Portland Trail Blazers coach Terry Stotts isn’t a “slam dunk” to return as head coach of the team, Gery Woelfel of the Racine Journal Times tweets:
Scuttlebutt at NBA Combine in Chicago is that Terry Stotts returning to coach the Blazers isn’t a slam dunk.Should know, though, in few days
— Gery Woelfel (@GeryWoelfel) May 14, 2016
This news comes as a shock to many, especially considering how a report saying the Trail Blazers were set to begin contract extension talks with Stotts surfaced earlier in the week.
Terry Stotts finished second in Coach of the Year voting this past season. After losing four of his five starters this past summer in free agency, Stotts was given an inexperienced, unproven roster to start the season. Many doubted Portland’s chances of making the Playoffs and finishing as a successful team. Nonetheless, Terry Stotts guided the Blazers to a 44-38 record, eliminated the Clippers, and gave the Warriors a hard-pressed battle in the second round.
Before being hired by the Trail Blazers in 2012, Terry Stotts served as an assistant with the Dallas Mavericks from 2008-2012. Stotts helped guide the Mavericks to its first ever NBA championship in 2011.
Terry Stotts has guided the Portland Trail Blazers to a combined 182-146 record in four seasons with the team. He has a team option in his contract that the Blazers have not yet acted on, something that is beginning to worry some fans.
If Terry Stotts is threatening to leave the Blazers, expect several teams to pursue him instantly. The Magic, Grizzlies, Knicks, Rockets, and Pacers all have a vacant head coaching job, keep in mind. The Trail Blazers have one of the best coaches in the NBA at their grasp, and simply cannot afford to let him walk away. They’d be smart to begin discussions sooner, rather than later.
