Category: General NBA insight

The Brooklyn Nets have named former Net Jason Kidd as the team’s new head coach, General Manager Billy King announced tonight. Kidd becomes the 18th head coach in the franchise’s NBA history.

“On behalf of the Nets organization, I am very pleased to welcome Jason Kidd as the head coach of the Brooklyn Nets,” said King.  “Jason is a proven winner and leader with an incredible wealth of basketball knowledge and experience. This will be a natural transition for him to move into the role of head coach, as he embodies the tough, smart and team-first mentality that we are trying to establish in Brooklyn.”

“Jason Kidd has a long and legendary history with the Nets and with the city of New York,” said Nets Principal Owner Mikhail Prokhorov.  “He has the fire in the belly we need, and has achieved as a player everything the Brooklyn Nets are striving to achieve.  We believe he will lead us there.  Welcome home, Jason.”

“This is a tremendous opportunity to be named head coach of the Brooklyn Nets, and it’s a role I have been studying for over the course of my playing days,” said Kidd.  “Championship teams are built on being prepared, playing unselfishly and being held accountable, and that’s how I expect to coach this basketball team. I am truly excited about this next phase of my basketball career.”

Kidd, who captained the Nets to two consecutive NBA Finals appearances in 2002 and 2003, played in 506 games over six and a half seasons for New Jersey, averaging 14.6 points, 9.1 assists and 7.2 rebounds per game.  Throughout his tenure with the Nets, Kidd led the team to six consecutive playoff appearances, including two Eastern Conference Championships and four Atlantic Division titles.  As a Net, Kidd was selected as an NBA All-Star five times while being named to an All-NBA team three times and an NBA All-Defensive team six times.  In Nets all-time NBA history, Kidd currently ranks first in assists (4,620), steals (950), three-point field goals made (813) and triple-doubles 61, second in minutes played (18,737), fourth in points (7,373) and rebounds (3,662), fifth in games played (506) and sixth in field goals made (2,613) and free throws made (1,352). In 78 playoff games, Kidd holds Nets all-time records for points, assists, rebounds, steals, field goals made/attempted, three-point field goals made/attempted, minutes and games played. 

Over his 19 year NBA playing career, Kidd holds averages of 12.6 points, 8.7 assists, 6.3 rebounds and 1.93 steals, while playing for Dallas, Phoenix, New Jersey and New York.  On the League’s all-time leaders lists he ranks: second in assists (12,091) and steals (2,684), third in minutes (50,111), three-point field goals (1,988) and triple-doubles (107), sixth in games played (1,391), 50th overall in rebounds and first overall amongst guards (8,725), 71st in points scored (17,529).

Bringing fans even closer to the game, the WNBA announced today that “Ref Cam” will be used for the first time during the broadcast of a U.S. professional basketball game on Saturday, June 8, when the Phoenix Mercury meet the defending champion Indiana Fever in a nationally televised game on ABC at 3:30 p.m. ET.

The use of the new angles and points of view provided by “Ref Cam” was part of the recent announcement by the WNBA and ESPN regarding the extension of their partnership through the 2022 season.

During Saturday’s live telecast from Indianapolis, Ref Cam – a wireless high definition (HD), mini point of view camera paired with an HD mini transmitter – will be positioned at eye-level on one of the game’s three officials, allowing viewers to virtually be on the court as the referee’s first-person perspective is incorporated into the live broadcast in real time.

In addition to the camera headgear, the fully remote system – designed by Maryland-based Broadcast Sports, Inc. (BSI) – includes a vest, which will be worn underneath the official’s shirt. The vest will contain the transmitter and batteries that provide the power and video. BSI will have two engineers on-site at Bankers Life Fieldhouse to assist in the deployment of the gear and to help the game official with the fit. An industry leader in wireless point of view systems, BSI previously provided “Ref Cam” equipment for use during the telecast of a rugby match in France this spring.

