Jeff Hornacek will interview for the Sixers head coaching position. (Rocky Widner/Getty Images)

Former Utah Jazz guard Jeff Hornacek will interview for the Philadelphia 76ers’ head coaching position, according to a report from Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports.

The Sixers are looking at a number of candidates to fill the hole left by Doug Collins, who parted ways with the team after the regular season ended, and the Sixers expect to begin the interviewing process next week.

Currently an assistant coach with the Jazz, Hornacek played two seasons with the Sixers from 1992-94 but spent most of his 14-year career in the Utah backcourt. It’s also worth mentioning that Hornacek, who turns 50 tomorrow, played the first six seasons of his NBA career with the Phoenix Suns, a team also looking to hire a new head coach after letting go head coach Alvin Gentry earlier last season.

According to Wojnarowski, the Sixers organization is also considering Golden State Warriors assistant coach Mike Malone, the highest-paid assistant coach in the league for the past two years.

Every true basketball fan remembers seeing the images: Bulls forward Scottie Pippen helping is Michael Jordan to the bench during Game Five of the 1997 NBA Finals between the Chicago Bulls and the Utah Jazz.  The series is tied two games a piece with the critical game being played in Salt Lake City.

Reports before the game are saying Jordan is stricken with the flu but is expected to play. In the now infamous, “Flu Game”, not only did Jordan play, he scored 38 points (13-27 FG) in 44 minutes in the Bulls’ 90-88 victory. The Bulls went on to close out the Jazz in the next game to win their fifth NBA championship.

But Jordan’s trainer, Tim Grover, said it was not the flu that got Jordan sick that day. It was food poisoning.

“100 percent,” Grover says on TrueHoop TV. “He was poisoned for the ‘flu game.’ Everyone called it a flu game, but we sat there. We were in the room.”

More from TrueHoopTV:

Grover explains:

We were in Park City, Utah, up in a hotel. Room service stopped at like nine o’clock. He got hungry and we really couldn’t find any other place to eat. So we said eh, the only thing I can find is a pizza place. So we say all right, order pizza.

We had been there for a while. Everybody knew what hotel. Park City was not many hotels back then. So everyone kind of knew where we were staying.

So we order pizza.

Five guys came to deliver this pizza.

I take the pizza and I tell them: “I’ve got a bad feeling about this. … I’ve just got a bad feeling about this.”

Out of everybody in the room, [MJ] was the only one who ate. Nobody else had it.

And then 2 o’clock in the morning I get a call to my room. Come to the room. He’s curled up in the fetal position. We’re looking at him, finding the team physician at that time.

Immediately I told him it’s food poisoning.

Not the flu.

Sidney Lowe has been arrested for failure to pay taxes. (Melissa Majchrzak, Getty Images)

Former North Carolina State head men’s basketball coach and current Utah Jazz assistant Sidney Lowe has been arrested for failure to file tax returns in 2009, 2010, and 2011. Raleigh, North Carolina’s WRAL reports that Lowe has been placed under $10,000 bond and is facing three counts of failure to file an income tax return, a misdemeanor offense.

WRAL reports that Lowe made $500,00 per year at the time of his dismissal as head coach of the Wolfpack. His current salary in the NBA has not been reported.

Paul Millsap and Eric Bledsoe are considered to be among the NBA’s most valuable trade options. (Noah Graham/NBAE via Getty Images)

The Jazz has piqued the interest of the Clippers in a proposed trade that could include Los Angeles point guard Eric Bledsoe and Utah forward Paul Millsap, according to sources in an ESPN.com report.

Although two sources with knowledge of the Clippers’ thinking insisted during All-Star Weekend that Bledsoe would not be moved in coming days and strongly predicted L.A. would stand pat, two other sources indicated the Clippers and Jazz will at least discuss the feasibility of a trade headlined by Bledsoe and Millsap before the deadline.

The Clippers are reportedly reluctant to part with Bledsoe until point guard Chris Paul is signed to a long-term extension, possibly in July. Bledsoe, 23, is also under contract until he becomes a restricted free agent following the 2013-2014 season.

