New York Notes: Porzingis, Atkinson, Dinwiddie
Kristaps Porzingis says Achilles tendinitis is responsible for a disappointing season, according to Marc Berman of The New York Post. The second-year big man began having Achilles pain at Christmas, and it has affected him ever since. “I was out there playing at a high level,” he said. “Then the injuries, little things [that] happened got me out of my rhythm. Then it was kind of on and off, some games good, some games not so good. I was trying to find that rhythm for a long time. Then the second part of the season, it was just a big fight for us and mentally tough. I think I grew from this season.’’
Porzingis has missed three straight games with back spasms and may not play again this season. Coach Jeff Hornacek said this week that he plans to be “careful” with how he uses the 21-year-old. If his season is over, Porzingis will finish with 66 games, six fewer than last year, while averaging 18.1 points and 7.2 rebounds per night.
There’s more tonight out of New York:
- Porzingis should be prepared to inherit Carmelo Anthony‘s role as go-to guy next season, writes Al Iannazzone of Newsday. The Knicks are expected to make a concerted effort to trade Anthony this summer, and Porzingis seems like his logical successor. Iannazzone notes that Anthony and Derrick Rose dominated the ball this season, but both could be gone this summer.
- First-year coach Kenny Atkinson offered gratitude and a promise to Nets fans after the team concluded its home schedule today, relays Brian Lewis of The New York Post. Brooklyn picked up its 20th win by rallying to play spoiler against the Bulls. “The crowd’s been outstanding considering we haven’t had a ton of wins and not fighting for a playoff spot,’’ Atkinson said. “The support’s been great. We understand we have to take another step next year, and they should demand that. That’s on us to get better this offseason.”
- One of the players who helped pin the costly loss on the Bulls was point guard Spencer Dinwiddie, who was waived by Chicago in the preseason, notes Vincent Goodwill of CSNChicago. Dinwiddie scored Brooklyn’s final seven points of the game as the Nets erased a nine-point fourth quarter deficit. Dinwiddie came to the Bulls in a trade with the Pistons last June, but he was waived in July, then re-signed and was cut again in October. He signed with the Nets in early December.
Central Notes: Pistons, Ellenson, Wade, Irving
Charlotte’s loss to the Celtics tonight officially extinguished the Pistons‘ faint playoff hopes, writes Aaron McMann of MLive. Detroit entered the night with the possibility of sneaking into the postseason through a multi-team tiebreaker, but both the Pistons and Hornets had to win all their remaining games for that to happen. Coach Stan Van Gundy has been realistic about the team’s fate for some time now, McMann notes, deciding two weeks ago to shut down point guard Reggie Jackson for the season and giving more time to the team’s younger players. Detroit faces several important decisions this offseason, with the most pressing one involving restricted free agent Kentavious Caldwell-Pope.
There’s more news from Detroit and throughout the Central Division:
- Pistons rookie big man Henry Ellenson posted a double-double Friday night with 15 points and 11 rebounds in his first start of the season, notes Keith Langlois of NBA.com. Van Gundy recently said that Ellenson and Boban Marjanovic “can be real contributors next year,” especially with backup center Aron Baynes expected to sign elsewhere in free agency. Friday’s game was just the 16th with the Pistons for Ellenson, who has spent most of the year in the D-League. “He can put it on the floor. He made the one good baseline drive and dish to Boban. He’s got offensive skill,” Van Gundy said. “The guy’s a good player. He’s like a lot of our guys right now. He’s got to shoot the ball more consistently. But he’s a talented offensive guy.”
- Dwyane Wade gave the Bulls a bit of good news in an otherwise horrible afternoon in Brooklyn, relays Nick Friedell of ESPN.com. Chicago dropped a key game in its pursuit of a playoff spot, but Wade was able to get through the contest with no pain in his right elbow. It was his first game since fracturing the elbow March 15th. “Elbow felt cool,” Wade said. “Just my legs, trying to get my legs back. And my wind back. But my elbow felt great.”
- The Cavaliers should shut down Kyrie Irving for the rest of the regular season after his latest knee flare-up, contends Marla Ridenour of The Akron Beacon Journal. The star point guard reported pain Thursday in his left knee, which was surgically repaired after a kneecap fracture in the 2015 NBA Finals. Irving sat out a game last month with tightness in the knee, and Ridenour argues that the Cavs shouldn’t risk his health in pursuit of the top seed in the East. “I’m doing everything possible to take care of my body, I’ve got a clear conscience with that,” Irving said. “But also understand that sometimes it’s gonna hurt. And I gotta be able to deal with it.”
