Latest On Trail Blazers’ Coaching Search
AUGUST 1, 7:29pm: The field of finalists has been trimmed to two, with Steve Clifford and Elston Turner out of the running, Jason Quick of The Oregonian reports. That leaves Terry Stotts and Kaleb Canales as the two remaining candidates.
JULY 26, 12:25pm: The second round of interviews will include owner Paul Allen and will begin on Tuesday, according to Chris Haynes of CSNNW.com. Haynes also hasn't heard anything about a fifth candidate being in the mix.
JULY 25, 5:34pm: There could be a fifth "mystery" candidate involved, according to Jason Quick of The Oregonian. While his identity is unknown, the fifth candidate is not represented by Warren LeGarie, the agent for GM Neil Olshey, or Steve Kauffman, another prominent agent in coaching circles. If the Blazers go with the fifth candidate, it would be late in the process, Quick hears, so it appears he's regarded as a fallback option (All Twitter links).
3:14pm: The final four candidates for the Blazers' opening are Terry Stotts, Elston Turner, Steve Clifford, and Kaleb Canales, reports Jason Quick of the Oregonian (via Twitter). The team will conduct a second round of interviews next week with the remaining contenders, according to Quick (Twitter link).
3:11pm: Bulls assistant Adrian Griffin is also out of the running for the Portland job, having been informed by the team that he's no longer being considered, tweets Chris Haynes of CSNNW.com.
3:07pm: After an offseason in which he interviewed for a number of head coach positions, Brian Shaw will be returning to Indiana as an assistant. According to Jason Quick of the Oregonian (via Twitter), Shaw and Trail Blazers GM Neil Olshey spoke today and decided that the Portland coaching job wasn't a fit for the Pacers assistant, who also interviewed with the Magic and Bobcats.
Agent Jerome Stanley tells Quick that Shaw called Pacers coach Frank Vogel today to tell him he was eager to return and help Indiana pursue a title (Twitter link).
As for the Blazers, even with Shaw out of the running, there are still plenty of candidates for the club's head coach position. Quick confirms that the team has interviewed at least the following candidates so far: Warriors assistant Michael Malone, Mavericks assistant Terry Stotts; Grizzlies assistant David Joerger; former Magic assistant Steve Clifford, Suns assistant Elston Turner, Hawks assistant Lester Conner; Heat assistant David Fizdale, Bulls assistant Adrian Griffin, and former Knicks and Suns assistant Phil Weber.
Fizdale has withdrawn from consideration, while Clifford is nearing a deal to join the Bulls as an assistant, says Quick.
Mavs Notes: Free Agency, West, Stotts, Kaman
Mavericks GM Donnie Nelson appeared on fishbowlnetworkradio.com on Monday, speaking about a number of topics related to his team's offseason. As Dwain Price of the Fort Worth Star Telegram writes, Nelson says Deron Williams was the key to the Mavericks' summer — Nelson believes the Mavs would have re-signed Jason Terry and Jason Kidd if Williams had chosen Dallas. Those are interest comments, since Terry and Kidd both had huge cap holds on the Mavs' books. If Dallas hoped to re-sign both players at reasonable rates, the team couldn't have renounced its rights to either player, which means there would have been no cap room for Williams. Perhaps a sign-and-trade could have been worked out with the Nets if D-Will had chosen the Mavs.
In any case, Nelson also weighed in a few more issues, so let's round up the highlights….
- The Mavericks have two open roster spots, and rookie Bernard James is expected to take one of the two. Delonte West could re-sign and take the other spot, but that's no certainty, as Nelson points out: "There’s also an argument for keeping that last roster spot open, because sometimes you get lucky towards the end of the summer." The GM adds that the Mavs are still in negotiations with West and are hopeful that they'll work something out.
- Nelson feels like assistant coach Terry Stotts is a great head coach candidate, and says the team is prepared to lose him if the Trail Blazers decide to hire him.
- According to Nelson, Chris Kaman was at or near the top of the team's list of free agent targets after D-Will. The GM expects Dirk Nowitzki to benefit significantly from Kaman's presence.
- Mavs owner Mark Cuban also spoke to Ken Berger of CBSSports.com about the offseason and the new CBA, pointing out that he wants his team to avoid the luxury tax not necessary for financial reasons but because taxpaying teams will face significant restrictions on roster moves starting next summer.
Terry Stotts Interviews With Trail Blazers
Mavericks assistant coach Terry Stotts has become a candidate for Portland's head coach position, writes ESPNDallas.com's Tim MacMahon. Stotts interviewed with Trail Blazers GM Neil Olshey on Tuesday, and is expected to get a second interview.
The 54-year-old Stotts joined Dallas' coaching staff in 2008, and has previous head coaching experience with the Hawks and Bucks, sporting a 114-168 record with both organizations. Several assistant coaches have reportedly been interviewed by the Trail Blazers over the last few weeks, including Michael Malone, Adrian Griffin, Elston Turner, Lester Connor, Brian Shaw, David Joerger, Mike Budenholzer, Phil Weber, Patrick Ewing, and Steve Clifford.