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Northwest Notes: Towns, Lyles, Gallinari, Pleiss

April 3rd, 2016 at 6:05pm CST by Arthur Hill

Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle views Wolves rookie Karl-Anthony Towns as a “next generation” type of player with his combination of size and ability, according to The Associated Press. “There are going to be guys like him,” Carlisle said, “that have the great size and length and still can play the ‘4’ [power forward], those super athletes with super length that now are still damn quick and can do anything on the basketball court. He’s an unbelievable weapon for them.” Towns is a heavy favorite to give Minnesota its second straight Rookie of the Year winner, following Andrew Wiggins last season.

There’s more from the Northwest Division:

  • Towns has won every Western Conference Rookie of the Month award this season, but even that doesn’t reflect how dominant his first season has been, writes Eric Saar of Basketball Insiders. Towns’ player efficiency rating of 22.80 is the second highest in NBA history for a 20-year old, trailing Shaquille O’Neal by a tenth of a point. He also ranks among the best-ever 20-year-olds in win shares, scoring average, blocks per game, rebounding, true shooting percentage, effective field goal percentage and overall field goal percentage.
  • Towns has been impressed by the play of fellow rookie and former Kentucky teammate Trey Lyles, according to Samuel Benson of The Deseret News. Utah made Lyles the 12th overall pick of last year’s draft and eased him into its rotation. He is averaging 5.6 points and 3.6 rebounds a night through 74 games but made an impact with 17 first-half points in Friday’s win over Minnesota. “[Lyles] has been a tremendous player since high school and proved in college how great he was,” Towns said. “… “He’s going to be the future of this [Jazz] team.”
  • The Nuggets will miss the postseason for the third straight year, and Danilo Gallinari expressed frustration to Christopher Dempsey of The Denver Post about the lack of progress. Gallinari has fond memories of the years when George Karl coached in Denver and the Nuggets were regular contenders. “Honestly, we didn’t make the playoffs this year,” Gallinari said. “I’m asking you; do you think that the same thing that didn’t make the playoffs this year is a championship team next year? I don’t think so.”
  • The Jazz have recalled center Tibor Pleiss from their Idaho affiliate in the D-League. Pleiss, who has made five D-League trips this season, has appeared in 12 games for Utah, averaging 2.0 points and 1.3 rebounds.
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Magic To Aggressively Target Chandler Parsons

March 1st, 2016 at 8:30am CST by Chuck Myron

The Magic loom as the most significant threat to the Mavericks to sign Chandler Parsons to a new contract this summer, reports Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com. Parsons is a virtual lock to turn down his $16.023MM player option for next season with the salary cap moving sharply upward, and he’s expected to receive a maximum-salary contract, MacMahon writes. Sources who spoke with MacMahon anticipate an aggressive pursuit from Orlando and expect the Heat, Lakers, Nets, Knicks, Trail Blazers, Rockets and Nuggets to come after the 27-year-old, too. The Thunder, would also have interest if Kevin Durant bolts, MacMahon adds, pointing to the presence of Billy Donovan, Parsons’ college coach, in Oklahoma City.

The Mavs realize they’ll need to once more put on a recruiting effort for the versatile small forward they signed to a loaded offer sheet in 2014, but they nonetheless appear to be the favorites for him again this summer, according to MacMahon. That’s because of the loyalty he feels toward owner Mark Cuban and teammate Dirk Nowitzki, as well as the fondness Parsons has for Rick Carlisle, having advocated for the five-year extension the team gave the coach earlier this season, the ESPN scribe writes. The relationship between Parsons and Carlisle is nuanced, MacMahon explains, with Parsons wary of whether Carlisle fully trusts him on the court, but Carlisle this week referred to Parsons as “a franchise-caliber player in the making” in a message to MacMahon.

The Magic opened enough cap flexibility in trades last month to sign two players to max contracts this summer, with only about $36MM in guaranteed salary on next season’s books against a projected $90MM cap. Orlando and soon-to-be free agent Al Horford reportedly have mutual interest, and Horford went to the University of Florida, just as Parsons did.

