George Karl Rumors | Hoops Rumors

And-Ones: Jackson, Hayward, Fisher

June 2nd, 2014 at 10:42pm CST by Zachary Links

Thunder guard Reggie Jackson made it clear that he wants to start and seems to want to do so at point guard, writes Darnell Mayberry of The Oklahoman. Coach Scott Brooks was non-committal when asked about the possibility of adding Jackson, under contract through next season, to the starting lineup. Meanwhile, Thabo Sefolosha spoke of his time with the Thunder in the past tense and it seems likely that he’ll wind up elsewhere next season. More from around the league..

Tony Jones of the Salt Lake Tribune tweets that the Jazz front office fully expects Gordon Hayward to be with the team going forward. Hayward is a restricted free agent this summer and there is mutual interest in a return.
The Lakers haven’t reached out to the Thunder about getting permission to talk to Derek Fisher just yet, but that could be subject to change, tweets Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News.
Former Nuggets coach George Karl had an informal phone conversation with Lakers GM Mitch Kupchak but has yet to have a formal interview, Medina tweets.
Marist announced the resignation of Jeff Bower, tweets Vincent Goodwill of the Detroit Free Press. That should be the first step towards him taking over as Pistons GM.
UCLA guard Jordan Adams was in Houston working out for the Rockets today, tweets Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com.
The Nuggets will host Rodney Hood for a private workout tomorrow, a source told Goodman of ESPN (on Twitter).
The Raptors will host Jordan Clarkson and Canadian Khem Birch for workouts tomorrow, sources tell Goodman (on Twitter).
A source told Goodman (on Twitter) that Elfrid Payton held his own in front of the Kings in a workout today against Marcus Smart. Aaron Gordon worked out for Sacramento but did not go head-to-head with Noah Vonleh. He instead matched up with Eric Moreland (link).
The Lakers will be very busy on Wednesday as they audition many of this year’s top prospects, as Goodman tweets. Among the names not previously reported are Payton, Gordon, Tyler Ennis, Zach LaVine, James Young, and Rodney Hood.

Wolves Coaching Rumors: Skiles, Hollins, Karl

May 29th, 2014 at 9:17am CST by Chuck Myron

It’s been more than a month since Rick Adelman retired from coaching the Wolves, and while a week ago it seemed they had his replacement lined up, Dave Joerger pulled a 180 and returned to the Grizzlies, leaving Minnesota still on the lookout. Darren Wolfson and Nate Sandell of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities break down the chances of several of the candidates who’ve been identified so far. We’ll pass along a few highlights from the piece here:

Scott Skiles spoke with Wolves president of basketball operations Flip Saunders, but Skiles’ agent hasn’t talked to the team yet, Wolfson and Sandell write. That offers an explanation for conflicting reports about an interview for the former Suns, Bulls and Bucks coach.
Lionel Hollins is unlikely to fill the job, according to Wolfson and Sandell, who cast his recent interview with the team as merely an informal discussion between him and Saunders.
The Wolves want a coach who’ll be around for a while, Wolfson and Sandell say, suggesting that’s one reason why the team hasn’t made contact with 63-year-old George Karl.
There’s likely a “mystery candidate” who’s yet to be reported in connection to the Wolves, as Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities believes (Twitter link),

Wolves Notes: Hollins, Love, Karl, Draft

May 28th, 2014 at 2:03pm CST by Chuck Myron

Lionel Hollins would be willing to take the Wolves head coaching job, which he interviewed for two weeks ago, regardless of whether the team is able to keep Kevin Love, according to Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune. Zgoda also hears from George Karl, who expresses interest in the gig but says he’s had no contact with Wolves president of basketball operations Flip Saunders. There’s more from Zgoda’s piece among the latest updates from Minnesota:

Zgoda reiterates a report from earlier this month by Marc Stein and Ramona Shelburne of ESPN.com indicating that Scott Skiles has interviewed for the Wolves job, but Skiles’ agent, Keith Glass, has denied contact with the team.
The Wolves might be down to their ninth option in their coaching search, so it would behoove owner Glen Taylor to allow Saunders to coach next season rather than commit to a long-term deal with someone the team considers a fallback, argues fellow Star Tribune scribe Jim Souhan.
Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities adds Chane Behanan, Langston Hall, Austin Hollins, Mike Moser and Chaz Williams to the list of draft prospects scheduled to work out for the Wolves (Twitter link).
The Kings would probably need to find additional teams to participate in a trade that would bring Love to Sacramento, since Minnesota is probably uninterested in the assets the Kings would make available, opines Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee.
The Suns are also in the running for Love, but they, too, face an uphill battle, as Dan Bickley of the Arizona Republic concludes.

Lawrence On Thibs, Irving, Love, Knicks

May 24th, 2014 at 2:54pm CST by Zachary Links

The Grizzlies are on a shoestring budget and don’t have the room necessary to bring coach Tom Thibodeau over from the Bulls, writes Mitch Lawrence of the New York Daily News. “Do they realize how much that will cost?’” said one Chicago official, when word surfaced that the Grizzlies will look at Thibs if Memphis winds up allowing Dave Joerger to take the Timberwolves’ head coaching position. An Eastern Conference president, factoring in Stan Van Gundy’s $7MM/year deal in Detroit, estimated that it would cost Memphis $8MM per year to have Thibodeau serve as their coach and president. Here’s more from today’s column…

The Cavs are making noises that they aren’t going to offer Kyrie Irving “max money’’ this summer via a long-term extension. They don’t want to deal the 2014 All-Star Game MVP, but it could come to that, especially if the guard and his family continue to tell people that he wants out. Irving hasn’t been a leader in his first three seasons and he’s also gained the unwelcomed reputation as a locker-room problem. “He was just handed too much, too soon,’’ said one source. “You’ve got to make these young guys earn it, and that’s where this team did a bad job with him.’’
The Cavs are not looking for a coach with a strong veteran presence who wants to do things only his way. That probably rules out Jeff Van Gundy, George Karl, and Lionel Hollins, although Lawrence is a fan of all three. New GM David Griffin is looking for a college or NBA coach who agrees to accept input and instructions from himself and hands-on owner Dan Gilbert.
The Cavs know they can’t get Kevin Love from the Wolves in a deal for the No. 1 pick. If they keep it, they’re expected to take Kansas big man Joel Embiid, unless the stress fracture in his back injury from last season has the chance to become a long-term issue. Meanwhile, agent Arn Tellem might not make his client’s medical records available to teams with which he doesn’t want Embiid to play.
The Nuggets aren’t going to allow coach Brian Shaw to come to the Knicks if they fail to land Derek Fisher, even if the Knicks offer compensation. “We didn’t hire Brian for a one-year position with our team,’’ Nuggets president Josh Kroenke said. “We see Brian being with us for years to come.’’ If Fisher turns Jackson down, Kurt Rambis is the next in line.
Just because Bucks GM John Hammond and Pelicans exec Dell Demps came to New York for the lottery doesn’t mean that they’re going to be around for the long haul. Lawrence gets the sense that both are on the hot seat.

Cavs Pursue Donovan, Izzo, Hoiberg

May 23rd, 2014 at 12:54pm CST by Chuck Myron

FRIDAY, 12:54pm: The Cavs haven’t asked Florida athletics director Jeremy Foley for permission to speak with Donovan, as Foley tells the Plain Dealer (Twitter link).

THURSDAY, 4:43pm: The Cavaliers spoke to Billy Donovan about their head coaching vacancy, reports Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com, who notes that the team has also gauged interest in Michigan State’s Tom Izzo and Iowa State’s Fred Hoiberg. Donovan said today that he’d had contact with a couple of NBA teams, and previous reports indicated that the Wolves were the other. Still, the University of Florida coach all but ruled out a jump to the NBA for next season.

The team is researching Lionel Hollins, George Karl and Alvin Gentry, among other NBA coaching veterans, according to Windhorst, but today’s news is another signal that Cleveland is focusing on college coaches. The Cavs have nonetheless reportedly asked the Clippers for permission to speak with Gentry, who serves as an assistant coach for L.A.

Izzo came close to taking the Cavs coaching job in 2010, but he’s otherwise downplayed interest in NBA jobs. He left wiggle room in his latest comments dismissing the notion of coaching in the pros, and rumors have persisted. The Wolves were apparently waiting on an answer from him regarding their opening until they heard from Izzo on Tuesday, when the team’s attention turned toward Dave Joerger.

Much of the chatter surrounding Hoiberg has come in connection to the Wolves, too, but the Knicks have had him on their radar, and he was among the strongest candidates for the Warriors job before it went to Steve Kerr. The Bulls also reportedly view Hoiberg as a potential replacement for Tom Thibodeau. Iowa State recently gave the coach a raise worth $600K annually to bring his salaries to $2.6MM.

Latest On Grizzlies, Wolves, Dave Joerger

May 22nd, 2014 at 10:41pm CST by Chuck Myron

10:41pm: Mitchell has indeed interviewed for the T’Wolves head coaching job, notes Wojnarowski, though Joerger is still on track to sit down with Taylor this weekend in what could be a precursor to his hiring.

6:08pm: Sam Mitchell will be in the mix to join Joerger’s coaching staff if the latter becomes Minnesota’s next head coach, tweets Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN, who also points out that Joerger and Mitchell are both represented by Warren Legarie (Twitter links).

5:30pm: Joerger’s meeting with Taylor could ultimately clear the way for him to become Minnesota’s next head coach, and the Grizzlies are likely to ask for a second-round pick in exchange for letting Joerger out of his contract, reports Wojnarowski.

3:22pm: Joerger met with Saunders today and will see Taylor this weekend, sources tell Wojnarowski (Twitter link).

3:09pm: The Grizzlies have made no formal contact with any potential replacement for Joerger, reports Ronald Tillery of The Commercial Appeal in a subscription-only piece. Tillery seconds Vernon’s report about the team’s interest in Karl, Van Gundy and Gentry, and writes that while the team hasn’t completely ruled out a reunion with Hollins, it’s still unlikely. A report this week indicated that the team would pursue Tom Thibodeau, but that’s off-base, according to Tillery.

2:50pm: Taylor likes Mitchell, but the Wolves owner won’t stand in the way if Saunders decides to hire Joerger, tweets Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities, who hears that a formal announcement about Minnesota’s coaching vacancy isn’t likely to come today.

2:16pm: The Wolves are prepared to wait and see if the Grizzlies fire Joerger rather than give up too much in compensation while he’s still under contract with Memphis, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports (on Twitter).

11:23am: The Grizzlies haven’t spoken with Hollins about a return to Memphis, USA Today’s Sam Amick tweets.

11:07am: Spears clarifies that Hollins and Mitchell remain in the mix for the Minnesota job, but it appears the Wolves don’t necessarily have interviews scheduled for them, as they reportedly do with Joerger (Twitter link).

10:59am: The Wolves are likely to interview Mitchell and Lionel Hollins in addition to Joerger, a source tells Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports (Twitter link).

10:47am: The Wolves have made “significant progress” toward hiring Joerger, sources tell Marc Stein of ESPN.com.

THURSDAY, 8:36am: It is believed the Timberwolves will offer their head coaching job to Joerger, according to Tillery, even though The Commercial Appeal scribe notes Taylor’s reported preference for Mitchell (subscription-only link).

WEDNESDAY, 3:32pm: The Grizzlies would consider George Karl, Jeff Van Gundy and Alvin Gentry if they part ways with Joerger, reports Chris Vernon of 92.9 FM ESPN in Memphis, who seconds an earlier report that the team will not pursue Eric Musselman (Twitter links).

3:21pm: The Wolves are set to interview Grizzlies coach Dave Joerger for their coaching vacancy Thursday, but Minnesota owner Glen Taylor prefers Sam Mitchell to Joerger, according to Ronald Tillery of The Commercial Appeal, who writes in a subscription-only piece. Joerger, a Minnesota native, is close with Wolves president of basketball operations Flip Saunders, who wants to hire a young coach, Tillery says.

The Grizzlies will allow Joerger to continue as their coach if he fails to land the Wolves job provided he can repair his relationships with the Memphis players, Tillery adds. Grizzlies brass views Joerger as a “Jason Levien guy,” as Tillery puts it, referring to the ousted Memphis CEO. Levien denied Minnesota’s request to interview Joerger last week, but Grizzlies owner Robert Pera gave the Wolves the OK to meet with the coach after firing Levien on Monday.

