Tag: woj

Report: Brooklyn Nets fire coach Steve Nash after 2-5 start

After a tough start to the regular season, the Brooklyn Nets have decided to terminate head coach Steve Nash.

Following a disappointing start to the regular season, the Brooklyn Nets have parted ways with head coach Steve Nash.

According to ESPN insider Adrian Wojnarowski, the decision to split was mutual. The former two-time MVP served in his first coaching position for the Nets franchise, hoping to take the star duo of Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving to the NBA Finals.

Durant actually had problems with the entire Nets organization over the offseason, including demanding that Nash be terminated. The sharpshooting forward tried to force Brooklyn to let Nash or himself go over the summer. It seems ultimately he got his wish.

Wojnarowski reports Jacque Vaughn will be the team’s acting coach beginning with Tuesday’s matchup. Among the options to replace Nash are suspended Boston Celtics coach Ime Udoka and former Utah Jazz coach Quin Snyder.

Nash finished his first season with 48 wins and was sixth in Coach of the Year voting. Many believed he would capitalize on that momentum and really craft a game plan for the Nets team.

With an array of drama from both Durant, Irving and the front office, one can assume Nash is relieved to have all of the weight taken off of his shoulders.

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ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, Jeff Van Gundy to miss Game 1 of NBA Finals with COVID: Report

Broadcaster Mike Breen reportedly feels better after a similar diagnosis caused him to miss Game 7 of the East finals, but he is not cleared yet to return.

The NBA Finals are already slated to have some conspicuous absences due to COVID-19, but at least for now, none of them are players. Broadcasters Jeff Van Gundy and Adrian Wojnarowski — both of ESPN — will not be on the call for Game 1 of the NBA Finals between the Boston Celtics and Golden State Warriors after testing positive for the viral malady according to new reporting from the New York Post’s Andrew Marchand.

This is on the heels of fellow ESPN broadcaster Mike Breen missing Game 7 of the Celtics-Miami Heat East finals series for the same reason. Per Marchand, the plan at present is to deploy a pair of announcers consisting of Breen if he is able to return paired with broadcaster Mark Jackson or Mark Jones, Breen’s replacement in the final game of the East finals.

Currently, ESPN has broadcaster Doris Burke scheduled to be calling the game on the radio, where she is an analyst alongside P.J. Carlesimo and play-by-player Marc Kestecher.

This post originally appeared on Celtics Wire. Follow us on Facebook!

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Brooklyn Nets officially defer NBA Draft first round pick

Hours before the deadline the Brooklyn Nets decided to defer their 23rd overall draft pick back to the Philadelphia 76ers.

The Brooklyn Nets have officially renounced their 23rd overall draft pick back to the Philadelphia 76ers, acquired with a plethora of players as a result of the James Harden blockbuster trade.

Beloved basketball insider Adrian Wojnarowski dropped the news earlier today.

Just hours before midnight of the trade deadline the Nets informed the league they were intending to defer the 23rd overall pick to the 76ers.

Renouncing their pick allows for the organization to possibly land a higher pick in the next years draft based on Philadelphia’s success.

Seth Curry, Andre Drummond, Ben Simmons were all moved to Brooklyn before the trade deadline in a swap that sent James Harden to Philly.

At this point, the Nets believe that the Sixers could be worse off in the 2022-23 season so that way the selection will be better than 2022. Philadelphia could be worse off due to the Harden situation, but it’s a risk Brooklyn is willing to take.

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The NBA put the 2022 All-Star starter selections in a briefcase because they were so afraid of getting scooped

The All-Star starter names are being treated like nuclear codes out here.

The NBA has always tried to drum up the pageantry of some of the biggest moments of the year. Naming the All-Star starters is one of those big moments.

But every single season that comes around that moment gets hilariously stepped on by either (or both?) ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski or The Athletic’s Shams Charania when they somehow get the scoop of who is named to the rosters ahead of time.

It’s hilarious every single season because you know someone in the league office is just seething that this information got out.

Not this year though. Nope. The NBA is not playing those games. The rosters will be first revealed on Inside the NBA and they are making sure of it.

How you ask? By going over the top and sealing the rosters inside of a briefcase that absolutely no one is allowed to open until the time comes.

Yes, seriously. It’s hilarious. Yahoo! Sports’ Chris Haynes reported the crew will get the names after an independent firm tabulates the votes and hand delivers the results to the studio.

Fam. This is absolutely hilarious. The funniest part was that fans knew exactly what was going on here. This was the NBA trying not to get scooped.

Woj: Boston’s Marcus Smart, Dennis Schroder, Josh Richardson ‘available in the marketplace’

One or more of the trio of Celtics could be on the move at the deadline.

Virtually every NBA reporter and analyst is dialed in on trying to make sense of what respective teams’ front offices are hoping to accomplish ahead of the 2022 trade deadline, which is fast approaching on Feb. 10.

