Portland Trail Blazers Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Western Notes: Aldridge, Williams, Thunder

April 26th, 2015 at 8:25pm CST by Will Joseph

Damian Lillard is confident that his Trail Blazers teammate LaMarcus Aldridge, who is set to become an unrestricted free agent this offseason, will remain in Portland, Baxter Holmes of ESPN.com writes. “I don’t have any reason to believe why he wouldn’t be back here,” Lillard said. Aldridge has been the subject of several recent reports that have tied him to the Spurs, Mavericks and Knicks. Aldridge has played for only Portland since he was drafted in 2006. On Sunday, Holmes notes, Aldridge declined to answer questions about his future. “I’m focused on winning right now,” Aldridge said.

Here’s more from the Western Conference:

Pelicans coach Monty Williams, who has one year remaining on his contract and a team option beyond next year, deserves to lead New Orleans for the next two seasons, Jimmy Smith of The Times-Picayune opines. It was Williams’ tactical gumption that propelled the Pelicans into the playoffs this year, Smith writes. Under Williams, the Pelicans finished 45-37 this season, winning 11 more games than the previous season. There were reports last month that the Pelicans would evaluate Williams, who has received support from players, after the season. Williams was reportedly under pressure earlier this season, his fifth as coach of the Pelicans.
The next coach of the Thunder won’t be someone with a flamboyant personality, and instead will have a blue-collar work ethic, a humble demeanor and well-known success with the clipboard, Darnell Mayberry of The Oklahoman writes. Whoever replaces Scott Brooks will have to embrace the “Thunder Way,” Mayberry adds. “We have a pretty clear identity of the type of person and specific vision for that role going forward,” said Thunder GM Sam Presti. Florida’s Billy Donovan is a leading candidate for the job.

Northwest Notes: Brooks, Thunder, Aldridge

April 25th, 2015 at 10:48pm CST by Arthur Hill

Thunder GM Sam Presti doesn’t think Scott Brooks is a bad coach, but he believes he can find a better one, writes Berry Tramel of The Oklahoman. Brooks was fired Wednesday after the Thunder narrowly missed the playoffs with a 45-37 record. Tramel speculates that the move was about the future, noting that Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant have had the same coach since they entered the league. He said Presti likely wants to give them a fresh voice as they enter the next stage of their careers.

There’s more news from the Northwest Division:

Three leading candidates to replace Brooks as Thunder coach were compared by Darnell Mayberry of The Oklahoman. Florida’s Billy Donovan and Connecticut’s Kevin Ollie have both been wildly successful as college coaches, while Tom Thibodeau has made the Bulls a perennial playoff team but is rumored to be in hot water in Chicago.
LaMarcus Aldridge is the latest in a long line of talented power forwards in Portland, according to Baxter Holmes of ESPN.com. When he was drafted by the Trail Blazers in 2006, it was to ultimately replace the man who he is now lining up against in the playoffs, the Grizzlies’ Zach Randolph. Aldridge said he remembers being labeled as a “project” early on. “People always called me ‘soft,’ but Z-Bo never did,” Aldridge said. “In practice, I would go at it. I wasn’t strong enough to bang, but I would bang with him as much as I could.” Randolph was dealt to the Knicks in 2007, but the Blazers are hoping to keep Aldridge. He is expected to be among the most sought-after free agents on the market this summer.
Aldridge made comments to Holmes that echoed those he gave to Michael Lee of The Washington Post earlier this season in which he reflected on a time when he didn’t think the Blazers viewed him as a star in the making. “I wish I could say that,” Aldridge said to Holmes. “I want to give you that story so bad. But I’m trying to tell you, they did not believe in me in the beginning. I was a ‘project.'”
After losing most of his season to shoulder surgery, Utah’s Alec Burks is looking forward to next year, reports Ryan McDonald of The Deseret News. The surgical procedure came just two months after Burks agreed to a four-year, $42MM extension with the Jazz. “It was tough,” he said. “I’ve never experienced anything like that missing so many games, but I learned a lot. I’ll be able to play next year, and I can’t wait.”

Spurs, Mavs Believe They Can Lure Aldridge

April 24th, 2015 at 8:28am CST by Chuck Myron

FRIDAY, 8:28am: Two executives told Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com last month that there was a belief among some around the league that Aldridge would consider the Knicks as well as the Spurs this summer.

