Southeast Notes: Ross, Gordon, Howard, Batum
The Magic have fallen on tough times after an 8-4 start, but they are just two and a half games out of a playoff spot and still qualify as one of this year’s early-season surprises. Coach Frank Vogel tells Nick Friedell of ESPN the team made a mistake at the start of last season by going against the small-ball trend, adding that things began to turn around with the trade of Serge Ibaka to Toronto for Terrence Ross. That created an opening for Aaron Gordon at power forward and Evan Fournier at small forward.
“I think last year we were trying to go big when the whole league was going small and it wasn’t really working,” agreed center Nikola Vucevic. “A lot of guys were out of their comfort zone, a lot of guys were out of position. It just wasn’t working, it wasn’t clicking. I think this year players’ roles are more clear.”
There’s more from the Southeast Division:
- New GM John Hammond is confident that Gordon, a restricted free agent, will agree to a long-term contract next summer, Friedell relays in the same story. Orlando wasn’t able to work out an extension with Gordon before last month’s deadline, but Hammond believes his future will be with the Magic. “You look at a guy like that and say, ‘He’s one of those guys as you move forward with, that you got to have,'” Hammond said. “And we feel that way.” Gordon is off to the best start of his career, averaging 17.6 points and 8.1 rebounds in 17 games.
- Early-season technical fouls are piling up for Hornets center Dwight Howard, notes Rick Bonnell of The Charlotte Observer. The NBA announced today that Howard was fined $35K for an obscene gesture in Friday’s game at Cleveland. That’s his second fine this season and sixth technical in 18 games. There will be an automatic one-game suspension if he reaches 16, and the league could impose a separate suspension if the obscene gestures continue.
- Nicolas Batum isn’t worried about any long-term effects from his latest elbow injury, Bonnell tweets. Batum was able to return to the Hornets‘ lineup tonight after sitting out Friday. He left Wednesday’s game with a contusion on his left elbow, the same one that caused him to miss the first 12 games of the season.
Latest On Derrick Rose
The Cavaliers are being supportive of Derrick Rose‘s decision to take time away from the team to ponder his NBA future, but two sources tell Chris Mannix of Yahoo Sports that the organization was blindsided by the news.
Cavs management considers his departure an excused absence and is marking it down as a “personal issue.” Rose is evaluating whether he wants to keep playing in the wake of his latest injury, a sprained left ankle that has sidelined him for the past eight games.
“I texted him and told him [that] we support him,” said coach Tyronn Lue. “He’s going through a tough time right now, but he’s still very talented. Take as long as he needs to take, we wish him well and we want him back.” Still, Lue admits he has no idea when Rose might return.
The Cavaliers have been significantly better without Rose, winning seven straight games to climb within a half game of the Central Division lead. That isn’t a coincidence, according to Mannix, as four knee surgeries have robbed Rose of his lateral movement and teams are exploiting him on pick-and-rolls. The offense has also functioned better in Rose’s absence.
Officially, the Cavaliers are saying they will welcome Rose back, but Mannix wonders if that’s true. And if Rose does decide to keep playing, it won’t be easy to win back the trust of his teammates, especially after his similar disappearance from the Knicks last year.
There’s no guarantee of an NBA future for Rose beyond this year, Mannix adds. Once his veterans’minimum contract expires at the end of the season, he may find no takers on the free agent market, with one executive comparing his situation to Deron Williams‘.
There’s more news on Rose as we wait to see what his future holds:
- LeBron James and Dwyane Wade say they wish the best for Rose, but are confident his absence won’t affect the team, relays Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com. Neither player has talked to Rose since he left, but Lue sent a text assuring him that he still has a spot on the Cavs if he wants it. Wade said he also considered retirement because of injuries during the 2013/14 season. “Obviously I can’t say I understand what he’s going through, but I understand what he’s going through,” Wade said. “I definitely had a moment in my career a few years back where I was thinking about retiring myself. It’s hard when you’re dealing with injuries after injuries after injuries — it takes a toll on you mentally.”
- Rose may not have a steady role on the team if he does return, Vardon notes in the same story. Isaiah Thomas will be the starting point guard once he recovers from his hip injury, while Wade runs the offense with the second team.
