked permission to interview his top assistant, but Voisin reported Tuesday that Walton was among the coaches to whom the Kings had reached out.

Divac is especially interested in Walton, Spurs assistant Ettore Messina and NBA coaching veterans Tom Thibodeau and Scott Brooks, but he’s planned to speak with several others. Divac is inquiring about the interest of Monty Williams, Jeff Van Gundy, Spurs assistant Ime Udoka and at least two college coaches, among other names previously reported as Kings coaching targets, Voisin relays. The Kings are poised to interview Sam Mitchell, Vinny Del Negro and Mike Woodson, according to reports. Mitchell’s interview is to take place today, a source told The Bee’s Jason Jones.

Sacramento has natural appeal to Brooks, who’s from the nearby city of French Camp, California, but Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical reported last week that he’s not interested in coaching the Kings, with the Wizards apparently the front-runner for the former Thunder head coach. Thibodeau and Van Gundy, apparent co-favorites for the Timberwolves job, don’t want to coach Sacramento either, according to Wojnarowski.

The Kings have reached out to Messina, as Voisin reported previously, though Messina and fellow Spurs assistant Udoka are busy with the playoffs. Both were reportedly candidates for the Nets vacancy, with Udoka the apparent front-runner at one point before the job instead went to Hawks assistant Kenny Atkinson, who also reportedly drew interest from the Kings.

Williams is a Thunder assistant but has been away from the team since his wife died in February. He won’t rejoin the team for the playoffs and, as The Oklahoman’s Anthony Slater hears, he’s not expected to return to Oklahoma City for next season, either. Top free agent Kevin Durant has a close bond with Williams, the former Pelicans head coach.

Kevin McHale, Mark Jackson, David Blatt, Jeff Hornacek, Patrick Ewing, Nate McMillan and Celtics assistant Jay Larranaga are the other candidates in whom the Kings are reportedly interested. Sources who spoke with Marc Stein of ESPN.com have speculated that Heat assistant David Fizdale and former Cavs and Lakers coach Mike Brown could become Kings candidates as well.

Which of the many names mentioned here do you like best for the Kings? Leave a comment to share your thoughts.

Kings To Interview Sam Mitchell, Vinny Del Negro

April 19th, 2016 at 8:05pm CST by Chuck Myron

8:05pm: The Kings’ first three interviews for their vacant coaching position will be with Jackson, Del Negro and former Wolves interim coach Sam Mitchell, Marc Stein of ESPN.com reports (via Twitter).

TUESDAY, 2:50pm: The Kings are scheduled to interview Vinny Del Negro next week, The Vertical’s Adrian Wojnarowski reports, confirming a tweet from Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee that indicated as much. They’d like to interview Kevin McHale, but he hasn’t decided whether he’ll meet with the team, league sources told Wojnarowski, who earlier reported the team plans to interview Mike Woodson. The team is expected to meet with a handful of candidates for initial interviews before moving on to the next stage of its search, Wojnarowski hears.

Del Negro’s name emerged among several in the mix for the Kings job when Wojnarowski reported his candidacy last week. Sacramento reportedly contacted Del Negro for its vacancy in December 2014, shortly after firing Michael Malone, but since then, the Kings have had two head coaches, and Vlade Divac succeeded Pete D’Alessandro as the front office chief.

Sacramento has reached out to Tom Thibodeau, Scott Brooks, Ettore Messina, Luke Walton and David Blatt in addition to Del Negro and Woodson, according to Ailene Voisin of The Sacramento Bee (Twitter link), though Thibodeau and Brooks appear to be long shots, at best. Jeff Hornacek, Mark Jackson, Patrick Ewing, Nate McMillan and Celtics assistant Jay Larranaga are others in whom the team reportedly has interest as it seeks a replacement for the fired George Karl.

Experience appears to be a key for Divac as he looks at candidates, and Del Negro fits that bill. The 49-year-old is 210-184 in five seasons as an NBA head coach, split between the Bulls and the Clippers.