Heat Notes: Cap Space, Tyler Johnson, James, Wade
The Heat are looking at a potential salary crunch in the 2018 offseason, writes Ira Winderman of The Sun-Sentinel. The NBA informed teams this week that the salary cap is projected to rise to $101MM next season, an increase of about $7MM, but will only go up to $102MM the following year. That’s a concern to the Heat because of the offer sheet they matched for Tyler Johnson last summer. Johnson’s cap hit will increase from $5.9MM next season to $19.2MM in 2018/19 and 2019/20. That will not only squeeze the Heat’s cap room next summer, it may affect their strategy for this offseason.
Miami expects to have roughly $36MM available once Chris Bosh‘s $25.3MM salary is removed for medical reasons. The Heat have $49.4MM committed to four players for next season, and Josh McRoberts has a $6MM player option that could push that figure to $55.4MM. In addition, there are team options that will probably be exercised on Josh Richardson, Rodney McGruder and Okaro White, which would increase the total salary to $59.5MM. Four cap holds will add $3.3MM, and possibly more depending on where the team drafts. Miami also has a $6.3MM team option on Wayne Ellington that could cut into cap space, as could the desire to keep free agents Dion Waiters and James Johnson.
Pacific Notes: Ennis, Joerger, Cauley-Stein, Griffin
Tyler Ennis believes he has found a home with the Lakers and wants to remain there past this season, writes Mark Medina of The Los Angeles Daily News. Ennis was shipped from Houston to L.A. at the trade deadline and quickly got an opportunity to play that he never received with the Rockets. His minutes more than doubled after the deal, going from 6.3 per game to 15.9, and he is putting up career-high numbers in scoring and shooting percentage.
The Lakers are the fourth NBA stop for Ennis, who was taken by the Suns with the 18th pick in 2014. After eight games in Phoenix, he was traded to the Bucks in 2015, then to the Rockets in September. “Anytime you go through the journey I’ve been through so far in the league and then have an opportunity to play and have people welcome me with open arms, that’s something you want to stay with,” Ennis said of his plans in free agency. “Obviously there’s a lot going on, but if the opportunity to stay is there, they’ll definitely be at the top of the list.”
There’s more news from the Pacific Division:
- Kings coach Dave Joerger doesn’t like suggestions that the Kings have been tanking since trading DeMarcus Cousins, relays Jason Jones of the Sacramento Bee. Sacramento quickly dropped out of the playoff race after that deal at the All-Star break as the team devoted more playing time to younger players. However, Joerger insists the Kings are building for the future, not maximizing their draft pick. “I think what we’ve already done is establish what we want to be about,” he said. “There’s no tanking going on here. We’re playing hard, guys that are in the rotation are playing hard and they’re getting better.”
- One of the beneficiaries of the Cousins trade has been Willie Cauley-Stein, who has become the Kings‘ starting center. In an interview posted on the Sacramento Bee website, Cauley-Stein told reporters after Friday’s game that he plans to do Navy SEAL training over the summer in preparation for next season.
- Clippers star Blake Griffin has been putting up huge numbers as the team battles for home court advantage in the first round, writes Bill Oram of the Orange County Register. Griffin’s performance since returning from mid-December knee surgery will remind teams of his value as he heads toward free agency. “We keep forgetting Blake missed a huge part of the season,” said coach Doc Rivers, “and you don’t miss that part of the season and just come back and start playing well. It takes time, I think he’s comfortable now, he’s comfortable with his body. So he’s getting ready. It’s good. I like the timing.”
Pelicans Sign Quinn Cook To Two-Year Deal
4:08pm: The signing is official, the Pelicans announced on their website.
9:14am: The Pelicans will sign Quinn Cook to a two-year deal, Chris Haynes of ESPN tweets. The signing comes after the guard played out a second 10-day contract with the franchise.
In six games with the Pels, Cook has averaged just 2.7 points in 6.0 minutes per game but this latest stint with the franchise isn’t the undrafted rookie’s first in New Orleans. In September, Cook was signed by the team but ultimately released prior to the start of the regular season.
The 24-year-old had previously inked a 10-day contract with the Mavericks in February.
Earlier this week, Oleh Kosel of SB Nation’s The Bird Writes blog, wrote about how Cook could fill a role with the Pelicans similar to Patty Mills‘ with the Spurs.
Week In Review: 4/1/17 – 4/8/17
As the playoffs creep ever closer, the highlights of this April week are the returns of several prominent players to playoff-bound contenders. The week also saw a number of younger players audition on short-term contracts and, ahem, the announcement of an NFL Pro Bowler’s NBA debut. Seriously. April Fools’ Day was last week.
Transactions
- The Bucks released forward Terrence Jones.
- The Magic released guard C.J. Wilcox.
