- Moving down to fifth in the draft order was close to a worst-case scenario for the Cavaliers, but as Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com observes, it may not be a huge letdown for new head coach John Beilein, who rarely had the opportunity to add five-star recruits during his college coaching career.
The Pelicans and Grizzlies made meteoric rises in tonight’s draft lottery, landing the first and second picks respectively. It’s widely assumed that Zion Williamson and Ja Morant will be the selections, however, much can happen before the draft next month.
Let’s take a look at some notes from teams that didn’t move up in the lottery:
- The Hawks are fond of Texas Tech’s Jarrett Culver, Sean Deveney of Sporting News writes. The franchise believes Culver’s “blend of athleticism and defensive prowess” will allow him to make the leap from the college ranks to the professional level. Atlanta owns the Nos. 8 and 10 picks in the draft.
- Had the Hawks landed the No. 2 pick, they likely would have drafted Culver or made a trade, according to Deveney, who suggests Atlanta was never going to draft Morant. Atlanta is fully committed to Trae Young as its point guard of the future and Young’s game next to Morant would be an awkward fit, writes Deveney.
- The Cavaliers and the Mavericks are other teams that would have explored options outside of Morant had they landed No. 2, Deveney adds. Cleveland drafted Collin Sexton last June while Dallas invested in Luka Doncic.
- The Knicks would not have traded Williamson if they landed the No. 1 pick, Adrian Wojnarowski said during ESPN’s Draft Lottery coverage. New York will have no such opportunity, as the team ended up with the No. 3 selection.
- New York didn’t land the No. 1 pick as the franchise had hoped, but the Suns should be more disappointed than the Knicks in their result, Katherine Fitzgerald of the Arizona Republic writes. Phoenix landed the No. 6 overall pick in the draft.
With Tuesday night’s lottery results now official, the top 14 picks in the 2019 NBA draft have been set. The lottery order is as follows:
- New Orleans Pelicans
- Memphis Grizzlies
- New York Knicks
- Los Angeles Lakers
- Cleveland Cavaliers
- Phoenix Suns
- Chicago Bulls
- Atlanta Hawks
- Washington Wizards
- Atlanta Hawks (from Mavericks)
- Minnesota Timberwolves
- Charlotte Hornets
- Miami Heat
- Boston Celtics (from Kings)
It’s a huge development for the Pelicans, who were facing the potential loss of franchise player Anthony Davis this offseason and only had a 6.0% chance of moving up in the draft. New head of basketball operations David Griffin will now have the opportunity to either sell Davis on staying in New Orleans by adding Duke forward Zion Williamson to play alongside him, or will be able to build around Williamson after trading AD.
The Grizzlies, meanwhile, moved up to No. 2 (6.3% chance), putting them in position to potentially select Murray State point guard Ja Morant. Mike Conley, of course, has been the longtime point guard in Memphis, but he has been the subject of trade rumors for the last several months — drafting Morant would be a terrific way to replace Conley if the Grizzlies decide to move the veteran this summer.
Because they jumped up to No. 2, the Grizzlies will keep their pick (top-eight protected) rather than sending it to Boston. Memphis will now owe the Celtics their top-six protected first-round pick in 2020.
Knicks fans will be disappointed not to land a top-two pick, but considering they only had a 40.1% chance to land a top-three selection, things could have been worse. Another Duke prospect, R.J. Barrett, is widely considered the favorite to be the third player off the board, but New York could dangle that pick in trade talks if the team wants to shift into contention mode immediately.
Another big-market team, the Lakers, jumped up to No. 4 despite only having a 9.4% chance at a top-four pick (2.8% for No. 4). The Lakers could shop that pick for immediate help this spring, since they’re in win-now mode during LeBron James‘ tenure.
The Cavaliers, Suns, Bulls, and Wizards are among the losers of the night, having each slid down three spots in the draft order. The Hawks also moved down three spots, but they’ll still pick twice in the top 10, at Nos. 8 and 10.
