Isiah Thomas Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Atlantic Rumors: Noel, Bradley, Brooks, Stevens

October 27th, 2013 at 8:58am CST by Chuck Myron

Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer believes Nerlens Noel must grow physically and emotionally if he’s to live up to his expectations in the NBA, so, according to the Inquirer scribe, he’d be better off not returning from his left knee injury at any point this season. Coach Brett Brown this week attempted to dispel the notion that any decisions had been made about when Noel would play again, after making it seem on Monday as though Noel was likely to miss the season. The Sixers hoped injured center Andrew Bynum would come back to lead them deep into the playoffs last year, but there’s not much on the line this time around for Philly’s ragtag bunch. Here’s more from the Atlantic:

The Celtics and Avery Bradley continue talks about an extension, but no deal is imminent for the Mitchell Butler client, writes Mark Murphy of the Boston Herald. The 2014/15 team option on MarShon Brooks‘ contract is still a matter of debate in the front office, Murphy adds.
Former Suns GM Steve Kerr doesn’t say whether he was interested in Brad Stevens, but he does tell Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe that several GMs around the league had wanted to hire Stevens before the Celtics did.
Isiah Thomas last coached in the NBA with the Knicks in 2007/08, but he explains to Washburn that he hasn’t closed the door on a return to the bench.
Trade acquisition Andrea Bargnani struggled for the Knicks in preseason, and he isn’t a lock to keep his job as starting power forward, as Marc Berman of the New York Post details.

Atlantic Rumors: Knicks, Kirilenko, Celtics

October 12th, 2013 at 3:58pm CST by Chuck Myron

Former Knicks GM Glen Grunwald rarely spoke with the media, so it was something of a surprise to see that his successor, Steve Mills, engaged in a 15-minute gab-fest yesterday with Knicks beat writers. The exchange was cordial except for one moment when Mills testily repeated his earlier assertion that Isiah Thomas doesn’t have any role with the team, as Marc Berman of the New York Post notes. Here’s more from the Atlantic Division:

Andrei Kirilenko feels he’s reached a point in his career when he can afford to accept a discounted contract from the Nets in return for a shot at the title, but, “If it was 10 years ago, I would never have taken it — never, ever even thought about it,” Kirilenko told Andrew Keh of The New York Times.
The Paul Pierce/Kevin Garnett trade sent a pack of veterans from a contending team in Brooklyn to the rebuilding Celtics, but none of them are pouting, observes Steve Bulpett of the Boston Herald.
The Raptors aren’t going to make any drastic moves until at least 15 or 20 games into the regular season, and they probably won’t make any cuts to their camp roster until after the seventh preseason game, as Doug Smith of the Toronto Star writes in his mailbag column.
Mike Sielski of the Philadelphia Inquirer sees much in common between the rebuilding projects the Sixers and Celtics are on.

Knicks Notes: Mills, Carmelo, Thomas

September 30th, 2013 at 3:51pm CST by Luke Adams

It was Media Day in New York today, and after a busy offseason for the Knicks, there was plenty to discuss. New general manager Steve Mills deflected questions about the timing of his hiring, or James Dolan's motive for that decision or any others, but he, coach Mike Woodson, and several Knicks players still delivered a few quotes of note. Here are the highlights, via a collection of Knicks beat writers (links go to Twitter unless otherwise indicated):

Asked about Carmelo Anthony's future, Mills stressed that the team has no plans to let him get away next summer: "We’ve made it clear that we have every intention of making Carmelo a Knick for a long time to come."
For his part, Anthony declined to talk extensively about his contract situation, telling reporters that he'll deal with it when the time comes. However, teammates Kenyon Martin and Raymond Felton both indicated that they couldn't imagine Carmelo leaving New York.
Mills made it sounds as if Dolan was interested in completely overhauling the basketball operations department, according to Brian Mahoney of the Associated Press. The GM also confirmed that he's considering adding someone to work beneath him, potentially an internal candidate.
Prior to accepting the Knicks' GM position, Mills was considering becoming the NBPA's executive director or the athletic director at Princeton, but felt like the New York job was a perfect fit. It's not clear whether Mills had been offered either of those other positions, or whether he was simply in the running.
Mills, who originally hired Isiah Thomas for the Knicks back in 2003, said that Thomas wouldn't be returning to the franchise (link via RealGM.com).

Reactions To Knicks GM Change

September 26th, 2013 at 11:12pm CST by Zachary Links

Earlier today, we learned that the Knicks bumped Glen Grunwald as General Manager and brought Steve Mills back to the organization to take his place. The move came without any real warning and at this time, we still don't know what the motive was behind the decision. Here's the latest reaction to the news..

