WEDNESDAY, 11:28am: Paul Allen has interviewed four GM candidates in person and is currently conducting reference checks, the Blazers owner tweeted this morning. While earlier reports suggested Portland had narrowed its search to three finalists, it appears both DiLeo and Olshey are still in the running along with Bower and Morway, assuming those are the four interviewees to whom Allen is referring.
TUESDAY, 5:43pm: According to CSNNW.com's Chris Haynes, Sixers assistant general manager Tony DiLeo has spoken to Trail Blazers owner Paul Allen regarding the open general manager position.
4:42pm: The Trail Blazers made one big announcement today, releasing news of the team's hybrid partnership with the Idaho Stampede of the D-League. Another major announcement could be coming out of Portland soon, as Blazers president Larry Miller tells Chris Haynes of CSNNW.com that the team's search for a new general manager is nearing its end.
"We have to make a decision now," Miller said. "We've had three candidates, total, meet with [owner] Paul [Allen] and hopefully we'll have a GM in place pretty soon."
The three candidates Miller is referring to are thought to be former Hornets GM Jeff Bower, current Pacers GM David Morway, and Clippers GM Neil Olshey. Although plenty more names were linked to the opening, not all of those candidates received interviews, and not all of the interviewees met with Allen. Based on the interviews conducted to date, Miller sounds confident that the team will find the right man for the job.
"There was a lot of interest for this position and the process was so long because we had to wait for certain teams to finish out their season," the Blazers president said. "We're confident that we'll bring in the right guy and we're happy with who we've interviewed."
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