Stotts Has Singular Focus Even As Job Comes Into Question

Following the Portland Trail Blazers’ win over the San Antonio Spurs, the media had a particular question for Head Coach Terry Stotts: how secure are you feeling in your job right now? Per Aaron Fentress of the Oregonian, Stotts didn’t have much to say on that particular point.

“I don’t know, I’m just coaching the team,” Stotts said.

When asked if he thought he must get the team to a certain level in order to keep his job, Stotts responded with the same line: “I’m just coaching the team.”

He then added: “It’s that time of year for speculation about coaches.”

In a post-game presser earlier this week, Stotts reflected on what this season has been.

“Every NBA season has ups and downs,” Stotts said following Wednesday’s win at Cleveland. “I can’t remember a season that was smooth sailing all of the time. ... I look at this season so far with CJ missing 25 games and Nurkic missing 35, riding the tides of the highs and lows, that’s just part of the NBA. Every team goes through it and this year is no different.”

Fentress noted that Damian Lillard has been willing to be held accountable over the coaching staff.

“We’re NBA players,” Lillard said. “I think you have coaches for a reason. I think our staff, our assistant coaches, Terry, I think they do a great job at preparing us to go out there and get ready for games with knowing players’ tendencies, knowing what sets they like to run, what they’ve done in the last five, six games. Knowing who’s playing well on each team. Knowing what they hurt us with the previous time we played them and the things that we had success with against them.”

Stotts’ reputation as a player’s coach seems to be intact at present.