Kings Notes: Evans, Temple, Lawson, Rookies
Swingman Tyreke Evans is trying to make a good impression for potential suitors as he enters unrestricted free agency, Matt Kawahara of the Sacramento Bee reports. Evans, who is in the final year of his four-year, $44MM contract, is trying to show teams that he’s still effective despite undergoing three knee surgeries, Kawahara continues. “A lot of teams know I had tough injuries so they want to see how I’m moving, how I’m playing every night,” Evans told Kawahara. “There’s teams watching. I know the Kings are watching, too. So I’m playing for my teammates still at the end of the day, but I’m going out there and being myself.” Evans is averaging 14 PPG on 47.4% shooting since being included in the DeMarcus Cousins trade with the Pelicans, though he hasn’t played in six of the last 11 games.
In other news regarding the Kings:
- Shooting guard Garrett Temple has emerged as a locker-room leader, Jason Jones of the Sacramento Bee writes. Temple has taken the younger players under his wing and maintained an active role in their development, as he told Jones. “The players that are playing have gotten a lot younger so it’s more of a teaching, mentoring role,” Temple said. “Whereas when [Cousins] was here, if I’m talking to him it’s more of a keeping him calm, talking more nuances of the game, things that we can do better as a team. But with the young guys it’s a lot of specifics about how to get open, how to defend, ways to teach them the veteran tricks we all have learned in our years in the league.”
- Point guard Ty Lawson denies that he has violated his probation, according to an Associated Press report. Probation officials allege Lawson, who was given probation in a Colorado drunken driving case, has tested positive for alcohol three times in the past six months and has failed to complete his community service duties, the report continues. A judicial hearing will be held in May before a decision is made on whether Lawson will receive a more severe punishment, the report adds.
- Rookies Skal Labissiere, Georgios Papagiannis and Buddy Hield and second-year man Willie Cauley-Stein showed growth during a recent three-game road trip, as Shahbaz Khan of the team’s website details.
Atlantic Rumors: Nets, Grant, Goodwin, Bradley
The Nets are taking a close look at European shooting guard Edwin Jackson while scouting overseas, international journalist David Pick tweets. Jackson, 27, plays for Movistar Estudiantes in the Spanish league and is averaging 22.9 PPG in 24 games while shooting 38.6% on his 3-point attempts. The 6’3” Jackson participated in the team’s free agent mini-camp in 2014, NetsDaily.com notes.
In other news around the Atlantic Division:
- Former Sixers forward Jerami Grant still regards his former team as family, Jessica Camerato of CSNPhilly.com writes. Grant was dealt to the Thunder the first week of the season in exchange for Ersan Ilyasova and a protected draft pick. Grant expressed happiness that the Sixers have improved this season and said he had no time to say goodbye when the trade occurred, Camerato adds. “I had to pack my bags and things in two hours,” Grant told Camerato. “I had to get a physical so I could play the next day in L.A. At first it was a little shock, but once you settle down, it’s OK.”
- There’s a good chance the Nets will retain shooting guard Archie Goodwin once his first 10-day contract expires, according to a tweet from the New York Post’s Fred Kerber. Coach Kenny Atkinson told Kerber “it’s trending very positive” for Goodwin, who signed a 10-day on March 15th. Goodwin, who also played three games for the Pelicans this season, is averaging 7.0 PPG and 2.5 APG in 16 MPG through two outings for the Nets.
- Celtics shooting guard Avery Bradley is the league’s most underrated player, Chris Mannix of The Vertical opines. Bradley has developed into an elite two-way player who earned strong consideration for an All-Star spot before he was sidelined by an Achilles’ injury, Mannix continues. Bradley’s development has made his once-derided four-year, $32MM contract ,which expires after next season, one of the league’s biggest bargains, Mannix adds.
Eastern Notes: Cavs, Van Gundy, Waiters, Hornets
Cavaliers coach Tyronn Lue and forward LeBron James believe the team has shown a lack of toughness in recent weeks, Joe Vardon of the Cleveland Plain Dealer reports. The Cavs have fallen to 22nd place in the defensive efficiency ratings and are in dangerous of losing the top seed in the East. Their latest loss to the Nuggets on Wednesday had both of them lamenting about the team’s lack of desire to defend. “It starts with the coaches but the players gotta look at themselves in the mirror, too,” Lue told Vardon and other members of the media. “They gotta be more physical, they gotta bring a physical presence and they’ve got to take pride in guarding their man.” James adds: “It ain’t about a group, it’s about individuals. … You can’t preach toughness, you’ve got to have it.”
