- Jeff Van Gundy, who was hired by the Celtics as a senior consultant, has a longtime admirer in president of basketball operations Brad Stevens. “Jeff has been an unofficial consultant for so many of us that grew up in coaching for a long time,” Stevens told Adam Himmelsbach of the Boston Globe. “He’s so humble and approachable, and has always gone out of his way to spend time helping others.”
Current Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau worked in New York as an assistant on Jeff Van Gundy‘s staff from 1996-2001. Over two decades later, Van Gundy has been hired as a senior consultant by the division-rival Celtics.
Asked on Saturday about Van Gundy joining the Celtics, Thibodeau joked that it was “disgusting,” writes Stefan Bondy of The New York Daily News. Thibodeau was also asked if the Knicks had offered Van Gundy a similar role and hinted that Boston was a better fit for his former boss and longtime friend.
“Obviously, he’s had a lot of opportunities to do a lot of things. We’re very close friends, obviously,” Thibodeau said. “So, I’m happy for him because there are certain things that he’s looking for and I think he was able to find them there. He’s not only a great coach. He’s a great person. So, whatever is next for him, I know he’ll be great at it. But I just want him to be happy and I think he will be.”
Let’s round up a few more items from around the Atlantic…
- As Steve Popper of Newsday (subscription required) relays, center Mitchell Robinson was pleased to hear that he one of six Knicks to make ESPN’s annual list of the NBA’s top 100 players — even if he came in at the very bottom of that list, at No. 100. Thibodeau suggested on Saturday that people sometimes “overlook” what Robinson does on the court. “I think he brings great value to the team because of offensive rebounding, the pressure on the rim, the screening,” Thibodeau said. “Those things are huge for our offense. When you understand the value of shots, the kick-out threes, getting to the free-throw line, getting to the bonus early each quarter, those are things that help you win.”
- In his latest look at James Harden‘s standoff with the Sixers, Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer (subscription required) says the star guard is “ramping up” to play in the team’s preseason finale, and adds that the Clippers have shown no inclination to improve their trade offer of a first-round pick, a pick swap, and expiring contracts. The 76ers want guard Terance Mann in a Harden package, but a source tells Pompey that Daryl Morey knows Mann is “untouchable.”
- With Dennis Smith Jr. sidelined for at least the next week due to a sprained ankle, Nets head coach Jacque Vaughn will have more opportunities to evaluate his other point guards – Ben Simmons and Spencer Dinwiddie – playing “together and separately,” he noted on Saturday. “I think Spencer has the ability to space the floor for us and shoot threes,” Vaughn said, per Peter Botte of The New York Post. “And so that is a weapon for us that we want to use. Those two on the floor, though, either one can get an outlet and push the ball up the floor. [Dinwiddie] has the ability to be a lead guard, also. So I’ll continue to play around with that.”
In an interview with Chris Forsberg of NBC Sports Boston (video link), new Celtics big man Kristaps Porzingis said he’s excited to be with a team that has a chance to win a title. Porzingis has only been to the playoffs twice in his eight NBA seasons, and his team lost in the first round both times. He had to exercise his option for the upcoming season so the trade that sent him from Washington to Boston could be completed, and he’s convinced that he made the right choice.
“It feels like, at this point in my career, this is what I really wanted, to be able to try to win it all, and especially wearing these colors and this organization, which is, as I keep saying, if not the most iconic than top two most iconic franchises there are,” Porzingis said. “And I’m playing for this team. So it’s absolutely incredible. An incredible opportunity for me, and I’m just grateful for it all.”
Porzingis appeared headed for stardom when he entered the NBA, but injuries have slowed him down throughout his career. He played in 65 games for the Wizards last season, his highest total since 2016/17, but a new concern cropped up this summer when Porzingis had to miss the World Cup tournament because of plantar fasciitis. He said his foot feels fine now, and he credits team doctors with helping him to manage the pain.
“The medical staff did an incredible job of loading slowly,” Porzingis said. “I wanted to go right away as soon as I got here to play pick-up the first day. But they held me back a little bit. I listened to them and it’s been going perfect, ready for training camp and ready to go.”