Millsap, 28, could add a young front-court option to the Clippers’ expected playoff run, and bring youth to a Jazz point guard rotation — Mo Williams, Jamaal Tinsley and Earl Watson — that’s long-in-the-tooth.

Bledsoe has also been linked to a trade involving the Celtics sending forward Kevin Garnett to the Clippers.

Paul Millsap is getting interest from the Nets. (Rocky Widner/Getty Images

The Brooklyn Nets are reportedly no longer interested in Charlotte Bobcats guard Ben Gordon and are growing increasingly pessimistic about landing Atlanta Hawks forward Josh Smith. According to Mitch Lawrence of the New York Daily News, the team has decided to shift its focus and will now look at acquiring Paul Millsap of the Utah Jazz.

Nets General Manager Billy King is in the final year of his contract, so there’s reason to believe that he’s feeling pressure from owner Mikhail Prokhorov to get a deal done before the Feb. 21 NBA trade deadline. The Nets are currently sixth in the Eastern Conference and Deron Williams is out with an ankle injury until after the All-Star break this weekend.

The Jazz are loaded with front-court depth, so it’s not clear what the possible pieces would involve from the Nets’ side should a deal happen. Kris Humphries has turned out a disappointing season this year and is due to make $12 million next season. Marshon Brooks has some upside as a young swingman but the Nets don’t have much else in terms of intriguing young talent and would likely not part with All-Star Brook Lopez. Millsap is averaging 14.9 points, 7.4 rebounds and one block in 30 minutes per game this season despite being featured in a loaded frontcourt that includes Al Jefferson and young talent in Derrick Favors and Enes Kanter

The Jazz are currently seventh in the Western Conference but pulled off an impressive win at home against the Oklahoma City Thunder this week and could look to upgrade its roster to make a push for the playoffs. With all of their depth among big men, it makes sense in some ways that the Jazz would be exploring trades to unload one of their forward-centers, but whether or not the Nets have the pieces to acquire that talent will be seen in the next week and a half as the league approaches its trade deadline.

Al Jefferson could be headed to the Spurs. (Streeter Lecka/Getty Images)

The Feb. 21 trade deadline is officially two weeks away and one player being floated around in NBA circles as being possibly on the move is Al Jefferson of the Utah Jazz.

A number of teams could use the power forward to make  a push in the playoffs, but the San Antonio Spurs are reportedly the leading candidate to land Jefferson should a trade happen before the deadline, according to former ESPN columnist and longtime NBA blogger Chris Sheridan of SheridanHoops.com.

The San Antonio Spurs are the front-runners to land Al Jefferson in a trade with the Utah Jazz – and they are frontrunners like Secretariat was in the 1973 Belmont Stakes.

“Those teams are practically incestuous, they are on such good terms internally,” one NBA source told me Wednesday.

According to the report, the Spurs’ Tiago Splitter and Patty Mills are two players that could be sent to the Jazz in exchange for Jefferson, who is in the final year of his contract with Utah.

Sheridan added that he cannot confirm whether the Spurs and Jazz front offices have discussed the trade and that it’s merely a scenario of the Spurs being likely to land Jefferson based on his NBA sources.

The Utah Jazz are recalling rookie guard Kevin Murphy from Reno of the D-League, according to an NBA source via Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports. Bill Oram of the Salt Lake Tribune confirmed the move via Jazz general manager Dennis Lindsey.

Murphy, a second round pick (No. 47 overall) in last year’s NBA Draft out of Tennessee Tech, averaged 13 points for Reno during a six-week stint. The Jazz assigned the 6-6, 185-pound guard to Reno on Nov. 26.

Recent injuries, including starters Mo Williams and Marvin Williams, helped open a spot for Murphy.

Oram tweeted that Murphy’s maturation and development have impressed the Jazz.