The timing of the move appears to be illogical as Grunwald just completed the final transaction of the summer, writes Marc Berman of the New York Post. Meanwhile, coach Mike Woodson has a team option for 2014/15 and he no longer has the allegiance of Grunwald, his former college teammate at Indiana.
Berman heard that Mills and team owner James Dolan were at the team practice facility today in Tarrytown to talk to the players about the move (Twitter link).
After talking with Knicks insiders, Jared Zwerling of Bleacher Report (on Twitter) believes that Allan Houston is being groomed as the next GM. The longtime Knicks guard is currently in their front office and is well-respected around the league.
Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com (on Twitter) guesses that the GM change means that Houston will see an increased role in operations and Woodson has less job security than he did yesterday. In another piece, Begley wonders what this all means as far as Isiah Thomas' ties to the franchise and tries to make sense of why such a decision was made now.
Keith Schlosser of Knicks Journal finds it strange that the team had moved so abruptly to replace Grunwald, especially since they aren't necessarily hiring someone who has proven to build a teams worthy of competing for an NBA title.

Odds & Ends: Anderson, Mbenga, Heat, Harden

September 11th, 2012 at 10:06pm CST by Chuck Myron

It's been a busier day than we've had for a while around the NBA, and with training camps opening as soon as September 29th, expect the faster pace of news to continue. Let's dive right into some of the latest from around the league:

James Anderson's deal with the Hawks is a one-year, non-guaranteed pact, Michael Cunningham of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.
D.J. Mbenga, who agreed to terms with the Mavericks earlier today, has already agreed to join the team's D-League affiliate if he doesn't make the NBA club out of training camp, reports Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News.
An agent tells Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel that the Heat are only offering contracts without a guarantee, which makes sense, since they already have agreements with 18 players. Winderman also speculates that Raja Bell could be a fit for the Heat whenever he finalizes the buyout he continues to negotiate with the Jazz (Sulia link).
Ken Berger of CBSSports.com delves deep into Thunder GM Sam Presti's comments about a possible extension for James Harden, and says that while Isiah Thomas is unlikely to return in a formal capacity to the Knicks soon, he looms as a potential candidate to join an NBA team as a coach or executive down the road.
Zach Lowe of SI.com runs down several players for whom 2012/13 will be an especially important season.
After looking at 10 overpaid players earlier today, Sean Deveney of The Sporting News also shares his list of the 10 most underpaid players in the league.

Knicks Rumors: Isiah, Camby, Giddens

September 9th, 2012 at 8:25am CST by Chuck Myron

Knicks owner James Dolan would like to have former coach and executive Isiah Thomas formally rejoin the organization in some capacity, but Thomas is reluctant come back, reports Frank Isola of the New York Daily News. Thomas might fear media backlash if he is rehired, and he has lingering resentment of some MSG executives from his previous tenure with the team, Isola writes. Thomas, who was college teammates with GM Glen Grunwald and coach Mike Woodson, is serving as an unofficial adviser to the team, according to Isola's report, and an eventual return in a official capacity seems likely. Here's more from the Big Apple:

We passed along an item about Marcus Camby's enthusiasm for the Knicks roster last night, and in the piece Keldy Ortiz wrote for Newsday, Camby also talked about how close he came to signing with the Heat. Camby said it was a phone call from former teammate and current Knicks assistant GM Allan Houston that persuaded him to come to New York. "I knew that it would have been very hard for me to put on that Miami Heat uniform, especially all the battles we used to have back in the days with Houston and those guys," Camby said. "I'm happy things worked out."
Camby also spoke about reuniting with some of his old Nuggets and Blazers teammates who are now with him on the Knicks, and adjusting to a bench role after starting for so long, as Anthony Sulla-Heffinger of the New York Post writes.
Former Knicks guard J.R. Giddens, who the Celtics took with the final pick of the first round in the 2008 draft, could be headed to the Italian league to play for Centrale del Latte Brescia, according to Emiliano Carchia of Sportando.

Isiah Thomas Looking To Return To Basketball

May 25th, 2012 at 7:42pm CST by Daniel Seco

Former Florida International head coach Isiah Thomas wants to return to either college basketball or the NBA after being relieved of his duties at FIU in April. In a phone conversation with Scott Powers of ESPNChicago.com, Thomas said that he isn't done with his post-playing career in basketball after finishing with a 26-65 record over three seasons with the Panthers.

"I definitely want to be in basketball again whether it be coaching or as a general manager," Thomas said. "My gift is basketball. I would love working with the kids. If it's the right college program, I would consider it. If it's the right GM job or coaching job in the NBA, I would consider it. I love the game. I just want to be in the game."

Thomas, 51, acknowledged that his name consistently comes up whenever an opening with the Knicks is mentioned in the media after forging a strong relationship with owner James Dolan during his tenure with the team. The former Pistons "Bad Boy" served as the president of basketball operations and head coach of the Knicks in which he struggled significantly both on and off the court. Even with the setbacks, Thomas still has a strong view of the Knicks given that many of his friends still work for the franchise.

"I have great friends in the organization," said Thomas. "A lot of them I gave them their first job opportunities in the NBA. The owner and I have a very good relationship. It's an organization I will always root for and will always want them to do well because they're all personal friends of mine."

While it's unlikely Thomas will find his phone ringing for the general manager opening in Orlando or the head coaching job in Charlotte, he should be able to find work as an assistant coach at a collegiate program on the rise or perhaps as a lower-level executive for a middling NBA franchise.

Isiah Thomas