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Pacers’ Pritchard Talks Bjorkgren, Frontcourt, FAs, More

May 24th, 2021 at 1:52pm CST by Luke Adams

Speaking to reporters on Monday, Pacers president of basketball operations Kevin Pritchard said no decisions have been made yet on the future of head coach Nate Bjorkgren, as J. Michael of The Indianapolis Star writes. Bjorkgren isn’t the only one whose future is up in the air, according to Pritchard, who pointed out that his own performance is still being evaluated by team ownership as well.

“I’m being evaluated. I’m being evaluated every day,” Pritchard said. “(Pacers owner) Herb (Simon) has to decide if I’m fit for this job and what I need to improve on. Then Nate and I will have a long conversation over many days on what he needs to improve on. … He is our coach as of now and I’ll have a fair discussion with him.”

The Pacers’ president of basketball operations acknowledged that Bjorkgren’s first year on the job was far from perfect. While Pritchard liked Bjorkgren’s handle on X’s and O’s, he said that the first-year coach did have a tendency to micromanage. Still, Pacers players didn’t express during their exit meetings that they were unhappy with Bjorkgren, Pritchard added.

Pritchard also pushed back against the idea that the Pacers hadn’t adequately done their homework on Bjorkgren before hiring him last summer, as Michael tweets.

“We probably did 15 interviews around Nate,” Pritchard said. “We knew that he’s very specific in the way he likes things. We knew that. You got to give a coach some flexibility to do what he likes to do.”

Here’s more from Pritchard’s end-of-season presser:

  • Pritchard remains convinced that the Pacers can succeed without moving one of Myles Turner or Domantas Sabonis (Twitter link via Michael). “We like them both,” Pritchard said of the frontcourt duo. “They can definitely play together. You can stagger them.“
  • Pritchard referred to Doug McDermott and T.J. McConnell as “core to what we’ve done” (Twitter link via Michael). Both players will be unrestricted free agents this summer, but it sounds like there’s mutual interest in continuing those relationships.
  • Although Pritchard stressed that the Pacers won’t be desperate to make deals this summer, he said he’d prefer not to get stuck in the “middle ground” between contending and rebuilding. “I want to get in or get out,” Pritchard said, according to Michael (Twitter links). “Out means getting picks (and revamping the roster).”
  • Pritchard referred to the Pacers’ defense as “by far the most important thing that we have to take a look at,” as Scott Agness of Fieldhouse Files tweets. It remains to be seen whether that means addressing the personnel or the coaching staff and schemes.
  • Caris LeVert is one Pacer who has yet to have his exit meeting with team management, since he remains in isolation due to the COVID-19 protocols and wants to conduct his meeting in person (Twitter link via Agness).
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Pacers Notes: Warren, McConnell, Bjorkgren, Stanley

May 23rd, 2021 at 3:28pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Pacers forward T.J. Warren, who missed all but four games this season due to a stress fracture in his left foot, discussed his lost 2020/21 season, as Scott Agness of Fieldhouse Files details. “I just know it can’t storm forever and the sun has to come out,” Warren said of his extended rehab process. Warren has one year and $12.9MM remaining on his current contract after this season.

Warren also had harsh words in response to a report claiming that he was had requested a trade because he was at odds with embattled head coach Nate Bjorkgren.

“Seeing that report was really, really terrible,” Warren said, adding that Bjorkgren has been “nothing but a great guy” since becoming the Pacers’ head coach. “Not cool.”

There’s more out of Indianapolis:

  • Pacers reserve point guard T.J. McConnell appears hopeful about returning to Indiana as he reaches unrestricted free agency during the 2021 offseason, tweets J. Michael of the Indianapolis Star. “I would love to be back here,” McConnell said. “I absolutely love it here. … I don’t have a bad thing to say about anything or anyone.” McConnell signed a two-year, $7MM deal with Indiana in the summer of 2019.
  • The Pacers are not expected to make an immediate decision on the future of head coach Nate Bjorkgren, writes Scott Agness of Fieldhouse Files. A report detailing locker room tensions surfaced earlier this month that appeared to put Bjorkgren’s long-term fate in doubt. “My focus is on the players right now,” Bjorkgren himself responded when asked about the situation earlier this week. “And I’m not thinking about myself, I’m really not. I want to do what’s best for these guys.” The Pacers lost Thursday’s play-in game to slide out of the postseason and into the lottery during Bjorkgren’s first season at the helm.
  • Following his rookie season, Pacers first-year shooting guard Cassius Stanley will play in the Summer League, scheduled for this August in Las Vegas, tweets Agness.
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Pacers Notes: Bjorkgren, McDermott, Turner, Draft

