An Orlando opening is a coveted one. Rival coaches look at the Magic as a team ready to win, especially in the Eastern Conference, where simply rediscovering a defensive identity\u2014Orlando, a top-three defensive team in each of the last two seasons, finished 13th in this one, per NBA.com\u2014should be enough to push the Magic into the top five next season. Orlando has to add shooting (Jalen Suggs shot a dreadful 24.1% from three in the first round) and the jury is out on whether Paolo Banchero is a true franchise player. Still, with the core of the team under 25, this job opening will generate a lot of interest.\u00a0<\/p>\n
What kind of coach will the Magic want? Billy Donovan, who has been linked to Orlando in the past, recently parted ways with the Bulls<\/a> and is believed to be interested in the job. Spurs associate head coach Sean Sweeney is the hot name in the assistant ranks. Sweeney has had a hand in developing some of the NBA\u2019s top stars, including Giannis Antetokounmpo and Luka Don\u010di\u0107. As part of Mitch Johnson\u2019s staff in San Antonio, he\u2019s worked with Stephon Castle and Dylan Harper, along with that Wembanyama guy. Sweeney has interviewed for several head coaching jobs in recent years, and it\u2019s considered a matter of time before he lands one.\u00a0<\/p>\n The Mavericks hired former Raptors executive Masai Ujiri as their next president of basketball operations. | John E. Sokolowski-Imagn Images<\/p>\n Mavs land a big fish<\/p>\n The Mavericks hired Masai Ujiri as their new president of basketball operations, the team announced Monday. Ujiri, the longtime Raps exec who engineered the bold trade to bring Kawhi Leonard to Toronto, a deal that resulted in the franchise\u2019s first championship, parted ways with the Raptors in 2025. Ujiri will also serve as the Mavericks\u2019 alternate governor.<\/p>\n \u201cThe Dallas Mavericks are committed to being a world-class organization with a strong culture and focused on winning championships,\u201d said Mavericks governor Patrick Dumont. \u201cMasai Ujiri is one of the great basketball leaders of this generation and his addition to our franchise is a critical step in meeting our goals. We are honored to have him join the Mavs family. We welcome his energy and determination along with his leadership, experience and many accomplishments as a basketball executive. We are very excited about the future of our team.\u201d<\/p>\n Said Ujiri, \u201cI\u2019m honored to join the Dallas Mavericks and step into this role at such an important time for the organization. This is a franchise with a proud history, passionate fans and a commitment to winning. I look forward to working with our players, coaches and leadership team to build something that reflects that standard and competes at the highest level. We will win in Dallas.\u201d<\/p>\n Dallas cast a wide net in its search for a top basketball exec. As Sports Illustrated previously reported, Dumont prioritized executives with a proven track record for the job, with names like Sam Presti, Brad Stevens and Bob Myers being kicked around. The Mavericks had strong interest in Tim Connelly, Minnesota\u2019s president of basketball operations, but there are indications Connelly will stick around the Timberwolves for at least another year. Dennis Lindsey, the Pistons\u2019 VP of basketball operations, had been a co-finalist with Ujiri, and internally there had been advocates for Matt Riccardi and Michael Finley, who took over as co-general managers following the midseason firing of Nico Harrison, to continue running basketball operations.<\/p>\n Still, Ujiri, 55, offers the kind of cache Dumont has been looking for. He is a former Executive of the Year who built a 57-game winner in Denver before leaving for Toronto, where he delivered a championship in 2019. Ujiri takes over a team in chaos\u2014was it really just 15 months ago the Mavs traded Don\u010di\u0107?\u2014but not one in disrepair. Dallas has a bona fide franchise player in Cooper Flagg, the recently crowned Rookie of the Year, and two first-round picks in June\u2019s draft.<\/p>\n Ujiri\u2019s first roster decision will be what to do with Kyrie Irving. Irving sat out all of last season recovering from knee surgery and has two years left on his contract (the last year is a player option). The previous administration telegraphed that they wanted Irving to stick around, believing his skills would complement Flagg\u2019s. Will Ujiri feel the same? The alternative is auctioning off Irving, who is still one of the better lead guards in the NBA.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Will the Rockets run it back?\u00a0<\/p>\n Trade Kevin Durant? Come on. The first-round loss to the Lakers was disappointing but Houston was without 60% of its preseason starting lineup (Durant, Fred VanVleet and Steven Adams) for most of the series (Durant suited up for one game). Durant played at an All-NBA level this season, VanVleet will be back to stabilize the point guard position and Adams\u2019s physicality was part of the Rockets\u2019 identity until he went out midseason. Meanwhile Houston\u2019s young talent (Amen Thompson, Jabari Smith Jr. and Reed Sheppard) will have another offseason to improve.\u00a0<\/p>\n There could be changes<\/a>. Houston has the assets to make a play for an available star (Antetokounmpo, Kawhi Leonard, etc.) And Tari Eason, a restricted free agent this summer, could be a cap casualty. But if healthy, I like the Rockets\u2019 chances of being back in the mix for a top-three seed next season.\u00a0<\/p>\n Rockets forward Kevin Durant played in only one playoff game for Houston this season. | Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images<\/p>\n Joe Mazzulla under fire<\/p>\n It had to have been maddening for some Celtics fans to hear Jayson Tatum describe the injury that sidelined him for Game 7 on Saturday as \u201cinevitable,\u201d citing the minutes he was playing the last few weeks. Tatum played 27 minutes in his return from a ruptured Achilles on March 6. In April, he averaged 36.2 minutes per game, playing 39 and 40 minutes, respectively, in his final two games of the regular season. In healthy years, that\u2019s a normal workload for Tatum. Given his injury, it\u2019s fair to wonder why he was being burned out.\u00a0<\/p>\n It wasn\u2019t the only head scratcher from Mazzulla. His starting five in Game 7<\/a>\u2014which included second-year wing Baylor Scheierman, former two-way player Ron Harper Jr. and Luka Garza\u2014had not played alongside each other all season, which was among the reasons the Celtics fell into a big first-quarter hole. Mazzulla didn\u2019t have a great strategy to deal with Joel Embiid, didn\u2019t trust his bench, handed too many minutes to Nikola Vu\u010devi\u0107 (29.2% from three in the series) and refused to insist his team play more inside the three-point line. Consider: In Boston\u2019s four losses, the Celtics shot 27.3% from three.\u00a0<\/p>\n Mazzulla is a front-runner for Coach of the Year (good luck finding him to accept that award) and had an outstanding regular season, coaching the Celtics to an improbable 56 wins. But his decisions against Philadelphia earned him some second-guessing.\u00a0<\/p>\n More NBA From Sports Illustrated<\/p>\n Listen to SI\u2019s NBA podcast, Open Floor, below or on Apple<\/a> and Spotify<\/a>. Watch the show on SI\u2019s YouTube channel<\/a>.<\/p>\n![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/01kqszf202ffchznjvs5.jpg\" "\\"The")
<\/p>\n![\"Rockets](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/01kqszgrm9k4q7qzxvc7.jpg\" "\\"Rockets")
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