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Woj: James Borrego, J.J. Redick “Names To Watch” In Lakers’ Coaching Search

May 13th, 2024 at 10:02am CST by Arthur Hill

The Lakers will intensify their search for a new head coach at this week’s Draft Combine in Chicago, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (video link), who identifies James Borrego and J.J. Redick as “names to watch” in that process.

Borrego currently serves as lead assistant for the Pelicans and helped the team develop a top-10 offense by utilizing Zion Williamson as a point forward, Wojnarowski notes. Borrego was the head coach in Charlotte from 2018-22, compiling a 138-163 record in four seasons. He also went 10-20 as interim coach in Orlando at the end of the 2014/15 season and spent time as an assistant to Gregg Popovich in San Antonio as well.

Redick is a member of ESPN/ABC’s top broadcasting team and has become a prominent media figure since retiring as a player in 2021. Although he doesn’t have any coaching experience, he benefits from a close relationship with Lakers star LeBron James, who serves as his co-host on the “Mind of the Game” podcast.

Lakers officials are expected to begin contacting rival teams this week to request permission to interview their assistant coaches, Woj adds. A report on Saturday identified Timberwolves assistant Micah Nori, Nuggets assistant David Adelman, Mavericks assistant Sean Sweeney, and Heat assistant Chris Quinn as potential candidates, but Nori, Adelman and Sweeney are all still involved with playoff teams.

L.A. will likely conduct a “long search” and interview numerous candidates before hiring its next coach, according to Wojnarowski.

Mavericks Notes: Doncic, Irving, Washington, Kidd

May 11th, 2024 at 9:51pm CST by Arthur Hill

Luka Doncic said “everything” hurt as he left the court after the Mavericks claimed a hard-fought win over Oklahoma City in Game 3 of their playoff series, writes Brad Townsend of The Dallas Morning News. Doncic hasn’t talked much about his physical condition since spraining his right knee April 26 in the team’s first-round series, but today he admitted that playoff basketball is taking a toll on him.

“I’m battling out there, man,” he said. “I’m glad we got the win. I’m just trying to battle.”

The damage was compounded as Doncic landed hard on his tailbone with 1:28 left to play and tweaked his right knee in the game’s final minute. He appeared “beaten down and exhausted” as he headed to the locker room after the game, according to Townsend.

“On the last play, when I split two defenders, obviously nobody touched me,” Doncic said in a sarcastic reference to the fact no foul was called. “I hurt my knee again, but I’m just trying to battle out there, man. We got a win. That’s all that matters.”

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Kyrie Irving helped to close out the victory with a clutch left-handed shot in the lane as he and Doncic are proving to be an effective combination in their first postseason together, notes Schuyler Dixon of The Associated Press. They each had 22 points, and Irving was 4-of-4 from the field in the fourth quarter. “One of my coaches just came up to me and said I waited too long, so obviously I’ve got to be better on my end,” Irving said. “We’re going against a young team. So we just want to continue to do the things that get us these W’s, and it starts on the defensive end.”
The February trade for P.J. Washington is paying off at the best possible time, observes Mike Curtis of The Dallas Morning News. Washington followed his 29-point outburst in Game 2 with 27 points on Saturday, sinking 12 combined three-pointers in those two contests. “They’ve been leaving me in the corner so I’m just trying to take my time and knock them down,” Washington said. “They’re open shots, so for me, just take them with confidence. I’ve been working on them. That’s all I’m doing, honestly.”
Head coach Jason Kidd’s contract extension adds two years to his current deal, sources tell ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (video link). Woj adds that Kidd is now under contract through 2028, though that might be bad math, since he also said the coach’s current deal was set to expire after next season (which lines up with past reports). That would mean Kidd’s new extension runs through the 2026/27 season.

