New York Knicks Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Knicks Rumors: Kerr, Jackson, Shaw, Felton

May 30th, 2014 at 11:27am CST by Chuck Myron

Phil Jackson said Steve Kerr told him he’d take the Knicks coaching job the day before the Warriors fired Mark Jackson, notes Chris Herring of The Wall Street Journal (Twitter links). Jackson acknowledged that he told Carmelo Anthony that Kerr would coach the team, Herring also tweets, so Kerr’s decision left the Zen Master in quite a spot. Anthony reportedly supports Mark Jackson as a would-be Knicks coach. However, the man Kerr replaced in Golden State wouldn’t fit Phil Jackson’s desire for a coach with whom he has a prior relationship, a quality which the Knicks president identified today as one he’ll look for, observes Frank Isola of the New York Daily News (on Twitter).

We passed along Jackson’s comments about Anthony’s contract situation earlier, and we’ll round up the rest from the Zen Master’s confab with reporters here:

Jackson said he’d be interested in coaching the team himself, but he added that “unless the Lord heals me,” he wouldn’t be physically capable of doing so, as Herring and Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com pass along (Twitter links). Jackson added that the notion of coaching for just one season on a temporary basis “doesn’t sit right” with him, as Herring tweets.
Some “unnamed people” have interviewed with Jackson for the coaching job, but none of them were Derek Fisher or Brian Shaw, the Zen Master said, as Newsday’s Al Iannazzone observes (Twitter link).
Jackson isn’t interested in trying to pry Shaw from the Nuggets, Herring notes (on Twitter). “Denver has everything we’ve owned [already],” Jackson said.
Jackson said he has yet to tell any players that they’ll be jettisoned this summer, contradicting a report that he’d informed Raymond Felton that he’s going to trade him, Herring tweets.

Carmelo Anthony Thinking About Opting In

May 30th, 2014 at 10:29am CST by Chuck Myron

Knicks team president Phil Jackson asked Carmelo Anthony to opt in for next season, and the star forward told the Zen Master he’d think about it, as Jackson told reporters, including Chris Herring of The Wall Street Journal (Twitter link). Anthony has said several times, since before the start of the season, that he intends to exercise his early termination option and hit free agency, but it appears he’s at least considering the idea of remaining on his deal for next year.

Opting in would be a more lucrative move for Anthony in the short term, since his contract calls for him to make more than $23.333MM in 2014/15 if he did so. The most he could get for next season in a new deal, from the Knicks or any other team, would be close to $22.5MM. Still, it would be a risky move for Anthony, who turned 30 this week, since his chances of scoring a max deal in free agency will lessen as he ages.

The Knicks would almost certainly end up in tax territory if Anthony opted in, and they’d pay the tax for a third straight year if they didn’t clear salary by the end of next season, triggering brutal repeat-offender penalties. Still, New York and owner James Dolan have never shown an aversion to spending, and the franchise has made retaining Anthony its top priority.

Jackson said today that he’s “not losing sleep” over the notion of Anthony leaving in free agency this summer, but added that he’s “definitely concerned” about the possibility, noting that “it only takes one bidder,” as Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com and Frank Isola of the New York Daily News observe (Twitter links). Jackson has previously indicated the team is prepared to move forward no matter what happens with Anthony, and the first-time executive expressed hope that Anthony would be “true to his word” about a willingness to take less on his next deal to remain with the Knicks.

It would be a blow to teams looking to make a splash in free agency this year if Anthony were to opt in. The Bulls have appeared to be the strongest contender for his services outside of the Knicks, but the Mavs, Lakers and others seem to have doubts about the wisdom of giving Anthony a max deal. That would provide further motivation for Anthony to take the lucrative payday on his existing contract for next season and hope that a bounceback year for the Knicks will raise his free agent stock. Many teams are planning to eschew a heavy pursuit of free agents this summer in favor of next year’s more star-studded class, so while Anthony might have more competition from his peers, there may also be more bidders.

And-Ones: Nash, T’Wolves, Knicks, Hornets

May 29th, 2014 at 10:48pm CST by Ryan Raroque

Steve Nash tells Dave McMenamin of ESPN Los Angeles that he doesn’t need to have any input on the Lakers’ head coaching search. “I’m completely happy to have a conversation…but I’m also fine having nothing to do with it.”

