The Portland Trail Blazers announced July 9th that they were finalizing a deal with former Oklahoma City Thunder and Washington Wizards Head Coach Scott Brooks to join the staff as Chauncey Billups’s lead assistant.
The NBA community is mixed in how they view the coach. Looking at his resume, with multiple, consecutive playoff appearances and a Finals trip, his experience and success as a head coach top nearly every other assistant in the league. Some pundits though, will hold his lack of a title with a Thunder team consisting of three future MVPs in Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook, and James Harden against him.
It was believed that the Blazers would try to surround their new rookie head coach with former play-callers to provide him support in areas that require experience to master; such technicals include player relations, time management, and media relations.
Scott Brooks will be a great foundation for Portland Trail Blazers Coach Chauncey Billups to lean on
Brooks checks all of those boxes as a lead assistant. While he’s been criticized for his lack of creativity in offensive design and his hesitancy to switch up his rotations, Billups will be tasked with making those final calls, while Brooks can manage the more fundamental tasks of coaching.
Joining Brooks in the assistant staff will be former NBA player Roy Rogers. Rogers has an extensive career on the sidelines as an assistant and a former scout. He’s played college, NBA, and overseas professional ball. It will be interesting to see how General Manager Neil Olshey and Chauncey Billups round out the rest of the coaching staff.
The most important piece has already been decided with Brooks dubbed Billups’s right-hand man. Here’s why the hiring is a great move for the Portland Trail Blazers: