Hoops Rumors has you covered in the event you missed any of this past week’s headlines from around the NBA. Below are some of the most noteworthy stories from the last 7 days.
The Grizzlies fired head coach David Fizdale a day after All-Star center Marc Gasol decried Fizdale’s decision to bench Gasol in the fourth quarter of the team’s home loss to the Nets. The loss extended the Grizzlies’ losing streak to eight games, and while the team downplayed Gasol’s comments as reason for the firing, rumors coming out of Memphis suggested that Gasol and Fizdale were already on poor terms before this latest incident.
While there hasn’t been any corroboration from the Spurs, point guard Tony Parker believes that perennial MVP candidate and All-Star Kawhi Leonard could return to the team from injury in as little as two to three weeks. Leonard, who continues to recover from quadriceps tendinopathy, had (see below) been working out with Parker while they were both out from injury.
Clippers‘ forward Blake Griffin suffered a sprained MCL in his left knee during Monday night’s game against the Lakers. While Griffin did not sustain any structural damage to the knee and the Clippers were apparently relieved after believing the injury could have been worse, his recovery time has still been estimated at around two months.
The Sixers are expected to be in the market for LeBron James this offseason, with several factors making the marriage a possible reality: James and rookie phenom Ben Simmons share an agent, the Sixers will be one of a small number of teams with the requisite cap space, and James’ previous endorsement of head coach Brett Brown.
The Grizzlies‘ ownership situation took an interesting turn this week, with minority owners Steve Kaplan and Daniel Straus activating a clause in the ownership agreement that will afford them the opportunity to buy out majority owner Robert Pera. The Grizzlies were last sold and purchased for $377MM back in 2012.
The Bucks are seriously interested in acquiring DeAndre Jordan from the Clippers. In return, however, the Clippers are looking to acquire at least two of the following three players from the Bucks: John Henson, Malcolm Brogdon, and/or Khris Middleton. Both Henson and Middleton currently start for Milwaukee and Brogdon plays a significant role off the bench.
Here are 10 more headlines from around the NBA last week.
- In the midst of playing doctor, Parker also found time to return to the court from his own injury. Parker returned to the line-up for the Spurs on Monday after missing the first nineteen games of the 2017/18 season with a ruptured left quadriceps tendon.
- The feud between the Bulls‘ Nikola Mirotic and Bobby Portis continues to simmer, but Mirotic has finally accepted Portis’ apology, presumably allowing the two to coexist moving forward.
- The Cavaliers‘ Iman Shumpert underwent surgery to repair the meniscus on his left knee. Shumpert will out of commission for approximately two months.
- The Wizards unveiled the name of their new G League affiliate – the Capital City Go-Go.
- Heat center Hassan Whiteside is expected to be out for a couple of weeks in order to rehab, and recover from, a bone bruise in his left knee.
- Magic guard Terrence Ross will miss “a significant amount of time” after being diagnosed with a sprained right MCL and a non-displaced fracture of his right tibial plateau.
- Jahlil Okafor is still pushing the Sixers to buy out his contract while president of basketball operations Bryan Colangelo remains focused on finding a trade partner(s).
- Former NBA big man Lavoy Allen has found a new home in China, agreeing to terms on a contract with the CBA’s Zhejiang Golden Bulls.
- The Hawks‘ starting center Dewayne Dedmon will be sidelined for 3-6 weeks after suffering a stress reaction in his left tibia.
- Despite being in the midst of a 10-game losing streak, the Grizzlies have no plans to go into rebuilding mode this season.