NBA Rumors Round-Up
NBA Rumors: Jazz Hire Quin Snyder
Jeff Hawkins is an award-winning sportswriter with more than four decades in the industry (print and digital media). A freelance writer/stay-at-home dad since 2008, Hawkins started his career with newspaper stints in Michigan, North Carolina, Florida, Upstate New York and Illinois, where he earned the 2004 APSE first-place award for column writing (under 40,000 circulation). As a beat writer, he covered NASCAR Winston Cup events at NHIS (1999-2003), the NHL's Chicago Blackhawks (2003-06) and the NFL's Carolina Panthers (2011-12). Hawkins penned four youth sports books, including a Michael Jordan biography. Hawkins' main hobbies include mountain bike riding, 5k trail runs at the Whitewater Center in Charlotte, N.C., and live music.
All posts by Jeff HawkinsUpdated15 Oct 2021
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Quin Snyder agreed on a three-year deal with the @utahjazz to become the next head coach of the team, I am told
On Friday, the Utah Jazz reached an agreement with Quin Snyder to become their new head coach. Snyder was an assistant coach with the Atlanta Hawks this last season, his most recent stop in a career that has also included stints coaching in college, the NBA Development League and Europe.
Snyder replaces Tyrone Corbin, who took over for Jerry Sloan in the 2010-11 season. Corbin coached the Jazz to consecutive seasons above .500, however, the team struggled this season and finished with 25-57 record.
Snyder inherits a roster with a lot of young talent, including Trey Burke, Gordon Hayward (Utah can make Hayward a restricted free agent by extending a $4,677,708 qualifying offer), Derrick Favors, Enes Kanter and the fifth pick in the upcoming draft.
Snyder edged out other candidates Alvin Gentry and Adrian Griffin for the job.
“Well, I don’t think it has a lot of effect on his future. I think that he’s (Love) already made up his (mind), that he wants to go elsewhere, and he’s been in this league for six years and they have not made the playoffs once yet.”
“I just think you are not going to see Love in Minnesota anymore. It’s beyond repair at this point.”
“The two (teams) that seem to appeal to me the most, that seem the most realistic right now, are Chicago and Golden State because I do think that Flip would like to get some established talent back in a trade for Love.”
Earlier this week, Flip Saunders announced that he would take over as head coach of the Minnesota Timberwolves. This announcement comes in the midst of daily reports stating that star power forward Kevin Love wants to leave Minnesota and join a team where he can compete at a high level.
When asked whether Saunders taking over as coach would change Love’s current stance, Jon Krawczynski stated that he did not think it would. It does not seem that there is any turning back for Love, who has never been to the playoffs in his six years in Minnesota.
Krawczynski also stated that the Golden States Warriors and Chicago Bulls are the most realistic trade partners for Minnesota. The Warriors can offer players such as Klay Thompson, Harrison Barnes and David Lee, whereas the Bulls can offer players such as Taj Gibson, Jimmy Butler and several first-round draft picks.
Nevertheless, the Timberwolves maintain that they intend to keep Love. If they do, it will be up to Saunders to turn the Timberwolves into a playoff-caliber team, otherwise Love could walk away at the end of next season for nothing.
Though he is clearly disappointed and confused by the lack of interest from NBA teams, West seems to be in good spirits now. He told me he no longer takes medication, but he stays in touch with Dr. Eppright in Cleveland and is surrounded by family and friends in Prince George’s County. He believes he’s matured a great deal in the last few years, especially since meeting his wife and becoming a father.
Delonte West has been out of the NBA for two seasons, most recently playing for the Fujian Sturgeons of the Chinese Basketball Association. He is a talented player whose career has been marred by off-court incidents and questionable behavior.
According to Haglund, who has tracked West’s progress for a year, West has grown and matured in his time away from the NBA. If West is in fact in a better mental and emotional state, he will likely be back in the league next season, given his level of talent.
West is set to play on the Los Angeles Clippers’ summer league team in Las Vegas, according to CSNNW. This means he’ll be reuniting with head coach Doc Rivers, who he played for with the Boston Celtics. Rivers reportedly told West earlier this season that if J.J. Redick could not return from his back injury, West could be signed to help replace him. Redick eventually made it back to the court, and West was never signed. With Darren Collison hitting free agency this summer, West has a second chance to make the team.
