NBA News Blog – Page 976 – NBA Blog

Chicago Bulls might make Brian Scalabrine an assistant coach

When NBA training camps open in a little over a month, there’s a good chance that like the last two seasons, Brian Scalabrine will be in Deerfield, Ill., at the Berto Center with the Bulls–just not as a player.

According to sources familiar with the situation, the fan favorite is in line to join Tom Thibodeau’s coaching staff for the upcoming season, CSNChicago.com has learned.

Since former Bulls assistant coach Rick Brunson departed for a position with the Charlotte Bobcats in the offseason, the organization has had an opening and while the likes of former Magic assistant Steve Clifford was considered–the member of Stan Van Gundy’s staff in Orlando recently accepted a job with the Lakers, where he’ll be reunited with All-Star center Dwight Howard–it appears that Scalabrine is now a front-runner for the spot.

— Reported by Aggrey Sam of CSN Chicago

Charlotte Bobcats hire Dan Leibovitz and Brian Winters as assistant coaches

The Charlotte Bobcats today named Dan Leibovitz and Brian Winters as assistant coaches on the staff of new Head Coach Mike Dunlap. Leibovitz and Winters will join Stephen Silas and Rick Brunson, who officially signed with the team in July.

“It was important to me to put together a coaching staff that mirrors my coaching philosophy and one that will consistently challenge our players to get better each and every time they hit the basketball floor,” said Dunlap. “When I selected my staff I wanted to assemble a group that will care about the players, care about the team and love to teach the game of basketball.”

Brunson enters his fourth year as an NBA assistant coach after previously serving as a player development coach in Chicago (2010-12) and Denver (2006-07), where he first worked with Dunlap. Following his stint with the Nuggets, Brunson served as Director of Basketball Operations at the University of Virginia from 2007-09 before spending the 2009-10 season at the University of Hartford as an assistant coach under Leibovitz. A former standout player at Temple University under Naismith Hall of Fame coach John Chaney, Brunson played in the NBA for nine seasons, appearing in 337 games for eight different teams including Portland, New York, Boston, Chicago, Toronto, Houston, the Los Angeles Clippers and Seattle. His ties to Dunlap also extended overseas in 1996, when he played for Dunlap with the Adelaide 36ers in Australia’s NBL.

Leibovitz brings over 16 years of collegiate coaching experience to Charlotte, joining the Bobcats from the University of Pennsylvania, where he spent the last two seasons as an assistant coach at his alma mater. Prior to joining the Penn staff, he served as head coach at the University of Hartford from 2006-10. Leibovitz also served as an assistant coach at Temple University for 10 seasons under John Chaney (1996-2006) and was named Best Assistant Coach in the Atlantic 10 by Street & Smith’s magazine in 2005. Leibovitz played collegiately at Franklin & Marshall College.

Silas is entering his 12th season as an NBA assistant coach and is the lone holdover from the previous coaching staff. He initially joined the Bobcats on December 26, 2010, after spending the previous four and a half seasons as an assistant coach in Golden State. Prior to joining the Warriors, Silas served as an assistant coach with the Hornets (2000-03) and Cavaliers (2003-05) and as an advance scout with the Wizards (2005-06). Silas originally joined the Hornets in the summer of 1999 as an advance and college scout. Silas also played four seasons at Brown University.

Winters brings a wealth of experience to the Bobcats staff, having been an NBA head coach in Vancouver (1995-97) and Golden State (2001-02), in addition to serving as head coach of the WNBA’s Indiana Fever (2004-07). His coaching career also includes time in Atlanta, Cleveland, Denver and Golden State, as well as a stint at Princeton University. The 12th overall pick in the 1974 NBA Draft after a collegiate career at the University of South Carolina, Winters played nine seasons in the NBA, appearing in 650 career games for the Lakers and Bucks with averages of 16.2 points, 4.1 assists and 2.6 rebounds. He made two All-Star appearances and was selected to the NBA All-Rookie Team following the 1974-75 season.

