Community Shootaround: Trading Marc Gasol
A disastrous season in Memphis got even worse today with the announcement that Mike Conley will have heel surgery and miss the rest of the season. Conley appeared in just 12 games this year and hasn’t been on the court since mid-November.
It’s the latest in a long string of bad news for the Grizzlies, who are 17-31 and mired in 12th place in the Western Conference. Memphis is seven games out of a playoff spot, but only three games from the top in our latest Reverse Standings, which means a high lottery pick could be in the cards for a franchise whose roster got very old while making seven straight playoff appearances.
If the Grizzlies are ready to rebuild, one obvious place to start is with Marc Gasol. The veteran center, who will turn 33 on Monday, is having a typically productive year, averaging 18.0 points, 8.5 rebounds and 4.0 assists in 47 games. He’s a three-time All-Star and probably would have received more consideration this season if Memphis were higher in the standings.
The Grizzlies’ front office continues to say it plans to hang on to Gasol, but the team’s financial situation may force a move. Memphis has three gigantic contracts on its books in Gasol, Conley and Chandler Parsons, and if all three remain, the team won’t have significant cap space until the summer of 2020.
Conley probably has three seasons left on the record-setting contract he signed in the summer of 2016. He will make more than $30.5MM next season, more than $32.5MM in 2019/20 and has a player option worth more than $34.5MM in 2020/21. Parsons, who has only played 26 games this season, still has two more years and more than $49.2MM left on his deal. Gasol is owed nearly $24.12MM next season with a player option for nearly $25.6MM in 2019/20. Conley won’t be dealt because of the surgery, and Parsons’ injury history makes his contract among the most untradable in the league. So that leaves Gasol.
In addition to giving themselves some cap flexibility, the Grizzlies should be able to get a nice package of young talent and draft picks in return. The Cavaliers and Bucks have been tied to trade rumors involving DeAndre Jordan, and both would surely be interested in Gasol. The Celtics, among others, could also get involved.
We want to hear from you. Should the Grizzlies start the rebuilding process by trading Gasol, and what should they ask for in return? Jump into the comments section below and give us your opinion.
Atlantic Notes: Hayward, Celtics, Luwawu-Cabarrot, Casey
Despite the progress Gordon Hayward has made in rehabbing his fractured left ankle, Celtics coach Brad Stevens reiterated to reporters tonight that he doesn’t expect Hayward to play again this season, tweets Chris Forsberg of ESPN.
Hayward has discarded his walking boot, and a recent report suggested he could start traveling with the team on a regular basis in March. However, he still has a long way to go in recovering from the devastating injury he suffered on opening night.
“He makes a lot of shots standing still,” Stevens said. “I mean, a lot. Like, he’s a heck of a standstill shooter now. And he’s really good in a chair, too. But nothing new. We don’t anticipate him being back this season.”
There’s more Atlantic Division news to pass along:
- The Celtics held a team meeting in Los Angeles this week in the midst of a four-game losing streak, Forsberg writes in a full story. The streak was the first difficult stretch of the season for a team that remains at the top of the Eastern Conference, and players said called the meeting positive and productive. “When you’re hitting a lull of losing games, you can tend to go your own direction and try to figure it out on your own,” Kyrie Irving said. “For us, we have great leadership at the top with Brad, and he echoes a message to us leaders on the team, and then we go out there and try to maximize that opportunity of getting better every single day. And I think that we did a great job of just putting everything out on the table. And it’s just about being professional and going out there and executing.”
- A move to the starting lineup has brought out the best in Sixers swingman Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot, writes Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer. With J.J. Redick and Jerryd Bayless injured, Luwawu-Cabarrot made his fourth straight start Friday and is posting the best numbers of his career. “When you get more minutes, you have more time to prove yourself,” he said, “play our game and have fun on the basketball court. That was the biggest difference.”
