Portland Trail Blazers star Damian Lillard isn’t going to get his way. Los Angeles Lakers assistant Jason Kidd has withdrawn his name from the Trail Blazers’ coaching search, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
The news comes just days after Kidd received an endorsement from Lillard. On Friday, Lillard told Yahoo Sports’ Chris Haynes, “Jason Kidd is the guy I want.” Lillard reportedly intends to have input on the team’s next coach, according to Haynes.
In a statement, Kidd said he respects Portland’s organization, but decided to take his name out of consideration. Kidd did not get into specifics about the decision.
“Portland’s a first-class organization and will have great candidates for its head coaching job, but I’ve decided not to be one of them,” Kidd told ESPN. “Whoever they choose will have big shoes to fill from Terry (Stotts).”
Wojnarowski said Kidd didn’t want Lillard’s comments to impact the search. Kidd believed that could have led to an awkward situation had he pursued the Portland job.
The Trail Blazers and Terry Stotts agreed to part ways Friday following the team’s first-round loss to the Denver Nuggets.
The Trail Blazers are expected to reach out to candidates once the first round of the NBA playoffs concludes. Wojnarowski mentions Chauncey Billups, Mike D’Antoni, Juwan Howard and Jeff Van Gundy as potential candidates to interview for the position.
Trail Blazers looking to finally win a championship
Despite making the playoffs eight straight seasons, the Trail Blazers haven’t come close to winning a championship. The team has experienced a number of early exits in the postseason, advancing to the Western Conference finals just one time: The 2018-19 NBA season. They were swept by the Golden State Warriors in that series.
Guard Damian Lillard has emerged as one of the best players in the NBA during the team’s current run. In nine years in the NBA, Lillard has averaged 24.7 points and 6.6 assists per game. He’s a six-time All-Star and has made the NBA All-Pro team five times during his career.
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