The Utah Jazz are recalling rookie guard Kevin Murphy out of Reno, league source tells Y! Sports. He's averaged 13 points in D-League.—
Adrian Wojnarowski (@WojYahooNBA) January 08, 2013

Jazz GM Dennis Lindsey confirms @WojYahooNBA report that Kevin Murphy has been recalled from D-League. Will join team tonight in Charlotte.—
Bill Oram (@tribjazz) January 08, 2013

Jazz were impressed by Murphy's development and maturation in six weeks in Reno. Obviously in need of perimeter depth after injuries.—
Bill Oram (@tribjazz) January 08, 2013

Mo Williams will miss six weeks after undergoing surgery on his thumb. (Isaac Baldizon, Getty Images)

Utah Jazz point guard Mo Williams will miss at least six weeks of action after discovering he must undergo surgery on his injured thumb. The Jazz originally declared Williams to be out “indefinitely,” but the news tweeted by Bill Oram of the Salt Lake Tribune Wednesday night gives the starter a more definite timeframe for return.

Williams will undergo the procedure on Friday.

Williams injured the thumb in Utah’s loss to the Miami Heat on December 22nd. He averaged 12.9 points and 6.7 assists with the Jazz before the injury.

Mo Williams needs surgery on right thumb. Will be in a cast for six weeks—
Bill Oram (@tribjazz) January 03, 2013

Mo Williams will have surgery Friday. Will be reevaluated when thumb gets out of the cast—
Bill Oram (@tribjazz) January 03, 2013

Mo Williams is out indefinitely with an injured thumb. (Issac Baldizon, Getty Images)

The Utah Jazz will be without their starting point guard for a while. The team announced Sunday that Mo Williams has injured his right thumb and will be out indefinitely.

Williams injured the thumb in Utah’s loss to the Miami Heat on Saturday. A subsequent MRI revealed damage, but it is unknown exactly what the injury is or how long it will keep Williams out of action.

Williams is averaging 12.9 points and 6.7 assists in his first season with the Jazz. Jamaal Tinsley will start in Williams’ place.

Jazz announce Mo Williams is out indefinitely with injury to right thumb. Jamaal Tinsley starts in his place.—
Bill Oram (@tribjazz) December 23, 2012

Williams underwent MRI on Sunday in Orlando. MRI only revealed damage. Williams will be evaluated by team orthopedist in SLC.—
Bill Oram (@tribjazz) December 23, 2012

Utah Jazz unrestricted free agent forward Josh Howard is reportedly working out with the Charlotte Bobcats and also has the eye of the New York Knicks and Brooklyn Nets, according to a tweet from Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports.

Earlier in August, Alex Kennedy of HoopsWorld.com named the Golden State Warriors and Indiana Pacers as two other teams interested in the swingman:

Howard may ultimately return to Utah, but he’s also receiving interest from the Indiana Pacers, Golden State Warriors, New York Knicks and Brooklyn Nets among other teams.

Howard insists he’s 100-percent healthy after undergoing arthroscopic knee surgery last season. He played in 43 games for the Utah Jazz, averaging 8.7 points and 3.7 rebounds in 23 minutes per game.

Though hardly the player he once was from his days of averaging nearly 20 points per game as a member of the Dallas Mavericks, Howard can still provide depth on both ends of the floor and for multiple positions.

He signed a one-year contract with the Jazz in December 2011 worth approximately $2.2 million and is expected to sign with a team for near the veterans minimum next season.

Free agent F Josh Howard, a Winston Salem native, has been working out with Charlotte this week, sources tell Y! CHI, NY amongst interested.—
Marc J. Spears (@SpearsNBAYahoo) August 29, 2012

UPDATE: Wojnarowski reported later Monday that Spurs assistant GM Dennis Lindsey met with the Jazz on Monday and is “nearing an agreement.”

ORIGINAL: The Utah Jazz will promote general manager Kevin O’Connor to a “top executive position,” where O’Connor will lead the search for a new GM, according to multiple reports. Yahoo Sports’ Adrian Wojnarowski first reported the move.

Utah general manager Kevin O’Connor is moving into top executive position with Jazz and running search to hire a GM, sources tell Y! Sports.

