Jerry West Talks Dubs, CP3, Dekker, Ballmer, Lakers
Longtime basketball executive Jerry West surprised many NBA observers earlier this offseason when he decided to leave the Warriors for the Clippers. Speaking to Tim Kawakami of The Athletic, West acknowledged that he was sad to leave Golden State and had been very happy working for the Warriors, chalking up his decision to timing.
Although he’s a consultant for the Clippers now, West still views the Warriors as the overwhelming favorite to win another championship in 2018, telling Kawakami that “everyone’s playing for second place right now.”
In addition to sharing his lingering fondness for his old team, West also touched on several other noteworthy topics during his discussion with Kawakami. Here are a few highlights:
On whether he knew Chris Paul would leave when he left the Warriors for the Clippers:
“I felt he was. Yes. I didn’t think he was going to stay there. You just get a sense that some players are going to move, you do. You just get a sense… there was all the talk. I know that Steve [Ballmer] met with him. I think Lawrence [Frank] and Doc [Rivers] both met with him. I did not meet with him or talk with him. I just had the sense when I first started talking to them, I asked them, ‘You may not be able to keep either one of these players, him or Blake Griffin.’ I said, ‘How’s that going to work?’ I think they felt there was a chance for sure that he was going to leave.”
On the Clippers moving on without Paul:
“I know some of the people down there [in Houston] and obviously Mike D’Antoni, he’s a friend of mine, he has a place at the Green Brier, and he’s very high on the players we got. He mentioned to me, he said that he thinks they’ll get to play there more and particularly if Sam Dekker can be healthy, he’s a very good prospect. He’s had two seasons of injuries, but he seems very healthy.
“It also gives Doc a chance as a coach to be able to coach differently, more ball movement. Chris was a ball-dominant point guard. [Not having Paul] encourages more movement. When a coach has to do things a little bit differently, that might be challenging but also might be fun for him. Even though we’ll miss Chris, it’s part of the NBA.”
On Clippers owner Steve Ballmer:
“[In] a lot of ways he reminds me of the kind of owners that you want, somebody who’s really committed to trying to build a team. He’s smart, he lets people do their job, he doesn’t think he’s someone who wants to run the team. He’s given Lawrence and Doc a lot of leeway there and they’re going to hire two new people there in the front office. It’s just… I see some changes from the prior regime there that I think are going to be really positive.
On whether he thought he might return to the Lakers rather than joining the Clippers:
“Absolutely not. I had no contact with the Lakers. Honestly, I would’ve never gone back there even if they would’ve contacted me. Never had any conversations, never had a desire there. I knew that would’ve never happened.”
Be sure to check out Kawakami’s full interview with West for more interesting observations from The Logo.
Pacers Sign Alex Poythress To Two-Way Contract
A year after bringing Alex Poythress to training camp, the Pacers have re-added the former Kentucky standout to their offseason roster, announcing today in a press release that Poythress has signed a two-way contract with the club.
Poythress, who will turn 24 in September, didn’t earn a spot on Indiana’s regular season roster last season, but the undrafted rookie excelled for the Pacers’ G League affiliate. In 46 games for the Fort Wayne Mad Ants, the 6’7″ forward averaged 18.5 PPG, 7.1 RPG, and 1.4 BPG, with an impressive shooting line of .528/.403/.783.
Poythress’ performance for Fort Wayne earned him a spot on the All-NBA G League Second Team, and resulted in a late-season call-up to the Sixers. He made his NBA debut for Philadelphia in April and appeared in six games down the stretch, averaging 10.7 PPG and 4.8 RPG.
Previous reports have indicated that Edmond Sumner will be one of the Pacers’ two-way players, so it appears both two-way spots on Indiana’s roster have now been filled. In total, the club now has 17 players under contract, leaving three spots open on the 20-man offseason roster.
For more details on how two-way contracts work, be sure to check out our FAQ. Our full list of this year’s two-way players can be found right here.