Coaching Rumors: Walton, Thibodeau, Atkinson

April 19th, 2016 at 11:14am CST by Chuck Myron

Coaching vacancies tend to dominate headlines this time of year, and this morning, with news about Luke Walton and Mark Jackson, is no exception. See more coaching-related items here:

Team president Phil Jackson, after speaking recently with Walton, told members of the Knicks organization that he doesn’t think Walton will leave his job as lead assistant for the Warriors, a source told Chris Broussard of ESPN.com, as Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com relays. One report referred to the conversation between Jackson and Walton as an interview for the Knicks head coaching position, but Walton, Warriors head coach Steve Kerr and others dispute that idea. The one head coaching job that Walton would be likely to take would be the Lakers gig, according to Gery Woelfel of The Journal Times, but Byron Scott is still in that position and Lakers owner Jeanie Buss is reportedly in favor Scott remaining.
Some people around the league are convinced Tom Thibodeau will be the next coach of the Timberwolves, Woelfel writes in the same piece. Thibodeau has high level of comfort with Minnesota from his time there as an assistant coach from 1989-91, a source told Marc Berman of the New York Post. Still, potential openings with the Rockets and Lakers intrigue Thibodeau, Woelfel hears.
Two NBA executives told Woelfel that Hawks assistant Darvin Ham is likely to elicit serious consideration for head coaching jobs in the next year or two.
Multiple Hawks players, including soon-to-be free agent Kent Bazemore, lauded assistant coach Kenny Atkinson, who’ll take over the Nets head coaching job as soon as Atlanta’s playoff run is finished, as Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPNNewYork.com details. Kyle Korver said Atkinson was a significant reason he re-signed with the Hawks in 2013, observes Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

Latest On Luke Walton, Knicks

April 19th, 2016 at 9:29am CST by Chuck Myron

Luke Walton says his recent chat with Knicks team president Phil Jackson wasn’t a job interview, as the Warriors assistant coach tells Tim Kawakami of the Bay Area News Group. Conflicting reports emerged in the past few days about whether it was an interview, but Warriors head coach Steve Kerr said it couldn’t have been, since Golden State has yet to give Walton permission to interview elsewhere, notes Marc Stein of ESPN.com. Kerr told Marc J. Spears of The Undefeated that no team has even asked for permission (Twitter link). That throws into question the idea that Walton interviewed for the since-filled Nets job, as had also been reported.

“I talked to Phil, but I always talk to Phil. He’s a mentor of mine,” Walton said to Kawakami. “There was no job interview whatsoever. It was just a conversation which is not that rare for Phil and I to have.”

Marc Berman of the New York Post suggests that the Knicks are likely to interview David Blatt, citing Jackson’s respect for the Princeton offense Blatt’s teams have used on occasion. Berman also says the team will likely interview Brian Shaw, a triangle devotee. Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com earlier reported New York’s interest in Blatt, a longtime friend of Knicks GM Steve Mills.

Still, interim coach Kurt Rambis remains a central figure and a candidate to be formally named Knicks head coach. He’s involved in two practices that Jackson has organized for this week that amount to a seminar of sorts on the triangle offense, reports Frank Isola of the New York Daily News. Kristaps Porzingis, Jerian Grant, Jose Calderon, Tony Wroten and soon-to-be free agent Langston Galloway are expected to attend, Isola hears.

Atlantic Notes: Walton, Carmelo, Brown

April 18th, 2016 at 9:58am CST by Chuck Myron

Knicks team president Phil Jackson took to Twitter this morning to address reports regarding Luke Walton and the Knicks coaching job, writing, “Press accounts of coaching actions are untrue. Nobody has been asked nobody said no.” Marc Berman of the New York Post reported Sunday that the Knicks had interviewed Walton, and while Frank Isola of the New York Daily News confirmed that Jackson and Walton spoke by phone, it would be a stretch to call it an interview, Isola said (Twitter links). Walton told Jackson that he isn’t interested in the job as of now, according to a league source who talked to Isola (Twitter link), but Berman hears the Warriors assistant hasn’t completely ruled out the idea of taking the New York gig. Still, Berman calls Walton “a big long shot” to take the job.

See more on the sought-after Walton amid news from the Atlantic Division:

Walton interviewed for the Nets job and pulled out of the running for that before Brooklyn hired Kenny Atkinson on Sunday, league sources told Berman. Walton appears to be leaning toward staying with the Warriors for next season but is nowhere near a decision, one league source said to Berman.
Carmelo Anthony is concerned that the Knicks front office and ownership are more focused on simply making the playoffs rather than building a championship-caliber squad, Berman writes in a separate piece. “What’s successful for us?’’ Anthony said. “That’s the question you have to ask ourselves as a whole organization. Not just winning another 15 games like we did this year and playing for the eighth seed. Is that success? Or is being a top seed in the Eastern Conference, a top team in the NBA? Winning a championship is always the ultimate success. We have to put things in perspective. What’s success mean to this organization? A championship for me is always the ultimate success — not us slotting in and barely getting into the eighth seed. That’s not success for me. Having prominence in the postseason. That’s success.’’
Sixers coach Brett Brown is a major fan of Nicolas Batum and would also like to see Philadelphia acquire a stretch four, according to Bob Cooney of the Philadelphia Daily News, who looks at ways the team with the league’s worst record can improve.