2:03pm: All options are on the table for Aldridge this summer, including a departure from the Blazers, a source familiar with his free agency strategy told Ken Berger of CBSSports.com. The source also said to Berger that he wouldn’t be surprised if the All-Star signed with a Texas team.

THURSDAY, 8:59am: The Spurs and Mavs believe they can convince LaMarcus Aldridge to sign with them in free agency this summer, according to Marc Stein of ESPN.com (Twitter links). Both teams are planning aggressive pursuits of the Blazers power forward, and the Knicks and Lakers will go after him, too, Stein also says. It’s the latest ominous news for Portland’s hopes of keeping the No. 4 player in our Free Agent Power Rankings, in spite of his insistence last summer and before the season that he intends to re-sign, and the Blazers have their “work cut out” for them if they’re to retain their star, as Stein puts it.

A Blazers teammate who spoke with The Oregonian’s Jason Quick earlier this month cast it as a 50-50 proposition that the Arn Tellem client would be back with the Blazers. Quick noted that Aldridge feels as though the franchise is behind him, but the veteran of nine NBA seasons, all of them in Portland, recently expounded to Michael Lee of The Washington Post on times when he didn’t sense that sort of support from the Blazers. The Blazers have been “very, very scared” that Aldridge will leave, as one rival executive said to Sean Deveney of The Sporting News in February, though that executive chalked the team’s feeling up to paranoia.

Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News first reported in November that Dallas planned to target the native of nearby Seagoville, Texas, while Grantland’s Zach Lowe has consistently heard chatter vaguely linking Aldridge to San Antonio. The big man praised Knicks president Phil Jackson and the city of New York and said that he thought he’d be a fit for the triangle upon prompting from New York media at the All-Star Game. There hasn’t been much connecting Aldridge to the Lakers, besides a report from Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders indicating that the prospect of the former No. 2 overall pick winding up in purple-and-gold was a long shot. Still, Aldridge makes sense for a Lakers team with plenty of cap flexibility and an ever-present desire to chase star free agents.

The same can be said for the Knicks, and the Mavs have max-level flexibility, too, though the team’s apparent willingness to move on from Rajon Rondo will help Dallas clear the cap space necessary to put a max offer in front of Aldridge. The Spurs have a more complicated path as long as Tim Duncan and Manu Ginobili decide they want to return, but having decided against a lucrative extension for Kawhi Leonard this past fall gives the Spurs a chance to clear max cap room. His cap hold remains just slightly more than $7.235MM until San Antonio signs him to a new deal or matches an offer sheet for him.

Northwest Notes: Nuggets, Freeland, Wolves

April 20th, 2015 at 4:45pm CST by Chuck Myron

There’s only one Northwest Division team in the playoffs, but it’s been a newsy day around the division, with the Thunder’s apparent interest in UConn coach Kevin Ollie as a possible replacement for Scott Brooks perhaps the most significant story. Concerns in the Blazers locker room about whether LaMarcus Aldridge will re-sign loom over Portland, while another team already has a coaching vacancy, and we’ll pass along the latest from Denver and other Northwest locales here:

The Nuggets would prefer a coaching veteran to fill their vacancy, as Sean Deveney of The Sporting News writes within a larger look at the offseason ahead in Denver. Ty Lawson is probably staying put, Deveney adds, and the same can be said for Jusuf Nurkic, whom the Nuggets regard as a steal a season after he was the 16th overall pick.
British-born Joel Freeland hasn’t played a large role for the Blazers in the three years since he came over from playing in Spain, but as his contract nears an end, he would prefer to remain in the NBA and with the Blazers, as he told Chema de Lucas of Gigantes Del Basket (translation via Mark Woods of MVP247.com). Portland can match offers for Freeland in free agency this summer, but that only applies to offers from other NBA teams, not overseas clubs, and the Blazers would first have to tender a qualifying offer of nearly $3.767MM.
Flip Saunders said today that the Wolves will have a strong prospect regardless of whom they draft with their first-round pick, which could fall between No. 1 and No. 4, but Michael Rand of the Star Tribune figures the coach/exec must hope he can land a big man. Rand argues that’s because of the injury history of Nikola Pekovic, who’s under contract through 2017/18. Top two prospects Karl-Anthony Towns and Jahlil Okafor are big men and the players widely projected to go next are guards Emmanuel Mudiay and D’Angelo Russell. Saunders said he’ll draft the best available talent rather than for position.

