Mike Dunleavy Sr. has officially been hired as head coach of Tulane, the university announced. “We could not be more excited to welcome Mike Dunleavy to the Green Wave family,” Tulane’s athletic director Troy Dannen said. “His reputation as a great evaluator of talent, master of strategy and teacher of the game define him today as one of the top basketball minds in the country at any level. His commitment to Tulane athletics is a game changer for our program.” Dunleavy has zero college coaching experience but owns a career NBA mark of 613-716 from his stints with the Lakers, Bucks, Trail Blazers and Clippers.
Here’s more from around the league:
- Hawaii junior combo forward Stefan Jankovic intends to sign with an agent and enter the 2016 NBA draft, Jon Rothstein of CBSSports.com reports (via Twitter). The 22-year-old is the No. 78 ranked junior according to Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress.
- Creighton junior point guard Maurice Watson Jr. intends to declare for the draft but won’t hire an agent, Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com tweets. Watson is the No. 70 ranked junior according to Givony.
- Kansas freshman forward/center Cheick Diallo, who has announced his intention to enter this year’s NBA draft, may be better served to return to school for another season, Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv relays. “He will get drafted but he could be in a much better position if he stayed another year to develop. He is headed to the D-League if he stays in the draft,” an NBA executive told Zagoria regarding Diallo’s NBA prospects. The young big man is currently ranked 36th in Chad Ford’s ESPN Insider rankings and 39th according to Givony.
- University of Washington freshman Dejounte Murray intends to sign with agent Rich Paul of Klutch Sports, reports Chris Haynes of The Northeast Ohio Media Group (on Twitter). Hiring an agent would eliminate the possibility of the combo guard returning to school in 2016/17. The 19-year-old is the No. 37 overall prospect, according to Givony, though Haynes notes that Murray is a potential lottery selection come June.
- The Celtics have assigned James Young to their D-League affiliate, the team announced. This will be Young’s 12th jaunt to Maine on the season.