Kevin Ollie Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Lakers Eye Jackson; Warriors Targets Emerge

May 7th, 2014 at 2:24pm CST by Chuck Myron

2:24pm: The Warriors haven’t reached out to Stan Van Gundy yet, Wojnarowski tweets. Van Gundy has support in “several corners” of the Warriors organization, Wojnarowski notes, but the lack of contact with him suggests the team views Kerr as its top priority for now, having already spoken with him, as we passed along below.

12:47pm: Sources tell Kawakami that Kerr isn’t necessarily the team’s top choice, though that could change, given the compressed time frame as Kerr reportedly nears a decision on where he’d like to coach (Twitter links).

WEDNESDAY, 12:05pm: Kerr appears to be the team’s No. 1 option, according to Kawakami, who believes Pacers assistant Nate McMillan is also on the Warriors short list of candidates that they’d consider if Kerr chooses to coach elsewhere.

TUESDAY, 5:39pm: The Warriors have already contacted Kerr about the job, tweets Frank Isola of the New York Daily News.

4:36pm: ESPN’s Chris Broussard suggests the Thunder as a possible destination for Jackson if Oklahoma City lets go of coach Scott Brooks (video link).

4:02pm: Kerr is indeed interested in the Warriors job, as Marcus Thompson of the Bay Area News Group hears (Twitter link).

3:58pm: The Warriors likely have interest in University of Connecticut head coach Kevin Ollie and Clippers assistant Alvin Gentry, according to Tim Kawakami of the Bay Area News Group, who hears the Warriors aren’t in a rush to pick their next coach.

3:34pm: Mike D’Antoni and Mike Dunleavy Sr. are interested in the Warriors job, USA Today’s Sam Amick reports.

3:21pm: The Warriors have Steve Kerr and Stan Van Gundy at the top of their list to replace the fired Mark Jackson, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports, who also names Fred Hoiberg as a candidate. The team will consider asking the Bulls for permission to speak with Tom Thibodeau, Wojnarowski adds. Jackson, meanwhile, is a candidate for the Lakers coaching vacancy, tweets Dave McMenamin of ESPNLosAngeles.com.

Kerr, who’s zeroing in on the Knicks job, is tight with Warriors co-owner Joe Lacob and his son, assistant GM Kirk Lacob, but whether Golden State truly considers him a candidate is unclear, tweets Tim Kawakami of the Bay Area News Group. Kerr prefers to move along toward the Knicks job, but he will give the Warriors some thought, according to Wojnarowski.

The Warriors are likely to reach out to former Grizzlies coach Lionel Hollins, too, reports Ramona Shelburne of ESPNLosAngeles.com (on Twitter).

Lakers Rumors: Gasol, D’Antoni, Ollie

May 5th, 2014 at 10:03pm CST by Zachary Links

It sounds like Lakers fans hoping for a splashy coaching hire might just get their wish. Los Angeles brass reportedly wants to interview North Carolina head coach Roy Williams, who was on their wishlist ten years ago after Phil Jackson‘s first departure. The latest out of L.A..

Pau Gasol butted heads with Mike D’Antoni quite a bit over the last two years, but it sounds like the coach’s departure won’t guarantee his return to the Lakers. “Mike leaving was not the be-all and end-all, but it is another factor,” Gasol told Spanish site Marca.com (h/t to Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News). “What is certain is that we are without a coach and I say ‘we’ because I’m still thinking of myself as a Lakers player.”
Contrary to what has been reported by some, Medina hears (on Twitter) that the Lakers have yet to contact Kevin Ollie and no meeting has been planned yet.
Medina runs down five qualities that the Lakers’ next head coach will need to have. First and foremost, the Lakers’ next coach will need to figure out how to bolster the club’s defense. There’s no question that defense took a backseat in L.A. during D’Antoni’s tenure. The Lakers ranked near the bottom in nearly every defensive category last season, including 29th in total team defense at 109.2 points allowed per game.

Coaching Rumors: Ollie, Lakers, Kerr

May 3rd, 2014 at 9:58am CST by Cray Allred

Bill Ingram of Basketball Insiders doesn’t think the next Lakers coach will be able to turn around the franchise in their first year on the job, a reality that could make the job pressure-packed and precarious for a high profile hire. Here are more coaching rumblings from around the league:

A source tells Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv that while Kevin Ollie‘s ongoing negotiations with UConn could double his salary, he could still be persuaded to leave his college perch for a high enough salary offer from an NBA team.
The Thunder have interest in Ollie as a coaching candidate, if they were to fire current coach Scott Brooks, a source tells Zagoria (Twitter link).
If Steve Kerr accepts the Knicks head coaching position, that means he’s convinced Carmelo Anthony will re-sign in New York, since keeping ‘Melo is vital in Kerr’s mind, reports Marc Berman of The New York Post. Earlier this week, president Phil Jackson told Anthony that he expects Kerr to accept the job.