Lakers Eyeing Nori, Adelman, Sweeney, Quinn In Coaching Search

May 11th, 2024 at 3:52pm CST by Luke Adams

The Lakers, who are in the process of searching for a new head coach, have interest in a handful of veteran assistant coaches around the NBA, Jovan Buha of The Athletic stated within a mailbag video (YouTube link; hat tip to Lakers Nation).

According to Buha, Timberwolves assistant Micah Nori, Nuggets assistant David Adelman, Mavericks assistant Sean Sweeney, and Heat assistant Chris Quinn are among the head coaching candidates that intrigue the Lakers.

Nori has been with the Timberwolves since 2021, having previously served as an assistant in Detroit, Denver, Sacramento, and Toronto. Adelman, who has been an assistant under Michael Malone in Denver since 2017, was on the Wolves’ staff from 2011-15 and was with the Magic in 2016/17. Sweeney’s stint with the Mavericks, which began in 2021, was preceded by assistant jobs in Detroit, Milwaukee, and Brooklyn. Quinn has been on Erik Spoelstra‘s staff in Miami since 2014.

“To my knowledge, the Lakers are not at the stage of interviewing coaches yet, but that will be happening soon,” Buha said. “It’s a little tricky timing-wise because you have Adelman, Nori, and Sweeney all in playoff series right now. You have J.J. Redick who is on the top broadcast team at ESPN and is supposed to be calling the Finals, which would be about a week or so before the draft.

“So it’s going to be interesting to see how the Lakers end up doing their interviews and just the timing of it and if they request certain guys while they’re still in the playoffs, how that process works with the teams.”

As Buha observes, the logistics may be especially challenging with Nori, who is essentially functioning as a co-head coach for the Timberwolves in their series vs. Denver due to the knee injury that has affected Chris Finch‘s ability to occupy his usual spot on the sidelines. For what it’s worth, it doesn’t sound like the Lakers are in a rush to make a hire within the next week or two, so if Nori is one of their top choices, they could be willing to wait for him.

“From what I’ve been told, the Lakers’ plan is to have a coach in place by the NBA draft, which is June 26,” Buha said.

According to Buha, Tyronn Lue is probably the Lakers’ top choice, but there has still been no indication that the Clippers‘ head coach will become available this offseason. Redick, Kenny Atkinson, and James Borrego have also been mentioned as possibilities for the Lakers; Charles Lee and Mike Budenholzer were too, but they’ve since taken head coaching jobs with other teams.

Appearing on ESPN’s NBA Countdown on Saturday (Twitter video link), Adrian Wojnarowski described Redick as a candidate that the Lakers have been “drilling down on” in their initial research. Woj adds that L.A.’s search is expected to be “wide-ranging” and “lengthy.”

Mavericks Notes: Doncic, Irving, Hardaway, Green

May 11th, 2024 at 1:14pm CST by Luke Adams

Mavericks star Luka Doncic, who has been bothered by a right knee sprain since midway through the team’s first-round series against the Clippers, was listed as questionable for Game 3 on Saturday not only due to that ailment but as a result of left ankle soreness as well, writes Tim MacMahon of ESPN. Doncic hurt his ankle on Thursday when he got tangled up with Thunder guard Cason Wallace early in the fourth quarter.

“He just stepped on my foot, but nothing serious,” Doncic told reporters after Dallas’ win. “I know he didn’t do it on purpose, so nothing serious. We just thought it was a foul. Other people would get a foul call on that one.”

As banged up as he is, Doncic will be available on Saturday as the series shifts to Dallas tied at 1-1, tweets Rylan Stiles of Locked on Thunder. The question, MacMahon tweets, is how much the knee and ankle issues will affect the Mavericks’ star. Doncic looked to be struggling with knee soreness in a subpar Game 1 showing (6-of-19 shooting), but bounced back in Game 2 with 29 points and 10 rebounds.

