Issuf Sanon To Remain In 2018 NBA Draft
With the June 11 deadline to withdraw from this month’s draft right around the corner, Nicola Lupo of Sportando is reporting that Ukrainian point guard Issuf Sanon will remain in the 2018 NBA Draft, per his agent.
Sanon, 18, who has a multiyear contract with Petrol Olimpija Ljubljana in Slovenia that contains an NBA out, will be the youngest player in the draft, but ESPN’s Jonathan Givony has Sanon being selected No. 42 overall by the Pistons in his latest mock draft nonetheless. Givony also has Sanon ranked as his No. 63 overall prospect in his latest big board rankings.
In his recent report on the NBA’s new Global Camp in Italy, Givony noted that Sanon was “arguably the most talented draft-eligible player in attendance,” impressing scouts with his ability to push the ball up the floor and play pick-and-roll.
That being said, Sanon still needs to work on his shooting and keeping his emotions in check, notes Givony, but those are attributes in which many younger player often need improvement, meaning there’s room for growth.
Hoops Rumors Originals: 6/2/18 – 6/9/18
Every week the Hoops Rumors writing staff strives to create interesting and original content to complement our news feed. Here are the original segments and features from the last seven days:
- In our only poll this week, we asked:
- Who will be the Pistons’ head coach next season?
- In our four Community Shootaround posts, we asked:
- Does the NBA need a hard cap like the NFL to encourage more parity?
- Before the NBA Finals ended in a Warriors’ sweep:
- Is it possible for the Cavaliers to climb back into the series?
- Can a resurgence in playing time for Rodney Hood help the Cavaliers beat the Warriors?
- If you were a Sixers’ owner, who would you hire as the new GM to replace Bryan Colangelo?
- Luke Adams continued his 2018 Five Key Offseason Questions series with the following franchises:
- Luke Adams also dove in to the four teams who could become taxpayers by re-signing key free agents.
Tyronn Lue Plans To Return Next Season
Cavaliers’ head coach Tyronn Lue confirmed after his team’s Game 4 loss in the NBA Finals to the Warriors that he intends to return as head coach of the Cavs next season, reports Dave McMenamin of ESPN. Whether his star player, LeBron James, plans to do the same remains to be seen.
Lue, 41, has three years remaining on the five-year contract extension he signed in the summer of 2016 when he was fresh off leading the Cavs to the city of Cleveland’s first professional sports championship in 52 years. However, Lue took a nine-game medical leave of absence earlier this season, putting it somewhat into doubt whether he was capable of continuing to coach through the 2020-21 season.
While it was reported at the time that Lue was suffering from chest pains and occasionally coughing up blood, it was later revealed by Lue himself that his absence was primarily related to anxiety, a relatively manageable condition compared to what could have been something much more threatening.
In additional to the aforementioned championship, Lue has led the Cavs to a regular-season record of 128-77 (.624) and a playoff record of 41-20 (.672) in his first two and a half seasons as head coach.
Five Key Stories: 6/2/18 – 6/9/18
In case you missed any of this past week’s top stories from around the NBA, we have you covered with our Week in Review. Below are some of the most noteworthy stories from the last seven days.
The Bryan Colangelo investigation has concluded, with the Sixers and Colangelo mutually agreeing to part ways. The investigation was conducted by the law firm of Paul/Weiss, who ended up finding that Colangelo’s wife Barbara Bottini was behind the incendiary tweets at issue but that Colangelo was nonetheless culpable by being reckless with his safeguarding of team information. Sixers’ ownership met earlier in the week to discuss Colangelo, with a decision apparently being made to move on from the embattled executive despite no conclusive evidence that Colangelo was aware of his wife’s social media activity. Colangelo released his own statement on the matter, vehemently denying that his conduct was in any way reckless.
With the 2018 NBA Draft nearly upon us, more and more prospects are working out for NBA teams. Some of the potential lottery selections who were reported to have worked out and/or scheduled a workout with lottery teams this week include, but are not limited to:
- Deandre Ayton (Arizona): Suns
- Per Ayton, he will only workout with the Suns and expects to be taken No. 1 overall.
