Utah Jazz Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Brad Stevens Named Celtics’ Head Of Basketball Operations, Will Lead Search For New Coach

June 2nd, 2021 at 10:06am CST by Luke Adams

10:06am: The Celtics have officially announced that Stevens is the new president of basketball operations. Despite at least one report suggesting that Ainge isn’t expected to retire from basketball (as noted below), the club’s statement says the veteran executive is “retiring” from his role as president of basketball ops. Ainge will continue to work with the team through its offseason transition, per the C’s.

“Helping guide this organization has been the thrill of a lifetime, and having worked side-by-side with him since he’s been here, I know we couldn’t be in better hands than with Brad guiding the team going forward,” Ainge said in a statement. “I’m grateful to ownership, all of my Celtics colleagues, and the best fans in basketball for being part of the journey.”

Stevens issued a statement of his own, as follows:

“I’m grateful to ownership and to Danny for trusting me with this opportunity. I’m excited to tackle this new role, starting with a wide ranging and comprehensive search for our next head coach. I love the Celtics, and know the great honor and responsibility that comes with this job. I will give it everything I have to help us be in position to consistently compete for championships.”

9:24am: A major shakeup is taking place in Boston, as Celtics president of basketball operations Danny Ainge will indeed step down from his current role, per ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link). Wojnarowski had reported earlier in the morning that Ainge was seriously considering such a move.

The Celtics won’t go outside the organization for Ainge’s replacement, however. According to Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter links), head coach Brad Stevens will be making the move from the sidelines to the front office and will become the club’s new president of basketball operations.

Rather than holding a dual role, Stevens will become a full-time front office executive and is expected to lead the search for the Celtics’ new head coach, Charania reports.

Celtics players were informed of this potential change late on Tuesday night after the team was eliminated from the playoffs, says Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link).

Ainge had been contemplating leaving his job as the Celtics’ president of basketball operations for the last several months, according to Wojnarowski (Twitter link), who adds that Ainge had discussed possible succession plans with ownership.

While Stevens is a surprising choice as Ainge’s successor, Wojnarowski points out that Ainge made a similar move early in his post-playing career, having coached the Suns from 1996-99 before later transitioning into a front office role. According to Woj (Twitter link), Stevens has been described as feeling “worn down” with coaching since last summer and welcome the opportunity to shift into an executive position.

This major basketball operations overhaul comes on the heels of the Celtics’ early exit from the postseason. After making the Eastern Conference Finals in three of the last four years, Boston entered the season with aspirations of competing for a title.

However, due to COVID-19 issues, injuries, and inconsistent play, the team never built any real momentum toward legit contention, finishing seventh in the East. Although the C’s earned a postseason berth via the play-in tournament, they were eliminated swiftly in the first round by the Nets.

Despite the Celtics’ disappointing season, Stevens and Ainge – one of the longest-tenured coach/executive duos in the NBA – weren’t thought to be in any real danger of being fired. It appears Ainge’s exit is of his own volition after he spent the last 18 years calling the shots in the team’s front office.

Even though his time with the Celtics is ending, Ainge isn’t believed to be leaning toward retirement, according to Chris Mannix of SI.com, who tweets that the Jazz have been rumored as a possible landing spot for the veteran exec.

Meanwhile, Lakers assistant Jason Kidd and former Hawks coach Lloyd Pierce are expected to be among the candidates to fill Boston’s newly-created head coaching vacancy, according to Haynes (Twitter link).

In his eight seasons as the Celtics’ head coach, Stevens led the team to a 354-282 (.557) regular season record, with a 38-40 (.487) mark in the playoffs, including those three Eastern Finals appearances. As for Ainge, the C’s made the postseason in all but three of his 18 seasons running the front office, taking home a title in 2008.

Ainge’s trades for Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen helped lead the Celtics to a title in 2008. Additionally, the blockbuster deal that sent an aging Garnett and Paul Pierce to the Nets for a boatload of draft picks in 2013 is considered one of the biggest NBA heists of the century, putting Boston in position to land Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown in subsequent drafts.

Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Northwest Notes: Conley, Gobert, Malone, Trail Blazers

May 30th, 2021 at 9:54am CST by Arthur Hill

Mike Conley turned in a vintage performance Saturday night in his first road playoff game at Memphis, writes Nick Friedell of ESPN. The veteran point guard made it a memorable homecoming with 27 points, eight assists and six rebounds as the Jazz pulled out a Game 3 victory.

Conley spent 12 years with the Grizzlies and was a fan favorite before being traded to Utah in 2019. This first-round series has him battling with second-year guard Ja Morant, who has become the new face of the franchise.

“It’s amazing to be playing against a guy like Ja, first off,” Conley said. “Just seeing a guy that’s so talented, he’s a young superstar in the league, wearing the jersey that I’m so used to wearing. Getting the cheers from the crowd that I’m so used to hearing. It’s surreal. It’s like full circle. You never thought that it would be this way. I never did, at least. It’s like sometimes you live long enough to become the villain, and I’ve become that for the Memphis Grizzlies now.”

There’s more from the Northwest Division:

Rudy Gobert was thinking of Mark Eaton after Saturday’s win, according to Sarah Todd of The Deseret News. Eaton, a former Jazz center and shot-blocking specialist, died Friday at age 64. “I know that if he was here I would have got a text after the game saying, ‘Way to protect the paint, big guy,’” Gobert said.
Nuggets coach Michael Malone called out his team — and especially his starters — after a lopsided loss to Portland in Saturday’s Game 4, writes Royce Young of ESPN. With a chance to go up 3-1 in the series, Denver came out flat and never seriously challenged the Trail Blazers. The Nuggets’ starting unit was outscored 49-26 when it was on the floor and shot 30% from the field while Portland was making 65% of its shots. “Our starters were awful,” Malone said. “I thought we had some guys that were tentative, that looked a little scared, who played soft … we’re going to have to be a lot better going home.” He later added, “I can’t believe we’re actually talking about playing hard in a playoff game. That should be a given.”
With the Trail Blazers’ season hanging in the balance, Jusuf Nurkic and Norman Powell both came into Saturday’s game with something to prove, according to Jason Quick of The Athletic. Nurkic was upset over disparaging comments about his defense, while Powell wanted to show he could be the difference maker Portland expected when it acquired him at the trade deadline.

Jazz Notes: Mitchell, Snyder, Fan Incidents

May 28th, 2021 at 2:04pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

In limited minutes, Jazz All-Star shooting guard Donovan Mitchell looked like his old self Thursday night, his first game back since spraining his right ankle on April 16, writes Nick Friedell of ESPN. Mitchell scored 25 points in 26 minutes of game action.

The 24-year-old’s return to the floor helped galvanize the Jazz. Utah ultimately beat the Grizzlies 141-129 to knot their first-round series at 1-1.

“I felt better than I anticipated, and as a whole, I think the biggest thing as a team is we did a lot of good things tonight … so it made my job easier,” Mitchell said of his return to the Jazz. “I didn’t have to come in and just do everything. I was able to find my spots and attack. And kind of just do what I do. And my teammates made it really easy for me.”

There’s more out of Utah:

Eric Walden of the Salt Lake Tribune examines the circuitous journey Jazz head coach Quin Snyder undertook before landing in Utah. Snyder had stints with the now-Austin Spurs of the G League (then the Austin Toros of the D League), the Sixers, the Lakers, CSKA Moscow, and the Hawks. He began his journey from the college ranks to the pros in a cross-country adventure in a 2002 Volkswagen Eurovan, after his seven-year tenure as the men’s basketball head coach for Missouri ended in 2006. “I was in North Carolina living by myself, I had a great black Lab, and I was trying to figure out, kind of, ‘What next?’ And, the (next) question is, ‘Where?’ And ‘What?’” Snyder said. “And I came to the conclusion that, really, it was like, ‘Anywhere,’ because it really didn’t matter at that point. And it was a little bit of ‘Anything.’ I wasn’t sure I wanted to coach again.”
During the Jazz’s Game 2 victory over the Grizzlies, Vivint Arena security ejected three fans for unruly verbal behavior directed toward the parents of star Memphis point guard Ja Morant, writes Evan Barnes of the Memphis Commercial Appeal. The team has banned the individuals from Utah’s home arena indefinitely.
A Utah judge has rejected a $100MM lawsuit filed by two other Jazz fans against Wizards point guard Russell Westbrook and the Jazz, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN. The fans, who claimed defamation and infliction of emotional stress in their suit, had also been banned indefinitely for comments and taunts directed towards Westbrook, then with the Thunder, in a March 2019 Jazz game.