Parsons is in his fifth season, so he’ll be eligible for the lowest of the three maximum salary tiers, likely with a starting salary approaching $21MM. The Mavs will have only his Early Bird rights this summer, though they’ll function essentially as full Bird rights would for Parsons because his projected max is within 175% of his nearly $15.362MM salary for this season. The only difference will be that the Mavs can only offer four years instead of the five that they could with full Bird rights. Dallas will still have the opportunity to give him 7.5% raises instead of the 4.5% that the Magic and others will be limited to. That would mean a difference of some $4MM over the life of a four-year deal. Still, Parsons will value comfort and on-court opportunity over money as he decides where to sign, sources familiar with his thinking tell MacMahon.

In any case, the Mavericks appear committed to doing what they can to keep Parsons. Cuban indicated as much about a month ago to MacMahon, referring to Parsons and Wesley Matthews as a “crushing tandem on the wing.”

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Cavaliers Notes: Jackson, Blatt, Lue

January 23rd, 2016 at 8:56am CST by Eddie Scarito

Former Cavs big man Brendan Haywood has maintained close ties with members of the Cleveland organization and says that former coach David Blatt lost the locker room due to his reticence to challenge LeBron James, Steve Aschburner of NBA.com relays. In an interview on Sirius XM’s NBA Today channel, Haywood said, “Coach Blatt was very hesitant to challenge LeBron James. It was one of those situations where, being a rookie coach, and LeBron being bigger than life, it was a little too much for him. I remember we had James Jones [talk] to Coach about how, ‘Hey, you can’t just skip over when LeBron James makes a mistake in the film room.’ Because we all see it. And we’re like, ‘Hey, you didn’t say anything about that. You’re going to correct when Matthew Dellavedova‘s not in the right spot. You’re going to say something when Tristan Thompson‘s not in the right spot. Well, we see a fast break and LeBron didn’t get back on defense or there’s a rotation and he’s supposed to be there, and you just keep rolling the film and the whole room is quiet.’ We see that as players. That’s when … as a player, you start to lose respect for a coach.”

Here’s the latest out of Cleveland:

  • Tyronn Lue‘s three year contract calls for him to make a prorated $3MM for this season, $3MM for the 2016/17 campaign and the final year is a team option worth $3.5MM, Ramona Shelburne of ESPN.com relays (ESPN Now link).
  • James and his agent, Rich Paul, had been trying to get Blatt replaced with former Warriors coach Mark Jackson since last season, Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports writes. Once it became apparent that the Cavs would not hire Jackson, Lue became James’ and Klutch Sports’ fallback option, though Lue’s refusal to sign with the agency for representation leaves him in a position where he needs to have immediate success, Wojnarowski adds. The Yahoo scribe also notes that Lue considered taking the position as an interim one, but instead decided to take the security of a longer deal.
  • Mavs coach Rick Carlisle called the Cavs’ decision to part ways with Blatt an embarrassment to the league and believes Blatt will land another NBA position, Brad Townsend of The Dallas Morning News writes. “It’s a shocker. It’s just a real shocker,” Carlisle said regarding Blatt’s dismissal. “The bottom line with this is that I know a couple of things about coaching in this league. I know integrity. And I know knowledge. I can’t speak to the internal things that [might] have gone on in Cleveland. I’ve read some of the comments that came from the Cavaliers. Teams have a right to make changes. But David Blatt is going to be a highly sought-after coach this summer, if and when there are openings — if he chooses to stay. After this, you just hope a guy like this is still open to coaching in the NBA.“
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Southwest Notes: Withey, Cunningham, Green

January 13th, 2016 at 1:59pm CST by Chuck Myron

Former 39th overall pick Jeff Withey is seeing significant minutes with the Jazz this season after a parting of ways with the Pelicans that cast him into uncertainty, as Ben Dowsett of Basketball Insiders details. Executives from other teams have speculated about whether the Pelicans dealt fairly with the center, who said GM Dell Demps told him during the playoffs that the team wanted him back, Dowsett reports. The team made a qualifying offer to him but withdrew it shortly before re-signing Alexis Ajinca, making Withey an unrestricted free agent and leaving him “really confused,” as he said to Dowsett. Withey ultimately landed with Utah on a partially guaranteed deal that last week became fully guaranteed for the rest of this season, and he’s pleased with his new surroudings.