NBA Rookie Transition Program includes talk of relationship problems

Kendall Marshall was in New Jersey from Aug. 16-20 to work on his life grip along with the rest of the 2011 and 2012 rookie classes. The NBA’s Rookie Transition Program hosted 110 players because last year’s lockout canceled the event.

From new women to old friends, from newfound riches to old stories of bankruptcies and from illegal drugs to social slugs, the program introduced rookies to problems that are more common than they imagined and more issues than they could master…

“It was a real eye-opener for us,” Marshall said. “You hear the financial stories about guys who go bankrupt and you hear about the relationship stories about guys that have things go wrong with their spouse or girlfriend. You always think that can’t happen to you but the odds are that it can happen. They’ve done a great job of preparing us for that and bringing it to realization and making us want to make the right decisions.” …

“The female species are a lot smarter than us so we have to realize maybe it’s not always that we’re the best-looking guy they’ve ever seen,” Marshall said. “Maybe there is some incentive behind it. At the same time, there are great cases where guys have happy marriages. They’ve shown us both cases. We just have to be smart (and realize) that people don’t always have our best interests in mind.”

— Reported by Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic

Dirk Nowitzki expects to play at least two more NBA seasons

Dirk Nowitzki has racked up a lot of mileage on his body in 14 NBA seasons. He’s seen action in 1,055 games and played 38,314 minutes over his career, putting him 11th and sixth, respectively, among active players.

So how much longer will Nowitzki stick around? He answered that question — sort of — during a Q&A session with fans on Twitter Sunday afternoon.

Nowitzki, who uses the Twitter handle @swish41, told a fan that he’d play two more seasons “for sure” and then “see how I feel.” Nowitzki has two more years left on his current contract with the Mavs, which expires when he’ll be 36 years old.

— Reported by the Dallas Morning News

Orlando Magic may have big targets in 2014

In the summer of 2014, the Magic will have roughly $36 million in cap space. The prospective free-agent class is stunning: Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh, Carmelo Anthony, Dirk Nowitzki and Paul Pierce.

None of those stars (several aging) are expected to leave their teams, although Pierce might go exploring. The Heat trio has the option to terminate its contracts…not likely.

Other ’14 would-be free agents: Pau Gasol, Amar’e Stoudemire, Zach Randolph, Andrew Bogut, Danny Granger and Andrea Bargnani. None of them — other than Granger, a good but not great player — seemingly fit the Magic plan.

The Magic will have even more cap room in the 2015 offseason, depending on what they do the next two summers. And there are some free-agent jewels: Rajon Rondo, Marc Gasol, LaMarcus Aldridge and Kevin Love.

— Reported by Brian Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel

Doug Collins downplays talk of becoming Olympic coach

Collins doesn’t seek the subject, but when asked during this weekend’s reunion of the ’72 team about whether he would like to be the Olympic coach, he showed typical candor while also professing a desire to stay with the Sixers long-term.

“It’s a tremendous honor that somebody would even throw my name out there,” Collins said. “It’s four years down the road and I understand in this business you hope you are an active coach at the time.”

Which means obviously with the Sixers.

“I am hoping that I am still active and I would like to coach four or five years in Philadelphia,” he said.

So much for the assumption that Collins was taking things in Philadelphia on a yearly basis.

“I feel good about our team and I love my staff, what we are doing and where we are headed,” Collins continued. “The ownership, Josh [Harris], has been so good to me, so I feel really good about that.”

— Reported by Marc Narducci of the Philadelphia Inquirer

Clippers forward Blake Griffin now fully healthy

When Blake Griffin injured his knee on July 11 while training with Team USA, his chance to represent his country at the Olympics ended.

Griffin had surgery on July 16 to repair torn cartilage in his left knee and it has healed to the point where he is working out.

