Grizzlies Notes: Holiday, Temple, Casspi, Parsons
After attempting to send MarShon Brooks and Wayne Selden to Phoenix last month in a three-team trade that would’ve netted them Kelly Oubre, the Grizzlies moved those same players in Thursday’s deal for Justin Holiday. While the deal isn’t as favorable as the one they thought they had for Oubre, that’s why this one was able to get done, Chris Herrington of The Daily Memphian writes in his breakdown of the swap.
Herrington isn’t overly bullish on the trade, noting that it reduces the Grizzlies’ flexibility to some extent — the team has an open roster spot as a result of the two-for-one deal, but probably won’t have enough breathing room under the luxury tax line to fill it right away. Herrington also isn’t sure that Holiday represents a meaningful upgrade over the younger Selden, and notes that Memphis will now likely be left without a pick in the 2019 draft.
Still, as Herrington observes, it’s possible that Brooks’ and Selden’s inclusion in that failed trade with the Suns and Wizards “poisoned the waters” and left those players unhappy. If that was the case, this new deal may help lift any lingering unease in the locker room, making it more worthwhile.
Here’s more out of Memphis:
- In the wake of a Wednesday postgame meeting that involved a physical altercation between Garrett Temple and Omri Casspi, GM Chris Wallace apologized to Grizzlies fans and said the team would hand out internal discipline, per an Associated Press report. Wallace was also displeased that details of the incident leaked to the media so quickly, adding that the club would handle that internally as well.
- Within that same AP report, Temple and Casspi both addressed the reported altercation, though neither player went into much detail. “Some things were said and some things happened,” Temple said. “At the end of the day we’re brothers. We’ve known each other since we were rookies. At the end of the day, we came out of that meeting … on the same page and we’re moving on from it.”
- David Cobb of The Memphis Commercial Appeal wonders if the locker room incident speaks to a leadership void for the Grizzlies.
- Chandler Parsons is healthy and wants to get back on the court, but it’s not clear which Grizzlies player(s) should be sacrificing minutes for the oft-injured forward. Chris Herrington of The Daily Memphian takes a closer look at the situation.
Morey: Rockets “Definitely A Buyer” At Deadline
Speaking to Sam Amick of The Athletic after Thursday night’s huge overtime win over Golden State, Rockets general manager Daryl Morey confirmed that his club will be in the market for immediate upgrades to its roster at the trade deadline this season.
“We’re definitely a buyer,” Morey said. “I think we’ve been trying to win the title for a while, and we had a couple years before we got James [Harden] where we probably didn’t have as much of a chance to win, where we were probably a little more future-focused. But since James has been here we’ve been buyers at the deadline and hopefully something comes along that we think can help our chances to win the title. We’ve had a few years where we don’t, so we don’t force it, but we’re going to be looking for something to hopefully upgrade the team.”
Houston has climbed all the way up to fourth in the Western Conference standings as a result of its recent hot streak, and we’ve been hearing for months that the team remains on the lookout for wing help, so Morey’s comments don’t come as a surprise. Still, they confirm that the Rockets will be one of the many teams around the NBA scouring what figures to be a seller’s market leading up to February 7.
Although Harden’s heroics as of late have helped mask some of Houston’s lingering issues, the club remains an average to below-average defensive team. Acquiring a big-bodied wing who can make three-pointers will be Morey’s top priority, particularly since James Ennis has battled injuries for much of the season.
The Rockets have been linked to a number of potential trade targets over the last few months, including Kent Bazemore, J.R. Smith, DeMarre Carroll, and Trevor Ariza. Some of those players would be better fits than others, while some would also be more attainable than others. The Rockets have reportedly dangled Brandon Knight and a first-round pick in trade talks for their preferred targets.
Atlantic Notes: Butler, Graham, Knicks, Crabbe
The Sixers don’t have long-term concerns about signing Jimmy Butler to a possible five-year contract, Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer writes. Butler is set to turn 30 in September, currently playing in his eighth NBA season.
“No concern, because of the way he takes care of his body,” Sixers GM Elton Brand said, according to Pompey. “But, of course, there’s other things that would have to happen before you discuss those kind of things… like he has to opt out of his contract. So I don’t want to talk about that yet.”
For most NBA players, production levels begin to decrease as they turn the corner and reach age 30. There have been some outliers in this case during recent years, such as four-time MVP LeBron James, but teams usually give added thought before offering lucrative, long-term deals to players who are on the wrong side of 30.
