Basketball

via www.nba.com By the time this goes to post we may know whom Vivek Ranadive intends to at least interview for the pivotal role of General Manager for the Sacramento Kings if not in fact hire. While there was some speculation that maybe Phil Jackson could become interested, I believe his recent public diss is because Phil has designs on a part owner/GM role with the Seattle Sonics whenever they eventually are awarded an expansion team or should the Sonics buy another team that lacks the support of a Sacramento (cough - Charlotte.) Until then I expect him to continue to travel to promote his book and spend time networking with other GMs, consulting, and reading Yi Ling to enhance his philosophical proficiency. In all seriousness Vivek is not likely to put out a cattle call for anyone and everyone to interview. There is too much to do and not enough time to do it. I expect Vivek will pluck from the pool that he is most familiar with, lives close to and can start executing with immediately. If you look at the Golden State Warriors front office roster it looks like this: Bob Myers - I won't waste time considering Bob Meyers, 38 years old, to be a candidate. The former Sports Agent with WMG originally from Danville, promoted to GM of the Warriors last season has been integral to their turn around from lottery bound to playoff contender. This from a team that didn't want to keep Jeremy Lin and wanted Carl Landry is now viewed by some as the team to watch in the NBA. No chance we steal him away. Larry Riley - Almost 40 years of coaching, scouting and front office experience at both the collegiate and NBA level including stints with the Bucks, Grizzlies, Mavericks and currently Director of Scouting with the Warriors after spending two seasons as the team's General Manager. Was originally hired as an assistant coach and then promoted to General Manager. Reading though the lines he helped show Myers the ropes and was kept on to focus on his strengths namely scouting. Doubtful he is selected by Vivek mostly because he is not a part of the new breed of money ball minded analytical minds likely sought out by Vivek. Kirk Lacob - Son of Co-owner Joe Lacob, 26 years old, works for Bob Myers as Assistant General Manager while assisting with all aspects of the team’s day-to-day basketball operations including player personnel evaluation, draft preparation and scouting, as well as helping to further the use of statistics and technologies in basketball operations. He has also served as the team’s player development representative with the league office, coordinating and implementing programs to aid in the overall development of players both on and off the court. He also serves as the General Manager of the Dakota Wizards, the Warriors-owned NBA Development League affiliate. Originally from Woodside, CA, graduated from Stanford with a degree in Science, Technology and Society. Because Joe is not looking to retire and loves being the front man for the franchise, it is possible Kirk who almost went to work for Steve Kerr of the Suns might be interested in being groomed for the GM role with the Kings. I could see a scenario where Vivek whom likely will be surrounding the Front Office with a significant brain trust could promote Kirk up to this role and possibly retain Geoff Petrie to help with the knowledge transfer. I conclude there is a small to decent chance Vivek hires Kirk. Travis Schlenk - The 39 year old Assistant GM for the Warriors has many fans that have worked with him in the NBA including Don Nelson, Pat Riley and Eric Spolestra "We lean on him heavily as to what he thinks of a player, how much the player will improve," GM Bob Myers said recently. "Usually, he’s the one on the staff that’s seen the player the most." He goes on to share, "He’s arguably the hardest-working person in the organization...he’s not afraid to travel. He’s up late. He’s on

So far, I've read a bunch of posts from different sites predicting this or that based on either: 1. the season series (2-1 Indy) 2. better players per position (Miami) 3. league best defense that eliminated a very good offense in NY 4. playoff best defense that beat only poor offensive teams (Mil and Chi) 5. NBA wants Miami in the finals for higher ratings You guys think these are good indicators? I'm hoping for the best for the Pacers but realistically, I have a bad feeling about this series. So far, I've read a bunch of posts from different sites predicting this or that based on either: 1. the season series (2-1 Indy) 2. better players per position (Miami) 3. league best defense that eliminated a very good offense in NY 4. playoff best defense that beat only poor offensive teams (Mil and Chi) 5. NBA wants Miami in the finals for higher ratings You guys think these are good indicators? I'm hoping for the best for the Pacers but realistically, I have a bad feeling about this series.

Tuesday’s lottery results weren’t especially kind to the Pistons, who dropped one spot to No. 8 and stirred up a wave of Pistons Mailbag traffic. On with Mailbag …

The question now becomes: Who will be available for the Phoenix Suns with the No. 5 Overall Pick? It is not a drastic difference from where they were at No. 4, but one slot could mean the player you absolutely love and the player you really like...