— Adrian Wojnarowski (@WojYahooNBA) August 6, 2012

Wojnarowski broke down some of the potential replacements for O’Connor:

San Antonio Spurs assistant GM Dennis Lindsey has emerged as the leading candidate in the search and is meeting with the Jazz on Monday, league sources told Y! Sports. Cleveland Cavaliers assistant GM David Griffin had talked to Utah, but is no longer under consideration, sources said.

Oklahoma City Thunder vice president and assistant GM Troy Weaver had been the No. 1 target for the search, but has decided to stay in Oklahoma City, sources said.

The Salt Lake Tribune’s Brian T. Smith reported that the move makes “perfect sense” for O’Connor. Smith reported that O’Connor will still play a leading role in Jazz operations without the current “day-to-day grind” that comes with his GM job.

O’Connor has been the head of the Jazz’s basketball operations since 1999, during which time the Jazz have made the playoffs in nine seasons.

Paul Millsap is expected to decline a contract extension from the Jazz to enter free agency after next season. (Melissa Majchrzak/Getty Images)

The Utah Jazz have offered forward Paul Millsap a three-year, approximately $25 million extension that he is expected to decline to enter free agency next offseason, The Salt Lake Tribune’s Brian T. Smith reported Saturday. From Smith’s report:

Initial indications are Millsap won’t agree to the extension, though, preferring to enter free agency in 2013 with plans to cash in on an inflated 2012 market that saw mid-tier forwards such as Gerald Wallace, Andrei Kirilenko, Nicolas Batum and Ryan Anderson recently receive lucrative multiyear contracts.

The 27-year-old Millsap is entering the last year of a four-year, $32 million deal that was controversial at the time the Jazz signed him. The Jazz matched the offer, which was frontloaded by the Portland Trail Blazers.

But Millsap has become one of the Jazz’s most important players. He has started all but two of the 140 games in which he’s appeared over the last two seasons for the Jazz. Last season, he averaged close to a double-double at 16.6 points and 8.8 rebounds per game.

It’s easy to see why Millsap would opt for free agency with the Jazz’s current offer. If he becomes a free agent, he would be eligible for a four-year deal from another team — and a five-year deal from the Jazz.

Randy Foye will reportedly sign a one-year contract worth $2.5 with the Utah Jazz. (Noah Graham/Getty Images)

Randy Foye, an unrestricted free-agent guard who started 48 games last season for the Los Angeles Clippers, will reportedly sign a one-year contract with the Utah Jazz, according to a tweet late Monday night from Ric Bucher of ESPN. The deal is worth $2.5 million, according to Chris Sheridan of SheridanHoops.com.

Utah’s backcourt will now be identical to the one the Clippers used last season, as Foye’s former teammate in Los Angeles, Mo Williams, ran the point last season in “Lob City” and signed with the Jazz this offseason.

It’s not clear whether Foye will start at shooting guard for the Jazz, or if head coach Tyrone Corbin will go with the taller guard-forward Gordon Hayward. In addition to Foye, Williams and Hayward, the Jazz have Alec Burks, Earl Watson, DeMarre Carroll and Jamaal Tinsley as guards currently under contract.

In 25 minutes per game last season, Foye averaged 11 points on 39-percent shooting for the Clippers. He signed a two-year, $8.5 million contract with the team in July 2010.

I'm on vacation but you know I can't pass a chance to serve and honor Jazz fans: Randy Foye signs 1 yr deal. Solid pick-up.—
Ric Bucher (@RicBucher) July 24, 2012

The Utah Jazz and veteran guard Raja Bell are close to a buyout that would make Bell a free agent, reports The Salt Lake Tribune‘s Brian Smith.

Raja Bell said a verbal agreement, including buyout details, has been reached with Jazz. Only thing that remains is finalizing the process.

—
Brian T. Smith (@tribjazz) July 08, 2012

Raja Bell has already drawn interest from several #NBA teams since free agency began. Expects to basically be a UFA July 11.

—
Brian T. Smith (@tribjazz) July 08, 2012

The 35-year-old Bell started 33 games for Utah last season, his second with the team. He averaged 6.4 points per game.

