Tom Thibodeau Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Wolves Notes: Thibodeau, Muhammad, Rubio

October 5th, 2016 at 6:32pm CST by ChrisCrouse

Wolves coach/executive Tom Thibodeau didn’t want to make too many personnel moves during his first offseason with the team, instead, he wanted a chance to evaluate Minnesota’s talent during the preseason to determine which pieces of the core were going to be in his plans moving forward, Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com relays. “I liked the core of the team. I want to get to know them better,” Thibs said. “I’m going to focus on the players we have. That gives me a better idea of what our needs are. It’s like building a house. We’re still working on the foundation.”

Here’s more from Minnesota:

Thibodeau named Peter Patton the team’s shooting coach in part because he was highly recommended by Chip Engelland, the legendary shooting coach of the Spurs, Kent Youngblood of the Star Tribune passes along. “He’s had an opportunity to work with a number of our players already. I like his background. I like that he’s worked with Chip before and that’s important to us,” Thibodeau.
Shabazz Muhammad spent his summer working defense and he believes the arrival of Thibodeau will help me become a more complete player, Youngblood writes in a seperate piece. “It’s crazy,” Muhammad said. “I already feel like I’ve gotten way smarter on defense with just the things Coach has been explaining to us. Just attention to detail, his defensive scheme. This is my fourth year and I’m getting the terms down.” The UCLA product is currently eligible for an extension.
There have been Ricky Rubio trade rumors all offseason and Bradford Doolittle of ESPN.com believes it’s the right time for the Wolves to sell the 25-year-old. Doolittle argues that the team should trade Rubio for some shooting on the wing if rookie Kris Dunn is ready to start at the point.

Eddie Scarito contributed to this post

Pinckney Joins Timberwolves’ Coaching Staff

October 2nd, 2016 at 7:29pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Timberwolves have added Ed Pinckney to their coaching staff, the team announced today (Twitter link). Pinckney had served as an assistant under new Minnesota coach Tom Thibodeau during his five seasons as head coach in Chicago.

Pinckney spent last season as a lead assistant to Michael Malone in Denver, but resigned from that position in July. Pinckney started his coaching career in Minnesota, serving as an assistant to Randy Wittman and Kevin McHale from 2007 to 2009.

Pinckney had been a guest at the Wolves camp this week, so his addition to Thibodeau’s staff was expected.

Northwest Notes: Faried, Abrines, Lucas, Butler

October 2nd, 2016 at 6:12pm CST by Arthur Hill

Kenneth Faried has the inside track to remain the Nuggets’ starting power forward when the season starts, according to Christopher Dempsey of The Denver Post. Coach Michael Malone wanted to have a competition at that spot, but no one appears to be a serious threat to Faried. Darrell Arthur is still recovering from offseason knee surgery and will be phased in slowly. Denver sometimes uses Danilo Gallinari and Wilson Chandler at power forward, but usually just in short bursts to speed up the game. It’s possible that Malone will decide to start Jusuf Nurkic at center and slide Nikola Jokic over to the four spot, but Dempsey believes the most likely outcome is Faried starting on opening night.

There’s more news from the Northwest Division:

The Nuggets may get their own D-League team again, possibly by next season, Dempsey writes in a separate story. Denver last had a direct affiliate in 2009 with the Colorado 14ers, who moved to Texas and hooked up with the Dallas Mavericks.
Alex Abrines waited to make the leap to the Thunder until he saw an opportunity for playing time, writes Brett Dawson of The Oklahoman. That chance came when Kevin Durant left Oklahoma City for Golden State and created a huge opening on the wing. OKC has owned Abrines’ rights since 2013, when it took him 32nd in the draft. The 23-year-old shooting guard has been playing in Spain ever since, but now he believes there’s a chance to make an impact with the Thunder. “Once KD left, I think there was a spot at the three position,” Abrines said. “Also I can play the two. I thought I had a chance to come here and grab some minutes. I don’t want to be here and just practice.”
Two veterans fighting for spots on the Timberwolves‘ roster, John Lucas III and Rasual Butler, know what to expect from coach Tom Thibodeau because they’ve played for him before, notes Kent Youngblood of The Star Tribune. Both players are 37 and have non-guaranteed contracts, but they came into camp with a decent shot to make the team. Minnesota has 17 players in camp, including Nikola Pekovic, who will be kept on the roster but won’t play this season because of injuries. Butler played for Thibodeau in Chicago briefly in 2010/11, and Lucas and Thibodeau teamed up with both the Rockets and Bulls.

