MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA - AUGUST 08: Phil Handy gives instructions during a training session with Melbourne United at Melbourne Sports & Aquatic Centre on August 8, 2018 in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Graham Denholm/Getty Images)
Phil Handy could be one of the most sought after NBA assistant coaches this offseason.
Currently an assistant coach of the Los Angeles Lakers, the Oakland, California native is well respected by today’s premier players in the Los Angeles Lakers’ LeBron James, Los Angeles Clippers’ Kawhi Leonard, Brooklyn Nets’ Kyrie Irving and late Lakers great Kobe Bryant.
Handy, a two-time NBA Champion as an assistant coach, has been on the bench during 5 consecutive NBA Finals; four with the Cleveland Cavaliers from 2015-2018 with LeBron James, Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love and one with last year’s NBA Champion, Toronto Raptors.
Appearing on today’s episode of the Scoop B Radio Podcast, Kendrick Perkins spoke glowingly of Handy and shares that he sees Handy becoming a coach in the NBA soon. “I definitely do,” Kendrick Perkins told me on Scoop B Radio .
“It’s a lot of coaching – coaches like Phil Handy is what we need. I’m tired of seeing the same ‘suits’ rotate. It’s time to get some young blood in. He’s paid his dues, he’s been around the game, he’s played it at a high level in college and he knows the game.”
When I asked Perkins who he saw Handy coaching one day, he was honest. “I would think you know, the next – it’s a lot of teams out there,” he said.
“The Bulls; they could use a young stud like Phil Handy in the coaching game. So, you know I always want to see guys thrive, I always want to see guys move up in the ranking as far as with the coaching; especially you know, our African-American brothers that put in so much time and hard work.”
The Bulls have been busy during the offseason and are aiming at diversity. The Bulls hired Marc Eversley as their new GM.
With the hire, Eversley became the first Canadian-trained basketball player to become an NBA general manager, the first NBA general manager from the Greater Toronto Area and the first black person to be general manager of the Chicago Bulls. Before his time in the NBA, Eversley spent five years at Nike’s world headquarters in Oregon as its NBA Player Relationship Manager, which advanced his development in managing relationships with athletes, along with team and athlete brand management. He began in retail, managing Nike-owned stores in Ontario, before moving to Nike Canada’s corporate office where he oversaw the basketball assets. Eversley worked for six years with Nike Canada before moving to Oregon.
Zach LaVine is the face of the Bulls. Through 60 games, LaVine, the swingman has averaged 25.5 points, 4.8 rebounds, 4.2 assists and 1.5 steals per contest.
The Bulls are looking to create a winning culture with a roster that includes Lauri Markkanen, Wendell Carter Jr., Thaddeus Young, Otto Porter Jr., Tomas Satoransky, Chandler Hutchison, Ryan Arcidiacono, Denzel Valentine and Coby White.
The Bulls are in eleventh place in the NBA’s Eastern Conference standings.