Atlanta will receive the Mavericks‘ selection at No. 10 as a result of last year’s Luka Doncic/Trae Young swap. The pick was top-five protected, so Dallas would have retained it if it had moved up in the lottery. The Mavs will now own their 2020 and 2022 first-round selections — they’ll owe the Knicks their 2021 first-rounder (unprotected) and their 2023 first-rounder (top-10 protected) due to the Kristaps Porzingis deal.
The Celtics, rather than the Sixers, will receive the Kings‘ pick at No. 14. The 76ers would have swapped first-rounders if that pick had moved up to No. 1, but they’ll keep their own selection instead. Sacramento now has all its first-rounders moving forward.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
John Beilein, who recently accepted the Cavaliers‘ coaching position, strongly considered the Pistons‘ job last offseason, Marc Stein of the New York Times writes in his latest newsletter. Beilein passed up on the chance to become an NBA head coach then but couldn’t pass up the opportunity this time around in part due to Dan Gilbert. The Cavs owner has a reputation for his willingness to spend when necessary in order to win on the court.
Here’s more from Stein’s latest piece:
- The Lakers did not formally offer their coaching job to Monty Williams before Williams signed on with the Suns, Stein hears. Williams ultimately decided to go to Phoenix before the competition between he and Tyronn Lue was complete. Stein also hears that Kurt Rambis and Linda Rambis were the strongest supporters of hiring Williams and the couple was the loudest influence when it came to hiring Frank Vogel.
- Not offering a five-year deal to Lue—a coach that won a championship with LeBron James—was a major mistake for the franchise, Stein opines. Los Angeles only offered Lue a three-year deal, something that Lue had to see as disrespectful.
- The Rockets may be limited in what they can spend, but don’t count out GM Daryl Morey when it comes to making major moves, Stein contends. Houston doesn’t have much flexibility with regard to signing free agents, as it has roughly $116MM in guaranteed salary on the books for next season. However, we’ve seen Morey pull of unlikely trades in the past, as he did with Chris Paul.
New Cavaliers coach John Beilein is expected to meet with former Grizzlies coach J.B. Bickerstaff to gauge Bickerstaff’s interest in becoming his associate head coach, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN tweets. Bickerstaff met with Cleveland’s front office and was also a candidate for the Lakers job before they hired Frank Vogel.
Bickerstaff may not be the only candidate the Cavaliers interviewed who could potentially join Beilein’s staff. They will likely hire at least one other from that pool, Joe Vardon of The Athletic reports.
Cleveland stunned the basketball world on Monday by plucking the 66-year-old Beilein out of the college ranks and naming the University of Michigan head man as its head coach.
GM Koby Altman conducted an extensive search, interviewing at least 10 other candidates, mostly NBA assistants. Among that group, Alex Jensen (Utah), Jamahl Mosley (Dallas) and Jordi Fernandez (Denver) are candidates to wind up on Beilein’s staff, as is Nate Tibbetts (Portland), who was expected to get an interview until the Cavs focused on the Wolverines coach.
Beilein is on board with having seasoned NBA assistants on the bench, Vardon continues, but wants to chat with potential candidates to find out which would be the best fits.
Vardon also added these nuggets in his story:
- There was already mutual interest between the Cavs and Beilein when assistant GM and West Virginia alum Mike Gansey visited his former college coach at the Final Four in Minneapolis on April 6. Beilein was not viewed as a leading candidate for the job at the time mainly because the Cleveland brass doubted Beilein would leave Michigan.
- Altman and his staff quietly interviewed Beilein last week. Later in the week, Beilein met with Cavs owner Dan Gilbert, who lives in suburban Detroit. Beilein emerged as the Cavs’ choice after that meeting.
- The youth and fluidity of the Cavs’ roster intrigued Beilein. It gives Beilein a chance to mold the team to his liking, as he’s done previously in his college stops.
The Cavaliers‘ head coaching search came to an end today and reached a surprising resolution, as longtime University of Michigan head coach John Beilein will make the jump to the NBA, having agreed to a five-year deal with Cleveland.
While we hadn’t heard word of the Cavs’ interest in Beilein before today, he interviewed with the club early last week in Ann Arbor and then spoke to owner Dan Gilbert face-to-face on Friday, according to Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com. As Fedor explains, the two sides agreed to keep those talks quiet out of respect for the university.
Meanwhile, Joe Vardon of The Athletic suggests (via Twitter) that Gilbert’s involvement in the process with Beilein was a good sign that the Cavaliers were serious about the Wolverines’ coach. According to Vardon, at least four other head coaching candidates who interviewed for the job didn’t meet with the Cavs’ owner.
Here’s more on the Cavs’ hiring on Beilein:
- According to Fedor, it wouldn’t be a surprise if one of the candidates the Cavaliers interviewed for their head coaching position becomes Beilein’s associate head coach. Vince Ellis of The Detroit Free Press notes (via Twitter) that Juwan Howard, who met with the Cavs, was viewed as a candidate to become Beilein’s lead assistant if he had ended up with the Pistons last spring.
- A source who spoke to Fedor pointed to Beilein’s ability to develop and mold young players as a key reason why the Cavaliers are hiring him. “He takes players right out of high school and turns them into lottery picks,” the source told Fedor, who cites Tim Hardaway Jr. as one Michigan player who wasn’t a highly sought-after recruit but ended up being drafted in the first round.
- Cavaliers assistant GM Mike Gansey, who played for Beilein at West Virginia 15 years ago, was always a fan of the coach’s abilities as a player development specialist and an offensive tactician, sources tell Mitch Lawrence of Sporting News (Twitter link).
- The Cavs like Beilein’s offensive system, which is predicated on outside shooting, ball movement, and constant motion, writes Sam Amico of AmicoHoops.net. As Amico outlines, the team views that system as one that can succeed even without star players.
11:11am: The Cavaliers have officially named Beilein their new head coach, with general manager Koby Altman indicating in a statement that the decision came after a “deep and thorough” search.
“Following the end of [our] interviews, it became clear to us that Coach Beilein was the right choice and best fit for our franchise,” Altman said. “John is one of the most accomplished and innovative basketball minds and leaders in the entire game. He has a unique ability to create an outstanding culture that will promote the development of young players and provide a solid structure to the entire program; not to mention the fact that John Beilein wins everywhere he goes.”
7:46am: The Cavaliers have picked a head coach, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, who reports (via Twitter) that the team has reached a deal with Michigan’s John Beilein. The two sides have agreed to a five-year contract, per Wojnarowski.
It’s a surprising conclusion to a lengthy head coaching search which saw the Cavs focused primarily on NBA assistants. The club reportedly interviewed nearly a dozen other candidates, most of whom are currently members of NBA staffs, including Ettore Messina (Spurs), David Vanterpool (Trail Blazers), Alex Jensen (Jazz), and many others.
[RELATED: 2019 NBA Head Coaching Search Tracker]
Instead of going with one of those options though, Cleveland will dip into the college ranks for Beilein, who informed Michigan’s administration on Monday morning of his decision to make the leap to the NBA, according to Wojnarowski (Twitter link). Woj adds that discussions between Beilein and the Cavs escalated over the weekend before they reached an agreement on Sunday.
Beilein, a veteran NCAA coach who had stops at a number of other schools – including West Virginia, Richmond, and Canisius – before arriving at Michigan, has a career college record of 754-425 (.640). With the Wolverines, that mark is 278-150 (.650). Although he didn’t win an NCAA championship at Michigan, he led the team to appearances in the title game in 2013 and 2018.
Beilein interviewed last spring for the Pistons’ head coaching job and also talked to the Magic, but ultimately decided to stick with the Wolverines. It appears his interest in the NBA was legit though, and now he’ll get the opportunity to reunite with Cavaliers assistant general manager Mike Gansey. As Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports observes (via Twitter), Gansey played under Beilein at West Virginia from 2004-06.