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After finishing third in the NBA’s 2023/24 Most Valuable Player vote, Doncic admitted that he knew this probably wasn’t his year, but said he hopes to win the award someday, according to Mike Curtis of The Dallas Morning News (subscription required). Teammate Kyrie Irving believes it’ll happen. “If it’s not this year, then Luka’s on his way to winning MVP sometime in the future, very soon,” Irving said. “If you look at his numbers across the board and you look at how he was carrying our team, that’s nothing short of an MVP. He was coming off the World Cup, playing a lot of basketball for the last year and a half. I just look at all of those contributing factors, showcasing that he was the MVP of this league.”
The Mavericks’ greatest strength is their resilience, according to Tim Cato of The Athletic, who suggests that quality may give Dallas an edge on Oklahoma City over the course of their seven-game series.
As both Cato and Brad Townsend of The Dallas Morning News (subscription required) detail, the Mavericks’ role players were crucial factors in the club’s Game 2 win, upping their aggressiveness as the Thunder focused their defensive attention on Doncic and Irving. Tim Hardaway Jr. (17 points in 19 minutes) and Josh Green (11 points in 16 minutes), in particular, came up big with their best games of the postseason so far. “I want to bring as much energy as I can,” Green said, per Townsend. “Do the little things. Make the hustle plays. Shoot when I’m open. I’m confident in my shot. Just doing the little things can help out a lot.” Green signed a three-year rookie scale extension with the Mavs last fall.

Brian Keefe Top Candidate For Wizards’ Coaching Job?

May 10th, 2024 at 12:26pm CST by Rory Maher

The Wizards are expected to start interviewing candidates for their head coaching vacancy within the next few days, a team source told Josh Robbins of The Athletic.

Brian Keefe, who finished out the 2023/24 season as interim head coach, is viewed by sources from three rival teams as the top candidate for the job, they told Robbins.

Robbins’ sources also speculated that the Wizards might be eyeing Heat assistant Chris Quinn, Rockets assistant Royal Ivey, and Mavericks assistant Sean Sweeney as potential candidates.

Washington’s coaching search has been very quiet since the regular season concluded. Multiple staff members were reportedly let go three weeks ago, but the Wizards retained Keefe and assistant coach David Vanterpool.

Multiple reports have stated Keefe will be in the running for the permanent job despite compiling a 8-31 record in his 39 games. He has a “strong player-development background,” Robbins writes, and players were very supportive of Keefe when the season ended. Jordan Poole, for instance, performed much better after Keefe decided to bring him off the bench to be a primary ball-handler and play-maker, Robbins notes.

“I can really only just really speak on the stuff that B.K. has brought since he’s been here, and I think he’s been really good for our young team: the detail-orientedness that he brings, the structure that he brings,” Poole said after the regular season ended. “He loves the game, and that’s something that goes a really long way, especially at the highest level. And he’s willing and very genuine and authentic about putting our team (and) putting guys in positions to be successful and play to their strengths and really unlocking them because he cares about them as individuals. He’s done a really good job.”

Mavericks Notes: Washington, Doncic, Hardaway Jr., Pace

May 10th, 2024 at 8:23am CST by Dana Gauruder

P.J. Washington proved to be the Mavericks‘ X-factor on Thursday, racking up 29 points and 11 rebounds in Dallas’ 119-110 win over the Thunder in Game 2 of the Western Conference semifinals. Washington, who was added in a trade deadline deal with Charlotte, hadn’t scored more than 18 points or grabbed more than seven rebounds in any of the Mavs’ previous playoff games.

“I felt good last night and this morning,” Washington said after the contest, per Dwain Price of Mavs.com. “Going into the game I had confidence in my shot. I knew I was going to get open corner shots, so I just had to come in here and knock them down.”

