Quick: Blazers Pick Up Option on Nate McMillan
by Ben Golliver on Jul 10, 2009 5:08 PM PDT
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PrintAlthough Nate McMillan hasn't yet re-up'd with Team USA, Jason Quick reports that he will be around Portland until at least 2011.
The Blazers last week picked up a one-year option on McMillan's contract, keeping him in Portland through the 2010-2011 season.
...
McMillan made it clear that his one-year-at-a-time stance is based purely on ethics, and is not a reflection of how he feels about Portland and the Blazers. In fact, he said he intends on following in the footsteps of one of his coaching idols, Utah's Jerry Sloan, who has been with the Jazz for 21 seasons.
"Some people may say, 'Well, is there somewhere else you want to go?' And I'm like no, this is where I want to be," McMillan said. "For me, having a one-year deal doesn't allow you to slip. I like that. For me, I look for ways to keep myself sharp, and that will certainly keep me sharp."
UPDATED (7:40PM): Press Release from the team
TRAIL BLAZERS EXERCISE OPTION ON HEAD COACH NATE MCMILLAN
McMillan to remain with team through 2010-11 season
PORTLAND, Ore. - The Portland Trail Blazers exercised their option on Head Coach Nate McMillan, extending his contract through the 2010-11 season, it was announced today by General Manager Kevin Pritchard.
"I'm excited that the option year on my contract has been picked up," said McMillan. "We have a great team, first-class organization and the fan support has been incredible. I would also like to credit the coaching staff for their hard work, and we're all looking forward to working towards our goal of bringing a championship back to the city of Portland."
McMillan, 44, led the second youngest team in the NBA to the playoffs with a 54-28 record last season, which ranks as the sixth best mark in franchise history.
"Nate has proven himself one of the great coaches in the NBA," said Pritchard. "The manner in which he's developed and grown this young team is a testament to his hard work, intelligence and passion for the game. He's done an amazing job, and we're lucky to have him."
He becomes just the second coach in NBA history to improve a team by at least nine or more wins in three consecutive seasons, as Portland has increased its win total by 33 games since McMillan's first season in the Rose City.
With an all-time record of 360-363 (.498) over his nine-year coaching career with Portland and Seattle, McMillan stands as the third-youngest coach in NBA history to reach the 300 win mark.
-- Ben (benjamin.golliver@gmail.com)
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should we read into the one-year-at-a-time thing?
…or take it at face value. I’m a little split on what to think about this.
I like that.
Good quote by Nate. I would like to take what he said as face value. I hope he really does mean what he says.
It will be interesting to see how Nate grows as a coach and as a leader in these coming seasons.
If I was a younger coach, I would definetly want a young team like Portland. He can create a legacy for himself if it goes right, and it allows him to grow and integrate with our very special team.
* Building a Greg Oden Fanboy Treehouse Clubhouse this summer...
I agree. It is nice to hear good news, and not media drama for once over the course of this offseason.
BEdge editors are not included in my assessment of the mass media of course :)
* Building a Greg Oden Fanboy Treehouse Clubhouse this summer...
Not trying to get technical, just covering my tracks.
* Building a Greg Oden Fanboy Treehouse Clubhouse this summer...
I find it disgraceful Nate has never been in serious running for COY with us
We’ve improved an average of 11 games a season under him. I guess if we win 65 next year they’ll have to give him the award. Right?
coach of the year is like a curse
It is usually won by amazing 1 year turn arounds that usually last about 1 year
Consistency is definitely not factored into this award
Life is exhausting when you are this stupid.
I will talk about DeJuan Blair no more forever
yeap. ask jerry sloan.
"There are a few teams you have to watch out for in the fourth quarter."
"Yeah, but Portland definitely is not one of them."
-New Orleans Hornets broadcasters at the end of the third quarter with the Hornets leading 74-59. Portland later ends up winning 97-89.
"They don't mind him shooting that shot at all. Rudy Fernandez is not that great of a 3pt shooter."