Butler, who was acquired by the Sixers in a trade last November, is holding per-game averages of 18 points, 4.7 rebounds and one steal with the team this season. He can turn down a $19.8MM player option for the 2019/20 season to enter free agency this summer and seek a new deal.
The Sixers’ offer to Butler could be a five-year, $190MM maximum contract, which would help solidify the team’s “Big 3” of Butler, Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons for several seasons to come.
There’s more from the Atlantic Division tonight:
- Nets swingman Treveon Graham will be available to play in the team’s game against the Grizzlies on Friday, according to Brian Lewis of the New York Post (Twitter link). Graham last played for the Nets on Oct. 19, taking the last 11 weeks to rehab from a hamstring injury. He signed a contract to join the team this past summer in free agency.
- Enes Kanter and Courtney Lee aren’t the only players who have seen their roles diminish on the Knicks in recent weeks, Marc Berman writes for The Post. Mario Hezonja, Trey Burke and Lance Thomas have also been given reduced time, with all five players becoming trade candidates for the Feb. 7 deadline, according to Berman. Knicks coach David Fizdale has prioritized playing younger talent this season, making the futures of some veterans uncertain.
- Nets guard Allen Crabbe is set to miss more time than expected with his knee injury, Lewis writes in a different story for The Post. Crabbe last played on Dec. 12 due to general soreness and will be re-evaluated in 1-2 weeks, with surgery an unlikely option. “No, we haven’t gotten to that point yet,” coach Kenny Atkinson said. “I haven’t gotten to that point. It will be a re-evaluation in a week to 10 days and then go from there.”
Bulls Trade Holiday To Grizzlies For Selden, Brooks, Picks
10:43pm: The trade between the Bulls and Grizzlies is now official, with both teams announcing the agreement in press releases. As expected, Chicago waived Payne to reduce its roster count to 15 players.
6:43pm: The Bulls are trading Justin Holiday to the Grizzlies in exchange for Wayne Selden, MarShon Brooks and two second-round picks, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reports. Memphis will send its own 2019 and 2020 second-round selections.
Chicago is likely to waive guard Cameron Payne following the trade, Wojnarowski reports.
The trade comes less than 24 hours after the Grizzlies held a postgame meeting that lasted roughly 30 minutes, a conversation which also reportedly included a physical altercation between veterans Omri Casspi and Garrett Temple. Memphis holds just a 18-19 record and is 6-14 since November 22, struggling to gain a strong rhythm on both ends of the floor.
Holiday, 29, has averaged 11.6 points, 4.4 rebounds and 2.2 assists in 38 starts with the Bulls this season. He’ll provide the Grizzlies with backcourt depth as they seek to turnaround an underwhelming last month of action, capable of playing both shooting guard and small forward.
Brooks, 30, earned a spot on the Grizzlies’ roster this season after averaging 20.1 PPG in seven games down the stretch in 2017/18. However, he didn’t play a major role in Memphis in 2018/19, posting 6.6 PPG in 13.3 MPG (29 games). The Bulls are expected to work with his agent and find a new destination for him after the trade, tweets Shams Charania of The Athletic.
Selden, an intriguing third-year player who has also seen his production slip a little in a part-time role for the Grizzlies this season, will report to Chicago as a young asset off the bench.
Interestingly, the package of Brooks, Selden, and a pair of second-round picks is exactly what the Grizzlies believed they were giving up for Kelly Oubre in a failed three-team trade with the Suns and Wizards last month. That deal fell apart because the Suns were under the impression they was getting Dillon Brooks rather than MarShon.
The Bulls received interest from multiple teams on Holiday, according to Charania (Twitter link), but ultimately settled on this trade with the Grizzlies. Chicago has the third-worst record in the Eastern Conference at 10-28 and has lost six of its past 10 games.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Bulls Waive Cameron Payne
10:39pm: The Bulls have officially waived Payne, according to a press release from the team.
8:05pm: The Bulls are likely to waive Cameron Payne once their multi-player trade with the Grizzlies is official, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN. Payne is a former first-round pick and holds four years of NBA experience.
Chicago agreed to send Justin Holiday to Memphis in exchange for Wayne Selden, MarShon Brooks, a 2019 second-round pick and a 2020 second-round pick on Thursday, Wojnarowski reported. The Bulls already have a full 15-man roster, so they don’t have the room necessary to acquire two players for one without releasing someone else.