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There were questions about whether Luka Doncic could play effectively with a sprained right knee after his subpar Game 1 outing. He bounced back with 29 points, 10 rebounds, seven assists and three steals in Game 2. A key stat was his 5-for-8 success rate on 3-point tries after going 5-of-35 in the previous four games, Tim MacMahon of ESPN notes. Doncic said he just had to tough it out. “It was just my mentality,” he said. “I think today was one of the hardest game I had to play. I’m battling out there. I try and do my best to help [the] team win with just my mentality. Have a great start, and then the team’s going to follow me.”
Tim Hardaway Jr. missed the last four games of the first round against the Clippers with a sprained right ankle. Hardaway also missed last postseason with a foot injury, so he was just glad to get back in action for Game 1, when he scored two points in 17 minutes. “Being able to go out there and feel the physicality of being on defense and offense – a lot of grabbing, a lot of holding — I’m just extremely happy to be able to accept the challenge. I missed a couple years ago and I’m looking forward to it now,” he told Eddie Sefko of Mavs.com.
Hardaway, who has one year left on his contract, had 17 points in 19 minutes during Game 2. “It was great. We needed him,” Washington told Sefko. “We needed every bit of it. He played his heart out on both ends of the court and I’m glad to finally get a playoff win for him this year.”
While the Thunder have the younger team, the Mavs were successful on Thursday by picking up the pace. They scored 99 points in the first three quarters, Price notes. “We tried to get over the speed limit tonight,” coach Jason Kidd said. “We’ve been under the speed limit. We were more in the school zone speed limit (in Game 1). We were running (Thursday), and we’ve got to continue to keep running if we want to have a chance to win this series.”

Nikola Jokic Named Most Valuable Player

May 8th, 2024 at 6:37pm CST by Arthur Hill

Nuggets center Nikola Jokic has been selected as the NBA’s Most Valuable Player for the third time in four years, the league announced (via Twitter).

Jokic won the Michael Jordan Trophy by a wide margin, showing up on all 99 ballots and collecting 79 votes for first place, 18 for second place and two for third place, giving him a total of 926 points. Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander finished second, collecting 640 total points by coming in first on 15 ballots, second on 40, third on 40, fourth on three and fifth on one.

Rounding out the top five were Mavericks guard Luka Doncic (4-36-50-8-0-566), Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo (1-1-4-44-23-192) and Knicks guard Jalen Brunson (0-3-1-28-32-142).

Also receiving votes were Celtics forward Jayson Tatum (0-0-1-14-39-89), Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards (0-1-1-1-3-18), Kings center Domantas Sabonis (one fourth-place vote) and Suns forward Kevin Durant (one fifth-place vote).

Jokic becomes the ninth player to claim at least three MVP awards (Twitter link). He ties Larry Bird, Magic Johnson and Moses Malone, and trails only Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (six), Michael Jordan and Bill Russell (five each), and Wilt Chamberlain and LeBron James (four each).

The Nuggets celebrated the honor by tweeting a video tribute to Jokic narrated by his wife, Natalija.

Jokic posted another outstanding statistical season, averaging 26.4 points, 12.4 rebounds and 9.0 assists in 79 games. He shot 58.3% from the field and 35.9% from three-point range as Denver claimed the second seed in the Western Conference.

Bennett Durando of The Denver Post took a closer look at Jokic’s historic season, noting that he finished fifth in the league in total points, third in total rebounds and second in total assists. He also collected 25 triple-doubles and posted a true shooting percentage above 65% for the third straight season while leading the NBA in most advanced stats, including PER, VORP, box plus-minus, and win shares.

“I think he’s stated his case pretty well,” Jamal Murray said today before the award was announced. “He does it every night. It’s hard to do what he does and face the kind of pressure that he does each and every day. He does it in the smallest ways. He makes everybody around us better. He’s a leader on the court and someone we expect greatness from every time he steps on the court. And he’s delivered. … He’s been so consistent all his career, all his MVP runs. He’s been so consistent. So I don’t expect one or two bad games to sway that in any way.”

Southwest Notes: Doncic, T. Allen, Morant, Williamson

May 8th, 2024 at 7:58am CST by Luke Adams

Mavericks guard Luka Doncic had three full days off between the end of the team’s first-round series against the Clippers and the start of the second-round matchup with Oklahoma City, but it looked like the right knee sprain he suffered early in the Clippers series was still bothering him on Tuesday.

