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Knicks Rumors: Afflalo, Clarkson, Hernangomez

June 9th, 2016 at 8:50am CST by Luke Adams

On Wednesday, we learned that the Knicks are in negotiations to retain Kurt Rambis as an assistant on new head coach Jeff Hornacek‘s staff, and we passed along the names of several free agent targets viewed as “realistic” for the team, including a handful of veterans who are working out at a Knicks mini-camp. We’ve got a few more items out of New York to round up today, all courtesy of Ian Begley of ESPN.com, whose latest piece is chock-full of interesting tidbits. Let’s dive right in…

Asked which position the Knicks will prioritize this offseason, general manager Steve Mills provided an unsurprising reply. “It’s clear we need a lead guard, someone that can really carry the load, day in and day out,” Mills said during an MSG Network program. “That’s something that I think is one of our biggest needs.”
According to Begley, Arron Afflalo has yet to make a decision on his $8MM player option for 2016/17, but the expectation is that the veteran guard will opt out, potentially leaving the Knicks even more short-handed in the backcourt.
Begley hears that Jordan Clarkson has fans within the Knicks organization, but Clarkson will be a restricted free agent this summer, and appears likely to stay with the Lakers.
Mills indicated that New York hopes to sign 2015 second-round pick Willy Hernangomez this offseason. “We won’t be able to do anything until July 1 but we’re in conversations about that,” the GM said.
We’ve heard previously that the Knicks plan to acquire a draft pick, and Begley notes that the team has been working out prospects, emphasizing the triangle offense in those sessions.
Mills, on the possibility of getting involved in the draft: “Teams have multiple picks, so some of those teams are going to be interested in moving their picks. A lot is going to depend on who is there in the draft that we really like. We have a feel for if there are any players that we really like that we think can impact this team and then we’ll go out and aggressively get a pick if we think something’s there. But we also have to balance the number of young guys on the roster versus veterans that we may be able to bring in through free agency or trade. So that’s a balance that we’re constantly looking at.”
Mills added the Knicks expect to have “a pool of 30 or 40 players” that they’ll look at in free agency, with the intention of adding at least a couple free agents from that group. “The most important thing is to understand who the guys are that you have a really good chance of getting so that you’re not chasing the guys that you really don’t have a chance,” Mills said.

Eastern Notes: Heat, Vogel, Brooks, Olynyk

May 15th, 2016 at 8:57pm CST by Arthur Hill

Several Heat players had their minds on the future after today’s Game 7 loss at Toronto. The overall feeling is that most players want to return next season and they hope free agent center Hassan Whiteside is with them, tweets Jason Lieser of the Palm Beach Post. One exception could be Amar’e Stoudemire, who was unhappy with his playing time after signing a one-year deal with Miami as a free agent last summer (Twitter link). However, Stoudemire also felt the Heat had “great chemistry” and said, “I enjoyed the guys and I had the best time of my life with my teammates this season.” (Twitter link). Veteran Udonis Haslem, who has been with Miami for his entire 13-year career, understands he may have to find a new team to stay in the league next season. “There’s a business side to everything, so you never know,” Haslem said (Twitter link). Joe Johnson, who will be a free agent after joining the Heat in late February, said it’s too early to think about his next move (Twitter link). Chris Bosh, Goran Dragic, Justise Winslow and Josh McRoberts are the only Miami players with guaranteed deals for next season.

There’s more from the Eastern Conference:

The Knicks are hoping to hire a coach in the next week or so, writes Chris Herring of The Wall Street Journal. Frank Vogel, who met with team president Phil Jackson and GM Steve Mills Wednesday in Los Angeles, is apparently a finalist for the job, along with David Blatt and interim coach Kurt Rambis. Vogel reportedly spent much of his interview making the case that the understands the triangle and would incorporate it into his offense.
The Bucks will interview Utah executive Justin Zanik and former Charlotte GM Rod Higgins for an open front office position, tweets Marc Stein of ESPN.com. Milwaukee is looking for someone to work with GM John Hammond (Twitter link).
New Wizards coach Scott Brooks traveled to Orlando this week for a meeting with Marcin Gortat, according to Keely Diven of CSNMidAtlantic. Brooks is hoping to establish a better relationship with his starting center than former coach Randy Wittman, who feuded publicly with Gortat.
Kelly Olynyk will have to undergo surgery soon on his injured right shoulder in order to be ready for the start of next season, writes A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE. Olynyk has been hoping he can help the Canadian national team qualify for the Summer Olympics, but with a five-month projected recovery time, he is already likely to miss at least some of the Celtics‘ training camp.