Once Reluctant, Clarkson Has Embraced Reserve Role

May 26th, 2021 at 4:05pm CST by Luke Adams

As Sarah Todd of The Deseret News details, Jazz guard Jordan Clarkson was always reluctant to accept a bench role earlier in his NBA career, viewing it as a slight when he was removed from the starting lineup during his days with the Lakers. However, Clarkson has embraced his reserve role over the years and it paid off in a big way in 2020/21 with a Sixth Man of the Year award.

Western Notes: Mitchell, Popovich, Kings, Brewer

May 25th, 2021 at 10:40am CST by Luke Adams

Speaking to reporters on Monday, Jazz guard Donovan Mitchell confirmed that he was shocked by the team’s decision to hold him out of Game 1 when he thought he’d be playing, as Andy Larsen of The Salt Lake Tribune writes.

“I was frustrated and upset,” said Mitchell, who has missed over a month with a right ankle sprain. “I was ready to go. I was ready to go.”

s tell Tony Jones and Sam Amick of The Athletic that Mitchell had hoped to make his return late in the regular season and was already irritated by the delay, so Sunday’s decision only exacerbated his frustration. The Jazz, who didn’t want to risk a re-aggravation of the injury, felt that holding him out for one more game – resulting in three extra days of rest – was the best move for Mitchell’s health and safety, per Jones and Amick.

Having been cleared to play in Game 2, Mitchell said on Monday that he’s ready to move past the situation, tweets Eric Walden of The Salt Lake Tribune. Still, ESPN’s Brian Windhorst said on his latest Hoop Collective podcast that some damage has been done to the relationship between the Jazz and their All-Star guard.

“Is it damaged to the point where it can’t be repaired? I’m not saying that,” Windhorst said, per RealGM. “Is it something that they’ll get past and he’ll just move on and it will just be a blip on the radar screen? Maybe. Maybe they’re in The Finals in two months and who cares? Maybe they win the next four games and it’s totally forgotten. But right now, Donovan is hurting. He’s really hurting the way this happened.”

As the Jazz look to even the series in Game 2 on Wednesday, Mitchell said there have been no discussions yet about him facing a minutes limit in his first game since April 16. The 24-year-old said he wants to be smart, but added that he’s prepared to play all 48 minutes if necessary, tweets Jones.

Here’s more from around the Western Conference:

It remains unclear whether Gregg Popovich will decide to continue coaching the Spurs in 2021/22, writes Mike Finger of The San Antonio Express-News. As Finger details, the longtime Spurs coach said last week that there would be “a lot of time” to figure out what’s next, so it could still be weeks or months before the team makes an announcement.
The Stockton Kings, in search of a new head coach, are interviewing candidates from Sacramento’s coaching staff , per Sean Cunningham of ABC10 Sacramento (Twitter link). Bobby Jackson, Lindsey Harding, and Jonah Herscu are receiving consideration to coach the Kings’ G League team, sources tell Cunningham.
Former NBA wing Corey Brewer, who joined the Pelicans as a player development coach last fall, wrote for BasketballNews.com about transitioning from playing to coaching and what he learned in his first year in the new role. Brewer also shared some thoughts on several of New Orleans’ young players.

Jordan Clarkson Captures Sixth Man Award

May 24th, 2021 at 6:49pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Jazz guard Jordan Clarkson has won the NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year award, according to a league press release.

This is the first time Clarkson has won the award. He’s also the first Jazz player to be given the honor.

Clarkson, who re-signed with Utah last offseason for four years and $51MM, received 65 first-place votes and earned 407 total points from a global panel of 100 sportswriters and broadcasters. His teammate, forward Joe Ingles, finished in second place with 272 points (34 first-place votes). Knicks guard Derrick Rose finished third with 77 points (one first-place vote).