“In New Orleans, it was a tough place for me, just because the coach [Monty Williams], he didn’t really give me a shot, you know what I mean?” Withey said to Dowsett. “Even if I was playing, if I screwed up one time or anything like that, he would just take me right out. Here, Coach [Quin Snyder], he’ll come to you … it’s just a different type of coaching. More player-friendly, for sure.”

Withey has one more year left on his deal, with a non-guaranteed minimum salary for next season. See more on the Pelicans and the rest of the Southwest Division:

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Texas Notes: Matthews, Bickerstaff, Durant

November 29th, 2015 at 12:53pm CST by ChrisCrouse

Over the past few seasons, offense has been a major element in the Mavs‘ identity, but new addition Wes Matthews is helping to change the team’s perception, Eddie Sefko of The Dallas Morning News writes. “We’ve had a spike in our defensive numbers,” coach Rick Carlisle said. “[Matthews] has been a significant part of that.”

Carlisle has had Matthews guard the opposing team’s best wing player on a nightly basis, but the shooting guard has also been asked to cover opposing big men at times. The 29-year-old’s versatility hasn’t gone unnoticed by his new teammates. “Wes is our go-to guy on defense,” said Dirk Nowitzki. “He can guard multiple positions. He’s just a fighter. We’ll live with him on the opposing best player all day.”

Here’s more from the Southwest Division:

  • Interim coach J.B. Bickerstaff is making bold moves, like pairing Clint Capela and Dwight Howard in the starting lineup, and the team is embracing the changes, Jenny Dial Creech of The Houston Chronicle writes. “I just want to win,” Howard said. “The coaching staff is putting together the right guys with each other to make that happen.”
  • The Rockets will no doubt attempt to bring Kevin Durant aboard next summer, but with the current state of the franchise, Fran Blinebury of NBA.com wonders if Houston has any chance of landing the former MVP. Blinebury believes that if Durant is going to join the team, Bickerstaff needs to first mend the dysfunctional relationship between Howard and James Harden.
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Reactions To Rockets Firing Kevin McHale

November 18th, 2015 at 5:31pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The Rockets fired coach Kevin McHale earlier today and installed J.B Bickerstaff as the interim coach for the remainder of the season. GM Daryl Morey said that he has not lost faith in the team’s ability to contend, and cited the lack of time to dally in the rugged Western Conference as reasoning for making the coaching move. Here’s what is being said around the league regarding McHale and Houston parting ways:

  • James Harden‘s “style” has created tension within the Rockets, tweets Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today, and while that’s short on specifics, a follow-up tweet from Zillgitt suggests that it’s Harden’s playing style that’s irking some on the team. Still, Harden and Dwight Howard were both upbeat following Tuesday’s players-only meeting, which preceded the team’s coaching change today.
  • McHale admits that his situation in Houston was growing untenable, though he does believe that he could have turned things around, writes Jonathan Feigen of he Houston Chronicle. “We probably had more meetings in last six weeks than in my previous four years here,” said McHale. “It wasn’t working.”
  • The coach understood that a change could be coming after the Rockets’ loss to the Nuggets last Friday, and McHale wasn’t surprised by the team’s decision to let him go, Brian Geltzeiler of HoopsCritic.com tweets.
  • An opposing GM placed the blame for McHale’s departure on Howard and Harden, saying, “A team with James Harden and Dwight Howard as the stars had to fire the coach? Gee, shocking,” Sam Amico of AmicoHoops.com relays (Twitter link).
  • Mavs coach Rick Carlisle called McHale’s firing, “preposterous,” Earl K. Sneed of Mavs.com tweets. “It’s very disappointing to hear, but Kevin will be fine,” Carlisle added.
  • Rockets team owner Leslie Alexander notes that it was Bickerstaff’s defensive acumen and the players’ familiarity with him that led to his appointment as interim coach, Calvin Watkins of ESPN.com writes. “We spoke to him and we think he’s a good young coach with a lot of experience,” Alexander told Watkins. “He is on the defensive end which we really need a lot of help on. We have a good offensive coordinator [Chris Finch] so at the same time we have both. J.B. has a good relationship with the players, which I think is very important. If they didn’t know him it would be tough in the adjustment process. Now it’s much quicker.“
  • The Rockets appear to have demonstrated conflicting priorities with the team’s coaching staff, continually adding offensive-minded players while eschewing team defense, write Ken Berger of CBSSports.com. “Is this the first crack in the analytics revolution, where they start hanging the revolutionaries themselves?” [The Rockets] still haven’t figured out chemistry. They keep adding and adding, but none of it fits,” an NBA coach told Berger.