Northwest Notes: Exum, Oladipo, Wolters, Garnett

September 25th, 2016 at 1:00pm CST by Arthur Hill

Jazz point guard Dante Exum proclaims himself fully healed from the ACL injury that wiped out last season, writes Tony Jones of The Salt Lake Tribune. Exum suffered the injury in August of 2015 while playing for the Australian national team and says the mental anguish was worse than the physical pain. “There were plenty of times where I wondered, why me,” Exum told The Tribune. “I wondered if I would be the guy I was before the injury. I was supposed to go home to Australia the next day, and I hadn’t been home in a year. I wondered, what’s going to happen with the Jazz? That was the pain I was going through.” With Utah’s training camp opening this week, Exum says his knee feels stronger than ever and his speed, leaping ability and explosive first step have all returned. Exum, who started 41 games during his rookie season, will ease back into the NBA in a reserve role after the Jazz made an offseason deal for George Hill.

There’s more from the Northwest Division:

For several years, the Thunder have tried to surround their stars with “3-and-D” players, but Victor Oladipo tells Erik Horne of The Oklahoman that he wants to be more than that. Oladipo, who came to Oklahoma City in a draft-day trade involving Serge Ibaka, is expected to start alongside MVP candidate Russell Westbrook in the OKC backcourt, but he doesn’t see himself as just a complementary player. “I don’t just want to be a three-point shooter. I don’t just want to be a defensive stopper,” Oladipo said. “I want to be one of the best players in this league, and in order to do that, you have to affect the game on both ends and do multiple things.”
Coming off an impressive season in Turkey, Nate Wolters is hoping to work his way back into the NBA with the Nuggets, relays Jake Rauchbach of Basketball Insiders. The 38th pick in the 2013 draft, Wolters spent two seasons with the Bucks and Pelicans before heading overseas last year. He is projected as the fourth point guard on Denver’s roster, but is hoping to make an impression at training camp. “When you’re trying to make a team, there is kind of a fine line between trying to do too much and proving yourself,” Wolters said. “But still, at the same time, you want to be aggressive so they notice you a little bit. [I’ll] just try to run the team and then kind of pick my spots when I feel like I can be aggressive and try to make plays.”
Timberwolves coach/executive Tom Thibodeau has issued a statement honoring Kevin Garnett upon his retirement, relays The Star-Tribune. “Kevin will always be remembered for the way in which he played the game,” Thibodeau said. “His fierce competitiveness, his unequaled passion for the game and the many ways in which he cared about this team was truly special. KG is without question the all-time best player to wear a Minnesota Timberwolves jersey, and he is also one of the best ever to play this game.’’

Thibodeau Discusses Fresh Start In Minnesota

September 25th, 2016 at 9:51am CST by Arthur Hill

After a year away from the game, Tom Thibodeau is back as coach and president of basketball operations with the Timberwolves, who have one of the most intriguing collections of young talent in the NBA. Minnesota added point guard Kris Dunn through the draft this summer and improved its bench by signing free agents Jordan Hill, Cole Aldrich and Brandon Rush.

Kent Youngblood of The Star-Tribune talked with Thibodeau about his return to the game, his reputation as a defensive coach, his expectations for the young Wolves and Ricky Rubio‘s role now that Dunn is in town. Here are some highlights of the interview:

On Rubio’s role in Thibodeau’s offense:

“I think he’ll fit in very well. He’s a good player. He practices hard. He can really pass the ball. Passing and defense are two things that help build your team, brings the best out of people. I think Ricky has the ability to make other people better.”

