It’s no reflection on the admirable job Tiago Splitter has done as Portland’s interim coach since replacing Chauncey Billups before Game 2 of an 82-game season. The consistent word for weeks about new Blazers owner Tom Dundon is his apparent desire to pay no more than $1.5 million annually for a new head coach. That’s well below the current NBA standard … even for a first-time head coach.
From $1 million to $1.5 million is actually the price range for the league’s top assistant coaches, but Portland’s desire to spend so modestly on a full-time replacement for Billups has been widely communicated and figures to have a significant impact on the process no matter how attractive an NBA head coaching position — there’s only 30 in the world and all that — looks on paper.
