NBA News Blog – Page 454 – NBA Blog

Pistons add Sidney Lowe, Sean Sweeney and DJ Bakker to coaching staff

The Detroit Pistons yesterday hired Sidney Lowe and Sean Sweeney as assistant coaches.

Additionally, DJ Bakker has been added to the basketball operations staff as a player development coach.

Lowe returns to the Detroit Pistons for the third time during his basketball coaching and playing career. He spent the 2005-06 season as lead assistant to head coach Flip Saunders and played six games for the Pistons as a point guard on the 1984-85 squad. The Washington, DC, native and former NBA point guard has spent eight years as a head coach and 12 years as an assistant coach in the NBA and NCAA, most recently serving as an assistant coach with the Washington Wizards the last two seasons. Lowe began his coaching career in 1992, when he became an assistant coach under then-head coach Jimmy Rodgers, eventually being promoted to head coach midway through the 1992-93 season and remaining in the position through the 1993-94 season. In addition, Lowe served three seasons (2011-14) as an assistant with the Utah Jazz after previously serving as head coach at his alma mater, North Carolina State (2006-11). In his first season at NC State, he became the third coach in school history to win 20 games and defeat the three other ACC North Carolina institutions (North Carolina, Duke and Wake Forest).

As a player, Lowe was originally selected by the Chicago Bulls with the first pick of the second round (25th overall) in the 1983 NBA Draft and spent time with Indiana, Detroit and Atlanta. He also spent time in the Continental Basketball Association, leading the Albany Patroons and Tampa Bay Thrillers to CBA titles. Lowe played college basketball under the late Jim Valvano at North Carolina State, earning Final Four All-Tournament honors while helping lead the Wolfpack to the 1983 NCAA Championship.

Sweeney enters his first season with the Pistons after spending the last four seasons as an assistant coach with Jason Kidd’s Milwaukee Bucks squads from 2014-18. The St. Paul native entered the NBA assistant coaching ranks with Kidd as part of this 2013-14 Brooklyn Nets team after serving two season as the Nets’ assistant video coordinator. Before joining the Nets, Sweeney served as video coordinator for the University of Northern Iowa, and previously held the position of director of basketball operations for the University of Evansville. Sweeney played one season at the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay before transferring to the University of St. Thomas where he was a three-year starter and earned all-conference honors as a senior in 2005-06.

Bakker served as a member of Dwane Casey’s basketball staff in Toronto the last two seasons as assistant video coordinator and will join the Pistons as a player development coach.

Hawks waive Isaiah Taylor

The Atlanta Hawks requested waivers on guard Isaiah Taylor today.

Taylor appeared in 67 games last season for the Hawks, starting nine, and averaged 6.6 points, 3.1 assists and 1.4 rebounds in 17.4 minutes (.418 FG%, .702 FT%). He was signed by Atlanta on October 17, 2017.

The Hawks are in rebuild mode, and are currently led by Dennis Schroder. Almost everybody else on the roster is a supporting cast-level player. The team has to hope that rookies Trae Young and Kevin Huerter bring some serious game. But even if they do, the Hawks probably have years of rebuilding ahead of them.

Magic promote Charles Freeman to President of Business Operations

The Orlando Magic have promoted Charles Freeman to President of Business Operations.

Freeman is entering his 23rd season with the team.

Freeman, who in mid 2015 received promotion to Chief Operating Officer, is responsible for oversight and management of tickets sales, premium sales, client services, ticket operations, corporate partnerships, marketing, arena operations, retail, philanthropy and social responsibility.

“Charlie has provided tremendous leadership in growing our business and is incredibly deserving of this promotion,” said Magic Chief Executive Officer Alex Martins. “On a daily basis, he lives our core values of community, innovation, legendary service and teamwork.”

Freeman started with the Magic in 1996 as a market research analyst for corporate sponsorship and broadcast sales. He was responsible for all research and strategic planning for the department.