The Golden State Warriors made a huge playoff splash and with their season now over they must shift their focus on retooling the roster and looking at the future. The Dubs exceeded 2013 playoff expectations by reaching the Western Conference semifinals and taking the San Antonio Spurs to six games. The Warriors accomplished this despite [...]

In the revolving door that is NBA head-coaching, many leave and many return. But mostly, they leave. It’s a pretty biased flow out the door. In fact, I think I can hear guys getting fired right now. It’s incessant. Oh wait, it looks like the same guys are sneaking back in. Oh, well. Aaaaaaanyway, to almost no one’s surprise (sadly), Vinny Del Negro will not be rejoining the Clippers next year. 1. Why do you think he was fired? Jared: Have you been watching the Clippers play since he became the coach? Andrew: IS THIS A SERIOUS QUESTION?! IT’S BECAUSE [redacted by HP's secret lawyer ninjas] …ahem. Well, Vinny Del Negro wasn’t a very good coach. It seemed as if the free agent leader of the Clippers, Chris Paul, was more interested in listening to a talking fire hydrant diagram plays than his coach. And VDN lasted this long because he had the backing of ownership, but that’s certainly a fleeting commodity with this particular owner. (Are these guys going to watch me while I write the rest of this? They are? Got it.) Kyle: In an effort to keep Chris Paul. It’s that simple. This Clippers team has many replaceable parts, but an elite point guard who can get the best out of his teammates is hard to find. Players win championships, and while I believe Del Negro is a solid coach, the Clippers couldn’t risk losing their top player. They can win without Del Negro but not without CP3 and it really is that simple. Jack: Watch game 6 against the Grizzlies. Derek: For instances like the example I’m about to give. I remember a late-season  game against the Thunder where the Clippers were down 4 with about a minute to play and Lamar Odom, Ronnie Turiaf and Matt Barnes all got to miss shots on the most crucial possession of the game. Barnes isn’t so much the one I have a problem with as much as drawing up plays for the other two when you have Chris Paul and Blake Griffin to work with. The original play itself wasn’t even a broken play or anything– there was just no direction, which cannot happen with a top-10 team in the league. And good Lord, how hard can your job be when you have Chris Paul running the offense. 2. Are you surprised he was fired? Jared: Have you been watching the Clippers play since he became the coach? Andrew: Pft. …ha. Haha. Hahahahahahaha. Kyle: I think he is better than a lot of coaches that are employed in the league, but I’m not surprised he was canned. The whole “is Chris Paul OK with him” thing played a role, but so did an uninspiring playoff run. This team would have made the playoffs without a head coach, so the first round exit (albeit to a team that is simply better in my opinion) was not viewed as a move in the right direction. If he had an excuse (i.e. star player injury) or coached in a small market (i.e. Memphis or Golden State), he might have gotten another crack at it in 2014, but he doesn’t so he won’t. Jack: It’s surprising it took this long.  Barring a wholly surprising championship run, Del Negro lost this job in March. Derek: No, but I am surprised that it didn’t happen sooner. 3. Who’s the best replacement available? Jared: Stan. Just because he said he’s not on the market doesn’t mean he’s not the best replacement available. Andrew: If neither Van Gundy wants the job, and Phil Jackson is a pipe dream, it’s probably one of the league’s most sought after assistant coaches, such as Mike Budenholzer or Brian Shaw. I could easily see the Clippers going with a well regarded retread, however — someone like Alvin Gentry or Nate McMillan. Kyle: I can’t imagine that I’m the only one who wants to see Phil Jackson coach this team, but he doesn’t seem like he wants to be back on the sidelines. I like Jeff Van Gundy or PJ Carlesimo for this job out of the remaining candidates. Van Gundy has, in theory, gained perspective from the six years off as coaching while staying involved in the g

In his first post-lottery 2013 NBA Mock Draft, Chad Ford sends Syracuse point guard Michael Carter-Williams to the Sacramento Kings. Ford notes that small forward is the team's biggest need, but then makes the case for MCW. While the Kings do have point guards on their roster, they don't have any that really make others around them better. Carter-Williams is a high-risk, high-reward player. He has elite size for his position, proved to be a terrific athlete at the NBA draft combine and sees the floor well. In addition, he's a rangy defender who averaged 2.8 steals per game last season. Otto Porter, the top-rated small forward, is off the board in this scenario. Ford has the Kings taking MCW over Anthony Bennett, who could end up going as high as No. 2. MCW has been compared to Rajon Rondo. Rondo averaged five assists and six rebounds per game as a sophomore at Kentucky. MCW averaged more than seven assists and five rebounds per game in about four more minutes per game at a sophomore.