There’s more from Boston:
- Derrick White and Jrue Holiday could form the league’s best defensive backcourt, observes Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe. He points out that the Celtics’ defense was 4.5 points per 100 possessions better with White on the court last season, while Holiday made Milwaukee’s defense 4.1 points per 100 possessions better whenever he played. “It’s fun,” Holiday said of playing alongside White. “I think the chemistry is there. Even just the first few days of training camp talking to him about what he likes to do defensively, or even just asking him about certain things. But getting out there and actually being able to play with him a bit more, getting that court time has been good for us.”
- Coach Joe Mazzulla is thrilled to have Jeff Van Gundy serving as a consultant to the team, per Souichi Terada of MassLive. Mazzulla said Van Gundy has already proven to be valuable in his short time with the organization and he plans to seek his advice on coaching questions throughout the season.
- The Celtics will likely keep Neemias Queta on a two-way contract for a while even if he plays well to start the season, Brian Robb of MassLive states in a mailbag column. Queta can appear in up to 50 games on the two-way deal, and the team can convert it to a standard contract later on.
The Celtics have added Jeff Van Gundy to their coaching staff, naming him a senior consultant, writes Brian Robb of MassLive.com. Robb reached out to the team to confirm the hiring after fans noticed that Van Gundy was listed as part of the staff on the Celtics’ official website.
Van Gundy, 61, was a longtime NBA head coach in New York and Houston. He led the Knicks to a 420-248 (.590) regular season record from 1995-2001, winning eight playoff series and making one appearance in the NBA Finals during that time.
He subsequently coached the Rockets from 2003-07, guiding the team to a 182-146 (.555) regular season mark, but failing to get beyond the first round of the postseason.
After being dismissed by the Rockets, Van Gundy transitioned into broadcasting, eventually becoming part of ESPN/ABC’s top three-man team alongside Mike Breen and Mark Jackson. However, Van Gundy and Jackson were let go by ESPN earlier this year as part of the company’s layoffs.
Van Gundy hasn’t been entirely removed from coaching since his time in Houston — he served as Team USA head coach’s at multiple international competitions, including 2017’s FIBA AmeriCup and the qualifiers for the 2019 World Cup.
According to Robb, Van Gundy will be working in the Celtics’ basketball operations department and will spend time with both the NBA team and the Maine Celtics, Boston’s G League affiliate.
The Celtics have made a series of changes to Joe Mazzulla‘s coaching staff this offseason ahead of his second year at the helm. Charles Lee and Sam Cassell were among the veteran assistants brought in by the franchise.
Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown sat out Wednesday’s game, but the Celtics scored 112 points in a win over Philadelphia because of the performance of several complementary players, writes Jared Weiss of The Athletic. Jrue Holiday made his first start, and he and Derrick White kept the offense humming, but Weiss points to Sam Hauser and Payton Pritchard as the stars of the night.
Hauser finished with 15 points and three assists and showed an improved ability to switch effectively on defense, Weiss states. He also observes that the third-year small forward appears crisper in releasing his jumper and is moving with more purpose on offense. Weiss believes free agent addition Svi Mykhailiuk is on his way to earning a rotation spot, so Hauser will have to keep producing in the preseason to have a chance at regular minutes.
There’s more on the Celtics:
- Dalano Banton is trying to earn a roster spot, but he didn’t help his cause with Wednesday’s performance, Weiss adds. Banton started the second half, but was pulled from the game after 34 seconds after failing to dive for a rebound that landed at his feet. “Listen, there’s nothing more important than holding people to a high standard, especially when you believe in them and know they can be really, really good,” coach Joe Mazzulla said. “… Everybody on the roster competes at a high level and understands that taking pride in defense is number one.”
- Pritchard is making his new four-year, $30MM extension look like a bargain, Weiss notes. He had 17 points and three assists in 24 minutes Wednesday and looks like he’ll be an important component in Boston’s offense. Bobby Marks of ESPN breaks down Pritchard’s new contract, which will pay him $6.7MM in 2024/25, followed by $7.2MM, $7.8MM and $8.3MM the following seasons (Twitter link). His salary will range from 4.7% to 5.1% of the cap.
