Five Key Stories: 9/15/18 – 9/22/18
In case you missed any of this week’s biggest NBA stories, we’ve got you covered with our Week in Review. Listed below are some of the most noteworthy stories from the last seven days.
After months of drama in Minnesota, All-NBA swingman Jimmy Butler has requested a trade from the Timberwolves, telling the team he would prefer to be dealt to the Nets, Knicks, or Clippers. Butler, who is technically under contract for two more years, will have an opportunity to hit the open market next summer. If Butler is traded, his Bird rights would be traded along with him, so his new team would gain the ability to offer a five-year contract worth an estimated $190MM. After Butler’s announcement, the front office began rebuffing inquiries from other teams, but owner Glen Taylor has since declared that Butler is available.
The NBA has concluded its investigation into the Mavericks’ workplace misconduct allegations, finding that the Mavs had “serious workplace misconduct by former and current employees,” along with “improper or ineffective management.” Investigators found no evidence that owner Mark Cuban was aware of the misconduct, but the billionaire will donate $10MM to organizations that “promote women in leadership roles and combat domestic violence” nonetheless.
In a somewhat unusual and unprecedented move, the Clippers have hired Sports Illustrated senior NBA writer Lee Jenkins, naming him the team’s executive director of research and identity. Per the club, the newly-created position is the first of its kind for any NBA franchise, and the Clippers hope Jenkins’ extensive reporting background and unique interviewing style will to contribute to the franchise’s amateur and professional scouting infrastructure.
Heat guard Dion Waiters won’t be available for the start of training camp and likely won’t be ready to play on opening night, with the Heat medical staff having not yet deemed Waiters healed, rehabbed and physically conditioned for basketball activities, per president Pat Riley. The 26-year-old was limited to just 30 games last season in the first year on a newly-signed, lucrative four-year contract, but the Heat are confident that the 26-year-old will be back sooner rather than later.
The Sixers have promoted former VP of Basketball Operations Elton Brand as its general manager. While vice president, Brand also served as GM of the Sixers’ G League affiliate, the Delaware Blue Coats, prior to landing the coveted GM position with the Sixers. Brand was ultimately promoted over fellow in-house executives Ned Cohen, Marc Eversley, and Alex Rucker, and several other outside candidates.
Here are 10 more notable NBA headlines from the last week:
- Veteran guard Dwyane Wade has decided to return for one, final season with the Heat, signing a new one-year, minimum salary deal.
- TNT analyst and former Spurs’ guard Brent Barry has been named the Spurs’ new vice president of basketball operations.
- Undrafted rookie big man Drew Eubanks will sign a two-way contract with the Spurs.
- The Suns are interested in trading for point guard Patrick Beverley, but the Clippers are demanding a first round pick in return.
- The Celtics and free agent Jamal Crawford have mutual interest in reaching a deal.
- Knicks’ veteran swingman Courtney Lee has refuted the idea that he wants a trade, saying that he’s happy in New York.
- The Nuggets have filled out their offseason roster by signing veteran guard Donald Sloan.
- Days after being waived by the Pelicans, veteran big man Emeka Okafor signed a veteran’s minimum deal with the Sixers.
- Veteran point guard Jarrett Jack has signed a one-year contract with the Pelicans.
- Rockets guard Brandon Knight recently had “clean up” surgery on his left knee and will miss an unspecified amount of time.
Hoops Rumors Originals: 9/15/18 – 9/22/18
Every week, the writing team here at Hoops Rumors creates original content to complement our news feed. Below are our segments and features from the past seven days:
- In three Community Shootaround posts, we asked:
- What does the future hold for the Timberwolves?
- What are the Spurs’ chances of making the playoffs this season?
- Will Jimmy Butler end up with another team this season?
- We continued our 2018 Offseason in Review, and analyzed the following teams:
Jimmy Butler To Skip Media Day, Start Of Training Camp
Timberwolves All-Star Jimmy Butler has been granted permission to skip the team’s media day this coming Monday, sources tell Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic. Minnesota has also been informed that Butler will not be available for on-court activities at the start of training camp, Krawczynski adds.
This is the latest development in the Butler saga after he requested a trade earlier this week. After meeting with head coach Tom Thibodeau, Butler reportedly requested a trade and granted a list of three teams — the Knicks, Nets and Clippers — to whom he’d prefer to be dealt. The Clippers are reportedly Butler’s top choice.