- Marvin Bagley III (Duke): Hawks and Kings, Suns
- Mohamed Bamba (Texas): Hawks, Mavericks and Suns
- Mikal Bridges (Villanova): Bulls, Hornets, Knicks, and Sixers
- Miles Bridges (Michigan State): Knicks, Sixers
- Wendell Carter Jr. (Duke): Bulls, Cavaliers, Grizzlies, Knicks, Magic, and Mavericks
- Jaren Jackson Jr. (Michigan State): Hawks
- Kevin Knox (Kentucky): Bulls, Cavaliers, Knicks, and Magic
- Collin Sexton (Alabama): Knicks
- Lonnie Walker IV (Miami): Bulls and Knicks, Hornets, Sixers
- Robert Williams (Texas A&M): Bulls, Hornets, and Knicks
- Trae Young (Oklahoma): Bulls and Hawks, Knicks, Magic
The Pistons continue to narrow down candidates for their vacant head coaching position, with the finalists now appearing to be former Raptors’ coach Dwane Casey and Spurs’ assistant coach Ime Udoka. Michigan head coach John Beilein was also considered to be a finalist before announcing his intention to stay in the college ranks with the Wolverines. Another report has TNT Analyst and former NBA player Kenny Smith as an additional finalist.
The Pelicans and head coach Alvin Gentry have reached an agreement on a contract extension that will keep Gentry in New Orleans through the 2020/21 season. For his success this season, which included leading the Pelicans to the Western Conference Semifinals and a 48-34 record, Gentry will receive a raise and a guaranteed salary for the next two seasons. His 2020/21 deal will be performance-based.
Before being crowned NBA Champion and named NBA Finals MVP for a second consecutive year, Kevin Durant reiterated that he plans to re-sign with the Warriors this offseason. Durant, who previously indicated he would opt out of his contract in the summer, has Early Bird rights with Golden State, meaning the Warriors can pay him the maximum annual salary in the first year of his new contract next season.
Here are 8 more headlines from the past week:
- Kings guard Iman Shumpert, who was traded to Sacramento as part of the Cavs’ mid-season shake up, has opted in to his contract for next season, which will pay him a little more than $11MM.
- Thunder assistant coach Royal Ivey will accept a similar position on David Fizdale’s coaching staff with the Knicks.
- The NBA will experiment with a new coach’s challenge system during the Las Vegas Summer League this July.
- The Suns will hire Joe Prunty, who spent this season as the Bucks’ interim head coach, as head coach Igor Kokoskov’s new lead assistant.
- Likewise, the Sixers will hire Monty Williams as their new lead assistant coach under Brett Brown. Williams spent this season as the Spurs’ vice president of basketball operations.
- The Raptors interviewed EuroLeague head coach Sarunas Jasikevicius for their open head coaching position.
- Spurs’ head coach Gregg Popovich and star player Kawhi Leonard are expected to sit down and discuss this season’s issues sometime before the NBA Draft.
- The Warriors, fresh off another NBA Championship, plan on signing head coach Steve Kerr to a contract extension this summer.
NBA Finals Roundup: James, Lue, Durant, Curry, West, Young
With the season now over, the focus turns to LeBron James and his pending free agency decision. James can opt out of the final year of his contract and hit unrestricted free agency for the third time. He has until June 29 to make a decision.
Following the Cavaliers‘ loss to the Warriors in Game 4 of the NBA Finals, which completed a sweep of Cleveland, James discussed his pending decision, ESPN’s Dave McMenamin writes. While James has not made up his mind, he said input from his family will be a major factor this summer.
“The one thing that I’ve always done is considered, obviously, my family,” James said. “Understanding especially where my boys are at this point in their age. They were a lot younger the last time I made a decision like this four years ago. I’ve got a teenage boy, a preteen and a little girl that wasn’t around as well. So sitting down and considering everything, my family is a huge part of whatever I’ll decide to do in my career, and it will continue to be that. So I don’t have an answer for you right now as far as that.”
James has left Cleveland once before, signing a deal in 2010 with the Heat, where he won two championships in four seasons. The 33-year-old returned to the Cavaliers prior to the 2014/15 season, leading the organization to a championship the following year.
Check out more news to come out of the NBA Finals below:
- As we relayed earlier, James suffered a self-inflicted injury to his right hand after he punched a whiteboard out of frustration following the Cavaliers’ loss in Game 1.
- After battling some health issues throughout the season, Cavaliers head coach Tyronn Lue intends to return next year, Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com writes. “Yeah, I do,” Lue said of his intentions. “I had some tough problems going on throughout the course of the season, and … I probably could have folded myself, but I wasn’t going to do that.” Lue previously told ESPN’s Rachel Nichols that was treated for anxiety this season.