This past year, Orlando posted its highest attendance average (17,915 per game) in the last seven years, while ranking No. 1 in in the NBA in group ticket sales and No. 3 in single-game ticket sales. The Magic also was named the 2018 NBA’s Retailer of the Year.

Additionally, the Magic renewed major ‘Champion of the Community’ corporate partners Walt Disney World, Florida Hospital and Harris, while adding RP Funding to the family. Under Freeman’s watch, the Magic became the first NBA team to launch VenueNext technology, a fully mobile platform to enhance the fan experience at the Amway Center.

Pistons hire Malik Rose as assistant GM

The Detroit Pistons announced today that Malik Rose has been named assistant general manager.

“We are pleased to welcome Malik Rose to the Detroit Pistons organization,” said Ed Stefanski, Special Advisor to owner Tom Gores. “Malik has been around successful teams throughout his NBA playing career and now, as a young executive, he brings great basketball knowledge from both a playing and administrative perspective. His engaging and collaborative spirit fits perfectly with the basketball operations staff we are looking to construct.”

Rose has spent the last three seasons with the Atlanta Hawks as their manager of basketball operations. He also served as general manager for the club’s NBA G-League affiliate – the Erie BayHawks.

The 13-year NBA veteran appeared in 813 regular season games with the Charlotte Hornets, San Antonio Spurs, New York Knicks and Oklahoma City Thunder where he averaged 6.2 points and 4.1 rebounds in 16.5 minutes per game. The Philadelphia native was drafted by Charlotte in the second round (44th overall) of the 1996 NBA Draft. He signed as a free agent with San Antonio in 1997 and was traded to New York in 2005. Rose finished his career with Oklahoma City in 2009. He appeared in 82 playoff games, recording averages of 6.2 points and 4.3 rebounds in 17.5 minutes per game and won NBA Championships with the Spurs in 1999 and 2003.

After retiring from the NBA, Rose worked as a television analyst for the Philadelphia 76ers, Oklahoma City Thunder, San Antonio Spurs, New York Knicks, Austin Toros of the NBA G-League, NBA TV and NBA Radio from 2010-2015.

Rose played collegiately at Drexel University from 1992-96 where he earned degrees in computer information systems and education with a mathematics certification. He also owns a Master’s degree in sports management.

Hornets do not give qualifying offers to Treveon Graham or Marcus Paige

The Charlotte Hornets have declined to give Treveon Graham and Marcus Paige qualifying offers, it was announced today by President of Basketball Operations & General Manager Mitch Kupchak. Both players will become unrestricted free agents on July 1.

Graham, a 6-5 guard/forward from Virginia Commonwealth, appeared in 90 games for the Hornets during the last two seasons (2016-17 and 2017-18), averaging 3.7 points and 1.6 rebounds in 13.8 minutes per game. He was originally signed by Charlotte as a free agent on July 26, 2016.

Paige signed a two-way contract with Charlotte on Aug. 2, 2017. In 2017-18, the 6-1 guard from North Carolina appeared in five games with the Hornets, averaging 2.4 points, 0.8 rebounds and 0.6 assists in 5.6 minutes per contest. He also appeared in 46 games (39 starts) for the Hornets G League affiliate, the Greensboro Swarm, averaging 15.2 points, 4.5 assists and 3.0 rebounds in 32.6 minutes per game.

LeBron James decision to opt-out or not coming today

LeBron James can stick with his current Cavs contract. Or out out, and re-sign with the Cavs for more money. Or opt out, and sign elsewhere. Or opt out, and then line up a sign-and-trade with the Cavs to get sent elsewhere. Here’s the Philadelphia Inquirer reporting on the situation:

LeBron James has a huge decision to make before free agency begins Sunday.

He has until 11:59 p.m. Friday to opt in or out of his $35.6 million player option with the Cleveland Cavaliers for next season. James would become an unrestricted free agent by opting out.

James would be eligible to sign a five-year, $205 million free-agent deal with Cleveland this summer if he opts out… If James signs with another team, his max salary would be $152 million over four years.

