Chauncey
Billups is the new coach of the Portland Trail Blazers. The former player and former assistant coach of the Los Angeles Clippers has signed un five-year contract plus a senior option with the Oregon franchise, which is looking to redirect course after the disappointments of late in the playoffs.
The NBA MVP in 2004 will be presented at a press conference this Tuesday in Portland. At 44, Billups faces his first job as head coach after having left without finishing his first and only course as an assistant at the Los Angeles Clippers.
The franchise has taken a little longer than usual to make a formal offer to the player since he has wanted thoroughly investigate a rape report against the former player in 1997. The case was closed with an agreement between the parties and did not go to court.
This same case was the one that vetoed the former player from other leadership positions in the league. In 2017, the Cleveland Cavaliers did not confirm him as president of basketball operations due to the same case. Now, the Blazers say they haven’t found anything substantial to veto Billups, who expressed gratitude for the opportunity in a statement:
“Portland is a special place and a unique franchise. As a player I loved playing here because of the passion and knowledge of the fans, who they got my best basketball as a competitor. Now I want to be on the other side of that energy and mix with the Portland community on another level. “
In the search process, the Blazers ruled out the Brooklyn Nets assistant Mike D’Antoni and the Spurs assistant Becky hammon. Neil Oshley, president of basketball operations for the Oregon franchise, has known Billups since 2011, when they met at the LA Clippers.