Marquese Chriss ‘Cooling Off,’ Will Miss Sunday’s Game
He’s not officially suspended, but Suns forward Marquese Chriss will sit out Sunday’s game for a “cooling off” period, writes Scott Bordow of The Arizona Republic.
Chriss had a verbal altercation with strength and conditioning coach Jeff Fish after Friday’s loss to the Jazz, according to ESPN. Neither head coach Jay Triano or GM Ryan McDonough would discuss the incident, but McDonough called it a “rules violation.” He also refused to answer questions about a possible fine for Chriss, saying, “We’re handling all of that internally.”
Chriss played just 13 minutes Friday night, posting three points and three rebounds. He is averaging 7.0 points and 5.0 rebounds per game and has been a fixture in the starting rotation since Triano replaced Earl Watson in October.
“He’s a good kid who had a bad moment,” McDonough said. “We look forward to seeing him Monday morning and turning the page.”
Shabazz Muhammad Wants Out Of Minnesota
Timberwolves guard Shabazz Muhammad has asked to be traded or waived before Thursday’s deadline, according to Adrian Wojnarwoski of ESPN.
After being part of Minnesota’s rotation the past two seasons, Muhammad has seen a sharp drop in playing time this year, down to 9.6 minutes per night. He hasn’t played at all in 23 of the team’s last 32 games.
Muhammad re-signed with the Wolves over the offseason, expecting to continue in the reserve role he had become accustomed to. However, once Minnesota upgraded its roster by trading for Jimmy Butler and signing Jeff Teague and Taj Gibson, coach Tom Thibodeau adopted the shorter rotations he was known for in Chicago, Wojnarowski notes. He adds that Jamal Crawford, who signed with the Wolves during the summer, has voiced similar complaints about playing time.
Muhammad, 25, has a two-year deal that pays him nearly $1.6MM this season with a player option worth nearly $1.8MM for 2018/19. Wojnarowski writes that Muhammad had numerous conversations with Thibodeau and owner Glen Taylor before deciding to re-sign and believed that keeping his Bird Rights with Minnesota would benefit him if he opted out this summer.
However, any chance of him remaining with the franchise appears to be gone, as he doesn’t seem to be in the Wolves’ plans for the future.
Although Muhammad hasn’t produced much this season, his small salary, flexible contract and past performance might make him attractive on the trade market. He has posted scoring averages of 13.5, 10.5 and 9.9 the past three seasons.
Muhammad would forfeit his Bird Rights if traded because of the one-year Bird restriction, tweets ESPN’s Bobby Marks. Any team that acquires him would have to use cap space or an exception to re-sign him.
Five Key Stories: 1/27/18 – 2/3/18
If case you missed any of this past week’s biggest headlines from around the NBA, we’ve got you covered with our Week in Review. Here are some of the most noteworthy stories from the last seven days.
In a somewhat surprising, albeit blockbuster move, the Clippers traded star power forward Blake Griffin to the Pistons in a multi-player deal. Detroit sent forward Tobias Harris, shooting guard Avery Bradley, center Boban Marjanovic, its 2018 first-round pick, and a 2019 second-round pick to the Clippers, while Los Angeles sent forward Brice Johnson and center Willie Reed to Detroit in addition to Griffin. The Pistons’ 2018 first-rounder being sent to the Clippers is protected for picks 1-4 in this year’s draft as well as the 2019 and 2020 drafts, assuming it’s not conveyed. The pick is unprotected in 2021.
Despite initially falling apart because New Orleans didn’t want to guarantee Nikola Mirotic’s 2018/19 salary, the Pelicans and Bulls agreed to a trade centered around Mirotic, with his next season’s salary now guaranteed. Omer Asik, Tony Allen, Jameer Nelson, and the Pelicans’ 2018 first-round pick are headed to Chicago in exchange for Mirotic and the Pelicans own 2018 second-round pick that the Bulls originally acquired from New Orleans in a September trade. In order to complete the the trade, the Bulls also waived Quincy Pondexter. The 2018 first-rounder headed to Chicago is top-five protected in 2018, top-eight protected in 2019, top-ten protected in 2020, top-nine protected in 2021, and top-six protected in 2022. Finally, the Bulls will have the option to swap second-round picks with the Pelicans in the 2021 draft.