Atlantic Notes: Prokhorov, Crowder, Casey

April 14th, 2016 at 11:58am CST by Chuck Myron

Russian law enforcement and tax officials are searching the Moscow offices of Nets owner Mikhail Prokhorov’s company, ONEXIM, reports Yuliya Fedorinova of Bloomberg.com. It’s not entirely clear why the search is taking place, though the Russian wire service Interfax reports the search has to do with offshore investment and tax payments and is part of a criminal proceeding, according to NetsDaily (Twitter link). Prokhorov ran against Russian president Vladimir Putin in 2012, and Putin is applying political pressure on offshore investors, as Fedorinova details. The ONEXIM under investigation isn’t the same as the holding company that controls the Nets, as NetsDaily points out.

While we wait to find out the implications of the Brooklyn-related news, see more from the Atlantic Division:

The Magic insisted that the Celtics include Jae Crowder in a would-be deal when the sides discussed potential Tobias Harris trades before the deadline, and Orlando’s insistence on Crowder stopped the talks from going further, a league source told A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE.com. Crowder isn’t untouchable, but he’s close, a league executive whose team negotiated with the Celtics told Blakely.
The Raptors have yet to pick up the team option on their contract with coach Dwane Casey for next season, but GM Masai Ujiri strongly signaled Wednesday that the team will, as expected, observes Ryan Wolstat of the Toronto Sun (Twitter link). “He’s been phenomenal I think, whether it’s reading games or adjustments, or just growth overall as a coach,” Ujiri said. “To be honest, everyone makes such a big deal like ‘OK, if we don’t make it past the first round, what will happen to Casey?’ Well Coach Casey deserves to be our coach, that’s 100% and I stand by that. He deserves to be our coach in the future because he has put in the work I think to bring winning to our program. The players have responded well I think, and it has translated a little bit and we hope it translates to the playoffs and I’m very hopeful it will because he’s a defensive minded coach but he’s been tremendous for us.”
Owner James Dolan still trusts team president Phil Jackson and his triangle offense, sources tell Marc Berman of the New York Post, and it’s doubtful Jackson will opt out of his deal after next season, as he hopes to serve out his contract, which runs until March 2019, Berman writes. Some around the league think Dolan wants Jackson to think about deferring to GM Steve Mills for the decision on the team’s next head coach if the Zen Master does intend to opt out, and if that’s the case, Mark Jackson, Scott Brooks and Randy Wittman, along with David Blatt, would be candidates, according to Berman.

Latest On Knicks Coaching Situation

April 12th, 2016 at 8:58am CST by Chuck Myron

David Blatt is a long shot for the Knicks head coaching job unless team president Phil Jackson defers to GM Steve Mills, a source tells Marc Berman of the New York Post. Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com reported Monday that the Knicks are considering the former Cavaliers coach and that Jackson views him favorably. Kurt Rambis, the interim head coach, remains a strong candidate to secure the job on a long-term basis, Begley wrote, but even if he doesn’t, he’ll remain with the Knicks as either the top offensive assistant or assistant GM, sources tell Berman.

That’s despite the general feeling in the locker room that Rambis talks down to the players, as one Knicks player told Frank Isola of the New York Daily News. Sources previously indicated to Berman that Rambis doesn’t have the same level of respect from the players that former coach Derek Fisher did. Carmelo Anthony has said he’d like for the Knicks to at least listen to candidates aside from Rambis, though Anthony delivered praise for the interim boss Sunday, as Begley chronicles (ESPN Now link).

“He was kind of a big-time influence in what we had going on early in the season and even last year, being the associate head coach,” Anthony said. “But just the way that he was able to jump right in there [after taking over], get guys’ attention and get guys to play — usually in that situation it takes time. Most people put in a new system, a new offense, a new defensive scheme. He jumped right in there because it was the same system.”

Rambis has close ties to Jackson, sharing the same agents, as Berman points out, but renewed speculation emerged Sunday that Jackson, who can opt out after next season, will remain team president for no more than another year, Isola relays. Berman suggests that hiring Blatt would represent a transition of sorts to Mills, who played college ball with Blatt at Princeton. Blatt was an usher at Mills’ wedding, according to Berman. Isola advocates for the Knicks to hire Tom Thibodeau, but Jackson, who remains in contact with Bulls executive John Paxson, isn’t impressed with the ex-Bulls coach, as Berman pointed out recently.

