A league source told IndyStar two months ago that Oladipo wouldn’t participate in the restart. That changed, however, as the opt-in date grew closer. Another league source said he’d “definitely” play. That quickly shifted again when Oladipo voiced concerns about re-injury while McMillan and president Kevin Pritchard gushed over how good he looked in individual workouts when the team regrouped in Indianapolis following a four-month stoppage.
Coaching Rumors
Spending an extended stretch away from home during the summer, while unprecedented as part of an NBA season, isn’t exactly a foreign concept for those with USA Basketball experience like the Olympics and the World Cup. Plenty of players and coaches at Walt Disney World see parallels between those experiences and this challenge. “I had that opportunity to work with the Olympic team and preparation was very similar to what we’re going through here,” said McMillan, who was an assistant under Duke’s Mike Krzyzewski on the USA Basketball staff from 2006 through 2012. “Having a training camp, basically, at a hotel and getting ready for a 45- to 60-day season. … We’re going to have three scrimmage games, eight so-called regular season games and then we’re in the playoffs so it’s very similar to preparing to play for the gold medal.”
J. Michael Falgoust: Oladipo on how he’ll come back if he does (in Jan, his restriction was quickly bumped up & he started b/c he was out of sync): “It’s going to be the coach. I think it’s going to be a collective decision. Stubbornly, I want to go out there and play 40 minutes.” #Pacers
Anthony Chiang: Erik Spoelstra said team has not had to hold any players out of practice yet because of injury. Miami has 15 of its 17 players in the bubble, with Bam Adebayo and Kendrick Nunn still away from the team.
Ira Winderman: Breaking Heat news from Disney quarantine from Erik Spoelstra, “Staff’s been doing a lot of fishing.” Says he plans to join in soon.
Tim Bontemps: Nate McMillan says Victor Oladipo has been clear from the beginning that he wanted to come to Orlando and continue working with the team. “That’s the plan, and that’s what we’re doing now.”
J. Michael Falgoust: McMillan on Oladipo: “He’s been looking good. He’s been working extremely hard … He’s a guy that just puts in his work, his time. … He’s been working hard.” #Pacers
Kerr shared his experience on a recent appearance on the “Hoops, Adjacent” podcast: “‘Cause I’m such a big fan,” Kerr said, via David Aldridge of The Athletic. “I used to see him in Chicago, ’cause he was such a big Bulls fan back in the day. I remember, especially when we would go to New York, I remember seeing him outside of our locker room – he’d kind of be in the hallways outside the locker room at MSG. And I always wanted to really talk to him, but I was always nervous. I just loved his stuff.
Daniel Greenberg: Chicago Bulls head coach Jim Boylen is participating in a community event tomorrow in Grand Rapids. Boylen’s coaching staff and several Bulls players are expected to show up. Going to be interesting to see what Bulls player attends the event.
Marc Stein: Tim Duncan will not be here at Walt Disney World on the Spurs’ bench … The team says Duncan, in his first season as an assistant coach to Gregg Popovich, stayed in San Antonio with a few Spurs medical and performance staffers to supervise LaMarcus Aldridge’s injury rehab
Lakers Nation: Frank Vogel has said the #Lakers will cautiously push players during this ramp-up period. Team had three consecutive days with practice and now are off today.
Keith Pompey: Simmons was asked if BB came to him about the position switch or did he go to the coach. He said this: “You just got to work with different things. You got to try different things out to see if they work. We are not at a stage where not a stage where we can be comfortable yet … “So I’ve been having fun in that position, whether you guys say the four whatever it is. At the end of the day,once you just see me on the floor, I’m making plays. “
Chris Grenham: The entire Celtics roster surprised Kara Lawson last night by wearing Duke t-shirts, which made her cry. “These men have changed my life. I have loved my time with the Boston Celtics. Our players are authentic, intelligent, creative and passionate men.” pic.twitter.com/ZqNXHiKEVE
Knicks coaching job: Tom Thibodeau still the frontrunner
Tom Thibodeau remains the front-runner for the position, league sources have told The Athletic. The Knicks have 11 candidates in all, embarking on an exhaustive and wide-ranging search that might just land on the same man who has been thought to be their first choice all along. Rose told MSG Network last month that he expects a mid- to late-July conclusion to the search.
Tim Duncan not in Orlando
Don Harris: I can confirm that Spurs Asst. coach Tim Duncan is NOT with the team in Orlando. Spurs tell me Tim and a few members of the medical and performance group are directing LaMarcus Aldridge’s rehabilitation program.
The Knicks are continuing to work through the process of the search for a head coach and have completed second interviews with all candidates. Knicks president Leon Rose described his process on MSG Network last month of conducting informal talks and then formal interviews with the 11 confirmed candidates. The Knicks completed the second round last week, holding talks with the candidates who are not headed into the bubble for the restart of the NBA season.
“We’re setting it up in two phases,” Rose said in an interview with Mike Breen. “We’re having shorter meetings, kind of break the ice with the various candidates and then we’re going to have full interviews with the candidates . . . We’re anticipating that to go mid-to-late July. Hopefully by the end of July, make a decision.”
Chris Grenham: Kara Lawson spoke to the Celtics before practice yesterday. Jayson Tatum spoke to the team about how excited he was for her to become a Blue Devil, while Enes Kanter asked her for a courtside seat.
