Latest On Tom Thibodeau, Bulls, Magic
MONDAY, 8:32am: Johnson finds it difficult to envision Thibodeau leaving the Bulls if the choice is up to the coach, given the other options he had when he arrived in Chicago and his fondness for living there, among other reasons. Thibodeau has said publicly that he’s OK with merely having a say in personnel matters rather than full control, and he was a significant advocate of the draft-night trade for Doug McDermott last year, Johnson hears. As for the Magic, Hennigan will strongly consider Skiles and Mark Jackson for his coaching vacancy in Orlando, league sources tell Johnson.
FRIDAY, 2:58pm: Third parties connected to Tom Thibodeau have been exploring what his options would be if he and the Bulls were to part ways in the offseason, and the Magic are one of the teams they’ve investigated, Bleacher Report’s Ric Bucher says in a video report (hat tip to K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune). Still, the Magic reportedly plan to seek an extension for GM Rob Hennigan, and CEO Alex Martins has spoken in glowing terms about the GM, raising questions about whether Thibodeau would want to head to Orlando, Bucher adds. The feeling around the league is that the Magic’s desire to extend Hennigan’s deal is a signal to candidates for its coaching position that they won’t get front-office control, according to Bucher.
Thibodeau’s rocky relationship with the Bulls front office is well-documented, and Johnson wrote earlier this season that it was “beyond repair,” though GM Gar Forman denies that kind of tension exists. Many people around the league wouldn’t be surprised to see Thibodeau, who’s under contract through 2016/17, and the Bulls mutually part ways this summer, Johnson wrote. Several league sources told Chris Mannix of SI.com in February, shortly after the team fired Jacque Vaughn, that they thought the Magic might pursue Thibodeau.
Interim coach James Borrego is one of several potential candidates for the Orlando job, though the team wants to hire an experienced hand, notes Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders (Twitter link). Scott Skiles, whom Kennedy reported the Magic would consider, remains in the mix, Johnson hears (Twitter link). Fellow Basketball Insiders scribe Steve Kyler heard from sources who suggested Skiles wouldn’t take the Magic job without personnel control, though Brian Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel wrote that Skiles is indeed interested in the opening.
Central Notes: George, Mohammed, Pistons
Paul George is looking at the remaining games on the Pacers‘ schedule as a “test drive” to see how well he has recovered from the devastating leg injury he suffered last summer while scrimmaging for Team USA, Scott Howard-Cooper of NBA.com writes. “That’s exactly what it is [a test drive], it’s just seeing where I’m at and then getting ready for more rehab this summer and getting ready to build off these last couple of games of the season,” George said. “It’s been tough. There were days when I told myself I wanted to shut it down and get ready for the summer. But it’s great having the staff that we have here to push me here and keep my going. I’ve had days when I’m sure they hated me. And I hated them. But we got through it and they did a great job with being in my corner.”
Here’s more out of the Central Division:
- Veteran big man Nazr Mohammed has been making his presence felt on the Bulls with his vocal leadership, Nick Friedell of ESPNChicago.com writes. Mohammed’s spark and guidance was integral in snapping Chicago out of its stupor after a terrible second quarter against the Heat last night when the Bulls were outscored 33-12, Friedell adds. “I think you got to be accountable and you got to play for each other,” guard Aaron Brooks said. “I think one thing that Naz brought up was you’re letting your teammate down when you’re not getting back or you’re not helping. You’re not letting the coach, you’re not letting the fans. You’re letting your teammate down, and you got to have your brother’s back.” The center is set to become an unrestricted free agent after the season.
- The Pistons are likely to target a forward in the first round of this year’s NBA draft, David Mayo of MLive.com opines in his weekly mailbag. Detroit currently is in line for the No. 8 pick, according to Hoops Rumors’ reverse standings. Potential targets at that spot for the team could include Justise Winslow, Stanley Johnson, and Frank Kaminsky, Mayo notes.
- Pistons coach/executive Stan Van Gundy hopes to go to Spain after the NBA season ends to get a first-hand look at guard Mario Hezonja and power forward Kristaps Prozingis, both of whom are projected top 10 picks this year, Mayo adds.
Central Notes: Bucks, Copeland, Whittington
State, county and city leaders continue to bicker over how to raise the public share of funding for a new Bucks arena in Milwaukee even as the team unveiled sketches for the proposed $500MM building today, report Don Walker And Tom Daykin of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. The Bucks nonetheless have extreme confidence that the project will get done, tweets Gery Woelfel of The Journal Times. The team is facing an NBA-imposed deadline of 2017 to reach a deal on funding for construction, lest the league seize control of the franchise from its owners.