For Knicks fans of my generation, the nineties were the closest thing to a golden age we've ever known. If that is the case, then the Knicks have recaptured their glory days in at least one regard – they lost a heartbreaking playoff series to a hated rival. This will be the second Eastern Conference Finals in a row to feature a bona fide Knicks conqueror, meaning the franchise has officially graduated from "Eastern Conference doormat" to "stepping stone to the Conference Finals." We're back, baby! What follows is not a preview of the conference finals. Miami's gonna win, and everyone knows it. This is more a barometer of fan opinion heading into this series. No possible outcome should come as much comfort to Knicks fans, short of someone in the Heat organization opening the Ark of the Covenant at midcourt just before tip-off. I'd pay good money to watch Pat Riley's face melt, and I'm not ashamed to admit it. Instead, the real rooting interest in this series will come down to a feeling of "the enemy who is also the enemy of my more-hated enemy is my lesser enemy (for the moment, anyway)." These are complicated, dirty (and not in a good way) feelings, and I'm interested in your thoughts on the subject. Let's break down the match-ups and then, in the poll below, settle the question of who is the most hated Easter Conference Finals Participant, '13. The reasons to hate the Miami Heat have been discussed ad nauseam, so I'm just going to bullet-point a few choice thoughts on the matter: I flipped on Spike TV the other night and watched the end of the movie "Doom", based on the video game, starring the Rock and one of the bros from "Lord of the Rings." During the climactic fight scene, the Rock began morphing into a demon cuz seriously bro this is "Doom" on Spike TV! I thought that half-Rock half-demon looked vaguely familiar, but couldn't quite put my finger on where I'd seen him before...until I caught a glimpse of LeBron James in his current state of hairline regression. Pro-wrestler-meets-demon would be a pretty apt description of his game as well, if you threw in Magic Johnson's passing ability, a healthy commitment to defense, and a flopping tendency that would make an Italian footballer blush. The guy is very good at a sport I enjoy watching, and yet my feelings for him remain...umm...complex. As far as I'm concerned, Dwyane Wade's annual case of "I know it's the playoffs but my knee seriously hurts I don't think I can play SIKE watch me dunk from the foul line" has replaced Memorial Day as the new unofficial start of the summer. I've been gone from America too long to remember which Monday in May is Memorial Day, but I know for sure that Wade is going to pull that move in the third round. The man is a well-oiled machine...a well-oiled machine who, you know, acts like he isn't a well-oiled machine. Losing to Chris Bosh and his freakishly long neck is like watching your opponent pull off an impossible move in Jenga – by all rights, that thing should have collapsed in on itself by now, but it hasn't and now I'm screwed. Wrong flat-top is in the conference finals. Wrong flat-top is in the conference finals. Wrong flat-top. Is in. The conference finals. The case for hating Indiana is simultaneously simpler – they just beat us – and more complex. They're a textbook underdog in this series, and I doubt anyone outside of New York will wish them ill. Even the 14 or so fans of the Atlanta Hawks, the Pacers' first round victim, probably wouldn't mind watching them stomp the Heat. You can hate Pacer fans for their pathetic lack of support during the regular season (25th in regular season attendance for a surefire contender), but quite a bit of selective amnesia is required to drop them beneath the fans in Miami. As far as pure fan douchiness is concerned, Indiana's "yellow out" has nothing on Miami's "whites only" yacht party – somebody needs to tell the peop

