Day: October 14, 2023

New York Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau complimented Karl-Anthony Towns ahead of a preseason matchup against the Minnesota Timberwolves. Thibodeau praised Towns work in both the NBA and with the Dominican Republic National Team.

“Watching the progress he’s made throughout his career, he’s as gifted as they come,” Thibodeau said.

“When you look at an offensive player, particularly a big, the skill set that he has, I think we all saw, to win the 3-point contest and stuff like that, there’s nothing he can’t do offensively. He has continued to get better I think. He had some injuries to deal with. I watched him play in FIBA [the World Cup, for the Dominican Republic], he played really well there. He’s really, really gifted.”

Sources indicate that Thibodeau would welcome coaching Towns, if given the opportunity. If Towns were to ever hit the trade market, New York would be among the bidders to trade for the veteran center.

James Harden did not play in the Philadelphia 76ers annual Blue and White scrimmage. Nor was Harden introduced with his teammates ahead of the scrimmage.

This was apparently a mutual decision made by the Sixers and Harden. Nick Nurse said it was decided that none of the veterans would play in the scrimmage. Nurse didn’t comment on why Harden wasn’t introduced with the rest of the team.

Harden reiterated to the media in recent days that he didn’t think his relationship with the 76ers front office could be repaired. Harden continues to seek a trade, and Philadelphia has remained engaged with other teams in trade talks for the star guard.

The Boston Celtics have hired Jeff Van Gundry as a senior consultant. It’s expected that Van Gundy will work with both the coaching staff and the front office in his role. In addition, he’ll work with the Maine Celtics of the G League. Van Gundy will not have an active role day-to-day on the Celtics bench as a part of the coaching staff.

Van Gundy was a head coach in the NBA for 11 seasons, spending seven years with the New York Knicks and four with the Houston Rockets. The veteran coach had one losing record in those 11 years. Van Gundy helped lead the Knicks to the 1999 NBA Finals.

For the last 16 seasons, Van Gundy has worked as a broadcaster for ESPN. He also coached Team USA in 2017, and helped lead the team to a 2019 FIBA World Cup berth.