- Dwane Casey sometimes gets overlooked in discussions about the NBA’s best coaches, but he has a strong reputation around the league, notes Doug Smith of The Toronto Star. Casey has the Raptors in second place in the East and is one win away from being named head coach of the team captained by LeBron James in the All-Star Game. “They’ve been building this for a long time, since he won a championship in Dallas and he became the head coach here,” Kevin Durant said recently. “He changed the culture and they play extremely hard. He’s a great coach. I’m glad he’s still here. I’m glad he’s still pushing. They’re one of the best teams in the league.”
Paul George To Replace DeMarcus Cousins In All-Star Game
Thunder forward Paul George will replace DeMarcus Cousins in the All-Star Game, the league office announced. He will be part of the team captained by LeBron James.
This is the third straight All-Star appearance for George and the fifth of his career. He is averaging 20.9 points, 5.5 rebounds and 2.2 steals in 45 games with the Thunder.
Under league rules, when an All-Star is injured, as Cousins was with a season-ending rupture to his left Achilles, commissioner Adam Silver will select a replacement from the same conference. George had the most points among players who weren’t chosen as reserves this week in a vote by coaches.
George is in his first season with the Thunder after being acquired from the Pacers in a July trade. He is expected to opt out of a $20.7MM salary for next season and test the market in free agency.
Suns Plan To Be Aggressive In Free Agency
Suns GM Ryan McDonough has been encouraged by his team’s progress and is planning to make a strong push for free agents this summer, writes Scott Bordow of The Arizona Republic.
McDonough hopes to use cap space and future assets to upgrade the talent level for next season, saying, “The team is ready.” He cites Devin Booker‘s rise to stardom and the improvement of T.J. Warren, which gives the team a solid foundation.
“There are certain core pieces that are starting to solidify,” McDonough said. “I think we’d be foolish or naïve to wait forever or be overly patient. We’ve been, I think, relatively disciplined with contracts we’ve given out in terms of length and dollars, but yeah, we’re planning on being one of five of six teams with a decent amount of cap space, and we’ll see if we can improve the team.”
The Suns will enter free agency with about $20MM to spend, assuming they don’t re-sign center Alex Len, who will be an unrestricted free agent after the team decided not to extend his rookie contract. More cap room could be created by trading veteran center Tyson Chandler, who is under contract for more than $13.5MM next season, and swingman Jared Dudley, who will make $9.53MM.
Bordow lists several potential targets for the Suns, including restricted free agents Clint Capela, Aaron Gordon, Jusuf Nurkic, Elfrid Payton and Marcus Smart, unrestricted free agents Derrick Favors and Tyreke Evans and potentially unrestricted free agents Nikola Mirotic [team option] and Enes Kanter [player option].
The Suns are also in good shape to make a move on draft night, with the potential for three first-rounders. They have their own pick, which is currently at No. 5 in our Reverse Standings, Milwaukee’s selection from the Eric Bledsoe deal, which conveys between No. 11 and 16 and is now 16th, and Miami’s pick, which is top seven protected and is currently at No. 22.
“One of the things we’re excited about in this draft is if all the players we expect to declare are in, I think the strength of the draft is where we can use some help, at the one and the five primarily,” he said. “We’re kind of searching for answers long-term at those positions.”
The potential to draft a point guard makes it less likely the Suns will try to acquire Charlotte’s Kemba Walker, who has been linked to Phoenix in trade rumors, Bordow adds. Walker is 27 and has an expiring contract after next season, so he may not fit the Suns’ timeline. The team also is reluctant to make any moves that will reduce its cap space for this summer.
“I think for us to significantly cut into that and take us out of the free-agent market or make us less of a player in free agency, we would have to take a really good player coming back in return that fits with our young core,” McDonough said. “When I say young core, I don’t necessarily mean a guy 20 or 21 years old, but not a guy who’s in their 30s and closer to the end of their career than toward the beginning or the middle.”
