Blazers, Terry Stotts To Talk Extension
The Trail Blazers and representatives for Terry Stotts will explore the idea of a contract extension that carries beyond next season, sources tell Kevin Arnovitz of ESPN.com. That’s no surprise, given the job performance of the coach who guided the team to a higher finish in the Western Conference standings this season than last year despite the loss of four starters. The Blazers beat an injured Clippers squad in the first round before falling to the Warriors in a five-game conference semifinals series that ended Wednesday night. Stotts, who finished a close second behind Steve Kerr in Coach of the Year voting, has a team option for next season on his contract that the Blazers have yet to pick up.
GM Neil Olshey remained steadfast throughout the season that negotiations wouldn’t take place until the team was done playing, though agent Warren LeGarie, who represents both Stotts and Olshey, recently told Kerry Eggers of The Portland Tribune that he’s “probably going to take a bit of a stand” on Stotts’ behalf as pushes to secure a long-term deal. LeGarie, in that same interview, said other teams would have interest in working with the coach if the Blazers don’t, a not-so-subtle jab that appeared to be designed to spur the Blazers to the negotiating table. Still, little chance seemingly exists of Portland letting Stotts get away, and Olshey praised Stotts on multiple occasions this year.
The players have also credited Stotts, including Damian Lillard, who said before the season and after signing a five-year extension in July that he wants Stotts in Portland as long as he is. The coach, who joined the Blazers during the same offseason in 2012 that Lillard did, is 182-146 in the regular season and 11-16 in the playoffs for Portland. He has a 297-314 regular season record overall and is 12-20 all-time in the postseason, encompassing his previous jobs as head coach of the Hawks and Bucks.
Northwest Notes: Stotts, Kaman, Donovan
Agent Warren LeGarie will make a hard push to secure a long-term extension for Trail Blazers coach Terry Stotts, and he hinted that he won’t be afraid to shop his client to other teams if Portland doesn’t show interest, as Kerry Eggers of The Portland Tribune relays. Stotts has one more year left on his contract, but it’s a team option that the Blazers have yet to pick up.
“You would hope his body of work says it all,” LeGarie said to Eggers. “This time, we’re probably going to take a bit of a stand. You can’t keep putting him in [a lame-duck] position. I’m hoping [Blazers owner Paul Allen and GM Neil Olshey] feel the same way. I’m always optimistic. If they’re not interested, there are a lot of teams that will be.”
LeGarie represents both Stotts and Olshey but insists that isn’t an issue, as Eggers details. Olshey has insisted that no contract talks will take place during the season even though he received an extension from the Blazers in January 2015, Eggers points out. Stotts doesn’t seem too concerned, acknowledging that many coaches end up in lame-duck situations as he expressed his affection for the city and the organization.
See more from Portland amid the latest from the Northwest Division:
- Soon-to-be free agent Chris Kaman has clashed with his coaches before, but the Blazers veteran is a strong advocate for Stotts, as Eggers chronicles in the same piece. “They should rip up his contract and give him a five-year deal — in player terms, a max deal,” Kaman said. “That’s my guy. He does a great job, and honestly, who thought we’d get 30 wins with this team, let alone 44? It’s a testament to what him and his staff are doing, and also to the players. We have a good group of guys. Everybody fits well. It’s been a pretty good year for everybody.”
- The Thunder often struggle down the stretch in close games and it took new coach Billy Donovan time to calibrate his rotation and substitutions, but the first-year NBA bench boss succeeded at incorporating more ball-sharing into the offense and overcame absences from two veteran assistants, USA Today’s Jeff Zillgitt details.
- The Nuggets are in favorable position to contend for a playoff spot next season, as Bobby Marks of The Vertical opines in his Summer Agenda series. The franchise has hit the mark on building its roster and finding a long-term head coach but shouldn’t get impatient with the process, Marks continues. The team has three of the top 19 picks in the draft but must exercise caution in parlaying those picks for an immediate impact player, Marks adds.
Dana Gauruder contributed to this post.