The former MVP also talked about how he got the sense that Mike D’Antoni wasn’t going to return for 2014/15. “(2013/14) wasn’t an enjoyable year for him. I think he could foresee that next year wasn’t going to be any more enjoyable from his standpoint, so I’m happy for him that he was able to walk away…towards the end of the season (I) could sense that he felt that he really didn’t want to do it next year…So, if that’s his wish, you want the best for him.”

Nash does, however, think that his former coach could possibly find another opportunity to coach again elsewhere soon. “I don’t know for sure, but I wouldn’t be surprised one bit if he ended up with another job in the short term.”

Here are a few more miscellaneous links to pass along tonight:

Timberwolves GM Milt Newton says that the team isn’t in any rush to find a head coach, but conceded that they do have more of a timetable on possible trade talks about Kevin Love, reports Marcus R. Fuller of the Pioneer Press. Newton says he hasn’t spoken with Love since the season ended, but added that “maybe” there was more recent contact between Love and team president of basketball operations Flip Saunders.
The Knicks plan to purchase a mid-to-late second round pick from the upcoming draft, a source tells Marc Berman of the New York Post.
The Hornets are willing to part with their draft picks if the right deal comes along, reports Tom Sorensen of the Charlotte Observer, who also writes that the team’s biggest needs are perimeter shooting and finding a backup big man for Al Jefferson.
Charlotte plans to add Steve Hetzel as an assistant coach on Steve Clifford’s staff, according to an earlier tweet by Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports. Hetzel has been serving as head coach of the Canton Charge of the NBDL.
Larry Bird will have to think hard about matching any offer that Pacers swingman Lance Stephenson gets in upcoming free agency, senses Bob Kravitz of the Indianapolis Star (Twitter link).

Eastern Rumors: ‘Melo, Griffin, Pistons, Saric

May 29th, 2014 at 4:58pm CST by Chuck Myron

A source tells Ian Begley of ESPN.com that Carmelo Anthony would “embrace” playing for Mark Jackson, but that doesn’t mean he only wants to play for Jackson or would feel uncomfortable playing for anyone else, Begley cautions. Knicks president Phil Jackson hasn’t ruled out hiring the former Warriors coach, but it doesn’t appear as though there are plans for an interview. Jackson appears to be a leading candidate for the Cavs job, though no interview has been scheduled with Cleveland, either. Here’s more from around the Eastern Conference:

Adrian Griffin impressed the Cavs during his interview for the team’s coaching job this week, with one source telling Sam Amico of Fox Sports Ohio that the performance as “fantastic” (Twitter link).
Spurs assistant GM Scott Layden, former Heat GM Randy Pfund and former Pelicans GM Jeff Bower are among the candidates for the Pistons GM job, reports Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press. Stu Jackson, who’s completed an interview for the job, and Otis Smith are the previously reported names.
Dario Saric reportedly would come to the NBA for next season if the Celtics or Lakers were to draft him, but the C’s consider him a candidate for their pick at No. 17, according to Mark Murphy of the Boston Herald, indicating that he’s not in the mix to go at No. 6.
Marcin Gortat is likely in line for $10-12MM salaries while Trevor Ariza will look for $8-9MM as both Wizards hit free agency this summer, writes Michael Lee of The Washington Post.

Draft Updates: Saric, Celtics, Lakers, Raptors

May 29th, 2014 at 11:01am CST by Chuck Myron

It’s unclear whether early entrant Dario Saric wants to play in the NBA next season or remain in Europe, but if either the Celtics or Lakers draft him, he plans to come stateside, reports David Pick of Eurobasket.com (Twitter link). Most projections have him going a little lower than Boston’s No. 6 pick or L.A.’s No. 7 pick, but perhaps the knowledge of his immediate willingness to play will prompt one of those teams to bite. Here’s the latest from a busy draft workout scene:

Raptors GM Masai Ujiri is open to trading up in the draft and praised Toronto native Tyler Ennis, whom the team had in for a workout today, notes Ryan Wolstat of the Toronto Sun (on Twitter). The free agency of Kyle Lowry and Greivis Vasquez won’t play into Ujiri’s decision about drafting a point guard, the GM added.
The Raptors released their workout list for today on their website, and they’re auditioning Jake Odum, Jordan Dykstra, Norvel Pelle, Jordan Bachynski and Chadrack Lufile in addition to names that have already been reported.
Casey Prather is the new name among those working out for the Heat today, as Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com tweets.
Goodman adds DeAndre Kane and David Wear to the list of players auditioning for the Suns (Twitter link).
Billy Baron has shown off for the Bulls and Hawks and will do so for the Jazz, Bucks and Knicks next week, Goodman hears (Twitter link).
Kendall Williams is among the players working out for Hawks today, Goodman tweets.
Victor Rudd and Jakarr Sampson are the new names on the list of players working out for the Bucks today that the team announced on its website.