In 2009-10, the last season before he joined the Jazz, he averaged 11.8 points per game with the Charlotte Bobcats and Golden State Warriors.

Yahoo! Sports‘ Adrian Wojnarowski reports that Bell could have interest in joining the Miami Heat or Los Angeles Lakers, among other teams.

As @tribjazz reports, Raja Bell finalizing buyout w/ Jazz. Bell has interest in returning to his hometown to play for Heat, source tells Y!

—
Adrian Wojnarowski (@WojYahooNBA) July 08, 2012

Another possibility for Raja Bell: The Lakers. Kobe Bryant recruited Bell hard a year ago, and still fits as defensive-minded guard w/ Nash.

—
Adrian Wojnarowski (@WojYahooNBA) July 08, 2012

Just hours after dealing Joe Johnson to the Brooklyn Nets, the Atlanta Hawks pulled off their second big trade of the day Monday by sending Marvin Williams to the Utah Jazz for point guard Devin Harris, ESPN’s Marc Stein reported on Twitter.

Just going online and on SportsCenter: Hawks have agreed in principle to deal Marvin Williams to Utah for Devin Harris to shed even more $

— Marc Stein (@ESPNSteinLine) July 2, 2012

The deal is significant because in his first week, new Hawks general manager Danny Ferry has now shed the Hawks’ two biggest contracts. Johnson is owed $89 million over the next four seasons. In 2009, the 26-year-old signed a five-year deal worth more than $37 million. Together, Atlanta shipped off more than $25 million in cap space. ESPN’s Tom Haberstroh speculated that it could put the team in the running for two prime free agents next season.

Yep, Danny Ferry just made Atlanta a *potential* landing spot for both Chris Paul AND Dwight Howard in FA next season.

— Tom Haberstroh (@tomhaberstroh) July 2, 2012

In the Johnson trade, Atlanta received  Jordan Farmar, Johan Petro, Anthony Morrow, Jordan Williams and DeShawn Stevenson from the Nets.

UPDATE: An NBA source has confirmed to Eddie Sefko of The Dallas Morning News that the three-team trade outlined below has been agreed to by all parties, contingent on Mo Williams opting into his 2012-13 contract (at $8.5 million).

The deal would send Lamar Odom to the Clippers, who would send Williams to the Jazz, who would send a trade exception (from dealing Mehmet Okur) to the Mavericks.

Williams has until Friday to opt in, and it’s believed that he would have trouble getting half as much money if he hit the open market.

***

Mavericks forward Lamar Odom averaged a career-low 6.6 points per game last season. (Danny Bollinger/ NBA/Getty Images)

The Utah Jazz have joined in on trade talks to acquire forward Lamar Odom from the Dallas Mavericks, but it is all contingent on Los Angeles Clippers guard Mo Williams exercising his $8.5 million player option for next season by June 30, reports ESPN.com.

The Utah Jazz have emerged as the potential third team in the Los Angeles Clippers’ ongoing trade discussions to acquire Lamar Odom from the Dallas Mavericks, according to sources close to the process.

Sources told ESPN.com that the Jazz are willing to take on Mo Williams in a three-team trade scenario that would send Odom to the Clippers and enable the Mavericks to shed Odom’s salary without taking back any salary.

Odom had a rocky season with the Mavericks after being traded from the Lakers last season. Williams played out of position for most of the year with the Clippers after spending most of his career playing point guard.

“Mo and I are looking at a lot of different things right now. He’ll make his decision in the next day or two,” Williams agent Mark Bartelstein told ESPN.com.

Mehmet Okur, who was named to the 2007 NBA All-Star team as a member of the Utah Jazz, will reportedly retire from the NBA at the age of 33 and sign with a team in his native Turkey. (Rocky Widney/Getty Images)

Mehmet Okur, the Utah Jazz center who led the team to multiple playoff appearances from 2004-2011, will likely retire from the NBA at the age of 33 and reportedly sign with a team in his native Turkey, according to a tweet from David Locke, the radio commentator for the Jazz:

Reports out of the Turkish media that Mehmet Okur might return to Turkey and sign with Fenerbahce Ulker

Okur was selected by the Detroit Pistons with the 37th pick in the second round of the 2001 NBA Draft and won a NBA championship with the team in 2004, the first Turkish player to accomplish this feat. In 2004, he signed a six-year contract with the Utah Jazz worth $50 million and in 2007, Okur reached the peak of his success by being named to the Western Conference NBA All-Star team.