-New Orleans Hornets broadcasters right after a Rudy Fernandez missed 3pter. Rudy Fernandez finished the game with three 3pters on six attempts.
by Tofu Anonymous on Jul 10, 2009 6:30 PM PDT up reply actions
or Chuck Daly, when you could
Not that I’m comparing Nate to multi-finals coaches, just saying that coach of the year is not a useful award.
Besides, haven't the last few COY winners all been canned within a season of winning it?
Why would we want Nate to get canned?
Blazers win!
solid
I like Nate as our coach. We wouldn’t have had 54 wins last year without him
Woof
by Charles Barkley McLovin on Jul 10, 2009 5:41 PM PDT reply actions
If it was Phil Jackson
I would question it and analyse the move for ulterior motives, but I trust Nate and think he is a man of his word.
A REAL man!
He has mentioned this many times before, wanting to earn his spot as the coach. I like that. We all should.
Mortimer
What Nate couldn't say
“I’ve gotta keep my options open in case Phil retires and Kobe comes calling”
When reached 39 years of following Portland basketball you have, be as passionate of the Trail Blazers you will not!
You know, that's just crazy enough to be true.
If Phil retires next summer, and Nate were under contract to the Blazers for more than this coming season, Nate would have to resign as Blazer coach before the Lakers could even talk to him, right? His year-by-year arrangement gives him the flexibility to sign with any team each summer. That gives him leverage with team decisions. If they want to keep him, they have to keep him happy.
I say a lot of crazy things that have an element of truth to them
The good news is, if Phil decides to retire next summer, Nate will still be under contract with Portland and the job will go to Kobe’s 2nd choice, Stan van Gundy
My other crazy conspiracy theory is that Tom Thibodeau isn’t getting any head coaching interviews this offseason because David Stern told him to “just sit tight” in Boston until Phil retires, then Jerry Buss will gladly offer him the L*A job.
Just another example of the commish knowing where his bread is buttered
When reached 39 years of following Portland basketball you have, be as passionate of the Trail Blazers you will not!
Look everyone, I just found the first draft of Quick's article on Nate's signing.
Nate uncertain about future with Blazers
by Jason Quick
The latest bad news in this disastrous offseason, one of the worst in Trail Blazer history, is the drama surrounding head coach Nate McMillan. Rumors that the Blazers are not happy with McMillan needing three years to take the Blazers from the worst team in the league to the fourth seed in the playoffs seemed validated with the news that McMillan has agreed to a new contract with the Blazers.
For one year.
That’s right, one year. Exactly half of what former Sacramento Kings coach Eric Mussleman got.
“I think that’s the way it should go,” said McMillan, who has been in Portland since 2005. “It might be crazy … I know my agent thinks I’m crazy.”
It’s been a rough week for the hard-working McMillan. His eyes appeared bloodshot, with dark circles under them, and he was in obvious need of a shave and a manicure. McMillan sounded weary and defeated, and refused to comment on his summer shortcomings.
In a league in which a coach can go in six months from the Coach of the Year award to the unemployment line, McMillan is not just courting failure, he’s about to marry her and father six children. The question on everyone’s mind is why.
The utter disregard shown by general manager Kevin Pritchard in not signing then-Magic veteran forward Hedo Turkoglu has not sat well with McMillan. McMillan made it sternly clear earlier this week that he wanted some veteran help for this team of overachieving boy wonders. Pritchard’s refusal to bring to the team anyone old enough to vote, while NBA powerhouses Boston, Los Angeles, and San Antonio reload with grizzled, highly skilled veterans, is a bee in McMillan’s bonnet.
In the meantime, the word is that McMillan and his staff are staying up late into the night throwing around ideas for another season’s worth of Brandon Roy isolation plays. All the while, the golden aura of a lucrative five-year deal that once surrounded McMillan dims like a cheap light bulb in a New York brownout.
by MiledAnimal on Jul 10, 2009 6:07 PM PDT reply actions 13 recs
Fantastic
The Oregonian’s reporters writers are making me want to puke.