Draft Notes: Sanchez, McRea, Williams

May 28th, 2014 at 10:36pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Here’s the latest information regarding the rapidly approaching NBA Draft:

Javon McRea has scheduled workouts with the Bulls, Sixers, Grizzlies, Raptors, and Magic, reports Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv (Twitter link). McRea is projected as a second round pick.
Chaz Williams is scheduled to work out for Celtics on Monday, tweets Josh Newman of SNY.tv.
Jerrelle Benimon will work out on Friday for the Sixers, and has workouts scheduled next week with the Knicks and Bulls, and the following week with the Hawks, Hornets, and Mavericks, reports Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com (Twitter link).
Jason Smith of The Commercial Appeal looks at the draft prospects and workout schedule of former University of Memphis guard Joe Jackson. Smith adds the Knicks, Rockets and Mavs to the list of teams auditioning Jackson. Jackson’s college teammate Tarik Black will work out for the Grizzlies, and Geron Johnson, another ex-Tiger, will show off for the Knicks and Rockets.
Jordan Bachynski tweeted that he worked out for the Bulls today. The 7’2″ center is projected as a possible late second-round pick.
Former Nevada point guard Deonte Burton will work out for the Bucks on Thursday, reports Gery Woelfel of The Journal Times (Twitter link).
Former St. John’s forward Orlando Sanchez is scheduled to work out with the Sixers on Friday, tweets Zagoria. Sanchez averaged 7.4 PPG, 5.6 RPG, and 1.4 APG last season.
Daniel Leroux of RealGM breaks down the best and worst fits for each projected lottery pick in this year’s draft.

Bulls, Warriors, Nets Eye Toure’ Murry

May 27th, 2014 at 11:50pm CST by Chuck Myron

Toure’ Murry is set to hit free agency in July, and even though he made barely a ripple for the Knicks this season after making the team out of training camp, he’s drawing interest from the Bulls, Warriors and Nets, among others, reports Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com. Murry would become a restricted free agent if the Knicks extend a qualifying offer worth more than $1MM, about $200K more than he would make on the minimum salary next season. Rival suitors are hoping Knicks president Phil Jackson, who wasn’t around when the team signed Murry and elected to keep him past the leaguewide guarantee date, finds the qualifying offer too high and allows Murry to become an unrestricted free agent, Begley notes.

Murry averaged 2.7 points in 7.3 minutes per game in 51 appearances this past season, his first in the NBA after going undrafted out of Wichita State in 2012. The guard spent his first year after turning pro in the D-League, notching just 8.3 PPG in 23.4 MPG for the Rockets affiliate. Still, Murry beat out a handful of veterans with NBA experience in Knicks training camp this fall as owner James Dolan pushed for more youth on the team. The Knicks chose in December to retain Murry instead of Chris Smith, the brother of J.R. Smith, angering the former Sixth Man of the Year.

The Bernie Lee client took home the rookie minimum salary of $490,180 this year, making him cheaper than veteran options, but his minimum would be $816,482 next season, a relatively significant jump. Chicago, Golden State and Brooklyn no doubt have Murry fairly low on their wish lists, but even a modicum of interest at this point in the offseason indicates that there’s a chance he’ll make more than the minimum next season. It appears at least that, unlike this past summer, he’ll receive offers for guaranteed salary. There’s probably a decent chance he’ll become sign-and-trade fodder should the Knicks attempt to construct a larger swap with one of the teams that likes his game.

Coaching Rumors: Cavs, Joerger, Fisher

May 27th, 2014 at 7:07pm CST by Cray Allred

The Cavs would improve their chances of retaining Luol Deng if they hired Bulls assistant Adrian Griffin as head coach, sources tell Adrian Wojnarwoski of Yahoo! Sports (Twitter link). Griffin, a candidate for the job, worked with Deng in Chicago, and although Deng’s departure has essentially been a foregone conclusion, it will be interesting to see if Cleveland re-calibrates their free agency goals after unexpectedly landing the first overall pick. Here’s more of the night’s coaching notes:

Dave Joerger acknowledged in a radio interview with Eli Savoie of Sports 56 that he was offered the Wolves coaching job before smoothing things out with Grizzlies owner Robert Pera. Joerger added that his contract extension was not a condition for staying with Memphis (Twitter links; H/T Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities).
Joerger said that three teams called the Grizzlies to request permission to speak with him, but only the Wolves were granted the opportunity, according to a report from The Associated Press (H/T The Star Tribune).
The Lakers are curious to see if Derek Fisher is a good fit for their head coaching vacancy, but will wait until his season with the Thunder is over, reports Mike Bresnahan of The Los Angeles Times. This jibes with earlier reports that have marked Fisher as a candidate for both the Lakers and Knicks coaching jobs.
While continuing to downplay his talks with NBA teams, Billy Donovan explained to Edgar Thompson of The Orlando Sentinel that he won’t rule out leaving his coaching job at Florida for the pros. “I’ve seen a lot of coaches over the years come out and say, ‘No, no, no, no, I’m not going anywhere, I’m not going anywhere,’ and then all of a sudden they go somewhere and it’s like, ‘Well, this guy is a complete liar,'” said Donovan. “I don’t want to get into that situation. There (have) been some teams that have called, but that’s really it.”

Draft Rumors: Embiid, Parker, Wiggins, Ennis

May 27th, 2014 at 5:14pm CST by Chuck Myron

Several around the league believe Joel Embiid will only work out for the Cavs and Bucks as confidence grows that he won’t slip to the Sixers at No. 3, according to Baxter Holmes of the Boston Globe (Twitter link). Jabari Parker and Andrew Wiggins will likely audition only for the teams with the top three picks, a source tells Holmes, though that’s much less noteworthy than the Embiid news, which signals that concerns about the health of his back are abating. Still, it appears as though Nuggets GM Tim Connelly would prefer Parker to Embiid and Wiggins if he somehow managed to have a choice, observes Mark Kiszla of The Denver Post (on Twitter). Here’s more from a busy afternoon of draft-related news:

Toronto native Tyler Ennis will work out for the Raptors on Thursday, the team announced.
Glenn Robinson III is auditioning for the Hawks today and the Hornets later this week, and he expects to do so for the Spurs, Bulls and Bucks sometime soon, as he tells MLive’s Brendan F. Quinn (hat tip to Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta-Journal Constitution).
Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com adds T.J. Warren, Cleanthony Early and K.J. McDaniels to the players working out on June 3rd for the Celtics (Twitter link).
The Bulls will play host to workouts for Jordan McRae, Devyn Marble and C.J. Fair on Wednesday, Goodman tweets, adding their names to Rodney Hood‘s, which Goodman reported Monday.
Marble pulled out of his workout with the Bucks today, but the two sides will reschedule, according to Gery Woelfel of The Journal Times (on Twitter).
The Suns are auditioning Keith Appling, Alec Brown, Deonte Burton, Artem Klimenko, Jakarr Sampson and Jamil Wilson today, tweets Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic. Appling will also show off this week for the Pistons, Raptors and Wolves, agent Michael Silverman tells Matt Charboneau of The Detroit News.
The Knicks will work out Ian Chiles, a source tells Sportando’s Emiliano Carchia.
Xavier Thames auditioned for the Heat today, and he’s set to do so with the Bucks, Bulls, Celtics, Hornets, Knicks, Jazz, Mavericks and Pacers, reports Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports (Twitter link).

Lakers Interview Kurt Rambis

May 27th, 2014 at 4:19pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Lakers have interviewed assistant coach Kurt Rambis for their head coaching job, reports Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times (Twitter link). Ramona Shelburne of ESPNLosAngeles.com first reported he was on the club’s initial list of candidates soon after former coach Mike D’Antoni resigned. Rambis also appears to be in the running to become the next Knicks head coach, as Shelburne also reported this month, and while he’s likely to interview for that job, too, it seems he has a better shot to become an assistant in New York than the head man on the Knicks bench.

Rambis has ties to Phil Jackson, having served as a Lakers assistant while the current Knicks team president manned L.A.’s bench, as well as the Showtime era Lakers. He played on four of L.A.’s five championship teams in the 1980s. Rambis served as head coach for the final 37 games of the 1999 season for the Lakers before returning to his role as an assistant, and he also had a disastrous two-year stint as Wolves head coach, going 32-132.

His wife, Linda, is close friends with Lakers co-owner Jeanie Buss, perhaps giving him an advantage that the team’s other handful of interviewees don’t possess. Mike Dunleavy and Byron Scott have already interviewed for the job, while Alvin Gentry and Lionel Hollins are scheduled to do so this week.