May 21st, 2021 at 10:28am CST by Luke Adams

Following a Thursday loss in the East’s final 2021 play-in game, the Pacers‘ season is over, raising questions about the future of head coach Nate Bjorkgren. Although he was just hired last fall, Bjorkgren is said to be very much on the hot seat after a tumultuous, disappointing season in Indiana. For his part, the first-year coach was evasive on Thursday when asked whether he expects to be back.

“My focus is on the players right now,” Bjorkgren said, per J. Michael of The Indianapolis Star (Twitter link). “I’m not thinking about myself. I’m really not. I just want to do what’s best for these guys.”

It’s decision time for the Pacers, according to Scott Agness of Fieldhouse Files, who advises not to be surprised if the club takes a little time to make a call on Bjorkgren’s status, one way or the other.

Bob Kravitz of The Athletic suggests that Bjorkgren probably took a banged-up Pacers team about as far could be realistically expected, but if he’s to return for the 2021/22, there must be changes — “both with Bjorkgren himself and with his coaching staff,” Kravitz writes.

As we wait on the Pacers’ decision, let’s round up a few more notes out of Indiana…

  • While it’s possible that Bjorkgren was the problem for the Pacers, Gregg Doyel of The Indianapolis Star isn’t entirely convinced of that, and writes an offseason roster shakeup might not be the worst idea for the organization.
  • Most of the Pacers’ key rotation players are under contract for next season, but Doug McDermott is one important contributor who will be an unrestricted free agent this summer. McDermott addressed his situation after Thursday’s game, as J. Michael of The Indianapolis Star relays (via Twitter): “I want to be a Pacer. It’s been a great three years. It’s been a great place to call home. I hope I can continue that.”
  • Although Myles Turner‘s toe injury didn’t heal in time for him to rejoin the Pacers before they were eliminated from postseason contention, he’s hoping to be healthy enough to compete for a spot on Team USA’s Olympic roster this summer, he tells Sean Deveney of Forbes.
  • As we outlined earlier today, the Pacers are now in line for the 13th pick in the 2021 draft, as long as their position isn’t affected by the lottery results. Nat Newell of The Indianapolis Star, noting that Indiana’s two most recent lottery picks were Turner and Paul George, examines the recent history of the No. 13 pick to get an idea of what sort of player the team could realistically land.
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Central Notes: Vucevic, Bulls, Joseph, Ellington, Warren

May 7th, 2021 at 9:55pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Nikola Vucevic didn’t shoot three-pointers when he entered the league in 2011, but it’s become a big part of his offensive game in recent years, Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times notes. The All-Star center has drained 44.1% of his long-range shots since joining the Bulls. “I think it’s also the way the NBA has been going, and I had to adjust,” he said. “I used to shoot a lot of mid-ranges. That’s not as much a part of the way teams play, so I had to make an adjustment and evolve.”

We have more from the Central Division:

  • Lauri Markkanen, Daniel Theis, Denzel Valentine and Tomas Satoransky are among the players who likely won’t remain with the Bulls next season, Darnell Mayberry of The Athletic speculates. Mayberry takes a look at each player and predicts whether they’ll be part of the front office’s plans.
  • The Pistons snapped a four-game losing streak by defeating Memphis on Thursday. It’s no coincidence that veterans guards Cory Joseph and Wayne Ellington suited up, Keith Langlois of Pistons.com notes. That duo scored 18 points apiece and Joseph added 11 assists. “Guys were kind of hanging their head and losing confidence a little bit,” head coach Dwane Casey said. “We understand – we’re rebuilding. But you’ve got to compete to win each night.” Ellington will be a free agent after the season, while Joseph’s $12.6MM contract is only partially guaranteed.
  • There were conflicting reports this week about whether T.J. Warren asked for a trade and his feelings toward Pacers coach Nate Bjorkgren. J. Michael of The Indianapolis Star (Twitter link) cites a new source who says that Warren is happy in Indiana, noting that Warren has been featured offensively and will be paid like a main cog. Warren also likes playing in a smaller market and the franchise’s plans for him, regardless of who’s coaching the team, Michael’s source adds.
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Central Notes: Pacers, Love, Sexton, LaVine