In other news around the Eastern Conference:
- The Pistons are in danger of sliding out of the playoff race and coach and president of basketball operations Stan Van Gundy is groping for solutions, Keith Langlois of Pistons.com writes. Detroit has lost five of its last six, including a last-second defeat to the Eastern Conference’s worst team, the Nets. “I think it’s pretty clear from these six games that I’m not finding the answers and not doing a very good job, so it starts with me. I’m the person in charge,” Van Gundy told Langlois and the assembled media. “I selected everybody in that locker room. I’m the one who wanted them in there. I decide who plays. I put lineups out there. I decide on defensive coverages. I call plays. So it’s all on me.”
- Dion Waiters‘ left ankle sprain has shown progress, so the Heat have not scheduled an MRI, Anthony Chiang of the Palm Beach Post tweets. Waiters wanted an MRI if he hadn’t felt improvement, Chiang adds. Waiters has missed the last two games after suffering the injury on March 17th.
- The Hornets will not participate in the trend of resting players, according to David Scott of the Charlotte Observer. That would go against the philosophy of owner Michael Jordan and assistant coach Patrick Ewing, who didn’t take games off when they played, Scott adds. “It’s easy for me, because I’m working for an owner who just doesn’t believe in it,” coach Steve Clifford told Scott. “And I have an associate head coach who would kill me if I started doing it.”
Draft Updates: C. Sanders, Rathan-Mayes, Kohs
Rutgers guard Corey Sanders has decided to test the draft waters without hiring an agent, the school announced today in a press release. “We support Corey’s choice to enter his name into consideration for the draft,” Rutgers head coach Steve Pikiell said in a statement. “The evaluation process will provide valuable information. It is in everyone’s best interest that he makes a thorough and informed decision about his future.”
Here’s more draft-related news:
- Florida State guard Xavier Rathan-Mayes announced today in a statement that he’ll enter the 2017 NBA draft, and it doesn’t sound as if he’s planning to return to the Seminoles for his senior year. The 22-year-old, who tested the draft waters a year ago, ranks as the 37th-best junior on DraftExpress’s list.
- La Salle forward B.J. Johnson will test the draft waters without hiring an agent, tweets Jon Rothstein of FanRag Sports. Johnson isn’t considered likely to be drafted, but had a solid junior year for La Salle, averaging 17.6 PPG and 6.3 RPG.
- Nineteen-year-old Latvian forward Verners Kohs will apply for the draft as an early-entry candidate, according to agent Arturs Kalnitis (via Twitter). So far, most of the early-entry news we’ve heard has involved NCAA underclassmen, but more international players figure to follow Kohs’ lead in the coming weeks.
- Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress has published a new mock draft for The Vertical based on updated info on who’s in and out of 2017’s draft pool.
Knicks Rumors: Carmelo, Rose, Jennings, Plumlee
After a confusing and disappointing 2016/17 season that saw the Knicks mixing and matching the triangle offense with Jeff Hornacek‘s more fast-paced system, the team will head into next season focused solely on the triangle. And that means that one or two members of the club’s “big three” may not be back.
As Marc Berman of The New York Post and Frank Isola of The New York Daily News detail, Hornacek didn’t come right out and say that players like Carmelo Anthony and Derrick Rose, who aren’t particularly fond of the triangle, won’t be Knicks next season. However, he hinted that those veterans may have to change their views on the triangle — otherwise, Phil Jackson and GM Steve Mills “will look at other guys.”
Asked about the Knicks’ offense, Anthony admits that he liked the faster and more free-flowing approach that the team had earlier in the season, per Berman. “We kind of slowed down, started settling it down,” Anthony said. “Not as fast. The pace slowed down for us — something we had to make an adjustment on the fly with limited practice time, in the course of a game. Once you get into the season, it’s hard to readjust a whole system.”
Rose is an unrestricted free agent at season’s end, so – triangle or no triangle – there’s a decent chance he’ll land elsewhere. As for Anthony, his aversion to Jackson’s system is one reason why the Knicks have considered moving him, but he’ll have to waive his no-trade clause for a deal to happen.
Here’s more on the Knicks:
- Although he has suggested in the past that he’ll seek a lucrative contract in free agency, Rose said on Wednesday that he’s “not even thinking money” as his free agency approaches, according to Berman. “I’ve got more than enough money saved. If I stopped playing basketball now, I’ll be alright. I want to win,” Rose said. “I want to be happy and feel at peace with myself wherever I’m at. But being at the negotiating table, you never know. I’m not going to negotiate with people where money is the No. 1 thing I’m asking for.”
