John Calipari Rumors | Hoops Rumors

And-Ones: Australia, McLemore, York, Jerebko, Calipari, Klutch

April 11th, 2024 at 8:15am CST by Luke Adams

The Australian national team has revealed its preliminary roster for the 2024 Olympics, announcing a list of 22 players that are in the mix to play in Paris. That group will have to be cut down to 12 players ahead of this summer’s tournament.

Australia’s preliminary roster includes several NBAers, including Thunder guard Josh Giddey, Mavericks guard Dante Exum, Trail Blazers forward Matisse Thybulle and big man Duop Reath, Mavericks wing Josh Green, Pelicans guard Dyson Daniels, Magic forward Joe Ingles, Heat guard Patty Mills, Rockets center Jock Landale, and Grizzlies forward Jack White.

As Olgun Uluc of ESPN notes, the newest addition to the Boomers’ roster is 19-year-old Johnny Furphy, who played for the Kansas Jayhawks in 2023/24 and is projected by ESPN to be a potential first-round pick in this year’s draft.

The most notable absence is Ben Simmons, as the Nets guard underwent back surgery last month that will sideline him for the Olympics. Simmons doesn’t have much history with the Australian national team, so it’s unclear if he would’ve been part of the Boomers’ roster in Paris even if he’d been healthy.

Here are more odds and ends from around the basketball world:

Former NBA guard Ben McLemore was arrested and jailed this week in Oregon and faces multiple felony sexual assault charges, reports Baxter Holmes of ESPN. The charges, which include first-degree rape, stem from an alleged incident in 2021, when McLemore was a member of the Trail Blazers.
Former NBA guard Gabe York, who appeared in five games for the Pacers across two seasons from 2021-23, has signed with Basquet Girona, the Spanish team announced this week in a press release. York played for the G League Ignite earlier this season.
Following a two-year hiatus from basketball, Swedish forward Jonas Jerebko is making a comeback, having signed with Puerto Rican team Santeros de Aguada, according to Eurohoops. Jerebko, who turned 37 last month, appeared in 635 NBA regular season games for four teams from 2009-19. He last played professionally for CSKA Moscow in 2022.
Shams Charania and Kyle Tucker of The Athletic take an in-depth look at John Calipari‘s decision to leave Kentucky for Arkansas after 15 years with the Wildcats, detailing how Calipari’s deal with the Razorbacks came about.
One Legacy Sports Management, led by veteran agent Mike George, is becoming part of Klutch Sports, CEO Rich Paul tells ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link). Jamal Murray, Dillon Brooks, and Shaedon Sharpe are among George’s clients, per RealGM.

And-Ones: Bosh, Mike James, Sharpe, Tough Contracts

September 11th, 2021 at 11:10am CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Former Raptors and Heat All-Star big man Chris Bosh had to retire earlier than anticipated at age 33, having not played since he was 31 due to a scary blood clot issue. The 6’11” center/power forward may have interest in eventually pursuing a coaching or NBA front office career, writes Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel.

“I don’t want to put any closure on it,” the 37-year-old Bosh said about a possible coaching gig. “Some sort of front-office or coaching position, I don’t want to throw dirt on it and say, ‘that’s it (and I won’t pursue it).'”

Bosh will be enshrined in the Basketball Hall of Fame this weekend as a player, after 11 All-Star appearances, one All-NBA Second Team honor, four Finals appearances and two titles. He holds career averages of 19.2 PPG, 8.5 RPG, and 2.0 APG.