- The Nets signed guard Archie Goodwin.
- The Pelicans signed guard Quinn Cook.
- The Bucks signed guard Gary Payton II.
- The Sixers signed forward Alex Poythress.
- The Magic signed forward Marcus Georges-Hunt.
- The Pelicans signed forward Axel Toupane.
- The Magic signed guard Patricio Garino.
Injuries
- After a 19-game absence, Kevin Durant is returning for the Warriors.
- After a 21-game absence, Kyle Lowry is returned for the Raptors.
- After an 11-game absence, Dwyane Wade is returning for the Bulls.
- A torn meniscus will sideline Knicks guard Derrick Rose for the remainder of the season.
- A broken hand will keep Rockets forward Sam Dekker out of action for 3-4 weeks.
News
- The NBA projected that there will be a $101MM salary cap in 2017/18.
- The Mavs will make Tony Romo a “Maverick for a Day“, whatever that means. He’s not expected to play in the team’s home finale Tuesday (but we can hope).
- Former Knicks star Patrick Ewing has been hired to coach at the Georgetown University, his alma matter.
- Forward LeBron James supports the idea of the Cavaliers extending general manager David Griffin.
- The Sixers were granted an injury exception (which they used to sign Alex Poythress)
- The Lakers shut down guard Nick Young for the remainder of the season.
- The Pistons likely shut down guard Reggie Jackson for the rest of the season.
Rumors
- The Knicks are interested in retaining Ron Baker, who is set to hit restricted free agency this summer.
- The Mavericks will be looking for a pass-first point guard in the offseason.
- General manager Rob Hennigan insists that the “leaked white board” photo does not hint at Magic‘s offseason plans.
Atlantic Notes: Lopez, Rodriguez, Saric
Make no mistake, Brook Lopez has carved out a legacy with Nets, that’s the result of nine years of consistent production Filip Bondy of the New York Times writes. In nearly a decade with the franchise, Lopez has played in two states with 109 different teammates and is now closing in on the franchise scoring record.
In 560 career games with the Nets, Lopez has averaged 18.6 points and 7.1 rebounds per game. The 29-year-old veteran has endured countless trade rumors and come out as content as anybody could expect.
“I definitely think I’m lucky,” he told Bondy of his time with the Nets, the only team he’s ever known. “When people look back on me and my career, I’d like them to say I was one of the people who helped start something big in Brooklyn. Started a legacy where players want to come and play.”
There’s more out of the Atlantic Division:
- The Sixers have formally ruled point guard Sergio Rodriguez out for the remainder of the season, Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer writes. Pompey also notes that he’s the sixth member of the team to be ruled out for the season.
- The Raptors have no intention of resting their players in the final week of the regular season, Doug Smith of the Toronto Star says. Point guard Kyle Lowry says that the team can’t relax prior to the postseason.
- First-year forward Dario Saric is battling plantar fasciitis and is on a minutes restriction but that hasn’t prevented him from playing as hard as possible for the Sixers, writes Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer. The result is a palpable sense of urgency. “It’s like somebody just gorging at a buffet,” head coach Brett Brown said of his rookie’s appetite for scoring the ball.
- Expect the return of Kyle Lowry to guide the Raptors to more three-point attempts, Doug Smith of the Toronto Star writes. At least that’s what head coach Dwane Casey foresees. “We were great for a while, and then for a long period of time we were turning down three-point shots,” he said. “For the rhythm of the offence, for their confidence, for their ability to make those shots, you’ve got to take them.“
Tony Romo To Be ‘Maverick For A Day’
Mavericks owner Mark Cuban has suggested multiple times this week that his team needs to add a “pass-first” point guard, but his solution probably isn’t what most fans had in mind. According to ESPN’s Marc Stein, the Mavs intend to honor longtime Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo at their home finale on Tuesday night by making Romo a “Maverick for a day.”
Romo, who recently retired from the NFL and landed a broadcasting job with CBS, will sit on Dallas’ bench during its last home game of the season. Having not played competitive basketball since high school, Romo isn’t expected to get on the court, but the Mavs intend to treat him like an actual player, according to Stein.
ESPN’s report doesn’t mention anything about whether or not Romo will technically sign a player contract with the Mavs, but I’d assume that will be part of becoming a Mav for a day. While it would be odd to see Romo’s name on Dallas’ end-of-season salary cap breakdown, the team does have an open spot on its 15-man roster, and a two-day minimum salary contract to close the season would represent a drop in the bucket.
So is Romo the “pass-first” point guard that Cuban has been hinting at this week? Stein’s contacts within the organization suggest that it very well could be. Still, I’ll point out that Cuban’s initial comments about adding a pass-first point guard included his suggestion that the Mavs will explore the draft and free agency. As such, it sounds like it will be a legit offseason priority for the team, rather than just a wink toward honoring Romo.