- Now a member of the Wizards, Brandon Jennings spoke to Stefan Bondy of The New York Daily News about why things didn’t work out for him in New York. One major factor? “I didn’t really understand the triangle,” Jennings said. “I think that was my biggest thing. I really didn’t understand it.”
- With the Knicks taking a longer look at their young players down the stretch, rookie big man Marshall Plumlee will see more minutes. As Berman writes for The Post, Plumlee is hopeful that he can carve out a role as an effective defender and rebounder off the bench.
Coaching Notes: Thompson, Ewing, Calipari, L. Brown
After 13 seasons at Georgetown, John Thompson III is out as the team’s head coach, the school confirmed today (Twitter link via Gene Wang of The Washington Post). With the Hoyas’ job now open, Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical notes (via Twitter) that Hornets associate head coach Patrick Ewing has never had much interest in NCAA jobs, but it’s possible that the Georgetown job “gives him pause.” According to Wojnarowski (Twitter links), Ewing remains close and loyal to the Thompson family, and came close to landing an NBA job last offseason, so he may very well continue to focus on landing an NBA head coaching job.
Let’s round up a few more coaching-related odds and ends from around the basketball world…
- Kentucky head coach John Calipari signed another extension with the Wildcats, according to school, which announced in a press release that the two-year amendment to Calipari’s current contract locks him up through March 30, 2024. Calipari’s name occasionally pops up in NBA head coaching rumors, but it doesn’t look like he’s going anywhere anytime soon.
- Another former NBA coach appears to be seeking out a college job, as Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical tweets that Larry Brown is trying to align himself as an assistant as part of Mike Woodson‘s candidacy for Indiana University’s job. Indiana isn’t interested, per Wojnarowski.
- Meanwhile, Jon Rothstein of FanRag Sports reports that LIU-Brooklyn reached out to Brown about the school’s head coaching job, and the two sides are expected to meet soon. However, a source tells ESPN’s Jeff Goodman that the interest is from Brown’s side, and LIU-Brooklyn doesn’t consider him a “viable candidate.”
- This could be the first NBA season in more than 50 years in which no team makes an in-season coaching change, which amazes Magic head coach Frank Vogel, as John Denton of OrlandoMagic.com details. “The fact that no one has, it’s a shock,” Vogel said. “It’s been overly volatile and unreasonably so, quite frankly, over the last five-to-10 years in particular. (No firings) is something that is great for our profession. I think teams need to understand that continuity is important. Everybody wants to win now, but there is strength in continuity.”
Free Agent Rumors: Teague, Rose, Olynyk, Waiters
Much has been made of Paul George‘s approaching free agency, but the Pacers star won’t be eligible to hit the open market until 2018. Another key Indiana player – Jeff Teague – will see his contract expire this summer, and if Teague leaves the Pacers as a free agent, that probably increases the likelihood of a George departure as well, writes Sean Deveney of The Sporting News.
One league source who spoke to Deveney predicted that Teague will seek a contract close to the max, pointing to Mike Conley‘s five-year, $150MM+ deal with the Grizzlies as one that Teague’s camp will probably bring up in contract negotiations. However, Deveney notes that Teague grew up in Indianapolis and would like to stay with the Pacers, which means a hometown discount isn’t out of the realm of possibility.
Here are a few more notes from around the NBA related to current free agents or players whose contracts will be up this summer:
- In a video for The Vertical, Bobby Marks and Chris Mannix identify Knicks point guard Derrick Rose and Celtics big man Kelly Olynyk as two free agents whose value is very hard to pin down. Mannix suggests he wouldn’t commit to Rose for more than one or two years, while the duo agrees that Olynyk will likely command an annual salary worth at least $10MM, a substantial price to pay for a player whose production has been inconsistent.
- It has been a tale of two seasons for Dion Waiters, who is enjoying perhaps his best year as a pro in Miami, but has also been slowed by various injuries, including the ankle sprain that currently sidelines him. Still, Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun Sentinel doesn’t expect those injuries to give the Heat much additional leverage in contract talks this summer with Waiters, since they’re not serious, long-term ailments.
- Former NBA players Solomon Jones and Jarnell Stokes are currently NBA free agents, but both players have signed D-League contracts, according to Chris Reichert of The Step Back (Twitter links). Stokes’ D-League rights are held by Sioux Falls, so last year’s NBADL will return to the Skyforce. The club waived former NBA center Johan Petro in a corresponding move.