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.

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Southwest Notes: Carlisle, McGee, Douglas, Hayes

November 6th, 2015 at 9:59am CST by Chuck Myron

Mavericks owner Mark Cuban usually doesn’t do extensions, but he made an exception with coach Rick Carlisle, whom he signed to a five-year, $35MM extension Thursday, notes Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News details.

“I don’t say, ‘Here, this is the way it’s always going to be.’ The worst policy in the world is to be dogmatic about your policies,” Cuban said. “It was clear he wanted to stay. He didn’t put pressure on us at all. We reached out. What it confirms is we’ll never put money over winning. Winning always comes first.”

It was the right idea for both the team and the coach to extend the contract now, given the questions about whether the Mavericks can do much winning this season, since it removes any doubts about Carlisle’s future, opines fellow Morning News scribe Kevin Sherrington. See more on the Mavs amid the latest from around the Southwest Division:

  • It’s unlikely that JaVale McGee plays anytime in November, and his timetable for a return from his lingering leg injury is weeks, not days, tweets Earl K. Sneed of Mavs.com. McGee’s with the Mavs on a $750K partial guarantee he locked in when he made the opening night roster.
  • The Pelicans gave Toney Douglas a $50K partial guarantee as part of his deal with them, reports Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders (Twitter link). It’s a prorated two-year, minimum-salary contract, according to Pincus.
  • The deal that the Rockets signed with Chuck Hayes this past weekend covers one year at the prorated minimum salary and is non-guaranteed, Pincus also shows. Since it’s only a one-year deal, it counts toward Houston’s tax and hard cap at only the two-year veteran’s minimum rate instead of the full 10-year minimum that the 32-year-old Hayes is actually making. The league will pay the difference.
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Mavs Sign Rick Carlisle To Extension

November 5th, 2015 at 4:55pm CST by Eddie Scarito
Courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

4:55pm: The extension is official, the Mavericks announced via press release. “We are excited to retain Coach Carlisle in the Mavericks family,” Cuban said. “He is a championship-caliber coach that has made this organization better on and off the court.”

The coach was equally excited about remaining with Dallas. “Mark Cuban, Donnie Nelson and Dirk Nowitzki are the reason an extension like this is possible,” Carlisle said. “I have the best owner and general manager in sports, and one of the greatest players in NBA history to thank for this opportunity. There is much work to be done as we move forward.”

3:59pm: The Mavericks and head coach Rick Carlisle have reached an agreement on a five-year, $35MM contract extension, Marc Stein of ESPN.com reports (Twitter links). Carlisle will finish out his current deal covering both this season as well as 2016/17, which is a team option, and his extension will run through the 2021/22 campaign, Stein notes. Stein first reported that the two sides were close to reaching an agreement last month.

Carlisle signed a four-year deal before the 2012/13 season, and team owner Mark Cuban had said a few weeks ago that he and Carlisle shared interest in continuing their partnership for the long term. Mavs president of basketball operations Donnie Nelson also said this past spring that Carlisle could remain with Dallas as long as he wished.

