Stan Van Gundy Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Latest On Dwight Howard

April 20th, 2012 at 1:19pm CST by Luke Adams

Dwight Howard has been ruled out for the rest of this season, undergoing back surgery that is also expected to remove him from consideration for the Team USA Olympic roster this summer. But just because we've received some closure on D12's on-court status doesn't mean the rumors and speculation about his long-term future will come to an end. Here's the latest on the Magic superstar:

SI.com's Chris Mannix is one of many reporters shooting down rumors that Howard called Magic owner Rich DeVos to tell him he won't play for coach Stan Van Gundy anymore. Of course, as Mannix points out, that doesn't mean Howard is interested in playing for SVG going forward.
A league source tells Mannix that Howard believes Van Gundy lied when he told reporters D12 had asked the Magic to fire him, since the Orlando center didn't specifically make that request. Sources close to Howard tell Mannix that it was the Magic front office that first approached Dwight about the possibility of replacing Van Gundy.
Management's silence on the topic may not sit well with Howard, writes Mannix, noting that perhaps a deteriorating relationship between the team and its star will lead to renewed trade rumors this summer.
According to Van Gundy, Howard is scheduled for surgery today in the Los Angeles area, tweets Brian Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel.

Latest On Dwight Howard, Stan Van Gundy

April 19th, 2012 at 2:09pm CST by Luke Adams

After reporting earlier this week that Dwight Howard no longer wants to play for coach Stan Van Gundy and may sit out the playoffs as a result, David Pingalore of WKMG 6 in Orlando now says Howard called Magic owner Rich DeVos to say he wouldn't play for Van Gundy anymore.

Pingalore was the first to report that Howard had asked the Magic to fire Van Gundy, and his story earlier this week wasn't initially disputed. However, a number of outlets are refuting his latest report. ESPN.com's Michael Wallace hears from multiple sources that Howard didn't make such a statement to DeVos, with one of D12's representative calling it a "completely made-up, BS story."

Sam Amick of SI.com also hears from sources "close to the situation" that Pingalore's report is inaccurate, while the Orlando Sentinel reported that "Howard’s camp is adamant that the All-NBA center wants to return for the postseason."

I believe Howard's herniated disc is a serious enough health issue that it could prevent him from playing in the postseason, no matter how badly he wants to return. If he sits out in the playoffs, I don't necessarily think it'll have anything to do with Van Gundy. But even if there's no truth to the latest rumblings of discord between the Magic coach and superstar, it's very hard to imagine the pair coexisting in Orlando past this season.

Odds & Ends: Howard, Draft, Hornets, Blazers

April 17th, 2012 at 1:24pm CST by Luke Adams

Tuesday afternoon links from around the NBA….

David Pingalore of Local 6 in Orlando, who reported earlier this month that Dwight Howard had asked the Magic to fire Stan Van Gundy, says Howard no longer wants to play for Van Gundy. This situation may end up working itself out: Brian Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel argued yesterday that the Magic should shut down Howard for the rest of the year, and Van Gundy is unlikely to remain the team's coach for next season.
The latest mock draft from ESPN.com's Chad Ford has received plenty of feedback from NBA scouts and executives, Ford writes. Mississippi State's Arnett Moultrie and Dion Waiters of Syracuse were among the players Ford's sources felt were ranked too low — the latest ESPN.com mock had them coming off the board at 19th and 23rd respectively.
North Carolina's John Henson has hired Jim Tanner as his agent, reports Jorge Sierra of HoopsHype (via Twitter). The junior forward announced in late March that he was entering the NBA draft.
Alex Kennedy of HoopsWorld explores the direction of the Hornets now that the team is under new ownership.
Having been officially eliminated from the playoffs, the Trail Blazers now look like a good bet to score two lottery picks, as Mike Tokito of the Oregonian writes.

Howard Again Denies Asking For Coaching Change

April 13th, 2012 at 8:38am CST by Luke Adams

Last Thursday, in arguably the most eventful shootaround of the season, Magic coach Stan Van Gundy told reporters that he was aware Dwight Howard has asked the team to fire him. Howard arrived at the media scrum, unaware of the comments his coach had just made, and denied ever making such a request. Despite Van Gundy having made his lack of job security public, Howard continues to insist he hasn't requested a coaching change, according to Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel.

Howard sat down with ESPN's Hannah Storm for a one-on-one interview, and a transcript of a portion of their conversation was released by ESPN. Asked by Storm if he ever asked for Van Gundy to be fired, Howard replied, "No, no. So when it was said, I was just like, in shock, I was in shock."

"I got a lot of negative press out of the whole situation," Howard said. "You know, ‘Coach killer, this or that.’ And it was just bizarre how the whole thing happened. You know, but I haven’t said anything this season — to anybody in management about, you know, you need to do this with Stan, or vice versa; they never said we’ll do this for you."

Howard did concede that he'd made requests of management in past seasons when he's been upset, but said "I’ve always come back and said I’ll do a better job, I’ll take more of a hit, I’ll lead better."

