September 2013 – Page 13 – NBA Blog

Washington Wizards re-structure front office, promote Tommy Sheppard

Washington Wizards President Ernie Grunfeld announced today that the team has promoted Tommy Sheppard to senior vice president of basketball operations. In addition, the team has named Marc Eversley as vice president of scouting, Frank Ross as director of player personnel, Greg Ballard as advance pro scout and Thomas Knox as director of player performance and rehabilitation while promoting Ed Tapscott to vice president of player programs, Pat Sullivan to assistant coach, Brett Greenberg to director of basketball analytics/salary cap management, Bryan Oringher to video coordinator and Ryan Richman to assistant video coordinator.

“Tommy is a very respected figure within all circles of basketball, including the NBA, international/Olympic competition and the collegiate ranks,” said Grunfeld. “His experience, combined with the additions we have made and the other well-deserved promotions within the department, gives us a solid foundation to continue improving our team.”

Sheppard is entering his 11th season with the Wizards and his 20th season in the NBA. His new role will see him take on expanded duties with salary cap management, draft preparation, college and pro talent evaluation, statistical analysis and recruitment of free agents while maintaining responsibility for the team’s day-to-day basketball operations. Sheppard spent nine seasons with the Denver Nuggets and has worked with USA Basketball for three Summer Olympic Games and the 2003 Pan American Games.

Eversley joins the Wizards after spending seven years with the Toronto Raptors, including the last two seasons as vice president of college scouting where he spearheaded all collegiate scouting, pre-draft player evaluations and workouts. He also served as the team’s assistant general manager in 2010-11 and as assistant general manager/player development prior to that. Before coming to the Raptors, he spent six years with Nike Canada.

Tapscott enters his seventh season with the Wizards and has over a quarter-century of experience in basketball, including serving as president and chief operating officer of the Charlotte Bobcats and roles as vice president of player personnel/basketball operations and interim president and general manager for the New York Knicks. He will continue to implement player programs and provide scouting for the team.

Ross, a District native and two-time All-Colonial Athletic Association selection at American University, served the previous six seasons as director of east coast scouting for the Oklahoma City Thunder. In that role, he was an integral part in evaluating college and international player talent. Ross served as a scout with the Charlotte Bobcats from 2003-07, evaluating college and minor league player talent.

Ballard, a member of the 1978 Bullets championship team, re-joins the Wizards organization after spending the last 19 years as a scout and coach with Atlanta (nine seasons), Minnesota (nine seasons) and Dallas (one season). Ballard played eight seasons in Washington after being selected with the fourth overall pick in the 1977 NBA Draft, averaging 13.5 points and 6.3 rebounds in 643 games before playing his final two seasons in Golden State.

Knox comes to the Wizards from the Andrews Institute for Orthopaedics and Sports Medicine in Gulf Breeze, Fla., where he was manager of performance physical therapy. He brings over six years of experience in athlete performance, injury prevention, physical therapy and strength and conditioning training to the team, and will be responsible for designing programs for player performance, injury prevention and rehabilitation.

Sullivan begins his first season as an assistant on Randy Wittman’s staff after serving the previous campaign as advance scout. He joined the Wizards last season after spending three seasons each as an assistant coach with the Detroit Pistons (2008-11) and the New Jersey Nets (2005-08). He participated in three Final Fours as a player and three as a coach at the University of North Carolina before joining the NBA coaching ranks.

Greenberg is entering his fifth season with the Wizards, most recently serving as basketball operations assistant/video coordinator. He came to the Wizards after spending the 2008-09 season with the Miami Heat as a video intern and was as a student manager for the men’s basketball team at Duke. In his new role, Greenberg will lead the Wizards’ analytical efforts while assisting with all salary cap and CBA matters.

Oringher enters his first season with the Wizards as video coordinator after serving the last two years as a video intern. He is a 2013 graduate of the University of Maryland where he was a student assistant/video intern for the men’s basketball team under Head Coach Gary Williams (2009-2011).

Richman begins his first season with the Wizards as assistant video coordinator after serving the last two seasons as a graduate assistant for the University of Maryland’s men’s basketball team. He will be primarily responsible for opponent video breakdown and assisting Oringher with all other aspects of the video department.

Rick Adelman will continue to coach the Timberwolves

Coach Rick Adelman will return for Timberwolves

The Minnesota Timberwolves have confirmed Rick Adelman will coach the team this season after health issues for his wife earlier this year had raised questions about whether he would return.