- The Timberwolves gave strong consideration to signing Rose in the offseason, but decided against it because of concerns about his durability, tweets Jerry Zgoda of The Minneapolis Star Tribune. Minnesota coach/executive Tom Thibodeau was Rose’s coach in Chicago for his MVP season in 2010/11. The Wolves opted to pursue Jeff Teague instead.
Wizards Don’t Plan Roster Addition To Replace Wall
The Wizards will be without star guard John Wall for about two weeks, but probably won’t make a roster move to replace him, tweets Candace Buckner of The Washington Post.
Washington has a roster opening, but coach Scott Brooks told reporters tonight that he does “not anticipate bringing anyone in.” The team has been carrying 14 players since waiving Carrick Felix at the start of the month.
Wall has been diagnosed with inflammation in his left knee and will get platelet-rich plasma injections to try to ease the pain. He received the first one today, along with a viscosupplementation shot (Twitter link). Wall has been dealing with soreness since November 7 in the wake of “knee-to-knee contact” during a game with the Mavericks. His earliest return date is probably December 9 against the Clippers in Los Angeles (Twitter link).
Brooks said he hopes rest, along with the injections, will “calm the knee down” enough for Wall to return by then (Twitter link). He added that “guys are ready to play bigger roles,” specifically Otto Porter and Markieff Morris, who has been taken off his minutes limit (Twitter link).
Hoops Rumors Originals: 11/18/17 – 11/25/17
Every week, the writers here at Hoops Rumors strive to create interesting original content to complement our news feed. Here are those segments and features from the last 7 days:
- We answered your questions in our Weekly Mailbag, including whether the Bulls will trade Nikola Mirotic and the Knicks‘ chances at signing LeBron James in the offseason.
- We revisited several of our Hoops Rumors Glossary entries, focusing on free agent types and the G-League.
- We took a look at five significant 2018/19 Player Options and analyzed the chances of each option being exercised.
- In several different Community Shootaround posts, we asked:
- Is it time for the Clippers to move on from head coach Doc Rivers?
- Should the Clippers be looking to trade DeAndre Jordan in the wake of the team’s early season struggles?
- Do you agree with Bill Simmons’ Top-20 NBA Players for the 2017/18 season?
- Which 2017 free agent signings have represented the best deals so far in the 2017/18 season?
- What’s in store for the future of Derrick Rose?
- We asked you, the readers, to weigh in on two polls:
- Which team is the worst in the NBA this season?
- Will the Nuggets make the playoffs this season?
- We took a look at 25 players still on non-guaranteed 2017/18 contracts.
- As part of our Fantasy Hoops content, we analyzed Tyreke Evans‘ resurgence with the Grizzlies, among other fantasy analysis and notes.
- We analyzed the stock of the Grizzlies‘ 2018 free agents.
Five Key Stories: 11/18/17 – 11/25/17
Hoops Rumors has you covered in case you missed any of this past week’s NBA headlines. Below are some of the most noteworthy stories from the last 7 days.
After undergoing surgery on his right knee, Clippers guard Patrick Beverly has been ruled out for the remainder of the 2017/18 season. Beverly’s surgery included a microfracture and meniscus repair, leaving his estimated recovery time at nine months. The Clippers are now free to apply for a disabled player exception worth about $2.76MM.
Upset with being hurt and unable to play, Cavaliers guard Derrick Rose has (permissibly) left the team while he evaluates his future in the NBA. Rose, who has been plagued by health problems since winning the NBA’s MVP award in 2011, signed a one-year, minimum salary contract with the Cavaliers over the summer. There is no timetable for his return to the team.
Paul Millsap will be sidelined for approximately the next three months after undergoing surgery for a torn ligament in his left wrist. Millsap, who signed a three-year, $90MM deal with the Nuggets this past offseason, injured his wrist during this past Sunday’s game against the Lakers.
The Orlando Magic will not be hosting their annual summer league in 2018, opting instead to join other franchises in the Las Vegas Summer League. New management believes that among other factors, having a large crowd will help better prepare young players for NBA life, as the Orlando league was always closed to the public.
Two-time NBA All-Star David Lee has announced his retirement from the NBA. Lee, a first-round draft pick in 2005, declined his player option for the 2017/18 season in June, and was unable to find his way back onto another NBA roster. Lee finishes his career with averages of 13.5 points, 8.8 rebounds, and 1.6 assists per game.
Here are 10 more NBA headlines from the last week.
