Frank Vogel Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Fallout From Failed Negotiations Between Lakers, Lue

May 9th, 2019 at 10:14am CST by Arthur Hill

Contract length was the main point of contention that prevented Tyronn Lue from becoming the Lakers’ next coach, tweets Ramona Shelburne of ESPN. L.A. was offering Lue $18MM over three years, which would line up with LeBron James‘ remaining commitment to the team. Lue was “insulted” that the Lakers viewed him as just a coach for LeBron and was seeking a five-year deal.

A source tells Shelburne that GM Rob Pelinka didn’t believe negotiations would collapse because Lue doesn’t have interest from any other teams (Twitter link). However, the Cavaliers still owe Lue about $10MM and he didn’t want to risk losing money by taking an offer that he considered below his market value. He also believes his experience coaching at a championship level warrants a longer commitment.

There’s more this morning on the Lue situation:

Talks also broke down because of the Lakers’ insistence on having the final say on Lue’s assistant coaches, according to Marc Stein of The New York Times. Lue was willing to make former Pacers and Magic head coach Frank Vogel his top assistant, sources tell Stein, but management wanted him to put Jason Kidd on the staff as well after he performed well in an interview. Stein also reports that two advisers to Lakers owner Jeanie Buss feared that the team would be giving James too much power by hiring Lue.
Former Lakers player Kurt Rambis, who now serves as an adviser, has expanded his power in the organization and is playing a critical role in the coaching search, relays Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.
Buss made a mistake by letting Pelinka assume too much power after team president Magic Johnson resigned, contends Bill Oram of The Athletic. Lue was the only available candidate who has experience coaching James and was willing to sign up for another round, Oram notes, and Pelinka couldn’t get a deal done. He states that Buss should have found someone to serve as president of basketball operations and let him hire a GM and conduct the coaching search. Instead, she trusted the organization to Kobe Bryant‘s former agent.
The new coaching candidates — Vogel, Mike Woodson and Lionel Hollins, won’t inspire Lakers fans or help to satisfy James, who has just two years left before he can opt out of his contract, Oram adds. He also wonders how much ineptitude James is willing to put up with before he demands to be traded to a better-run organization.
Lue’s plans for the Lakers would have looked very similar to how he utilized James in Cleveland, according to Joe Vardon of The Athletic. Lue believes LeBron is most effective in a structured offense where he has an order of options to follow depending on how the defense reacts. Under Luke Walton, the Lakers used more of a random approach where four players had the option to push the ball up court, while the others were instructed to fill lanes on the fast break. Lue told management he would have arranged the minutes for James and Brandon Ingram so that one was always on the court.

Tyronn Lue Won’t Be Lakers’ Next Coach

May 8th, 2019 at 6:19pm CST by Arthur Hill

6:19pm: The Lakers will start fresh in their coaching search, with former NBA coaches Lionel Hollins, Frank Vogel and Mike Woodson to be considered, tweets Shams Charania of The Athletic.

5:50pm: After a report of an impasse in contract negotiations between Tyronn Lue and the Lakers, both sides have decided to move on.

A team source tells Tania Ganguli of The Los Angeles Times that the organization has determined Lue isn’t the “right long-term fit” (Twitter link). Meanwhile, Brad Turner of The Los Angeles Times tweets that Lue and his representatives informed the Lakers that he has withdrawn his name from consideration, offering thanks to the team for including him in the interview process.

Lue turned down the Lakers’ offer of $18MM over three years, Turner adds (Twitter link). A source says Lue was asking for a five-year contract. Lue is still owed $10MM by the Cavaliers, points out ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, and could lose money by agreeing to a deal that’s below his market value.

Lue was the top choice of Lakers star LeBron James, Wojnarowski adds, but Lakers brass was also sold on Lue for his experience in coaching in three NBA Finals, along with his title history as a player in L.A.

Sources tell Woj that GM Rob Pelinka and front office advisor Kurt Rambis were very impressed with Kidd when they interviewed him and were insisting that he become part of Lue’s staff. They view Kidd as a valuable mentor for Lonzo Ball and liked the way he developed young talent in Milwaukee. Sources don’t believe Lue was opposed to Kidd joining the staff, but the two men hadn’t discussed the possibility.