As Tim MacMahon of ESPN details, Doncic made 1-of-8 three-pointers in Dallas’ Game 1 loss to the Thunder and has now hit just 5-of-35 threes in his past four contests. That’s the worst three-point percentage (14.3%) for any player who has at least 30 attempts over a four-game postseason run in NBA history, says MacMahon.

“It’s just hurting,” Doncic said of his knee, per Brad Townsend of The Dallas Morning News (subscription required). “Less mobility. Less explosiveness when I’m driving the ball. But it’s about the same. These days gave me a little more time to rest, a little more time to rehab.”

Asked specifically about how big a part his knee issues are playing in his shooting struggles, Doncic declined to speculate, telling reporters that bouncing back from the Mavericks’ fifth consecutive Game 1 loss is his focus.

“Who cares? We lost,” he said. “We’ve just got to move on to the next one. I’ve got to be better. We’ve got to be better. We’re known for Game 1-struggling, but we’ve got to focus.”

Here’s more from around the Southwest:

The Grizzlies are expected to retire Tony Allen‘s No. 9 jersey during the 2024/25 season, the former defensive standout tells Damichael Cole of The Memphis Commercial Appeal. Memphis had originally planned to retire Allen’s number during the 2021/22 season, according to Cole, but the veteran guard asked the team to postpone it due to his legal issues. Allen will join former teammates Marc Gasol and Zach Randolph among Grizzlies players with their jerseys retired. “I’m looking forward to it,” he said. “Hopefully, I have a box of tissue with me.”
NBA commissioner Adam Silver provided a favorable update on Grizzlies guard Ja Morant on Monday, according to Cole. Silver had “regular check-ins” with Morant over the course of the year, which was one of the conditions attached to his 25-game suspension for multiple off-court incidents. “From everything we have seen, his development has been very positive,” Silver said. “Working with the team and his personal management, having a stronger support team around him seems to be making a difference in his life.”
A federal appeals court has upheld a 2021 ruling in favor of Zion Williamson, according to an Associated Press report, determining that the Pelicans forward’s contract with a marketing agent was void because she wasn’t licensed in North Carolina at the time of the agreement. Gina Ford, a Florida-based agent, had been seeking $100MM from Williamson, accusing him of improperly breaking a contract allowing her to represent him for endorsement purposes.

Pacers Notes: Haliburton, Game 2, Officiating, Carlisle

May 7th, 2024 at 9:06pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Tyrese Haliburton was a non-factor offensively in the Pacers’ tight loss to the Knicks during Game 1 of the Eastern Conference semifinals on Monday. Haliburton had just six points and committed three turnovers.

The Pacers advanced past the Bucks in the opening round even though their star guard shot 43.5% from the field and 29.6% on 3-point attempts, Brian Lewis of the New York Post notes. Haliburton only attempted six shots and did dish out eight assists in Monday’s four-point defeat.

“He gets trapped every time he comes off and pick and roll. And the best thing about Tyrese is he won’t force a bad shot,” fellow guard T.J. McConnell said. “He gets others involved and we trust him wholeheartedly. With the ball in his hands every single time.”