May 7th, 2021 at 8:20am CST by Luke Adams

As we relayed on Thursday, Jake Fischer’s latest story for Bleacher Report features a number of eyebrow-raising details on Nate Bjorkgren‘s stint as the Pacers‘ head coach. However, while much of Fischer’s reporting lines up with what we’ve heard from other outlets, there has been some push-back on some aspects of the story.

For instance, Fischer initially suggested that T.J. Warren – who played under Bjorkgren in Phoenix – wasn’t consulted before Indiana made the hire and that Warren requested a trade after Bjorkgren came aboard. Fischer has since cited a source close to the situation who says Warren never formally requested a trade, and the story has been updated to say that there’s “a belief among several members of the Pacers organization” that Warren asked to be dealt.

J. Michael of The Indianapolis Star, meanwhile, tweets that the front office did ask Warren about Bjorkgren before hiring him and notes that Warren agreed to take a bigger leadership role with the team heading into the season.

Fischer also reported in his story that Bjorkgren’s acted like “a politician’s chief of staff” in Toronto when he was a Raptors assistant under Nick Nurse, sometimes preventing players and other coaches from holding conversations with Nurse if they didn’t go through him first. Asked on Thursday night about that, Nurse vehemently denied it and questioned the reporting, as Blake Murphy of The Athletic tweets.

Here’s more from around the Central:

  • Attaching an asset to trade Kevin Love isn’t something the Cavaliers want to do, and buying him out with two years and $60MM left on his contract would be difficult and pricey, but Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com contends the team should attempt this offseason to find the least painful way to move on from Love. Sources tell Fedor that the two sides have yet to discuss a potential buyout.
  • While Jason Lloyd of The Athletic believes the Cavaliers did well to nab Collin Sexton with the No. 8 overall pick in the 2018 draft, he doesn’t believe the third-year guard is worth a maximum-salary contract and suggests the team would be making a big mistake if it goes that high this offseason when Sexton becomes extension-eligible for the first time.
  • Zach LaVine, who returned to the Bulls‘ lineup on Thursday night after missing 11 games due to the NBA’s health and safety protocols, told reporters this week that he had taken one of his two vaccine shots when he was diagnosed with COVID-19, and didn’t experience any major symptoms (Twitter link via K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago).
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Pacers Rumors: Bjorkgren, Warren, Bayno, D’Antoni, More

May 6th, 2021 at 1:42pm CST by Luke Adams

Amid multiple reports suggesting that Nate Bjorkgren‘s job as the Pacers‘ head coach is in danger, Jake Fischer of Bleacher Report is the latest journalist to take a deep dive into what appears to be an untenable situation in Indiana.

One league executive who has previously worked with Bjokrgren told Bleacher Report that the Pacers’ coach is “completely out of his element as a leader,” and Fischer suggests that Bjorkgren’s struggles could even end up jeopardizing the job security of veteran executives Kevin Pritchard and Chad Buchanan as well.

As Fischer explains, the Pacers may not have done enough research during the hiring process into Bjorkgren’s background or how he treated people. The head coach has been described as abrasive, particularly with assistant coaches and other staffers, with Domantas Sabonis even encouraging Bjorkgren on one occasion to be kinder to the team’s staff, per Fischer.

Bjorkgren also reportedly has a tendency to become overly agitated by minor issues, such as a ball rack being out of place during practice or a team flight being delayed for de-icing purposes, Fischer adds.

“When he was hired, I was surprised, because he’s not the easiest to work with just on anything,” said one player who previously played for Bjorkgren in the G League. “He’s kind of stubborn, won’t listen, even though it might be good conversation. He’s a micromanager and he’s not for everyone.”