The Bulls are expected to remain active in trade discussions as the February 7 deadline nears, with the team already shopping players such as Jabari Parker and Robin Lopez, Wojnarowski adds. Chicago holds a 10-28 record through their first 38 games this season.
Payne, 24, was traded from the Thunder to the Bulls at the trade deadline in February of 2017. He’s struggled to establish himself as a consistent contributor since entering the league, dealing with a series of foot injuries in recent years.
Payne spent one full season and two half-seasons with Chicago, though he appeared in just 67 total games for the Bulls during that time. He has averaged 5.7 points, 2.7 assists and 17.3 minutes in 31 games this season, shooting 41% from the floor and 27% from 3-point range.
NBA G League Assignments/Recalls: 1/3/19
Here are Thursday’s G League assignments and recalls from around the NBA:
- The Hornets assigned Dwayne Bacon to the Greensboro Swarm, announcing the news in a press release today. Bacon has averaged 5.4 points, 1.8 rebounds and 0.8 assists in 18 games with Charlotte this season.
- The Grizzlies assigned Jevon Carter and Ivan Rabb to the Memphis Hustle, G League affiliate of the team, according to a tweet from the club’s PR department. Rabb played in the Hustle’s loss against Stockton on Thursday, adding 19 points and seven rebounds.
- The Clippers recalled then later assigned guard Jerome Robinson to the Agua Caliente Clippers of Ontario, the team announced on Thursday. Robinson was drafted by the Clippers with the No. 13 pick in 2018.
Cody Zeller To Miss 4-6 Weeks After Undergoing Hand Surgery
JANUARY 3: Zeller underwent successful surgery on the third metacarpal of his right hand today, the team announced in a press release. He’s expected to miss four to six weeks of action.
DECEMBER 31: The Hornets lost their starting center tonight when Cody Zeller suffered a fracture to his right hand, according to a tweet from the team. He left the game with Orlando for X-rays midway through the third quarter.
Zeller has been effective since reclaiming the first-string center role this year, averaging 9.2 points and 6.2 rebounds per game in about 24 minutes per night. New coach James Borrego placed an emphasis on keeping Zeller healthy all the way back to preseason, notes Rick Bonnell of The Charlotte Observer (Twitter link). Zeller played in just 33 games last season.
There’s no immediate word on how long Zeller will be sidelined, but the Hornets will likely continue their committee approach to the position until he returns. Willy Hernangomez, Marvin Williams, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, Nicolas Batum, Frank Kaminsky and Bismack Biyombo have all seen time in the middle.
“Cody’s so valuable to us on so many levels,” Borrego said. “… Willy is capable. Frank and Biz have started before. All three are capable starters in this league. We’re deep at that position. MKG and Marvin have also played some [center].” (Twitter link)
Celtics’ Grousbeck Talks Roster, Draft Picks, Spending
Celtics owner Wyc Grousbeck discussed a variety of topics with Adam Himmelsbach of the Boston Globe this week, touching on subjects such as his team’s spending, draft picks, and the state of the roster.
With lofty expectations around the franchise and its talented roster entering the season, Boston has compiled just a 22-15 record through the campaign’s first 37 games. Asked whether the team could consider making roster changes as the February 7 trade deadline approaches, Grousbeck took an honest approach.
“What we’ll do over the next month is determine if there’s anything we can do in February [prior to the trade deadline] to advance the team to a new level,” Grousbeck said. “But when I look at the team right now, I feel really good about their character, really good about their skill, really good about the upside over the next 5-6 years, with young players and the draft.
“I feel overall confident and excited we can make some noise over the next 5-6 years with this core group, adding on when we can. But this season still does feel like a work in progress, and it feels like we’ve got a long way to go if we want to make some noise in May again, or even in June.”
The Celtics have several young players on their roster today, including the likes of Jayson Tatum, Marcus Smart and Jaylen Brown. The team also has veterans such as Kyrie Irving, Al Horford and Gordon Hayward to round out its roster, sporting a group of talent capable of competing in the Eastern Conference.
Here are some other noteworthy quotes from Grousbeck in the Globe’s story:
On going after a superstar player:
“Well, this team is stacked with a lot of talented players on reasonable contracts, and a ton of draft picks. So that’s why our phone is already ringing. Our history is that we try to make the big deal and have gone for it. We try to put banners in the rafters. There’s only one so far [from our ownership group]. We’d like to have another one up there, and that may require another move, or just continued growth with these guys. We’ll have to see.”