Grizzlies GM Chris Wallace remarked to Tillery that the matter of Joerger’s interview with Minnesota is a “very unique situation” that’s in a “preliminary stage.” Still, a source suggests to Tillery that where the coach ends up will ultimately hinge on how much Memphis demands from the Wolves in compensation for letting Joerger out of his contract, which still has two seasons left on it. Earlier reports indicated that the compensation wouldn’t be a stumbling block and that the Grizzlies are prepared to facilitate a deal, but it sounds like Memphis won’t let the Wolves off too easy if they decide on Joerger instead of Mitchell.

Cavs Rumors: Draft, Love, Coaches

May 21st, 2014 at 2:15pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Cavs have Joel Embiid atop their wish list as long as they can determine his back is healthy, sources tell Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com. Agent Arn Tellem is still deciding whether to let Cleveland’s doctors examine his client, a source tells fellow ESPN.com scribe Andy Katz, as Goodman notes in his piece. Still, Chad Ford of ESPN.com reported Tuesday night that the Cavs liked Jabari Parker best before hearing that Andrew Wiggins was the team’s most likely choice. There’s little clarity on whom the Cavs want to draft, or even if they intend to keep their pick, as we detail amid the latest on the lottery winners:

The Cavs have legitimate interest in trading for Kevin Love, just as they did last season, but the Timberwolves don’t think that Cleveland is willing to include the top pick, tweets Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities.
Cleveland is nonetheless likely to gauge what they can get for the No. 1 overall pick, as Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com notes amid the latest on LeBron James, and GM David Griffin is already getting inquiries about the pick from other teams, as Griffin told ESPN Cleveland. The GM expressed a willingness to trade the top draft choice, but he’s far more likely to retain it, according to Sean Deveney of The Sporting News.
Deveney casts Mark Jackson, George Karl and Lionel Hollins as the leading contenders for the Cavs coaching job, though the team will also look at Clippers assistant Tyronn Lue among other previously reported candidates, as Deveney writes in the same piece. The Cavs are strongly considering college coaches as they conduct their search, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports, but the idea that they’ll hire Kentucky’s John Calipari is “almost pure imagination,” Deveney writes.
The vast majority of the scouts who’ve spoken with Sam Smith of Bulls.com say the top pick will be either Embiid or Parker. Smith runs down Cleveland’s trade options with the No. 1 overall choice.

And-Ones: Coaches, Wolves, Cavs

May 17th, 2014 at 10:45pm CST by Cray Allred

A league executive tells Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer that Dante Exum, who considers himself a point guard, will be taken high as a potential point guard despite his uncommon size and skill set for the position. The executive believes Exum will wind up a shooting guard, but says that Michael Carter-Williams‘ standout rookie performance as a 6’6″ point guard makes Exum more enticing for teams at the top of the draft. Here’s more from around the league:

Flip Saunders has conducted the Wolves coaching search with stealth, and Jerry Zgoda of The Star Tribune reveals that Saunders interviewed rumored candidate Lionel Hollins three weeks ago.
Zgoda describes Hollins as “in the running” for the Cavs job. Hollins was named in earlier reports as a potential candidate.
Zgoda reports that Saunders also had informal discussions with Tom Izzo, Fred Hoiberg, and Stan Van Gundy, but the talks stalled in each case.
Izzo was first offered the five-year, $35MM offer to run the Pistons that Van Gundy eventually accepted, opting to stay in the college ranks, writes Zgoda.
Saunders isn’t interested in George Karl, who would prefer to coach the Cavs or, if Randy Wittman were fired, the Wizards over the Wolves, according to Zgoda.
Zgoda mentions Nate McMillan, Scott Skiles, and Sam Mitchell as intriguing possibilities for the Wolves head coaching vacancy in a separate piece. There hasn’t been any reported interest from the team toward McMillan or Skiles, and Minnesota is reportedly not interested in Mitchell.
During the combine, the Wolves met with enough power forwards and prospects projected in the top tier of the draft to make Zgoda wonder if a Kevin Love trade is a possibility (via Twitter). The Wolves have very little chance of moving above 13th in the first round, and obviously have no pressing need at power forward so long as Love is on the team.
LaQuinton Ross is scheduled to work out for the Cavs on Monday, reports Bob Finnan of The Morning Journal.
Tomas Satoranksy will join the Wizards summer league team for the second consecutive year, reports J. Michael of CSNWashington.com (H/T Emiliano Carchia of Sportando). The shooting guard was selected as a “draft and stash” player in the second round of the 2012 draft, and could find his way onto the team next season if Washington loses perimeter talent to free agency, Michael writes.