Elvin Hayes Involved In Group Trying To Buy Rockets
Another potential investor of note has been linked to the Rockets, as Hall-of-Famer Elvin Hayes confirmed to Fox 26 Houston that he is part of a group that is looking to buy the franchise. As Mark Berman of Fox 26 Houston details, the 12-time NBA All-Star confirmed that he and his group recently met with Rockets CEO Tad Brown.
“We have met with the Rockets, and had a very cordial and a very nice, in-depth visit,” Hayes said. “We feel good about our meeting with the Rockets, and I think they felt good with us. … We have some very strong people in this group. We could do some very good things with this organization, with this team.”
Hayes, who played his college ball at the University of Houston before joining the Rockets, is one of a handful of Houston athletes and celebrities who have expressed some interest in getting involved with the purchase of the franchise. Beyoncé, Hakeem Olajuwon, and Dikembe Mutombo are among the others linked to the Rockets sale within the last month and a half.
Of course, like those other big names, Hayes wouldn’t have the means to be the primary stakeholder in the franchise, so his group figures to include at least one person capable of making that kind of investment. Hayes declined to identify members of his group, but suggested that Houston billionaire Tilman Fertitta – who previously expressed interest in buying the Rockets – would make for a good owner if Hayes’ group doesn’t win out.
“If we are not fortunate enough to be successful in this endeavor, I feel that Tilman would be a person that could really bring great benefit to this basketball team and this city,” Hayes said. “If we are not where we need to be, I feel that Tilman would be the person really to do amazing things with this basketball team.”
Dan Friedkin and Jim “Mattress Mack” McIngvale are among the other big-money investors who are said to have some interest in making a bid for the Rockets, who were put up for sale in July by current owner Leslie Alexander.
Pelicans’ Search For G League Home Down To Two Cities
The Pelicans have narrowed their search for a new home for their future NBA G League affiliate to just two cities, according to Shreveport Mayor Ollie Taylor. Shreveport, Louisiana is one of those two cities, along with Pensacola, Florida, as Rod Walker of The Advocate details.
Back in April, we heard that the Pelicans were considering six cities as possible homes for a new G League affiliate, including Shreveport and Pensacola. The other four locales named at that time – which are apparently no longer candidates – were Baton Rouge, Louisiana; Jackson, Mississippi; Mobile, Alabama; and St. Tammany Parish, Louisiana.
According to Lex Talamo of The Shreveport Times, Tyler announced on Monday that she plans on moving forward with a $100MM “mixed-use” complex that would be built in the city of Shreveport. That facility, which would have a seating capacity of about 3,000 people, could potentially house a new Pelicans G League team.
Pensacola is a little closer to New Orleans than Shreveport is, but the difference – approximately 100 miles – likely wouldn’t be a deal-breaker for the Pelicans as they make a decision on where their G League team will play. New Orleans has yet to confirm the latest news on the search for a home for that G League affiliate, but has previously indicated that the G League club is expected to be ready to debut for the 2018/19 season.
The Wizards are also on track to have their own G League squad by the time the ’18/19 season begins, which would leave the Nuggets and Trail Blazers as the only two NBA teams without an affiliate of their own. Here’s the full list of affiliations for the 2017/18 season.
Raptors Sign K.J. McDaniels
AUGUST 22: The Raptors have officially signed McDaniels, the team announced today in a press release.
AUGUST 17: K.J. McDaniels will sign a one-year, partially guaranteed deal with Toronto, tweets Adrian Wojnarowki of ESPN.
He will join Alfonzo McKinnie, Kennedy Meeks and Kyle Wiltjer as training camp invitees with some guaranteed money, notes Josh Lewnberg of TSN Sports (Twitter link).
McDaniels, 24, finished last season with the Nets, who acquired him from the Rockets at the trade deadline. With expanded playing time in Brooklyn, he averaged 6.3 points and 2.6 rebounds over 20 games.
A second-round pick by the Sixers in 2014, McDaniels had a promising start to his career in Philadelphia before being traded to Houston in February of 2015. He was never able to crack the rotation with the Rockets and saw limited minutes before being dealt away.
Before adding McDaniels, Toronto had $116.6M in guaranteed salary committed to 13 players, along with $100K for McKinnie that counts against the cap, tweets Bobby Marks of ESPN.