- Kevin Durant became the 11th player to win two NBA Finals Most Valuable Player awards, per The Associated Press. With back-to-back championships and Finals MVPs to his credit, Durant’s focus will now turn to his contract situation. He intends to remain with the Warriors, but will likely sign a new deal.
- Stephen Curry has two regular season MVPs to his credit but Durant has taken home that honor the last two NBA Finals. However, Curry prioritizes the team success over his individual accolades, Mark Medina of the Mercury News writes. “K.D.’s been amazing these last two years, especially in The Finals, and so deserving of back-to-back Finals MVPs,” Curry said. “I’m going to be his biggest fan in there with what he’s able to do. I think the biggest thing we appreciate in the locker room is, again, what everybody brings to the table and we kind of unlock the greatness out of each other.”
- One of the most visibly excited players to win his first championship was the Warriors’ Nick Young, per Alysha Tsuji of USA TODAY. ‘Swaggy P’ only played 38 combined minutes in the NBA Finals but he helped the team off the bench during the regular season. “I went from getting snitched on to putting a ring on!” Young told reporters.
- Warriors veteran David West said the team’s championship victory is even more remarkable given various behind-the-scenes issues the public is not aware of, tweets The Undefeated’s Marc J. Spears. “Y’all got no clue. No clue. That tells you about this team that nothing came out,” West said.
- Warriors head coach Steve Kerr has now coached the club to three championships in four seasons. We noted earlier that Warriors ownership believes Kerr will sign an extension with the team this summer.
Jamal Crawford Talks Butler, Thibodeau, Free Agency, Future
Jamal Crawford is coming off his 18th NBA season and was part of the Timberwolves‘ first postseason team in 13 seasons. The seasoned veteran once again played at least 79 games and proved that he can be a valuable asset to a playoff team.
After his first season in Minnesota, Crawford can hit free agency if he decides to decline his 2018/19 player option — it has been reported that he’ll do so. The 38-year-old has played for seven teams in his career and could be headed for an eighth.
Crawford, who averaged 10.3 PPG this season, joined Alex Kennedy on The HoopsHype Podcast to discuss his first season in Minnesota. Crawford also discussed his admiration for teammate Jimmy Butler, criticism of head coach Tom Thibodeau, and his future.
On playing with Butler:
“No, we don’t talk about him enough. To go back a little bit, it was even better playing with him than I thought it would be. He’s such a great teammate, he’s such a great person, he’s as solid as a rock as far as if he gives you his word, that’s it — you don’t have to worry about that. On the court, he does everything for you, he creates offense for his teammates, he creates offense for himself. He hits the big shots, he wants the big shots. He locks up the best player on the opposing team; he can lock up anybody.”
On Thibodeau being criticized for the idea that he plays certain guys too heavily:
“That’s a tough one to answer. I’ll just say that we guys on the bench can absolutely bring something to the table and help in some way. I think as you see teams in the playoffs especially, it takes more than five guys. Thibs is a smart guy, he understands that as well. He likes what he likes and we have to do the best we can to support and try to stay as ready as possible.”
On whether or not he has made a decision on his player option:
“No not a firm decision. I don’t have to firmly make a decision until a couple of weeks from now. I’ll take time with it and deal with it then”
On how much longer he thinks he will play:
“I don’t know, I honestly don’t know. I’ll definitely know when it’s time [to retire].”
Lacob: Kerr Expected To Sign Extension This Summer
After the Warriors captured their third championship in four seasons on Friday, owner Joe Lacob said that the organization expects to sign head coach Steve Kerr to an extension, ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne writes.
Kerr, 52, has one year left on the original five-year, $25MM pact he signed with Golden State prior to the 2014/15 season. With three championships to his credit, the organization wants to keep Kerr in his current role.
“We’ll get it done this summer,” Lacob said. “Let him rest a little bit. But we’ll get it done. He wants to be with us. We want him long term. He obviously has some health issues he’s still working through, but we’ll get it done. I think as long as he feels comfortable doing it long term, we want him.”
Health issues have been a recurring theme during Kerr’s tenure as head coach. Last season, Kerr missed a month-and-a-half of the postseason due to painful migraines and nausea that stemmed from back surgery he underwent two years prior. Kerr also missed the first 43 games of the 2015/16 season due to complications from back surgery. Kerr coached the entire 2017/18 season without issue.