Northwest Notes: Mitchell, Kanter, Huestis, Olshey
Interim Wolves coach Sam Mitchell hasn’t asked for a decision on his future from owner Glen Taylor, according to Jerry Zgoda of The Star Tribune. Minnesota has been a much-improved team of late and just completed a 3-0 road trip, but Mitchell said he doesn’t look at victories as a way to secure his job on a permanent basis. He’s more concerned with developing young talent, which has been his focus since taking over the team in September. Taylor has made few public statements about the coaching situation, saying it will be resolved after the season ends. “It’s funny to me, now all of a sudden this is a great job,” Mitchell said. “After last year, nobody wanted this job. Nobody thought this was a good job. Now all of a sudden it’s a good job, so I’m proud of that.”
There’s more from the Northwest Division:
- Thunder center Enes Kanter has become a contender for the Sixth Man of the Year award, writes Sam Amick of USA Today. Oklahoma City raised some eyebrows this offseason when it matched a four-year, $70MM offer to keep the restricted free agent, but Kanter has done his best to live up to that contract. He brings 12.8 points and 8.1 rebounds per game off the bench in just 20.8 minutes of action and is shooting 58% from the floor, fourth best in the NBA. “To be honest, I don’t look at my stats – not this year, not last year,” Kanter said. “If I do, I feel like I’m going to stress about it, so I don’t even look at my point average, [or] what’s my rebound average? I think the only thing I’m doing is I’m going out there to play my game.”
- Josh Huestis has only played three NBA games, but the Thunder are hurting so much for an effective backup wing player that he might become an option, writes Anthony Slater of the Oklahoman. “I’m not going to say we know for sure we’re gonna all of a sudden throw him in there the last three games a lot of minutes,” said OKC coach Billy Donovan. “But it’s good to see him progressing the way he has.”
- GM Neil Olshey deserves Executive of the Year honors for rebuilding the Blazers over the offseason, writes Steve Aschburner of NBA.com. Portland clinched a playoff spot this week despite losing four starters from last year’s team.
Western Notes: Matthews, Parsons, Griffin
- It’s conceivable that Chandler Parsons will play again this season for the Mavericks even if he does undergo surgery on a torn meniscus in his right knee, reports Schuyler Dixon of The Associated Press. Parsons is reportedly getting a second opinion before having the procedure, but he’d be able to resume basketball activities within six weeks of having the operation, Dixon hears, meaning it’s conceivable he returns during the playoffs, which begin April 16th. It’s no certainty the Mavs qualify for the postseason, however. They’re one game up on the Jazz for the last playoff spot in the West.
- Doc Rivers won’t rule out the possibility of Blake Griffin missing the rest of the regular season, but he’s confident that he’ll be back in game action within the next three weeks before the regular season ends, observes Broderick Turner of the Los Angeles Times. Griffin will have to serve a four-game suspension once he’s healthy enough to play. The Clippers signed Jeff Ayres for the rest of the season last week.
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James Anderson has been frustrated sitting on the bench for long stretches this season with the Kings, even though coach George Karl acknowledges he’s probably the team’s best defender, but the swingman is seeing more playing time of late, notes Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee. Anderson has to decide on a minimum-salary player option for next season.
Northwest Notes: Beasley, Olshey, Kanter
Michael Beasley believes the Wolves could have been good if the team kept the young players together past the 2011/12 season, Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune writes. “For the first three quarters we were one of the best teams in the league and dead last in the fourth,” Beasley said. “It was just us being young, just not being able to finish games. I think if we would have kept that team together, we could have been something special.” Beasley left Minnesota in free agency during the summer of 2012 to sign a three-year, $18MM deal with Phoenix.
Here’s more from the Northwest Division:
- When LaMarcus Aldridge left Portland in free agency, Blazers GM Neil Olshey believed surrounding Damian Lillard with players in his age bracket was the way to rebuild this team. After 70 games, Portland is in good shape to make the playoffs and Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders examines the moves Olshey made to get the team in a great spot.
- Enes Kanter hasn’t seen the court lately in crunch time for the Thunder and coach Billy Donovan cites the big man’s defense as reason for keeping him off the floor, Anthony Slater of the Oklahoman writes. “I just think [Kanter] needs to continually evolve,” Donovan said. “Because one thing, I looked at the numbers of Enes with the starters and Steven [Adams] with the starters and what those defensive numbers are and they’re drastically different. They just are.” Kanter signed a five-year, $70MM deal with the Thunder last offseason.