“Ron Adams is our resident – is oenophile correct?”Kerr asked on this week’s “Hoops, Adjacent” podcast. “In fact, when I interviewed Ron to come aboard with the Warriors in 2014, my assistant Nick U’Ren and I took Ron out to dinner to interview him. We ordered a bottle of wine. It was an Italian restaurant. They didn’t have any California Pinots, which is what we were looking for. And the waiter said, ‘You know, if you want, I’ll bring you kind of the Italian version of a Pinot.’ We said great. “So he brings back the wine, he opens it up, he gives Ron the taste – you know, how you swish it around (in your mouth)? Well, Ron became the first person I’ve ever been to dinner with who sent the wine back. On a job interview!”
“Ron Adams is our resident – is oenophile correct?”Kerr asked on this week’s “Hoops, Adjacent” podcast. “In fact, when I interviewed Ron to come aboard with the Warriors in 2014, my assistant Nick U’Ren and I took Ron out to dinner to interview him. We ordered a bottle of wine. It was an Italian restaurant. They didn’t have any California Pinots, which is what we were looking for. And the waiter said, ‘You know, if you want, I’ll bring you kind of the Italian version of a Pinot.’ We said great. “So he brings back the wine, he opens it up, he gives Ron the taste – you know, how you swish it around (in your mouth)? Well, Ron became the first person I’ve ever been to dinner with who sent the wine back. On a job interview!”
Alykhan Bijani: Coach D’Antoni on James Harden, Russell Westbrook and Luc Mbah A Moute getting to Orlando: “It’ll be soon. Not gonna be long, we hope. We think we’ll get em back in here towards the middle of the week.”
Alykhan Bijani: Coach D’Antoni was asked if he could say why Westbrook, Harden and Mbah A Moute aren’t in Orlando yet: “No. Not really. These are things that people are dealing with. We aren’t going to get into why or why not. They’re on the way.” #Rockets
Salman Ali: Mike D’Antoni says the mini-training camp will help the Rockets incorporate their new players (Robert Covington, DeMare Carroll, Jeff Green, etc…).
Salman Ali: Mike D’Antoni on how Eric Gordon looks (returning from knee injury): “He looks good. Shooting the ball extremely well… He’s ready to go.”
Harrison Wind: Malone yesterday on Bol Bol who only practiced with the Nuggets a few times this year: “To see him out there and playing and doing things that a lot of people can’t do, it’s really remarkable…you cannot teach 7-2, You cannot teach a 7-9 wingspan and the soft touch that he has.”
Kendra Andrews: Malone says Tim Connelly ordered Nuggets customized masks that say “Time 4 Change” and “Vote” on them. If Malone had a jersey to put a phrase on, he would put “hope” “equality” or “education”
Ohm Youngmisuk: Asked specifically about Gary Harris and Michael Porter Jr. and if they are there in Orlando, Michael Malone declined to confirm or deny. Malone only says there are some who still aren’t in Orlando.
Brandon Rahbar: Donovan: “If Andre is available to play, we are gonna play him.”
Joe Mussatto: It was a non-contact day for the Thunder. Every player participated, per Billy Donovan.
Mike Fisher: #Mavs first two workouts in Orlando on scale of 1-10? ‘A 4,’ Carlisle said, adding that Sunday was ‘a 9 or a 10.’ Leader of it all? Luka Doncic. ‘It’s a job he wants to have,’ Rick said.
James Ham: Luke Walton said “education” would have been what he chose for his jersey if given an option. Very proud of his group. All 17 players have chosen to wear something on their jerseys.
Kyle Goon: Frank Vogel said the testing “glitch” that caused Danny Green to miss practice yesterday has been addressed with the league. Think it’s a relatively small issue and he and Dwight Howard will participate. “Hopefully when it’s all said and done, it will be a small blip.”
Mike Trudell: Frank Vogel said the first practice showed him that guys overall are in “pretty good shape.” What he tried to get accomplished Day 1 was “re-introduce their bodies to movements they haven’t had in (months).” Defensive slides, full-court sprints, etc.
Brian Lewis: Jacque Vaughn couldn’t comment on Lance Thomas report. Asked if they’ve had anybody fail a coronavirus test, opt-out or get hurt. He replied “I’m not going to mess with a HIPPA violation,” but says “we’re going to have a team.” #Nets
Nick Friedell: Steve Clifford knows it’s killing Thibs to be outside of the bubble “Selfishly the one thing I do like about it is starting with our first exhibition game I’ll be getting texts and calls from him telling me everything that I need to do better So from that standpoint, good for me”
Jared Weiss: Cs practice was moved again today. Yesterday they had a truncated timeslot and today, Brad Stevens said they had to change gyms. 3 teams had to cancel their practice today for unknown reasons. Stevens said it’s not a big deal, citing when the bus breaks down on the road.
Josh Robbins: For those of you asking, Jonathan Isaac did not practice today as a precaution, and Steve Clifford said J.I. has not done any contact work so far in the bubble. J.I. has done individual drills with assistant coaches Mike Batiste and Rick Higgins that have had some physicality.
Jay King: Brad Stevens said the young guys have “all had some really good moments” during this training camp. While praising several young guys, he said Carsen Edwards had a strong first day.
Brian Robb: Brad Stevens on Kara Lawson taking job with Duke WBB: “We are thrilled for her. I can’t say enough terrific things about her…she will be a great fit at Duke”
