Report: O'Brien frontrunner for assistant job
Earl K. Sneed breaks down the report that Jim O'Brien is the lead candidate to join Dallas Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle's staff after lead assistant Terry Stotts left for Portland.
Report: O'Brien frontrunner for assistant job
After losing both of his defensive and offensive coordinators in consecutive summers following the 2011 NBA championship, Dallas Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle appears on the verge of adding another member to his staff.
Last season, Carlisle kept things in-house, replacing the departing Dwane Casey with current defensive coordinator Monte Mathis after Casey accepted the head coaching gig in Toronto. Now, however, reports say that Carlisle will look elsewhere when filling the void left on offense after lead assistant Terry Stotts was named head coach of the Portland Trail Blazers earlier this month.
And according to ESPN.com’s Marc Stein, the man that replaced Carlisle in Indiana back in 2007 has emerged as the lead candidate for the position.
According to the report, Jim O’Brien has ascended to the top of Carlisle’s wish list after fellow candidates Jay Triano and Steve Clifford recently accepted positions with the Blazers and Los Angeles Lakers, respectively. As Stein writes, Carlisle’s preference is to add a person with NBA head coaching experience, making O’Brien a more-than-suitable candidate.
Before being let go by the Pacers midway through the 2010-11 season, O’Brien amassed a 303-327 career record in Boston, Philadelphia (one season in 2004-05) and Indiana. He also led the Celtics to the ‘02 Eastern Conference finals after a 49-33 record during the regular season.
That would bring plenty of veteran experience to the Dallas sideline alongside Carlisle. And if the report is true, O’Brien has already interviewed for the position and appears to be the frontrunner for the job.