Central Rumors: Karl, Brown, Bulls, Pistons

May 15th, 2014 at 9:22pm CST by Cray Allred

George Karl would like to coach the Cavs and is high on Kyrie Irving, as Sam Amico of Fox Sports Ohio hears (Twitter link), but a source tells Mary Schmitt Boyer of the Plain Dealer that Kevin Ollie doesn’t envision taking the Cleveland coaching gig. It’s unclear whether the team has interest in either Karl or Ollie. Here’s more from the Central:

Former Cavs coach Mike Brown is open to listening to coaching opportunities, but plans to take a year off from coaching, reports Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports (Twitter links).
Bulls GM Gar Forman is optimistic Chicago can select two rotation players in the draft, but is open to other possibilities, including trading up or doing a draft-and-stash, he tells K.C. Johnson of The Chicago Tribune. “If we want to try to create more cap room, we may look at doing something with one or both of those picks,” Forman said (Twitter links).
The Bulls are prioritizing added shooting this offseason, tweets Johnson.
Stan Van Gundy will retain Ken Catanella as the Pistons cap specialist, reports Vincent Ellis of The Detroit Free Press. Van Gundy will meet Friday with Detroit’s assistant GM George David, who has a “solid chance” to stay in the front office, according to Ellis (Twitter links).
At today’s introductory press conference, Van Gundy said he is excited about the dual role he will have with the Pistons. “I think the position gives us a chance to create the most unified organization in sports,” Keith Langlois of Pistons.com quotes Van Gundy as saying. “That’s what the dual role is all about. I came into the NBA in an organization like that in Miami with Pat Riley running it and I think there are tremendous advantages there.”

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.

And-Ones: Cavs, Nets, T’Wolves

May 13th, 2014 at 11:16pm CST by Ryan Raroque

There are plenty of head coaching options for the Cavaliers to consider, as the league’s current list of free agent coaches includes Mike D’Antoni, Lionel Hollins, Mark Jackson, and George Karl. Sam Amico of FOX Sports Ohio briefly profiles each of the above-mentioned candidates according to their chances of landing in Cleveland next season. Additionally, Amico mentions Alvin Gentry, Jerry Sichting, Mark Price, Alex Jensen, and Steve Kerr as other names to keep in mind.

Here are some more miscellaneous news and notes to pass along tonight:

Despite talk that Kevin Garnett could potentially retire after this season, with Paul Pierce slated to hit unrestricted free agency, all signs point toward both returning to the Nets next year, writes Tim Bontemps of the New York Post.
Timberwolves brass will be heading to Chicago tomorrow in preparation for the NBA’s pre-draft combine and are expected to request interviews with many players, including Michigan State’s Gary Harris, Michigan’s Nik Stauskas, Kentucky’s James Young, Creighton’s Doug McDermott, and Duke’s Rodney Hood, reports Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune.
In the same piece, Zgoda writes that the Wolves are looking to acquire their own D-League affiliate.
Don’t be surprised if LeBron James chooses to distance himself from Roger Mason Jr.‘s recent comments about boycotting the 2014/15 season if Donald Sterling still owns the Clippers, writes Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today.
Assuming he re-signs with the Thunder in 2016, Kevin Durant could earn somewhere around $143.75MM over five years, as Berry Tramel and Jon Hamm of NewsOK explain.
During an interview with CNN’s Anderson Cooper, Magic Johnson revealed that he declined an offer from Pistons owner Tom Gores to be part of his ownership group in Detroit (H/T to The Detroit News). Magic had been responding to the claim from Donald Sterling that the former Lakers star had been conspiring to purchase the Clippers.