And-Ones: Ollie, Bobcats, Kelly, Lowry

May 2nd, 2014 at 4:05pm CST by Chuck Myron

Saturday will feature an unprecedented three Game 7’s in a single day, and Sunday could bring the same if the Nets, Rockets and Mavs all win tonight. While we look forward to a pivotal weekend of basketball, here’s the latest from around the league:

Lakers coaching candidate Kevin Ollie has begun talks about a new deal with Connecticut, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports. Still, he remains open to interest from the Lakers and other NBA teams, tweets Shams Charania of RealGM, a point that Wojnarowski seconds. No NBA team has formally reached out to him yet, Charania also tweets, though Ollie has fans among executives on many NBA teams, including Thunder GM Sam Presti, Wojnarowski writes.
Bobcats owner Michael Jordan is prepared to spend freely this summer, president of basketball operations Rod Higgins said, pointing to the presence of Al Jefferson, Kemba Walker and Steve Clifford as a selling point. Lang Greene of Basketball Insiders has the details.
Ryan Kelly credited Mike D’Antoni‘s system as a reason for his strong performance this year, but the rookie tells Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News that there’s “no question” that he’d like to re-sign with the team even though the coach is gone. Medina believes the Lakers will indeed bring him back.
Eric Koreen of the National Post doesn’t think there’ll be much call for point guards who’d command significant long-term money this summer, suggesting that will depress the market for Kyle Lowry.

Coaching Rumors: Thibodeau, Ollie, Dunleavy

May 1st, 2014 at 7:38pm CST by Cray Allred

Ken Berger of CSBSports.com thinks the the path for Tom Thibodeau to move from the Bulls to the Lakers is complicated and unlikely, but says that the precedent set when Doc Rivers joined the Clippers while under contract with the Celtics has caused many in the coaching ranks to expect more pseudo-trades of coaches to take place. Here’s more on the league’s coaching front:

Nick Friedell of ESPNChicago.com says that if Thibodeau were to leave the Bulls, it would imply that he doesn’t expect Derrick Rose to come back strong enough to make Chicago a true contender.
Friedell thinks Chicago fans would be very unhappy with a deal, since the best the Lakers can offer in return for Thibodeau would be draft assets and/or to absorb Carlos Boozer‘s contract.
While we’ve noted that the requested meeting with the Lakers is unlikely, the ESPNChicago.com scribe adds that the Bulls might be forced to consider it if they can’t come to an agreement on an extension with the coach.
Steve Kerr‘s TNT broadcasting partner Reggie Miller tweets his opinion that Kerr should weigh his options before settling on the Knicks (H/T Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com).
Mike Dunleavy Sr. said he was interested in the Lakers coaching opening on his SiriusXM NBA Radio show (transcription via Mark Medina of Los Angeles Daily News.) “If I had an opportunity to interview with them I would definitely be interested,” said Dunleavy, who is reportedly on the Lakers’ list.
Dunleavy also said he has a good relationship with Kobe Bryant, of whom he spoke highly. “I recruited [Bryant] a number of years ago to come to the Clippers,” Dunleavy said. “I think at the time I had a good argument for it and I think we were very close to getting him to shift at that time.”
Kevin Ollie is open to hearing from the Lakers, but is very committed to UConn, a person familiar with Ollie’s thinking tells Medina in a separate piece.
Nuggets coach Brian Shaw tells Christopher Dempsey of The Denver Post he isn’t interested in either the Knicks or Lakers coaching vacancies. “I have a job here in Denver that I’m happy with,” said Shaw. “Though the season didn’t turn out how any of us would have liked, I’m happy where I am and I’m looking forward to coaching a full complement of healthy players.”

Lakers Intend To ‘Make A Splash’ With New Coach

May 1st, 2014 at 3:18pm CST by Chuck Myron

3:18pm: The Bulls are likely to deny the Lakers permission to speak with Thibodeau, according to USA Today’s Jeff Zillgitt (Twitter link).

1:43pm: The Lakers will ask the Bulls for permission to interview Tom Thibodeau, reports Dave McMenamin of ESPNLosAngeles.com (on Twitter).

1:08pm: The Lakers will interview George Karl, Jeff Van Gundy, Byron Scott, Kurt Rambis, Ollie and Calipari, tweets Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times.

11:44am: The Lakers are going after marquee names and want to “make a splash” with their coaching search, with Connecticut’s Kevin Ollie and Kentucky’s John Calipari at the forefront, report Marc Stein and Ramona Shelburne of ESPN.com. They apparently plan to reach out to Calipari even though he denied interest in the vacancy this morning. The Lakers nonetheless intend to hold back and focus on the draft and free agency while they gauge the coaching market, Stein and Shelburne write.

The Lakers are also considering the notion of holding off on a decision in case a high-profile free agent signals he wants to join the team, sources tell the ESPN scribes. In that case, the free agent would be able to influence the team’s choice of coaches.