There’s more from around the basketball world:

Recent Nets reserve point guard Mike James has left Russian basketball club CSKA Moscow, per Dario Skerletic of Sportando. James now re-enters the NBA free agency pool. The 6’1″ guard previously began the 2020/21 season with CSKA Moscow, averaging 19.3 PPG and 5.7 across 27 games of Euroleague play. The 31-year-old vet eventually latched on with the Nets, averaging 7.7 PPG and 4.1 APG across 13 regular season contests, before seeing his role diminished in the playoffs. James had been under contract with CSKA Moscow through 2023, but had managed to carve out time to join the Nets at the end of the 2020/21 season with the club’s blessing. Now, he is a wholly unrestricted free agent.
Top high school prospect Shaedon Sharpe, the No. 1-ranked overall prospect in the class of 2022, has committed to suiting up for coach John Calipari in Kentucky, per Jonathan Givony of ESPN. “Coach Cal took the time to understand who I was as a person and how to get the best out of me,” Sharpe said. “I can see that he does a great job of working with athletes of my position and playing style and getting them to be the best versions of themselves. His experience is a large part of why I chose UK, but he believed in the vision and goals that I had for myself as well.” The addition of Sharpe marks Calipari’s first top-five recruit since he added now-Heat star big man Bam Adebayo in 2016. During Calipari’s 12 seasons at Kentucky, he has seen 43 of his players selected in the NBA draft, including 21 in the lottery. Sharpe also reportedly considered joining the G League Ignite, Arizona, Kansas and Oklahoma State before making his decision.
Several players throughout the NBA remain inked to unwieldy contracts relative to their output or health. Yossi Gozlan of HoopsHype assesses the toughest deals to flip in the league ahead of the 2021/22 season. Rockets point guard John Wall, owed $91.7MM over the next two years, tops Gozlan’s list for the second straight season. Gozlan speculates that the 31-year-old former All-Star could be headed for a buyout with Houston soon. 33-year-old Cavaliers forward/center Kevin Love, owed $60.2MM over the next two seasons as Cleveland’s fourth-best big man, and 31-year-old maximum-salaried Warriors shooting guard Klay Thompson, who has missed the last two seasons with an ACL tear (in 2019/20) and an Achilles tear (in 2020/21), are two of the more predictable names on the list. A few 2021 free agency signings and extensions make the cut, including the contracts of Bulls small forward DeMar DeRozan and Cavaliers center Jarrett Allen.

Knicks Notes: Thibodeau, Van Gundy, Miller, Woodson

July 26th, 2020 at 1:07pm CST by Arthur Hill

Former Knicks coach Jeff Van Gundy believes the organization is making the right choice in Tom Thibodeau, writes Marc Berman of The New York Post. Thibodeau, who is close to finalizing a five-year agreement with the team, was brought to New York as an assistant by Van Gundy in 1996.

“I’m extremely happy for Tom and equally happy for the Knicks as they hired an elite coach who will give everything he has to turn the Knicks around,” the ABC/ESPN broadcaster said.

New York began its search June 4 and talked to 11 candidates. However, many were considered to be courtesy interviews as Thibodeau was reportedly a strong favorite all along. Berman points out that five of the candidates — Ime Udoka, Wes Hardy, Chris Fleming, Pat Delaney and Jamahl Mosley — have no experience as NBA head coaches.

“Tom has always been their guy,” a source told Berman.

There’s more news on the Knicks:

The Knicks first offered the job to Thibodeau on Thursday morning, Berman tweets. He responded with a counter offer later in the day, but they didn’t make significant progress toward an agreement until Saturday.
Thibodeau should have plenty of time to prepare for a proposed group workout next month involving the eight teams not in Orlando, Berman writes in a separate story. Knicks president Leon Rose supports the idea of the gathering so the young roster can learn the new coach’s system, but isn’t in favor of scrimmages with other teams.
Interim coach Mike Miller and former Knicks head coach Mike Woodson both have “strong internal support” to be part of Thibodeau’s staff, sources tell Ian Begley of SNY.tv. Among those conducting the interviews along with Rose were executive vice president and senior advisor William “World Wide Wes” Wesley, general manager Scott Perry, and vice president of basketball and strategic planning Brock Aller.
The Knicks’ new management team has long supported Thibodeau, and the only real alternative would have been John Calipari if he had been willing to leave Kentucky, a source tells Steve Popper of Newsday.
Ed Pinckney, Andy Greer and Rick Brunson served as assistants to Thibodeau in both Chicago and Minnesota and should be considered candidates to join his staff in New York, notes Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic, who also hears that Miller may be retained to provide some continuity. Vorkunov speculates that the hiring of Thibodeau means the Knicks aren’t interested in a long rebuilding process.