Whether or not Howard has a standing request with the Magic for a coaching change, it seems nearly certain that Van Gundy will be replaced after this season. The real question will be whether D12 will follow him out of town a year later, when his contract with Orlando expires.

GM Otis Smith On Van Gundy

April 7th, 2012 at 9:55pm CST by Ryan Raroque

In an interview with ESPN's Lisa Salters today, Magic GM Otis Smith commented on the conflict between Dwight Howard and coach Stan Van Gundy, particularly quashing the rumor that Dwight had asked him directly to fire Van Gundy.

The article also mentions Smith's assertion that Van Gundy would remain the coach for the rest of the season, but did not elaborate on whether or not Stan would remain with the organization beyond this year, adding:

"Don't have the answer for that," Smith said. "I don't have the answer to who's going to be on our roster, either."

Van Gundy conjured up a media storm on Thursday morning after publicly acknowledging that Howard had asked management to fire him. Earlier we reported that Van Gundy wants to stay and continue coaching the Magic.

Odds & Ends: Van Gundy, Villanueva, Fisher, Magic

April 7th, 2012 at 9:13pm CST by Ryan Raroque

Several of tonight's NBA matchups have intriguing stories to follow. The Sixers, losers of three out of their last four games, collide with the Magic, who have lost five in a row. The Celtics hold a half-game lead over Philadelphia for the Atlantic Division crown, but face a challenge tonight as they play the surging Pacers, who are on a four-game winning streak. Tonight's Grizzlies–Mavericks matchup has a full-game impact on both teams in the Western conference standings. The Clippers and Kings complete their home-and-home series tonight at Staples Center, just a few days after DeMarcus Cousins had some unflattering words for Blake Griffin following Thursday night's game. With that aside, we'll keep you updated on today's miscellaneous stories here:

John Hollinger of ESPN explores the different coaching options Stan Van Gundy has if he leaves the Magic (Insider link). It is worth noting that Hollinger lists a TV gig with ESPN or TNT, the Clippers, and Wizards among several other possibilities.
Charlie Villanueva is "dying to play," writes Keith Langlois of Pistons.com. The six-year veteran has played in just two games since returning from an ankle injury.
While Derek Fisher hasn't shown a statistical improvement compared to his numbers with the Lakers this season, the Thunder remain hopeful that his intangibles and big-game experience will pay dividends toward the development of the team, says J. Michael Falgoust of USA Today.
In what he considers to be a "sneakered soap opera," Brian Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel shares his thoughts on what to expect from the Magic as they finish the rest of the season and head into the summer.
Antoine Walker announced his retirement from the D-League, tweeted Marc J. Spears of Yahoo.
Expected to file for retirement in June, Brad Miller briefly reflects on a storied career with Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune.
Shabazz Muhammad of Las Vegas Bishop Gorman High School is the only NBA-ready player among the participants at the Nike Hoops Summit, according to Marc J. Spears of Yahoo.

Stan Van Gundy Intends To Return As Magic Coach

April 7th, 2012 at 2:50pm CST by Chuck Myron

Magic coach Stan Van Gundy wants to coach the Magic again next season despite the knowledge that Dwight Howard has been trying to fire him, Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel reports. The contracts of both Howard and Van Gundy expire after next season.

“They’re going to have to make decisions," Van Gundy said of the team. "But I’m a basketball coach and I know this: I don’t want to go anywhere else. I mean, I love Orlando, and this is where I want to be. And I want to coach.”

While finishing this season as coach appeared a shaky proposition after he revealed Thursday that Howard has been asking management to fire him, the team seems content to keep him for now. Whether the team wants him around longer is unclear. Yesterday, Steve Kyler of HoopsWorld reported that team executives have been more open to the idea of firing Van Gundy than even Howard has been, so if that's true it would be hard to see Van Gundy back in Orlando next year.

Robbins notes that earlier this season, Van Gundy characterized it as his most challenging as a coach, as the team has dealt with uncertainly concerning Howard's future. Now, the team is dealing with speculation about both its coach and its superstar. If the Magic can somehow overcome this and make a deep run in the playoffs, perhaps to the conference finals, it might be enough to save Van Gundy. Still, the locker room dynamic will seem dysfunctional at best until Howard and Van Gundy either settle their differences or one of them departs.

Latest On Howard/Van Gundy

April 6th, 2012 at 11:12am CST by Chuck Myron

Magic coach Stan Van Gundy's revelation that Dwight Howard wants him fired was the dominant story in the NBA yesterday. Many, including a slight majority of Hoops Rumors readers, believe Van Gundy will be gone before the end of the season. Here's what's happening as the saga continues to unfold:

Magic executives have been more open to the idea of firing Van Gundy than even Howard has as the team looks to build a cooperative relationship with its superstar, notes Steve Kyler of HoopsWorld.
Howard also pushed the team to fire former coach Brian Hill, according to Ian O'Connor of ESPNNewYork.com.
Van Gundy believes he'll finish the season as the Magic coach, HoopsWorld reports. He met with GM Otis Smith and Howard yesterday, the report states.
The coach is expected to travel with the team to Philadelphia for its game with the Sixers tomorrow night, Ken Berger of CBSSports.com tweets, so it looks like Van Gundy's job is safe for the moment. Magic CEO Alex Martins doesn't want to make a change now, Berger also notes via Twitter.
The Magic threatened Howard with a trade to the Lakers if he didn't opt in to his deal at the trading deadline, reports Fred Kerber of the New York Post. Despite the presence of the Lakers on his list of preferred teams, the Nets were far and away Howard's top choice, Kerber writes. The Magic favored the Lakers' offer of Andrew Bynum, Devin Ebanks and Steve Blake over New Jersey's package of Brook Lopez, MarShon Brooks, Mehmet Okur and two first-round picks.
Howard and Van Gundy tried their best to deflect the glare of yesterday's events in their comments following last night's loss to the Knicks, notes Alex Kennedy of HoopsWorld. While Howard simply declined to comment on the matter, Van Gundy tried to shift the topic to on-court matters when asked about his future with the team. “That’s not what’s important right now,” the coach said. “It’s not. My job security is not what’s important right now. What Dwight wants is not important. What’s important is that we focus on playing better as a team. That’s what is important.”
J.J. Redick has Van Gundy's back, Kennedy also reports.
On ESPN.com's Daily Dime, Zach McCann says the Magic locker room might be beyond repair now, with some players frustrated with Howard's power plays and others in agreement with D12 that it's time for Van Gundy to go. McCann also mentions assistants Brendan Malone and Patrick Ewing as possible interim replacements should the Magic let Van Gundy go this season.
Mitch Lawrence of the New York Daily News calls on the Nets to end their pursuit of Howard in light of how he's tried to undermine his coach.
Tom Ziller, writing for SBNation.com, says that the Magic would have been better off trading Howard at the deadline, despite his willingness to stick around for another season.
Lang Greene of HoopsWorld gathers a few more reactions from around the league.

Poll: Will Stan Van Gundy Last The Season?

April 5th, 2012 at 9:03pm CST by Sean Highkin

The story of the day has been Magic coach Stan Van Gundy's revelation that Dwight Howard asked Orlando management to fire him. It's expected that Van Gundy will be fired at the end of the season, but it could come sooner if the situation is not resolved. Do you think Van Gundy will end the 2011/12 season as Orlando's head coach?

Howard Has Asked Magic To Fire Van Gundy

April 5th, 2012 at 7:43pm CST by Luke Adams

7:43pm: According to Mike Prada of SBNation (Twitter link), Van Gundy confirmed to TNT's David Aldridge that he's known all season that Howard wanted him fired.

5:51pm: CBSSports.com's Ken Berger writes that there's no chance Van Gundy will be back as head coach of the Magic next season.

3:13pm: Yahoo!'s Adrian Wojnarowski writes that Howard's attempts to get Van Gundy fired are just the latest development in a power struggle between the coach and star center.

11:34am: A source close to Van Gundy tells Wojnarowski that Howard has asked the Magic to fire Van Gundy multiple times since last summer (Twitter link).

11:17am: Just moments after Van Gundy spoke to reporters in Orlando, Howard talked to the same group, including Howard Beck of the New York Times (Twitter link), and denied that he'd asked management to fire the coach.

11:06am: Van Gundy told reporters, including Josh Robbins (Twitter link), that Howard has indeed asked Magic management to fire Van Gundy. This is a pretty surprising development — not just that Howard actually made the request, but that Van Gundy would publicly acknowledge it.

9:01am: During the height of the pre-deadline Dwight Howard drama, a report surfaced that suggested Howard had been offered the opportunity to determine the fates of GM Otis Smith and coach Stan Van Gundy if he re-signed. The Magic quickly released a statement denying it, but with Howard locked into his contract for another year, the rumors persist.

David Pingalore of WKMG Local 6 in Orlando reported this week that Howard has conveyed to Magic ownership that he'd like a coaching change, and won't consider a contract extension unless the team fires Van Gundy this offseason. Magic owner Rich DeVos told Pingalore that Howard won't be given that type of decision-making power, though the team will seek his input on any major decisions.

"He can't make those decisions and choices," DeVos said. "We will make those, but we will let him know what we are making and we want his opinion on what fits and doesn't fit."

Orlando CEO Alex Martins echoed that sentiment to Joshua Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel, noting that the futures of Van Gundy and Smith, who are both under contract through 2012/13, won't be discussed until after the season. The Magic didn't make any specific promises to Howard when he waived his early termination option, according to Martins.

SI.com's Chris Mannix tweets that the Magic will do "whatever it takes" to placate Howard over the next year. If that means firing Van Gundy, they'll do it, says Mannix. In a separate tweet, Mannix adds that several rival executives believe the Magic coach would be highly coveted if he were to find himself out of work in Orlando.

I think Mannix is right that the Magic will give strong consideration to Howard's opinion. If Orlando makes a deep playoff run, it would be hard to justify firing Van Gundy, but if D12 pushes for it, I think it'll happen. What we don't know yet is whether or not that's what Dwight wants — hopefully he won't be quite as indecisive on this topic as he was on his contract situation.