Full article

Lakers waive Tyler Ennis

The Los Angeles Lakers have requested waivers on guard Tyler Ennis, it was announced last night.

Acquired via trade on February 23, 2017, Ennis averaged 5.2 points, 2.1 assists and 1.6 rebounds in 76 games (13 starts) for the Lakers.

The Lakers may do massive things in free agency in the next week or two. We’re all waiting to see if they land Kawhi Leonard in free agency, what LeBron James, Paul George and other top players decide, etc.

Derek Pierce named GM of Erie BayHawks

The Atlanta Hawks today promoted Derek Pierce to General Manager of the Erie BayHawks (Atlanta’s G League affiliate). This will be in addition to Pierce’s current role within the Hawks basketball operations team.

Hawks General Manager and Head of Basketball Operations Travis Schlenk had to this to say about the move: “We are excited to have Derek take over as General Manager of the BayHawks. He has earned this position, working his way up throughout his time in the league and is well-respected by his peers for his work ethic and eye for talent… Derek understands how much we value the G League and will do a great job leading basketball operations for Erie.”

The 45-year-old Pierce joined Atlanta at the start of the 2017-18 season as the Hawks’ Pro Player Personnel Scout.

Before joining the Hawks organization, Pierce spent eight seasons with the Timberwolves as an advance, college and NBA personnel scout.

And before his time with the Timberwolves, Pierce for three seasons was an advance scout for the Wizards, and for two seasons was an advance scout for the Golden State Warriors. He was also the Pacers’ video coordinator for five seasons.

“I’m thankful for the opportunity given to me by the Atlanta and Erie families. I can’t wait to get to work and continue to build off last year’s success,” Pierce said. “The G League is an invaluable resource and we’ll continue to utilize it extensively like we have in recent years. Right now, my number one goal is to work with Coach Pierce to find a head coach who shares the same vision and passion for developing players and establishing a culture of hard-working and high character players that make both the fans of Atlanta and Erie proud.”

Rockets exercise 4th year option on coach Mike D`Antoni

Houston Rockets owner Tilman Fertitta announced yesterday that the team has picked up the fourth-year option on head coach Mike D’Antoni’s contract, taking him through the 2019-20 season. In two seasons with D’Antoni at the helm, the Rockets have recorded the second-highest winning percentage in the NBA (.732; 120-44).

“The way Mike conducts himself behind the scenes along with the results he brings, it did not take long for me to see that he is the perfect fit for our organization,” said Fertitta. “We are thrilled to have Coach D’Antoni continue to push the Rockets towards our goal of winning a championship.”

This past season, D’Antoni led the Rockets to a franchise single season record 65 wins. It marked the first time Houston posted the best record in the NBA. The Rockets also won a franchise record 31 road games, tying for the sixth-highest single season total in league history.

Houston also became the sixth team in NBA history to record three winning streaks of at least 10 games in a single season, including 17 in a row from Jan. 28 through March 7 which was the second-longest streak in franchise history.

Following his first season with the Rockets in 2016-17, D’Antoni was named NBA Coach of the Year after guiding Houston to a 55-27 mark. He became the eighth coach in league history to win multiple Coach of the Year awards, and joins Gregg Popovich as the only ones who are active.

The Rockets have set the NBA single season record for 3-pointers made in each of the past two seasons. Prior to D’Antoni’s first full season as head coach of Phoenix in 2004-05, only three teams had more than 700 3FGM in a single season. At the time, D’Antoni’s Suns posted the league’s three-highest single season totals for 3-pointers made from 2004-05 through 2006-07. This past season, 27 of the 30 teams hit at least 700 3-pointers.

Suns announce assistant coaching staff

The Phoenix Suns today announced Head Coach Igor Kokoskov’s coaching staff, naming Joe Prunty, Corliss Williamson, Jamelle McMillan and Jason Staudt assistant coaches, Cody Toppert director of player development and Devin Smith player development coach.

The Suns have also added Alex Zampier as head video coordinator and retained Brandon Rosenthal as assistant video coordinator.