Team owner Glen Taylor told the The Star Tribune of Minneapolis on Sunday that Adelman said he was coming back.

Mary Kay Adelman’s health issues caused the coach to take a three-week, midseason leave from the team.

Reported by ESPN.com/Associated Press

Al Marchfeld, a fixture at Madison Square Garden, dies at 80

Madison Square Garden’s three-year renovation will be complete next month. That means there will be new suites, new concession stands and even two new bridges suspended above the hardwood at the World’s Most Famous Arena next season.

But an important part of MSG will be missing when the doors open for business again in late October. Al Marchfeld won’t be at his customary seat in the press box, greeting fans and reporters with a handshake and warm smile.

Marchfeld, a Garden employee for more than 60 years, died earlier this month. And he left a void that will be nearly impossible to fill.

Marchfeld worked several jobs throughout his long-lasting run at MSG. A diamond-setter by trade, Marchfeld started out as a statistician, and later worked on the Knicks’ game-night staff in the press box.

Reported by Ian Begley of ESPN New York

Toronto Raptors invite Carlos Morais, Julyan Stone, Chris Wright to training camp

Toronto Raptors invite Carlos Morais to training camp

Masai Ujiri has turned to his native Africa to try to fill his squad’s final roster spot.

The Raptors president/general manager confirmed Sunday that Angolan guard Carlos Morais has been invited to training camp, along with Julyan Stone and Chris Wright.

Morais, a 27-year-old, 6-foot-3 guard has been playing professionally since he was a teenager and has been a major reason why Angola has emerged as the class of the continent since 2005.

Morais was named MVP of the recent Afrobasket tournament after leading Angola to gold with averages of 15.9 points and 4.6 assists per game.

Reported by Ryan Wolstat of the Toronto Sun

Sixers to add Greg Foster to coaching staff

The Sixers have hired Greg Foster as an assistant coach, according to a source close to the situation.

Foster, 44, joins Lloyd Pierce and Chad Iske on Brett Brown’s staff after spending the last three seasons as an assistant coach at the University of Texas at El Paso, his alma mater.

He played power forward and center for nine teams in a 13-year NBA career that included two trips to the NBA Finals with the Utah Jazz and a championship with the Los Angeles Lakers in 2001. He also played professionally in Spain and Greece.

Reported by Jason Wolf of the Courier Post (Blog)

Deron Williams confirms that yes, the Nets would prefer to run New York

D-Will

Mostly looking to just play basketball

Deron Williams has entered the fray — sort of.

Asked about teammate Paul Pierce’s assertion that the Nets will eventually take ownership of New York from the Knicks, Williams told ESPNNewYork.com, “That’s my teammate so I’m with him. Of course we want to run New York. The Knicks are our rival. I don’t get into too much of the talking. We’ll decide all that on the court. We have four games to play against them and then the playoffs so I’ll let Paul do the talking and I’ll just go out there and play.”

The Knicks and Nets have engaged in a war of words ever since Nets forward Pierce told ESPN New York 98.7 FM in August, “I think it’s time for the Nets to start running this city.”

That sparked responses from Raymond Felton and J.R. Smith, who called Pierce “bitter” and added that there “will be consequences” for his words.

The Knicks and Nets will meet four times in the regular season.

Reported by Ian Begley of ESPN New York

LeBron James is now a married man

LeBron James

Has rings

To quote San Diego legend and respected newsman Ron Burgundy, when Jay-Z and Beyonce fly in to sing at your wedding, you’re “kind of a big deal.”

A performance by the two pop icons on Saturday night highlighted the wedding celebration of Miami Heat star LeBron James and longtime girlfriend Savannah Brinson, who shared vows in San Diego with family and friends.

And, so, Miami’s king now has a queen.

About 200 people attended the ceremony held at San Diego-area resort Grand Del Mar Hotel. The hotel is considered one of the best in the world. Per the property’s website, the Grand Del Mar Hotel is “serenely nestled amidst Los Peñasquitos Canyon Preserve” and “seamlessly combines the old-world charm of a Mediterranean estate with the modern luxury of an elegant resort.”

The constant hovering of local TV helicopters apparently detracted little from the ceremony’s ambiance, which was hidden from view under large event tents. Guests were ushered into the hotel under umbrellas.