Teammates Worry LaMarcus Aldridge Will Leave

April 20th, 2015 at 9:28am CST by Chuck Myron

A Blazers teammate of LaMarcus Aldridge who spoke with The Oregonian’s Jason Quick earlier this month said that he thinks the chances that Aldridge will leave Portland in free agency this summer are just as strong as the chances he’ll re-sign. That’s reflective of the worry that some Blazers have expressed to Quick about the All-Star power forward’s willingness to remain with the team. Still, Quick cautions that Aldridge has grown comfortable in Portland and feels as though the Blazers value him. Aldridge said nearly a year ago that he would re-sign and repeated that before the season.

Aldridge didn’t always sense the Blazers organization was behind him, and he reflected upon that in a recent interview with Michael Lee of The Washington Post, one in which the former No. 2 overall pick wondered if the Blazers would find it easy to move on from him. Quick, who uses the words “fickle,” “moody” and “unpredictable” to describe Aldridge, nonetheless believes the 29-year-old will re-sign. That was the belief of most executives around the league at the All-Star break, even though one executive at that point told Sean Deveney of The Sporting News that the Blazers were “very, very scared” that Aldridge would leave. The exec suggested that it was paranoia of the Blazers’ part, however. Aldridge hasn’t discussed his free agency much since he said again before the season that he would re-sign with the Blazers, though he spoke about his comfort with the Blazers and Portland in December. During the All-Star break, he said that he’d be a fit for the triangle offense and praised Knicks team president Phil Jackson in response to questions from the New York media during the All-Star break.

Portland can give Aldridge a fifth year and 7.5% raises on his next deal, while other teams are limited to four years and 4.5% raises. A teammate of Aldridge’s nonetheless suggested to Quick that money won’t be the primary deciding factor. Aldridge, No. 4 in our latest Hoops Rumors Free Agent Power Rankings, is a native of Seagoville, Texas, which is close to Dallas, and the Mavs reportedly plan to pursue him. There’s been off-hand chatter among executives about the Spurs and Aldridge, as Grantland’s Zach Lowe documented in January.

Western Notes: Gasol, Brooks, Paul

April 19th, 2015 at 8:14pm CST by Will Joseph

In using LeBron James‘ decision to bolt from the Heat and join the Cavaliers after the Spurs beat Miami in last year’s NBA Finals as an example, Geoff Calkins of the Commercial Appeal opines that how the Grizzlies fare in the playoffs will impact Marc Gasol‘s free agency decision. Gasol was not at all forthcoming when asked if the playoffs could have an impact on his future. The big man has spent his entire seven-year career with the Grizzlies. “I don’t know,” Gasol said. “Honestly, I haven’t put in my mind what’s going to weigh what, and I really don’t know. I honestly can’t tell you because I haven’t had time to even think about it. So, I don’t know.”

Previously, Gasol cast doubt on the idea that an early postseason exit for the Grizzlies would dissuade him from re-signing. Earlier this week owner Robert Pera expressed a similar view that the playoffs would not have much bearing on Gasol’s decision.

There’s more from the Western Conference:

The Blazers are decimated by injury, they are facing the Grizzlies — a team that has beat them in all four contests this season — and have several question marks heading into the summer. All of that presents this time period as the biggest challenge since GM Neil Olshey was hired in June 2012, John Canzano of the Oregonian opines. This summer, the team’s top player, LaMarcus Aldridge, will become an unrestricted free agent. Wesley Matthews and Robin Lopez will also become unrestricted free agents.
Embattled Thunder coach Scott Brooks, whom the team is reportedly evaluating prior to making a decision on his future, has received three significant votes of confidence, Darnell Mayberry of The Oklahoman writes. Serge Ibaka has joined Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook in supporting Brooks, who has guided the team since the 2008/09 season. “Why are you going to fire him?” Ibaka is quoted in a piece by Jorge Sierra of HoopsHype. “What has he done? Injuries were not his fault. Why would he go? He has not done anything. He’s not responsible for the injuries. He did his best with the team he had. Would [another] coach do better with a team with so many injuries? What could he possibly do about it? The team is with him. You can’t blame him for what has happened.”
Chris Paul has never led a team beyond the second round of the playoffs and although the star point guard has never received much backlash for his lack of postseason success, Moke Hamilton of Basketball Insiders opines that if Paul fails to get far this postseason, his name won’t be associated with the transformation of the Clippers.