Rex is a starter by the 2010 trade deadline. Watch.
Have you noticed everything JQ reported in the past two days...
…has turned out to be true? He was the first in the nation to break the Millsap news AND the first to report on the troubles with resigning Roy (which Roy himself later confirmed). Quick is an excellent writer and does his research.
by GMan83201 on Jul 10, 2009 6:57 PM PDT up reply actions 6 recs
Plus 1 at least.
Brandon Roy just destroyed everything in his path. There's your rational analysis -- Dave
Also: COMCAST SUCKS!
I rec'ed both this and its parent.
Quick is a simultaneously a good reporter and an overdramatic one.
Keep in mind that everything I know about basketball I learned on Blazers Edge.
by pualo on Jul 10, 2009 7:07 PM PDT up reply actions 4 recs
Well said #2
Perhaps he’s a little too emotionally invested. Sometimes it leads to great articles, sometimes not.
Is that why Dave hates Przybilla?
J Bay Bay don't play that. J Bay Bay 2010 'Zers starting point guard over B Rex.
I see Quick as a punk sensationalist who twists too many stories to make them disaster impending
Some might say “Chicken-little”.
Where Quick belongs is ESPN and perhaps that is precisely what he is mimicking to get hired there. Foment the stories and get national attention. He makes me sick. Right or wrong is not the issue. Being honest about the tenor and intent is the issue.
He has no integrity in my book and should at least get a % of the agent’s commission for being his shill on Roy. Roy wants five years that he can opt-out in three. The Blazers want 4 honest years and then reup. Remember the Minnesota fiasco when they gave KG everything and could not afford another great player? Want Kevin McHale running the Blazers? These guys know what they are doing. We don’t have a clue and neither does Quick.
Nice parody, friend
The Michael Ruffin of BlazersEdge, cuz Amlmart said so.
by BlazersOrBust on Jul 11, 2009 11:00 AM PDT up reply actions
That way nate will always be under a contract year.
"There are a few teams you have to watch out for in the fourth quarter."
"Yeah, but Portland definitely is not one of them."
-New Orleans Hornets broadcasters at the end of the third quarter with the Hornets leading 74-59. Portland later ends up winning 97-89.
"They don't mind him shooting that shot at all. Rudy Fernandez is not that great of a 3pt shooter."
-New Orleans Hornets broadcasters right after a Rudy Fernandez missed 3pter. Rudy Fernandez finished the game with three 3pters on six attempts.
Quick is just like a reporter from entertainment tonight. Blowing every story that comes across his desk way out of proportion to garner more ratings. I’m starting to think he is a total D Bag
by elkaholic84 on Jul 10, 2009 6:47 PM PDT via mobile reply actions
He and the Blazers
Are getting played by the agents. All three of these guys (Nate, B-Roy and LMA) must be resigned or the fan base will hate them. Therefore, the team holds no cards and the players/coach all.
Proud member of Duck nation!
Gotta like Nates stones
He’s a good self motivator. That’s for sure.
I know less than half of you half as well as I should like, and I like less than half of you half as well as you deserve.
Everytime this has come up before...
folks always blow it out of proportion and read too much into it. I absolutely believe that Nate fears being employed purely out of obligation much more than not having the security of a long term contract. His pride is worth more than the risk. In an increasingly weak society, Nate’s a real man.
Needless to say, I respect Nate immensely for this.
The cowards never started
The weak died along the way
Only the strong survived
They were the Trailblazers
by lukeyhere on Jul 10, 2009 6:52 PM PDT reply actions 1 recs
I totally agree. He is doing a favor to the organization by these one year contracts. He is basing it on his performance. If he under performs and he and the team parts ways, the blazers won’t have to worry about paying out his remaining contract. Its a very noble thing he is doing. He has raised the bar for himself.
by elkaholic84 on Jul 10, 2009 7:03 PM PDT via mobile up reply actions
How many of you are old enough to remember Walter Alston?
