Rumors

The Pacers will hold their seventh pre-draft workout in preparation for the 2023 NBA Draft on Tuesday, June 6 at the Ascension St. Vincent Center. The workout group includes Marcus Bagley (Arizona State), Josh Bannan (Montana), Noah Clowney (Alabama), Alex Gross (Morehead State), G.G. Jackson (South Carolina), and J.T. Shumate (Toledo).

NBA.com

Just days after it was revealed that Kyrie Irving had given $22,000 to a Howard University student’s GoFundMe, permitting her to complete her studies at the HSCU school, a Montana newspaper reports that Irving gave $50,000 to another GoFundMe that will permit a childcare center to continue operating in the Treasure State.

NetsDaily

Kyle Goon: As an aside, Rob Pelinka mentions that he visited Phil Jackson in Montana during the offseason.

Twitter

The Blazers’ distribution footprint will nearly double, expanding from 1.1 million homes to nearly two million in the Northwest. And, since Root currently airs in Idaho, Montana and Alaska, Blazers games could extend into three new states and reach an additional 500,000 homes, as well.

Oregonian

Enes Kanter: Had a great conversation with my friend @SenatorTester about #HumanRights and Justice. Thank you for your friendship & support. Montana 🙏 pic.twitter.com/MTl3fA7Tk9

Twitter

Nurse really had no idea what to expect or how long their meeting would be, he just knew he would fly out to Montana and get the opportunity to chat with Jackson. “I didn’t really know if we were going for a cup of coffee or if I was staying or what we were really doing”

SLAM

The former Bulls and Lakers coach and Knicks president is riding out the pandemic at his home in Montana, and anyone who has ever encountered Jim Dolan would tell you that the chances of a reconciliation between the Knicks owner and Jeanie Buss’ former girlfriend appears to be an impossibility. But that has not stopped an offshore sportsbook from posting 150-1 odds on Jackson returning to coach the team that he led from 2014 to 2017.

Forbes.com

George Karl: I’ve known Phil Jackson a long time and have spent quality time with him in Montana and elsewhere. But I was surprised by and impressed by Phil’s “zennism” and the balance he brought to the chaos of those Bulls teams of the 90s. He was truly an emotional and spiritual genius!

Twitter

But the coaches who've spent a couple days with Jackson, in Montana or Los Angeles, say it has had a huge effect on them. "Phil is a longtime trusted friend," Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle said. "I talk basketball at length with him two or three times a year. He's a great resource and has been extremely generous with his time and knowledge to all coaches."

ESPN

Ask Durant what he wants to be doing in his second life, after his playing career ends, and he sounds a bit like Phil Jackson. "I could be off in Montana on a ranch over by the water. Or living on the slopes. I don't know what I could be doing. I just like what I'm setting up for myself now -- something sustainable." At 30 years old, he has a lot more basketball to play, and huge decisions about where he'll spend the rest of his career still to make. For now, he's focused on building a legacy on and off the court, starting with a $10 million investment in the learning center that bears his name.

ESPN

Jeff Goodman: Montana’s Ahmaad Rorie told ESPN he will withdraw from the NBA draft and return to Montana for next season. Averaged 17.2 points last year.

Twitter

Mike Trudell: Phil Jackson opened by telling of the time Shaq came to visit him in Montana, how he both rode jet skis and rapped at a rodeo...

Twitter

Lacob arose that morning at his vacation home in Montana, where his family was scheduled to arrive and celebrate the holiday. But he had his private plane ready to take off at a moment’s notice in case he needed to go back to the Hamptons on Long Island, where Durant had taken his meetings over the prior few days, to make another sales pitch. “I was supposed to get the call that morning. An hour went by, it didn’t come. Two hours went by, and I’m calling [Warriors general manager] Bob Myers, Bob is calling me and I’m going, ‘What is going on? Was this bad or good that it’s taking longer?’”

Washington Post

About five years ago, Noah says that he paid a visit to Phil Jackson at the Zen Master’s Montana retreat, after Jackson had left the Lakers’ bench and was semi-retired. The trip, which was sparked by mutual friends of both Noah and Jackson, now seems to have been a hint of things to come. “My father used to make me read (Jackson’s) books when I was a kid. I hate reading books, but I read his books,” says Noah. “I had an opportunity to go to Montana and meet (Jackson). So I took the plane, went to Montana, and I knock on his door. We start talking and he goes, ‘Why are you here?’ I said, ‘I don’t know.’ It was a great couple days. I got an opportunity to meet one of the legends and spend time with him. Life works in mysterious ways. Now we’re here.”

New York Daily News