Seth Curry Out Indefinitely
Seth Curry has been diagnosed with a stress reaction of his left tibia, according to a Mavericks press release. He’ll be reevaluated weekly and there is no timetable for his return.
Curry was the favorite to land the team’s starting shooting guard spot after impressing in training camp and limited preseason action. Coach Rick Carlisle indicated earlier in the week that Curry in the starting lineup “makes sense.”
“I’m not saying it’s 100 percent. But we need a consistent scorer and a guy who can guard that position and he’s continued to make strides,” Carlisle said of Curry prior to the injury.
Dallas signed Curry to a two-year, $6MM last offseason and he enjoyed his best season as a pro in year one with the franchise. The guard scored 12.8 points per game while shooting 42.5% from behind the arc.
Raptors Make Roster Cuts
The Raptors have waived Kennedy Meeks, Andy Rautins, and Kyle Wiltjer, according to a team press release. Toronto’s roster now sits at 17.
Meeks went undrafted out of the University of North Carolina and signed a partially guaranteed deal with the franchise this summer. He was only able to make one preseason appearance for the club before the team waived him.
Rautins and Wiltjer each made three preseason appearances for the Raptors. Rautins was never expected to make the opening night roster, while Wiltjer was in a better position to earn a spot.
Five Key Stories: 9/30/17 – 10/7/17
Missed this week’s biggest NBA headlines? We’ve got a recap for you. Here are some of the most noteworthy stories from the last seven days:
The Raptors reached an agreement on a four-year, $42MM contract extension with Norman Powell. The move will keep Powell off the restricted free agent market in 2018, locking him up through at least the 2020/21 season. However, it could also create some luxury tax problems for Toronto beginning next year.
The NBA’s All-Star Game will no longer pit the Eastern Conference against the Western Conference. While All-Stars will still be selected the same way – with 12 coming out of each conference – the top vote-getter in each conference will then be named a captain, and those captains will draft their squads from the rest of the All-Star pool. Each All-Star team will also play on behalf of a charity of its choice.
Markieff Morris and Marcus Morris were acquitted in their aggravated assault case. The verdict allowed both players to avoid potential jail time, return to their respective teams – the Wizards and Celtics – and likely to steer clear of possible discipline from the NBA as well.
The sale of the Rockets to Houston billionaire Tilman Fertitta was approved by the NBA. Team owners voted unanimously in favor of giving Fertitta the go-ahead, clearing the way for him to officially take over as owner of the Rockets for a price of $2.2 billion.
The Clippers and DeAndre Jordan are reportedly discussing the idea of a contract extension. Nothing is close, but the two sides will have all season to talk about a possible extension, since the deadline doesn’t arrive until June 30. Jordan will have the chance to opt out of his contract in 2018.
Here are 10 more notable NBA headlines from the last week:
- Hornets forward Nicolas Batum is expected to miss at least six to eight weeks, and possibly longer, due to an elbow injury.
- Billionaire executive Laurene Powell Jobs is purchasing a 20% stake in Monumental Sports & Entertainment, the holding company that controls the Wizards and Capital One Arena.
- Veteran NBA forward Martell Webster abandoned his comeback attempt with the Pelicans, announcing his retirement.
- The Bucks released former first-round pick James Young.
- Kings rookie Harry Giles won’t make his NBA debut until at least January, and possibly later.
- The Magic hired Tracy McGrady as a special assistant to team CEO Alex Martins.
- The Lakers are hiring Antawn Jamison in a scouting role.
- The Cavaliers are considering which player with a guaranteed contract to trade or waive, and Richard Jefferson appears to be the prime candidate for now.
- Ex-Knicks guard Chasson Randle will play for Real Madrid in Spain.
- Former Purdue standout and Timberwolves forward Robbie Hummel announced his retirement.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Pacific Notes: Beverley, Bogdanovic, Cauley-Stein, Lakers
Patrick Beverley has earned the reputation of a defensive pest who can get under the skin of his opponents and the Clippers are glad he is on their side, Broderick Turner of the Los Angeles Times writes.
Beverley has the unenviable task of being one of many reinforcements for a departed Chris Paul. Despite the lofty expectations, Beverley’s defense and overall demeanor through his first few preseason contests have made him popular with teammates but not changed his approach.
“I try to set the tone defensively,” Beverley said. “That helps the rest of our team. I understand I have DJ [DeAndre Jordan], but I don’t want to rely on him too much. At the same time, I want to be able to still do my thing within the defense.”
Last season, Beverley averaged 9.5 PPG, 5.9 RPG, 4.2 APG, and 1.5 SPG for the Rockets last season. If he replicates the on-court performance and retains his outspoken style, the Clippers should be set at the position, according to his coaches and teammates.