Expectations Zaza Pachulia really stepped up for a injured Al Horford in the shortened season. Unfortunately he may have been given too many minutes (lot of 38 plus minute games), which is ironic since Mike Woodson and Larry Drew had both minimized his court time the two previous years. Sadly Zaza wasn’t available for the playoffs. The expectations for this season were different between Larry Drew and a lot of the fans. From a fan perspective Zaza had proven himself as worthy of the center position in Al’s absence and gave us hope that maybe the big lineup would finally get an extended tryout. Larry Drew now trusted Zaza more, but still wouldn’t go big regularly. Since they weren’t going big you could only expect Zaza to provide energy and rebounding off the bench. Results Zaza got 15 starts in the 52 games he was healthy enough to play before having to shut his season down for his Achilles. He was averaging almost 22 minutes a night showing that he had finally earned the coaching staff faith for the first time since Al was drafted. Zaza’s points were a little off, but his rebounding numbers were as good as they’d ever been. Zaza was giving the Hawks exactly what they expected until he wasn’t able to go anymore. Highlight Game 3 of the season and it’s the Pacers at the Hawks. Josh Smith is still a bit gimpy but coming back after missing the trip to OKC. The starting lineup was Teague at point, Kyle Korver at the 2, Josh at the 3, Al as the PF, and Zaza at C. Yes, the big lineup giving us hope that maybe it could win out as Larry Drew tries to figure out the go to lineup for the Hawks. The Hawks outrebound the Pacers 51-41 and win the game by 3 behind 14 boards from Zaza. For reference the Pacers were the top rebounding team in the entire league, so this should have been a message to Larry Drew as to what identity the Hawks could have if they committed to it. Sadly, that message was never received. The Hawks only went big against certain teams and would often goes 3 weeks between Zaza starts. The Zaza/Al/Josh front line only saw 308 minutes of action spread across 37 games. Prognosis Zaza can still play effectively and he's proven that on the court the last 2 years. But an Achilles injury is rough. No one how long it will take Zaza to be back at full speed. This will likely make any suitor of the 6-10 center pause including the Hawks. Furthermore, Zaza’s cap hold is around 7.8M, which likely means that Zaza will be renounced to make free agent moves. That complicates his return if the Hawks are successful in free agency because they won’t be able to exceed the cap to resign him. Even with all that I think there’s a chance that Zaza could be back in Atlanta for the veteran minimum for 1 season to prove his health to the league or possibly for the room mid-level exception. Outside of those scenarios it will likely mean that Zaza has played his last in Hawks uniform although he’ll still be loved by Hawks fans.

In an interview on ESPN First Take Tuesday, Jerry Stackhouse said he thinks the Nets are likely to go for a "stickler," a coach who is willing to say its his way, no other way. (Although video from the interview is not yet posted, SNY Nets' John Paolantonio transcribed a good part of it.) Stack, who is a free agent and may retire, didn't mince words when asked his opinion. "I think it just needs someone to really to guide, a stickler, someone to come in everyday and say we are going to do it this way. We have a system in place and we cant deviate from the system" "If we come off a screen, I want you to come off the screen and chase. I don’t want you to shoot the gap. Some guys say you can do it either way. I feel like this particular team needs someone to tell them to do it THIS way. Whoever that is, I think Lionel Hollins is a great coach. He has shown that he can do that with a really good team but there are some other candidates out there that as well that would be really good for this group." Stackhouse seemed to suggest that the Nets are not likely to go with an inexperienced coach like Brian Shaw, but rather a coach with proven playoff success. "A guy like Brian Shaw, I think he has paid his dues, but I think with this particular team they feel like they are ready to win. They want someone who has been there and been to at least and conference finals and can guide them. I think that’s what that group needs," Stackhouse also spoke at length about Deron Williams, both defending him against Skip Bayless and noting that no one needs a "stickler" more than D-Will. "He’s a helluva competitor. I found that out but I didn’t know a lot about Deron before the season and obviously with how the season started off for him I still had some questions for him, myself. Once he came out of that All-Star break and he said he was going to dedicate himself and get himself ready to play, he was unbelievable man. We went from a pretty good team to a great team all because of how he played." "The coach, the strickler. The stickler is what is going to be great for Deron because Deron loves to gamble and I think you have got to get him to a position where our best player, our main player, sticks to the system and how we do things as well. I tell him all the time and it is a habit. With this group, with Joe and with Brook (Lopez) its just about breaking a few habits and once you break those few habits with this group they are going to be right there." Is Stackhouse representing the front office's view of the team and the coaching vacancy? Almost certainly. Jerry Stackhouse Discusses Nets Coaching Candidates, Says Jeff Van Gundy Would Be "An Ideal Coach" - John Paolantonio - SNY Nets