The Suns waived Greg Monroe as part of a buyout agreement after being unable to find any worthy trades on the market. Monroe, who was sent to the Suns earlier this season in the move that landed Eric Bledsoe in Milwaukee, had seen inconsistent minutes while competing for playing time with Tyson Chandler and Alex Len. The details of the buyout agreement are not yet known, but Monroe will likely retain a large chunk of his salary, as Phoenix would still be nearly $9MM under the cap even if it paid Monroe’s full $17.88MM cap hit.
Speaking of Monroe, he will sign with the Celtics on a one-year, $5MM deal after becoming a free agent today. The Celtics and Pelicans were believed to be the frontrunners for Monroe, who is from New Orleans, but while the Pelicans offered Monroe the opportunity to be their starting center, the big man will presumably instead head to Boston because he’ll make more money and have a better chance to win a title. Boston was able to take advantage of its $8.4MM disabled player exception – awarded after Gordon Hayward went down in the team’s season opener – while New Orleans was unable to do so because DeMarcus Cousins went down after the Jan. 15 deadline to apply.
LeBron James steadfastly denied an ESPN story about him being open to talking to the Warriors during his free agency this offseason. The report cautioned that there’s no indication Golden State would be interested, but that James would listen to a pitch out of respect for the team’s “winning culture.” James vociferously denied the story yesterday, calling it “nonsense” and a “non-story”, claiming his only focus at the moment is becoming a champion again and not to trust any rumors coming directly from his mouth.
Here are 11 more NBA headlines from the last week worth noting:
- Thunder swingman Andre Roberson ruptured his left patellar tendon and will miss the remainder of the season.
- Cavaliers power forward Kevin Love suffered a non-displaced fracture in his left hand and will be out for about eight weeks.
- Wizards point guard John Wall underwent a successful arthroscopic debridement procedure on his left knee and will miss about six to eight weeks of action.
- Bucks guard Malcolm Brogdon is expected to miss the next six to eight weeks after suffering a partially torn left quadricep tendon.
- Grizzlies guard Tyreke Evans will not play until after the trade deadline or Memphis trades him, whichever comes first. The Bulls did the same thing with Nikola Mirotic.
- Another Grizzlies guard, point guard Mike Conley, underwent successful surgery to smooth a small bone protrusion in his left heel and will miss the remainder of the season.
- Suns guard Isaiah Canaan suffered a gruesome left ankle fracture – a la Gordon Hayward – and will be out for the remainder of the season.
- Knicks center Joakim Noah and head coach Jeff Hornacek got into a heated exchange and, as a result, Noah will not return to the team until further notice.
- Injuries to All-Stars means All-Star replacements. Paul George, Andre Drummond, and Goran Dragic will replace DeMarcus Cousins, John Wall, and Kevin Love, respectively (links click here).
- Bucks forward Jabari Parker made his debut last night after missing the last year with a torn ACL.
- The Pelicans are finalizing a 10-day contract with former second overall pick Emeka Okafor.
Pelicans Sign Emeka Okafor To 10-Day Contract
3:05pm: The Pelicans have officially signed Okafor to a 10-day deal, the team announced today in a press release.
9:22am: The Pelicans are finalizing a 10-day contract with former second overall pick Emeka Okafor, tweets Shams Charania of The Vertical.
Okafor, 35, last appeared in the NBA in 2012/13 with the Wizards. However, a herniated disc in Okafor’s neck caused him to miss the entire 2013/14 campaign and he had not reached the NBA since. This season, he has played with the G League Delaware 87ers, the affiliate of the Sixers. In 26 games with Delaware, Okafor averaged 6.8 PPG and 8.0 RPG in 19.9 minutes per contest.
In nine NBA seasons with the defunct Bobcats, Hornets, and Wizards, the 2005 Rookie of the Year averaged 12.3 PPG and 9,9 RPG in 590 games.
The Pelicans were finalizing a 10-day deal with Terrence Jones on Friday before changing course, electing to keep their roster spots open.