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Haliburton spoke about his offensive woes after the team’s practice on Tuesday and vowed to be better in Game 2. “I erred on the side of play-making … and that wasn’t the right decision for me,” Haliburton said, per Brian Windhorst of ESPN. “I still got to be who I am, but yeah, I’ll just be better (Wednesday).” Haliburton is dealing with back spasms and is listed as questionable for Game 2, as he was entering the series. “I’m confident he’ll play, but it’s a concern,” coach Rick Carlisle said.
The Pacers had a right to be upset with the officiating in Game 1 but generally chose to take the high road, Dustin Dopirak of the Indianapolis Star writes. During the final minute, forward Aaron Nesmith deflected a pass with his hand that was called a kicked ball, stopping play dead instead of giving the Pacers a steal that they could have turned into a fast-break bucket. With 12 seconds left and the Pacers down 118-117, Myles Turner was called for an offensive foul for an illegal screen. “I don’t want to talk about the officiating,” Carlisle said. “We’re not expecting to get calls in here.” Turner felt the officials’ controversial calls marred a thrilling contest. “In my experience in this league, I think it’s best when the players decide the outcome of the game,” Turner said. “I think it’s unfortunate that it happened.” The league’s Last Two Minutes report indicated Turner did commit an offensive foul, Ian Begley of SNY TV tweets. Video of the plays can be found here (Twitter links).
Carlisle said in the pregame press conference on Monday that the Mavericks tried hard to trade up and snag Haliburton in the 2020 draft, when he slipped to the 12th pick, Dopirak tweets. “We thought he was the best player in the draft that year when we were in Dallas. We were trying desperately to trade up to get him,” Carlisle said. During a 2023 podcast appearance, Dallas’ then-owner, Mark Cuban, confirmed the team’s interest in trading up for Haliburton.

Southwest Notes: Irving, Mavericks, Pelicans, Biberovic

May 6th, 2024 at 9:15pm CST by Dana Gauruder

After being the center of controversy in previous stops, Kyrie Irving has found peace and contentment with the Mavericks, Eddie Sefko of Mavs.com writes.

“From the outside, you look at his calmness, he’s at peace,” said coach Jason Kidd, who received an extension on Monday. “And sometimes at a certain age in life, that comes about. But also, with the people he’s around maybe . . . that could also have something to do with it. But you can see, he’s smiling, he’s happy and he’s been that way, I think, since he arrived last year at the trade deadline. I thought you saw that he was happy and at peace. And he’s been very consistent with that to this point. I think he’s just happy.”

Irving concurs that he’s matured and become a more positive person.

“What you’re seeing now is a version of me that I’m proud of,” he said. “I look at myself every day in the mirror and give myself affirmations. I meditate, I pray. I’m just more consistent in my daily practices to help me stay grounded. Part of knowing who you are is knowing where you came from.”

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The acquisition of Irving last season was highly controversial but Mavericks general manager Nico Harrison is happy he didn’t listen to the skeptics. Dallas retained Irving with a three-year, $126MM contract last offseason. “I’m thankful for the decision now, and I think everybody around the organization is, too,” Harrison told Marc Spears of Andscape. “But it’s awesome just to get to see him be himself. And it’s funny when if you talk to any of our teammates, they’re going to be like, ‘Yeah, it’s really weird that there was ever any negativity around Kyrie, I just don’t see it. He’s such a positive person. He’s always smiling and happy, and I don’t get it.’”
Even though Maxi Kleber is sidelined, the Mavericks should have a favorable matchup against the top-seeded Thunder, Brad Townsend of the Dallas Morning News opines. They have in-season acquisition Daniel Gafford and Dereck Lively to provide a physical presence around the basket against Thunder rookie big man Chet Holmgren. They also have two stars who can take over a game in Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving, while Oklahoma City will be more dependent on Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
The changes the Pelicans made to their medical staff last offseason can be considered a success, according to Christian Clark of the New Orleans Times-Picayune. He notes that Zion Williamson played in 70 games, the most in his NBA career, while Brandon Ingram appeared in 64 games, his most since his rookie year with the Lakers in 2016/17.
The Grizzlies added draft-and-stash prospect Tarik Biberovic with the No. 56 pick last June. He showed a lot of promise overseas this season, Damichael Cole of the Memphis Commercial Appeal notes. Playing for Fenerbahce in the Turkey Basketball Super League, Biberovic averaged a career-high 21.8 minutes and 10.4 points in 24 games, connecting on 40.7% of his 3-point attempts. In 25 EuroLeague games, Biberovic averaged 7.2 points and shot 56.9% on 3-pointers. All signs point to the wing playing another year overseas before potentially joining Memphis for the 2025/26 season, Cole adds.