Reports suggested Thibodeau was against the idea of trading Butler as Minnesota looks to contend for the playoffs in back-to-back seasons. However, word broke yesterday that Timberwolves’ owner Glen Taylor informed owners and GMs at the NBA’s Board of Governors meetings that Butler is available. Taylor also told interested teams to contact him directly to discuss a Butler deal if necessary.
“The owner’s trading him,” a Board of Governors attendee told ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. “That was made clear. It’s just a matter of when.”
Butler, 29, spent his first six seasons with the Bulls before he was traded to the Timberwolves last summer. The swingman averaged 22.2 PPG, 5.3 RPG and 4.9 APG as he earned All-Star and All-NBA Third Team honors while helping to snap Minnesota’s 13-year playoff drought last season.
The trade demand reportedly stems from contractual matters as Butler seeks to sign a long-term pact. The three teams on his preferred destinations list all have assets and cap flexibility to acquire and sign him long-term. At this point, as Butler prepares to sit out the start of training camp, the chances that his Timberwolves run lasts only one season appears likely.
Bulls’ Omer Asik Out Indefinitely With Arthritis
Bulls‘ center Omer Asik is out indefinitely with inflammatory arthritis, the team announced. Asik has been receiving medical treatment but his return to basketball activities is yet to be determined, the announcement noted.
Asik, 32, was re-acquired by Chicago in February as part of the deal that sent Nikola Mirotic to the Pelicans. The Turkish big man only appeared in four games with the Bulls, averaging 1.0 PPG. Asik — originally drafted by the Trail Blazers but immediately traded to the Bulls in 2008 — started his career in Chicago, playing for the Bulls in his first two NBA seasons.
In 152 career games with the Bulls, Asik has averages of 2.9 PPG and 4.4 RPG.
Celtics Notes: Irving, Horford, Butler, Bird
Kyrie Irving is energized as the Celtics prepare for training camp and the preseason. After dealing with a nagging knee injury that ultimately cost him the final month of last season and the playoffs, Irving is ready to prove himself, Jackie MacMullan of ESPN writes.
“I’m moving completely differently,” Irving said. “I’ve worked on my strength and have a heightened awareness of what my body needs on a day-to-day basis. I spent all summer trying get my left leg to catch up with my right. And it’s there.”
Not only will the upcoming season be important for the Celtics — who chase another deep postseason run — it will be key for Irving as enters free agency next summer. Irving will be one of the most sought-after free agents available and a strong, healthy 2018/19 in Beantown will mean a heftier contract. However, interested teams should take note of how Irving worded his answer to why he hasn’t committed long-term to Boston.
“Who wouldn’t be a part of this?” Irving said. “Who wouldn’t want to be a part of Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum and Al Horford and Gordon Hayward? People keep saying, ‘Why won’t he commit to Boston?’ Well, there are financial implications involved.”
Check out more Celtics note below:
- The Knicks have long been rumored as a potential destination for Irving next summer as the team will have the cap space to land at least one top free agent — possibly two. However, Irving has not spoken to Jimmy Butler — another potential Knicks target next summer — since 2016, which decreases the chances of New York landing both, SNY’s Adam Zagoria writes.
- Al Horford is coming off a productive season with the Celtics, which leads to the question of what the veteran center can contribute in his third year with the team. A. Sherrod Blakely of NBC Sports Boston examines how Horford will impact Boston on the court this season.
- Prior to his arrest for alleged domestic assault and kidnapping of his girlfriend, Celtics’ guard Jabari Bird was being treated for ’emotional issues,’ per Steve Bulpett of The Boston Herald. Sources tell Bulpett that this was an “out of character” occurrence for Bird, who had been experiencing “panic attacks” in the weeks before the incident. The Celtics were aware that Bird was undergoing treatment.
Nuggets Sign Xavier Silas To Camp Deal
SEPTEMBER 22: The Nuggets officially signed Silas to a contract, according to the RealGM transactions log.
SEPTEMBER 17: Guard Xavier Silas has agreed to a training camp contract with the Nuggets, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN tweets.
Silas, 30, made a couple of cameo appearances with the Celtics late last season after signing a 10-day contract.
The 6’5” shooting guard also played two games with the Sixers during the 2011/12 season. He spent most of last season with Northern Arizona in the G League, averaging 18.4 points in 43 games. Over the past five seasons, Silas has been with several G League teams and played overseas in Israel, Greece, Germany, Argentina and China. He also played with the Wizards during their 2014 training camp but didn’t make the opening-night roster.
