HoopsHype.com Rumors

After an informal phone interview last week, Steve Kerr has told the Trail Blazers that he is not interested in filling their opening at general manager. Kerr, the accomplished NBA guard and former general manager of the Phoenix Suns, said he is happy with his life as a broadcaster for TNT, which allows him to spend more time with his family. It is the same reason he gave the Trail Blazers last May when team president Larry Miller first approached him as a candidate to fill the vacancy left by the firing of Rich Cho. Oregonian

Portland Trail Blazers, Steve Kerr 

“He likes Larry, and certainly isn’t closing any doors, but right now he loves his life at TNT,’’ said Mark Bartelstein, Kerr’s agent. “He will come back to the NBA in the future, whether it’s as a coach or in the front office, but that’s a few years down the road.’’ Oregonian

Portland Trail Blazers, Steve Kerr 

But after talking with Bartelstein on Thursday, then again on Wednesday, Kerr decided he likes his current life too much. Kerr, who spent one of his 15 years in the NBA in Portland, lives in San Diego and said that he wanted to spend more time with his family after he left the Suns in 2010 after a three-year run that included an appearance in the Western Conference Finals. Two of his kids are college athletes - son Nick a basketball player at University of San Diego and daughter Maddy a volleyball player at Cal - and another is still in high school. “He has the opportunity to watch his kids play in college, and that’s important to him,’’ Bartelstein said. “He’s just in a really happy place. Life if pretty good.’’ Oregonian

Portland Trail Blazers, Steve Kerr 

But I have a feeling there is a reason why the search has lingered for nearly a year. I wonder if the Blazers are waiting on Steve Kerr. Kerr was pursued by the Blazers after Cho was fired. But the former Phoenix general manager and current TNT TV analyst said he wanted to spend time with his family, particularly his kids. One of his sons, Nick, has since graduated, and is now playing for the University of San Diego. He has two other teenage children. Oregonian

Portland Trail Blazers, Steve Kerr 

If Kerr is still committed to his family, and turns down the interest from the Blazers, there are other possibilities. Is Danny Ainge going to stay in Boston? If not, the Eugene native has a track record of executing the exact move the Blazers need this summer: taking good draft picks and turning them into gold, like he did when he traded the No. 5 overall pick (Jeff Green) to Seattle for Ray Allen, then trading Al Jefferson and expiring contracts for Kevin Garnett. In one season, the Celtics went from the cellar to NBA champions. Where the Blazers' target is, I don't know. But I get the sense their list is very short and their aim is big. I told Miller on Tuesday that Allen has a history of making a big splash: luring Nate McMillan away from Seattle. Landing Mike Holmgren, then Pete Carroll for his Seahawks. Oregonian

Boston Celtics, Portland Trail Blazers, Steve Kerr, Danny Ainge 

Do you recall the first practice or the first time you met Phil Jackson when you first came to Chicago? Steve Kerr: Sure. SLAM: What was that like, your first interaction with him?Steve Kerr: The first time I met him I was intimidated, as a lot of people are. He has a great presence about him, and he’s a very imposing figure. He has that deep voice. I was going into my fifth year, I think, in the NBA, or maybe my sixth, and I was only trying out with the team. I had a non-guaranteed contract and I was just trying to make the squad. I got in probably a couple weeks before [training] camp started and worked out and met Phil then. I was so excited to play for him because I loved the way the Bulls played. I loved the Triangle offense and I knew it was going to be a good fit for me. SLAM

Chicago Bulls, Steve Kerr, Phil Jackson, Coaching 

In the beginning, Blazers president Larry Miller made a run at popular former Suns GM, Steve Kerr, sources said. Kerr, who played in Portland for a season, doesn’t want to be a GM again, and wouldn’t get into talks with the Blazers. Portland then brought several solid, competent candidates into town for interviews and rejected every one of them. Lately, the Blazers have tried to engage several prominent league GMs about discussing the job, and that hasn’t worked. Yahoo! Sports