Hoops Rumors Originals: 1/27/18 – 2/3/18
Every week, the Hoops Rumors writing team creates original content to complement our news feed. Below are the original segments and features from the past week:
- Two substantial trades occurred this week, and Luke Adams delivered an in-depth analytical salary cap analysis of both the Blake Griffin trade and the Nikola Mirotic trade.
- As part of our Community Shootaround series, we focused on the following questions:
- In light of news that Mike Conley is out for the season, should the Grizzlies trade cornerstone Marc Gasol and begin the rebuilding process?
- Who will benefit the most from the blockbuster trade involving Griffin – the Clippers or the Pistons?
- In his Weekly Mailbag, Arthur Hill answered readers’ questions on a potential – and now completed – Pelicans‘ trade for Mirotic, and potential trades for Tyreke Evans and Aaron Gordon.
- We took a look at the two teams remaining below the 2017/18 salary floor – the Mavericks and the Bulls.
- Our 2018 Free Agent Stock Watch focused on the Bulls.
- Luke Adams also dove into a deep analysis of the 2017/18 disabled player exceptions granted so far this season.
- With the trade deadline now less than a week away, we identified several players in the Pacific division who could be on the move.
Thunder Interested In Avery Bradley
In the wake of losing All-NBA defender Andre Roberson to a ruptured left patellar tendon for the remainder of the 2017/18 season, the Thunder are interested in trading for newly-acquired Clippers guard Avery Bradley, reports Tim Bontemps of The Washington Post.
Bradley, who is in the final year of his contract, likely doesn’t fit into the Clippers’ long-term plans, and Oklahoma City appears interested in taking advantage of a potential deal as a result.
Long considered an elite man-to-man defender in this league, Bradley would be able to step in for Roberson admirably, while at the same time giving the Thunder an upgrade on the offensive side of the ball, where Bradley is a career 36.8 percent shooter from long range (Roberson’s career three-point percentage is 25.7%).
Despite the Thunder’s interest, however, it’s difficult to envision a plausible scenario in which a potential trade would occur. The Clippers are building for the future and the Thunder don’t have a first-round pick to trade until 2022 at the earliest.
Also, Bradley is making $8.8MM this season and the Thunder’s best pieces for salary-matching purposes include some combination of Alex Abrines, Patrick Patterson, and Kyle Singler, none of whom are on an expiring deal or overly productive.
The Thunder would likely have to throw promising rookie Terrance Ferguson into any plausible deal in order to realistically pique the Clippers’ interest, and the Thunder are thus far unwilling to do so, per Bontemps.
Cavs Willing To Surrender Nets Pick
Despite rumors to the contrary, Terry Pluto of the The Plain Dealer hears that the Cavaliers have indeed entertained the idea or trading the Nets‘ 2018 first-round pick (currently 8th in our 2017/18 NBA Reverse Standings), but only for the right return.
Pluto reports that the Cavs will only trade the all-but-assured lottery selection in exchange for a younger player who is under contract for a couple of seasons. A short-term answer who can become a free agent this summer, like Clippers center DeAndre Jordan, will not entice the team to surrender Brooklyn’s pick.
On the other hand, an expiring contract like Jordan’s would make sense in exchange for the Cavs’ own 2018 first-rounder opines Pluto, who suggests a deal that would send Iman Shumpert, Channing Frye, and their own first-round pick to Los Angeles in exchange for Jordan would work within the salary cap. Whether the Cavs or Clippers would be interested in such a deal remains to be seen.
As for the Brooklyn pick, a previously mentioned trade candidates from a rebuilding team who is relatively young, under contract through this offseason, and has already been linked to the Cavs is Hawks swingman Kent Bazemore. However, it’s hard to believe the Cavs giving up a potential lottery pick for Bazemore at this point.
Nets Notes: Allen, Lopez, Lin
Nets rookie Jarrett Allen has impressed with his play recently and 19-year-old has high expectations for himself, Anthony Puccio of NetsDaily writes. In Brook Lopez‘s first game back in Brooklyn on Friday, the veteran was matched up against the rookie Allen which led to several defensive and offensive gems from both players.