The Boston Celtics are expected to be among the more active teams in the league on the trade market, and thus have had extra attention from NBA insiders trying to get the scoop on what the franchise is planning in the coming weeks. ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski recently appeared on his network’s “NBA Today” show to discuss what he has heard Boston’s trade deadline focus is.

“It’s to build around Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum, not to break those two up,” explained Wojnarowski.

Report: Warriors scheduled to play Giannis Antetokounmpo’s Milwaukee Bucks on Christmas Day

On Christmas Day, the Golden State Warriors will travel to Milwaukee for a holiday tilt against Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Bucks.

After eight months away from the court, Golden State Warriors basketball will soon make its return to primetime. With preseason training camp underway, the 2020-21 schedule is being pieced together.

Although Golden State’s NBA Finals and postseason streaks are over, the team is reportedly extending their run of playing on Christmas Day. According to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, the Golden State Warriors will be a featured team on the league’s Christmas Day slate.

While the schedule is still tentative, the Warriors will travel to Milwaukee for a holiday tilt against Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Bucks at 2:30 p.m. EST.

Joining the Bucks and Warriors, Christmas Day will feature five other games, including the New Orleans Pelicans at the reigning Eastern Conference champion Miami Heat, the Brooklyn Nets versus the Boston Celtics, the Dallas Mavericks against the defending NBA champion Los Angeles Lakers. For the Christmas nightcap, the Denver Nuggets will host Kawhi Leonard and the Los Angeles Clippers.

Via @wojespn on Twitter:

During a season filled with injuries and struggles, Golden State’s Christmas Day effort provided one of the highlights of the 2019-20 campaign. Damion Lee led the Warriors against the Houston Rockets with 22 points on 5-of-9 shooting from the field with a career-high 15 rebounds. Draymond Green added a vintage performance with 20 points, 11 rebounds and three assists in Golden State’s 114-106 win over James Harden, Russell Westbrook and the Rockets.

Only three days into the season, Golden State’s Christmas Day contest will provide a chance to measure where they stand in the NBA’s hierarchy. With a healthy Stephen Curry back in the lineup with Green, Kelly Oubre Jr., James Wiseman and Andrew Wiggins, the matchup on Chritsmas Day against Antetokounmpo, Jrue Holiday and Khris Middleton will be a chance to test where the Warriors stand against a team with deep postseason aspirations.

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Report: Former Warrior Alec Burks agrees to one-year deal with New York Knicks

According to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, former Golden State Warriors swingman Alec Burks has agreed to a contract with the New York Knicks.

One of the bright spots from a down hoops season in the Bay Area was the addition of Alec Burks to the Golden State Warriors. The veteran swingman averaged 16.1 points on 40.6% shooting from the field with 4.7 rebounds and 3.1 assists in 48 games for Golden State.

With Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson dealing with injuries, Burks led Steve Kerr’s offense in scoring on 12 occasions. The Colorado Buffaloes product tallied 25 or more points eight different times during his stint with the Warriors.

At the NBA trade deadline, the Warriors moved Burks and Glenn Robinson III to the Philadelphia 76ers for a trio of picks. As the Sixers dealt with injuries, Burks played solid in the NBA’s Orlando Bubble.

Over seven games at Disney World, Burks averaged 14.6 points on 56.7% shooting from the field with 2.9 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game. Through the Bubble stretch, Burks shot exceptionally well from beyond the arc. On four 3-point attempts per game, Burks shot 57.1% from long distance. During Philadelphia’s playoff series loss to the Boston Celtics, Burks recorded a pair of double-figure scoring efforts.

After 18 games in Philadelphia, Burks is reportedly on his way to The Big Apple. According to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, Burks has agreed to a one-year, $6 million deal with the New York Knicks.

Via @wojespn on Twitter:

Along with Julius Randle, Burks will join top draft picks Obi Toppin, RJ Barrett and Kevin Knox as the Knicks begin a new era with Tom Thibodeau and Leon Rose.

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Woj: Rockets looking for right mix of head coach, top assistant

“They try to find people that complement each other,” said ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, who expects Houston to interview many candidates.

The Houston Rockets are in the middle of a comprehensive search for their next head coach to replace Mike D’Antoni, and one of the key criteria could be compatibility with top assistant candidates.

Here’s what ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski told the network’s “Keyshawn, Jay and Zubin”  radio program on Wednesday:

Houston, I think you’re going to see more of a veteran coach there for that group.

I think they’ll interview a lot of people. Ty Lue and Sam Cassell with the Clippers are a couple, but a bunch more. They like interviewing a lot of people with the Rockets, traditionally, when they have an opening — and trying a lot of combinations of head coach and top assistant. They try to find people that complement each other.

For the first three seasons of D’Antoni’s four-year tenure from 2016 through 2020, he worked closely with assistant coach Jeff Bzdelik — who was very well regarded for his defensive background. Bzdelik brought significant experience to the role as a former head coach, and the D’Antoni-Bzdelik combination helped lift the Rockets from 41-41 (prior to their arrival) to 55-27 in the 2016-17 season and 65-17 in 2017-18.

