NBA High-5: A noteworthy summer for Blazers assistant coaches David Vanterpool, Jay Triano

The five most interesting stories, rumors and notes in the NBA:

1. Interesting summer: One week from today will be the one-year anniversary of the Trail Blazers hiring Terry Stotts as coach. After last summer's long search, this summer has seemed much quieter on the Blazers' coaching front, other than Stotts having had both his hips replaced.

But there's been some interesting activity on Stotts' staff this off-season, starting with Kaleb Canales' departure for Dallas, and the hiring of Nate Tibbetts to replace him.

This week brought news about two other Blazers assistants. David Vanterpool has apparently emerged as a top candidate for the vacant 76ers head coach spot. The news was a surprise. Vanterpool, by most accounts, is well regarded within the Blazers, and some consider him a future head coach -- the key work being future.

Vanterpool came to the Blazers last year after serving as a scout for Oklahoma City for two years. He was considered more of a front-office guy for the Thunder and might have been in line to replace Rob Hennigan as OKC's assistant GM after Hennigan was hired as Orlando GM.

The 76ers must have loved Vanterpool's interview as he does not have any head coaching experience, unless you count the every-other-game he coached for the Blazers' summer league this month. Vanterpool alternated with Tibbetts, who has been a head coach in the D-League. Before summer league started, Stotts told The Oregonian's Joe Freeman of the arrangement:

?I think Nate has really grown a lot as a coach since I first saw him in the D-League six years ago. And it?s an opportunity for David, who doesn?t have that same experience.?

Meanwhile, Stotts' lead assistant, Jay Triano, has been away from the Blazers for stretches this summer as he fulfills his duties as Canada's national coach. The Canadian national program is entering what Steve Nash calls "the golden age of Canadian basketball," the Toronto Star's Ryan Wolstat reports.

As the National Post's Eric Koreen writes, Canada's hopes used to rest on whether Nash and Jamaal Magloire were willing or able to play. Now there's hope that Canada can become a major factor in international competition, starting with next summer's FIBA World Cup.

The national team started practice this week to prepare for a series of competitions, culminating in the FIBA Americas Championship in Venezuela in September at which the top four finishers earn berths in the World Cup. The training camp roster includes such NBA players as Tristan Thompson, Andrew Nicholson, Cory Joseph and Joel Anthony.

Two other players who are unable to participate because of injuries could really boost the team next summer: Anthony Bennett, drafted No. 1 by Cleveland in June's draft, and Kelly Olynyk, who went No. 13 to Boston. Also, Andrew Wiggins, who was considered the top recruit in college basketball and will be a freshman at Kansas, could also join future teams.

Triano is serving his second stint as Canada's coach, having held the position from 1999 to 2004, but says the difference in talent is immense.

?Back in 2000 we had two NBA players ? we had Steve and we had Todd MacCulloch and we were like, ?Man, these guys are great? and we built around them,?? Triano said at a news conference. ?Now we have so many other options. The depth in our country is great.?
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2. Souring quickly: It really didn't seem to take long for Brandon Jennings' relationship with the Bucks to sour. That relationship ended this week as the Bucks sent Jennings to Detroit in a sign-and-trade deal in which Jennings signed a three-year, $24 million contract, the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel's Charles Gardner reports.

The Bucks got point guard Brandon Knight, small forward Khris Middleton and center Viacheslav Kravtsov. Milwaukee's 2012-13 backcourt of Jennings and Monta Ellis has? been replaced by Knight and O.J. Mayo, with Gary Neal and Luke Ridnour also new to the Bucks.

Not sure the Eastern Conference is shaking in its boots.

For Jennings, the trade marks a new start. He's clearly a talented player, but his late-season clashes with interim coach Jim Boylan seemed to sour the franchise on him, as did his ludicrous prediction that Milwaukee would oust Miami in the playoffs.

Now he'll play for a true player's coach in Maurice Cheeks, who has had Rasheed Wallace and Allen Iverson to deal with, and he'll have a great example of professionalism in new teammate Chauncey Billups.

3. Off-season blues: The days when everything Oklahoma City touched turned to gold ... well, they seem to be over, at least if the off-season is any indication.

The Thunder, after trading franchise cornerstone James Harden just before last season, then lost his replacement, Kevin Martin, in free agency after Martin signed with Minnesota.

OKC targeted Mike Miller, who was amnestied by Miami, and early reports indicated that Miller would sign with the Thunder. Instead, he signed with another Western Conference contender, Memphis, for whom he had previously played for 5? seasons.

Instead, the Thunder signed two free agents -- point guard Derek Fisher and shooting guard Ryan Gomes. At 38, Fisher is a long way from his prime, and there's even less excitement over Gomes, who in 2010 was traded to Portland as part of a Blazers-Timberwolves deal that involved Martell Webster and Luke Babbitt, then waived five days later.

The Oklahoman's Barry Tramel's take on the Gomes signing: "Sorry, I can?t get excited about Ryan Gomes, who apparently is signing with the Thunder. Mike Miller? Absolutely. Dorrell Wright? OK. Derek Fisher? Fine.Ryan Gomes? Nope."

4. Kings ransom: Although Sacramento successfully staved off Seattle's bid to grab the Kings, and the team has new ownership, management and coaches, there's still work to be done to secure the franchise's long-term future in the city.

The city's attempt to build a new downtown arena has created a nasty fight with a group that wants the matter put to a public vote, the Sacramento Bee's Ryan Lillis reports. Arena proponents used a "robocall" system to contact 56,000 voters "extolling the virtues of a downtown arena" while also accusing opponents of lying.

Opponents of publicly financing the building -- the arena agreement calls for $258 million in public money to be spent on the proposed $448 million facility -- need 22,000 signature to put the matter to a public vote.

Yogi Berra was right: It ain't over till it's over.

5. European vocation: Former University of Oregon standout Arsalan Kazemi could spend the 2013-14 in Europe instead of playing for the 76ers, the Philadelphia Inquirer reports.

?He would get a chance to work on his game somewhere else for a year,? Philadelphia GM Sam Hinkie tells the Inquirer. ?Then [we] would have the opportunity to reassess where he is later. I think that?s an attractive opportunity for someone like him.?

Kazemi played for Philadelphia's summer league team in Orlando and averaged 4.6 points, 4.6 rebounds and 20.8 minutes and shot 75 percent from the field in five games. By most accounts, he displayed his signature energy and hustle, but at 6-foot-7, 226 pounds, he will probably have to expand his perimeter offensive repertoire to find a place in the NBA.

As a second-round draft pick, the 76ers aren't obligated to give Kazemi a guaranteed contract. If they did sign him, they could shuttle him for stretches to the NBA Development League. The 76ers have a single-team affiliation with the Delaware 76ers, which gives them control over players who are sent down.

But that would require the 76ers to sign Kazemi. If they give him a guaranteed deal, he would be paid his NBA salary for the full season, no matter if he spends most of it in Delaware. But if they give him a non-guaranteed deal then cut him, they lose his rights.

If Kazemi plays in Europe, the 76ers would not have him under contract but would retain his rights. Philadelphia is well under the salary cap for 2013-14, by as much at $18 million, so it's certainly not a luxury tax issue. But this is a franchise in serious flux, with a new GM trying to chart a path.

Note: The NBA High-5 will return Friday.

-- Mike Tokito

Source: http://www.oregonlive.com/nba/index.ssf/2013/07/nba_high-5_396.html

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