Eddie Scarito contributed to this post.

Pacific Notes: Walton, Kupchak, Karl, Curry

April 17th, 2016 at 6:05pm CST by Arthur Hill

Warriors assistant Luke Walton has already interviewed for head coaching positions with the Knicks and Nets, reports Marc Berman of The New York Post. Walton pulled his name out of consideration with Brooklyn, which announced the hiring of Kenny Atkinson earlier today. Golden State is reportedly allowing Walton to talk to other franchises as long as there’s no conflict with its playoff schedule. A source told Berman that Walton may decide to remain with the Warriors for another season.

There’s more news from the Pacific Division:

The video controversy involving D’Angelo Russell and Nick Young may have brought bad publicity to the Lakers, but GM Mitch Kupchak doesn’t believe it will scare off any free agents, writes Baxter Holmes of ESPN.com. Kupchak said the incident “becomes less and less of a story” every day, and he complimented both players on the way they handled it. “We’ve dealt with players in this organization, on this team, that have made mistakes over the years,” Kupchak said, “and we’ve gotten through it and had great teams and won championships.” He believes Young and Russell can settle their differences if they are teammates again next year. However, the Lakers are rumored to want to part ways with Young, either through a trade or buyout. He still has two years and more than $11.1MM left on his contract.
UNLV has hired Marvin Menzies as its new head coach, passing on ex-Kings coach George Karl, according to Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com. Menzies, who had been coaching at New Mexico State, replaces Chris Beard, who backed out of the UNLV job to go to Texas Tech instead. Karl had contacted UNLV about the opening and mutual interest was reported Friday.
The opt-out clause that the Kings included in Seth Curry‘s contract could help him land a much better deal, writes Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee. After an impressive summer-league performance, Sacramento signed Curry last July, giving him a two-year deal with a $1,015,696 player option for next season that he has to decide on this week. Curry’s performance over the second half of the season may cause someone to pay him a lot more, as he averaged more than 11 points per game after the All-Star break. “I think I’ve played pretty well and showed some different things in my game that will set me up for the future to show I can be a good player in this league for a long time,” Curry said.

Atlantic Notes: Walton, Nored, Raptors

April 16th, 2016 at 11:35am CST by Eddie Scarito

Raptors GM Masai Ujiri says the progress of the franchise shouldn’t be judged by how the team performs during the 2015/16 postseason, Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca relays. “[Winning a round] would be nice, but it’s not the end of the world, I guess that would be the way to put it,” Ujiri said. “It would be really cool for us. The players deserve it, the coach deserves it. Look at what they’ve put in the past two or three years, you root for them. … It would be great for us, but with the progress we’re seeing I just don’t think it’s the end of the world.”

The GM also lauded the benefits of the team’s new D-League affiliate and state-of-the-art practice facility, Grange adds. “Those practice facilities are built once every 20 or 30 years,” Ujiri said. “What we’ve done now, we’re just starting. That facility is for the next 20 years. We have a D-League team 20 minutes away, right there in our backyard. … We are so lucky to have that. To me that’s a bright future for our organization. I know it comes down to wins and losses, that’s what everybody sees, but there’s a bigger picture.”

Here’s the latest from the Atlantic Division:

The Nets have named Ronald Nored as head coach of the team’s new NBA D-League affiliate, the Long Island Nets, the team announced. Nored played under Celtics coach Brad Stevens at Butler and later served as a Celtics assistant coach under Stevens. The D-League team begins play next season. “We are excited to welcome Ronald as head coach of the Long Island Nets,” said GM Sean Marks. “Ronald is a bright young mind in our game whose experience under Brad Stevens as both a player and a coach, as well as his ability to connect with today’s players, have prepared him for this role. His commitment to player development, along with his enthusiasm and passion for the game, are aligned with the vision we have for both the Brooklyn and Long Island Nets.”
If the Knicks want to interview Warriors assistant Luke Walton during the NBA playoffs, Golden State won’t stand in the way, Marc Berman of The New York Post relays. The Warriors’ official policy is that an assistant can interview for a head-coaching position “as long as it does not interfere with the team’s preparation during the playoffs,’’ Berman adds. New Orleans interviewed Alvin Gentry during Golden State’s playoff run last year.
Sixers coach Brett Brown is glad the team’s dismal 2015/16 campaign is over and said his relationships with the players are what kept him going throughout the season, writes Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer. “It was a season of distraction,” Brown said. “I concede that. You would not be telling the truth that every moment of your … day was dedicated to where it should have been, coaching basketball. There are many times that you do get pulled to the left or the right.“