Northwest Notes: Aldridge, Kanter, Nelson

April 17th, 2015 at 5:00pm CST by Eddie Scarito

LaMarcus Aldridge may be more willing to leave the Blazers this summer than previously thought, ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne relayed in an appearance on the 710 ESPN Mason & Ireland Show (hat tip to Ryan Ward of LakersNation.com). “I think LaMarcus Aldridge is actually more in play than people think,” said Shelburne. “You have that group there. How can you really improve that group up in Portland? I think Neil Olshey has done a great job up there, but it’s Portland, he’s [Aldridge] never quite fit in and they’ve made it really clear that Damian Lillard is the face of their franchise.” Aldridge, who earned $16,256,000 for the 2014/15 season, is set to become an unrestricted free agent this offseason.

Here’s more from the Northwest Division:

Enes Kanter, who can become a restricted free agent this summer if the Thunder extend him a qualifying offer worth $7,471,412, said he enjoyed his time in OKC, Berry Tramel and Darnell Mayberry of The Oklahoman writes. “I love it here,” Kanter said. “Oklahoma City was obviously a good fit for me from day one. They opened their arms. I just like playing with all of these guys. They give it 100% every time. I would definitely like to come back here.”
Kanter also relayed that he is willing to come off the bench in the future, though part of his issues with the Jazz stemmed from playing time concerns, the Oklahoman scribes add. When discussing his next contract, the big man said, “I’m not nervous at all, and I have no idea what kind of contract I’m going to get. Like I said, I just want to be on a team, I just want to be happy and I just want to see this team get success and make the playoffs. I’m not nervous at all. That contract thing, my agent handles it. I’m not really worried about it.”
Jameer Nelson has to make a decision on his player option worth $2,854,940 for next season. One of the determining factors for the veteran is who will be coaching the Nuggets for the 2015/16 campaign, Christopher Dempsey of The Denver Post writes. The point guard is partial to interim coach Melvin Hunt, whom the team will reportedly consider retaining, Dempsey adds. Nelson is concerned about his playing time diminishing under a new coach, Dempsey notes. “Whatever I decide, I’ll definitely discuss with that team what my role would be,” said Nelson. “I feel like I’m definitely more than a 15 or 18-minute guy, for sure.“

Latest On Nuggets Coaching Search

April 17th, 2015 at 2:56pm CST by Chuck Myron

FRIDAY, 2:56pm: The Nuggets are willing to spend on their next coach in spite of the $2MM they still owe to Shaw next season, Dempsey hears (Twitter link).

3:30pm: Connelly says that the team will take its time in searching for a new coach, and that Hunt will indeed be considered as a candidate, Dempsey relays in a series of tweets. “We’re going to be pretty patient,” Connelly said. “Certainly Melvin is going to be one of the finalists. I think he deserves that, he’s earned that. But we’re going to talk to anybody and everybody…candidates that could potentially help us take the next step.”

THURSDAY, 2:05pm: NBA coaching veteran Scott Skiles, Iowa State coach Fred Hoiberg and Blazers assistant coach David Vanterpool are among the candidates for the Nuggets coaching job, sources tell Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports. Denver will also indeed give serious consideration to interim coach Melvin Hunt as the Nuggets formally begin their search today, Wojnarowski hears. Billy Donovan, Michael Malone, Mike D’Antoni, Alvin Gentry and, if the Thunder let him go, Scott Brooks are also candidates, according to Wojnarowski, seconding earlier reports.

There have been conflicting reports regarding Hunt. Marc Stein of ESPN.com wrote overnight that sources said this week that the Nuggets aren’t expected to keep him, but according to Chris Dempsey of The Denver Post, the Nuggets will interview Hunt for the position that he’s filled on an interim basis since the team decided to fire Brian Shaw in March. Dempsey’s story jibes with the tenor of most reports and GM Tim Connelly‘s admission that the team will at least consider keeping Hunt.