It’s not clear now if Kidd becomes the favorite to take the head coaching job or if the Lakers will start the interview process again. Along with Lue and Kidd, they talked to Sixers assistant Monty Williams, who will be the next head coach in Phoenix, and Heat assistant Juwan Howard.

Lakers, Lue Working On Contract; Vogel Could Join Him

May 6th, 2019 at 7:21pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Lakers are in negotiations with Tyronn Lue to make the former Cavaliers head coach their new coach, Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports reports.

Lue has not yet accepted the job, as both sides are hammering out contractual parameters, Haynes continues. Former Pacers and Magic assistant Frank Vogel may become the lead assistant if Lue accepts the job, Haynes adds.

‪Kurt Rambis, currently an adviser to owner Jeanie Buss, has played a significant role in the hiring process.

Reports surfaced over the weekend that Lue was the Lakers’ top choice after Sixers assistant Monty Williams opted to become the Suns’ coach. LeBron James‘ former coach reportedly struck an emotional chord during the interview process. Juwan Howard and Jason Kidd were also interviewed for the position.

Rockets Made Run At Frank Vogel For Assistant Job

November 14th, 2018 at 12:55pm CST by Luke Adams

The Rockets made a run at Frank Vogel earlier this fall in an effort to hire him to Mike D’Antoni‘s coaching staff, reports Marc Stein of The New York Times.

According to Stein, Houston viewed Vogel as a candidate to help fill the void created when defensive guru Jeff Bzdelik retired. Bzdelik has since come out of retirement and rejoined the Rockets, presumably eliminating the need for the organization to hire another assistant.

Vogel, the longtime coach of the Pacers, most recently served as the head coach in Orlando. The Magic fired him this spring, two years after hiring him. Vogel’s contract with the Magic was reportedly a four-year deal, meaning he’s still being paid this season and next season. As such, it makes sense that Vogel would take his time to consider all his options for his next job, rather than accepting an in-season assistant offer from Houston.

While it can’t be attributed entirely to Bzdelik’s return, the Rockets have looked much better on defensively lately than they did at the start of the season. After surrendering 115.6 points per game in their first seven contests, Houston has given up just 96.3 PPG in its last six.

Pistons Notes: Stackhouse, Budenholzer, Armstrong, More

May 7th, 2018 at 7:06pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Jerry Stackhouse and Mike Budenholzer are two of the prominent names to look out for in the Pistons’ coaching search, Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press tweets. Detroit parted ways with coach and president of basketball operations Stan Van Gundy on Monday. Stackhouse is a former Detroit player and served as the Raptors’ G League coach this past season. Stackhouse met with the Knicks before they hired David Fizdale and also surfaced as a candidate for the Magic and Hornets’ jobs. Budenholzer, the former Hawks coach, is arguably the top experienced head coach on the market. Former Cavaliers GM David Griffin is another name to watch as the Pistons seek a new front office leader, Ellis adds.

Former Cavaliers coach Mike Brown, ex-Warriors coach Mark Jackson and ex-Pacers and Magic coach Frank Vogel could also be coaching candidates. Rod Beard of the Detroit News writes. Chauncey Billups has previously been mentioned as a possible front office candidate, Sean Deveney of the Sporting News notes. Spurs assistant James Borrego and former Cavaliers coach David Blatt are among the other names to watch in the coaching search, Deveney adds.

In other news involving the Pistons-Van Gundy split:

Player agent and former Bulls executive B.J. Armstrong could be a candidate for a front-office position, Vincent Goodwill of NBC Sports Chicago tweets. Armstrong has strong ties to Pistons chairman Arn Tellem and is a Detroit native. Goodwill adds.
Point guard Reggie Jackson was blindsided by the news of Van Gundy’s departure, Rod Beard of the Detroit News tweets. Jackson told Beard he was “stunned by the whole thing…it’s difficult right now to take the whole thing in.” Fellow point guard Ish Smith told Beard he would miss Van Gundy, adding that “he was really instrumental to my growth as a player.” (Twitter links)
Van Gundy’s coaching replacement needs to build the attack around the skills of Blake Griffin, Kevin Pelton of ESPN argues. His front office replacement will have to come up with creative ways to upgrade the roster around him despite salary-cap restraints, Pelton adds.
Griffin had some positive things to say about Van Gundy earlier Monday before the news of his departure broke. He made the comments during a podcast, which were relayed by USA Today’s Andrew Joseph. “He’s actually a very cool guy. Very nice guy. Funny. And actually genuinely cares about people. That’s kind of rare.”