Knicks Rumors: Rondo, Karl, Anthony, Galloway

March 21st, 2016 at 12:20pm CST by Arthur Hill

Free-agent-to-be Rajon Rondo said he wants his next team to be the “last stop” in his NBA career, relays Brian Lewis of The New York Post. The Knicks are hoping they might be the destination for the Sacramento point guard, who leads the league in assists with 11.8 per game. New York will have at least $18MM in cap space to use this summer.

Lewis notes that Knicks GM Steve Mills spent 30 minutes talking with Rondo’s agent, Bill Duffy, last week in California. Carmelo Anthony has openly pushed for Rondo to join the team, and interim coach Kurt Rambis has expressed confidence that the 30-year-old can adapt to the triangle offense. After the Kings defeated the Knicks Sunday, Rondo brushed aside concerns that he might not be comfortable in the triangle. “I’m not against anything,” he said. “I’m pretty smart. I can figure out anything I need to figure out.’’

There’s more out of New York today:

Anthony, who has been the focus of rumors saying he might ask to be traded this summer, received support from Kings coach George Karl, according to Ian Begley of ESPN.com. “I’ve seen a winning ‘Melo over the last two years,” Karl said. “I’ve seen him sacrifice his game to try to figure out the team.” Anthony didn’t play Sunday because of a migraine and wasn’t available to speak with reporters, but he has repeatedly voiced his frustrations over the Knicks’ collapse during the second half of the season, which will leave the team out of the playoffs for the third straight year. “He doesn’t want the season to be over April [13th],” Karl said. “I think Melo’s had a Hall of Fame career, and I just know right now, just kind of looking at his body language, he wants to win.”
With restricted free agency looming, Langston Galloway has picked an unfortunate time to fall into a shooting slump, writes Ryan Lazo of The New York Post. Galloway’s 3-point marksmanship was an important weapon for the Knicks during the first part of the season, but teams have begun challenging his shots and daring him to drive. As a result, he’s shooting just 31% from the field in March. His two-year contract expires this summer, and the Knicks have to decide whether he can be a long-term effective scorer. “[Staying in New York] would mean a lot,” Galloway said. “I think they are going to show interest after the season, and I’m hoping I get to stay here.”

New York Notes: Dolan, Jackson, Nets GM Search

February 12th, 2016 at 9:30am CST by Chuck Myron

An “animated” meeting that involved Knicks owner James Dolan, team president Phil Jackson and GM Steve Mills took place after New York’s home loss to the Celtics on February 2nd, six days before the team fired Derek Fisher, a source tells Frank Isola of the New York Daily News. Isola’s source was the same who earlier said Dolan was angry about comments Fisher made in a recent radio appearance on “The Michael Kay Show” on ESPN 98.7 FM indicating that missing the playoffs wouldn’t be a disappointment. The loss to Boston was New York’s sixth in seven games, and the Knicks have lost four straight since. Isola speculates that Lakers assistant Mark Madsen is among those up for the head coaching job in New York and further wonders if Steve Kerr‘s lingering health problems will lead to top candidate Luke Walton taking over for Kerr in Golden State on a formal basis. The Daily News scribe also finds the question in one of Carmelo Anthony‘s statements since the Knicks coaching change disconcerting.

“You have to continue to put your trust into Phil,” Anthony said. “At this point, what could you do?”

See more on New York’s teams:

No major deals are likely for the Nets before the deadline, given Brooklyn’s unsettled front office situation and the lack of time before the deadline, sources told Brian Lewis of the New York Post. The team would be even less likely to make a move if it hires a GM who’s never headed a front office before, league sources said to NetsDaily. Bryan Colangelo is the only former front office chief among the three candidates ESPN’s Chris Broussard reported as front-runners for the vacancy. The Nets have reportedly reached out to the Hawks about Jeff Teague and Paul Millsap.
The Nets would like to hire a GM before Thursday’s trade deadline, but they won’t rush to do so, a league source told Broussard.
Interim Knicks coach Kurt Rambis is one of Jackson’s closest friends, and the Zen Master believes strongly in how well Rambis knows the game, Bleacher Report’s Kevin Ding writes. Rambis, who excels at teaching big men, has had a significant role in helping offseason signee Robin Lopez deliver this season, according to Ding. The interim boss is already showing that he’ll be more quick to criticize Knicks players than Fisher was, having pointed to Jose Calderon‘s defensive shortcomings in particular after Tuesday’s game, observes Marc Berman of the New York Post