And-Ones: Horford, Howard, LeVert, Simmons
Trail Blazers GM Neil Olshey is unsurprisingly a major fan of soon-to-be free agent big man Al Horford, as Jason Quick of CSNNW.com tweets. Horford will reportedly prioritize the fifth year that the Hawks, and no one else, can offer him in a new contract this summer, but he hasn’t made any commitments despite his fondness for Atlanta, and he reportedly has a degree of interest in the Magic. Portland wouldn’t offer the geographical advantage of no state income tax and proximity to his college home of the University of Florida that the Magic could, but the Blazers have an intriguing backcourt of Damian Lillard and C.J. McCollum to showcase to Horford and other free agents this summer, when the team will have only about $47MM in guaranteed salary on the books against a salary cap expected to be twice that amount. See more from around the league:
- Rockets GM Daryl Morey was mum when ESPN’s Jackie MacMullan asked him whether he planned to re-sign Dwight Howard this summer, as Matt Dollinger of SI.com notes in a roundup of last week’s MIT Sloan Sports Analytics Conference. Agent David Falk regards Bulls owner Jerry Reinsdorf as the toughest negotiator he’s ever gone against, Dollinger notes in the same piece.
- Positional versatility and a strong overall package make Michigan swingman Caris LeVert an intriguing prospect, but he looks ill-suited to become a go-to guy, and his history of injuries is a concern, write Josh Riddell and Mike Schmitz of DraftExpress.
- Sean Deveney of The Sporting News sides with LSU combo forward Ben Simmons in the debate over whether Simmons or Duke small forward Brandon Ingram is the top prospect in this year’s draft, listing Simmons atop his first mock draft. Ingram follows, with European power forward Dragan Bender at No. 3.
Northwest Notes: Rubio, Harkless, Claver
Ricky Rubio answered affirmatively when asked whether he wanted to remain with the Timberwolves and praised the team’s offseason additions in an interview with Jamie Goodwin of the Gulf News in Dubai, where the point guard had traveled for a basketball camp. Reports conflicted this spring on the subject of whether Rubio’s camp was pushing for a trade, though comments since that time from Rubio and Wolves coach/executive Flip Saunders have downplayed the notion that a trade is forthcoming. See more on Minnesota’s Northwest Division rivals here:
- The Trail Blazers were eyeing Maurice Harkless long before they traded with the Magic this summer to acquire him, as GM Neil Olshey tells Gary Washburn of The Boston Globe. “Mo was very high on our board a few years ago in the [2012] draft,” Portland general manager Neil Olshey said. “We were excited about him. He has a lot of potential. He fits our model right now; he’s an emerging young player. He’s got a lot of talent. We have a lot of faith in our player development staff and our coaches that guys hit their ceilings, and we know Mo’s not even close to his ceiling at this point. He’s going to get a great opportunity with us to be the player we loved coming out of the draft.”
- Former Blazers small forward Victor Claver has officially signed with Lokomotiv Kuban of Russia, the team announced (hat tip to Sportando’s Emiliano Carchia). International journalist David Pick first reported the deal this weekend. It had appeared that Claver would return to his native Spain to play, but he’s instead headed to Russia, where he finished up this past season with Khimki Moscow after hitting NBA waivers. The Blazers traded him to the Nuggets in the Arron Afflalo deal, and Denver released him a few days later.
- The Jazz have hired Jordan Brady as an assistant coach for their D-League affiliate, the team announced. He spent last season as a Lakers D-League assistant coach. He’ll work under D-League head coach Dean Cooper and replace Andrae Patterson, who moved into a front office role with the Jazz this summer.
Draft History: Neil Olshey
The 2015 NBA draft is less than two months away, and for teams that aren’t still participating in the NBA playoffs, the focus is on using that event to build toward a better future. The exact draft order won’t be known until the May 19th lottery, when the simple bounce of a ping-pong ball can alter the fate of a franchise. Of course, having one of the top selections in any draft doesn’t guarantee that a team will snag a future All-Star. Team executives and scouts still have the difficult task of making the correct call with their picks.