On Rubio and Dunn as a possible starting backcourt:

“We’re going to get a lot of those questions answered in the preseason as we go forward. You want to go step by step. You don’t want to skip over things. I like guys who can play multiple positions, I like different combinations. There are times when you play two point guards together. I did that a lot in Chicago, just the speed of the game changes.”

On possible improvement from Nemanja Bjelica:

“I’m excited about him. He’s had a great summer. He’s in really good shape. He has a very unique skill set: He can shoot the three, he can put it on the floor. The one thing that is probably overlooked is his playmaking ability. You can run pick-and-roll with him. He’s got great vision, he can pass over people.”

On the additions of Aldrich and Hill:

“The way Cole played the second half of last year, I think he’s figured out who he is. The last two years have been very good for him. He fits in well, plays to his strengths, covers up his weaknesses, makes the team function well. And Jordan has been a very good player in this league. That gives us quality depth up front.”

On playoff expectations:

“I don’t want to put a lid on what we can do, but I want us doing the right things. Concentrate on that improvement and how fast we get there, I don’t know. We’re young and we’re going to improve. I think we’ll be a different team at the end of the year than what we were at the beginning of the year.”

Kevin Garnett To Retire?

July 16th, 2016 at 10:50pm CST by ChrisCrouse

Kevin Garnett would like to play one more season, but he is unsure whether his body can endure the grind of the 82-game schedule, Steve Aschburner of NBA.com writes. “Yes, theoretically, he’d like to play. But he has some doubts of his knees holding up,” owner Glen Taylor said. “I think he’s worried if he can play. I worry about that too. When I talked to him last year, I said, ‘Is it your knees or what?’ He said, ‘It’s my whole leg.’ ” Garnett also told Taylor that he’d really like to play next year because he expects Minnesota to make the playoffs.

New president of basketball operations Tom Thibodeau said earlier in the week that he is giving Garnett as much time as he needs to make a decision because “the great ones deserve time.” Garnett has $8MM and one season remaining on his current deal and Aschburner notes that the team likely won’t use that cap space if he does retire, so it can wait on the big man’s decision.

Garnett’s agent, Andy Miller, told Aschburner that he hasn’t heard anything that would make him believe Garnett would not return. Aschburner notes that one of the reasons Garnett was willing to waive his no trade clause back in 2015 to come back to the Wolves was because the late Flip Saunders pitched Garnett with the idea of buying an ownership share of the franchise.

Taylor recently sold 15% of the franchise and he said he never had conversations with Garnett about a potential ownership stake. “I never participated in that. Kevin said it to some reporter and it got into the paper. I thought it was inappropriate for me to talk to him about it because he was a player. I never had that discussion with Kevin at all. But I sort of believed it because I assumed he was saying, that was his goal,” Taylor said. However, Taylor did not rule out the possibility. “I’m always open to something like that,” Taylor said, “because he would kind of represent a Minnesota owner.”

Taylor also insinuated that if Garnett decided to retire, a good portion of his $8MM salary would be made available to him via a buyout, so that the future Hall of Famer wouldn’t have to return for the money, Aschburner adds. Taylor knows retirement will be difficult for the power forward. “When he retires, he’s got to figure out a nice way to do it. I don’t know what it is, but I want to help him,” Taylor added. “The transition won’t be easy.”

Garnett saw only 14.6 minutes per contest over 38 games last season. The team went 14-24 in games he played and 15-29 in games he did not.

Northwest Notes: Crabbe, Ezeli, Wade, Thibodeau

July 9th, 2016 at 10:59pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Blazers will have until Sunday at 8:59 p.m. Portland time — or 11:59 p.m. Brooklyn time — to decide whether to match the Nets’ offer sheet for Allen Crabbe, tweets Jason Quick of CSNNW. Crabbe, a restricted free agent, signed a four-year, $75MM offer from the Nets on Thursday. League rules give the Blazers three days to decide whether to match, and GM Neil Olshey isn’t offering any clues about his decision. (Twitter link). Crabbe is coming off his best NBA season, averaging 10.3 points in 81 games.