Portland Trail Blazers, Steve Kerr, Larry Miller 

Scottie Pippen had it all wrong when he recently compared LeBron James with Michael Jordan, said one former Chicago Bulls teammate. "The irony to me is that LeBron is not Michael. LeBron is actually Scottie," former Bull and current television analyst Steve Kerr said Monday on "The Waddle & Silvy Show" on ESPN 1000. "He's so similar to Scottie in that defensively he was just a monster, could guard anybody, really more of a point forward than scoring guard. Scottie always loved to distribute the ball. That's really where LeBron's preference is. ESPN.com

Chicago Bulls, Miami Heat, LeBron James, Steve Kerr, Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen 

Scottie Pippen had it all wrong when he recently compared LeBron James with Michael Jordan, said one former Chicago Bulls teammate. "The irony to me is that LeBron is not Michael. LeBron is actually Scottie," former Bull and current television analyst Steve Kerr said Monday on "The Waddle & Silvy Show" on ESPN 1000. "He's so similar to Scottie in that defensively he was just a monster, could guard anybody, really more of a point forward than scoring guard. Scottie always loved to distribute the ball. That's really where LeBron's preference is. "Phil Jackson used to call Scottie a 'sometimes shooter.' Sometimes they would go in, sometimes they wouldn't. That's how it is with LeBron. He's a great talent and a great player but you can see his flaws as a basketball player. He doesn't have an offensive game that he can rely on: no low-post game, no mid-range jump shot so when the game really gets tough he has a hard time finding easy baskets and getting himself going. That's what Michael did in his sleep so that's why the comparison is wrong." ESPN.com

Chicago Bulls, Miami Heat, LeBron James, Steve Kerr, Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen 

Steve Kerr, a five-time NBA champion who covered the Eastern Conference finals for TNT, agreed that, for many, the ends will justify the means. And should. “Then he breaks into the all-time great list,” Kerr said. “You can’t get there until you win a title. I think it changes everything for him.” MSNBC.com

Miami Heat, LeBron James, Steve Kerr 

The negativity? “I think a lot of that stuff will go away,” Kerr said. “It will never go away completely. But if he goes on and wins a title, any self-respecting basketball fan has to acknowledge his greatness, because the guy is a phenomenal player. The way he went about it was what got him into trouble. The decision itself was fine, he was a free agent, how can you blame him? He goes and plays with (Chris) Bosh and (Dwyane) Wade. They’re proving why they did it. They just didn’t handle it the right way at the time, and that started the avalanche.” MSNBC.com

Miami Heat, LeBron James, Steve Kerr 

Talk about what must be the ultimate in no-win situations, trying to follow the glided path of someone named Phil Jackson and his 11 NBA championships. "It's funny you say that because I texted Mike Brown last night," remarked TNT analyst and former Phoenix Suns general manager Steve Kerr. "I played for Mike in San Antonio. "And so, I texted him, 'Congratulations. At least you don't have very big shoes to fill.'" Pun intended? "He got a kick out of that," Kerr said, laughing. Los Angeles Times

Los Angeles Lakers, Steve Kerr, Coaching, Mike Brown 

But in reality, astute NBA observers say, the Magic's options are severely limited by an oversized payroll and by a roster that lacks attractive trade assets. "I just feel like they've kind of gone down the same path as Cleveland went around LeBron [James]," Steve Kerr, an analyst for TNT and the former general manager of the Phoenix Suns, said during an interview Friday. Orlando Sentinel

Orlando Magic, Steve Kerr 

"Not to make it an ominous sign, but they've really tried hard and they've spent a ton of money to put people around Dwight hoping that that would convince him to stay, hoping that that would get the franchise over the top. "But in the end, the risk was extending themselves on the cap and really hamstringing their future options. It was very similar to Cleveland, and I think that's where Orlando is now. There's no way — there's no way — you can get Chris Paul or Deron Williams when you don't have cap room and you don't have assets." Orlando Sentinel