Atlantic Notes: DeRozan, Hollins, Mills, ‘Melo

January 15th, 2016 at 8:59am CST by Chuck Myron

DeMar DeRozan has made no secret of his affection for Toronto, and he tells Michael Lee of The Washington Post that just because the Raptors have a history of star players leaving doesn’t mean he’ll follow suit. DeRozan is poised to turn down his player option worth only slightly more than $10MM and hit free agency this summer.

“One thing I never did was look at anybody else, what they did or what they followed, honestly,” DeRozan said to Lee. “I always stuck to what I believe in and what I’m comfortable with. If I see a hundred people walking left, that don’t necessarily mean I’m going to walk left. I may see this clear path and want to stay right.”

See more from the Atlantic Division:

Nets higher-ups were angry about the way former coach Lionel Hollins would pin blame on his players, sources tell Brian Lewis of the New York Post, and several sources who spoke with Andy Vasquez of The Record couldn’t identify a single player on the team who was fond of Hollins. Many players thought the coach talked down to them and found it hard to respect him because of that, Vasquez writes.
Knicks GM Steve Mills is very much involved with player personnel in his role under team president Phil Jackson, as agents tell Sean Deveney of The Sporting News that Mills is the go-to guy when they talk to someone from the Knicks. James Dolan has done little meddling with Jackson around, and the team hasn’t had substantive talks regarding a Carmelo Anthony trade this year, Deveney adds.
Nerlens Noel has long been a fan of Ish Smith, but the point guard has helped Jahlil Okafor‘s offensive game, too, observes Keith Bodner of Philadelphia magazine. The No. 3 overall pick has put up impressive numbers, albeit in a small sample size, since the Sixers traded for Smith on December 24th, as Bodner examines.

Knicks Rumors: Jackson, Isiah, Free Agency

June 19th, 2015 at 12:01pm CST by Chuck Myron

Knicks president Phil Jackson mentioned the need to add big men multiple times within an interview with Scott Cacciola of The New York Times, leading Tim Bontemps of the New York Post to speculate that the team is zeroing in on reported target Greg Monroe (Twitter link). Jackson suggested to Cacciola that the team would have drafted a big man, likely either Karl-Anthony Towns or Jahlil Okafor, if it had landed one of the top two picks in the draft. The Zen Master admitted the lottery setback that gave the team only the No. 4 pick resulted in a change of plans that figures to have a ripple effect on the rest of the summer.

“We know there are a limited number of guys we can bring in this year,” Jackson said about free agency. “We think we’ll get competitive guys to play. I think we’ll complement the guys we have here, and we’re going to move forward. We do know we’re going to have big guys in that group. We’re going to have to search out some big men.”

We’ll pass along more revelations from Jackson’s interview with Cacciola here:

Jackson told Cacciola that he and GM Steve Mills expressed their concerns to owner James Dolan when he presented them with the idea of hiring of former Knicks executive Isiah Thomas as president of the New York Liberty, a move with which Jackson was reportedly uncomfortable. “Jim Dolan had talked to us about it over dinner, maybe a month before it happened,” Jackson said. “We said, ‘Are you cognizant of the fact that this at least has the look of putting the fox in the henhouse?’ Is that a good term? In reviewing the history of it, we were told what the approach was by the Garden and how it went down. Jim said, ‘If you have any suggestions that you want to come back with, I’m open.’ And not being in that field, I didn’t have any information. It’s not where my head is at. So we’re not giving them any advice, and it’s going both ways.
Mills is “the future of this franchise,” Jackson told Cacciola, making it clear that he envisions a longer tenure for the GM than for himself.
All of the Knicks players expressed in their exit interviews that they’d like to return to the team, Mills said to Cacciola. The team only has fully guaranteed contracts with Carmelo Anthony, Jose Calderon, Tim Hardaway Jr. and Cleanthony Early.
Jackson once more touted the triangle and expressed full confidence in his abilities as an executive after subpar results in his first full season in charge of the roster. “Without a doubt,” Jackson said in response to Cacciola’s question about whether he still would have taken the job last year, knowing what he knows now. “I knew it was going to be a challenge. We just didn’t have any room to work last year. We knew that we were going to have to make big changes with the limitations that we had, being in a locked-in situation as far as the salary cap goes. That’s why when I said recently that I didn’t know why I wasn’t given some votes for Executive of the Year, I wasn’t kidding. I was really serious. We had a yeoman’s job of having to get rid of a lot of fat on our roster to get to where we are. I saw Mitch Kupchak got a vote, so I know some people valued what the Lakers were doing obviously.”

