2015 NBA Draft Rumors | Hoops Rumors

And-Ones: Mudiay, TV Deal, D-League

October 18th, 2014 at 2:46pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The league had better enjoy the windfall of their TV deal while it lasts, because big money deals like this are likely to disappear in the future, Steve Ginsburg of Reuters writes. Smith College sports economist Andrew Zimbalist warns that the point of sports saturation on television in the United States is rapidly approaching. “At the end of the day, we have a lot more sports programming than we’ve ever had,” Zimbalist told Reuters. “And we’ve had pretty much the same number of household television sets. Ultimately what has to happen is that supply and demand have to meet at a lower price.”

Here’s more from around the league:

David Arseneault Jr. was officially named head coach of the Reno Bighorns, the Kings‘ D-League franchise, the team announced.
With the NBA’s new $24 billion TV deal set to take effect in 2016 player salaries are likely to reach new heights. For now, the league’s star players will have to continue to make ends meet with the current CBA salary structure, and the crew at FOX Sports Ohio runs down the top 25 player salaries for the 2014/15 season. Topping the list are Kobe Bryant, Joe Johnson, and Amar’e Stoudemire.
One prospect who NBA franchises will be keeping an eye on this season is Emmanuel Mudiay, who chose to play over in China rather than attend college this season. Mudiay played his first game yesterday and notched 20 points and five assists in 27 minutes. One of his opponents was former NBA player Pooh Jeter, who relayed his impressions of the 18-year-old phenom to Jonathan Givony of Draft Express. Mudiay is currently slotted second in Givony’s prospect rankings.

And-Ones: Towns, Wayns, Ennis

October 13th, 2014 at 5:27pm CST by Chuck Myron

Scouts and executives are convinced that forward/center Karl-Anthony Towns is the best of Kentucky’s prospect-laden roster, but the team’s NBA showcase might have benefited point guard Tyler Ulis more than any other Wildcat, observes Chad Ford of ESPN.com (Insider-only). Still, several GMs were skeptical about how much they could learn from coach John Calipari‘s unusual combine, as Ford relays.

“There’s a herd mentality in the NBA,” said a GM who spoke to Ford. “We came because everyone else was coming and you want as much information as you can. Things like this don’t really tell you much and can, in fact, be dangerous. We saw these guys exactly how Calipari wanted us to see them. But this event isn’t reality. The game is reality. Watching Cal in a real practice when he’s really getting on guys is reality. This was a show. I keep reminding my scouts of that.”

And-Ones: Jackson, Knicks, Draft, Towns

October 12th, 2014 at 9:38pm CST by Zachary Links

At a public event earlier today in New York, Knicks president Phil Jackson reiterated that he’ll be the one making the basketball decisions and said he’ll only consult owner James Dolan on spending matters, tweets Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com. Things have been different in the past, of course, but Jackson said that Dolan only got overly involved in the past because he felt he was forced to (link). As evidence that Dolan is now hands-off, Jackson noted that he was told he didn’t have to re-sign Carmelo Anthony this summer if he didn’t think it was the right move (link). Here’s more from around the Association..

With the first Kentucky Combine in the books (yes, you read that right), Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress looks at how the Wildcats’ NBA prospects fared. UK’s Karl Towns, Willie Cauley-Stein, Dakari Johnson, Andrew Harrison, Aaron Harrison, and Alex Poythress are all possible first-round picks in the 2015 draft.
An NBA scout at the combine told Adam Zagoria of SNY (on Twitter) that Towns is their best prospect “and it’s not even close.” The big man is currently slated to go No. 3 in DraftExpress’ 2015 mock.
Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau has high hopes for what offseason addition Pau Gasol can do on the defensive end, writes Nick Friedell of ESPNChicago.com. “He could do better,” Thibodeau said. “He’s done well, but I think he could be great. That’s what I want him to be. He’s got great length, he’s got great timing. He’s smart. He can anticipate. He’s still not communicating as well as he’s capable of, but he’s done well thus far.”

And-Ones: Calipari, Kentucky, D-League

October 10th, 2014 at 6:28pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Some 90 NBA team employees attended the first day of a weekend combine that University of Kentucky coach John Calipari has arranged for league personnel to observe the team’s prospect-laden roster, notes Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv note (Twitter link). It originally seemed as though Calipari would keep NBA scouts and executives away from his team for most, if not all, of the season following the combine. But, the coach said today that he would only bar access for the next two or three weeks, and he suggested that he may even let a few NBA types in during that window, as Zagoria and SNY.tv colleague Josh Newman relay (Twitter links). As many NBA eyes as possible will focus in on Lexington this year with nine players in the DraftExpress top 50 on the Wildcats roster this year, so while we wait to see how they all perform, here’s more from around the NBA:

The D-League’s Fort Wayne Mad Ants have reached out to the GMs of the 13 NBA teams with which they’re affiliated to discuss how to manage the odd setup this year, as Mad Ants coach Conner Henry tells Keith Schlosser of Ridiculous Upside.
Kentucky’s weekend combine is more about advertising for Calipari than for the scouts to take a special look at the Wildcats’ players, Sean Deveney of The Sporting News opines. Scouts get access to practices anyway, but with the cameras rolling Calipari has another chip to use as a recruiter, Deveney notes. “I don’t think any of our people there are necessarily going to learn anything we would not learn in the usual ways,” one NBA GM said. “And I don’t think any of these kids are going to dramatically affect their stock one way or the other.”
One player whom scouts at Kentucky’s combine are sure to pay extra attention to is freshman big man Karl-Anthony Towns, notes Deveney. “I think you have to watch the way that Towns moves,” one league source told Deveney. “He’s a unique commodity. He is a 7-footer, but he doesn’t play like it, he doesn’t have a lot of thickness and strength. But he isn’t a guy you look at as a project — he is already an NBA-style big man. He can shoot from the perimeter, he is way ahead of the curve on that. He can pass, he sees the floor. These are all the things that we complain about when we see young college kids going to the NBA, that they don’t have these dimensions. This guy has already got that.”

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.

League Likely To Vote For Lottery Changes

October 9th, 2014 at 12:30pm CST by Chuck Myron

OCTOBER 9TH: The proposal has “overwheming support,” a league executive tells John Gonzalez of CSNPhilly.com, who hears that a sizable percentage of teams want the changes to take effect for the 2015 lottery, lending credence to Lowe’s initial reporting from last week.

OCTOBER 3RD: 1:33pm: Harris believes only “incremental changes” will occur, as Moore tweets. It’s not clear if Harris considers the proposal that Lowe outlined to include just “incremental changes” or if he’s aware of a different proposal.

1:25pm: The NBA’s Board of Governors is expected to vote later this month on a slightly altered version of the league’s earlier proposal to change the draft lottery, Grantland’s Zach Lowe reports (Twitter links). It’s not entirely certain that the measure will come up for a vote, but Lowe senses that it’s likely to pass easily, perhaps with only the Sixers voting against it (Twitter link). The changes would probably go into effect for the 2015 lottery if the Board of Governors vote to approve them, Lowe tweets.

The latest version of the proposal would give the four worst teams equal 12% chances at the top pick, while the worst team would fall no farther than seventh, since the lottery would determine the top six picks, according to Lowe (on Twitter). The worst team gets a 25% shot at the No. 1 overall pick under the current system in which the lottery determines only the top three picks.

It’s unclear how much of a shot the fifth- and sixth-worst teams would have at the top pick, but the seventh-worst would have an 8.5% chance, eighth would have 7%, ninth would have 5.5% and 10th would have 4%, as Lowe tweets. Teams 7-10 would have a 13% chance or better to move into the top three. Teams with the 11th- through 14th-worst marks would have 2.5%, 1.5%, 1% and 0.5% chances, respectively, and that group of four would have better chances of moving into the top six than they have today, Lowe adds (via Twitter).

A deep leaguewide discontent about the Sixers’ aggressive rebuilding is fueling the reform efforts, as Lowe wrote earlier this week and reiterates today (on Twitter). Still, Sixers co-owner Josh Harris doesn’t appear to be backing down, telling reporters today that he believes the team’s radical roster strip-down is the franchise’s best path to a championship, as Tom Moore of Calkins Media notes (Twitter link). Harris said that the proposed changes would make it slightly tougher on his team in the short term but help the club long-term, notes John Schuhmann of NBA.com (on Twitter).

And-Ones: D-League, Blazers, Extensions

October 1st, 2014 at 10:23pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Whoever the league tabs as a replacement for former NBA D-League president Dan Reed is a very big hire for the NBA and the D-League, Kevin Arnovitz of ESPN.com writes. The hope is to have a new president of the D-League in place before its season begins in mid-November, notes Arnovitz, who believes that it will be difficult to replace Reed’s sense of innovation, which is an important trait if the D-League is to continue to grow.

Here’s the latest from around the association:

The Trail Blazers and Chris Kaman look to be a good fit, Jason Quick of The Oregonian writes. Kaman and GM Neil Olshey have a history together that extends back to when Kaman was drafted by the Clippers and Olshey was hired as Player Development Coach that same year, notes Quick.
Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress runs down the top 2015 NBA Draft prospects in the Big East. Headlining the list are Isaiah Whitehead, Chris Obekpa, and Rysheed Jordan.
In his season preview for the Blazers, Adi Joseph of USA Today predicts another 54-win season and Portland snagging the fifth overall seed in the playoffs.
For the NBA Draft class of 2011 the deadline to sign an extension is approximately a month away. Amin Elhassan of ESPN.com (Insider subscription required) runs down the contract status of each first-rounder from that draft year.

Proposed Lottery Changes Garner Broad Support

September 30th, 2014 at 9:59am CST by Chuck Myron

Teams are giving widespread support to the league’s proposal to more evenly distribute the chances that lottery teams have of winning the top overall pick, sources tell Grantland’s Zach Lowe. Owners could vote on the proposal, which would reduce the chance the worst team has at the No. 1 pick from 25% to 11%, as early as this season, Lowe adds. It’s unclear when the change would take effect. Lowe wrote in July that the new rules might be in place in time for the 2015 lottery, but followed a few weeks later to note that many took issue with the idea of such a sudden change.