Below you can find other news coming out of the Pacific Division:
- Willie Cauley-Stein is entering his third NBA season at a time when third-year players are expected to develop into mainstays. However, a tumultuous period in Sacramento with roster, coaching, and front office turnover will make it a possibly difficult adjustment for Cauley-Stein, Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee writes.
- Bogdan Bogdanovic has spent limited time in the United States but he cannot contain the excitement for his NBA opportunity with the Kings, Ailene Voisin of The Sacramento Bee details.
- The Lakers have hired Jason Rosenfeld as Director of Basketball Analytics, according to the team. As ESPN’s Zach Lowe (Twitter link) noted, the Lakers’ signing of Rosenfeld is crucial as the team has been criticized for its lack of analytics use.
Dante Exum To Miss Significant Time With Shoulder Injury
Dante Exum left the Jazz‘s preseason game against the Suns on Friday with a shoulder injury that overshadowed the team’s eventual 112-101 victory. The non-televised game did not provide visuals of Exum’s injury but Jazz head coach Quin Snyder said it was serious.
“If you saw his shoulder it didn’t look good,” Snyder told reporters, including Jazz radio host David Locke (Twitter link).
Atlantic Notes: Kanter, Noah, Okafor, Embiid
Enes Kanter, acquired in the deal for Carmelo Anthony, could be the Knicks‘ starting center when the season begins. The former Thunder big man has been an effective scorer and offensive rebounder but his lack of defensive ability could hurt his case, Marc Berman of the New York Post writes.
Kanter, 25, is in a three-man competition for the center job along with Willy Hernangomez and Joakim Noah. But there are only two people competing for the opening night job as Noah will be suspended 12 games due violating the NBA’s drug program. Kanter said he has lost 37 pounds since June to become quicker on defense and coach Jeff Hornacek — who acknowledged Kanter’s defensive shortcomings — believes his new center has shown improvements.
“The game has slowed down for him — I think he’s become better defensively on what teams are trying to do,’’ Hornacek said. “He didn’t play at Kentucky, [so] he was pretty raw his first year. Now he’s been around the league. He’s one of the best [true] centers in this league right now.’’
Kanter said he’s happy in New York and prepared for life after Oklahoma City. The Knicks open the season against the Thunder in OKC on October 19.
Check out other news around the Atlantic Division below:
- Noah understands he will likely be a bench player for most of the season but feels he can still make an impact, Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News writes.
- Jahlil Okafor slimmed down by 20 pounds, improved his mid-range shooting, and his defense but the Sixers will likely trade their reserve center. Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer writes that keeping Okafor, for now, is smart since he is not drawing much value on the market and can still be productive.
- Joel Embiid, who has yet to play in a preseason game, is one of the Sixers’ most valuable assets. As Bob Ford of The Philadelphia Inquirer writes, the team’s future as a winning franchise could hinge on whether or not Embiid gets healthy enough to become a fixture in the lineup.
Hawks Waive John Jenkins, Jordan Mathews
The Hawks have requested waivers on John Jenkins and Jordan Mathews, Marc Spears of ESPN tweets. The moves will bring Atlanta’s current roster count down to 18.
Neither player got a particularly long look with the franchise but they had their work cut out for them navigating the club’s backcourt depth chart either way.
While Jenkins has bounced around in the NBA over the past few seasons, Mathews was auditioning for the club as an undrafted rookie out of Gonzaga.
The brief tenure with the Hawks was actually Jenkins’ second, the guard having been drafted by Atlanta back in 2012. Unfortunately for the Tennessee native, he won’t stick with the squad this time around. In 145 career games in the NBA, Jenkins has averaged 5.1 points per game.
Trail Blazers Notes: Turner, Morrow, McCollum
If preseason is any indication thus far, the Trail Blazers may benefit more from Evan Turner‘s versatility this year, Mike Richman of The Oregonian writes.. The point forward brought the ball up the court off the jump in the club’s first exhibition game of the year.
“One of the things is to take advantage of his ball handling and make it a little less taxing for Damian Lillard and C.J. McCollum,” head coach Terry Stotts said. “That’s something we want to do better this year than we did last year.”
Turner was heralded for his versatility and ability to handle the ball coming out of Ohio State but has settled into a role as an NBA swingman. If he can get comfortable initiating the team’s offense as a playmaker, it frees the club’s star backcourt up to work off the ball.
“When it comes down to it you got two sharpshooters,” Turner said. “When I have to run the offense I’m passing to two of the better shooters in the world. So, of course, it makes it a tad bit easier and opens things up.”
There’s more Trail Blazers news:
- It seems likely that Anthony Morrow will make the team, Jason Quick of NBC Sports Northwest writes. The 32-year-old has demonstrated his ability to fill the net from beyond the arc through preseason, a coveted skill for any franchise.