Stein and Shelburne say the Lakers are also considering Derek Fisher, for whom the job reportedly holds “tremendous appeal.” Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports, who passed along the news of Fisher’s interest earlier, wrote that Kobe Bryant would not be the decision-maker for the team, but the Lakers are expected to consult with their 35-year-old star, according to Stein and Shelburne.

The Lakers plan to interview Mike Dunleavy Sr., who held the head coaching job for the team in the 1990s. Stein and Shelburne also mention the team’s interest in a number of candidates Shelburne listed earlier today. While the team is going after the two coaches from this year’s title game, Stein and Shelburne say the Lakers don’t have plans to reach out to Duke’s Mike Krzyzewski, whom they’ve targeted when the position has come open in the past.

Lakers Rumors: Calipari, Scott, Snyder

May 1st, 2014 at 10:27am CST by Chuck Myron

There’s no immediate favorite for the Lakers head coaching job, vacant following Mike D’Antoni‘s resignation Wednesday evening. The team hasn’t reached out to many potential candidates yet, tweets Eric Pincus of the Los Angeles Times, and Bill Oram of the Orange County Register paints it as a wide open race (Twitter link). The Lakers aren’t in a hurry to choose D’Antoni’s replacement, unless they feel like they’re about to miss out on someone they really like, tweets Ramona Shelburne of ESPNLosAngeles.com, who says the draft and free agency are greater priorities for the team. Still, there’s news about a few intriguing candidates, as we detail:

Kevin Ollie, Alvin Gentry, Mike Dunleavy Sr., George Karl, Kurt Rambis, Calipari, Scott, Fisher, and Jeff Van Gundy are on the Lakers’ initial list, Shelburne tweets.

Earlier updates:

Kentucky coach John Calipari took himself out of the running via his own Twitter account (hat tip to Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv). “Before it starts, I’m totally committed to helping this group of young men reach their dreams,” Calipari wrote. “I wouldn’t and couldn’t leave this group!”
Byron Scott, in an interview with Time Warner Cable Sports Net, confirmed a report that he’s interested in the job (video link). He’s a favorite of the Buss family, Bleacher Report’s Kevin Ding notes.
GM Mitch Kupchak and Kobe Bryant share respect for Hawks assistant Quin Snyder, Ding writes in the same piece.
The Lakers have been fond of Jeff Van Gundy, as Marc Stein of ESPN.com points out (video link).
The job holds “tremendous appeal” to Derek Fisher, a source tells Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports. The Thunder guard is likely to retire after the season.
Bryant likes Scott, Tom Thibodeau, Jeff Van Gundy and Ettore Messina, but the Lakers star won’t drive the team’s search, Wojnarowski writes in the same piece.
Messina, the elite European coach who spent 2011/12 as a Lakers assistant, downplayed the idea that he’ll become coach, and he said the Lakers haven’t contacted him, Pincus reports.
Lionel Hollins is among those interested in the job, according to Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports (Twitter link).

Lakers Notes: D’Antoni, Kerr, Coaching Search

April 30th, 2014 at 9:40pm CST by Eddie Scarito

With the big news of the resignation of Lakers coach Mike D’Antoni, the rumors are already beginning as to who his replacement will be. Ben Higgins of San Diego’s Channel 10 News (Twitter link) is reporting that Steve Kerr said he would be interested in speaking to the team about the now vacant position.

Coaching Rumors: Knicks, Calipari, Ollie

April 8th, 2014 at 4:42pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Knicks reached out in January through a third party to canvass John Calipari‘s interest in coaching the team next season, a source tells Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com. The Kentucky coach was intrigued with the idea of working with fellow Creative Artists Agency client Carmelo Anthony, Begley adds, but the talks never proceeded from there. It’s “highly unlikely” a well-known coach like Calipari would take the job since, with Phil Jackson around, the team’s next coach won’t have any control over player personnel, Begley writes. There’s more insight on Calipari and another college coach perhaps more likely to come to the NBA, and we’ll round it up here:

Most NBA front office types see Calipari as a fine college coach, but they have their doubts about whether he’d perform well in the NBA, tweets Chris Mannix of SI.com. Calipari went 72-112 in parts of three seasons with the Nets in the late 1990s.
Multiple NBA executives tell Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com, who writes in an Insider-only piece, that they expect Connecticut’s Kevin Ollie to become an NBA head coaching candidate. One exec suggests that the coach’s ties to former teammate Kevin Durant could prompt an NBA team to make a lucrative offer to bring Ollie to the pro sidelines.
Lakers coach Mike D’Antoni downplayed the notion that he and Marshall University, his alma mater, have mutual interest in him coaching the school’s team next season, as he tells Sam Amick of USA Today. “I love Marshall, and I’ve been so close to them for a long time – especially with the new [athletic director] and the new president, and people there,” D’Antoni said. “It’s a great thing. But my heart is here, and my head is here [with the Lakers]. This is what I know, so I don’t want to get distracted with that. I never have been. It always comes up when they’re looking, but they’re looking and I’m fine.”