The 56-year-old is the president of the NBA Coaches Association and is widely respected around the league. Carlisle led the Mavs to the NBA title in 2011 and has been with the franchise since May 2008, making him the third longest-tenured head coach in the NBA. He won Coach of the Year honors for the Pistons back in 2002, which was his first season as an NBA head coach. Carlisle led Detroit to back-to-back 50-win seasons before beginning a four-year tenure with the Pacers. He’s 619-431 over 13 full seasons as an NBA head coach, and he owns a 57-58 postseason record. For Dallas, he’s gone 338-220 in the regular season and 27-26 in the playoffs.

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And-Ones: Carlisle, Cap, Rosters, Tskitishvili

October 27th, 2015 at 1:11pm CST by Chuck Myron

A growing sentiment around the league held that Rick Carlisle might leave the Mavericks, given the team’s uncertain future as a playoff contender and the distinct possibility that several attractive coaching jobs will come open next summer, according to Chris Mannix of SI.com. It nonetheless appears he’d like to stay put, as Carlisle and the Mavs are reportedly deep in negotiations toward an extension. Mavs owner Mark Cuban essentially confirmed in a radio appearance on ESPN Radio 103.3 in Dallas today that the sides are working toward a deal, as Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com relays (Twitter link).

“When you’ve got a great coach, you want to keep him around, so we’re working on making that happen,” Cuban said.

See more from around the NBA:

  • Many league executives and agents believe the salary cap will escalate to $95MM for 2016/17, a higher figure than the league’s last projection of $89MM, reports Sean Deveney of The Sporting News. One GM who spoke to Deveney expressed worry that all the money on the line will lead to players looking out for themselves and pointed to this summer’s increase in long-term deals as evidence that teams were looking to avoid that.
  • NBA opening night rosters feature 100 players from outside the United States, one off last year’s record total of 101, the NBA announced. The University of Kentucky boasts more former players on the rosters than any other school, with 21, followed by Kansas, with 19, as Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv points out.
  • Nikoloz Tskitishvili, the former No. 5 overall pick who briefly attempted an NBA comeback with the Clippers this fall, is engaged in a dispute with his Chinese team and close to signing with Champville in Lebanon instead, as Sportando’s Emiliano Carchia details. Tskitishvili signed earlier this month with Fujian, international journalist David Pick reported.
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Mavs, Rick Carlisle Close To Extension Deal

October 27th, 2015 at 8:21am CST by Chuck Myron

8:21am: The proposed five-year extension the sides are negotiating would run until 2021, according to Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News, so that means the five years would start after this season.

4:49pm: The Mavericks and Rick Carlisle are nearing a deal as they hold advanced discussions about what would be a five-year extension, reports Marc Stein of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Carlisle’s contract status beyond this season has been up in the air. Carlisle signed a four-year deal before the 2012/13 season, though at least one report at the time indicated that it included a team option for 2016/17. In any case, the sides have yet to resolve Carlisle’s contractual future with the Mavericks beyond this coming June, even though owner Mark Cuban said a few weeks ago that he and Carlisle shared interest in continuing their partnership for the long term. Mavs president of basketball operations Donnie Nelson said this past spring that Carlisle could remain with Dallas as long as he wanted to, Stein points out.

Carlisle, who turns 56 on Tuesday, is the president of the NBA Coaches Association and one of the most respected in his field. He guided the Mavs to the NBA title in 2011 and has held the job since May 2008, making him the third longest-tenured head coach in the NBA.

He won Coach of the Year honors for the Pistons in 2002, his first season as an NBA coach. Carlisle led Detroit to back-to-back 50-win seasons before a four-year tenure with the Pacers. He’s 619-431 over 13 full seasons as an NBA head coach, though that doesn’t include a 57-58 postseason record. For Dallas, he’s gone 338-220 in the regular season and 27-26 in the playoffs.

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