Odds & Ends: Pacers, Patterson, Evans, Lakers
This year's Hall of Fame induction takes place a week from Saturday, and as Scott Howard-Cooper of NBA.com writes, the list of presenters, led by Michael Jordan and Magic Johnson, threatens to overshadow the inductees, headlined by Reggie Miller. The figures who'll be enshrined are not without their accomplishments, however, and among them is Don Nelson, the NBA's all-time winningest coach. Nelson recently spoke about a missed opportunity to take over as coach of the Celtics in 1983, the origins of his trademark small-ball style, and how his relationship with Sarunas Marciulionis changed the way he coached. Matt Steinmetz of CSNBayArea.com has the details, and we've got more from around the Association:
- The Pacers promoted Peter Dinwiddie, the team's director of basketball administration, vice president of basketball operations, the Associated Press reports (via ESPN.com). Dinwiddie will assist GM Kevin Pritchard and team president Donnie Walsh.
- Rockets power forward Patrick Patterson says he's ready to assume a leadership role for the team after all the roster turnover this offseason, and talks about the influence of Luis Scola with Jason Friedman of Rockets.com.
- SheridanHoops.com founder Chris Sheridan believes the development of Isaiah Thomas and the signing of Aaron Brooks signal that Tyreke Evans and the Kings will soon part ways.
- The Lakers' acquisition of Dwight Howard has been the story of the summer, but if his back won't allow him to start the season on time, the team will have some lineup shuffling to do, writes Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Times.
- Blazers Wesley Matthews and Elliot Williams, who have both spent the summer recovering from injuries, are ready to go for training camp, notes Ben Golliver of Blazer's Edge.
- Former first-round draft choice Reece Gaines has given up his pursuit of a return to the NBA and will be an assistant coach at Bellarmine University, an NCAA Division II school, Michael Grant of the Courier-Journal reports. Gaines was the 15th overall pick of the 2003 draft by the Magic, but appeared in only 71 NBA games, the last of which was in 2005/06 with the Bucks.
Northwest Links: Blazers, Osbourne, Maynor
Let's round up a few afternoon links relating to a handful of Northwest Division squads….
- The Trail Blazers have hired Dale Osbourne as an assistant coach, the team announced today (Twitter link). Last season, Osbourne served as the head coach for the Tulsa 66ers, the Thunder's D-League affiliate.
- Speaking of the Thunder, Royce Young at DailyThunder.com takes an in-depth look at a few of the options available for Oklahoma City and Eric Maynor. Young thinks Maynor is unlikely to be extended this offseason, but says that doesn't mean the point guard won't remain part of the Thunder past this season. Our Zach Links examined Maynor as an extension candidate over the weekend.
- In his latest column, Josh Cohen of OrlandoMagic.com poses three potential trade scenarios that he feel would benefit each team involved. Cohen's ideas include the Timberwolves acquiring Pau Gasol in a three-way deal with the Lakers and Hawks, and the Jazz trading for Joakim Noah, Luol Deng, and Jimmy Butler.
Odds & Ends: Griffin, Sacks, Harden, Davis, Nash
Blake Griffin believes the Clippers have become a "free agent destination," and he thinks player personnel director Gary Sacks is the right man to pursue them from the GM's chair, according to comments he made to Broderick Turner of the Los Angeles Times. Sacks, along with team president Andy Roeser and coach Vinny Del Negro, have shared the GM duties since Neil Olshey jumped to the Blazers, but Griffin made it clear which one he wants to assume the job full-time. "With the moves that the front office made — and now with Gary Sacks, who hopefully steps into that GM role — that made it easy for me and I think this is the place where everybody wants to come," Griffin said. "I think Gary has a great relationship with all the players and the players like him. If he is finally named GM, I think that's just the icing on the cake of having a franchise that is complete." We've got more weekend rumblings right here:
- James Harden believes Serge Ibaka deserved his four-year extension from the Thunder, and while saying he's unsure if he and the team will reach a similar accord this summer, Harden expressed a desire to stay in Oklahoma City, where he feels at home with his teammates, as he told the Spanish website Marca.com (translation via HoopsHype).
- Hornets No. 1 overall pick Anthony Davis dishes about his time with the U.S. Olympic team, his similarities to Kevin Garnett, and his thoughts on playing with Eric Gordon in a Q&A with Joe Brescia of The New York Times.
- Doug Smith of the Toronto Star examines the relationship between Lakers point guard Steve Nash and Blazers assistant coach Jay Triano, who are teaming up to lead the Canadian national team as GM and head coach, respectively.
- Brian Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel looks at whether it's worth it for the Magic to wait to make a big splash in free agency until 2016, when Kevin Durant becomes a free agent. Putting aside the connection Durant has with Magic GM and former Thunder executive Rob Hennigan, that seems like an awfully long time to wait.