- The Celtics are using the preseason to experiment with the different possibilities that Kristaps Porzingis brings to the offense, Weiss writes in a separate story. Porzingis displayed his versatility in Sunday’s opener, Weiss observes, successfully executing rim rolls, pick-and-pops and spot-up three-point shots. “I thought we passed up some open shots, but he gives us a different dynamic,” Mazzulla said. “(He) makes the game easier for all the guys, and it’s gonna continue to get better.”
A.J. Dybantsa, a 6’8″ wing from Massachusetts and one of the top high school prospects in the country, intends to reclassify to the 2025 recruiting class, as Jeff Borzello of ESPN.com writes. Dybantsa had previously been the No. 1 player in ESPN’s 2026 recruiting rankings. Now, he becomes the favorite to be selected first overall in the 2026 NBA draft, according to Borzello.
As Borzello explains, Dybantsa, Cooper Flagg, and Cameron Boozer are widely considered the best high school prospects in the country. When ESPN asked 20 college coaches and NBA evaluators to rank the trio this summer, Dybantsa earned seven first-place votes and placed second behind Flagg, who is the frontrunner to be the top pick in the 2025 draft.
“Dybantsa is just the most complete,” one coach told ESPN. “Scores at all three levels. Super athletic. He’s the No. 1 pick in the NBA draft whenever he goes.”
Here are a few more odds and ends from around the league:
- Former Pelicans assistant Teresa Weatherspoon will be the next head coach of the WNBA’s Chiacgo Sky, reports Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link). The former WNBA star was an assistant in New Orleans for four seasons before the team parted ways with her in June.
- In John Schuhmann’s general manager poll, two players received more votes than Magic forward Franz Wagner for this season’s top breakout candidate. However, Wagner sits atop the list compiled by Michael Scotto of HoopsHype, who spoke to 25 executives around the NBA and has shared the top nine vote-getters. Pistons guard Cade Cunningham and Rockets guard Jalen Green round out Scotto’s top three.
- John Hollinger of The Athletic lists a dozen under-the-radar NBA players whom he expects to have a real impact this season, including Celtics wing Oshae Brissett, Nuggets forward Peyton Watson, Thunder guard Vasilije Micic, and Pelicans forward Naji Marshall.
- The Capital City Go-Go have traded the returning rights to Isaiah Mucius to the Delaware Blue Coats along with a 2024 first-round pick and 2023 second-round pick in the G League draft. In exchange, the Sixers‘ G League affiliate has sent Michael Foster Jr.‘s returning rights to the Wizards‘ affiliate, the Go-Go announced today (via Twitter).
OCTOBER 10: Pritchard’s contract extension is now official, the Celtics have announced in a press release.
“In addition to his great skill, Payton brings toughness, resiliency, and diligence that collectively elevate the room,” president of basketball operations Brad Stevens said in a statement. “We are excited that he chose to extend with the Celtics and look forward to what’s ahead.”
OCTOBER 8: The Celtics and guard Payton Pritchard are in agreement on a four-year rookie scale extension worth $30MM, his agents at CAA Basketball tell Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link). The deal will be fully guaranteed, Wojnarowski adds.
The 26th overall pick in the 2020 draft, Pritchard had a promising rookie season, averaging 7.7 points per game with a .440/.411/.889 shooting line in 66 contests (19.2 MPG). He had his role cut back in his second and third seasons though — in 2022/23, he played just 13.4 minutes per night, averaging 5.6 PPG on .412/.364/.750 shooting.
Due to his declining role, Pritchard admitted back in February that he had hoped to be traded at the deadline to a team that intended to use him more. However, following the offseason trades of Marcus Smart and Malcolm Brogdon, the 25-year-old is expected to have an expanded role in a new-look Boston backcourt behind Jrue Holiday and Derrick White.
