Thunder GM Sam Presti traveled to meet Scott Brooks in California today and delivered the news, league sources tell Yahoo Sports.
Brooks will immediately become a top candidate for the openings in Orlando and Denver, league sources tell Yahoo Sports.
Brooks was well-liked by his players, and faced an impossible mission this season. Russell Westbrook, Kevin Durant and Serge Ibaka all missed significant time due to injury, and a midseason trade ( or two) shaking up the roster didn’t make things any easier.
He was, however, consistently criticized for his lack of imagination on the offensive end of the floor, where his detractors believed that the superior talent of Durant and Westbrook bailed out poorly-designed sets far too often, and on a fairly consistent basis.
But this isn’t really about Brooks. This is about Durant, as he enters his final season in Oklahoma City before having an opportunity to leave as an unrestricted free agent next summer.
The Thunder franchise has one season to get it right, and make a legitimate title run in order to make Durant’s choice that much more difficult. Those running the show obviously felt that goal would be better-served with someone new patrolling the sidelines.
“This is an extremely difficult decision on many levels. Scott helped establish the identity of the Thunder and has earned his rightful place in the history of our organization through his seven years as a valued leader and team member,” said Sam Presti, Thunder Executive Vice President and General Manager, in a statement posted on the team website. “As we all know, this past year we had unique and challenging circumstances and as I have conveyed, not many people could have accomplished what Scott and this team were able to. Therefore, it is very important to state that this decision is not a reflection of this past season, but rather an assessment of what we feel is necessary at this point in time in order to continually evolve, progress and sustain. We determined that, in order to stimulate progress and put ourselves in the best position next season and as we looked to the future, a transition of this kind was necessary for the program. We move forward with confidence in our foundation and embrace the persistence and responsibility that is required to construct an elite and enduring basketball organization capable of winning an NBA championship in Oklahoma City.”
Brooks coached the Thunder for seven seasons, amassing a regular season record of 338-207, while guiding Oklahoma City to one NBA Finals appearance -- a loss to the Miami Heat in 2012.
Wojnarowski also reports that despite issuing a public statement to the contrary, UConn head coach Kevin Ollie has significant interest in the position.