“I came back after surgery and started rehabbing and getting back into it. I’ve been shooting and lifting [weights] and all that for a while now,” Griffin told the Los Angeles Times on Friday. “So, I’m pretty much back at 100%, been back at 100% for a little bit. So I’m good.”

— Reported by CSN Philly

Confident Brooklyn Nets talking NBA title

The Nets have yet to play a single as a game as a Brooklyn franchise – or unveil their uniforms, for that matter – but they’re already targeting a championship in Year 1.

Cornerstones Brook Lopez and Joe Johnson set the lofty tone in recent interviews, buoyed by the Nets’ expensive offseason.

“Obviously our main goal is no question the NBA championship. I think it is realistic for us,” Lopez told the Philipine Star during his NBA goodwill tour of the Philippines. “We’re already a good playoff team so with the addition of other pieces, we can target the ring.”

Johnson echoed that sentiment to Sports Illustrated, continuing his confident evaluations of his new squad. During Johnson’s introductory press conference in July, he declared the Nets were “definitely” already better than the Knicks.

— Reported by Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News

Golden State Warriors hire Ellen Warner as Vice President of Development

The Golden State Warriors have hired Ellen Warner as Vice President of Development, it was announced today. In this role, she will serve as the development manager for the team’s proposed privately financed sports and entertainment complex on Piers 30-32 and Seawall Lot 330 in San Francisco and will oversee planning, design and construction of the project.

“We are thrilled to add Ellen to the Warriors organization in this critical role,” said Joe Lacob, the team’s Co-Executive Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. “Her skills and experience make her a perfect choice to lead our project.”

A San Francisco resident, Warner has more than three decades of experience successfully managing large and complex real estate projects, with budgets totaling $1 billion, including public buildings, hospitals, medical campuses, and office buildings.

“Joining the Warriors organization at this pivotal time is incredibly exciting,” said Warner. “I look forward to helping the organization bring a new world-class sports and entertainment complex to San Francisco.”

Prior to joining the Warriors, Warner was a partner at David S. Taylor Interests, Inc. in Sacramento, where she was directly responsible for the development of several of Sacramento’s most prominent buildings. Her portfolio includes Sacramento City Hall, which was named “Best Public Project” in 2005 by the Sacramento Business Journal, and US Bank Tower at 621 Capitol Mall, which the SBJ named “Best Office Project” in 2009.

Warner is a licensed architect and a licensed general contractor, with LEED accreditation. Her experience in the real estate development industry also includes nine years as the Assistant Manager of Facilities Design and Construction at the University of California Davis Medical Center, where she and her staff of architects, engineers and construction inspectors managed a $500 million capital improvement program for the hospital campus. Warner also previously served as the Regional Project Director for National Medical Enterprises, an international health care company. She began her career in various architecture offices, including the San Francisco firm Kaplan McLaughlin Diaz.

In 2007, the SBJ honored Warner with their “Women Who Mean Business” award, which recognizes Sacramento-area women for their exemplary career achievements and entrepreneurial accomplishments. From 2008-2012, Warner served on the Board of Directors for WEAVE, a non-profit agency in Sacramento with a mission to end domestic violence. Warner attended Cornell University and earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in Architecture from Washington University in St. Louis.

Baron Davis will likely stay involved with Knicks

Baron Davis to stay involved with Knicks

Knicks unrestricted free agent Baron Davis will remain with the team in “some capacity,” his agent Todd Ramasar told ESPNNewYork.com on Thursday.

The Knicks won’t re-sign Davis as a player because the 33-year-old point guard suffered a horrific right knee injury in last season’s playoffs, and it’s likely he could miss the entire 2012-13 campaign. But since the spring, the Knicks have treated Davis like one of their own. The team has allowed him to do physical therapy with their training staff, and most recently, management has approached him about staying on board this season.

Ramasar said Davis is very excited about the opportunity, but it won’t involve a job title or him sitting on the bench during games. Instead, it will likely be more of a mentorship role behind the scenes and during practices.

— Reported by Jared Zwerling of ESPN New York