Silas’ chances of making Denver’s opening-night roster are slim, considering the Nuggets already have 15 players with guaranteed deals. The Nuggets have plenty of options at the wing spots, including Gary Harris, Malik Beasley, Will Barton, Tyler Lydon, Torrey Craig, Jarred Vanderbilt, Emanuel Terry, first-round pick Michael Porter Jr. and two-way player DeVaughn Akoon-Purcell.
Lakers Notes: Ball, Walton, Johnson, James
The Lakers’ brass is encouraged by Lonzo Ball‘s revamped shooting stroke, Kyle Goon of the Orange County Register reports. Ball still holds the ball further left than most right-handed shooters but it’s closer to the center than last season, Goon notes. Ball shot 36% from the field and 30.5% from long range during his rookie season. “The way he’s shooting the ball looks a lot more fluid now,“ GM Rob Pelinka said. Ball, who underwent arthroscopic knee surgery this summer, has been medically cleared for camp but won’t initially participate in five-on-five scrimmages, Joey Ramirez of the team’s website reports. “He’s been 100 percent cleared by our medical staff to return to full basketball activity,” Pelinka said.
We have more on the Lakers:
- Luke Walton‘s job status won’t be in jeopardy if the team gets off to a slow start, according to Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN. LeBron James needs time to settle in with his new teammates, president of basketball operations Magic Johnson says, and Walton won’t be penalized during that process. “As I was talking to Luke, we said don’t worry about if we get out to a bad start,” Johnson said. “We have seen that with LeBron going to Miami, and we have seen that when he came back to Cleveland. He is going to struggle because there are so many new moving parts.”
- Johnson shrugs off criticism of controversial free agent signings following James’ commitment, including Rajon Rondo, Lance Stephenson, Michael Beasley and JaVale McGee, Matt Eppers of USA Today writes. “We love that they all are different individuals and they bring something different to the table,” Johnson said. “We needed some grittiness, we needed some toughness. We needed somebody to come in and be upset that somebody had a defensive lapse.”
- Johnson can’t hide his enthusiasm over James’ impact, even before training camp officially opens. “LeBron comes in, and he’s already in midseason form and shooting fadeaways and 3-pointers from almost half-court,” Johnson said in an Associated Press report. “And you’re sitting there saying, ‘Man, thank God we signed him.’”
- Brandon Ingram and Stephenson are the team’s top small forwards and Ramirez takes a closer look at all the options at the position.
Timberwolves Owner: Jimmy Butler Is Available
Defying his front office executives, Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor is telling other owners and GMs at the NBA’s Board of Governors meetings that Jimmy Butler is available and they can make trade inquiries directly to him, if necessary, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
Taylor’s willingness to deal the disgruntled swingman, who can become an unrestricted free agent this summer, flies in the face of an earlier report by Wojnarowski on Friday that the Timberwolves were rebuffing calls on Butler’s availability.
This leads to speculation that a showdown is looming between Taylor and Tom Thibodeau, the Wolves’ president of basketball operations and head coach, Wojnarowski notes. GM Scott Layden reports to Thidobeau and is the usual point person on trade talks.
Thibodeau has no desire to deal Butler in any scenario that would set back the team’s chances of making the playoffs again and advancing deeper into the postseason.
In contrast, it appears that Taylor’s mind is made up that Butler must go.
“The owner’s trading him,” a Board of Governors attendee told Wojnarowski. “That was made clear. It’s just a matter of when.”
There is a good possibility that Butler will not report to camp when it opens next week, according to Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic. Krawczynski details how the Butler-Thibodeau relationship deteriorated over the past year.
Thibodeau is willing to let any drama between Butler and the team’s other two stars, Karl-Anthony Towns and Andrew Wiggins, play out in training camp and into the regular season. Taylor, on the other hand, does not want to go through a potentially dysfunctional season and see the franchise’s image tarnished, Wojnarowski continues. The franchise’s business operations have successful marketed the team’s stars and don’t want that campaign completely ruined, Wojnarowski adds.
Taylor has gotten involved in trading high-profile players in the past, including Kevin Garnett and Kevin Love.
Sixers Sign Center Emeka Okafor
The Sixers have added veteran center Emeka Okafor to their training camp roster, according to the team’s Twitter feed. Okafor’s contract is for the non-guaranteed minimum, Fred Katz of The Athletic tweets.
