Look who's talking
Is Leon Rose's ongoing refusal to take questions from the media really as rare as I and other reporters assert? Judge for yourself with this look at the 22 teams eliminated from the NBA playoffs
It is early in the NBA playoffs and also, in some ways, getting late.
Consider that 22 of #thisleague’s 30 teams — 73% of the membership — have already begun their offseasons.
The turning-the-page process typically starts with the franchise’s lead decision-maker in the front office addressing the news media to assess the season that was just completed and/or look ahead to the future. That's why, in recent days, you've heard:
A) Denver's Tim Connelly fielding a question about the wisdom of signing Michael Porter Jr. to a lucrative contract extension in October given his injury history and Porter’s subsequent third back surgery.
B) New Orleans' David Griffin addressing the "challenge" of hammering out an extension in the $190 million range with Zion Williamson this summer because of his injury history.
C) Oklahoma City’s Sam Presti, long known as one of the most guarded executives on the NBA map after his many years in the ever-secretive San Antonio system, taking questions for an unprecedented two-plus hours on April 18. As he explained, Presti sees it as “part of my responsibility to be available at the beginning and end of the season and stand here until you guys don't have anything else to ask."
D) Toronto's Masai Ujiri essentially announcing Tuesday morning that the Los Angeles Lakers can "keep dreaming" if they think Nick Nurse is a feasible candidate for the Lakers' coaching vacancy with multiple seasons remaining on his Raptors contract.
GM press conferences aren't always headline-worthy. There are frankly many more pre-packaged or spin-laced answers than revealing ones, with no guarantees that the true answers sought by the people will be provided. Yet there’s pretty much zero hope for fans to find out what their teams are thinking, directly from the teams, if there is no press conference at all to pose the questions.
That's why I've been so loud (and frequent) with my Twitter criticism of the Knicks since team president Leon Rose, after repeatedly ducking media responsibilities since he took charge of New York’s front office in March 2020, finally consented early last month to nothing more than a controlled sitdown with Knicks play-by-play legend Mike Breen on Knicks-owned MSG Network.
I've heard from plenty of Knicks fans since who believe I'm unfairly targeting their team and needlessly droning on about an issue that “real fans” don’t care about it — and I get it. You love your team(s) as much as (or sometimes more than) your own family. And some see anyone who isn't rooting for their team, including media members like me, as the enemy. It’s no different in some sectors of the fan base with the teams I root for … from Manchester City to the Buffalo Sabres to Cal State Fullerton.
I naturally (and vehemently) disagree. What Presti said is exactly right: It is one of the most fundamental elements of the job, like it or not, for professional sports teams’ top executives to take questions — once or twice a season at a minimum — so some pressing questions can be asked. By upholding owner James Dolan’s longstanding say-nothing policy, continuing the anti-transparency practices of too many regimes to count since the days of Donnie Walsh, Rose continues to run from one of the most basic tasks he is supposed to take on.
You don’t want to hear Rose expound on Julius Randle’s backslide this season or the club’s views on Obi Toppin’s development after the Knicks drafted him over Tyrese Haliburton? I would humbly suggest, if you’ve insisted on telling me that no one cares to see Rose discuss such topics, that you don’t exactly speak for all Knicks fans.
Contrary to what some of my Twitter friends believe, though, this actually affects me zero percent. I am not based in New York and thus wouldn’t be invited to a miraculous Rose press conference if one were unexpectedly called. I can and will continue to write about the Knicks plenty whether or not Rose ever says anything. If you want to applaud his silence and trumpet The Dolan Way because you think it makes my job harder, knock yourself out.
Today’s exercise is meant to cover broader territory. The goal here, in the name of fairness, is simply evaluating how all 22 teams have fared in upholding the responsibilities Presti outlined. Our breakdown:
THE 16 EXECS WHO HAVE MET THE MEDIA SINCE THEIR SEASONS ENDED
🏀 Atlanta's Travis Schlenk
🏀 Chicago's Artūras Karnišovas
🏀 Cleveland's Koby Altman
🏀 Denver's Tim Connelly
🏀 Detroit's Troy Weaver
🏀 Houston's Rafael Stone
🏀 The Clippers' Lawrence Frank
🏀 The Lakers' Rob Pelinka
🏀 Minnesota's Sachin Gupta
🏀 New Orleans' David Griffin
🏀 Oklahoma City's Sam Presti
🏀 Portland's Joe Cronin
🏀 Sacramento's Monte McNair
🏀 Toronto's Masai Ujiri
🏀 Utah's Justin Zanik*
🏀 Washington's Tommy Sheppard
(*Danny Ainge is actually Utah’s highest-ranking basketball official, but Ainge appears determined to foist media duties on Zanik. That naturally disappoints Jazz fans — and scribes like me — who want to hear directly from Ainge about his vision for the future after joining the organization in December.)
THE HOLDOUTS SO FAR
Brooklyn: The Nets say Sean Marks will hold a season-ending news conference at some point this month after Brooklyn's humbling first-round sweep inflicted by Boston.
Charlotte: Mitch Kupchak has yet to hold a season-ending press availability. With the Hornets now in the midst of a coaching search, it's presumed that won't happen until after a coach is chosen.
Indiana: The Pacers say president of basketball operations Kevin Pritchard is also scheduled to speak with the media later this month, in connection with the May 17 lottery, after Coach Rick Carlisle held a season-ending news conference.
Orlando: It's certainly not the same as a proper press conference, which is why the Magic ended up in this category, but president of basketball operations Jeff Weltman did do a radio interview with The Orlando Sentinel's Mike Bianchi shortly after the season to provide some semblance of discourse with a neutral outlet.
