USA Basketball Announces National Team Pool For 2018-20
In multiple recent qualifying tournaments for the 2019 World Cup, USA Basketball has been represented by a collection of NBA G League players led by head coach Jeff Van Gundy. However, for the basketball’s biggest international events, including that ’19 World Cup and the 2020 Olympics, Team USA will once again be represented by some of the NBA’s biggest stars.
Today, USA Basketball announced the 35-man player pool that it will draw from when it puts together its National Team rosters for the major international events between 2018 and 2020. Led by head coach Gregg Popovich, the following players – listed alphabetically – are part of Team USA’s player pool for the next three years:
- Harrison Barnes, F (Mavericks)
- Bradley Beal, G (Wizards)
- Devin Booker, G (Suns)
- Jimmy Butler, F (Timberwolves)
- Mike Conley, G (Grizzlies)
- DeMarcus Cousins, C (Pelicans)
- Stephen Curry, G (Warriors)
- Anthony Davis, F/C (Pelicans)
- DeMar DeRozan, G (Raptors)
- Andre Drummond, C (Pistons)
- Kevin Durant, F (Warriors)
- Paul George, F (Thunder)
- Eric Gordon, G (Rockets)
- Draymond Green, F/C (Warriors)
- Blake Griffin, F (Pistons)
- James Harden, G (Rockets)
- Tobias Harris, F (Clippers)
- Gordon Hayward, F (Celtics)
- Kyrie Irving, G (Celtics)
- LeBron James, F (Cavaliers)
- DeAndre Jordan, C (Clippers)
- Kawhi Leonard, F (Spurs)
- Damian Lillard, G (Trail Blazers)
- Kevin Love, F (Cavaliers)
- Kyle Lowry, G (Raptors)
- C.J. McCollum, G (Trail Blazers)
- Khris Middleton, G (Bucks)
- Victor Oladipo, G (Pacers)
- Chris Paul, G (Rockets)
- Isaiah Thomas, G (Lakers)
- Klay Thompson, G (Warriors)
- Myles Turner, C (Pacers)
- Kemba Walker, G (Hornets)
- John Wall, G (Wizards)
- Russell Westbrook, G (Thunder)
Northwest Notes: Lillard, Harris, OKC, George
Trail Blazers star Damian Lillard missed Thursday’s game against Houston due to a sprained ankle, but he’s “feeling better,” head coach Terry Stotts said last night (Twitter link via ESPN’s Tim MacMahon).
After Stotts indicated that Lillard should be back sometime before the end of the season, the point guard himself told Jason Quick of NBC Sports Northwest (Twitter link) that he hopes to return on Saturday in San Antonio. The Trail Blazers have locked up a playoff spot, so there’s no pressure for Lillard to rush back, but he likely wants to get some reps before the postseason gets underway and help Portland secure the No. 3 seed.
Let’s round up a few more Northwest notes…
- Gary Harris, the Nuggets‘ second-leading scorer, has now missed the team’s last 10 games with a knee injury, and appears likely to miss at least one more. According to head coach Mike Malone, a Saturday return is possible, but Monday is probably a more realistic “best-case scenario” for Harris, per Gina Mizell of The Denver Post.
- It’s obviously in the Thunder‘s best interests to make the playoffs, especially when it comes to pitching Paul George on a long-term deal this summer, writes Berry Tramel of The Oklahoman. However, Tramel suggests landing in the lottery wouldn’t qualify as a total disaster for Oklahoma City, since the club would keep its first-round pick in that scenario.
- Speaking of George, after a 5-for-19 performance against Golden State on Tuesday, he’s now shooting just 37.1% from the field since the All-Star break. As Erik Horne of The Oklahoman relays, the Thunder forward admitted that “there’s something mechanical” with his shot that needs to be addressed. “I’ve had struggles throughout the season and in my career, but it’s all just been not making shots that night,” George said on Tuesday. “I don’t know what it is. It just feels funny. Shooting the ball feels funny.” Those comments are probably enough to make the Thunder nervous, though George’s recent shooting woes are unlikely to have a real impact on his free agent stock unless they get worse in the playoffs.
Grizzlies Sign Omari Johnson, Cut Marquis Teague
The Grizzlies have made a roster change today, announcing in a press release that they’ve signed forward Omari Johnson to a multiyear contract. To create an opening on the roster, Memphis has waived guard Marquis Teague.