Pritchard is apparently confident enough in his new role to sign a long-term deal with the Celtics well in advance of the October 23 deadline for rookie scale extensions. The former Oregon guard has only earned only approximately $6.4MM in his first three NBA seasons and will make $4.04MM in 2023/24, so it certainly makes sense that he’d want to lock in a contract that guarantees him $30MM, exponentially increasing his career earnings.
While Pritchard’s numbers to date have been modest, the Celtics are taking a calculated risk that he’ll increase his value in 2023/24 as he comes off a stint with the USA Select Team and receives a minutes bump. By deciding to extend him in advance of a possible breakout year, Boston now won’t have to worry about warding off potential suitors for Pritchard in restricted free agency next summer.
Pritchard’s new deal will further increase a Celtics payroll that appears likely to go well beyond the luxury tax line again in 2024/25, with big-money cap hits for Jaylen Brown, Jayson Tatum, Kristaps Porzingis, White, and Al Horford already on the books. The club also reportedly has interest in negotiating an extension with Holiday, who holds a $39.4MM player option for ’24/25.
As our extension tracker shows, Pritchard is the seventh player to agree to a rookie scale extension in 2023, joining LaMelo Ball, Anthony Edwards, Tyrese Haliburton, Desmond Bane, Devin Vassell, and Isaiah Stewart. A total of 20 more players are still eligible to sign a rookie scale extension by Oct. 23.
The Celtics and Bucks made the best overall moves this offseason, according to the NBA’s general managers. In his annual survey of the league’s top basketball decision-makers, John Schuhmann of NBA.com writes that 23% picked Boston as having the best summer, while another 23% picked Milwaukee. The Trail Blazers (17%) and Lakers (13%) were among the other clubs who received multiple votes.
Of course, the Celtics’ and Bucks’ pre-camp trades for Jrue Holiday and Damian Lillard, respectively, were huge factors in the positive perception of their offseasons. Of Schuhmann’s GM respondents, 47% said the Lillard acquisition was the most impactful move of the offseason, while Boston’s addition of Holiday placed second at 13% (the Celtics’ trade for Kristaps Porzingis tied for fourth, at 7%).
Both Boston and Milwaukee are viewed by the league’s general managers as good bets to compete for the title in 2024. The Celtics were selected by 33% of Schuhmann’s respondents as the team that will win the championship the season, while the Bucks got 23% of the vote share. No other Eastern club received a vote, with the Nuggets (33%), Suns (7%), and Clippers (3%) representing the only other teams that were chosen as potential champs.
Here are a few more interesting results from Schuhmann’s GM survey, which is worth checking out in full:
- As much as the NBA’s general managers like Boston’s roster, it was the Grizzlies‘ acquisition of Marcus Smart from Boston that was voted as the most underrated player addition of the summer (17%), narrowly edging out the Mavericks‘ sign-and-trade for Grant Williams (14%).
- The NBA’s GMs are high on the Thunder. Oklahoma City was the runaway winner as the team with the league’s most promising young core (73%) and also earned the most votes for which club will be most improved in 2023/24 (30%).
- Spurs rookie Victor Wembanyama got plenty of love from the league’s GMs. He was the top choice for Rookie of the Year (50%) and was the overwhelming pick for which rookie will be the best player in five years (90%). He also placed second among the players Schuhmann’s respondents would most want to start a franchise with today, with his 23% vote share trailing only Nikola Jokic‘s 33%.
- NBA GMs expect Ime Udoka of the Rockets to be the head coach that has the biggest impact on his new team (57%), followed by Monty Williams of the Pistons (17%).
- Jordi Fernandez of the Kings, viewed as a future NBA head coach, comfortably won the vote on the league’s best assistant (31%).
- The NBA’s GMs consider Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards (23%), Pistons guard Cade Cunningham (20%), and Magic forward Franz Wagner (13%) the top candidates for a breakout year.
- Which rookie was the biggest steal in the 2023 draft? Rockets wing Cam Whitmore (43%) was the top choice, with Jazz guard Keyonte George, Trail Blazers guard Scoot Henderson, and Heat forward Jaime Jaquez each receiving 10% of the vote.
Hall of Fame center and TNT commentator Shaquille O’Neal wants a piece of a Las Vegas franchise if the NBA expands there, he told Arash Markazi of TheMessenger.com.
