Michigan State AD says Cavs have shown interest in Izzo, but have not offered him a contract

MSU AD says Cavs have not offered Izzo a contract

Tom Izzo has another suitor.

Michigan State athletic director Mark Hollis told The Associated Press on Monday the Cleveland Cavaliers are interested in Izzo, but haven’t given him the chance to replace fired coach Mike Brown.

Yet.

“There is not a contract offer on the table,” Hollis said in a telephone interview with the AP. “Last week, there was talk that Chicago and New Jersey were interested. If I was anywhere but at Michigan State, I would be interested in Tom, too, because he’s the best coach in college basketball.”

The News-Herald of Willoughby, Ohio, reported Sunday the Cavs have made Izzo an offer to be their coach, citing an unidentified league source.

Cavs owner Dan Gilbert reiterated in an e-mail to the AP the team’s policy not to comment on “any rumor about potential new hires, trades, free agent signing, etc.” Complicating his search for a coach is the uncertainty about LeBron James, who is expected to listen to offers from several teams when free agency opens July 1. James said in an interview last week that Cleveland has “an edge” in re-signing him.

A phone message was left with Izzo and text messages sent to him.

The Lansing State Journal reported Izzo called the reports “way more (baloney) than substance” in a text message Sunday night.

Izzo has been regularly mentioned as a candidate for NBA and other college jobs since Michigan State won a national championship in 2000, when he turned down the Atlanta Hawks. They wound up hiring Lon Kruger, who joined a long list of college coaches who failed in the league.

“I’m not worried,” Hollis insisted. “But Tom has to make the decision that is best for his immediate family.”

As a relentless recruiter and respected tactician, Izzo has turned a good program into a great one at Michigan State.

He led the Spartans to the Final Four six time in 12 seasons. The late John Wooden at UCLA and Duke’s Mike Krzyzewski are the only other coaches who have accomplished that feat.

Izzo makes more than $3 million a season and is under contract through 2016. Kentucky gave John Calipari a $31.65 million, eight-year contract last year, the largest known deal for a college basketball coach.

If the Cavs want Izzo, they could offer him a chance to make twice as much as he does in East Lansing, Mich., where he has priceless roots.

He has been Michigan State’s head coach since the 1995-96 season, when he was promoted to replace retiring mentor Jud Heathcote. The native of Iron Mountain, Mich., has worked on the banks of the Red Cedar River since 1983.

Izzo is believed to be on the short list of coaching candidates preferred by Gilbert, a Michigan State graduate, who didn’t ask Hollis for permission to talk to Izzo.

“That’s not normal protocol when you’re talking about pro teams going after college coaches,” Hollis said. “Dan is a great Spartan and I have a lot of respect for him with what he’s done in the NBA and with his business.”

Gilbert is the founder of Michigan-based Quicken Loans Inc.

He is making some big decisions for the Cavs, who are in the midst of an unprecedented summer makeover. With James set to become a free agent, the team is also looking for a new coach and undergoing a transition of power following general manager Danny Ferry’s resignation last week.

During a conference call after he and Ferry decided to part ways, Gilbert didn’t say if the Cavs had interviewed any coaching candidates. The team has made inquiries about former New Orleans coach Byron Scott and Milwaukee assistant Kelvin Sampson. Gilbert and Grant have a news conference scheduled for Tuesday at the team’s training facility.

Shaquille O’Neal, who played for the Cavs last season, posted on Twitter: “I think brian shaw should get interviewed for that cleveland cavaliers job, he’s really good.”

Assistant GM Chris Grant has taken over for Ferry, who guided the Cavs through their most successful run in team history. The Cavs made it past the first round in each of Ferry’s five seasons, but didn’t advance to the finals the past two years despite successful regular seasons.

On Friday, Gilbert said he was “moving very quickly” in his search to replace Brown, who won 143 games the past two seasons. Gilbert said it would be ideal to have a coach in place by July 1, but wasn’t sure that would happen.

Gilbert has been impressed with Izzo for a long time. Before a late-season game in Cleveland, months before his team’s playoff flop, Gilbert said Izzo was “one of the nicest guys I’ve met” and praised his defensive-minded philosophy.

Hollis said he talked to Izzo on Monday morning and several times over the weekend, insisting that wasn’t unusual because they have been friends for two-plus decades. Izzo was the best man at Hollis’ wedding and they were roommates, in a garden-level apartment with a flooding problem, when they both were starting careers at Michigan State.

“I’m on top of it; I know Dan and Tom talk and that Dan has reached out to talk to Tom in the past,” Hollis said. “The only other thing I can tell you at this point is there is a strong interest from the Cleveland Cavaliers in Tom Izzo.”

AP Sports Writer Tom Withers in Cleveland contributed to this report.