NBA Rookies View Dennis Smith Jr. As ROY Favorite
For the last decade, NBA.com’s John Schuhmann has been surveying several incoming rookies to get their thoughts on their fellow first-year players. Schuhmann asks the newest NBA players to identify which rookie they expect to have the best career, which was the steal of the 2017 draft, and which is the frontrunner for the 2017/18 Rookie of the Year award, among other questions.
This year, Schuhmann polled 39 rookies, and more than a quarter of those players made Mavericks point guard Dennis Smith Jr. their pick for Rookie of the Year favorite. The No. 9 overall pick received 25.7% of the vote, beating out top picks like Lonzo Ball (20%) and Markelle Fultz (17.1%). That may be good news for the Mavs, though as Schuhmann observes, the rookies he has surveyed haven’t accurately predicted the Rookie of the Year winner since 2007/08, when they made Kevin Durant the overwhelming favorite.
Here are a few more items of interest from Schuhmann’s survey:
- Smith was the landslide winner (43.6%) as the most athletic rookie. But while his fellow rookies believe the Mavericks point guard will have the best first year, Ball and Celtics forward Jayson Tatum received the most votes (18.4% apiece) for which rookie will have the best overall career.
- Donovan Mitchell (18.9%) was the top choice for biggest steal of the draft, after the Jazz nabbed him at No. 13. Some of the second-round picks that the rookies viewed as steals included Jordan Bell (Warriors; No. 38) and Dwayne Bacon (Hornets; No. 40).
- Luke Kennard (Pistons) and Malik Monk (Hornets) were widely considered the top two outside shooters in the draft. Among their fellow rookies, Kennard (48.6%) easily topped Monk (13.5%) as the pick for the No. 1 shooter of the 2017 class.
- Suns forward Josh Jackson (26.3%) was narrowly voted the best rookie defender, while Ball (71.8%) was the overwhelming pick for best rookie playmaker.
USA Basketball Announces AmeriCup Roster
After taking 17 players to training camp, USA Basketball has narrowed that group down to 12 players for its official AmeriCup roster, the program announced in a press release. The players representing Team USA in next week’s AmeriCup tournament will be as follows:
- Larry Drew II, PG
- Kendall Marshall, PG
- Xavier Munford, SG
- C.J. Williams, SG
- Billy Baron, G
- Reggie Hearn, G
- Darrun Hilliard, G/F
- Reggie Williams, SF
- Jonathan Holmes, PF
- Jameel Warney, PF
- Alec Brown, C
- Marshall Plumlee, C
The five players who missed the cut for the final roster were Rod Benson, Will Davis II, Ra’Shad James, Darius Morris, and Derek Willis.
“All 17 guys that came to camp in Houston had a strong case that they could have made that they should have been selected, but unfortunately, we could only take 12,” said U.S. coach Jeff Van Gundy. “It was very, very difficult getting down to that number, but we feel very happy with the guys that we have selected. We feel we have positional versatility, we have a good balance between size and quickness, so it will be interesting for us to go to Uruguay and see what we can do.”
As we detailed in an earlier story, FIBA has changed its format for qualifying for marquee events like the World Cup and the Olympics, and many of the qualifier tournaments will now take place during the NBA season. For those events, Team USA intends to primarily use players who have been spending time overseas and in the G League, with the bigger-name players taking over for the main events in 2019 and 2020.
Team USA doesn’t need to win the AmeriCup to qualify for the next World Cup and Olympics, but it’s a tournament the U.S. must participate in to eventually play in more crucial events. Van Gundy’s squad will participate in preliminary round games in Uruguay starting next Monday. If Team USA wins its group – which also includes Panama, the Dominican Republic, and host Uruguay – it would advance to the semifinals in Argentina in early September.
The program won’t face real pressure to win until November, when Team USA need a top-three finish in a pool that includes Puerto Rico, Mexico, and Cuba in order to start advancing to later qualifiers. For more in-depth details on how those qualifiers work, be sure to check out FIBA’s breakdowns for the 2019 World Cup and the 2020 Olympics.