Central Notes: Thomas, Wade, Brown, R. Jackson
Cavaliers guard Isaiah Thomas insists there are no hard feelings between him and Kevin Love after an emotionally charged team meeting this week, relays Tom Withers of The Associated Press. There were reports that teammates were questioning Love’s motives for leaving the arena with an illness during last Saturday’s loss to the Thunder. However, Thomas says he just wanted to know why Love didn’t stick around, and didn’t pursue the issue any further.
“I didn’t call him out,” Thomas said. “I asked him why wasn’t he at the game, supporting his teammates. And then after the game, I didn’t ask him because he wasn’t there. So I was seeing where he was. So I didn’t call him out any. So those reports that whoever is saying that, there’s no bad blood between me and him. We go back to fifth and sixth grade. I asked him a question where he was and it was never clarified. And that’s all it was.”
There’s more news from the Central Division:
- Dwyane Wade is taking a leave of absence from the Cavaliers to mourn the death of his agent and “father figure,” Henry Thomas, writes Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com. Wade posted a tribute to Thomas on Instagram, outlining how much Thomas meant to him over the past 15 years. Wade missed Friday’s game with the Pacers, and the Cavs aren’t sure when he will return. Coach Tyronn Lue and GM Koby Altman told him to “take his time,” according to Fedor.
- The Bucks are standing behind rookie guard Sterling Brown after he was arrested early Friday morning, reports Ashley Luthern of The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel. Brown faces a tentative misdemeanor charge of resisting or obstructing an officer and was tased in the incident, according to arrest records. “I am aware of the situation and we do support Sterling completely,” said interim coach Joe Prunty. “We’re confident that it will be resolved quickly.” Meeting with reporters before Friday’s game, Brown called it ” a personal issue I’m dealing with right now” and declined to provide any details.
- Injured Pistons guard Reggie Jackson is out of a walking boot and is making progress in his return from a sprained right ankle, according to Rod Beard of The Detroit News. He is expected to resume basketball activities in about two weeks and return to the court after the All-Star break.
Hoops Rumors Originals: 1/20/18 – 1/27/18
Every week, the Hoops Rumors writing team creates original content to complement our news feed. Here are our original segments and features from the past seven days:
- As part of our Community Shootaround discussions, we focused on the following questions:
- Should the Cavaliers be willing to part with the Nets‘ first round pick?
- What should the draft look like for the NBA All-Star starters?
- Our 2018 Free Agent Stock Watch focused on the the Suns and the Warriors.
- With the trade deadline less than two weeks away, we identified several players in the Atlantic, Northwest, and Central divisions who could be on the move.
- None of the last five NBA deadlines have featured fewer than eight deadline-day swaps, and there have always been a couple more moves made leading up to the deadline. We took a look at the last five NBA trade deadlines.
- Additionally, we took a look at five potential trade deadline buyers who are looking to upgrade their roster but don’t possess a 2018 first-round pick.
- Chris Crouse’s weekly fantasy basketball feature zeroed in on the recent struggles of the Cavaliers.
- We posted three separate polls, asking:
- Who will win the All-Star Game; Team LeBron or Team Steph?
- In the wake of the Cavaliers’ struggles, which team will win the Eastern Conference?
- Which teams will not make the Western Conference Playoffs?
Mike Conley To Miss The Rest Of The Season
According to an official team press release, Grizzlies point guard Mike Conley will undergo surgery to smooth a small bone protrusion in his left heel that continues to cause pain and soreness, leaving him unavailable for the remainder of the 2017-18 season. Conley is expected to make a full recovery prior to next season’s training camp.
In addition to the official release from the team, General Manager Chris Wallace sent an email to Memphis season-ticket holders earlier today, stating “Mike has been extremely diligent as we pursued multiple different approaches to alleviate the pain before deciding surgery was the best solution.”
Conley was able to participate in three-on-three scrimmages earlier this month, but the injury did not improve. Conley has appeared in just 12 games this season, last playing in mid-November. He averaged 17.1 points and 4.1 assists per game.