Odds & Ends: Team Canada, Harrellson, Magic
A handful of players with NBA ties have been invited to a weekend training camp that will take place soon to give Team Canada officials a first glimpse at candidates for their national team, as Ryan Wolstat of the Toronto Sun reports (Sulia link). Tristan Thompson of the Cavs, Joel Anthony of the Heat, Cory Joseph of the Spurs, Andrew Nicholson of the Magic and Kris Joseph of the Celtics are on the list. Robert Sacre, the 60th pick in this year's draft by the Lakers, remains unsigned, but he's been invited as well. The team has officially named former Raptors head coach and current Blazers assistant Jay Triano as head coach, Wolstat also writes, and Rockets assistant coach Kelvin Sampson will also be an assistant with Team Canada. Lakers guard Steve Nash, serving as Team Canada's GM, said he wouldn't have accepted the position if Triano wasn't coming aboard, too, Wolstat notes. Here's more from around the Association this afternoon:
- The Heat conducted a workout with Josh Harrellson today, as we heard earlier, but the Timberwolves have no interest in the 6'10" University of Kentucky product, as they prefer a center with more length, tweets Darren Wolfson of 5 Eyewitness News in Minneapolis. Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel notes that Harrellson is just one of several big men the Heat are considering (Sulia link).
- Brian Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel looks at the options the Magic have at power forward to replace Ryan Anderson.
- The Bulls, Lakers, Clippers, Timberwolves and Warriors all have some significant injury issues with training camp about a month away, and Sam Amick of SI.com checks in on the status of Derrick Rose, Dwight Howard and others.
- Robin Lopez is recovering from left knee surgery that took place a week after the Hornets acquired him in a sign-and-trade, but he's expected to be ready for training camp, as John Reid of The Times-Picayune reports. Lopez expressed his enthusiasm about coming to New Orleans, saying, "I’m excited to be here. We’ve got a young, energetic group. The good thing is we’ve got some youth that has a little bit of experience as well. Hopefully we can parlay that into something special.’’
- Joe Dumars, Pistons president of basketball operations, traveled overseas with assistant GM George David to watch Jonas Jerebko and Slava Kravtsov in FIBA Eurobasket qualifying, as Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press writes.
Odds & Ends: Olympics, Blazers, Jason Terry
With the Olympics in the books and the start of the 2012-13 nearly three months away, we've hit a lull in the year where basketball of any sort still remains weeks, not days, away. Make sure you take a moment to catch up on our features and other original content to help you get your NBA fix. With Friday nearly in the books, here's the latest news and headlines from around the league…
- Much speculation has been made about a possible age limit for the 2016 Olympics in Rio where only players 23 and under would be eligible to play for their country. Patrick Baumann, the head of FIBA, conducted an in-house interview on Friday and announced that FIBA has no plans to implement an age restriction for 2016.
- Beyond adding three assistant coaches to the mix on Friday, the Trail Blazers will retain former NBA guard Hersey Hawkins as the player development director, tweets Chris Haynes of CSNNW.com. Dan Dickau's future as an assistant to Hawkins remains unclear as he is a part-time employee (via Twitter).
- Bill Ingram of HoopsWorld says Jason Terry will be key to the Celtics' title hopes given his experience with the Mavericks. Even though the Heat will remain the favorite entering the season, Ingram believes the Celtics will be contenders as the 2012-13 season approaches.
- Celtics assistant general manager Mike Zarren has emerged as a contender for the Sixers' general manager position, reports SI.com's Sam Amick. The position has become more desirable as a result of the team acquiring All-Star center Andrew Bynum via trade earlier this month.
Blazers Add Three Assistants To Coaching Staff
The Trail Blazers announced on Friday the addition of three assistant coaches to Terry Stotts' coaching staff, according to a team report. Jay Triano, David Vanterpool and Kim Hughes are headed to Portland to join Kaleb Canales, who will return as an assistant after serving as interim head coach. Stotts may be in the market to add one more assistant to fill out his bench.
Triano, 53, most notably served as the head coach of the Raptors for three seasons before transitioning into his most recent position as the organization's vice president of professional scouting. After being drafted by the Lakers in the eighth round, Triano headed to Europe to play professionally for three seasons.
Vanterpool, 39, leaves a scouting position with the Thunder to join the staff in Portland. The former St. Bonaventure star served as an assistant coach for CSKA Moscow after his playing career ended.
Hughes, 60, served as interim head coach for the Clippers after the franchise parted ways with Mike Dunleavy during the 2010 season. The former Badgers big man dominated during his time at Wisconsin before enjoying a successful professional career both domestically and abroad.
Coaching Notes: Triano, Blazers, Mavs, O’Brien
As NBA's training camps approach, teams continue to fill out their coaching staffs with new hires — we heard last night that the Lakers have added a pair of assistants in Eddie Jordan and Bernie Bickerstaff, while Eastern Michigan's Rob Murphy elected to stay at EMU rather than joining the Magic's staff. We have a few more updates to round up this morning, so let's check out the latest:
- Former Raptors head coach Jay Triano is expected to land on Terry Stotts' staff with the Trail Blazers, tweets ESPN.com's Marc Stein.