Johnson, 28, went undrafted out of Oregon State in 2011 and has played for a variety of professional teams since then, spending time in Canada, Spain, and Lithuania, as well as in the G League. This season, the 6’9″ forward has played for the Grizzlies’ NBAGL affiliate, the Memphis Hustle, averaging 16.5 PPG and 6.4 RPG with a .460/.418/.824 shooting line in 44 games.
Johnson’s salary for 2018/19 will be non-guaranteed, notes Michael Wallace of Grizzlies.com (Twitter link).
As for Teague, he only signed his rest-of-season deal with the Grizzlies three days ago, so his stint on a standard contract didn’t last long. Memphis may have preferred to get a longer look at a forward instead of Teague this summer after signing another guard – MarShon Brooks – to a multiyear deal today. Or the Grizzlies may have simply wanted to reward Teague with an NBA salary despite him not being a part of their long-term plans.
It’s also worth noting, according to Wallace (Twitter links), that the Grizzlies will be without forwards Jarell Martin (ankle) and Chandler Parsons (knee) for the season’s final four games, creating a need for some frontcourt depth. Wayne Selden (knee) will miss the rest of the season too, Wallace notes.
Will Barton Turned Down Extension Offer In Fall
Nuggets shooting guard Will Barton turned down a contract extension offer from the club early last October, league sources tell Chris Haynes of ESPN. According to Haynes, the four-year offer would have been worth just shy of $42MM, the maximum Denver could put on the table.
Haynes reports that Barton’s agent, Aaron Goodwin, advised his client to bet on himself rather than accepting the Nuggets’ offer, and the 27-year-old has delivered in 2017/18 with the best season of his six-year career. In 78 games (37 starts), Barton has averaged 15.3 PPG, 5.0 RPG, and 4.1 APG with a shooting line of .448/.363/.808. As Haynes details, Denver also has a 20-9 record when Barton plays 35 or more minutes.
Barton tells Haynes that, heading into 2018/19, there’s “no question” in his mind that he’s a starter. And while he’ll be presumably seeking a starting opportunity, he mostly wants to end up with a team that envisions a major role for him.
“I think the biggest things I’m looking for is respect, honesty and a team that’s going to be real aggressive and show that they really want me,” Barton said. “I want to be where I can be able to showcase my entire game on a regular basis, somewhere they really believe in me and are ready for me to have a bigger role.”
Pointing to Lou Williams‘ surprisingly modest three-year, $24MM agreement with the Clippers, Haynes writes that there’s no guarantee Barton will do better than the four-year, $42MM offer he passed on in the fall. Of course, if Denver wants to put that offer back on the table, the team would be able to do so until June 30, the last day Barton can sign an extension with the Nuggets.
Such a deal would be identical to the ones signed by Norman Powell (Raptors) and Josh Richardson (Heat) last year — both of those contracts start at $9,367,200 in 2018/19 and are worth $41,965,056 in total.
Celtics Sign Jonathan Gibson
APRIL 6: The Celtics have officially signed Gibson, the team confirmed today in a press release. Boston’s announcement doesn’t mention Silas, but the assumption is that his 10-day deal was terminated a day early in order to accommodate the signing of Gibson.
APRIL 5: The Celtics will be signing free agent point guard Jonathan Gibson to a rest-of-season contract, according to Shams Charania of Yahoo Sports.
Gibson, who appeared in 17 games for the Mavericks during the 2016/17 season, has otherwise spent his professional career playing for a variety of international teams. Since going undrafted in 2010, Gibson has made stops in Turkey, Israel, Italy, Iran, and China.
In 2017/18, the former New Mexico State standout appeared in 38 Chinese League games for Qingdao, averaging 33.7 PPG with 6.8 RPG and 4.7 APG.
Gibson will be a much-needed backcourt addition for a Celtics team that will be without Kyrie Irving for the rest of the season. Marcus Smart also remains sidelined with a thumb injury, while Shane Larkin has missed Boston’s last two games with an illness and Terry Rozier has been dealing with an ankle issue.
[RELATED: Kyrie Irving to miss playoffs]
The Celtics currently have a full roster, with Xavier Silas serving as the team’s 16th man via a hardship exception. According to Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe (Twitter link), Gibson will replace Silas on the roster. Silas’ 10-day deal had been set to expire on Friday night, but the team could opt to terminate it before it expires in order to sign Gibson — Steve Bulpett of The Boston Herald suggests (via Twitter) that the Gibson signing won’t become official until Friday at the earliest.