Five Key Stories: 1/20/18 – 1/27/18
Missed any of this past week’s biggest headlines from around the NBA? We’ve got you covered. Here are some of the most noteworthy stories from the last seven days.
The Bucks fired head coach Jason Kidd, and assistant coach Joe Prunty will take over for Kidd as the interim head coach in Milwaukee for the remainder of the 2017/18 season. Despite currently holding on to a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference, management is disappointed with the team’s mediocre record so far, especially after the in-season acquisition of point guard Eric Bledsoe. All-Star Giannis Antetokounmpo was reportedly “devastated” by Kidd’s firing, so it will be interesting to see how the relationship between the Bucks and Antetokounmpo plays out in the future.
Pelicans All-Star big man DeMarcus Cousins suffered a torn achilles tendon in last night’s game against Houston and will miss the remainder of the 2017/18 season. The injury occurred with seconds remaining in the fourth quarter after Cousins notched his second triple-double in three games. Cousins will undergo surgery to repair the tendon as soon as possible and his estimated recovery period is six to ten months.
Despite a steadfast denial from within the Spurs’ organization and a stellar track record of good rapport between players and management, there are reports that the relationship between the Spurs and their superstar forward Kawhi Leonard has soured over differences in opinion regarding the treatment and rehabilitation of Leonard’s lingering quadriceps injury. Leonard is currently sidelined indefinitely as he focuses on rehabbing his quad.
After being pummeled by the Thunder on national television last Saturday, the Cavaliers held an emotional team meeting on Monday where teammates questioned Kevin Love about his early exit from both the game and arena as a result of an apparent illness. His teammates questioned whether he was truly sick, but Love defended himself and there was apparently a sense after the meeting that team had worked out some issues.
The NBA All-Star lineups and teams were finalized this week. As was highly publicized, leading vote getters LeBron James and Stephen Curry picked their teams from the pool of remaining starters and reserves. Team LeBron’s starting lineup includes James, Kevin Durant, Anthony Davis, DeMarcus Cousins and Kyrie Irving. James’ reserves will be comprised of Bradley Beal, LaMarcus Aldridge, Kevin Love, Russell Westbrook, Victor Oladipo, Kristaps Porzingis and John Wall. Team Curry’s starting lineup includes Curry, James Harden, DeMar DeRozan, Giannis Antetokounmpo, and Joel Embiid. Curry’s reserves will be Damian Lillard, Jimmy Butler, Draymond Green, Kyle Lowry, Klay Thompson, Karl-Anthony Towns, and Al Horford.
After requesting a trade from the Cavaliers in the offseason, Celtics’ All-Star point guard Kyrie Irving threatened to undergo knee surgery that would sideline him for most or all of the 2017/18 season if the Cavs didn’t move him, thereby convincing Cleveland’s front office and owner Dan Gilbert that the relationship wasn’t fixable. LeBron James apparently asked the front office not to move Irving, but they felt they had no choice.
Here are 10 more NBA headlines from the last week worth noting:
- As part of their potential efforts to trade point guard Kemba Walker, the Hornets would like to engage the Knicks in trade discussions.
- The Pelicans have signed guard DeAndre Liggins to a second 10-day contract after appearing in just one game during his first 10-day stint.
- Tony Parker, the Spurs’ 17-year veteran point guard, has ceded his starting role in the team’s first-unit to second-year point guard Dejounte Murray.
- Current Lakers’ shooting guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope is being prioritized by the Knicks as a free agent target this offseason.
- In addition to already-reported interest from the Cavaliers and Bucks, the Trail Blazers are also interested in a potential trade for Clippers’ big man DeAndre Jordan.
- The Cavaliers have inquired into the availability of the Hawks’ Kent Bazemore in anticipation of the upcoming trade deadline.
- The NBA has awarded the Jazz a $2.62MM disabled player exception as a result of the season-ending knee injury suffered by veteran swingman Thabo Sefolosha.