Suns Plan To Interview Frank Vogel

April 17th, 2018 at 8:11pm CST by clarkcrum

The Suns plan to interview former Magic head coach Frank Vogel, reports John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7 FM.

Fired by Orlando last week (link), Vogel compiled a record of 54-110 (.329) during his two seasons with the Magic. The Suns obviously hope that they could recreate the success Vogel had in Indiana, where he posted a record of 250-181 (.580) with five playoff appearances during six years as head coach of the Pacers.

Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN reported earlier tonight that Hawks’ head coach Mike Budenholzer met with the Suns today and yesterday with an imminent deal possible, but Scott Bordow of The Arizona Republic relays that GM Ryan McDonough was planning on interviewing multiple candidates, so it’ll be an interesting story to keep an eye on.

Southeast Notes: Budenholzer, Scott, Clifford, Weltman

April 16th, 2018 at 8:05pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Hawks can expect a first-round pick if coach Mike Budenholzer bolts for another team, according to Michael Cunningham of the Atlanta Journal Constitution. Budenholzer, who has two years left on his contract, was granted permission to interview for the Suns job. The Celtics received an unprotected first-round pick in the 2015 draft when the Clippers hired Doc Rivers in 2013, Cunningham notes. The Suns own extra first-round picks in the 2019 and 2021 drafts from previous trades, Cunningham adds.

In other developments around the Southeast Division:

Forward Mike Scott has emerged as a key member of the Wizards’ second unit in their playoff series against the top-seeded Raptors, Chase Hughes of NBCSports.com notes. Scott was the only productive bench player Washington had in Game 1, as he scored 14 of its 21 points. A productive series would help Scott land a contract this summer. He signed a one-year, $1.47MM deal with the Wizards last summer.
Steve Clifford, who was fired as the Hornets coach last week, believes the team didn’t play with the same attitude it showed in previous years. Clifford made the comments during a press conference posted on the team’s website. “We’ve always had spirit. We didn’t have that this year,” he said. “Some games (we did), but not nearly the togetherness and spirit we’ve had in other years. They know that.”
The Magic are in no rush to hire a new coach after firing Frank Vogel following the regular season, John Denton of the team’s website reports. President of basketball operations Jeff Weltman indicated that during a postseason press conference. “It is something that you’d rather do sooner than later so that we can get a guy in place and have our new staff around so that they can get their arms around our players, develop relationships and develop our young guys,’’ Weltman said. “All of that factors in. It would be better sooner, but as I always say … `we’re going to get it right before we get it fast.’ Hopefully, we can do both on this.’’

Magic Fire Frank Vogel

April 12th, 2018 at 7:49am CST by Luke Adams

The Magic are making a change at head coach, announcing today in a press release that they’ve parted ways with Frank Vogel. ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski was the first to report that Vogel has been fired.

“We would like to thank Frank for his contributions to the Orlando Magic,” president of basketball operations Jeff Weltman said in a statement. “We appreciate the sacrifices he made as head coach and certainly wish him and his family well going forward.”

In addition to Vogel, lead assistant coach Chad Forcier and assistants Corliss Williamson and Jay Hernandez have also been let go by the Magic, per Josh Robbins of The Orlando Sentinel.

Like Knicks head coach Jeff Hornacek, who was also fired once the 2017/18 regular season came to an end, Vogel was hired just two years ago but found himself on the hot seat after his team overhauled its front office during the 2017 offseason. Having been brought aboard by former head of basketball operations Rob Hennigan, Vogel will be replaced by Weltman and new GM John Hammond, who will hire their own candidate in the near future.

After compiling a 250-181 record (.580) with five playoff appearances during six years as the head coach of the Pacers, Vogel was unable to replicate that success in Orlando. His team failed to reach 30 wins in either of his two seasons — overall, the Magic had a 54-110 mark (.329) during Vogel’s tenure.