In his full story on Beilein’s hiring, Wojnarowski explains that the Cavaliers have been using the term “culture-driver” internally as they weighed the possibility of bringing in the Michigan head coach, who is considered one of the best teachers in college basketball. From Beilein’s perspective, the opportunity to lead a Cavs rebuild – with Collin Sexton already on the roster and a top-six draft pick set to join him – was appealing, says Woj.
The Cavaliers, who become the fourth team to hire a new head coach this offseason, intend to surround Beilein with an “experienced staff of NBA assistants,” sources tell Wojnarowski.
Cleveland had been on the lookout for a new head coach for over a month, having mutually agreed to part ways with Larry Drew on April 11.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Members of the Cavaliers‘ front office are meeting with four candidates for their head coaching vacancy today in Denver, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.
We told you earlier that Magic assistant coach Steve Hetzel had an interview, but GM Koby Altman and his staff also talked to Nuggets assistants Jordi Fernandez and Wes Unseld Jr.
Trail Blazers assistant David Vanterpool will interview tonight, tweets Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com, while fellow Portland assistant Nate Tibbetts had a scheduling conflict and will hold his interview sometime after tomorrow’s Game 7. That will wrap up the first round of the coaching search, Fedor adds (Twitter link).
Cleveland has conducted the most wide-ranging interview process among the teams looking for a head coach. Spurs assistants Ime Udoka and Ettore Messina, former Grizzlies coach J.B. Bickerstaff, Jazz assistant Alex Jensen and Mavericks assistant Jamahl Mosley have all interviewed for the job.
Magic assistant Steve Hetzel interviewed for the Cavaliers coaching position on Saturday, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN tweets.
Hetzel has worked under Steve Clifford in both Charlotte and Orlando, but has familiarity with Cleveland. He served as the team’s video coordinator and later as its G League head coach during the 2013/14 season.
Hetzel also worked four seasons as a player development coach for the Pistons and one season as an assistant video coordinator for the Spurs.
The Cavaliers have also interviewed Spurs assistant Ime Udoka, former Grizzlies coach J.B. Bickerstaff, Jazz assistant Alex Jensen and Mavericks assistant Jamahl Mosley as well as another Spurs assistant, Ettore Messina. They parted ways with Larry Drew after the season.
The Cavaliers‘ meeting with Spurs assistant Ettore Messina is taking place today, according to Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com (Twitter link).
As we detailed last week, Messina will become the second assistant on San Antonio’s staff to interview for Cleveland’s head coaching job this spring, joining Ime Udoka. Udoke “came across as very sharp” during his interview on Sunday, Fedor writes in a Cleveland.com mailbag.
As Fedor explains in that same mailbag, the Cavaliers appear unlikely to interview Becky Hammon, a third assistant from the Spurs’ staff. In Fedor’s view, that’s because Messina and Udoka are lead assistants in San Antonio and are more ready to take the next step to a head coaching role. It’s the same reason Fedor believes Cleveland is unlikely to hire Jordi Fernandez, who is further down in the pecking order on the Nuggets’ staff than most of the other candidates the Cavs are interviewing.
Here’s more on the Cavs:
- While Fernandez may not end up being the Cavaliers’ choice for head coach, it would make for a good story if he is. Joe Vardon of The Athletic explains why, with an in-depth look at Fernandez’s coaching journey and his deep ties to Ohio.
- Within his mailbag, Fedor observes that the Cavaliers will have limited resources available to add pieces to their roster this offseason. However, if they’re able to acquire outside help, the Cavs need to prioritize shooting and/or rim protection, according to Fedor.
- Sam Vecenie of The Athletic examines the Cavaliers’ roster situation and potential draft needs, outlining why he thinks the team should draft R.J. Barrett over Ja Morant if given the opportunity.