Thunder Coach Scott Brooks is No Longer Under Contract, But Negotiations Continue

Via John Rohde of NewsOK:

"Things are looking good," Brooks said via text late Saturday. No agreement had been reached as of late Saturday, contrary to reports implying otherwise.

"As we always say, the conversations themselves have to stay internal," Thunder general manager Sam Presti said Saturday morning at the introductory news conference for first-round draft choice Perry Jones III. "But we've talked quite a bit about how important we feel Scott is, not only to the team but also to the organization and the fact that we wouldn't be in this position without his contributions. So, I can tell you that we feel like things are progressing. Our feelings remain consistent.

As of this writing, Scott Brooks is now officially a free agent. Apparently, earlier reports that implied he would be signing a contract soon were wrong.

What does this mean? Well, right now the NBA is under a moratorium period which states that free agent players can't officially sign with teams. They can meet with teams and make verbal agreements, but contracts cannot be inked until the 10 day period is over on July 11th. But coaches aren't affected, so Brooks can continue negotiations as normal.

The rumors that Scott Brooks signing with the Trail Blazers are probably just speculation. They were spread by his agent, who has connections with the Trail Blazers, and was speaking mostly on behalf of the Blazers, rather than the Thunder. Still, I wouldn't be surprised to see Brooks interview for a few other jobs, or make a signing tomorrow. Honestly, it's all up in the air at this point.