From Wojnarowski’s reporting, it seems that GM Daryl Morey could be using a similar template as he leads this search four years later.

So while Lue and Cassell (and likely many more) will be evaluated on their own merits, the final decision could also be influenced by how each candidate would seemingly fit within the context of a broader staff. Unlike some teams, it’s Morey — rather than the head coach — that has had the final say on Houston’s assistant coaches over the years.

Should that continue, it’s possible that some assistants from the 2019-20 season (Elston Turner, Brett Gunning, Matt Brase, John Lucas, and Dan Hartfield) could be retained. If so, how their skillsets might mesh with various head coaching candidates may be considered.

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Bob Myers: Warriors aren’t actively discussing trades with teams yet

Although their offseason is officially underway, Bob Myers says the Warriors haven’t started discussing trades with other teams yet.

While 22 teams complete their stretch run to the Orlando Bubble playoffs, the Golden State Warriors are officially in offseason mode. With the league’s worst record, Steph Curry and the Warriors are one of eight teams not included in the NBA’s restart.

With no hoops on the calendar, the Warriors can extra time off to prepare for a busy offseason. Bob Myers and Steve Kerr will lead a critical offseason campaign that will include potential trade exceptions and a selection in the top five picks of the NBA draft.

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While late July and August usually brings a wave of news following the NBA Draft and Free Agency window, the Warriors offseason plans are on hold with seeding games and the postseason still on the NBA’s slate.

In an interview with Adrian Wojnarowski on ESPN’s “The Woj Pod,” Myers peeled back the curtain on where the Warriors stand in the trade market. Golden State’s general manager revealed the Warriors aren’t discussing trades with other teams right now.

Via The Woj Pod:

I think post lottery, things will heat up, and I think GMs are still going to move forward as they always have and try to improve their team. Sure there’s things we don’t know, but you trust in the league that they’ll create an even playing field, wherever, whatever rules, there are, they’ll apply to everybody. You navigate that — and for us specifically, I don’t know, it depends on like I said what number pick we get — As the question is to trades. To be truthful, we’re not discussing trades with teams right now. I don’t even know if we’re allowed or not.

I perceive September for you to be busy reporting on whatever nuggets you have as far as potential trades and things like that, but it’s quiet. It’s going to be interesting to see what does possibly alter in a new landscape, but at this point, it’s almost not worth hypothesizing internally, we still just need to operate as if who’s the best fit for us. Every team’s always looking at their economics — will they change maybe, but right now, we’re not worried about that kind of information because we just don’t have it.

Once the 2020 NBA Draft order rolls out during the lottery on Aug. 20, the Warriors will have a better outlook on their offseason. While the NBA is in action in Orlando, Myers and Kerr can begin to do their homework on potential trade candidates, draft prospects and free agents.

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With the draft not till Oct. 15 and free agency kicking off days later, the Warriors will have plenty of time to map out a plan of attack for the draft and transaction window.

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Ex-Celtics coach Doc Rivers weighs in on #FreeWoj suspension, spat

Former Boston Celtics head coach Doc Rivers weighed in on the suspension of ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski and the controversy behind it.

As #FreeWoj catches fire on social media platforms over the ESPN suspension of Adrian Wojnarowski, former Boston Celtics head coach Doc Rivers waded into the fray behind the suspension himself Sunday.

The ex-Celtics coach challenged the U.S. Senator who received a profane email in response to the suggestion pro-police slogans be allowed along with the pro-racial justice slogans the league negotiated with the National Basketball Players Association as one condition of restarting the 2019-20 season.

The email to the Senator — Josh Hawley (R) of Missouri — saw Wojnarowski suspended, and sparked a #FreeWoj campaign on social media over the weekend, with players around the league tweeting their support.

Including Boston’s Enes Kanter, known for his constant support of human rights.

“We have a senator that Tweets at Woj yesterday just because he was talking about what we were going to put on the back of our jersey,” Rivers offered in a conference call at the NBA Disney campus. “And they always try to turn it into the military or the police. There’s no league that does more for the military than the NBA.”

Angry at the derailing of a program that, in some eyes, already does not provide enough input for player ideas about racial justice messaging, Rivers instead challenged the Senator directly.

“I’ll make a challenge: We will do things for the troops as long as he acknowledges Black Lives Matter,” explained the now-Los Angeles Clippers head coach. “I think that would be really cool for him to do.”

“It’s funny, whenever we talk about justice, people try to change the message. Colin Kaepernick kneels, it had nothing to do with the troops. It had to do with social injustice, and everyone tried to change the narrative. How about staying on what we are talking about and dealing with that, instead of trying to trick us or change or trick your constituents? How about being real?”

“I guarantee you, we’ve done more for the military than probably that Senator,” claimed Rivers. “I guarantee you this: We also are going to do things for Black Lives Matter. How about him?

“Maybe he should join … that,” he added.

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