Tony Brown Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Nets Rumors: Johnson, Brown, Thibodeau

January 17th, 2016 at 10:53am CST by Arthur Hill

Free-agent-to-be Joe Johnson has been the closest thing to a bright spot for the Nets, according to Brian Lewis of The New York Post. The veteran forward has been shooting 53% from 3-point range over Brooklyn’s past nine contests and has raised his scoring average from 10.5 points per game to 14.7. It was reported earlier this week that Johnson hasn’t expressed interest in taking a buyout from the Nets, and a salary of nearly $25MM may limit his trade prospects. “I don’t think it’s any different from when it was earlier in the season,” Johnson said. “I’m just playing. Obviously I’m making shots, probably a bit more poised now that I’m not trying to force a shot. I’m just taking what the defense gives me.”

There’s more news out of Brooklyn:

After a week on the job, interim coach Tony Brown is already expressing frustration with the team’s lack of effort, Lewis writes in a separate piece. Brown addressed the problem after Saturday’s game with the Hawks, in which Brooklyn lost by 28 points after being tied midway through the third quarter. “What I told them is I want to see a little bit more fight,’’ the coach said. “When you get into adversity, things are not going your way, it’s easy to not do as much. We’ve got some guys not playing their best basketball, but they have to fight their way out of these situations.”
Tom Thibodeau would probably want a say in personnel if he becomes the next coach of the Nets, opines Sam Smith of Bulls.com. Smith says former NBA coach Jeff Van Gundy has stressed to Thibodeau the importance of having control over personnel, similar to the situation that Stan Van Gundy has with the Pistons or that Doc Rivers has with the Clippers. A report on Friday indicated the Nets are strongly interested in hiring Thibodeau, and Smith writes that the former Bulls coach is eager to land his next job.
More than five years of free spending and short-sighted moves encouraged by owner Mikhail Prokhorov have led to the Nets’ dire situation, writes Tim Bontemps of The Washington Post.

Eastern Notes: Brown, James, Pistons

January 14th, 2016 at 9:00pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Nets forward Thaddeus Young pulled no punches when discussing the difference in playing for interim coach Tony Brown versus former coach Lionel Hollins, who was fired on Sunday, Anthony Puccio of NetsDaily relays (via Twitter). When asked his feelings about suiting up for Brown, Young said, “When your coach is not panicking and he’s staying positive and he’s continued to motivate us, it’s huge for us as far as an energy standpoint. It makes us continue to want to go out there and continue to play, and it doesn’t keep us thinking about what happened before as much. But Tony’s mentality is, forget what happened before this and let’s try to push and try to win this game. That’s huge for us as a team. It says a lot that he believes in us, that he wants us to compete.”

Here’s more from the Eastern Conference:

Cavs shooting guard J.R. Smith notes that the team’s excellent work ethic comes from following the example set by LeBron James, whose dedication has rubbed off on his teammates, as Marc Narducci of HoopsHype relays. When asked what it has been like to play alongside James, Smith told Narducci, “For one, he elevates everybody’s game and holds everybody to a higher standard. He makes you hold yourself to a higher standard. This is the first team I have been on where everybody stays after practice to work on their game. Everybody wants to be better every single day and a lot of that has to do with him. He is a credit to that. He holds himself to a high standard. We see how hard he works each and every day. If your best player is working twice as hard as the next person, it gives you enthusiasm and drive to work harder.”
Pistons coach/executive Stan Van Gundy is using the Spurs’ track record of consistency as an organization as a model for how he wants to build Detroit’s roster, John Niyo of The Detroit News writes. “I do think, looking forward, one of things we’ve talked about in trying to build this team is we have a chance for continuity,” Van Gundy said. “And I think you see it when you see a team like San Antonio, that over time it allows you to build on what you’re doing.”

And-Ones: Union, Douglas, Nets, Moreland

July 30th, 2014 at 1:15pm CST by Chuck Myron

The contracts for six NBA players will become fully guaranteed if their teams don’t waive them by the end of Friday, and two more players will earn partial guarantees if they avoid getting cut. Draymond Green and Khris Middleton almost certainly won’t be cast aside between now and that deadline, but for the rest, the summer temperatures won’t be the only reason to sweat out the next few days. Here’s more from the NBA:

Players association VP Roger Mason Jr. insists that union leadership addressed concerns from membership regarding the hiring process for a new executive director and the departure of search committee leader Kevin Johnson, as Mason tells Bleacher Report’s Jared Zwerling. Discord had marked the union’s Monday meeting in which Michele Roberts handily won a vote to fill the executive director vacancy.
The Bulls had been targeting free agent Toney Douglas, but they’ve abandoned their pursuit after signing Aaron Brooks, according to K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune.
Former NBA head coach Paul Westphal highlights the assistant coaching hires that the Nets officially announced today. Brooklyn also brought on Joe Wolf, Jay Humphries and Mavs assistant Tony Brown. John Welch and Jim Sann are the only holdovers from last season.
The Warriors and Knicks were interested in undrafted forward/center Eric Moreland, according to Shams Charania of RealGM. Charania reported Tuesday that Moreland had agreed to join the Kings instead.
The Hawks invited summer league guard Stephen Holt to fall training camp, but he instead signed a deal with a German team, reports Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.