Boston’s hardship exception, which allows the club to carry a 16th man, won’t extend into the playoffs. As such, Gibson won’t be postseason-eligible unless the C’s cut another player, which seems unlikely.
Alabama’s Collin Sexton Declares For NBA Draft
APRIL 6: Sexton has confirmed to Evan Daniels of 247Sports.com that he’s entering the draft and will hire an agent, forgoing his remaining NCAA eligibility.
“I will be going to the NBA,” Sexton said. “I made this decision because I feel like it’s been my dream growing up, it’s so close. Also I talked to my family and the coaching staff and they felt like I’m pretty much ready and I’ll be good because they taught me a whole lot here at Alabama.”
APRIL 5: Alabama point guard Collin Sexton will announce his intention to enter the NBA draft at a press conference Friday, according to Tony Tsoukalas of BamaInsider.
The move has been expected as Sexton is a likely lottery pick and could be the first point guard selected. He is ranked ninth in the list of top 100 prospects compiled by ESPN’s Jonathan Givony, who has him going ninth to the Knicks in his latest mock draft.
Sexton, 19, was named SEC Co-Freshman of the Year after averaging 19.2 points and 3.6 assists per game. A five-star recruit, he will be Alabama’s first one-and-done player since the current rules were adopted in 2006.
Knicks Notes: Kanter, O’Quinn, Vogel, Ntilikina
While wrist and back issues have kept Enes Kanter out of action recently, he’d still like to return to action before the end of the season, suggesting this week that it would be “selfish” to shut himself down to focus on potential offseason free agency. As Brian Lewis of The New York Post writes, Kanter will face a decision this summer on an $18MM+ player option for 2018/19, but he’s putting that decision on the back-burner in the hopes of making it back for a couple late-season matchups against the Cavaliers.
“You’re always thinking the business part, but for me basketball comes first,” Kanter said. “We’ve got four games left and the Knicks are still paying me. The Knicks are paying for me to go out there and — if I’m healthy — to go out there to play. So if I feel really good, I’ll go out there and play.
“It’d be really selfish to think about opting in or opting out or thinking about my contract and not playing, giving up on my teammates and my team,” Kanter continued. “It’d be really selfish. For me the Knicks are still paying me, I’m still part of this team. If I’m still healthy I’m just going to go out there and fight.”
Here’s more out of New York:
- Speaking of Kanter, some opposing executives have come away with the impression that the big man is leaning toward opting out in search of a multiyear deal this summer, says Ian Begley of ESPN.com. Begley also examines Kyle O’Quinn‘s impending free agency, exploring how likely New York is to re-sign O’Quinn after he turns down his own player option. According to Begley, Knicks coaches and executives think highly enough of O’Quinn that the club will consider bringing him back, depending on the price.
- Current Magic head coach Frank Vogel admitted earlier this week that he thought he’d be hired by the Knicks in 2016, and was “surprised” when the team went in another direction, as Barbara Baker of Newsday details. “They said they had one more person they wanted to talk to before they wrapped up the process, and they met with Jeff [Hornacek], and Jeff must’ve blown them away,” Vogel said.
- Hornacek spoke this week about Frank Ntilikina‘s development, and the next steps for the rookie point guard as he prepares for next season. Brian Lewis has the story and the quotes in an article for The New York Post.
Grizzlies Sign MarShon Brooks To Multiyear Deal
The Grizzlies have officially locked up shooting guard MarShon Brooks to a new multiyear contract, the club announced today in a press release. Michael Scotto of The Athletic (Twitter link) first reported late last night that Brooks would be signing a new deal with Memphis after his first 10-day contract expired.
As Shams Charania of Yahoo Sports reports, Brooks’ deal will be fully guaranteed for the rest of this season and for the 2018/19 campaign. Memphis faced some competition for Brooks, who drew interest from multiple playoff-contending teams as his 10-day deal neared an end, according to Charania. However, the 29-year-old was able to work out a new agreement with the Grizzlies. Charania suggests the club used its leftover mid-level exception money to give Brooks a slight salary bump for the rest of this season.
No NBA player has posted more impressive numbers on a 10-day contract this season than Brooks, who returned to the league after a four-year absence and posted three consecutive 20-point games. In total, the former first-round pick has averaged 23.3 PPG and 3.7 APG so far, with a scorching .571/.647/.846 shooting line.