Here’s more from the Central Division:
- Pacers coach Frank Vogel expressed concern that the nightclub stabbing of forward Chris Copeland will become a distraction to his team, Peter Botte of The New York Daily News writes. “It’s always a shock when you hear something like this. So it’s a big shock,” Vogel said. “Obviously it hurts to see a teammate be injured like this, but we’re trying to remain focused on the game tonight.”
- The Bulls were 10-10 while Derrick Rose missed time due to a surgical procedure on his right knee, and the team hopes that his return tonight can spark a deep playoff run, Ken Berger of CBSSports.com writes. The handling of Rose and Chicago’s other injured players this season has deepened the rift between coach Tom Thibodeau and the front office, Berger adds. Thibodeau has grown increasingly frustrated with management’s involvement with the handling of injuries and return-to-play protocols, which he believes should be the coach’s domain, Berger notes.
- The Pacers have assigned Shayne Whittington to the Fort Wayne Mad Ants of the NBA D-League, the team announced. This is the forward’s second trip to Fort Wayne this season, and Whittington is the lone player whom Indiana has dispatched to the D-League this campaign.
Chuck Myron contributed to this post.
Protected 2015 Second-Rounders Up For Grabs
The regular season ends a week from Wednesday, and by now most of the playoff spots and non-lottery draft order have been decided. A team’s place in the draft order can mean a lot when there are protections attached to a pick that’s been sent out in a trade. There are two first-round picks that could change hands or stay put based on the final days of the regular season, as we chronicled last week, and there are also second-round picks still up in the air. The protection clauses attached to some of them are complex, so we’ll dive in and analyze each of the three cases individually:
- The Clippers owe their second-round pick to the Lakers if it falls from No. 51 through 55 and the Nuggets if it’s 56th through 60th. The Clips can’t finish with a record outside of the top 10 in the league, which they’d need to do to keep the pick. Still, whether it goes to the Lakers or the Nuggets is anybody’s guess. It would go to the Nuggets as it stands, but the Clippers are only a half-game better than the Spurs, with the Blazers and Cavs right behind them. So if any of those teams passes the Clippers, the pick goes to the Lakers.
- The Wizards owe their pick to the Celtics, but only if it falls from No. 50 to No. 60. Washington would pick 49th if the season ended today, but the Raptors are only one game better, and the Mavericks and Bulls are tied at one game above Toronto. So, while the Wizards could improve their playoff seeding, it could cost them their second-rounder. Washington’s obligation to the Celtics would end if the pick doesn’t convey this year, so it all comes down to the final games of the season.
- The Trail Blazers and Bulls will be giving up their second-rounders this year, but the teams that get those respective picks could switch places. The Magic get whichever pick is better, and the Cavaliers get the other one. Chances are that Chicago’s pick will be going to Orlando and Portland’s to Cleveland, since the Blazers have a four and a half game lead on Chicago. Still, the Bulls aren’t mathematically eliminated from passing the Blazers just yet.
RealGM was used in the creation of this post.
Central Notes: Rose, Pistons, Cavs
Prior to today’s contest against the Cavs, Bulls big man Joakim Noah said that he’s not thinking about how to stifle LeBron James in a possible seven-game series, Nick Friedell of ESPN.com writes. If they clash, however, you can bet that he’ll be doing his homework. The Bulls are 9-9 against James in the regular season since the 2010/11 campaign, but they are just 3-12 against James all time in the postseason. Here’s more out of the Central Division..
- Bulls star Derrick Rose told ABC’s Lisa Salters that he’ll likely return to action “sometime this week” (via K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune on Twitter). As Johnson notes, Rose was initially given a four-to-six week timeline and Friday would be six weeks to the day of that prognosis. Rose said late last month that he was confident he’d return to action this season.
- The Pistons sent plenty of players down to their D-League affiliate in Grand Rapids this year but they never called anyone up, David Mayo of MLive.com writes. The Pistons planned to try more D-League call-ups this season by paring their roster to 14 and using the 15th spot to try different players once 10-day contracts opened in early January. Instead, they brought in Quincy Miller from the Reno Bighorns. Miller, as president of basketball operations and head coach Stan Van Gundy explained, was the best player available and showed enough to stay on board for the rest of the season. The team also couldn’t keep an open roster spot after Brandon Jennings‘ injury.
