The Thunder were eliminated from playoff contention for the first time since its inaugural 2008-09 season, and now expected to spend some time this offseason to evaluate coach Scott Brooks before deciding to bring him back another season, Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports reports Thursday.
Brooks signed a multiyear extension worth approximately $18 million after leading the Thunder to the 2012 NBA Finals where his team lost to LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and the Miami Heat. According to Wojnarowski, Brooks' contract is guaranteed until the end of the 2015-16 season, with a team option for 2016-17.
"I expect to be the coach next season," Brooks said in his exit interview, per ESPN.
Brooks, 49, was hired after the franchise moved from Seattle to Oklahoma City in 2008 and has held a .620 win percentage (338-207) over seven seasons. Oklahoma City was considered a championship contender heading into the start of the season, but Brooks had a difficult time working his way around injuries. Kevin Durant missed the first 17 games of the season and Russell Westbrook played just two games over that span, which led to a horrendous 5-12 start. Durant was limited to only 27 games, while Westbrook played 67. The Thunder defeated the Timberwolves to finish 45-37 on Wednesday, but fell one game shy of the eighth and final postseason spot in the Western Conference, leaving him with little job security, according to Wojnarowski's sources.
"We haven't won a championship, but we've done a lot of things that have put us in that position," Brooks said. "We've had some unfortunate bad fortune going back to three years ago. So you never really know what this team can really be until it can stay healthy throughout the season and most importantly, this part of the season.
"I'm very confident that when we're whole again, we can be one of the top five two-way teams in the league," Brooks said.
If the Thunder decide to hire a different coach for Kevin Durant's final year under contract with the club, University of Florida coach Billy Donovan could emerge as a serious candidate. Earlier in April, Donovan signed a one-year contract extension through the 2020 season, which raised his average salary to a little more than $4 million. Orlando and Denver may show some interest in hiring Brooks if he hits the market, per Wojnarowski.