Knicks Notes: Offseason Activities, Calipari, More

June 9th, 2020 at 2:55pm CST by Luke Adams

As one of the eight teams not invited to Orlando to complete the 2019/20 season, the Knicks are anxious to have some form of offseason activities for their players this summer and/or fall, writes Marc Berman of The New York Post.

With the NBA prioritizing the restart of the season for now, the Knicks are waiting on the league to review a handful of the options on the table for its bottom eight teams. If the league moves forward with a specific plan, it will need to be approved by the NBPA.

According to Berman, the Knicks are hoping to at least get approval to hold a mandatory two-week camp between the October 15 draft and the proposed November 10 start of training camp. That would give the team a head-start on the 2020 preseason after seven-plus months of inaction.

As Berman details, the Knicks are also in favor of the proposed target date of December 1 for opening night of the 2020/21 campaign. There’s an expectation that the players’ union will want to push back that date a little, but New York and the other seven teams whose seasons are over will be eager to get next season started as soon as possible.

Here’s more on the Knicks:

Within the New York Post article linked above, Berman suggests that John Calipari would challenge Tom Thibodeau‘s frontrunner status if he were to “throw his hat into the ring” for the Knicks’ head coaching job. However, Ian Begley of SNY.tv says interviews are expected to begin this week and notes that Calipari continues to reiterate he has no interest in leaving Kentucky. In other words, it seems pretty safe to cross Calipari off New York’s list of potential candidates.
The Knicks’ decision-makers were still finishing up their exit interviews with players as of Monday, a source tells Berman (Twitter link). Those conversations took place via video conference calls.
After some internal back-and-forth last week about the Knicks’ silence following the death of George Floyd, the team put out a statement today saying it stands with “all who act for a positive change.” Team owner James Dolan had initially told MSG employees in a pair of memos that he didn’t believe a public statement was necessary, even as the rest of the NBA’s teams issued statements of their own. ESPN’s Malika Andrews has more details.

Knicks’ Coaching Job Considered Thibodeau’s To Lose?

June 1st, 2020 at 10:44am CST by Luke Adams

After a report last week suggested that Tom Thibodeau topped the Knicks‘ wish list in their head coaching search, multiple updates since then have reiterated that Thibodeau looks like the frontrunner for the job.

Sources tell Stefan Bondy of The New York Daily News that Thibodeau is the “heavy favorite” to become the Knicks’ next head coach. Bondy cautions that other candidates – including Mike Miller, Kenny Atkinson, and perhaps even John Calipari – are in play, but says there’s a belief that the position is Thibodeau’s to lose. A source tells The Daily News that Thibodeau is confident enough about his chances that he has already made calls about assembling a staff.

Citing Thibodeau’s longstanding relationship with new Knicks president of basketball operations Leon Rose, Marc Berman of The New York Post also says there’s an “excellent chance” that the team will zero in on Thibodeau when its head coaching search officially gets underway.

Additionally, Berman hears from sources that members of Thibodeau’s past Bulls and Timberwolves staffs will likely be interested in joining him in New York if he’s hired by the Knicks. Berman specifically cites Andy Greer, Larry Greer, and Dice Yoshimoto as coaches Thibodeau might look to bring with him if given the opportunity.

The Knicks’ search hasn’t begun in earnest yet, but as Berman points out, there’s a good chance that the club won’t part of a resumed NBA season — reports last week indicated that the league favors a 20-team or 22-team restart. If the NBA officially moves forward with a plan that excludes the Knicks, there would be little reason for the franchise to delay its head coaching search until after the resumption of the season.

Knicks Notes: Perry, Rose, Smith Jr., Coaching Search

April 29th, 2020 at 9:00pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Knicks are bringing back general manager Scott Perry for another season, but the fate of his staff won’t be determined until this summer, writes Marc Berman of The New York Post. Perry and the team had a May 1 deadline on their mutual option, so new president of basketball operations Leon Rose had to make a decision this week. However, Perry’s staff all have contracts that run through August, so Rose will take more time to evaluate each of them.