Southwest Notes: Noel, Pau, Ginobili, Dirk, Curry
Since Tyson Chandler left the Mavericks following their championship in 2011, the club has been on the lookout for a long-term center, settling for a series of stop-gap solutions instead. As Tim MacMahon of ESPN.com writes, the Mavs may have finally found a permanent answer at the position after acquiring Nerlens Noel at this year’s trade deadline. Noel will be a restricted free agent this summer, but Dallas is willing to pay big money to keep him in the fold.
“I definitely feel like I’m in a position to be a long-term situation here,” said Noel, who was sent from the Sixers to the Mavericks a month ago. “There are a lot of things that come into it, but I’m definitely comfortable in the system. I’m going to continue to grow as this season ends and continue to capitalize on my opportunities and maybe even get more opportunities.”
Here’s more from around the Southwest division:
- Asked once again about the possibility of eventually returning to Barcelona to finish his basketball career, Pau Gasol reiterated that it’s unlikely, per CCMA.cat (via Sportando). However, Gasol didn’t completely rule out the idea. We recently identified Gasol’s 2017/18 player option with the Spurs as one of several offseason decisions to watch.
- As Jeff Garcia of News 4 San Antonio details, Manu Ginobili recently hinted in an interview with LU2 Radio Bahia Blanca in Argentina that this season could be his last in the NBA. While the longtime Spurs guard didn’t explicitly state that he plans to retire this summer, he admitted that he doesn’t think his career will “go much longer” as his 40th birthday nears. “Now, basketball is not a priority and I live more peacefully,” Ginobili said. “My priority is my family, my children.”
- Like Ginobili, Mavericks star Dirk Nowitzki is in the twilight of his career, but tells Michael Lee of The Vertical that he’ll keep playing as long as he still loves the game and his health continues to hold up. And if he ultimately retires with just one championship ring, Nowitzki will be satisfied with that. “I want to win,” he said. “I’d love to be on a great team again. And to play for a championship again, but I’m a big believer in whatever happens, happens. I’ll keep plugging for as long as it goes and then it’s time to go away.”
- Many basketball fans simply know Seth Curry as Stephen Curry‘s brother, but the Mavericks sharpshooter is blazing his own NBA trail and enjoying a breakout season in Dallas, writes Eddie Sefko of The Dallas Morning News.
Paul Millsap Still Expected To Opt Out Of Contract
Hawks big man Paul Millsap will have the opportunity to opt out of his contract and explore the free agent market this summer, and according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (via Twitter), Millsap is expected to take advantage of that opportunity.
Schefter reports that Millsap is expected to turn down his player option for 2017/18, which echoes what we heard earlier this year from Schefter’s fellow ESPN.com scribe, Chris Haynes (Twitter link). In the wake of Haynes’ initial report, Hawks sources insisted that the four-time All-Star had yet to make a decision on his option, but barring a major injury between now and the offseason, it would be a shock to see him opt in. According to Schefter, while Millsap “loves” Atlanta and would like to remain with the team, he will consider all his options.
[RELATED: Five key 2017/18 player option decisions to watch]
Millsap is currently being nagged by knee soreness, but has had another strong year in Atlanta so far. In 65 games, Millsap has played a career-high 34.3 minutes per contest, contributing 18.1 PPG and 7.7 RPG for the Hawks, despite a career-low .443 FG%.
Although Millsap isn’t necessarily a lock to receive long-term, maximum-salary contract offers at age 32, he should do well in free agency. His 2017/18 player option is worth about $21.472MM, but he’ll easily top that figure on a multiyear deal as a free agent.
For their part, the Hawks put Millsap on the trade block earlier in the season, but later decided to pull him off the block and keep him. Just before the trade deadline, GM Wes Wilcox said that locking up the former second-round pick would be Atlanta’s top priority this offseason.
Semi Ojeleye To Test 2017 NBA Draft Waters
SMU forward Semi Ojeleye will test the NBA draft waters, sources tell Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv (Twitter link). While Ojeleye will declare for the draft, he won’t immediately hire an agent, giving him the flexibility to withdraw his name by May’s deadline.
A 6’7″ junior, Ojeleye joined SMU for the 2016/17 season after spending two years with Duke. The 22-year-old never saw major minutes for the Blue Devils, but enjoyed a breakout season at SMU, averaging 19.0 PPG and 6.9 RPG with a .487/.424/.785 shooting line.
There appears to be no clear consensus on Ojeleye’s draft stock, with DraftExpress ranking him 31st on the site’s top-100 list, while ESPN’s Chad Ford places him just 82nd on his big board. Going through the pre-draft process over the next couple months should allow Ojeleye to get a sense of how he’s viewed by NBA teams, allowing him to make a more informed decision on whether or not to return to SMU for his senior year.
Our full list of early entrants for this year’s draft can be found right here.