Here’s more on Bjorkgren and the Pacers:

  • Sources tell Fischer that T.J. Warren, who played for the Suns when Bjorkgren was an assistant in Phoenix, requested a trade following the Pacers’ hiring of the head coach. However, a person with knowledge of the situation tells J. Michael of The Indianapolis Star “that’s BS” (Twitter link).
    [UPDATE: Fischer has now cited a source close to the situation who says Warren never formally requested a trade.]
  • When assistant coach Bill Bayno resigned in February, mental health issues were cited as the reason for his departure. Fischer hears that the veteran assistant left in large part because he was no longer able to work with Bjorkgren.
  • Assistant coach Greg Foster – who received a one-game suspension for a sideline altercation with Goga Bitadze – has also “grown agitated” by Bjorkgren’s attitude toward the staff, according to Fischer. “He doesn’t mind embarrassing his coaches,” one league executive said of the Pacers’ head coach.
  • Bjorkgren’s reluctance to call out his top veterans has impacted his credibility in the locker room, sources tell J. Michael of The Indianapolis Star, who says that even if the Pacers ultimately decide to retain their head coach for 2021/22, there will almost certainly be an overhaul of his coaching staff. Some of those coaches may want to leave voluntarily, Michael notes.
  • If Bjorkgren is let go, Mike D’Antoni is expected to once again be a candidate for the Pacers’ head coaching job, sources tell Fischer. D’Antoni drew interest from Indiana last fall.
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Bjorkgren, Stotts, Budenholzer Among Coaches On Hot Seat

May 5th, 2021 at 8:23am CST by Luke Adams

ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported on Tuesday that Nate Bjorkgren‘s future as the Pacers‘ head coach is uncertain, and Shams Charania and Sam Amick echo that point in their latest report for The Athletic. According to The Athletic’s duo, Bjorkgren’s “abrasive” style and a tendency to be controlling with assistants and other staff members has been a cause for concern.

Sources tell Charania and Amick that multiple Pacers players have expressed dissatisfaction with Bjorkgren this season, with Malcolm Brogdon and Domantas Sabonis among those who haven’t been on the same page with the first-year coach. Those same sources tell The Athletic that several Pacers players feel the analytical style Bjorkgren has employed doesn’t suit the team’s personnel.

The growing pains Bjorkgren has experienced in Indiana don’t necessarily mean that the Pacers will make a coaching change at season’s end, but the situation is worth keeping a close eye on, per Charania and Amick.

The two Athletic reporters also singled out a few other coaching situations worth watching around the NBA. Here are a few highlights from their report:

  • The Trail Blazers are increasingly likely to part ways with head coach Terry Stotts this offseason unless he can “pull a rabbit out of his hat” and make a deep playoff run, according to Charania and Amick. Sources tell The Athletic that Stotts has less player support this season than he has in past years. Charania and Amick identify Jason Kidd, Dave Joerger, Chauncey Billups, Brent Barry, and – if he becomes available – Nate McMillan as potential targets for Portland if the team makes a change.
  • There’s significant pressure on Bucks head coach Mike Budenholzer entering the postseason, according to Charania and Amick, who say Budenholzer’s job will be in serious danger if the team is eliminated in the first two rounds. Budenholzer has one year left on his contract after 2020/21, per The Athletic’s duo.
  • Luke Walton of the Kings and Scott Brooks of the Wizards are other coaches whose job security isn’t exactly rock solid, but Charania and Amick point to financial considerations in Sacramento and a recent hot streak in D.C. as factors working in favor of Walton and Brooks keeping their jobs. Walton has a strong relationship with Kings GM Monte McNair, while Brooks is well-liked in Washington, note Charania and Amick. Still, the long-term future of Wizards GM Tommy Sheppard is also somewhat uncertain, which further clouds Brooks’ status.
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Bjorkgren’s Long-Term Status With Pacers Uncertain

May 4th, 2021 at 9:20pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

In an intriguing development, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN hears from sources tell him first-year Pacers head coach Nate Bjorkgren may not last as the head man on Indiana’s bench beyond this season, citing the coach’s fraught relationships with both players and staffers. Woj does add that Bjorkgren has acknowledged an interest in addressing the problem.

After logging several years as an assistant coach for the Raptors, Bjorkgren signed a three-year deal with Indiana during the 2020 offseason. Woj notes that the coach’s salary for the 2021/22 season is fully guaranteed.