There’s more news from the Northwest Division:

Festus Ezeli‘s deal with the Blazers contained less money than expected because of concerns about his knees, tweets Marc J. Spears of The Undefeated. The former Warriors center signed a two-year, $16MM contract with Portland on Friday, with a team option for the second season. Ezeli had arthroscopic surgery on his left knee in February, and a source told Spears that teams are worried about his durability.
Even though they didn’t land free agent guard Dwyane Wade, the Nuggets came away from the pursuit feeling good about their future, tweets Christopher Dempsey of The Denver Post. Nuggets officials had a meeting with Wade, and the team was considered a serious suitor until the Bulls came in with an offer. “It was enjoyable to hear what he thought about our situation,” said Denver GM Tim Connelly. “It was pretty encouraging.”
The Timberwolves are taking a cautious approach when it comes to free agency, according to John Krawczynski of The Associated Press (Twitter link). New Minnesota coach/executive Tom Thibodeau addressed the topic during a conference call with media members today. “It’s our first year; it’s important for us to be patient in evaluating the players that we do have,” he said, “but if it’s [necessary] for us to go after people, we will.” Thibodeau also expressed excitement about the addition of free agent Brandon Rush, tweets Darren Wolfson of 5 Eyewitness News. The coach likes Rush’s versatility, but says he needs to improve his shooting.

Bulls Notes: Noah, Gibson, Gasol, Valentine

June 26th, 2016 at 9:00pm CST by Arthur Hill

Free agent center Joakim Noah is putting together a list of possible destinations and seems increasingly likely to leave Chicago, according to Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times. Noah and his agent, Bill Duffy, are working though a priority list as they search for Noah’s next team, Cowley reports. In order, those are a winning team, a chance to start and finish games and a franchise that will support his foundation, Noah’s Arc. The Knicks’ prospects for landing Noah improved with the Derrick Rose trade, according to Cowley. The Wizards and Timberwolves, under the direction of former Chicago coach Tom Thibodeau, will also be contenders.

There’s more tonight out of Chicago:

The Bulls have been talking to a few teams about a trade involving Taj Gibson, Cowley writes in the same piece. The 31-year-old power forward will make $8.95MM next season in the final year of his contract. Cowley says the Bulls also seem likely to lose free agent center Pau Gasol, who will turn 36 soon and doesn’t want to be part of a rebuilding project.
Denzel Valentine‘s college coach says the No. 14 pick will be fine in the NBA despite concerns about the condition of his knees, relays K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune. “I think he’ll be great for the Bulls,” said Michigan State’s Tom Izzo. “I know people are worried about the knees. I’m not saying he’s got 20-year-old knees, but the guy played in 144 of 148 games. He missed some practices when he had surgery on it, but that was it. I used to have to drag him out of games. He practiced. He worked out. He loves the game.”
Free agent point guard Brandon Jennings could help fill the void left by the loss of Rose, suggests Kendall Gill of CSNChicago. Jennings averaged 6.9 points and 3.5 assists this season in 48 games with the Pistons and Magic.

Timberwolves, Bulls Discussing Dunn, Butler Deal

June 23rd, 2016 at 8:41pm CST by Arthur Hill

8:41pm: The Bulls’ negotiations with the Celtics at No. 3 for Dunn were more serious than their talks with the Wolves for Dunn, according to K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune (Twitter link). ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne adds that Chicago was listening on Butler, rather than shopping him.

Shelburne agrees that the Bulls’ talks with Boston more serious than their discussions with Minnesota, and says Butler looks poised to stay put for now. According to Marc Stein of ESPN.com (Twitter link), the Wolves haven’t given up on a potential deal, but the longer they go without an agreement, the less likely it is to happen.