Stein adds, unsurprisingly, that the Mavericks would not have considered honoring Romo in this fashion if the club had still been in playoff contention.
Austin Kent contributed to this post.
Hoops Rumors Originals: 4/1/17 – 4/8/17
Throughout the week, the Hoops Rumors staff likes to publish original content to supplement our news feed. Here are some of our favorites from the week that was.
- Upcoming restricted free agents who don’t meet a predetermined starter criteria will see the value of the qualifying offers they’re eligible for change thanks to the new CBA. We broke down the players affected by the new rules including Nerlens Noel and Alex Len.
- A sidelined Dion Waiters has contributed to Josh Richardson‘s fantasy stock rising. Get more insight into the fantasy basketball landscape from our resident expert. It’s playoff time.
- You asked why the Knicks wouldn’t just outright release Carmelo Anthony in our latest Weekly Mailbag? We answered. We also weigh in on who we’re hearing floated as the top high school recruit in the country. (Now hurry and submit questions for next week!)
- As always, we took a look at some of the best NBA content from the blogosphere, here’s what we came up with – including one piece that suggest the Raptors should, gulp, sign and trade Kyle Lowry.
- We like to extend the floor to our readers to weigh in on controversial topics in the NBA. Here are the best Community Shootarounds from this week:
- A number of notable figures were passed over for Hall of Fame nods this year, including Chris Webber and Rudy Tomjanovich. Who do you think was most deserving?
- When North Carolina won the NCAA Tournament we got thinking about who the best UNC alum might be. Let’s narrow the scope to those who played under the tutelage of current head coach Roy Williams (who started in 2003). Who do you think the best Roy Williams-coached North Carolina product is?
- A mid-season trade that sent Lou Williams from the Lakers to the Rockets (oh hello, Eric Gordon) altered the Sixth Man of The Year landscape but members of the media will have to determine a winner regardless. Who do you think wins the year-end award?
- Chords were struck when NBA players put up last minute field-goal attempts in games that were already decided. Wade Baldwin IV is the latest individual to be condemned for it. Do you think it’s appropriate for winning teams to shoot at the buzzer?
- Miss last week’s Hoops Rumors Originals summary? Look back on it here.
Community Shootaround: Shooting At The Buzzer In Decided Game
Count Courtney Lee among the latest NBA players to complain about opponents putting up shots in the final seconds of a decided game. On Friday night the Grizzlies laid waste to Lee’s Knicks, culminating in rookie Wade Baldwin IV standing at half-court with the ball and a 10-point lead as the game clock neared expiration.
Just before time ran out, however, Baldwin hoisted a deep three and nailed it. The basket pushed the Grizzlies above the triple-digit mark earning Memphis fans in attendance free chicken.
Lee, unhappy to lose by 10 but considerably angrier losing by 13, went after the rookie but was thwarted by a handful of Grizzlies veterans.
“For him to do that, what are you doing it for, bro?,” Lee told Marc Berman of the New York Post. “Think about the people who’s doing it. They got bad luck in this league. … I don’t know what made him want to do it.”
Lee’s reaction is a common one among NBA players but should it be?
Just last week Lance Stephenson incited his own commotion by adding a layup in the final seconds of a win over the Raptors. Then, Raptors shooting guard DeMar DeRozan called the moot field goal “disrespectful to the game“. This, naturally, was followed up by Stephenson exposing an instance of DeRozan’s teammate Norman Powell doing similar to the Sixers earlier this season.
Ultimately, the NBA and fan community that drives it need to decide what is permissible in the waning seconds of a ball game and what’s just sour grapes. In response to the Stephenson/Raptors theatrics, Bobby Marks of The Vertical tweeted “I’m so tired of these unwritten rules in basketball. If you don’t want a player to shoot at the end of the game then play some D.”
On one hand, it’s easy to empathize with players like Lee or DeRozan who see the unnecessary field-goal attempts as salt in the wounds of a fresh defeat. On the other, its a thin line expecting everybody to subscribe to the same unwritten rules of a game.
Should players adopt Marks’ stance and play defense if preserving a spread is so important to them? Or should players on the winning end know not to shoot when the game is out of reach?
Factors to consider are that some veterans will go so far as to let the shot clock expire before hoisting a shot at the buzzer resulting in their being assigned a turnover. Another is the fan factor, such as that which was in effect for Baldwin IV. Reaching certain point milestones, usually 100 points, can sometimes trigger benefits for fans in attendance. Does this impact the appropriateness of a last second basket?
You tell us in the comments below!