The proposal, one of several the league has considered, didn’t initially inspire much fervent support, but it appears from Lowe’s latest dispatch that it has picked up steam. A “powerful distaste” for the radical rebuilding effort the Sixers are undertaking is fueling the desire to lessen the incentive that teams have to bottom out, Lowe writes. Philly’s brass is at least cool to the idea of change, if not actively resisting it.

There is concern around the league that making it tougher for the very worst teams to win the lottery will make it more difficult for small-market teams to succeed, according to Lowe, since building through the draft is a cost-effective alternative to marquee free agent pursuits. Still, it’s unclear whether this fear is enough to derail any changes or prompt the league to adopt milder reforms.

And-Ones: Papanikolaou, Draft, Pacific Division

September 19th, 2014 at 10:31pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Kostas Papanikolaou is ready to make the jump from the Euroleague to the NBA, Jonathan Feigan of the Houston Chronicle writes. Papanikolaou signed with the Rockets back in August though the deal hasn’t been formally announced yet. On his decision to join the NBA, Papanikolaou said, “I didn’t want to be thinking like five years later that I had this opportunity and didn’t do it. This was a once in a lifetime opportunity. I didn’t want to miss it. I thought, ‘This is the time.’ I spoke with the GM (Daryl Morey). The coach himself (Kevin McHale) called me. That means a lot to a player. But I just didn’t want to be stupid and lose this opportunity to be here, to live this dream to go to the NBA.”

Here’s more from around the Association:

The staff over at NBA.com previewed the Pacific Division, as well as provided their opinions on the division’s best offseason moves, which player they believe will have a breakout season, and much more.
It’s not too early to start thinking about next year’s NBA Draft, especially if you are a fan of a team that isn’t expected to compete for a playoff spot. The crew over at DraftExpress preview the top NBA prospects in the Pac-12 Conference, with Stanley Johnson, Rondae Hollis-Jefferson, and Norman Powell topping the list.
The staff over at DraftExpress also ran down the top NBA prospects in the Big 12, with Kelly Oubre, Cliff Alexander, and Myles Turner snagging the top spots on the list.

Draft Notes: Towns, Harrison Twins, Looney

September 9th, 2014 at 1:47pm CST by Chuck Myron

The 2015 draft is more than nine months away, but teams track prospects year-round in an effort to make the right decisions when the day finally arrives. All that work doesn’t prevent draft busts, as is proven time and again, but teams can still gather valuable information so they can limit their mistakes. Here’s the latest:

University of Kentucky coach John Calipari has invited all 30 NBA teams to send personnel to watch him put his star-studded roster through a two-day scouting combine of sorts next month, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports. Calipari is believed to be the first college coach to set up such a showcase for his players, but Wojnarowski adds that he won’t allow anyone from the league to observe his practices for an indefinite time thereafter.
There’s no shortage of NBA prospects on Kentucky, as nine fall within the top 43 in Jonathan Givony’s DraftExpress ratings, but forward/center Karl-Anthony Towns, shooting guard Aaron Harrison and combo guard Andrew Harrison will be the main attractions at the team’s preseason showcase, scouts tell Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv.
Duke center Jahlil Okafor remains the top-ranked player on the second version of Chad Ford’s ESPN.com Insider-only draft board, but 6’10” UCLA combo forward Kevon Looney vaults to the No. 8 spot after Ford left him outside his top 30 the first time around.

And-Ones: McGrady, Mudiay, Wright, Faried

September 2nd, 2014 at 10:34pm CST by Cray Allred

Training camp is just four weeks away, and there’s been a recent uptick in players getting invited by NBA teams to compete for camp. Here’s a rundown of news and notes from around the league:

Tracy McGrady is contemplating an NBA comeback attempt while training with Kobe Bryant to get back in shape, he tells Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports. None of the teams his representatives contacted have registered interest, however, and he’s still contractually obligated to tour China as part of a basketball showcase in October, when NBA teams are in training camp. “The comeback will not happen, unless I have the drive whenever I get back,” McGrady said. McGrady last played, sparingly, with the Spurs in 2012/13, and has since spent time playing Chinese basketball, as well as minor league baseball. McGrady retired roughly a year ago.
Emmanuel Mudiay, one of the premier 2015 draft prospects, has signed Raymond Brothers to be his agent, tweets Liz Mullen of SportsBusiness Journal. Mullen adds that Brothers negotiated Mudiay’s current contract with a Chinese team.
Julian Wright, out of the league since 2011, is considering pursuing a comeback via the D-League, tweets David Pick of Eurobasket.com. Wright had been playing with a Russian team and performing well prior to an injury last December, according to Pick.
Yannis Koutroupis of Basketball Insiders thinks that Kenneth Faried‘s stellar play with Team USA will carry over into the season, and expects the Nuggets to wind up making the power forward their most high paid player. Whether Denver reaches an agreement with Faried on a rookie scale extension before the October deadline, or via restricted free agency next summer, Koutroupis predicts it will take upwards of $14MM in annual salary to lock up “The Manimal.”