Clarkson averaged a career-high 18.4 PPG, 4.0 RPG and 2.5 APG in 26.7 MPG while appearing in 68 games. Playing his first full season with Utah and seventh in the NBA, Clarkson recorded two games with at least 40 points, five games with at least 30 points and 23 games with at least 20 points off the bench.

Montrezl Harrell, then with the Clippers, won the award last season. Lou Williams captured the honor with the Clippers the previous two seasons.

Mavericks teammates Jalen Brunson and Tim Hardaway rounded out the top five vote-getters for this year’s Sixth Man award. The full voting results can be found here.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Community Shootaround: Western Conference First-Round Series

May 24th, 2021 at 3:59pm CST by Luke Adams

In both 2019 and 2020, the top four seeds in the Western Conference advanced to the second round of the playoffs. However, things are looking a whole lot more wide open early in the first round of the 2021 postseason.

Over the weekend, three of the four lower-seeded teams in the Western Conference playoff matchups won Game 1. The one lower seed that didn’t come away with a win? The No. 7 Lakers, who were favored by oddsmakers over the No. 2 Suns coming into the series.

Despite their seventh seed, the defending-champion Lakers have been widely viewed as one of the favorites to come out of the West now that they’re healthy again, with LeBron James and Anthony Davis back in the lineup. But L.A.’s two leading scorers combined for just 31 points on 11-of-29 shooting in Game 1 against a tough Phoenix team that led almost all night despite a subpar performance from veteran leader Chris Paul.

Later on Sunday, the No. 8 Grizzlies pulled out an upset victory over the No. 1 Jazz, taking advantage of Donovan Mitchell‘s absence and Rudy Gobert‘s foul trouble (he played just 25 minutes before fouling out), as Ja Morant and Dillon Brooks racked up a combined 57 points and helped Memphis hold off a late push from Utah.

On Saturday, the fifth-seeded Mavericks and sixth-seeded Trail Blazers knocked off the Clippers and Nuggets, respectively. A pair of All-NBA guards played key roles in those victories — Luka Doncic scored a game-high 31 points and was a game-best plus-19 in Los Angeles, while Damian Lillard pulled off a similar feat in Denver (34 points, plus-25).

It’s not uncommon for an underdog to win the first game of a series and fail to take advantage of that momentum. In fact, each of the last two NBA champions (the Lakers in 2020 and the Raptors in 2019) lost the first game of their respective first-round series, then won the next four en route to a deep playoff run.

To that point, the oddsmakers at BetOnline.ag still consider the Jazz and Clippers favorites over the Grizzlies and Mavericks, and give the Lakers near-even odds to win their first-round series over the Suns. Confidence in the Nuggets is dwindling though — the Trail Blazers have been made solid favorites in that series.

We want to know what you think. Will multiple lower-seeded teams win their first-round matchups? Which four Western Conference teams do you expect to see in the second round?

Head to the comment section below to weigh in with your thoughts and predictions!

Donovan Mitchell To Return For Game 2

May 24th, 2021 at 3:08pm CST by Luke Adams

Jazz star Donovan Mitchell will be available to play in Game 2 vs. Memphis on Wednesday, the team announced today.

Mitchell – who was a full participant in practice on Monday, per Eric Walden of The Salt Lake Tribune (Twitter link) – missed Game 1 on Sunday and hasn’t played at all since April 16 due to a right ankle sprain.

We’re still more than 48 hours away from tip-off in Utah, so there was no urgency to announce a decision on Mitchell right away. However, with reports indicating that the 24-year-old was angry at the team for holding him out of Game 1, today’s announcement may represent a step toward easing tensions.

Based on those earlier reports, it sounds like Mitchell’s own trainers and the Jazz’s training staff may not have been on the same page regarding his readiness. Mitchell spoke on Sunday as if he would play in Game 1 before Utah officially ruled him out.