Philadelphia now has a full camp roster with 14 players on guaranteed deals, four on partial or non-guaranteed contracts, and two two-way players.
Okafor just cleared waivers on Friday after being let go by the Pelicans. New Orleans made the move before a $100K guarantee in Okafor’s contract kicked in.
Okafor will compete for a roster spot and Norvel Pelle, who also has a non-guaranteed deal, seems the most vulnerable among the other big men.
After missing four seasons due to injuries, Okafor returned to the NBA for the Pelicans in 2017/18 and delivered quality minutes for the team after DeMarcus Cousins went down with an Achilles tear.
In 26 games (19 starts) for New Orleans last season, Okafor posted 4.4 PPG and 4.6 RPG in 13.6 minutes per contest. He was out of the club’s rotation by the postseason, appearing in just one playoff game.
2018 Offseason In Review: Detroit Pistons
Hoops Rumors is breaking down the 2018 offseason for all 30 NBA teams, revisiting the summer’s free agent signings, trades, draft picks, departures, and more. We’ll evaluate each team’s moves from the last several months and look ahead to what the 2018/19 season holds for all 30 franchises. Today, we’re focusing on the Detroit Pistons.
Signings:
- Standard contracts:
- Glenn Robinson III: Two years, $8.35MM. Second-year team option. Signed using mid-level exception.
- Jose Calderon: One year, minimum salary. Signed using minimum salary exception.
- Zaza Pachulia: One year, minimum salary. Signed using minimum salary exception.
- Two-way contracts:
- Non-guaranteed camp contracts:
- Johnny Hamilton: One year, minimum salary.
- Zach Lofton: One year, minimum salary.
Trades:
- Acquired the draft rights to Khyri Thomas (No. 38 pick) from the Sixers in exchange for the Pistons’ 2021 second-round pick and the Pistons’ 2023 second-round pick.
Draft picks:
- 2-38: Khyri Thomas — Signed to three-year, minimum salary contract. First two years guaranteed. Signed using mid-level exception.
- 2-42: Bruce Brown — Signed to three-year, minimum salary contract. First two years guaranteed. Signed using mid-level exception.
Departing players:
- Dwight Buycks (waived)
- James Ennis
- Kay Felder (two-way)
- Eric Moreland (waived)
- Jameer Nelson
- Anthony Tolliver
Other offseason news:
- Hired Dwane Casey as head coach to replace Stan Van Gundy; hired Sidney Lowe as lead assistant.
- Hired Ed Stefanski as senior advisor (and de facto head of basketball operations) to replace Van Gundy.
- Parted ways with GM Jeff Bower.
- Hired Malik Rose and Sachin Gupta as assistant GMs.
Salary cap situation:
- Remained over the cap.
- Carrying approximately $123.3MM in guaranteed salaries, slightly below $123.7MM tax line.
- Hard-capped at $129.82MM.
- $2.89MM of mid-level exception still available ($5.75MM used on Glenn Robinson III, Khyri Thomas, and Bruce Brown).
Check out the Detroit Pistons’ full roster and depth chart at RosterResource.com.
Story of the summer:
The decision got dragged out but eventually owner Tom Gores decided to relieve Stan Van Gundy of his duties as both head coach and president of basketball operations after the season. Van Gundy’s heart-on-his-sleeve approach gave the franchise an initial jolt and the team made the playoffs during his second season in charge. He couldn’t build upon that improvement, as injuries and bad personnel decisions found the Pistons sitting out the postseason the past two years.
Fortunately for Gores, the league’s Coach of the Year became available at just the right time. Toronto fired Dwane Casey after its playoff flop against Cleveland and the Pistons gladly scooped him up. Casey’s reputation as a players’ coach adept at developing young players and winning regular-season games fits what the team needs. They desperately want to get back to the playoffs and start drawing more fans at Little Caesars Arena, which opened last season in downtown Detroit.
The front office underwent a makeover with well-traveled Ed Stefanski sitting atop the organization’s ladder despite the title of senior adviser. The former Grizzlies, 76ers, Raptors and Nets executive hired Sachin Gupta and Malik Rose as assistant GMs but Stefanski is in charge of personnel moves. With the team’s cap issues, Stefanski couldn’t make much of an imprint on the roster this summer anyway.