- After early season struggles led to speculation about David Blatt‘s job security, James was happy to see the Cavs boss win a Coach of the Month award, Chris Haynes of The Plain Dealer writes. “I just think he continues to learn every single day, and I’m so excited that I can be a part of his transition from the euro basketball league to now the NBA,” James told Haynes. “All the hard work he put into coaching, this is a dream of his and for him to be Coach of the Month, I know it’s a validation. Even though he talks about that he doesn’t need a validation to be a part of this league, it gives him even more of validation to say ‘I belong here.’ I’m a part of his first Coach of the Month, so it’s pretty cool.”
Central Notes: Smith, Jackson, Monroe
J.R. Smith is a “wild card” to stay with the Cavaliers this summer, according to Jason Lloyd of The Akron Beacon Journal. Smith, who has been an important part of the Cavaliers’ second-half surge, can opt out of his contract and become an unrestricted free agent. However, he has expressed an enjoyment for playing in Cleveland, so his plans are unpredictable. Lloyd added that he expects restricted free agents Tristan Thompson and Iman Shumpert to both be retained.
There’s more from the Central Division:
- An important decision led Reggie Jackson to change his style of play and may have secured his future with the Pistons, writes Keith Langlois of Pistons.com. After wanting for years to be a starting point guard with his own team to run, the early returns after his mid-season trade to Detroit were disastrous. In mid-March he chose to change his approach. “I decided if I’m going to go out and this isn’t going to work, I’m at least going to go out being myself,” Jackson said. His numbers have improved, the Pistons started winning and he seems likely to stay in Detroit when he hits free agency in June.
- Greg Monroe is a good bet to leave the Pistons this summer, opines David Mayo of MLive. He sees little value in signing the unrestricted free agent unless it’s for a long-term contract that will seem like a bargain once the salary cap expands.
- The Bulls‘ Doug McDermott may be frustrated about his lack of playing time, but Joel Brigham of Basketball Insiders reports that he found a sympathetic ear from teammate Jimmy Butler. The Bulls’ break-out star and restricted-free-agent-to-be had a similar experience in his rookie season, appearing in just 42 games and averaging eight minutes of action. “He said he didn’t handle it nearly as well as I did,” McDermott said. “He’s got that attitude where it’s him against the world, and he felt like he should have been playing. He said he didn’t have a great attitude about it, that he didn’t go in a lot, wasn’t working on his game enough, but he told me if he were to go back he would’ve done it the opposite way, because that’s the way it works here.”
Eastern Notes: Mirotic, Deng, Knicks, Pistons
Unsurprisingly, Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau thinks Nikola Mirotic deserves to win Rookie of the Year over Andrew Wiggins and Nerlens Noel, as Mike McGraw of the Daily Herald reveals. Mirotic is second among rookies in points per game since the All-Star break behind only Wiggins, and his contributions on a contending team could ultimately help his case for the award. While we continue to see how the race for top Rookie honors shapes up, we’ll round up more from out east..
- Luol Deng has seen heavy time on the court throughout his career, twice leading the NBA in minutes played per night, and the 30 year old admits all the burn has definitely had an effect on him, as Jessica Camerato of Basketball Insiders details. “I feel 45,” Deng said. “I feel old… You’ve got to be smart and realize how your body feels.” The 11th-year veteran has sought advice about playing into his 30’s from Steve Nash and Richard Hamilton, according to Camerato.
- Fred Kerber of the New York Post opines that if the Knicks can find a way to finish with even just a .500 record next season, it would mark one of the greatest one-year turnarounds in NBA history. Landing Karl-Anthony Towns or Jahlil Okafor in the draft this June would certainly help New York’s chances, Kerber believes.
- Andre Drummond‘s offensive game is expanding, and that could help the Pistons offset the likely loss of unrestricted free agent Greg Monroe, David Mayo of MLive.com writes. Drummond has mostly relied on lob dunks and putbacks for his offensive contributions during his three-year career but has shown improved postup moves in recent games, including five made hook shots against the Heat on Sunday, Mayo adds. That is a welcome development, Mayo opines, considering that Monroe — the team’s main post threat — signed a qualifying offer last summer as a restricted free agent so that he could become unrestricted this summer.
Dana Gauruder contributed to this post.
Central Notes: Love, Jackson, Bucks, Mirotic
Several sources tell Frank Isola of the New York Daily News that LeBron James is frustrated with the failure of Kevin Love to mesh with the Cavs this season, but James isn’t upset that Love believes Russell Westbrook, and not James, has the edge for MVP, notes Dave McMenamin of ESPN.com. Love said Wednesday that he believed his comments, which he made on The Dan Patrick Show (video link), were widely taken out of context and that James “could very well be the MVP,” McMenamin adds. Many executives and players don’t think that Love can accept the limited role he’s played on this year’s Cavs team again, writes Michael Lee of The Washington Post, who nonetheless believes that it probably doesn’t matter much that James and Love aren’t the best of friends. As the Love story continues to take on a gossipy edge, here’s more from the Central Division:
- The Pistons plan an all-out push to re-sign Reggie Jackson this summer, and Jackson is hinting that he’s already planning to return to Detroit with comments about playing alongside Andre Drummond and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope in the future, MLive’s Brendan Savage observes.