Southeast Notes: Mickey, Walton, Magic, Hawks
The Heat’s decision to sign forward Jordan Mickey on Sunday will not impact their ability to make another roster addition, as Ira Winderman of the Sun-Sentinel points out. Mickey signed a $1.5MM contract for the upcoming season and Miami holds an option on a second year. The Heat were already over the salary cap, so it didn’t eat into any available space. Miami still has its $4.328MM room exception available to fill out the roster.
In other items related to the Southeast Division:
- Impressive summer-league outings by Derrick Walton convinced the Heat to sign the undrafted point guard to a two-way contract, Winderman reports in a separate story. Walton’s offensive pacing and 3-point shooting while playing for the Magic’s summer team caught Miami’s attention, Winderman notes. “We just had a mutual interest in joining each other and making something work out and when the opportunity presented itself, we both took it,” the former University of Michigan star told Winderman.
- The Magic have added Adetunji Adedipe to their basketball operations department and also named him the assistant GM of their new G-League team in Lakeland, the team announced via press release. Adedipe has been with the Magic organization for three seasons and served as basketball operations coordinator with the G-League’s Erie BayHawks last year.
- Atlanta-based Sharecare has reached a five-year deal to become the official jersey patch sponsor of the Hawks, according to Zach Klein of WSBTV.com. Founded in 2010, Sharecare is a digital health company.
Pacers Exercise 2018/19 Option On Turner
The Pacers have exercised their team option on center Myles Turner for the 2018/19 season, Keith Smith of RealGM.com tweets. Turner, who is locked into a salary of $2,569,920 for the upcoming season, will make $3,410,284 that season.
The team option was a mere formality for a player that has become the face of the franchise in the aftermath of the Paul George trade to the Thunder. Turner, 21, turned out to be a steal with the 11th overall pick of the 2015 draft. He started half of the 60 games he appeared in during his rookie campaign, averaging 10.3 PPG and 5.5 RPG.
Last season, Turner started 81 games and posted averages of 14.5 PPG, 7.3 RPG and 2.1 BPG. His shotblocking average ranked third in the league. His scoring totals should increase with the continued development of his offensive game and the departure of George.
Turner will be eligible to sign a contract extension next offseason. Indiana will likely offer a max extension, barring a major injury to Turner.
Luke Adams of Hoops Rumors has compiled a list of all rookie scale team options for the 2018/19 season. You can find it here.
Nerlens Noel Hires Rich Paul As His Agent
AUGUST 21, 7:24pm: Noel has hired Rich Paul of Klutch Sports as his agent, Michael Scotto of Basketball Insiders tweets. Paul is the agent for LeBron James and John Wall, among many other NBA players.
AUGUST 21, 9:11am: According to Mike Fisher of Scout.com (Twitter link), Noel is considering an agent change from Walters, despite hiring him just a few months ago. However, Fegan is not involved in this process — if Noel makes a change, he’s expected to look elsewhere.
AUGUST 20, 8:41pm: Scruggs’ report appears to be operating off of dated information, as Noel’s agency change occurred during the 2016/17 season. Initially reported to be leaning toward Fegan, Noel went in another direction, as Fegan was fired by his agency and became embroiled in legal drama. Noel – previously with Andy Miller at ASM – is currently represented by Happy Walters, as ESPN’s Bobby Marks confirms to Hoops Rumors.
AUGUST 20, 4:57pm: Nerlens Noel, who remains a restricted free agent, is still searching for a max contract on the market. In an effort to find that deal, he has switched agents, leaving ASM Sports and hiring Dan Fegan, according to Newy Scruggs of NBC.com.
Noel hasn’t received an offer from any rival suitor, Scruggs adds, which prompted the change. Should he still not find a long-term deal to his liking, he has the option to play for Dallas under his qualifying offer, which is worth $4,187,598.
Scruggs pegs Noel’s market value in the $12-13MM range, though it’s merely speculation. The scribe cites Noel’s injury history as a major reason why the big man will likely have to settle for less than the max.
The center has played 193 games since being selected with the No. 6 overall pick in the 2013 draft. He’s scored 10.0 rebounds and brought in 7.5 rebounds per game over his career while making 51.1% of his shots from the field.