- Suns rookie point guard Mike James is expected to sign a standard NBA contract before he reaches the 45-day NBA limit on his two-way contract.
- Blue-chip recruit Anfernee Simons is strongly considering entering the 2018 NBA draft straight out of high school.
- Missouri freshman forward Michael Porter Jr. will likely miss the remainder of the college basketball season after undergoing surgery.
- Former NBA guard Leandro Barbosa has signed a deal to continue his playing career in his home country of Brazil.
- Wizards guard John Wall will miss approximately two weeks while seeking treatment to reduce inflammation in his left knee.
- Bulls guard Zach LaVine has been cleared for contact as he continues to recover from last season’s ACL tear.
- Sidelined since October 23, Sixers guard Markelle Fultz is making progress towards returning to action. The team plans to re-evaluate him in two to three weeks.
- Bucks forward Mirza Teletovic is expected to be sidelined for the next four weeks after undergoing successful surgery on his left knee.
- Kendall Marshall, a 2012 first-round pick, has decided to retire from the G League.
- After getting kicked out of practice and leaving his Chinese team, former first-round pick Terrence Jones has been waived.
John Wall To Miss Two Weeks Due To Left Knee Inflammation
Wizards point guard John Wall will miss approximately two weeks to undergo platelet-rich plasma injections to reduce inflammation in his left knee, the team announced in a press release on Saturday.
Wall, 27, initially suffered “knee-to-knee contact” during the Wizards’ November 7 matchup against the Mavericks, per the release. Washington was concerned Wall would miss this weekend, but Friday’s MRI revealed that the point guard will not return until December at the earliest.
In 16 games this season, Wall still posted productive totals of 20.3 PPG and 9.2 APG, but his lack of mobility due to the knee injury has been noticeable. Knee injuries are not new to Wall, as he underwent surgery last May on the same knee to remove calcium deposits.
As pointed out by Candance Bucker of The Washington Post (link via Twitter), the Wizards’ release noted that Wall not only consulted with the team physician but also the doctor who performed that surgery last year.
Community Shootaround: Derrick Rose’s Future
It’s that time of the year when Derrick Rose‘s health brings up questions about how much longer his battered body can sustain the rigors of an NBA season. We noted yesterday that Rose is currently away from the Cavaliers and evaluating his NBA future. A source told ESPN that the former NBA Most Valuable Player is “tired of being hurt and it’s taking a toll on him mentally.”
Rose, 29, showed he can still score this season as he averaged 14.3 PPG in seven starts for Cleveland. But Rose has not suited up for the Cavaliers since November 7 and was expected to miss 2-3 weeks with an ankle sprain. The Cavaliers have experimented with several different lineups in Rose’s absence. The good news is that Isaiah Thomas, who was acquired in the Kyrie Irving trade, is making progress in his rehab from a hip injury.
“I don’t think it means too much for the team, but I think more importantly as one of his brothers, that’s somebody we got to know these last couple months,” LeBron James said about Rose’s injury (via Cleveland.com’s Joe Vardon). “We want, whatever he decides to do, we want the best for him. At the end of the day, you can’t substitute nothing for happiness.”
Head coach Tyronn Lue said he has communicated Rose and despite all the reports, expects the point guard to return at some point. If Rose were to retire, it would also have massive financial ramifications. While his NBA deal is a one-year, $2.1MM veteran’s minimum deal, Rose still has approximately seven years and $80MM left on his endorsement deal with Adidas, according to ESPN’s Nick DePaula. If the former Bulls standout were to file retirement paperwork, he would not receive a full payout from the endorsement deal, DePaul writes.
Rose entered the 2017/18 season with confidence. Last season in New York, Rose played in 64 games and averaged 18.0 PPG, his best work since his MVP season in Chicago. The Cavaliers made a minimal investment and Rose said to Tim Reynolds of the Associated Press that he will prove he can still be an impactful asset.
“When I get on a good team and I’m still hooping the same way, what are you going to say then?” Rose said. “The only thing that you’ll can say is that I can still play.”
Rose has shown he can still play but has not proven he can stay healthy.
What do you think? Do you think Rose will suit up for the Cleveland again this season? Is it smart for him to walk away from a lucrative endorsement deal? If he does resume his career, what would be the best way to manage his workload?
