Trail Blazers assistant fired after saying team 'lost LaMarcus Aldridge'
Portland Trail Blazers assistant coach Kim Hughes has been fired after having told an Indiana TV station during an interview last week that the team has “lost” free agent forward LaMarcus Aldridge, according to The Oregonian's Jason Quick.
Aldridge has spent all of his nine-year career with the Trail Blazers, where Hughes has been the frontcourt coach for the past three seasons.
Hughes's interview with the local Indiana station went viral before Aldridge made his decision to join the San Antonio Spurs on Saturday.
• MORE NBA: Aldridge joins Spurs after marveling at them from afar
“People don't realize we just went young. We didn't publicize it, but we lost LaMarcus Aldridge,” said Hughes. “It hasn't been declared yet, but I'm sure he won't come back. We will go young and we depend on Meyers [Leonard] to play a lot of minutes.”
OregonLive.com reports that the team confirmed that Hughes is no longer a member of the staff but would not comment further on the details surrounding his dismissal.
Aldridge averaged 23.4 points, 10.2 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game in 2014–15 en route to being named to the All-NBA second team. The 29-year-old has been named to the All-Star team in each of the last four seasons.
• MORE NBA: Grading Blazers' signing of Aldridge | Grades roundup
You can watch WTHI-TV's interview with Hughes and Blazers center Meyers Leonard below.
- Molly Geary
