Unsigned Draft Picks: Atlantic Division
As the 2016 NBA draft rapidly approaches the term draft-and-stash will be mentioned quite often in regard to international players and late second-rounders. While some of these athletes will eventually sign with an NBA team, it seems like the majority of them stay overseas and never make it to the league. Those players in the latter category aren’t without value as they become trade assets for the teams holding their rights.
While many players fail to work out the way teams expect them to, they can at least become tradeable assets for teams that don’t want to part with a future second-round pick in a deal. Each team must give up something in a trade, which is why many swaps include top-55 protected second-round picks. Older draft rights held players who clearly will never come over to the NBA are essentially the same as flipping those heavily protected second-rounders, for all intents and purposes.
Listed below are the current unsigned draftees for the teams of the Atlantic Division:
Boston Celtics
- Colton Iverson — Selected No. 53 overall in 2013.
- Ben Pepper — Selected No.55 overall in 1997.
- Josip Sesar — Selected No. 47 Overall in 2000.
- Marcus Thornton — Selected No. 45 overall in 2015.
Brooklyn Nets
- Christian Drejer — Selected No. 51 overall in 2004.
- Juan Pablo Vaulet — Selected No. 39 overall in 2015.
New York Knicks
- Guillermo Hernangomez — Selected No. 35 overall in 2015.
- Louis Labeyrie — Selected No. 57 overall in 2014.
Philadelphia 76ers
- Chukwudiebere Maduabum — Selected No. 56 overall in 2011.
- Vasilije Micic — Selected No. 52 overall in 2014.
- Dario Saric — Selected No. 12 overall in 2014.
Toronto Raptors
- DeAndre Daniels — Selected No. 37 overall in 2014.
- DeeAndre Hulett — Selected No. 46 overall in 2000.
Pacific Notes: Clarkson, Cousins, Luwawu
Lakers combo guard Jordan Clarkson, who is set to become a restricted free agent this summer, reiterated his desire to remain in Los Angeles for the long-term and expressed his excitement at the prospect of playing for new head coach Luke Walton, Shahan Ahmed of NBCLosAngeles.com relays. “With the Warriors, the biggest thing is ball movement,” Clarkson said. “Those guys are making the ball pop. Everyone is getting open shots, setting good screens. They set a lot of guard to guard screens, take advantage of switches. That style of play, I think it fits us well. We got a lot of guys that can put the ball on the floor and make plays for each other, and at the same time being able to play in a system where ball movement is the emphasis.”
Here’s the latest out of the Pacific Division:
- Kings center DeMarcus Cousins said that he is optimistic about the team’s direction under new coach Dave Joerger, adding that he is looking forward to less drama next season, Sean Cunningham of ABC 10 tweets.
- The Clippers are parting ways with assistant coach for player development Dave Severns, Dan Woike of The Orange County Register relays (via Twitter).
- French combo guard Timothe Luwawu has a workout scheduled with the Suns this weekend, international journalist David Pick tweets.
- The Kings will hold a group workout on Friday and the attendees will include Ryan Anderson (Arizona), Robert Brown (UAB), Tyler Harris (Auburn), Stefan Jankovic (Hawaii), Retin Obasohan (Alabama) and Jamari Traylor (Kansas), the team announced.
Atlantic Notes: Hornacek, Kilpatrick, Dunn
Power forward Kristaps Porzingis was surprised when the Knicks hired Jeff Hornacek, but believes the new head coach can maximize the talent that is on the team’s roster, Ian Begley of ESPN.com relays. “I think he’s a very smart coach. He knows how to use his players and that’s exactly what we need,” Porzingis said of Horncek. “And we’ll see if we can get some more players this offseason. But I think we have enough talent and having [Carmelo Anthony] makes everybody better. So if we know how to go from there, using Melo, myself and involving everybody, using everybody’s strengths and putting it all together, then we’ll be a different team. We’ll be able to succeed.”
“I think Hornacek can be that coach for us,” Porzingis continued. “Of course, you need a long-term coach to be able to win. He needs to know the players, the personalities, [players’] strengths on the court, off the court, everything. We need some time to build something and I think he can be the guy.”