Allen, who scored a career-high 20 points and is averaging 14 points and 6 rebounds his past five games, said he is looking to fill the role Lopez held down over the past decade.
“I wouldn’t call it replacing Brook, Brook is one of a kind that I hear. I mean, he has stuff, I have stuff, and I’m just trying to see where I’m at against him,” Allen said. “(He was the) face of the franchise, now I’m here trying to become the face, too, so just going back and forth. It was a good challenge.”
Lopez, 29, has suffered through the worst season of his career in 2017/18, seeing his numbers and playing time diminish in his first season with the Lakers. However, Lopez was a franchise linchpin for the Nets for nine seasons and became an All-Star along the way. Allen, still just a teenager, is obviously confident in his ability to become a similar force in Brooklyn.
Check out other Nets new below:
- Bryan Fonseca of NetsDaily chronicled Lopez’s first game back in Brooklyn, which the center admitted was odd at times. Lopez admitted he had to keep reminding himself to not walk to the home locker room when he entered Barclays Center. The Nets honored Lopez with a tribute video during the game.
- Injured point guard Jeremy Lin spoke to local media for the first time since he suffered a season-ending ruptured patellar tendon on opening night. Lin said the injury has forced him to retrain his body but that once he is healthy, he will not change his on-court style, Brian Lewis of the New York Post writes. “I’m not going to change the bread and butter of who I am which is downhill, attacking, dynamic playmaking. I’ll always be that player,” Lin said
Celtics Reportedly Pursuing Williams, Evans
The Celtics reached an agreement with center Greg Monroe on a one-year, $5MM pact on Friday but the team is not done searching for scoring options off the bench, Steve Bulpett of the Boston Herald reports.
Citing two Western Conference sources, Bulpett writes that the Celtics’ top two targets are Lou Williams and Tyreke Evans. The Grizzlies are currently sitting Evans until the deadline; Williams continues to score at will, posting at least 20 points in his past six games for the Clippers.
As the Celtics seek upgrades, however, general manager Danny Ainge is not budging from paying his desired price. The Grizzlies are reportedly seeking a first-round pick for Evans and it’s safe to assume Williams, who is averaging a career-high 23.5 PPG, will command a similar return.
Bulpett notes that the Celtics are being cautious with their pursuit of wing players as they do not want Jaylen Brown or Jayson Tatum to lose playing time.
Southeast Notes: Wade, Zeller, Wilkins, Magic
Dwyane Wade spent his first 13 seasons as a member of the Heat and he wants to finish his career with the organization. Ira Winderman of the Sun-Sentinel writes that Wade, who is currently with the Cavaliers, wants to find a way back to South Beach before retirement.
“I have thought about it, of course. I wouldn’t lie and say I haven’t,” Wade said to Winderman of possibly rejoining the Heat. “When that opportunity comes, that day comes, hopefully, I can go out in a Miami Heat jersey. I don’t know how it will be, but I would love it.”
Wade, who recently turned 36, is enjoying a solid season off the bench for Cleveland, averaging 11.2 PPG, 4.0 RPG, and 3.7 APG in 44 games. The Heat are in the midst of a strong season, sitting in fifth place in the Eastern Conference with a 29-23 record. Wade said he has followed the team since his departure and is proud of how the team has meshed together to find success.
Ideally, Wade would finish his playing career with one final season in a Heat uniform. However, it is possible for Wade to sign a one-day ceremonial contract — similar to Paul Pierce with the Celtics — and officially retire as a member of the Heat.
Check out other news from the Southeast Division:
- Cody Zeller made his return on Friday after missing 21 games with torn left meniscus, providing a jolt for the Hornets. Brendan Marks of the Charlotte Observer writes that while it’s too early to tell how well Zeller has recovered, he could play a pivotal role as the Hornets make a playoff push.
- The Hornets’ G-League affiliate Greensboro Swarm announced that 10-year NBA veteran Damien Wilkins has joined the team. Wilkins started the year with the Pacers and now returns to the Swarm, a team he appeared in 48 games with last season.
- Magic general manager John Hammond does not characterize the 15-35 as sellers but acknowledged any moves Orlando makes at the deadline are with the future in mind, John Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel writes.