NBA PM: Some 2015 NBA Draft Rumors

Some Draft Scuttle: Workouts, pro days and world travel is on deck for most of the NBA over the next two weeks, as teams bounce from pro day to pro day and host workouts to narrow their list of prospects into a plan for the 2015 NBA Draft.

Here are some things that are coming out of the process:

Karl-Anthony Towns: There have been some reports suggesting that top overall pick candidate Karl-Anthony Towns may not work out for teams. Instead, he’ll meet with teams for a personal interview and that would be the extent of his workout process.

Before we get too far into this, sources close to Towns deny that he’s made any such proclamation and that meeting with and working out for teams is still very likely and that scheduling and logistics will play a big part in the when and where.

The popular narrative is that Towns’ agent is trying to force him to the Lakers at number two, and may make it tough on Minnesota to seriously evaluate him. Again, sources on both sides are not sure where that originated from.

As for the virtue of “not working out,” the reality is that both the Wolves and the Lakers have seen a ton of Towns (and Jahlil Okafor for that matter). They have a really good read on who he is as a player, what’s missing is the face to face and the medical and that’s expected to all take place in the coming weeks.

Towns signed with CAA as his agency, and they have a long track record of manipulating the draft process to make sure they control what transpires with their guys. They did the same last year with Jabari Parker and Joel Embiid, so what’s playing out with Towns is simply business as usual for a top overall pick candidate.

Robert Upshaw: After sitting with Robert Upshaw at the NBA Draft Combine, there is a sense of contrition and understanding that he’s made some bad mistakes in his life and that he is ready to turn the page. If you missed it, Upshaw has battled substance abuse problems for some time and, unfortunately for Upshaw, his past and what’s playing out now in the draft process may not only knock him out of the first round, but there are a lot of teams that have removed him from their board entirely.

There is no doubting that Upshaw has some serious talent, but the stories that are circulating about him are downright scary and several teams who have an immediate need that Upshaw could fill have said bluntly they just can’t draft him.

The hope from those executives is that Upshaw indeed turns his life around, but there is such a fear that once he’s in the NBA and has the access to the money and the enablers that come with it, that he’ll be more trouble than he is ultimately worth.

Most who chose to comment on this situation said they expect at some point a team will draft him when the risk is low enough, which means there may be a first round talent floating around in the mid-to-late second round, but who knows how it will pan out.

Cameron Payne: Every year there is a player who gets the early draft promise, and this year it seems to be Murray State guard Cameron Payne. Much like Elfrid Payton last year, Payne is one of the smaller school guys who did not have a huge stage to play on. While Payne was thoroughly scouted in his two years at Murray, he wasn’t viewed in the same light as NCAA tournament standouts like Notre Dame’s Jerian Grant, Duke’s Tyus Jones or even Louisville’s Terry Rozier. However, as the draft process has started to play out not only does it appear that Payne as a firm draft commitment, it may be a lot higher than the rumored 14th selection that’s been floating around.

While the Oklahoma City Thunder, who hold the 14th pick, are notorious for making the early draft commitment to players they really like, it’s hard to image Payne’s camp shutting down workouts over the 14th pick. Also, the Thunder are still working out players in that range. Payne’s draft stock could be significantly higher than the 11 to 14 range most pundits have him projected.

There is little doubt that someone made a draft promise to Payne, the question is, is it really the 14th pick or could Payne jump into the top 10?

R.J. Hunter: Georgia State’s R.J. Hunter is doing extremely well in the draft process so far. He was solid at his pro day, teams were impressed with him at the Combine and his stock is trending upwards in a pretty interesting way. While most pundits have him in the 20-35 range, there is a growing sense that he might be the guy for the Milwaukee Bucks at 17 if things fall as they are projected. The Bucks are looking for an athletic big who can play the four and the five, but if that does not materialize shooting (specifically from the guard spot) is next on the wish list.

There is little doubt at this point that Hunter has a floor, so the question becomes how high can he climb in the weeks leading up to the draft and how realistic does a pick in the teens really become?