Facing a 1-0 defect in their series against the Grizzlies, the Jazz will welcome the return of their leading scorer. Mitchell averaged a career-best 26.4 points to go along with 5.2 assists and 4.4 rebounds in 53 games (33.4 MPG) in 2020/21.

Donovan Mitchell Angry At Jazz For Sitting Him In Game 1

May 24th, 2021 at 11:06am CST by Luke Adams

As we detailed in a pair of earlier stories, the Jazz made the decision to hold Donovan Mitchell out of Game 1 of the team’s series vs. Memphis on Sunday, despite the fact that the All-Star guard believed he was ready to return from his ankle sprain.

Head coach Quin Snyder acknowledged to reporters before the game that Mitchell didn’t love the decision, but it sounds like Snyder may have been understating the 24-year-old’s feelings on the matter. Sources tell Brian Windhorst and Tim MacMahon of ESPN that Mitchell was “incensed” by the decision and that it “deepened (his) tensions” with the team.

According to Windhorst and MacMahon, after Mitchell made slow progress during the early stages of his recovery, he began to work with his personal training staff – rather than Jazz trainers – on his rehab. Of course, it was the team’s training staff that made the call to hold him out on Sunday, after all signs had pointed toward him returning. ESPN’s duo notes that Utah has a history of being cautious with player injuries.

Andy Larsen of The Salt Lake Tribune suggests (via Twitter) that a power struggle of sorts seems to be taking place between the two training staffs – Mitchell’s and the team’s – over who makes the decisions on his recovery and availability.

Some “easing of frustrations” may need to take place this week behind the scenes, according to Windhorst and MacMahon, who say that new Jazz minority stakeholder Dwyane Wade could play a part in that process. Mitchell and Wade are close, and Wade has plenty of personal experience with managing injuries during the postseason.

While the Jazz and Mitchell don’t appear to be in a good spot in the short term, particularly since Utah lost Game 1, it’s unlikely to impact the guard’s long-term future with the franchise. Mitchell was originally on track to become a restricted free agent this summer, but signed a five-year extension last offseason that will keep him under contract with the Jazz through at least 2024/25.

Northwest Notes: Mitchell, Wolves, Thunder, Nuggets

May 24th, 2021 at 8:52am CST by Luke Adams

Donovan Mitchell declared himself ready to return on Sunday from the ankle sprain that has sidelined him since April 16, but the Jazz disagreed with the All-Star’s assessment, ruling him out for Game 1.

As Tim MacMahon of ESPN tweets, Jazz head coach Quin Snyder explained before the game that the team’s medical staff met with Mitchell after shootaround and decided to hold him out. Snyder acknowledged that Mitchell wasn’t thrilled with the decision, MacMahon adds.

The last-minute change of plans also left Mitchell’s teammates confused, writes Eric Walden of The Salt Lake Tribune. Rudy Gobert said he was “surprised” to wake up from his nap and find out that Mitchell wasn’t playing, while Bojan Bogdanovic was unsure about the reason for the decision.

“I mean, I don’t know what happened, honestly, with the decision for him and the medical staff to keep him out,” Bogdanovic said. “You should ask him.”

The decision figures to face increased scrutiny due to the fact that the Jazz lost Game 1 to the Grizzlies on Sunday night. However, the good news is that Game 2 won’t take place until Wednesday, giving Mitchell two days before Utah returns to the court. It would be surprising if the 24-year-old remains active for that game — late on Sunday night, he tweeted, “Sorry y’all… I wish I could say more…. I’ll be out there soon!”

Here are a few more Northwest notes:

Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic identifies five challenges facing the Timberwolves as their offseason begins, including filling out Chris Finch‘s staff, addressing a hole in the frontcourt, and determining Malik Beasley‘s role going forward.
Spenser Davis of Daily Thunder passes along three key takeaways from Thunder GM Sam Presti‘s end-of-season press conference. Presti indicated that he expects Oklahoma City’s rebuild to take some time and told reporters that he’d be open to moving either up or down in the draft, depending on where the Thunder’s picks land.
Mark Kiszla of The Denver Post contends that the Nuggets are already approaching must-win territory in Game 2 of their first-round series after dropping Game 1 to Portland.