8:06pm: There are plenty of conflicting reports out there on the Bulls/Timberwolves talks now. ESPN’s Marc Stein tweets that discussions are in the advanced stages, and other reporters have suggested the deal is still very much in play. However, NBA.com’s David Aldridge (Twitter link) has been told there’s “no chance” of the trade being completed, and some reporters have echoed that report as well.

7:45pm: The Bulls and Wolves continue to have “serious talks” about a trade that would involve Butler and Dunn, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical (via Twitter). According to K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune (via Twitter), there is a strong sentiment within the Bulls front office to enter full rebuilding mode and trade for Dunn. There’s “rising optimism” on both sides that a deal can get done, tweets Marc Stein of ESPN.com.

7:22pm: The Timberwolves are still trying to get the Bulls to agree to a deal involving Jimmy Butler and Providence point guard Kris Dunn, tweets Marc Stein of ESPN.com. A potential deal between Minnesota and Chicago broke down earlier because the Bulls wanted Zach LaVine to be included rather than Ricky Rubio, according to Shams Charania of The Vertical (Twitter link).

The Bulls and Sixers were both trying to obtain the No. 5 selection before the Wolves took Dunn, Stein tweeted. Philadelphia offered the same package to Minnesota that it presented Boston for the third pick, according to Jon Krawczynski of The Associated Press (Twitter link).

If the Timberwolves hold onto Dunn, that probably means Rubio’s days in Minnesota are numbered, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical, who adds that Rubio has been shopped all week. The initial feeling is that the Wolves are likely to hold onto Dunn, despite aggressive offers from interested teams, according to Stein (Twitter link). Dunn was atop the draft board of new coach executive Tom Thibodeau, Wojnarowski reports (Twitter link).

Central Notes: Thibodeau, Pacers, Jackson

May 14th, 2016 at 7:40pm CST by Arthur Hill

Former Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau said it was painful to watch the team struggle to a non-playoff season, according to Vincent Goodwill of CSNChicago. Now president and coach of the Timberwolves, Thibodeau discussed the Bulls as he returned to Chicago for this week’s draft combine. “I think Derrick [Rose] after the first couple months, played very well and it was great to see him healthy,” Thibodeau said. “He went through four years that were difficult. I think Jimmy [Butler] continues to improve and get better. Pau [Gasol] was terrific. Doug McDermott had a terrific season and Niko [Mirotic] was inconsistent but he finished strong. There were a lot of pluses and one or two games go a different way and if Joakim [Noah] doesn’t get hurt, this is a terrific team. They need their health. For me, just looking from afar, that’s the biggest thing for this team.” Thibodeau also supported the coach who took his place, Fred Hoiberg, and said he expects the Bulls to become contenders again next season.

There’s more out of the Central Division:

The Pacers will hold a workout on Tuesday for Indiana small forward Troy Williams, Maryland point guard Melo Trimble, Oklahoma point guard Isaiah Cousins and others, tweets Jeff Rabjohns of Basketball Times. High schooler Thon Maker will work out for the Pacers on Wednesday, according to Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv (Twitter link).
Maryland power forward Robert Carter Jr. had an interview with the Pacers at the draft combine, tweets Scott Agness of VigilantSports.
The Bucks will likely be looking for backcourt help in next month’s draft, according to Charles F. Gardner of The Journal Sentinel. Milwaukee enters Tuesday’s draft lottery with the No. 10 pick, along with second-rounders at No. 36 and No. 38. GM John Hammond insists the team will employ the “best-player-available” strategy, but Gardner says it’s obvious the Bucks need better guard play. One possibility could be Notre Dame junior point guard Demetrius Jackson, who interviewed with Milwaukee during the draft combine. “[Bucks coach] Jason Kidd is awesome,” Jackson said. “I do my research before I go in there. I’m naming off some of his accomplishments — nine-time all-NBA defender. At the next level I really want to be an elite NBA defender. It’s cool to meet some of these people you see on TV.”