Those staff members include personnel director Harold Ellis, assistant GM Gerald Madkins, scout Fred Cofield and capologist Michael Arcieri, and Berman notes that none of them are guaranteed to remain with the team. He adds that Perry will have input into Rose’s future hires for the scouting department.

Perry has a long relationship with NBA mogul William Wesley, who Berman believes is providing behind-the-scenes advice to Rose. Perry’s new contract runs for one season, and he will likely get the chance to earn a longer deal based on his decisions going forward.

There’s more from New York:

Keeping Perry around will provide continuity for the Knicks heading into the draft and the offseason, writes Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic. Perry has spent the past three years with the organization and worked closely with former team president Steve Mills before he was fired in early February.
The decision to dismiss Mills right before the trade deadline probably postponed plans to trade Dennis Smith Jr., Ian Begley of SNY.tv states in a mailbag column. A source tells Begley that some people in the organization thought it was a “near certainty” Smith was going to be moved. Begley believes injuries and the death of a family member led to Smith’s regression this year and suggests he might be better off with another team, possibly the Magic, who reportedly expressed interest before the deadline.
Begley expects Spurs assistant Becky Hammon and former Knicks coach Jeff Van Gundy to get consideration in the upcoming coaching search. Several agents and coaches told Begley they believe Rose will hire Tom Thibodeau if he doesn’t keep interim coach Mike Miller in place. Begley adds that Kentucky’s John Calipari shouldn’t be dismissed as a candidate, even though he has stated that he’s not interested in the job.

John Calipari Talks G League’s Ascension

April 28th, 2020 at 8:22pm CST by ChrisCrouse

Top prospects continue to flock to the G League as an alternative to a one-and-done season on a college team. Earlier today, it was reported that Daishen Nix will become the third prospect to join the G League’s new Select Team, which will be based in Southern California, following in the footsteps of Jalen Green and Isaiah Todd.

Kentucky head coach John Calipari isn’t happy about the movement, though his concerns go beyond the fact that it takes away talent from his program.

“My issue with the G League trying to entice players by giving them more money, is not the kids that you’re getting,” Calipari said this week, as Jon Hale of USA Today relays. “It’s the thousands of ninth and 10th graders that think that’s how they’re going to make it, when you and I know it’s going to be 2%. We’re not talking 50. It will be thousands and thousands and thousands.”

Calipari believes that if young high schoolers see this as a feasible route, they will give up on their studies years before hitting college age. If most high-school prospects continue to play in the NCAA, players will have to remain focused on getting high enough grades to attend those colleges.

The Kentucky coach, who has been an advocate for allowing high school players to enter the draft, doesn’t think that most kids realize how finite the chances are of making a living in basketball is.

Knicks Notes: Thibodeau, Perry, Atkinson, Anthony

April 12th, 2020 at 12:03pm CST by Arthur Hill

Tom Thibodeau should have plenty of opportunities to return to the NBA next season, writes Stefan Bondy of The New York Daily News. Thibodeau, who was fired by the Timberwolves in the middle of the 2018/19 season, is frequently mentioned among the candidates to take over the Knicks. However, the Nets and Rockets are two other teams that might be interested, Bondy notes, while the Pelicans, Bulls and Hawks may also be in the market for a new coach, along with the Spurs if Gregg Popovich retires.

Sources tell Bondy that Thibodeau is confident he will be a head coach somewhere next season and has been getting advice around the league on the best opportunity. Bondy argues that Thibodeau doesn’t deserve all the blame for all that went wrong in Minnesota, suggesting that he had a good relationship with Andrew Wiggins, but couldn’t find a way to motivate Karl-Anthony Towns.

Bondy adds that interim coach Mike Miller remains a candidate to get the job on a full-time basis as new team president Leon Rose is impressed with his performance since taking over, while Kentucky coach John Calipari shouldn’t be counted out because of his close ties to Rose.