- Triano figures to be one of a handful of new coaches hired by Stotts, who said earlier this week that he plans to add four assistants in addition to Kaleb Canales. The new coach in Portland said the new staff could be announced one at a time or as a group.
- The Mavericks had been eyeing Triano to replace Stotts on their own bench, according to Stein. Former Knicks assistant Phil Weber is still on Dallas' list of potential targets, as is Jim O'Brien, who was the head coach in Boston, Philadelphia, and Indiana (Twitter links).
Odds & Ends: Iguodala, Smith, Gunning, Moser
To get an idea of the size and signficance of last week's blockbuster, consider the notion that Andre Iguodala heading to the Nuggets was probably the least publicized leg of the deal. Iguodala was not only an All-Star last season, but he was one of 12 members of a Team USA that has been fawned over by sports fans around the globe for the past month. According to Aaron Lopez of Nuggets.com, some of Iguodala's post-trade quotes were misconstrued and the veteran wing is, in fact, very excited to join what should be an ultra-athletic team in Denver. Let's round up some of the other links and happenings from around the Association on this Tuesday night:
- New Celtics sixth man Jason Terry spoke with Molly McGrath from Celtics.com and stated Boston's case for legitimate title contention in the 2012-13 season. Greg Payne from ESPN Boston transcribed the interview.
- Mark Medina from the L.A. Times spoke with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, who sees a lot of similarities between his situation with the Lakers in 1975 and the one Dwight Howard is about to enter.
- Power forward Craig Smith, who saw less than 10 minutes per game with the Blazers last year, explained to Chris Haynes of CSNNW.com why he passed up NBA offers to play in Israel in the upcoming season. Smith was tired of being an NBA "roster filler" and was willing to take less money for an opportunity to show what he can do with consistent playing time.
- The Magic have hired Brett Gunning as an assistant coach, according to Brian Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel. Gunning, who spent the last four seasons in various roles in the Rockets organization, will join first-time head coach Jacque Vaughn on the Orlando bench.
- According to UNLV head coach Dave Rice, Rebels swingman Mike Moser is preparing for what will likely be his last season in Las Vegas, reports Mike Youmans at the Las Vegas Review-Journal. Moser is a rising junior, but Rice says he essentially considers him a senior. Moser averaged 14 points and more than 10 rebounds as a sophomore last season for the Rebels and briefly flirted with the 2012 draft. He projects as a late first-round pick in the 2013 NBA Draft.
- Tom Moore of Phillyburbs.com writes that the Sixers, a franchise that has historically gotten burned in trades involving superstars, finally got the best player in a mega-deal in Andrew Bynum. Moore is only referring to what the team directly gave up and received, which eliminates Dwight Howard from consideration.
Steve Clifford To Follow Howard To Lakers
Former Magic assistant coach and defensive guru Steve Clifford will accept an invitation from Lakers head coach Mike Brown to join his coaching staff in Los Angeles, reports Chris Haynes of CSNNW.com. Previously this offseason, Clifford was under consideration for the Magic and the Blazers head coach openings before both organizations went in different directions. Clifford was still in the mix for an assistant position in Portland before deciding to join the Lakers.
His decision comes in the wake of last week's blockbuster that sent Dwight Howard to the Lakers, effectively "reuniting" Clifford with the anchor of his defenses in Orlando. With Howard at center and Clifford on the bench, the Magic never finished worse than 11th in the NBA in team defense spanning five seasons. According to Haynes, Clifford considers the Van Gundy brothers his mentors and models himself after Tom Thibodeau. It should be interesting to see how Clifford's expertise supplements the already defensive-minded Mike Brown in the Lakers quest for their 17th title.
Poll: How Will Brandon Roy Fare In Minnesota?
The return of Brandon Roy in Minnesota, after what he termed a "pause" in his career, is something intriguing to keep an eye on in the 2012-13 NBA season. Roy officially signed with the Timberwolves on July 31 and addressed the unique nature of his situation at a press conference that same day. Earlier this month, Steve Aschburner of NBA.com took a detailed and comprehensive look at all the scenarios that could play out with Roy this season, including the impact of those possibilities on the franchises and fans in Portland and Minnesota.
In his prime, Roy was a 20-plus points-per-game scorer and All-Star caliber shooting guard. He averaged over 35 minutes-per-game over his first four seasons before his knee issues limited him to 12.2 points and 27.9 minutes per-game in the 2010-11 season. With over a year of rest, how do you think that Roy will fare this season in Minnesota, where he is the team's only real option at shooting guard?
How Will Brandon Roy Fare In Minnesota?
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Solid Contributor, averages around 10 PPG 48% (557)
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Effective Starter, averages around 15 PPG 38% (440)
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Returns to All-Star Form, averages upwards of 20 PPG 7% (84)
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Dissapointment, averages less than 5 PPG 6% (74)
Total votes: 1,155