Reported by Joseph Goodman of the Miami Herald

Many members of the Heat organization were there, including Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh, managing general partner Micky Arison and coach Erik Spoelstra. Wade and girlfriend Gabrielle Union posted images of themselves dressed for the occasion on social media, as did Bosh and his wife Adrienne. Some of James’ longtime friends were also in attendance, including his manager Maverick Carter.

“What a wonderful evening!!” Adrienne Bosh wrote on Twitter. “Congratulations to Mr. & Mrs. James…Thanks for sharing Ur night & love with us”

The ceremony was the obvious highlight of a three-day wedding weekend for the couple, who were high school sweethearts and are the parents of two sons. They were engaged just after midnight on Jan. 1, 2012, when James dropped to a knee and surprised his longtime girlfriend by finally popping the question as many of their close friends were gathered around.

Reported by the Associated Press

Tracy McGrady sounds off on NBA knuckleheads

Michael Beasley

Needs to not be a knucklehead

Once a skinny kid in a purple uniform, McGrady now can sound like a jaded curmudgeon lamenting the state of the next generation.

“You’ve got some guys in the league now who are just knuckleheads,” McGrady said. “What turns me off is guys doing the wrong thing. Just the legal part of it, hanging out, getting these DUIs, marijuana — all that crazy stuff, just doing the wrong thing, setting a bad example for the young guys … I don’t quite understand it. I take a guy like (Michael) Beasley. Had all the potential in the world but he’s not level-headed. He just doesn’t get it. And a very talented player. But where else are you going to make this type of money doing something you love to do every day, take care of your family and play basketball. I mean, are you serious? You get millions of dollars for it and you mess these opportunities up? I don’t get it.”

Reported by Dave Feschuk of the Toronto Star

Tracy McGrady wishes he had stayed in Toronto

In the spring of 2000, all things seemed possible for the Toronto Raptors.

If the hope was genuine and the hype was mostly justified, it’s because the nascent NBA team had been graced with the presence of two giant talents. Vince Carter, the league’s reigning slam-dunk champion, was at the time one of the most popular basketball players on the planet. On his best nights, he was also one of the most unguardable. And then there was Tracy McGrady, still mostly a backup player in those days but already the subject of whispers that he might one day turn out to be better than Carter, his distant cousin.

That day, it turned out, didn’t arrive with McGrady residing in Toronto. With his three-year rookie contract expiring at that the end of a 1999-2000 season that saw the Raptors make the first post-season appearance in their then five-season history, McGrady was an impending free agent with no end of suitors, the citizens of Toronto among them. Fans carried signs that urged: “Come Back T-Mac!” Shirtless young men painted the same message across their chests. The Raptors set up an email address with which fans could flood their six-foot-eight hero with pleadings he stay.

He didn’t stay, of course. McGrady, who grew up in tiny Auburndale, Fla., fled to nearby Orlando only months after his 21st birthday, and his return trips to the Air Canada Centre would be accompanied by the vicious boos of a jilted populace. But more than 13 years later, in the days since he announced his retirement from the NBA last month at age 34, McGrady has been looking back fondly on his time in the NBA’s Canadian outpost.

“In hindsight, looking back, obviously I wish I had stayed in Toronto,” McGrady was saying in a recent telephone interview from his home in the Houston area. “There’s no doubt we could have contended for a championship. I think about that often. But if ‘if’ was a fifth, you know?”

Reported by Dave Feschuk of the Toronto Star

Boston Celtics coach Brad Stevens ready as camp approaches

When Brad Stevens was introduced as head coach of the Boston Celtics in early July, he pledged to use the remaining offseason months to learn the intricacies of the NBA game, study the strengths and weaknesses of his in-flux roster, and hit the ground running when training camp opened on Oct. 1.

Little more than two months later, and with just two weeks until camp opens, Stevens is confident he’s ready for what serves as the grand opening of his NBA tenure.

“I’m in pretty good shape,” Stevens said Friday in Dorchester, where he joined a handful of players and staff in running a youth basketball clinic. “I’ve got a great staff and they’ve been great about answering any questions that I would have had.

“I think now it’s like anything else, you have to come up with a progression for getting as much in as you possibly can in a very short amount of time. Also, a philosophy on how you’re going to treat the exhibition games and the exhibition season with the practice opportunities during that month.”

Reported by Chris Forsberg of ESPN Boston