Former Toronto Raptors assistant coach Nate Bjorkgren is getting a promotion.
After joining Nick Nurse’s staff back in 2018, Bjorkgren spent two seasons with Toronto. Meaning that he was around during the Raptors first championship in 2019.
Under Nurse, that coaching staff became instrumental in winning a title, while remaining competitive in the Eastern Conference.
This past season, Bjorkgren served as a special assistant to the coaching staff for the Portland Trail Blazers. Now, he is being prominent to an assistant on head coach Chauncey Billups’ staff, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN:
ESPN Sources: Nate Bjorkgren and Chris Fleming are joining Chauncey Billups’ coaching staff with the Trail Blazers, Bjorkgren has been a Raptors assistant and spent season as Pacers’ HC. Fleming had a prominent role under Billy Donovan with Bulls and stops with Nets, Nuggets.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) June 24, 2024
Now, Bjorkgren is joining Billups with the hope of turning the Blazers around as they embrace a rebuild of their own.
It is also worth mentioning that he was the head coach of the Indiana Pacers for the 2020-21 season. In addition to being a professional coach for 17 years and being in the NBA for nearly a decade after his first assistant gig in 2015 with the Phoenix Suns.
All in all, Bjorkgren can provide Billups some needed experience to develop their young talent, like Scoot Henderson.
After spending a few more seasons building his knowledge it could earn him another opportunity to become a head coach down the line. Having backed up Nurse and now Billups could be beneficial for Bjorkgren in the long run.
Kawhi Leonard told Nick Nurse he wanted to win title with Toronto
By hiring a first-time head coach in 2018, Toronto took a gamble on Nurse. Plus rhey acquired Kawhi Leonard, who wanted to win right away.
Nurse revealed that Leonard told him he wanted to win a title with Toronto despite not knowing what his future held.
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