Orlando Magic, Steve Kerr 

But Barry thinks that blowing up the roster would be a difficult task. "I don't know how much flexibility they really do have," he said. "What other pieces are there that people might want? I think Jameer [Nelson] would be a guy that could probably bring something back in value. I think J.J. Redick has some value. But is that going to be enough to get and lure Chris Paul? You're going to need obviously maximum-type money to bring in a guy like that." Orlando Sentinel

Orlando Magic, Steve Kerr, Jon Barry 

To be sure, most NBA insiders don't think Orlando has the assets to trade for a superstar unless Howard is part of a deal, and Magic officials have stated unequivocally that they will not trade Howard. If you take the Magic's other top assets — Ryan Anderson, Brandon Bass and Redick or Nelson — a package that includes three of those players almost certainly would not be enough to engineer a trade for Paul or Williams. "What can they possibly give up to New Orleans or to New Jersey to get those guys?" Kerr said. Orlando Sentinel

Orlando Magic, Steve Kerr 

The Western Conference finals belong to ESPN. That means Mike Breen, Mark Jackson and Jeff Van Gundy courtside, with Stuart Scott, Michael Wilbon, Jon Barry and Magic Johnson in the studio. TNT owns the rights to the Heat-Bulls Eastern Conference finals, with Marv Albert, Steve Kerr and Reggie Miller courtside. Ernie Johnson, Kenny Smith and Charles Barkley will be in the studio, with guest appearances from Kevin McHale and Chris Webber. Charlotte Observer

Steve Kerr, Kevin McHale, Mark Jackson, Media, Charles Barkley, Magic Johnson, Chris Webber, Jeff Van Gundy, Reggie Miller, Jon Barry, Kenny Smith 

Nobody will remember that Dallas sweep in eleven years, just the eleven rings and every relationship he fostered along the way. Steve Kerr told me once that what made Jackson special -- and Popovich too -- was that he cared about his twelfth guy as much as his best guy. He spent time with his players, bought them gifts, thought about what made them tick. ESPN.com

Steve Kerr, Phil Jackson, Coaching, Gregg Popovich 

Obviously, Rose has a long way to go to be in Jordan’s company. While Rose has joined Jordan as the only Chicago player to have won the Podoloff and has lot of years left to get some more, Kerr isn’t sure that will happen. “He’s young enough but I just think the way the MVP voting process works, he’s not likely to win many more,’’ Kerr said. “He could. But, if I had to guess, (no). It’s so hard. Kobe (Bryant) has won one. Next year, they’ll be a new flavor of the month and the voters will jump on somebody else’s bandwagon. “Next year, now that they’re coming off a 62-win season, the Bulls, what can they do for an encore? Let’s say they win 60. Everyone will be like, ‘They’re already a great team’… So Bulls fans and Derrick should savor this because it may never happen again. He’s capable of it, but a lot of this award is timing and circumstance.’’ HoopsHype

Chicago Bulls, Steve Kerr, Derrick Rose 

The NBA is a bad league, with great players to be sure, but too many who are unskilled in the fundamentals and, even worse, lacking the maturity that can come from higher education. The colleges suffer because so many top preps come in for a year and leave. So the play isn’t as good and coaches have to scramble to replace those departing, often finding out too late. “It’s his choice, his life, and I encourage everybody to quit their job and catch their dream and make their dream their job,” Walton says. “But people who think the NBA is about a glamorous life … the NBA is Minnesota at Cleveland in January. “I am staggered that the players union doesn’t fight to protect the existing veteran players’ jobs, players who built the league. The NBA is a man’s league, a difficult league. You should be three years out of high school and 21 before you can make it. The union is making such a huge mistake fighting for people (college players) who aren’t even in the union.” San Diego Union-Tribune

Draft, Steve Kerr, CBA