NBA

Pistons assistant to coach Hawks

By wire services
Published July 7, 2004

ATLANTA - Mike Woodson agreed to coach the Hawks after working as the top assistant last season for the NBA champion Pistons.

"They have offered the job and hopefully everything will be wrapped up ... and I'll be on a plane (tonight) or Thursday morning for Atlanta," Woodson said Tuesday.

Woodson said he was still completing negotiations with the Hawks but considered the final details minor.

He said he agreed to a four-year deal to replace Terry Stotts, fired May 6. The Hawks went 28-54 last season and have missed the playoffs for five straight years.

"We've got a lot of work to do; we're kind of starting from the bottom up," Woodson said. "What better way to put your name on something and try to build than from the bottom up?"

Woodson, an assistant for Pistons coach Larry Brown, was a finalist for jobs in Toronto and Philadelphia the past two years.

Woodson said he was swayed by Atlanta's new nine-man ownership group and his longtime relationship with Hawks general manager Billy Knight.

EL SEGUNDO, Calif. - With Mike Krzyzewski out of the picture, it appears Rudy Tomjanovich is in line to become the next Lakers coach.

General manager Mitch Kupchak wouldn't comment on a Houston television station's report that Tomjanovich has been offered the job but did say the team has "identified the guy we want to hire."

"There is not a deal to announce," Kupchak said. "We don't have a coach at this time. We hope to have a coach in a short period of time."

Tomjanovich, who led the Rockets to NBA titles in 1994 and '95, was offered the job Monday, the station reported. The Lakers have been without a coach since June 18, when they announced Phil Jackson wouldn't return.

Tomjanovich, 55, stepped down after 12 years as Rockets coach in May 2003, two months after learning he had bladder cancer. He was treated and served as a scout last season.

Also, North Carolina coach Roy Williams said he briefly discussed the opening but told the Lakers he wouldn't leave the Tar Heels.

NUGGETS, BRYANT TALK: Kobe Bryant met with Denver general manager Kiki Vandeweghe on Monday, the Associated Press reported, opening up the possibility the Lakers free agent could be moving his basketball home to the state where he will stand trial for sexual assault next month.

Denver, which was about $23-million under the salary cap before re-signing center Marcus Camby last week, is expected to target top free agents before next season.

Also, the Nuggets hired former Laker Michael Cooper as an assistant coach. Cooper, who played on five NBA championship teams with Los Angeles, spent the past four-plus seasons as coach of the WNBA's Los Angeles Sparks.

TRADE DISCUSSED: Knicks president Isiah Thomas and Bulls general manager John Paxson exchanged offers on sign-and-trade scenarios for restricted free agent Jamal Crawford, the Chicago Tribune reported. The Bulls are adamant the Knicks take one or more bad contracts off their books, perhaps Eddie Robinson or Jerome Williams, in exchange for more salary-cap friendly pacts, according to the Tribune.

HORNETS: Top draft pick J.R. Smith signed a three-year contract. Smith, 18, a guard, played at St. Benedict's Prep in Newark, N.J.

DETROIT 82, HOUSTON 63: Swin Cash had 19 points and 11 rebounds as the host Shock ended a four-game losing streak.

CONN. 79, INDIANA 77 (OT): Nykesha Sales hit a buzzer-beating jump shot to complete a comeback for the host Sun.

[Last modified July 7, 2004, 01:04:13]