Skiles is a leading candidate for the Magic’s vacancy, and Donovan, Malone and Brooks have been mentioned in connection with the Orlando job, too. Hoiberg, whose name has surfaced frequently for NBA jobs of late, has been linked to the Bulls as a possible replacement if the team parts ways with Tom Thibodeau, and it appears as though he’ll be selective and won’t take just any NBA opening. Vanterpool interviewed for the Sixers job in 2013 and seemed at one point to be the front-runner, but the 42-year-old, who’s been on the Blazers bench since 2012/13, hasn’t been an NBA head coach.

Thunder Non-Committal Toward Scott Brooks

April 16th, 2015 at 10:50am CST by Chuck Myron

10:50am: For his part, Brooks remains optimistic, telling reporters today that he expects to return for next season, as Royce Young of ESPN.com tweets.

7:51am: Several league sources close to Thunder coach Scott Brooks have expressed doubt about his job security as the Thunder are expected to “spend time evaluating the partnership” with the coach before committing to him for another season, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports. The Magic and Nuggets would have significant interest in Brooks if he became available, sources told Wojnarowski. Oklahoma City’s contract with Brooks runs through 2016/17, with a team option on the final season, Wojnarowski adds.

Thunder GM Sam Presti has long been friends with University of Florida coach Billy Donovan, according to Wojnarowski. Donovan is another Nuggets and Magic candidate who has an increasing desire to coach in the NBA, as Marc Stein of ESPN.com reported a couple of weeks ago. League sources who spoke with Wojnarowski brought up the possibility of Presti targeting Donovan should the Thunder let go of Brooks.

Injury-plagued Oklahoma City went 45-37 and remained alive for a playoff berth until the final night of the regular season, but the Thunder missed the postseason for the first time since 2009. Brooks took over midway through that season, and in spite of the Thunder’s fast rise to title contention, the coach has come under fire from critics for his in-game strategy. The Thunder organization has largely remained supportive, but negotiations in the 2012 offseason on a four-year extension worth about $18MM were difficult, according to Wojnarowski, even though Oklahoma City was fresh off a trip to the NBA Finals. The Blazers were among several teams with interest in swooping in to hire Brooks then if those talks fell apart, Wojnarowski notes.

Many in the Thunder organization like Brooks, who has close relationship with management and players alike, Wojnarowski writes. Still, the specter of Kevin Durant‘s contract, which expires after next season, clouds the Thunder’s future. Durant, the league’s reigning MVP and scoring champ, played in only 27 games this season largely because of a broken foot, precipitating the Thunder’s slide down the standings.

And-Ones: Drummond, Price, Afflalo

April 15th, 2015 at 10:35pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Pistons owner Tom Gores gave Andre Drummond a vote of confidence during tonight’s contest against the Knicks, calling the big man a “max player,” David Mayo of MLive.com relays (Twitter link). Drummond, who is set to earn $3,272,091 next season, is eligible to ink an extension this summer, but this doesn’t necessarily mean the Pistons will offer him one, since the team would have the right to match any offer sheet the big man were to sign as a restricted free agent in 2016. Detroit could be wary of taking that chance given how the team is likely to lose Greg Monroe, who reportedly declined to ink an extension of his own with the club, as a free agent this summer, though that is merely my speculation.

Here’s more from around the league:

Arron Afflalo will let his playoff performance dictate whether he picks up his $7.75MM player option for next season with the Blazers, as a source close to the swingman tells Michael Scotto of SheridanHoops that he’ll opt out if he plays well.
One executive who spoke with Scotto for the same piece pegged Danny Green‘s value at $6MM a year. The Spurs swingman is an unrestricted free agent this summer.
Ronnie Price indicated that his desire is to remain with the Lakers, even if it is as a third-string guard, Mark Medina of The Los Angeles Daily News writes. “I enjoyed being a voice in the locker room. I enjoyed being able to help younger guys. I helped great veterans that can help me. I’d be selfish not to extend that knowledge to players that are younger than me,” Price said. “Of course you want to play. That’s why we do what we do. You want to play. You never know what’s ahead. Whatever role is my role, I’ll embrace it whether it’s being here or the third guard.” Price will become an unrestricted free agent at season’s end.
Suns forward Markieff Morris believes that the team needs to add players with more experience to its roster, Paul Coro of The Arizona Republic tweets. “Veteran leadership for sure,” Morris responded when asked about Phoenix’s needs. “We have to have more older guys around so we can keep this thing intact.“

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.