With this in mind we at Hoops Rumors will be taking a look back at the draft history of the primary basketball executive for each NBA team. Their names, reputations, and possibly employment will be on the line as a result of the decisions to come on June 25th, and we’ll be examining what they’ve done in previous years in charge of a club’s front office. Note that many of them have played other sorts of roles within a team’s executive structure, but this won’t take that into account. We’ll continue onward with a look back at the calls made by former Clippers GM and current Trail Blazers President of Basketball Operations Neil Olshey…
Clippers (March 2010-June 2012)
2010 Draft
- No. 8 Overall — Al-Farouq Aminu: 377 games, 6.4 PPG, 5.3 RPG, 1.1 APG. .437/.286/.726.
- No. 54 Overall — Willie Warren: 19 games, 1.9 PPG, 0.6 RPG, 1.4 APG. .371/.333/.750.
Notable players passed over: Gordon Hayward (No. 9), Eric Bledsoe (No. 18), Hassan Whiteside (No. 33), and Lance Stephenson (No. 40).
2011 Draft
- No first-rounder. Pick (No.1 overall) owned by Cavs as result of Baron Davis/Mo Williams trade.
- No. 37 Overall — Trey Thompkins: 24 games, 2.4 PPG, 0.4 RPG, 1.0 APG. .393/.308/.714.
- No. 47 Overall — Travis Leslie: 10 games, 1.4 PPG, 0.9 RPG, 0.5 APG. .357/.000/.444.
Notable players passed over/available at original draft slot: Kyrie Irving (No. 1), Klay Thompson (No. 11), Kawhi Leonard (No. 15), Tobias Harris (No. 19), Kenneth Faried (No. 22), Nikola Mirotic (No. 23), Reggie Jackson (No. 24), Jimmy Butler (No. 30), Chandler Parsons (No. 38), and Isaiah Thomas (No. 60).
Trail Blazers (June 2012-Present)
2012 Draft
- No. 6 Overall — Damian Lillard: 246 games, 20.2 PPG, 3.8 RPG, 6.1 APG. .429/.368/.861.
- No. 11 Overall — Meyers Leonard: 164 games, 4.9 PPG, 3.8 RPG, 0.5 APG. .517/.400/.831.
- No. 40 Overall — Will Barton: 172 games, 5.0 PPG, 2.2 RPG, 1.0 APG. .407/.230/.785.
Notable players passed over: Andre Drummond (No. 9), Draymond Green (No. 35), and Khris Middleton (No. 39).
Note: Selected Tyshawn Taylor with the No. 41 overall pick, who was later dealt to the Nets for cash.
2013 Draft
- No. 10 Overall — C.J. McCollum: 100 games, 6.3 PPG, 1.4 RPG, 0.9 APG. .429/.388/.692.
- No. 39 Overall — Jeff Withey: 95 games, 3.0 PPG, 2.3 RPG, 0.7 BPG. .523/.000/.699.
- No. 45 Overall — Marko Todorovic: No NBA regular season appearances.
Notable players passed over: Michael Carter-Williams (No. 11), Giannis Antetokounmpo (No. 15), and Rudy Gobert (No. 27).
2014 Draft
- First round pick (No. 24) owned by Hornets and traded to Heat.
- Second-rounder (No. 56) owned by Nuggets and dealt to Magic.
Notable players available at draft slot: Shabazz Napier (No. 24), K.J. McDaniels (No. 32), and Jordan Clarkson (No. 46).
Western Notes: Brooks, Clippers, Waiters
Though he’s unlikely to be fired mid-season, Thunder coach Scott Brooks‘ job is definitely on the line this year, Berry Tramel of The Oklahoman writes. Tramel cites the Thunder’s disappointing record, and how the team has regressed even after getting Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook back from injuries, as major reasons why Brooks’ days in OKC could be numbered.