Indiana’s 99-92 victory over Miami in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference finals earned a 5.1 rating and was watched by 8.1 million viewers on TNT, making it the No. 1 ranked program on television in prime time.

The series is averaging 7.7 million viewers, up 7 percent from TNT’s first four games of the 2012 Western Conference finals between Oklahoma City and San Antonio.

— Reported by the Associated Press

Hall of Famer Karl Malone is returning to the Utah Jazz to help develop and mentor the team’s two young big men.

Jazz CEO Greg Miller said Wednesday that Malone will work with Derrick Favors and Enes Kanter, as well as other players. The team says no specific schedule has been set for Malone’s involvement. Miller said it will be a part-time, consulting type of arrangement with Malone working periodically with Favors and Kanter.

The move brings back one of the franchise’s greatest players at a time when the team is trying to build a contending team around Favors, Kanter and swingman Gordon Hayward. The Jazz missed the playoffs this past season.

”With his success as a power forward in the NBA and the length of his career, he’s obviously got a lot to teach,” Miller said of Malone. ”We’re fortunate that he’s now willing to make himself and his expertise available to us.”

— Reported by the Associated Press

NBA officials decided Sunday that Dwyane Wade’s forearm shot to Lance Stephenson was a flagrant foul – just not enough of a shot to warrant a suspension.

The league issued its ruling shortly before the Heat were to face Indiana in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference finals.

Neither Pacers coach Frank Vogel nor Heat coach Erik Spoelstra expected the league to hand down a suspension with a berth in the NBA Finals at stake. Wade explained to reporters before the game that he was not surprised by the decision.

”I wasn’t worried because it wasn’t intentional,” he said. ”All I was trying to do was get out of the way of him trying to set a screen.”

— Reported by the Associated Press

The updated 2013 NBA power rankings are for entertainment purposes only, folks.

1) Miami Heat (66-16) – Best team in regular season, with league’s best player, looking like the best in the NBA playoffs so far.

2) San Antonio Spurs (58-24) – Experienced Spurs still relying on Parker, Duncan, Ginobili and smart play.

3) Oklahoma City Thunder (60-22) – Injury to Russell Westbrook doomed OKC in playoffs. Kevin Durant continues to be all-world.

4) Memphis Grizzlies (56-26) – Low-scoring, grit-and-grind Grizzlies do it with defense. Smart, tough team.

5) Denver Nuggets (57-25) – Balanced, talented, versatile, super-scoring team was hurt by injury to Danilo Gallinari.

6) LA Clippers (56-26) – Terrific regular season but first-round loss to tough Grizzlies resulted in team saying goodbye to head coach Del Negro

7) Indiana Pacers (49-32) – Rugged, defensive-minded Pacers have serious competitive fire. Physical team with big frontcourt.

8) New York Knicks (54-28) – Live by the jumper, die by the jumper. And in the playoffs, JR Smith and friends missed a lot. Low-assist squad.

9) Golden State Warriors (47-35) – Super-shooting backcourt and some frontcourt talent with size is a good foundation

10) Chicago Bulls (45-37) – Heart and hustle allowed Bulls to keep fighting in playoffs despite constant injuries

11) Brooklyn Nets (49-33) – Slow team whose limited athletic ability prevented these guys from turning it up in playoffs

12) LA Lakers (45-37) – Lakers were doomed in playoffs anyway, but season-ending injury to Kobe Bryant helped ensure it

13) Houston Rockets (45-37) – Great at scoring, but just as great at… not defending. Interesting young combo of players.

14) Atlanta Hawks (44-38) – Good passing and running, but team lacks identity beyond that. Josh Smith enters free agency.

15) Utah Jazz (43-39) – Big summer of free agency, especially in the Jazz frontcourt with Al Jefferson and Paul Millsap.

16) Boston Celtics (41-40) – Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett are aging, but injuries to Rajon Rondo and others limited them further.

17) Dallas Mavericks (41-41) – A full rebuild is needed in this old folks home. Aging Dirk Nowitzki needs new guys around him.