Here’s more from the Atlantic Division:
- Sean Kilpatrick is grateful to the Nets for seeing something in him that other NBA teams did not, vowing to reward the franchise for its faith in his potential, NetsDaily relays. “I remember going through the Star-Spangled Banner and when I was going through it I was just thinking, wondering ‘What did [GM] Sean Marks see in me that everyone else didn’t see and remember a tear dropping,” said Kilpatrick. “I mean after all this hard work, you had finally found a home. You found somewhere where someone actually believe in you and someone actually wants to help you get better to be the best you can possibly be. So I’m going to continue to make sure that everyone in this building know who I am and why I play this game.”
- Former Providence point guard Kris Dunn disputes the reports that he doesn’t want to play for the Celtics or any other team with a point guard already entrenched, Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe writes. “I mean, it would be unbelievable to be selected by the Celtics,” Dunn said earlier today. “My dream is just to get drafted, and that I have a chance to be a top-five player, it’s a blessing. “I think that’s just a rumor going around. That never came out of my mouth, that I didn’t want to play for any team.”
Poll: 2016 Community Mock Draft (Pick No. 23)
The results of the 2016 NBA Draft lottery are in and the Sixers finally landed the elusive No. 1 overall pick after missing out the past two seasons. Now that the exact draft order is locked in, teams can begin targeting specific players who are likely to still be on the board when it is their time to choose. Drafting players is far from an exact science, and many a GM has been second-guessed for his draft night decisions. I’m willing to bet that every team executive has at least one pick that he would like a mulligan for. We at Hoops Rumors thought it would be fun to give our readers the chance to predict the results of this June’s draft, which is what we are doing with a series of polls.
We are now well on our way to completing the first round and have once again come to the Celtics. Readers, you are now on the clock! Working under the assumption that the team will keep the pick, cast your vote for Boston’s selection and check back Friday for the results, as well as to cast your vote for who the Sixers will select with the No. 24 overall pick. But don’t limit yourself to a simple button click. Take to the comments section below and share your thoughts on the No. 23 overall pick and why you voted the way that you did.
Previous Selections
- Sixers — Ben Simmons (LSU)
- Lakers — Brandon Ingram (Duke)
- Celtics — Dragan Bender (Maccabi Tel Aviv)
- Suns — Jaylen Brown (California)
- Timberwolves — Buddy Hield (Oklahoma)
- Pelicans — Kris Dunn (Providence)
- Nuggets — Jamal Murray (Kentucky)
- Kings — Henry Ellenson (Marquette)
- Raptors — Marquese Chriss (Washington)
- Bucks — Jakob Poeltl (Utah)
- Magic — Skal Labissiere (Kentucky)
- Jazz — Denzel Valentine (Michigan State)
- Suns — Domantas Sabonis (Gonzaga)
- Bulls — Deyonta Davis (Michigan State)
- Nuggets — Timothe Luwawu (Mega Leks)
- Celtics — Thon Maker (Australia)
- Grizzlies — Wade Baldwin (Vanderbilt)
- Pistons — Tyler Ulis (Kentucky)
- Nuggets — Furkan Korkmaz (Anadolu Efes)
- Pacers — Demetrius Jackson (Notre Dame)
- Hawks — Taurean Prince (Baylor)
- Hornets — Brice Johnson (North Carolina)
With the No. 23 Overall Pick, the Celtics Select...