- The Blazers were happy to rid themselves of Allen Crabbe‘s contract but the forward was one of their third best three-point shooters. Reserve point guards Pat Connaughton and Shabazz Napier are first in line to inherit Crabbe’s previous role, Joe Freeman of The Oregonian writes.
- Guard C.J. McCollum has announced a partnership with Chinese shoe company Li-Ning, the 26-year-old announced on Instagram. The company has previously had partnerships with Dwyane Wade and Shaquille O’Neal.
And-Ones: Pay Cuts, Rookies, Returning Rights
The idea of an NBA player taking a pay cut in order to help a franchise save funds for other players is a noble one but it doesn’t always work out for the individuals who sign at a discount, Steve Kyler or Basketball Insiders writes.
Most recently, Warriors shooting guard Klay Thompson was asked if he would consider taking less pay when he hits free agency in the summer of 2019, like his teammate Kevin Durant did this summer.
“I probably could, yeah. That much? I don’t know. I don’t make as much as Kevin off the court,” Thompson told The Athletic. “If it’s a few million… It’s a blessing whatever contract I sign. I would definitely consider it cause I don’t want to lose anybody.”
Kyler discusses several cases of players who took pay cuts to play for a winner only to see that shot at a title quickly fade. Back in 2015, David West left eight digits on the table in order to chase a ring with the Spurs but ultimately came up short. The following summer he had to sign on with the Warriors instead, in order to take home a championship.
Jameer Nelson is another striking example of what can go wrong for a player. Nelson was bought out by the Magic in the summer of 2014 and turned around to sign at a discount with the Mavs. Dallas, however, shipped the veteran guard off less than two months into the 2014/15 campaign in the deal that landed them Rajon Rondo.
Of course there are success stories and Kyler references both Dirk Nowitzki and Dwyane Wade taking pay cuts to appease franchises that have supported them over the course of their careers. Tim Duncan is another example of a superstar that happily left money on the table in order to preserve the Spurs‘ financial flexibility.
There’s more from around the NBA:
- While it’s only natural to get excited about the potential of the point guards at the top of the 2017 NBA Draft, don’t expect them to steamroll their way through the league right away. Kevin Pelton of ESPN (Insider) took a deep dive into the statistical projections of players like Lonzo Ball, Markelle Fultz and Dennis Smith Jr. only to conclude that genuinely performing as a Top 100 player in the NBA is exceedingly difficult for a first-year guard.
- The NBA’s age limit has been a common talking point ever since it was implemented last decade but change could be inevitable, Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders writes. The scribe writes that the prohibition of traditional high school seniors in the NBA draft isn’t about skill but rather about maturity. He also highlights the fact that many of the eligibility rules related to the NCAA-to-NBA pipeline come from the NCAA and not from the big league, itself.
- Ever wonder what G League writers like Chris Reichert of 2 Ways, 10 Days are talking about when they refer to players’ returning rights? Consider the following an introduction to the contract mechanism and a crash course in who the most valuable players to whom returning rights apply currently are.
Pacific Notes: Clippers, Mason, Warren
The Clippers will rely more heavily on DeAndre Jordan and Blake Griffin than usual this season, the long-tenured frontcourt pairing will assume extra leadership duties in the wake of the trade that sent Chris Paul to the Rockets, Broderick Turner of the Los Angeles Times writes.
“The roles absolutely changed out of necessity,” Griffin, who has already logged eight seasons with the Clippers, said. “Anytime you lose somebody like CP, everybody has to step up. I know DJ and I have talked about it all summer and we’re excited about that challenge.”
The forthcoming 2017/18 campaign will be a particularly important one for Jordan. This season, the center will become the longest tenured players in Clippers franchise history, having suited up in blue and red for 10 seasons. Jordan slides past former Clips guard Eric Piatkowski who played for the team from 1994-2003.
There’s more from the Pacific Division:
- He may not be the most talked about Kings rookie at the point guard position but Frank Mason is ready to produce in his first season in the NBA, Ailene Voisin of the Sacramento Bee writes. The 23-year-old played four seasons at Kansas and is ready to bring his fast, aggressive style of play to the next level.
- According to Basketball Insiders, the base value of T.J. Warren‘s four-year contract extension with the Suns is worth $47MM (as opposed to the $50MM that was initially reported). The difference could be comprised of contract incentives, although that’s merely our speculation.
- The Warriors‘ new arena in San Francisco is schedule to open in time for the 2019/20 season. The franchise has recently submitted a bid to hold an All-Star Game there, Chris Haynes and Marc Spears of ESPN write. Sources tell them that the earliest the bid could be for is the 2021 All-Star Game.