With the 2013 NBA draft days away, teams are quickly filling their coaching vacancies. The Denver Nuggets, Memphis Grizzlies and Los Angeles Clippers all have filled or are near filling their head coach positions. The Philadelphia 76ers and Boston Celtics remain without a coach, and the list of potential candidates has dwindled.
The Denver Nuggets hired former Indiana Pacers assistant Brian Shaw as their new coach. The hiring came late Monday night, according to ESPN. Shaw replaces George Karl, the 2013 NBA Coach of the Year, who was fired in June.
"I'm so appreciative for the opportunity to be able to lead this team and for the faith that [Nuggets team president] Josh Kroenke and [general manager] Tim Connelly have put in me," Shaw told ESPN's Ramona Shelburne. "It's been a long time coming. I've been prepared by the best of the best for a long time. I'm just really looking forward to it."
Shaw, 47, won three championships with the Los Angeles Lakers from 2000-02 as a player and two more in 2009 and 2010 as a Lakers assistant coach under Phil Jackson. He made it to the Eastern Conference finals this season as an assistant coach for the Pacers.
The Memphis Grizzlies reached an agreement with assistant Dave Joerger to become the new head coach, according to ESPN. Joerger, who spent the last six seasons as an assistant coach with Memphis, replaces his former boss, Lionel Hollins.
The Los Angeles Clippers are close to completing a deal to acquire Boston Celtics coach Doc Rivers in exchange for a 2015 first-round draft pick as compensation. The completion of the deal is being held up as Rivers and the Clippers continue to negotiate the language of his new contract, ESPN reports.
The Philadelphia 76ers, meanwhile, are reportedly pursuing San Antonio Spurs assistant Brett Brown to be their next coach. Brown has worked for the last seven years under Gregg Popovich, according to Yahoo! Sports.
It's unclear who Boston will target as their next coach. Whoever coaches next for Boston will inherit a team needing to be rebuilt. Former Memphis Grizzlies coach Lionel Hollins, former Cleveland Cavaliers coach Byron Scott, former Phoenix Suns coach Alvin Gentry, and Karl remain available.