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Malachi Richardson (Syracuse) 13% (204)
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Ante Zizic (Croatia) 13% (200)
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Cheick Diallo (Kansas) 12% (197)
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Malik Beasley (Florida State) 9% (148)
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Zhou Qi (China) 9% (148)
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Dejounte Murray (Washington) 6% (98)
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DeAndre Bembry (St. Joe's) 6% (97)
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Diamond Stone (Maryland) 6% (90)
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Juan Hernangomez (Spain) 4% (67)
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Stephen Zimmerman (UNLV) 4% (61)
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Damian Jones (Vanderbilt) 4% (60)
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Wayne Selden (Kansas) 3% (49)
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Malcolm Brogdon (Virginia) 2% (37)
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Caris LeVert (Michigan) 2% (34)
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A.J. Hammons (Purdue) 1% (22)
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Chinanu Onuaku (Louisville) 1% (18)
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Isaia Cordinier (France) 1% (11)
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Guerschon Yabusele (Rouen) 1% (11)
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Patrick McCaw (UNLV) 1% (10)
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Robert Carter (Maryland) 1% (9)
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Petr Cornelie (Le Mans) 0% (7)
Total votes: 1,578
For Trade Rumors app users: [Direct Link]
And-Ones: Spurs, Diallo, Maker, Max Contracts
The Spurs are considering bringing 2011 draft-and-stash prospect Davis Bertans stateside, sources with knowledge of the situation tell David Pick of Bleacher Report. According to Pick, no agreement between the two sides has been reached, but the Latvian small forward – who is an excellent shooter – would “give strong consideration” to heading to San Antonio for a two-year deal worth $4MM. Bertans’ NBA opt-out, which expires in mid-July, is worth the standard $650K. San Antonio originally acquired Bertans’ NBA rights in the 2011 draft-night trade that sent George Hill to Indiana for Kawhi Leonard.
Here are a few more Thursday odds and ends from around the league:
- Jon Rothstein of CBSSports.com (Twitter link) is hearing that Kansas’ Cheick Diallo‘s stock on the rise. NBA people are high on Diallo’s motor, according to Rothstein, who says the former Jayhawks big man could be picked in the 15-20 range.
- Like Diallo, Thon Maker has also seen his draft stock rise during pre-draft workouts, according to Gery Woelfel of The Racine Journal Times. While most big boards project Maker as a late first-rounder, one Western Conference scouting director believes the seven-footer could come off the board “as high as 12.” An Eastern Conference assistant GM is slightly less bullish, suggesting to Woelfel that he sees No. 15 as Maker’s ceiling. According to Woelfel, the Bucks are fans of Maker and UNC’s Brice Johnson, though No. 10 is probably too high for either player.
- Bobby Marks of The Vertical examines the new definition of a “max player,” identifying 11 pending free agents who could land maximum-salary contracts this offseason, including Warriors forward Harrison Barnes and Magic guard Evan Fournier.
- A pair of former NBA second-round picks have secured new deals overseas. Former Louisville guard Peyton Siva, a 2013 Pistons draftee, has signed with Germany’s ALBA Berlin, according to international basketball reporter David Pick (Twitter link). Meanwhile, Greek guard Vassilis Spanoulis, selected way back in 2004 by the Mavericks, has inked a two-year extension with Olympiacos (link via Emiliano Carchia of Sportando).
Wizards Notes: Coaching Staff, Durant, Workouts
New Wizards head coach Scott Brooks is in the process of putting together his first coaching staff in Washington, and ESPN’s Marc Stein (Twitter link) has an update on some of Brooks’ targets. In addition to confirming the Wizards’ interest in Tony Brown, with whom the team is reportedly finalizing a deal, Stein reports that Brooks is targeting Chad Iske and Sidney Lowe for his bench.
Iske, a former Kings assistant who wasn’t retained when Dave Joerger took over in Sacramento last month, has also drawn interest from Memphis. As for Lowe, he most recently served as an assistant in Minnesota — before that, he was an assistant in Utah and a head coach at North Carolina State.
Here’s more out of D.C.:
- Don’t count Jared Dudley among those who expect to see Kevin Durant return home and sign with the Wizards this summer. Dudley, a free-agent-to-be who spent the 2015/16 season in Washington, told Kevin Sheehan on ESPN 980 that he doesn’t envision Durant leaving the Thunder for the Wizards. “I realistically don’t,” Dudley said, per Dan Steinberg of The Washington Post. “I hope for the fans they do, because he’s from there, and he would bring such excitement. They’d be right behind Cleveland, right there with them to be able to contend. I don’t see it though.”