Eastern Rumors: Copeland, Jackson, Nets

April 9th, 2015 at 8:59am CST by Chuck Myron

Chris Copeland is intensive care in a New York hospital and will remain there for the next two or three days, a source tells ESPN’s Josina Anderson (Twitlonger link). The Pacers combo forward and soon-to-be free agent was the victim of a stabbing early Wednesday morning, and the attack left him with a punctured diaphragm, according to Candace Buckner of the Indianapolis Star. He also suffered lacerations on his left hand, Anderson hears. Copeland didn’t engage in an argument or initiate any altercation, a source tells Buckner. While we hope for the best for Copeland, here’s more from around the Eastern Conference:

Knicks owner James Dolan expressed continued faith in team president Phil Jackson and GM Steve Mills and again insisted that he wouldn’t meddle with the team as he spoke in an interview with Matthew Belloni of The Hollywood Reporter. “You got to believe, baby!” Dolan said, when asked if Jackson is still worth his $12MM annual salary. “I believe, I believe!”
The Nets want Brook Lopez back, as owner Mikhail Prokhorov on Wednesday made clear to reporters, including Tim Bontemps of the New York Post. Still, the owner acknowledged the primary choice rests with the center, who has a player option worth more than $16.744MM, as Bontemps relays. “We need him,” Prokhorov said. “I think the Brooklyn Nets, it’s his home.”
Brooklyn would pay the repeater tax if they’re a taxpayer again next season, and the return of Lopez would make that a strong possibility. Still, Prohorov said he’d be willing to do so, Bontemps notes. Prokhorov also insists he never sought to sell a majority stake in the Nets and said that while he’s been approached by 10 people with interest in buying a minority share, there’s nothing on the table for now, notes Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News.
The Cavs have some interest in Salah Mejri, a center playing for Spain’s Real Madrid, as Chema de Lucas of Gigantes Del Basket hears (translation via HoopsHype). The 28-year-old who went undrafted in 2008 is averaging 4.6 points and 2.4 rebounds in 9.8 minutes per game.

Knicks Notes: Jackson, Fisher, Dolan, Agents

November 11th, 2014 at 8:58am CST by Chuck Myron

Phil Jackson isn’t keen on commissioner Adam Silver’s recent assertion that the Knicks have been slow to pick up on the triangle, but the Zen Master made it clear Monday that he, too, recognizes his 2-6 team still has a lot to learn, as Marc Berman of the New York Post chronicles. The Knicks team president hinted that he’ll soon be drawing conclusions about members of his roster, which suggests moves won’t be far behind.

“There’s still quite a ways from their execution capabilities as a team,’’ Jackson said. “This is going to happen, [it’s] all part of the process. We think in terms of basketball-wise, Thanksgiving, December, it’s time to really say, ‘If you haven’t gotten it by now, maybe we’ll have to think of you as a learner or not a learner as a ballplayer at that time.’ ’’

There’s more from Jackson’s chat with reporters amid the latest on the struggling Knicks:

Coach Derek Fisher insists Jackson doesn’t micromanage, as Berman notes in his piece, and Jackson explained that he’s tried to strike a balance between giving input and letting Fisher make his own decisions, observes Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com. “I came back to impart what I learned,’’ Jackson said of his first-time foray into a team’s front office. “I’m constantly giving off ideas in the form of writing notes, communicating in various forms, some things we can try, some things we can initiate. We’ve touched just a very small part of our offense and adding bits and pieces as we go on.’’
Jackson has said before that input from James Dolan was sparse throughout the offseason, but the Zen Master said Monday that the owner has already spoken to him several times since the start of the season, as Begley points out. “Mostly, it was about pleasantries,” Jackson said. “But, to my surprise, he was happy with how the team performed.”
Jackson is delegating the duties of negotiation with player agents, as Begley notes via Twitter. “I’ve kind of let [GM] Steve Mills deal with those friends of ours,” Jackson said.