Rick Carlisle's coaching staff from the Dallas Mavericks 2011 championship team could be raided again. A year after Dwyane Casey took the Toronto Raptors head coaching job, Terry Stotts has emerged as a serious contender for the Portland Trail Blazers open position.
↵The 54-year old Stotts has served as Carlisle's "offensive coordinator" since he came to Dallas in 2008. Stotts has had two previous stints as a head coach: 2002-2004 with the Atlanta Hawks and 2005-2007 with the Milwaukee Bucks.
↵He's a basketball lifer who was drafted No. 38 overall in 1980 before embarking on a nine-year career overseas. After his playing days were over, he took a job as an assistant coach in CBA before slowly working his way into a head coaching position.
↵He went only 114-168 in his time as a head coach, making the playoffs only once. However, Carlisle has earned a reputation for developing head coaches, as Stotts would be his fourth different assistant to get moved up.
↵Portland has been linked with some of the biggest names (Phil Jackson, Jerry Sloan, the Van Gundy brothers) in the coaching business, but none have wanted the job. There's also a chance they bring back interim coach Kaleb Canales.
↵Stotts will interview again with Neil Olshey, the Trail Blazers new GM, on Tuesday.
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