Most recently, Okur was traded by the New Jersey Nets to the Portland Trailblazers before the 2011-12 NBA trade deadline but the Blazers waived him before he played any games. Okur has been riddled with back injuries throughout his career, playing in 30 games over the past two seasons. In Turkey, there would be less travel involved and he would play fewer games per week than if he were to remain in the NBA.

Reports out of the Turkish media that Mehmet Okur might return to Turkey and sign with Fenerbahce Ulker—
David Locke (@Lockedonsports) June 14, 2012

The Warriors, and director of scouting Larry Riley, are discussing a trade with the Jazz to keep their lottery pick in the 2012 NBA Draft.

The Golden State Warriors are in talks with the Utah Jazz to ensure they keep their lottery pick in the 2012 NBA Draft, according to a report from ESPN’s Marc Stein.

The NBA Draft lottery is Wednesday. Golden State needs to land in the top eight to keep its pick. It has a 72 percent chance of doing that. The Warriors previously dealt the pick to New Jersey, who swung it to the Jazz in dealing for star point guard Deron Williams.

The Warriors are discussing sending “a combination of future draft considerations, cash and/or a relaxation of the current restrictions on Utah’s rights to the pick in question in either 2013 or 2014,” according to the ESPN report. The report adds that Golden State’s pick is protected within the top seven in 2013 and within the top six in 2014.

Golden State won a coin flip in early April that gave them the No. 7 pick. The Warriors tied with the Toronto Raptors for the NBA’s seventh-worst record at 22-43 during the season. The Jazz bowed out in the first round of the NBA playoffs, falling 4-0 in its series against the San Antonio Spurs.

New York Knicks forward Carmelo Anthony left in the first quarter of Monday’s game against the Utah Jazz with a strained right groin.

The All-Star scorer appeared to injure his groin after throwing an alley-oop to Tyson Chandler midway through the first quarter. He faked a 3-point attempt, then pulled up and lobbed a pass to Chandler. He hobbled down the floor clutching his upper thigh.

This isn’t the first injury concern for Anthony this season — he also missed two games in late January with wrist, thumb and ankle injuries. He’s averaging 23.3 points, 6.2 rebounds and 4.3 assists per game when he does play.

The Knicks were also without Amare Stoudemire tonight, as the star power forward was in Florida to mourn the death of his brother, Hazell. Hazell Stoudemire was killed in a car crash this morning.

Hey, remember Greg Ostertag?

If not, it’s hard to blame you — but the 38-year-old former Utah Jazz center now has his sights set on a return to the NBA. Ostertag set his plan in motion today by joining the Texas Legends of the D-League, according to Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News.

Ostertag hasn’t been seen in professional basketball in over five years. He played 11 seasons in the league, 10 of them with the Jazz, before announcing his retirement in 2006. He finished his career with 3,512 points, 4,145 rebounds and 1,293 blocks and is perhaps best remembered as the starting center for the 1996-97 Utah team that lost in the NBA Finals to Michael Jordan’s Bulls.

The 7-foot-2 big man agreed to play in the D-League last week and was claimed today by the Legends, a Dallas Mavericks affiliate.

“I missed playing,” Ostertag told Sefko. “I shouldn’t have quit when I did, and I feel like I’ve got to give it one last shot to see if I can make it happen.”

Ostertag is expected to begin his comeback Friday night against the Tulsa 66ers.

The Utah Jazz have sent veteran center Mehmet Okur to the New Jersey Nets in exchange for a future second-round draft pick, the teams announced Thursday.

Okur, 32, appeared in only 13 games a season ago with Utah, his seventh with the franchise.

The Turkish center started his career with the Detroit Pistons, and he later signed with the Jazz as a free agent.