Here’s the latest out of the Western Conference:
- Toure’ Murry, who was waived by the Jazz earlier this month, was acquired by the Rio Grande Valley Vipers of the NBA D-League, the team announced. Rio Grande Valley is the D-League affiliate of the Rockets.
- The Warriors were one of the Wolves‘ most aggressive suitors for Kevin Love prior to him being dealt to Cleveland, but Love still isn’t sure how close he was to heading to Oakland, Rusty Simmons of The San Francisco Chronicle writes. “I know that they were a team that was in talks,” Love said. “But that’s really as far as it got.” Love definitely appreciates just how talented a squad Golden State has, Simmons adds. “They’re a great team,” Love said. “They’re a fun team to watch. They get up and down the floor. They shoot the three ball really well. They have a lot of guys that can do a lot of different things.”
- Dion Waiters said that he learned that he had been traded to the Thunder after the starting lineup had been announced and the Cavs’ game against the Sixers was just about to begin, Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports notes (Twitter link). Waiters still wanted to play in the game, but wasn’t permitted to for obvious reasons, Spears adds.
- In light of president of basketball operations Neil Olshey‘s brand new contract extension, Yannis Koutroupis of Basketball Insiders looks at the success that Olshey has had during his tenure with the Blazers.
- The Clippers sent $300K to the Sixers as part of the Jared Cunningham deal, Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders reports (Twitter link).
- Grizzlies coach Dave Joerger isn’t happy that trade talks have leaked to the media, Ronald Tillery of The Commercial Appeal tweets. “It’s a major distraction,” Joerger said. “Things like that should be kept behind closed doors. It ticks me off.“
Neil Olshey On Extension, Future, More
There wasn’t much chatter about a new deal for Trail Blazers executive Neil Olshey before he and the team signed an extension Thursday, but it’s no real surprise, given the franchise’s rapid ascent the past two seasons. Portland is 28-8 and in second place in the Western Conference a season after having finished as the No. 5 seed and two seasons removed from going 33-49 and missing the playoffs. The extension kicks in next season, notes Joe Freeman of The Oregonian, meaning it runs through 2018/19, which is a team option year. Olshey also scored a promotion to president of basketball operations in the arrangement, and that was one of the many issues he addressed with the media Thursday following the announcement of the deal. Casey Holdahl of Blazers.com provides a complete transcription, and we’ll pass along the highlights here:
On the effect of his promotion to president of basketball operations:
“No, nothing. Nothing. What the title does — I really appreciate it — but what it does is in the event, at some point, we wanted to hire or promote from within someone to the general manager level, we wouldn’t be restricted by title that the general manager position was already taken. Down the road, if there was a talent available or if internally we wanted to make sure we kept someone’s services and the title was an issue, we now have a title that’s open there as opposed to having it closed off.”
On whether things with the Blazers have met his expectations since he left the Clippers in 2012:
“I hope so. I didn’t leave for nothing. I love the Los Angeles Clippers and I had a great run there. It was hard for my wife, my family, my kids to move out of the only city they’d ever lived in, but they were willing to do it to support me. It all just kind of worked in place. We hired [coach] Terry [Stotts], he’s been an incredible coach. [Team president] Chris [McGowan] came on board not long after me and completely revamped everything going on up here. Having [owner] Paul [Allen] embrace the vision of everyone, from what goes on on the court, off the court, behind the scenes, it’s been a great run so far. I just know we got to the point where we were relevant quicker than we’d anticipated. And now the key is to sustain that and I know Paul drives us every day to make sure we put the best product on the floor for the fans. I think right now we’ve got the fans, the season ticket holders in a really good place in terms of their support of the team and the kind of guys and the culture that we have. It’s our job every day to make sure we keep that as keep that as consistent as possible.”
On the future for the Blazers:
“One of the things we had talked about when we took over was sustainability. I think the key was to prove to everybody that last year wasn’t a fluke, that the core of this team is capable of competing for a championship and being a factor in the playoff race. We’re only [a] third of the way through the season but I think there are enough positive indicators to know we’re on the right track. We’ll look for opportunities if we can to improve the roster to give Terry and his staff a better chance at competing at a higher level, but at the end of the day, we’re comfortable with where we are, as evidenced by tonight.”