Pacific Notes: Ingram, Lakers, Bell
Lakers second-year forward Brandon Ingram has displayed improvements through the team’s first 19 games. Last year’s second overall pick in the draft is averaging 14.7 PPG, 5.4 RPG, and 3.0 APG in 33.8 minutes — all of those numbers up from his rookie season. As Bill Oram of the Orange County Register writes, Ingram feels there is a lot more progress to be made.
“I think I have some more to show,” Ingram said. “This summer I was super confident in what I wanted to do this season, and I don’t think it’s all came yet.”
Oram mentions in the article that while rookie Lonzo Ball has generated most of the Lakers’ headlines, Ingram has generated most the team’s efficiency. At 8-11, the Lakers occupy 10th place in the Western Conference and are not considered a playoff team. However, if the Duke product develops into the player the team believes he can be, they will have at least one reliable anchor in the lineup.
Check out other news around the Pacific Division:
- Mark Heisler of the Orange County Register outlines the Lakers’ rebuilding approach, likening it to the 76ers mantra of “Trust the Process.” The team has secured several first-round picks in recent years, including Ingram, Ball, Julius Randle, D’Angelo Russell, Larry Nance Jr., and Kyle Kuzma. Russell was traded to the Nets over the offseason but the other young assets remain in the fold. Heisler notes that the Lakers’ plan to compete will have to include luring a big name free agent such as LeBron James. For that to happen, he adds, the current roster will have to show it has sustainable potential.
- Warriors rookie Jordan Bell has played sparingly this season but after the Warriors paid $3.5MM to acquire him from the Bulls after the NBA Draft, he has used it as motivation, Mark Medina of The Mercury News writes. “I use it as motivation as far as me playing for this team, and how much effort and money they spent to try to get me,” Bell said. “They already have such a great team over here and are so deep. But they obviously want me. I use that as motivation. So, now I got to show people that I’m worth the $3.5 million they spent to get me.”
Southwest Notes: Barnes, Kleber, Rockets
The Mavs have a new go-to guy after decades of relying on Dirk Nowitzki to shoot the ball in the final minutes of close ball games. As Eddie Sefko of The Dallas Morning News writes, this week Harrison Barnes experienced first-hand what that can mean.
After missing a potential game-winner on Monday night, the 25-year-old forward banked home a winner on Wednesday. The Mavs’ new No. 1 threat will have to soon get accustomed to both the highs and lows of getting the final shot.
“When the team trusts you to have the ball in your hands late in the game and you miss a shot like that, you kind of beat yourself up a little,” Barnes, who averages 19.5 points and 7.1 rebounds per game for the Mavs, said. “But you have to move on. So when you come to [the Wednesday game], and to make that shot, it felt great.”
There’s more from the Southwest Division:
- Don’t mistake Harrison Barnes‘ banked-in Wednesday night winner for anything more than luck, Matt Mosley of The Dallas Morning News adds in a question-and-answer with readers. Although he notes that Barnes’ “clutch” stats are actually pretty strong, he views him as more of a No. 2 or No. 3 option for the Mavs, long-term.
- The Mavs slotted Maxi Kleber into their starting lineup four games ago and have been pleased with the result. Eddie Sefko of The Dallas Morning News writes that the undrafted rookie has played just 16 minutes per game since moving into the starting lineup but has done a solid job making sure that the team doesn’t get off to slow starts, an issue that had occasionally plagued them.
- The Rockets opted to keep two-way guard Briante Weber with the big league club, as well as forward Troy Williams so that they have more manpower available at practice and late in blowout games, Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle writes. Yes, that’s a big enough concern for head coach Mike D’Antoni to legitimately plan around. Nine of Houston’s 14 wins so far this season have been by at least 15 points.
NBA G League Assignments/Recalls: 11/24/17
Here are the G League moves from around the NBA today:
- The Rockets have assigned big man Zhou Qi to their G League affiliate, Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle tweets. Qi will land with the Rio Grande Valley Vipers after showcasing some of his potential with the big league club on Wednesday.
- The Grizzlies assigned Ivan Rabb to the Memphis Hustle, the team tweeted. Rabb has averaged 21.3 points and 11.3 rebounds per game for the G League affiliate this season.
- The Nets have assigned Isaiah Whitehead to their G League affiliate in Long Island, the team announced in a press release. Whitehead has averaged 3.6 points per game with the big league club and scored 26 points in his lone G League game this season.