- The Bucks could have signaled to other players that they would reward those who developed in their system if they’d hung on to soon-to-be restricted free agent Brandon Knight and re-signed him, but trading him set the franchise back, opines Steve Aschburner of NBA.com. Still, coach Jason Kidd told reporters that it’s all part of a plan for the long term. “It’s something much bigger than that that you guys are going to have to wait and write about,” he said. “We’re here to build something, not to do something in six months. There’s a bigger picture. We feel we have a core here that will be around for a long time and have success.”
- Chicago made Nikola Mirotic this season’s highest-paid rookie with a three-year deal worth more than $16.631MM, similar to what the Rockets are reportedly prepared to offer draft-and-stash prospect Sergio Llull. The move is paying off for the Bulls, as Mirotic is making a late push for Rookie of the Year, as ESPN’s Michael Wilbon examines.
Eastern Notes: Rose, Miller, Price, Shved
Hornets assistant coach Mark Price agreed to terms with UNC Charlotte to become the program’s new head coach, Rick Bonnell of The Charlotte Observer reports. The 51-year-old replaces Alan Major, who resigned two weeks ago, Bonnell adds. Price has been an assistant with the Hornets for the past two seasons. When discussing the loss of Price, Hornets coach Steve Clifford said, “It’s not good for us, but that is how this profession works. If you hire good people they are going to get other opportunities,” Bonnell tweets.
Here’s more from the Eastern Conference:
- The Pistons assigned Quincy Miller to the Grand Rapids Drive, their D-League affiliate, the team announced via Twitter. This will be the second trek to Grand Rapids of the season for Miller, who inked a two year deal with Detroit earlier this month.
- Derrick Rose is confident that he’ll return to action for the Bulls this season, K.C. Johnson of The Chicago Tribune tweets. “Oh yeah. I’m not worried about that. I don’t have any pain,” Rose said.
- The Bulls‘ oft-injured point guard wouldn’t elaborate on his possible return date, notes Nick Friedell of ESPNChicago.com (Twitter link). Regarding him returning by the playoffs, Rose said, “That would be the plan, but who knows? Whenever I’m ready to come back, that’s when I’m going to come back.“
- Alexey Shved had an MRI that revealed an incomplete fractured rib and he will be out of action indefinitely, the Knicks announced. The guard will be reevaluated in two or three weeks time. The regular season ends three weeks from tonight.
Central Notes: Love, Mozgov, Bulls, Bucks
No one involved in the process believes Kevin Love will pick up his $16.744MM player option to remain with the Cavaliers as he’s said he plans to do, according to Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders. Love nonetheless spoke of a strong camaraderie amongst the Cavs to Ananth Pandian of CBSSports.com, countering a narrative that he’s not getting along with his teammates, an idea that Love seemed to stoke when he said his relationship with LeBron James and other Cavs could be better. Rumors surrounding the No. 2 free agent on the Hoops Rumors Free Agent Power Rankings have intensified, and Michael Rand of the Star Tribune wonders if Cleveland, like Minnesota, will be in the power forward’s past soon. Here’s more from around the Central Division:
- The Timofey Mozgov trade has worked out splendidly for Mozgov, whose offensive numbers are up, and for the Cavs, who’ve taken off since the deal, as Sam Amico of Fox Sports Ohio examines. Cleveland has a $4.95MM team option on Mozgov for next season. “When we made the trade, everything that he brought is what we needed and wanted,” James said. “He’s going to be huge for our team. Very, very skilled offensively and understands defensively. He’s just a smart basketball player and it’s great playing with him.“
- Nikola Mirotic and Jimmy Butler, a pair of late-first-round picks from 2011, are playing key roles for the Bulls, and trading for the rights to Mirotic took particular effort, as K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune details. “We were bidding against somebody,” Bulls GM Gar Forman said. “Significant money was being laid out. And that’s when [owner Jerry Reinsdorf] really stepped up and included a good chunk of money to make that happen.”
- No team surged higher from last year’s ESPN Insider Front Office Rankings to this year’s than the Bucks, who jumped from 29th to 15th. Chad Ford of ESPN.com, in another Insider-only piece, credits the work of assistant GM David Morway, who joined the team in the summer of 2013, for having been instrumental in the rise.