There’s more Knicks news to pass along:

The NBA shutdown has increased the chances that general manager Scott Perry will remain with the team, Bondy adds in the same column. The Knicks aren’t making personnel moves during the hiatus and are preparing for the draft with the current front office, which includes Gerald Madkins, Michael Arcieri and Harold Ellis, who all came to New York with Perry in 2017.
Kenny Atkinson isn’t the best choice for the Knicks despite his previous ties to the organization, contends Marc Berman of The New York Post. The former Nets coach hails from Long Island and served as an assistant with the Knicks under Mike D’Antoni, but a source tells Berman that Atkinson’s management late in games is considered questionable and he wasn’t able to win the respect of Kyrie Irving in Brooklyn. Berman expects Rose to seek a more experienced coach with a better track record.
Zach Braziller of The New York Post examines the divided opinions on North Carolina’s Cole Anthony, whom the Knicks may consider drafting, given their need for a point guard.

Atlantic Notes: Calipari, Knicks, Brown, Nets

April 7th, 2020 at 8:06pm CST by ChrisCrouse

Kentucky’s John Calipari doesn’t seem like a realistic option to be the next coach of the Knicks because of the money it would take to land him, Ian Begley of SNY.tv writes. Calipari has a strong relationship with team president Leon Rose, so nothing can be ruled out. However, many other names, such as coach Tom Thibodeau and Kenny Atkinson, appear to be more realistic fits.

Here’s more from the Atlantic Division:

Bob Ford of the Philadelphia Inquirer believes the Sixers should give Brett Brown at least one more year. Ford argues that Brown has held this team together and is not the problem in Philadelphia.
Chris Chiozza, who is on a two-way contract, joined the Nets earlier in the season and the franchise is impressed with the point guard. Yet, if he is going to join the team for a playoff run, Brooklyn will need to waive somebody — Theo Pinson could be the odd man out, as Brian Lewis of the New York Post explains.
The Nets haven’t fully realized Taurean Prince‘s potential, Lewis contends in a separate piece. Brooklyn acquired and extended Prince last offseason and he has spent most of his time playing the four, which is not his natural position.

Knicks Notes: Wesley, Calipari, Sanon, Harkless, Rose

February 11th, 2020 at 10:45pm CST by Dana Gauruder

William Wesley is not expected to join the Knicks front office in any formal capacity, Shams Charania of The Athletic reports. Known around NBA circles as “Worldwide Wes,” Wesley is a business partner of player agent Leon Rose, who is expected to be named the team’s head of basketball operations. It’s believed the Knicks would offer a position to Wesley if he wanted a front-office role, but his other business ventures make a formal title unlikely, Charania adds.

We have more on the Knicks:

Former Kentucky players Kevin Knox and Julius Randle doubt that their former college coach, John Calipari, would want to return to the NBA to coach the team, Peter Botte of the New York Post relays. “The fans love him there, he’s got the basketball program on lock there,” Knox said. “I don’t think he would leave that opportunity to keep helping kids get to the NBA. That’s something he really loves to do. I think when he said he wasn’t going to do it, I think he was sold on that. I think he really doesn’t want to leave.”
It’s doubtful Ukrainian guard Issuf Sanon will ever play for the Knicks, Marc Berman of the New York Post reports. Sanon was thrown into the three-team trade that sent Marcus Morris to the Clippers. New York acquired Sanon from Washington, which made him a draft-and-stash second-round pick in 2018. It’s possible he could join the Knicks’ summer league team in Las Vegas, Berman adds.
Forward Maurice Harkless, who was also acquired from the Clippers in the same trade, is thrilled to join the organization, Berman writes in a separate story. Harkless has an expiring $11MM contract and could be bought out but he has an affinity for the Knicks. “It’s a dream come true,’’ he said. “I was a Knicks fan growing up. I loved watching the Knicks on TV, I loved coming to the Garden for games when I could. And I actually played at the Garden in college, too, so it’s like I’ve come full circle now.’’
Rose’s connections around the league could make him the right fit to run the Knicks, NBA executives told Ian Begley of SNY.tv.