- More from Dudley on why he doesn’t expect superstar free agents like Durant to land in Washington this offseason: “It’s the system the NBA built. In general, no star player’s leaving to go to another team. … The system’s built for these guys to stay. Guys like Kevin Durant, Al Horford — the Wizards most likely will be going after these players, as they should. Are they really going to leave that money on the table?”
- The Wizards are bringing in prospects D’Vauntes Smith-Rivera (Georgetown), James Webb III (Boise State), Tyler Harris (Auburn), and James Robinson (Pittsburgh) in for a pre-draft workout today, league sources tell Michael Scott of Sheridan Hoops (Twitter link).
- The Wizards are also keeping their eye on former Seton Hall and UConn guard Sterling Gibbs, according to Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders, who tweets that Washington is looking at Gibbs for a second time on Monday.
- We recently took a closer look at the Wizards’ salary cap situation for the coming offseason.
Atlantic Rumors: Simmons, Sixers, Knicks, Raptors
The fact that Ben Simmons isn’t working out for the Sixers shouldn’t be viewed as a decision that reflects poorly on the franchise or one that will have a huge impact on Philadelphia’s choice at No. 1, writes Derek Bodner of PhillyMag.com. As Bodner points out, it appears that Simmons won’t be working out for any teams, so his decision is likely more about playing it safe and not hurting his stock, rather than trying to manipulate his landing spot.
Bodner also examines Bryan Colangelo‘s recent assertion that the Sixers’ decision regarding the first overall pick “changes every day,” suggesting that the GM’s statement sounded somewhat flippant, and probably shouldn’t be taken literally. For what it’s worth, multiple league sources continue to tell Bodner that Simmons is the “prohibitive favorite” to be Philadelphia’s pick to kick off the draft next Thursday.
Let’s round up a few more items from out of the Atlantic….
- The Knicks don’t have a pick in this year’s draft, but they plan to acquire one, and continue to bring in prospects for pre-draft workouts. According to a pair of reports from Ian Begley of ESPN.com, New York worked out Shawn Long (Louisiana-Lafayette), Cat Barber (N.C. State), and Chris Fowler (Central Michigan) on Wednesday.
- New Knicks head coach Jeff Hornacek is eyeing Raptors assistant Andy Greer as a potential addition to his staff in New York, says ESPN’s Marc Stein (Twitter links). According to Stein, Toronto is making a strong effort to hang onto Greer, who has also drawn interest from the Timberwolves.
- Doug Smith of The Toronto Star doesn’t expect the Raptors to make a trade to clear the cap room necessary to re-sign Bismack Biyombo, and he doesn’t expect the free-agent-to-be to take 50 cents on the dollar to remain in Toronto. In Smith’s view, the Raptors and their fans to accept that they’ll bidding adieu to Biyombo soon.
- A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE.com presents five reasons why the Celtics may not be inclined to make a trade push for Kevin Love this summer.
Community Shootaround: NBA Finals Game 6
The sixth game of the 2016 NBA Finals takes place tonight in Cleveland, exactly one year after the Warriors dispatched the Cavaliers in Game 6 of the 2015 NBA Finals to win their first championship in 40 years. The Cavs are hoping history won’t repeat itself tonight — a Cleveland win would force a Game 7 in Oakland on Sunday.
After the series opened with a pair of dominant wins by the Warriors, the two teams have looked a little more evenly matched over the course of the last three games. The Cavaliers won at home in Game 3, then each team stole a game on the other club’s home court to give Golden State a 3-2 lead as the series returns to Quicken Loans Arena.
The Cavaliers have looked excellent at home throughout this year’s postseason, with the lone exception of their Game 4 loss to the Warriors, and they’re coming off an impressive Game 5 win in which LeBron James and Kyrie Irving each exploded for 40+ points. However, the Warriors were missing Draymond Green in that game, and if shots aren’t falling quite so easily for either James or Irving tonight, things could look very different.
Today’s Community Shootaround discussion question is a simple one: How do you expect Game 6 to play out? Will LeBron and Kyrie carry the Cavaliers to another win? Could another Cleveland player to step up to help lead the Cavs to victory? Or is tonight’s game going to be the final contest of the 2015/16 season? Will Green’s return result in the Warriors’ second straight road victory? Will the Stephen Curry and/or Klay Thompson show win out?