All told, Kerr has coached the Warriors to a 265-63 record in four seasons, leading the team to the NBA Finals in each of those campaigns.
LeBron James Suffered Serious Hand Injury After Game 1
LeBron James suffered a self-inflicted injury to his right hand after the Cavaliers‘ loss to the Warriors in Game 1 of the NBA Finals, ESPN’s Dave McMenamin and Brian Windhorst reported.
James’ injury occurred after he punched a whiteboard in the Cavaliers’ locker room out of frustration, a source told ESPN. The ESPN report noted that James underwent two MRIs during the NBA Finals and sported a cast when he was not practicing, playing or visible to reporters.
“I let the emotions get the best of me and pretty much played the last three games with a broken hand,” James said after the Cavaliers were defeated in Game 4.
A visibly upset James took issue with a controversial call that resulted in a charge on Kevin Durant being overturned into an offensive foul late in the fourth quarter. Also, teammate J.R. Smith lost track of the score, forcing the game into overtime, where the Cavaliers’ ended up losing 124-114. It’s clear that frustration carried over into the Cleveland locker room postgame.
The injury was reported after the Cavaliers were swept out of the NBA Finals. ESPN noted that the hand injury helps explain the decline in James’ outside shooting, as he went 5-for-19 on shots 10 feet and out in the remaining three games.
Despite the injuries to his hand and his eye, the 33-year-old James had a strong series statistically, averaging 34.0 PPG, 10.0 APG and 8.5 RPG.
Lakers Rumors: Lopez, Clarkson, Draft Workouts
Brook Lopez‘s ability to space the floor would make him a good match with the Bucks, according to Frank Urbina of HoopsHype. Lopez’s 3-point shooting would open up the floor for Giannis Antetokounmpo. However, the Bucks are already over the projected salary-cap limit and would thus only be able to offer the unrestricted free agent their non-taxpayer mid-level exception. Other potential landing spots for Lopez if he doesn’t re-sign with the Lakers include the Trail Blazers, who could lose restricted free agent Jusuf Nurkic, and the Nets, his former team.
We have more on the Lakers:
- Jordan Clarkson‘s struggles in the playoffs make it clear that the Lakers got the best of their trade deadline deal with the Cavaliers, Eric Pincus of Bleacher Report opines. Clarkson was benched in Game 3 after making only 23.1% percent of his shots attempts in the first two games and he shot just 30.9% in prior playoff games, Pincus notes. Clarkson also hasn’t been a playmaker, doling out just one assist over the last eight games, Pincus continues. The Lakers also gave up forward Larry Nance Jr. while getting back Isaiah Thomas, Channing Frye and a first-round pick. The draft pick, plus Thomas’ expiring contract, sets up the Lakers for a potentially momentous summer, Pincus adds.
- The Lakers will work out mainly second-round prospects on Saturday, according to a team release. Brian Bowen II, Jacob Evans (Cincinnati), Wenyen Gabriel (Kentucky), Tra Holder (Arizona State), Nick King (Middle Tennessee) and Theo Pinson (North Carolina) will pay a visit. Evans is the top-rated prospect in the group, currently ranked No. 29 overall by ESPN’s Jonathan Givony.
- What are the team’s biggest offseason questions? Hoops Rumors’ Luke Adams takes a closer look.
Mo Bamba Working Out For Suns, Mavs
10:50pm: Bamba will work out Saturday for the Suns, who hold the top pick, according to the team’s website.
5:11pm: The Mavericks will work out Texas center Mohamed Bamba on Monday, Jake Fischer of Sports Illustrated tweets.
Bamba has been linked to Dallas in some mock drafts — if he falls to No. 5. He’s zoomed up the draft board and is currently ranked No. 3 overall by ESPN’s Jonathan Givony. Bamba’s offensive game is a work in progress but he’s expected to be a defensive force at the next level, in part because of his imposing 7’9″ wingspan.
In his lone college season, Bamba averaged 12.9 PPG, 10.5 RPG and 3.7 BPG for the Longhorns.
Bamba has already worked out for the Bulls, who own the No. 7 selection, and is scheduled to work out for the Hawks on Thursday.
Duke big man Wendell Carter will work out for the Mavericks on Wednesday, Fischer adds. Carter has workouts lined up with six lottery teams.