The Magic will begin a search for a new head coach immediately. Previous reports have linked the franchise to various candidates with Toronto connections — Raptors assistants Nick Nurse and Rex Kalamian have been identified as possible targets for Orlando, and Raptors 905 head coach Jerry Stackhouse has been cited multiple times as a viable candidate. Weltman was the general manager in Toronto before arriving in Orlando.

The Magic are the fifth NBA team known to be seeking a permanent head coach this offseason, joining the Suns, Grizzlies, Bucks, and Knicks.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Southeast Notes: Wizards, Vogel, Peterson, Morris, Ross

April 8th, 2018 at 6:40pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Selfish play has put the Wizards in a tailspin, coach Scott Brooks told Candace Buckner of the Washington Post and other media members. Washington lost to the lottery-bound Hawks on Friday and have fallen to the eighth spot in the Eastern Conference standings. “Not passing the ball to one another. Simple as that,” Brooks said. “Nobody wanted to share the basketball (Friday). When you do that you end up taking bad shots. When you take bad shots, you end up missing. Simple game.” The Wizards have also ranked last in defensive field goal percentage since February 28th, Buckner points out.

In other developments around the Southeast Division:

The Magic were devastated by injuries this season but that excuse may not be enough for coach Frank Vogel to retain his job, according to Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel. Vogel has not received a public vote of confidence since the All-Star break and team president Jeff Weltman wouldn’t comment last month on his coach’s job security, Robbins continues. Team CEO Alex Martins was also evasive this weekend when asked Vogel’s status, saying only “We don’t deal with those issues until the season’s over,” Robbins adds.
Buzz Peterson, the Hornets interim GM, is expected to maintain a significant role in the front office under new president and GM Mitch Kupchak, Chris Mannix of Yahoo Sports tweets. Peterson had served as the interim GM after Rich Cho was fired. Kupchak was officially hired on Sunday.
Wizards forward Markieff Morris was fined $15,000 by the league for “inappropriate comments” toward an official Friday night, according to an ESPN report. Morris made the comments when he was ejected during the first quarter against the Hawks.
Magic swingman Terrence Ross returned to action on Sunday night at Toronto after a lengthy absence, Robbins tweets. The former Raptor had not played since November 29th due to a knee injury and a subsequent bone bruise.

Knicks Notes: Kanter, O’Quinn, Vogel, Ntilikina

April 6th, 2018 at 9:42am CST by Luke Adams

While wrist and back issues have kept Enes Kanter out of action recently, he’d still like to return to action before the end of the season, suggesting this week that it would be “selfish” to shut himself down to focus on potential offseason free agency. As Brian Lewis of The New York Post writes, Kanter will face a decision this summer on an $18MM+ player option for 2018/19, but he’s putting that decision on the back-burner in the hopes of making it back for a couple late-season matchups against the Cavaliers.

“You’re always thinking the business part, but for me basketball comes first,” Kanter said. “We’ve got four games left and the Knicks are still paying me. The Knicks are paying for me to go out there and — if I’m healthy — to go out there to play. So if I feel really good, I’ll go out there and play.

“It’d be really selfish to think about opting in or opting out or thinking about my contract and not playing, giving up on my teammates and my team,” Kanter continued. “It’d be really selfish. For me the Knicks are still paying me, I’m still part of this team. If I’m still healthy I’m just going to go out there and fight.”

Here’s more out of New York:

Speaking of Kanter, some opposing executives have come away with the impression that the big man is leaning toward opting out in search of a multiyear deal this summer, says Ian Begley of ESPN.com. Begley also examines Kyle O’Quinn‘s impending free agency, exploring how likely New York is to re-sign O’Quinn after he turns down his own player option. According to Begley, Knicks coaches and executives think highly enough of O’Quinn that the club will consider bringing him back, depending on the price.
Current Magic head coach Frank Vogel admitted earlier this week that he thought he’d be hired by the Knicks in 2016, and was “surprised” when the team went in another direction, as Barbara Baker of Newsday details. “They said they had one more person they wanted to talk to before they wrapped up the process, and they met with Jeff [Hornacek], and Jeff must’ve blown them away,” Vogel said.
Hornacek spoke this week about Frank Ntilikina‘s development, and the next steps for the rookie point guard as he prepares for next season. Brian Lewis has the story and the quotes in an article for The New York Post.