Micah Nori has spent the past five seasons with the Wolves as an assistant coach.
The Portland Trail Blazers have settled on their coach, hiring longtime NBA assistant coach Micah Nori for the role.
Nori, who spent the past five seasons with the Timberwolves, has interviewed for multiple head coach vacancies, including the Chicago Bulls earlier this month, the New York Knicks last year, and the Los Angeles Lakers in 2024.
Nori will take over for interim coach Tiago Splitter, who moved on to become the coach of the Chicago Bulls.
“After an extensive search process, it became clear that Micah embodies the qualities we are looking for in the leader of this franchise,” Blazers general manager Joe Cronin said in a statement. “He has been a key contributor to successful organizations and brings a wealth of expertise, a proven ability to develop players and an authenticity that aligns with the culture we are building. We are excited about the future under his direction and look forward to what we can accomplish together.”
Nori has been an assistant coach in the NBA since the 2009-10, logging time with the Detroit Pistons (2018-21), Denver Nuggets (2015-18) and Sacramento Kings (2013-15) and Toronto Raptors (2009-13) before his time with Minnesota.
It is the first major hire for the team under the Blazers’ new ownership group led by Tom Dundon. The group bought the NBA franchise from the estate of Paul Allen, the co-founder of Microsoft who died in 2018. The NBA’s Board of Governors approved the sale, worth a reported $4.25 billion, in April.
“From my conversations with Tom and Joe, it was evident that there is a strong commitment to building a culture that values accountability, development and team success,” Nori said in a team statement. “This is a team with tremendous talent, and I’m excited to begin working with our players and staff.”
Splitter coached Portland to a 42-40 record and a five-game loss to San Antonio in the first round of the playoffs. It was the first playoff appearance and first time the Trail Blazers finished with a winning record since the 2020-21 season.
The Blazers have a promising young core led by All-Star Deni Avdija, young big man Donovan Clingan and swingmen Scoot Henderson, Shaedon Sharpe, Toumani Camara and Caleb Love.
A 23-year veteran of the NBA, Nori held other roles before his coaching career began. In Toronto, he was the director of NBA scouting, an advance scout and an assistant to the coaching staff with the Raptors.
The Middleton, Ohio, native was a four-year starter and captain of Indiana’s 1996 Big Ten championship baseball team and has a master’s degree from Miami of Ohio. His son, Dante, is a minor league baseball player in the Philadelphia Phillies organization.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.