18) Milwaukee Bucks (38-44) – A nice surprise was the emerging play of young Larry Sanders.

19) Philadelphia 76ers (34-48) – Andrew Bynum didn’t play. Jrue Holiday has some game. Rebuilding project.

20) Toronto Raptors (34-48) – Rudy Gay brings scoring, but team is still limited in overall talent.

21) Portland Trail Blazers (33-49) – Damian Lillard and LaMarcus Aldridge have nice game, but team was a disappointment

22) Minnesota Timberwolves (31-51) – Ricky Rubio shot bricks, and Kevin Love was injured. Team is building for the future.

23) Detroit Pistons (29-53) – Andre Drummond and Greg Monroe are a solid, young, big frontcourt combo.

24) Washington Wizards (29-53) – John Wall looked like a seriously dangerous talent once he got going.

25) Sacramento Kings (28-54) – Sacramento got to keep their NBA team. That’s the one big win here. Good scoring, bad defense.

26) New Orleans Pelicans (27-55) – Hornets are now the Pelicans. Not many positives this season.

27) Phoenix Suns (25-57) – Played decent team basketball, but simply not talented enough to compete. Good season from Goran Dragic.

28) Cleveland Cavaliers (24-58) – Kyrie Irving is great (when healthy), but with Anderson Varejao injured there was very little help here.

29) Charlotte Bobcats (21-61) – Bobcats backcourt was OK. Rest of team was invisible. As a whole, team was awful at everything.

30) Orlando Magic (20-62) – Nikola Vucevic was decent. This was a D-League level team.

The Los Angeles Clippers announced today they will not offer a new contract to head coach Vinny Del Negro. A search for a new coach will begin immediately.

“We would like to thank Vinny for everything he did during his three years with the organization,” Clippers Vice President of Basketball Operations Gary Sacks said. “Vinny helped this team win a Pacific Division title and we greatly appreciate all that he and his staff helped us accomplish. This was a difficult decision, but we feel this is the best decision for our franchise moving forward”

Del Negro compiled a 128-102 (.557) record with the Clippers in three seasons, guiding them to the Playoffs in 2012 and 2013. The Clippers finished the 2012-13 season with a franchise-high 56 wins and the fourth seed in the Western Conference Playoffs before falling 4-2 to the Memphis Grizzlies in the First Round. In five seasons as a head coach with the Chicago Bulls and Clippers, Del Negro owns a 210-184 (.533) career record.

Charlotte Bobcats owner Michael Jordan is changing his team’s name to the Hornets, said a person familiar with the situation.

The person said Jordan will detail the timetable for the change to be completed at a press conference the Bobcats have scheduled for Tuesday. The person spoke to The Associated Press Monday on condition of anonymity because the name change has not been publicly announced.

NBA deputy commissioner and COO Adam Silver previously said it would take ”about 18 months” for the Bobcats to change their name. That means Charlotte could once again become the Hornets by the 2014-15 season.

The Hornets resided in Charlotte from 1988-2002 before then-owner George Shinn moved the franchise to New Orleans.

The New Orleans Hornets recently changed their name to the Pelicans.

— Reported by Steve Reed of the Associated Press

Chris Hansen is not going away in his pursuit of bringing the NBA back to Seattle.

Hansen released a statement on his SonicsArena.com website on Monday afternoon, congratulating Sacramento mayor Kevin Johnson on his efforts to keep the Kings in California, while also vowing to keep up his pursuit of getting the NBA back to Seattle.

”Even as we are disappointed with the developments related to our efforts to purchase the Kings, we would just like to reiterate our dedication to bringing the NBA back to Seattle,” Hansen wrote. ”We will continue to press forward with our arena plans with the same commitment and effort we have over the last two years, and look forward to working with the City (of Seattle) and (King) County to see the project through the hurdles that remain. Likewise, we plan to continue to work with the league regarding opportunities that may arise to return an NBA franchise to our City.”

— Reported by Tim Booth of the Associated Press