Brooks had been occupying the 15th and final spot on the Grizzlies’ NBA roster, so the club no longer has any openings as the regular season nears an end.
Celtics Notes: Irving, Outlook, Smart
The Celtics’ chances of making a deep postseason run were dealt a serious blow on Thursday when the team announced that Kyrie Irving would be undergoing a second procedure on his knee that will sideline him for four or five months.
As Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe writes, the Celtics knew when they acquired Irving from the Cavs last August that the star point guard had dealt with lingering knee pain and might need to go under the knife at some point. However, league sources tell Himmelsbach that the procedure wasn’t considered pressing, and the C’s crafted a plan to limit the “wear and tear” on Irving’s knee.
When Irving’s pain became more pronounced last month, he and the club attempted to address the problem with rest and then with a minimally invasive surgery. After team doctors recognized an infection in the knee that would likely require a second procedure, the C’s “aggressively” sought other options, sources tell Himmelsbach. Even though Irving reported that his knee was feeling better though, it was eventually determined that the second surgery – which will officially end his season – was the only viable path.
Here’s more out of Boston:
- In spite of Irving’s injury, Celtics president Danny Ainge insists he’s eager to see how his young squad performs in the postseason, according to reports from Steve Bulpett of The Boston Herald and A. Sherrod Blakely of NBC Sports Boston. “We’re not giving up on this. Absolutely not,” Ainge said. “We’ve played some fantastic basketball in spite of the challenges that we’ve had from a physical standpoint. So I like watching these guys play, and they’re going to fight.”
- While the Celtics’ upside for this year’s postseason is limited, the franchise remains extremely well-positioned for the future and some bad injury luck doesn’t change that, writes Kevin O’Connor of The Ringer.
- Irving isn’t the only injured Celtics guard to keep an eye on — Marcus Smart is scheduled to have his thumb re-evaluated next week, and his recovery timetable could become more clear at that point, tweets Himmelsbach. The most likely scenario would see Smart returning for the second round of the playoffs, assuming Boston makes it that far.
- Earlier today, we passed along word of the Celtics’ contract agreement with Jonathan Gibson, and asked you how far you expect the club to advance in the playoffs.
Draft Updates: Ahmad, Reed, Martin, Weatherspoon
West Virginia junior forward Esa Ahmad will enter his name in the 2018 NBA draft pool, but won’t hire an agent, the program announced today in a press release. Ahmad is the second West Virginia underclassmen to decide to test the waters this spring, joining sophomore forward Sagaba Konate.
“Just like Sags, Esa will go through the NBA Draft procedures in a systematic and professional manner by exploring the situation. Numerous college basketball players are testing the waters, gaining valuable feedback and leaving open their option to return to school,” head coach Bob Huggins said in a statement.
Ahmad averaged a respectable 10.2 PPG and 5.5 RPG for the Mountaineers in 2017/18, but neither he nor Konate are viewed as elite prospects. The only West Virginia prospect on Jonathan Givony’s big board at ESPN is senior Jevon Carter, who comes in at No. 44.
Here are more updates on early entrants for the 2018 NBA draft:
- Junior center Trayvon Reed is declaring for the draft without hiring an agent, per Texas Southern head coach Mike Davis (Twitter link via Mark Berman of FOX 26 Houston). A 7’2″ rim protector who averaged 3.1 BPG in 2017/18, Reed will have the option of withdrawing by May 30 and returning to school for his senior year.
- After a breakout sophomore season in which he averaged 19.8 PPG, Towson guard Zane Martin announced that he’ll enter the 2018 draft without an agent. “This is a chance for Zane to get feedback from NBA teams and will allow him to gather as much information as possible about the entire process and his future prospects that will help him make a decision that’s best for him and his future aspirations,” head coach Pat Skerry said.
- Mississippi State guard Nick Weatherspoon is testing the draft waters, he tells Evan Daniels of 247Sports.com (Twitter link). Weatherspoon posted 10.8 PPG, 2.9 RPG, and 2.1 APG during his freshman season with the Bulldogs.
- Two Wake Forest juniors, guard Bryant Crawford and center Doral Moore, are testing the draft waters without representation, the program recently announced (Twitter link). Crawford posted 16.9 PPG and 4.9 APG in 2017/18, while Moore nearly averaged a double-double (11.1 PPG, 9.4 RPG).