Bjorkgren has led an injury-plagued roster to a mediocre 30-34 record, good for the No. 9 seed in the Eastern Conference. So long as Indiana secures at least the 10th seed in the East, it will compete in a play-in tournament to qualify for the first round of the playoffs this year. The club has eight games remaining on its schedule.

Scott Agness of Fieldhouse Files tweets that the Pacers are grappling with a plurality of locker room “issues” that he agrees need to be ironed out, indicating that there has been an atypical level of internal conflict since January (Twitter link).

Like many teams across this truncated NBA season, the Pacers have dealt with a significant amount of injury- and health-related absences. Players hit the hardest include starting center Myles Turner (who has missed 17 games and counting), reserve wing Jeremy Lamb (28 games and counting), newly acquired Pacers forward Caris LeVert (24 games), and starting small forward T.J. Warren, healthy for just four games this season.

Elsewhere on the team’s drama front, the Pacers were concerned that they would lose former star guard Victor Oladipo to unrestricted free agency this summer, and so dealt him to the Rockets. He was subsequently traded again to the Heat at the March deadline. Nagging injury troubles have beset Oladipo at all three stops this season.

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Trade Rumors: Brogdon, Ball, K. Williams, Bjelica

March 24th, 2021 at 9:28am CST by Luke Adams

A Tuesday report stated that the Pacers are listening to inquiries on Malcolm Brogdon, and Chris Mannix of SI.com wrote today that the Hawks have had discussions about the guard. However, Brogdon won’t be dealt this week, two sources tell J. Michael of The Indianapolis Star (subscription required). Still, Indiana is worth keeping an eye on, as the club has underperformed to some extent this season.

Multiples sources tell Michael that Pacers coach Nate Bjorkgren, who has strong relationships with Brogdon and Domantas Sabonis, can be “too much of a micro-manager,” while another source suggested that’s to be expected for a first-year head coach who is still learning the ropes.

There’s no indication that Bjorkgren’s job is in any jeopardy, but the coaching staff may receive an offseason shake-up, Michael reports. In the meantime, it’s unclear if the Pacers will make any deadline moves — their plan as of a few weeks ago was to stand pat and wait for Caris LeVert to round into form and T.J. Warren to get healthy, says Michael.

Here are a few more trade rumors from around the NBA:

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Central Notes: Hayes, Bey, Gores, Brogdon, Love

December 28th, 2020 at 6:29pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Pistons are easing their young players into the rotation and that’s to be expected, James Edwards III of The Athletic writes.

Veterans Blake Griffin and Derrick Rose, both of whom sat out Monday’s game at Atlanta, played heavy minutes in the double overtime loss to Cleveland on Saturday. Lottery pick Killian Hayes sat during crunch time, while Saddiq Bey has played only six minutes. The Pistons’ other first-round pick, Isaiah Stewart, didn’t play at all in the first two games.

It’s unrealistic to expect all of the Pistons’ developmental players to log 15-plus minutes a game at this point but their playing time will increase as the season progresses, Edwards adds. Hayes and Bey started against the Hawks.

We have more on the Central Division:

  • Pistons owner Tom Gores rubber-stamps new GM Troy Weaver’s roster moves, according to Rod Beard of the Detroit News. Detroit has only four holdovers on its 15-man roster and Weaver engineered trades to draft Bey and Stewart. “To get three first-round picks I think was a win for us,” Gores said. “We have to see how those young men develop, but I’d say the thing Troy did right away was he really owned this. He didn’t sit back and worry about it. He was thoughtfully aggressive, and he owned it.”
  • Malcolm Brogdon wasn’t thrilled with the Pacers’ previous coach but he has been quick to praise new coach Nate Bjorkgren, Akeem Glaspie of the Indianapolis Star writes. Bjorkgren drew up the game-winning play on Sunday, a Domantas Sabonis basket against Boston. “It takes a high-IQ coach and a patient coach to draw something like that up there,” said Brogdon, who was reportedly the Indiana player who was most outspoken and displeased with Nate McMillan’s coaching style.
  • Kevin Love and lottery pick Isaac Okoro are among a handful of Cavaliers players who will miss Tuesday’s game against the Knicks, Chris Fedor of the Cleveland Plain Dealer tweets. Love has a calf strain that kept him out of the team’s opener and limited him to nine minutes against Philadelphia on Sunday. Okoro will sit out for the second straight game with a foot sprain.
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