“Proudly, I would like to announce the Suns’ coaching staff is complete,” said Kokoškov. “Our main criteria was to find high character people who will bring positive energy and enthusiasm to the team day in and day out. I strongly believe that we have extraordinary teachers of the game who are capable of helping our talented team grow. As a staff we believe that we control our own preparation, so we will give our best to prepare ourselves and our team to play on the highest possible level, one game at a time.”

Bringing 22 years of experience in the NBA to Phoenix, Prunty joins the Suns after most recently working as interim head coach of the Milwaukee Bucks. Prunty went 21-16 over the final 37 games of the season at the helm of the Bucks before pushing the Celtics to seven games in the first round of the playoffs. He began 2017-18 as an assistant coach, his fourth season with Milwaukee which also included 17 games as interim head coach in 2015-16.

Williamson joins the Suns following two seasons as an assistant coach with the Orlando Magic (2016-2018), and he has also worked three seasons as an assistant with the Sacramento Kings (2013-2016). Before joining the NBA coaching ranks, Williamson was head coach at the University of Central Arkansas for three seasons from 2010-2013. His coaching career began with three years at Arkansas Baptist College, the first two as an assistant before serving as head coach during the 2009-10 season.

A 12-year NBA veteran as a player, “Big Nasty” averaged 11.1 points on 49.0 percent shooting plus 3.9 rebounds in 822 career games with Sacramento (1995-2000; 2005-2007), the Toronto Raptors (2000-01), Detroit (2001-2004) and the Philadelphia 76ers (2004-05). In 2003-04, Kokoškov was an assistant coach on Hall of Famer Larry Brown’s coaching staff in Detroit while Williamson averaged 9.5 points on 50.5 percent shooting to help the Pistons win the 2004 NBA Championship. Over the 12 seasons that comprised Williamson’s career, no NBA player totaled more points when coming off the bench and he won the NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year Award with the Pistons in 2001-02.

McMillan joins the Suns following six seasons with the New Orleans Pelicans (2012-2018), serving as one of the NBA’s youngest assistant coaches in his final two seasons with the Pelicans. The 29-year-old began with the Pelicans (then the Hornets) as a coaching intern in 2012 before working as a player development coach with the team for three seasons from 2013-2016. While a member of Alvin Gentry’s coaching staff, McMillan served as the Pelicans’ head coach at NBA Summer League 2017 in Las Vegas.

Staudt joins the Suns after most recently spending the 2017-18 season as Orlando’s pro personnel scout. He brings nearly 20 years of experience in various positions with five different NBA teams. Prior to his most recent tenure with the Magic, Staudt served as advance scout for Portland (2016-17) and the Houston Rockets (2012-2016). He spent seven seasons as video coordinator for Milwaukee from 2005-2012, which followed a brief stretch as an advance scout for Cleveland. Staudt began his NBA career as an intern with the Magic in 2001, elevating to video coordinator and advance scout in three seasons during his first tenure with Orlando before spending one season as an assistant coach with the Idaho Stampede (2004-05), then of the CBA.

Toppert remains in the Suns organization after spending the 2017-18 season as head coach of the team’s G League affiliate, the Northern Arizona Suns. Under Toppert, the NAZ Suns led the G League with five GATORADE Call-Ups to the NBA, in addition to leading the league in three-point makes, ranking second in scoring and winning a team-record 23 games.

Smith joins the coaching ranks following a decorated playing career overseas, spending his final six seasons with Israel’s Maccabi Tel Aviv where he played a key role in the club’s 2014 EuroLeague Championship. An All-EuroLeague Second Team selection in 2014-15, he helped Maccabi to two Israeli League titles, six Israeli Cups and the 2012 Adriatic League crown, in addition to the 2014 EuroLeague title. Smith retired in 2017, leaving Maccabi ranked ninth in club history in scoring in European competitions with 1,539 points, and he was inducted into Maccabi’s Hall of Fame earlier this year. Smith was a teammate of Suns forward Dragan Bender with Maccabi for the 2015-16 season.