Take to the comments section below to share your thoughts and opinions on Game 6. We look forward to hearing what you have to say.
Southwest Notes: Rockets, Adams, Grizzlies, Mavs
During an appearance on SiriusXM NBA Radio (SoundCloud link), Rockets general manager Daryl Morey suggested that his team is “ready-made to add another star-level player” to complement James Harden. Morey pointed to the size of the Houston market, the presence of Harden (and several solid role players), and the arrival of coach Mike D’Antoni as reasons why top-tier free agents would be interested in joining the Rockets.
“If [Dwight Howard] chooses to come back, I think we’ve already shown that combination can win 56 and make the Western Conference Finals,” the Rockets GM said. “If he chooses to opt out and we can’t get him back in free agency, then we’re ready-made to add a star level player. We have the cap room.”
Here’s more from out of the Southwest division:
- Grizzlies guard Jordan Adams has appeared in only 32 games during his first two NBA seasons, and his availability for the start of the 2016/17 season could be up in the air as well. The Grizzlies announced in a Wednesday press release that Adams was undergoing cartilage transplant surgery on his right knee. No recovery timetable was revealed, but GM Chris Wallace called it “difficult news for Jordan and our organization.”
- Small forward will probably be the Grizzlies‘ biggest position of need this summer, according to Chris Herrington of The Commercial Appeal, who examines Memphis’ options and suggests the team is more likely to add a starting three via free agency or trade than in the draft.
- Eddie Sefko of The Dallas Morning News identifies five potential free agent targets that he believes are attainable and logical fits for the Mavericks, including Ryan Anderson, Pau Gasol, and Kent Bazemore.
- Keith P. Smith of RealGM.com previews the Spurs‘ summer, noting that the team’s offseason direction will hinge on whether Tim Duncan and Manu Ginobili retire or decide to return for one more year.
Sixers Rumors: Saric, Draft, Dunn, Okafor
New 76ers general manager Bryan Colangelo has been managing expectations when it comes to the arrival of Dario Saric in Philadelphia, suggesting that there are plenty of hurdles to clear before the possibility of Saric becoming a Sixer in 2016/17 turns into a reality.
Still, even though it might make more financial sense for Saric to wait one more year, Derek Bodner of PhillyMag.com has talked to several people with knowledge of the forward’s situation who believe it’s very likely he joins the Sixers this year. According to Bodner (Twitter links), even though Philadelphia has been noncommittal about it, people close to the situation with Efes (Saric’s team in Turkey) believe the former No. 12 overall pick will make the leap to the NBA this summer.
Here’s more on the Sixers:
- With Jaylen Brown having come in for a solo workout with the 76ers on Tuesday, Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer wonders if it’s a signal that the club is serious about acquiring a second top-10 pick in this year’s draft. Brown, of course, isn’t viewed as a real candidate for the No. 1 overall pick, but perhaps Philadelphia is just doing its due diligence.
- The other players the Sixers worked out on Tuesday are potential second-round or undrafted players, as Pompey writes. Philadelphia doesn’t have a second-round pick this year, but the club will keep an eye on prospects that could be added to its D-League squad.
- If the Sixers do acquire another top pick, one target could be Providence’s Kris Dunn. According to Jon Rothstein of CBSSports.com (Twitter link), Philadelphia “absoutely loves” Dunn.
- The 76ers announced in a press release that they’re hosting another pre-draft workout today, with six prospects in attendance: Stephen Zimmerman (UNLV), Bryn Forbes (Michigan State), Grandy Glaze (Grand Canyon), Stefan Jankovic (Hawaii), Retin Obasohan (Alabama), and David Walker (Northeastern). With the exception of Zimmerman, who ranks 35th on DraftExpress.com’s big board, today’s workout group consists of players likely to go undrafted.
- Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders spoke to Jahlil Okafor about his rookie season and about the trade rumors that have swirled around him all year.