“I would like to have my own group,” O’Neal said. “I know Vegas hasn’t been awarded an NBA team yet but if they ever get to a point where they are awarded a team, I would like to be a part of that. I don’t want to partner up with nobody. I want it all for myself.”
Well, he’ll need some partners — O’Neal’s worth is reportedly around $400MM. NBA franchises are selling in the billions. O’Neal adds that he’s lived in the city for over 20 years and wants to see it continue to grow.
We have more from around the international basketball world:
- The Knicks waived Michael Kidd-Gilchrist in December 2020 and he never played in the NBA again. New details have surfaced regarding Kidd-Gilchrist’s sudden disappearance from the league, Stefan Bondy of the New York Post reports. According to a lawsuit filed in a Charlotte court, the reason is a COVID-19-related heart condition that should have made Kidd-Gilchrist eligible for a insurance payout. Kidd-Gilchrist sued London-based insurance company Lloyd’s Underwriters for $40MM for refusing to pay him after a diagnosis of “myopericarditis,” an inflammation of the heart muscle. Another doctor “found” by Lloyd’s Underwriters claimed Kidd-Gilchrist suffered from a different heart ailment and wasn’t “disabled under the policy,” according to the lawsuit.
- FIBA Europe has suspended all games involving Israeli teams in all competitions until further notice due to the war in that country and safety issues at those games, Sportando relays. The suspension includes all upcoming home and away games of five Israeli teams in EuroCup Women and the FIBA Europe Cup.
- In a related topic, foreign players on Maccabi Tel Aviv have left the country for Cyprus, according to another Sportando post. That group includes ex-NBA players Lorenzo Brown and Bonzie Colson.
- Which five players will define this season? According to The Ringer’s Michael Pina, that group includes the Pelicans’ Zion Williamson and the Celtics’ Kristaps Porzingis.
Kristaps Porzingis was the Celtics‘ best player during the first half of his preseason debut with the team, according to Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe. Boston traded for Porzingis this summer to add size to its frontcourt, and Himmelsbach observes that his 7’3″ presence clearly bothered the Sixers in the paint in Sunday’s game.
Porzingis made his first four shots from the field and finished with 17 points. Although he doesn’t present the lob threat that Robert Williams used to, Himmelsbach notes that the Celtics had success on a couple of attempts. Porzingis and Jayson Tatum also displayed some chemistry in their two-man game.
“It’s super easy, honestly,” Porzingis said. “Those guys are so talented. Jayson draws so much attention that it opens things up for me and that’s a perfect scenario for me. So I’m looking forward to more of those two-man, three-man actions where it’s really hard to guard, because we don’t even know what we’re going to do. We’re freestyling it and playing off of each other. So it has to be pretty impossible for the other team to understand what’s going to happen.”
There’s more on the Celtics:
- Jrue Holiday came off the bench Sunday, but that’s because he wasn’t able to join the team for practice until Wednesday, writes Brian Robb of MassLive. Holiday admits being “shocked” that the Bucks sent him to Portland in the Damian Lillard deal, but he’s ready to concentrate on basketball after being dealt twice within a week. “I think I’m over it at this point,” Holiday said. “Trying to focus on the season. Trying to get acclimated and honestly go out there and have fun. All the trade stuff I think has passed. Just trying to figure out names and plays and schemes and all of that stuff. It’s been fun though.”
- The Clippers were Boston’s main competition for Holiday, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski stated during the network’s pre-game show before Sunday’s contest (Twitter link). “They were very close on Jrue Holiday,” Wojnarowski said. “They had a package that Portland really had to labor over before they went to the Celtics’ package.”
- Celtics officials are disappointed to see Jay Scrubb‘s progress interrupted by a torn ACL he suffered in Saturday’s practice, per Souichi Terada of MassLive. They signed the 23-year-old guard to a two-way contract this summer. “It’s painful to see him have to go through that because of this mindset that he’s brought from training camp and really in Summer League,” coach Joe Mazzulla said. “As I told him, these are the type of things that guys have to just work through.”