San Antonio: The Spurs are also somewhat tricky to place because Coach Gregg Popovich remains the most influential voice in the organization and speaks near-daily during the regular season. But Popovich and Spurs CEO R.C. Buford entrust the day-to-day GMing to Brian Wright. It remains unclear when Popovich, who turned 73 in January, will spell out his plans for next season after brushing aside that question immediately after the Spurs' play-in loss at New Orleans which ended San Antonio's season.
THE KNICKS
I'm afraid that, yes, Rose and Co. remain in a class by themselves. Chances are we will hear from everyone else in the holdout category sooner rather than later with the probable exception of the Spurs … who just made Popovich available for 83 pregames between Oct. 19 and April 10.
If you think the Knicks should get a pass, once again, knock yourself out. Dismiss me, if you choose, as just another media pest with a self-serving opinion. It’s your call if you want to be madder at reporters than the administration in power for the worst quarter-century in team history.
I simply insist, in closing, on spotlighting this Knicks fan who clearly gets where the (formerly ink-stained) wretches are coming from:
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Story Update
On Monday, I reported the latest from the NBA's coaching grapevine, including some intel about the affection ESPN analyst Mark Jackson has already won from Sacramento Kings owner Vivek Ranadivé as the Kings’ search for a new coach moves into the final stages.
On Tuesday, Bleacher Report's Jake Fischer articulated the situation better than I did: There is a rising belief in league coaching circles that Jackson is Ranadivé’s preferred candidate for the Kings' vacancy, while the front-office duo of Monte McNair and Wes Wilcox is said to prefer current Warriors assistant coach Mike Brown.
It will be fascinating to see from here, as the Kings complete their second round of interviews this week, if Ranadivé has granted his McNair-led basketball operations department as much autonomy as advertised.
As I reported Monday, while Jackson appears to have his best shot with Sacramento at an NBA head coaching job since his dismissal in Golden State after the 2013-14 season, Jackson's prospects with the Lakers don't appear nearly as robust — even with the perceived support of Lakers star LeBron James.
Numbers Game
🏀 49
The Nets' first-round exit and the Knicks' failure to reach the playoffs clinched a 49th consecutive season without an NBA championship in New York dating to the Knicks’ last crown in 1972-73. (The Nets, of course, last won an ABA championship as the New York Nets in 1975-76.)
🏀 2
Of the eight franchises still alive in the NBA playoffs, two have never won a championship: West top seeds Phoenix and Memphis. Philadelphia is seeking its first championship since 1983. The other five teams — Milwaukee (last season), Golden State (2015, 2017 and 2018), Miami (2012 and 2013), Dallas (2011), Boston (2008) — have won it all within the past 14 years.
🏀 7
Sacramento is poised to hire its seventh coach in Vivek Ranadivé's nine years of ownership and the Kings' 12th coach in 16 years since the club last reached the playoffs in 2006.
🏀 15
Twenty-four teams in NBA history won at least 64 games in an 82-game regular season before this season's Phoenix Suns. According to my pal Iztok Franko of D Magazine, 15 of those 24 teams went on to win it all, with three more losing in the NBA Finals and four more losing in the conference finals. Only two of the 24 teams failed to reach the NBA's Final Four: San Antonio in 2015-16 when it lost to Oklahoma City in the second round ... and Dallas in 2006-07 when the 67-win Mavericks were upset in Round 1 by the We Believe Warriors.
🏀 0.8
Until Philadelphia's Game 1 loss Monday night in Miami in the opener of the teams' second-round series, Sixers center DeAndre Jordan had logged exactly 0.8 seconds of playoff action since the 2017 postseason with the Clippers. Jordan played that eighth of a second in Philadelphia’s first-round series against Toronto after not seeing the court during Brooklyn’s 2021 postseason run. The 33-year-old started in place of the injured Joel Embiid against the Heat.
🏀 19-7
Utah was 19-7 in December when Danny Ainge was hired as the team's new CEO of the front office, second in command only to new owner Ryan Smith. The Jazz went 32-30 thereafter including their 2-4 mark in the playoffs.
🏀 14
Chris Paul's recent 14-for-14 shooting in the Suns' series-clinching Game 6 at New Orleans was the most accurate marksmanship in league history in a playoff game. According to Stathead, Nene is next in line with a 12-for-12 game for Houston during the 2017 playoffs, which was matched by Kansas City-Omaha's Larry McNeill in 1975. For a longer list from Stathead that includes Scotty Wedman's unforgettable 11-for-11 shooting off the bench for Boston in Game 1 of the 1985 NBA Finals, click here.
🏀 $258,449
The eight teams that lost in the first round collect a playoff payout of $258,489 per team. The overall playoff pool this season is $17,317,334.
🏀 3,346,000
ESPN says that its eight first-round playoff broadcasts averaged slightly more than 3.3 million viewers, accounting for the third-most-watched opening round of the NBA playoffs for the network dating to its return to NBA broadcasting in 2002-03.
🏀 33.4
With 45 points in Monday’s Game 1 loss at Phoenix, Dallas’ Luka Dončić moved into a virtual tie with Michael Jordan for the highest scoring average in NBA playoff history (minimum 10 games played). Jordan’s career average is 33.45 PPG; Doncic is at 33.41 PPG.
.8 seconds is more than Jordan should have had in game 1. Doc is stubborn mule. If he had tried to develop Reed and Bassey maybe they would be more playable now. It was evident Jordan stunk. But Doc only likes veterans. Would love to see that column of leagues best coaches and how Doc is considered a top one of all time
It's very Knicks for Rose not to talk to the media, but it doesn't upset me mainly because if he did, I doubt he would say anything useful. Though I would really love to know how he feels now about the spate of rather undercooked free agent signings from last summer.