He was the Dodgers coach/manager for over 20 years. Very successful. And through those years he always had 1 year contracts. Don’t remember now if it was his choice or managements or both. But it worked out wonderfully.
If Nate’s one year thing is KP’s idea (and I doubt that it is), it’s because of Nate’s unwillingness to employ an up-tempo style……one which would fit all the race horses that KP has amassed for the team.
Brandon Roy just destroyed everything in his path. There's your rational analysis -- Dave
Also: COMCAST SUCKS!
You are right - Nate made it clear that this is the way he wants it
I believe Jerry Sloan is on a one-year contract every year also so Nate’s citing Sloan is a perfect example of his thinking.
Nate's deal
He wants the pressure to succeed every year. He lives living on the edge.
Proud member of Duck nation!
The Dodgers and the Jazz
Those models will not work in every market
Eventually the Dodgers were sold and between LaSorda and Torre there was plenty of managerial turnover. Results always matter, Walter and Tony got them, and now so has Joe
The Jazz run their organization like a family business, which is fine when the economy’s good. Frank Layden said they are loathe to fire anyone, and while Jerry Sloan hasn’t won them a championship, he’s been in the playoffs darn near every year running that old-school offense and “hack ’em so often the refs will have to stop calling ’em” defense. It helps when they’re at home and the crowd intimidates the officials
It’s worked in Utah for a long time, but the other day John Lund said that Jerry has had to soften up his hard-nosed approach because AK47 was too “sensitive” to criticism. When Sloan finally gets fed up and retires the Jazz are going to have to scramble to find a coach and revamp their roster/style. It will be interesting to see if they can keep the franchise’s head above water if the W-L record takes a nosedive
Bring ’em out-HOW ’BOUT this JAZZ!!!
When reached 39 years of following Portland basketball you have, be as passionate of the Trail Blazers you will not!
that was management's deal
They were cheapskates. Koufax and Drysdale held out for $100,000 contracts one year. – Elgin
Without you out there, we're nowhere here
I would never sign a contract for a job.
I like knowing I can walk out any time I want.
Keep in mind that everything I know about basketball I learned on Blazers Edge.
younger,not quicker. and no idea
How did you guys win that?
"We scored enough points. We scored 107, they scored 105.
-Nate McMillan Postgame, 3/4/2009
avery johnson and...
"There are a few teams you have to watch out for in the fourth quarter."
"Yeah, but Portland definitely is not one of them."
-New Orleans Hornets broadcasters at the end of the third quarter with the Hornets leading 74-59. Portland later ends up winning 97-89.
"They don't mind him shooting that shot at all. Rudy Fernandez is not that great of a 3pt shooter."
-New Orleans Hornets broadcasters right after a Rudy Fernandez missed 3pter. Rudy Fernandez finished the game with three 3pters on six attempts.
by Tofu Anonymous on Jul 10, 2009 11:04 PM PDT up reply actions
Going by Basketball-Reference there are at least 15 who won more by age 43 (including ABA)
None of them named Phil Jackson (zero) or Greg Popovich (zero) or Chuck Daly (zero)!
Red Auerbach had 645 by age 43 so he did it twice!
In NBA only here are a few:
George Karl 321
John Kundra 423
Al Attles 443
Dick Motta 332
John MacLeod 349
Pat Reily 470
Alex Hannum 351
Red Auerbach 477
Seriously all this resigning junk
With Nate or B-Roy or LMA reveals is the Blazers PR machine is losing to the agent PR machine.
These guys know they have the cards and are playing them.
Proud member of Duck nation!
Only losing to the view of fans who have not been through the process
This is nothing to the PR wars some other stars have mounted.
And it is easy to lose $50M per year if it is not our money. I suspect that this is not about money alone but principles of good management and negotiation.
Yup
Nothing compared to LeBron’s war for example, or Kobe’s, or Shaq’s.
Proud member of Duck nation!
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