- LeBron James is apparently upset with the Cavaliers front office for not upgrading their roster with potential targets’ Paul George and Eric Bledsoe.
- Despite rumors throughout the last week, a trade between the Kings and Cavaliers for point guard George Hill is not imminent.
- The Mavericks are open to the possibility of trading guard Wesley Matthews, but are only looking to do so if they can get a first-round pick in return.
Southeast Notes: Walker, Vucevic, Oladipo, Whiteside, Wizards
Kemba Walker is the Hornets‘ best and most popular player — which makes him the most desirable trade chip as the February 8 trade deadline approaches. There’s an anxiety over Walker’s future with Charlotte which will not subside until the deadline comes and goes, Tom Sorensen of The Charlotte Observer writes.
At this juncture, a trade of Walker during the season seems unlikely. The Hornets sport a 20-27 record, good for 11th place in the Eastern Conference and five games back of the Pacers for the eighth seed. Team owner Michael Jordan recently downplayed the rumors of a Walker trade, instead suggesting the team’s disappointing season has led the team to discussions with multiple teams.
Walker has enjoyed another great season for Charlotte, averaging 21.9 PPG and 5.9 APG in 45 games. He would be an upgrade for several teams, including his hometown Knicks, who have been a rumored trade partner, but nothing is imminent.
Check out other Southeast Division news and notes:
- Magic center Nikola Vucevic recently made significant progress as he recovers from a fractured left hand, John Denton of NBA.com writes. Doctors have encouraged Vucevic to play more video games so that he get strength in the injured left hand. “They said anything where I’m using the hand – even playing video games – will be good for it, so I’m doing it,’’ Vucevic said.
- Victor Oladipo is a 2018 NBA All-Star, which will haunt the Magic, a team that has lacked a true superstar talent, Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel writes. Oladipo enjoyed three solid seasons with Orlando before a 2016 deal sent him, along with the draft rights of Domantas Sabonis, to the Thunder for veteran Serge Ibaka.
- After a disappointing performance where he committed seven turnovers, Heat big man Hassan Whiteside heard criticism from everyone, including head coach Erik Spoelstra. Ira Winderman of the Sun-Sentinel writes that Spoelstra expects more from Whiteside.
- The Wizards should be better than they have played with the trio of John Wall, Bradley Beal, and Otto Porter leading the pack. Jonathan Tjarks of The Ringer writes that the time is now for Washington to make a trade deadline deal and make a playoff push.
Knicks Notes: Burke, Ntilikina, Kanter
After his recent G League call-up, Trey Burke has provided a spark for the Knicks which is raising questions of whether he should play more often. Marc Berman of the New York Post writes that Burke, who scored 18 points for a second straight game in Friday’s win over the Suns, has impressed thus far.
In six games, Burke has averaged 9.3 PPG and 3.8 APG. With rookie Frank Ntilikina struggling and veteran Jarrett Jack also on the roster, it’s to question whether or not the former lottery pick Burke, 25, should see more playing time.
“I’m satisfied we won, but I got to be ready to play,” Burke said. “Guys are required to produce when their number is called. If you’re not locked in as you need to be, you saw some of my possession that I had. My teammates stuck with me. My coaches stuck with me, and I played through it, and we rolled with what was working.’’
Head coach Jeff Hornacek added that when Burke plays this well, “we got to find time for him.”
Check out other Knicks news below:
- Frank Isola of the New York Daily News argues that while Burke is worth a long look, his opportunity should not come at the expense of the rookie Ntilikina. Isola writes that while Burke and Jack are solid players who fill a role, Ntilikina should be given the keys to the kingdom and take over as the starting point guard after the All-Star break.
- Things got heated in the Knicks’ win on Friday between Enes Kanter and Suns guard Devin Booker, per ESPN. Booker was ejected after he shoved Kanter, earning his second technical foul. After the game, the issue went to Twitter with Kanter calling out Booker; teammate Jared Dudley fired back at Kanter in a series of tweets.