The next version of the Basketball Insiders Mock Draft drops on Wednesday and will include more notes from our Mock Draft team.

If you are looking for more draft scuttle, make sure to check in on the Consensus Mock Draft every Wednesday all the way to the draft.

Tom Is Not Without Blame: When the Oklahoma City Thunder parted ways with Scott Brooks, the winningest head coach in franchise history, fans sort of understood that one. After all, he’d been on the job for five seasons and the team wasn’t exactly progressing to expectations and key players like forward Kevin Durant and guard Russell Westbrook could hit unrestricted free agency soon so the team needed to do something drastic.

When the Chicago Bulls finally pulled the trigger on firing head coach Tom Thibodeau, that wasn’t as easy to rationalize outside of the very public discord between the coach and the front office. There were no free agents looking for the door. The core players on the team liked the coach and the team was progressing. The annual message was always ‘if only we could stay healthy’ not ‘is Thibs the right coach?’

So why did the coach have to go again?

The truth of the matter is the Bulls organization has been tough on head coaches. It’s something the franchise has a bad track record on. So they are not without blame in the culture and environment they have created for their other key employees – their coaches.

Players rave about the way the Bulls treat their players. Every amenity and comfort is provided. They are a top notch player-friendly organization.

Their coaches, on the other hand, have a different view. The front office wants to be involved more than some coaches like. There is a sense of ‘we know better’ at times, and that’s rubbed some coaches the wrong way, especially old-school coaches like Thibodeau.

In the modern NBA, the front office is no longer behind some ivory tower. General managers travel with their teams, sit in on team meetings and want to have input on all aspects of their team.

The hands-on approach works for some coaches, but does not work for all of them. Some GMs are more reserved in their role, some are right there in the tunnel when their players come off the floor.

As bad as the Bulls may have handled the Thibodeau situation organizationally, Thibodeau, himself, is not without blame.

There is a reason Thibodeau sat on the sidelines as a lead assistant for so long. He had always been well regarded as a coach, especially as one of the better defensive minded coaches in the league. The problem was and still remains that Thibodeau isn’t exactly a warm and fuzzy guy. He is gruff and abrasive, sometimes combative and, as many describe him, has a grinding and grating manner that makes it hard to like him for long periods of time.

Mavericks head coach Rick Carlisle carried this same label for years; it was ultimately why he was shown the door in Detroit. It took time for Carlisle to find a home where his mannerisms and personality were not a negative, and that’s likely going to be the case with Thibodeau.

It helps that Carlisle won a championship, which tends to be a disinfectant for all woes. It’s sort of like if you are crazy and eccentric, if you have enough zeroes in the bank you are not crazy any more. In the NBA if you have hardware on your resume, your warts are no longer warts.

Thibodeau has two more years remaining on his deal, so there is no urgency in Tom finding a new job. Some have wondered if he would join good friend Doc Rivers in L.A. as an assistant coach until the next job opens up. Sources say that’s unlikely.

Thibodeau was linked to the New Orleans Pelicans and the Orlando Magic, but his price tag was a little too steep for both franchises and Thibodeau isn’t exactly eager to join a team that’s going to lose 40 games a year again.

With the Bulls footing the bill, Thibodeau has time to find his next situation and there are some of bubble jobs that are out there now. How much longer does Randy Wittman have in Washington? How about Dwane Casey in Toronto? How long does Gregg Popovich stay in San Antonio?

There could be some pretty desirable situations that come open in the next year, so there is no sense of urgency for Thibodeau. Sources close to him say he may do some TV work next year, which might help his image. It did wonders for Jeff Van Gundy.

Firing a winning coach never feels like the right thing to do, but as the NBA Finals gear up on Thursday, consider this – what was the public response to the Warriors firing Mark Jackson? It seemed like that turned out OK for the Warriors, because they brought in someone who fit the culture and the process better.

That’s what the Bulls needed to do, and Thibodeau will ultimately find a place where he fits long-term too, much like Carlisle has in Dallas.

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