On his role in looking for possible trades:
“We’ll just leave that in the mystery category. But what happens with trades is that they’re proposed by the basketball side and I’m kept up to date all along as the phone calls develop and as we think about what assets we might include and what the team might look like after a trade. And so I approve them or disapprove them, or try to change them, and that’s gone on for 16 years.”
On being in luxury tax territory, this season and beyond:
“We have a 16-year record of spending and putting the best possible team out on the court and I’ll just leave it at that. Everybody can see what we’ve done, knows what we’ve done and knows that we’ve put the Celtics first in every aspect.”
On the team’s stash of draft picks:
“I’m excited about all the draft picks we have now and in future years. It’s one of the reasons I’m so excited about the next six years as opposed to the next six games. The next six games we might go 0-6, but the next six years I feel pretty good about. I know both February and June will be very active. Because we have all these draft picks and young players, we get a lot of calls. And so Danny [Ainge], Mike Zarren, Austin Ainge, they get a ton of calls and try to figure out if there’s anything to recommend to me to make the team better. My view of this draft right now is it’s going to be as many phone calls as we’ve ever had. I don’t worry much about what players we end up drafting, because that’s completely on the basketball side.”
Top Prospect Bol Bol Ruled Out For Rest Of Season
4:59pm: Projected first-round pick Bol Bol has confirmed he will miss the rest of the season, writing on social media, “Playing for my dream school under my favorite Coach Altman has been the Best part of my life and sadly it has come to end sooner than I would Like, but thank you for all those who rocking with me & all Oregon fans.”
Bol Bol underwent surgery on Thursday to repair a non-displaced fracture of the navicular bone in his left foot, according to The Athletic’s Shams Charania, who adds that he’s expected to miss at least 8-10 weeks and return to full basketball activities this summer.
12:38pm: Oregon center Bol Bol may not return this season for the Ducks, according to Matt Prehm of 247Sports.com, who hears from sources that Bol is dealing with a stress fracture in his left foot. According to Prehm, a final decision has yet to be made, but multiple sources say they don’t expect Bol to get back on the court in 2018/19.
“I would be completely shocked if Bol played the rest of this year,” one source told Prehm. Another source indicated that the 19-year-old, who has already sat out Oregon’s last four games, will definitely miss at least the next couple weeks and is “highly doubtful” to appear in any games beyond that.
Bol, a 7’2″ freshman, was off to a great start this season for Oregon, averaging 21.0 PPG on .570/.520/.757 shooting through nine games. The versatile big man also contributed 9.6 RPG and 2.7 BPG.
In their most recent 2019 mock draft at ESPN.com, Jonathan Givony and Mike Schmitz had Bol coming off the board at No. 5. Jeremy Woo of SI.com, who updated his big board earlier today, ranked Bol ninth, citing concerns about the youngster’s “rail-thin build” and “oft-questioned work ethic.”
Health concerns would only increase the uncertainty surrounding Bol’s stock, so it probably makes sense for him to play it safe and avoid the risk of aggravating his foot issue further by rushing back for Oregon.
Ainge On Trades: “I Don’t Really See Much Out There”
Viewed as the Eastern Conference’s deepest and most talented team entering 2018/19, the Celtics have been somewhat inconsistent this season and currently sit fifth in the East at 22-15. The club’s intermittent struggles have led to some trade speculation, but Danny Ainge doesn’t sound like someone who expects to be making deals in the coming weeks.
Although Ainge and the Celtics will do their due diligence in exploring the trade market, the team’s president of basketball operations suggested today during an appearance on the radio show Toucher & Rich that a major move is probably unlikely, as Darren Hartwell of NBC Sports Boston relays.
“We’re always looking to upgrade our team if those opportunities present themselves. But I think that’s going to be tough,” Ainge said. “As far as trading players, I don’t really see much out there. We have a lot of good ones. It’s hard to get better players than we have.”
While a player like Terry Rozier looks like a potential trade candidate, moving him before he reaches restricted free agency probably wouldn’t improve the Celtics in the short term. Consolidating some of their depth and building a package for a star player would be another option for the C’s, but that sort of in-season deal is rare. Plus, the team likely wants to save its assets to make a run at Anthony Davis, who is ineligible to be traded to Boston during the 2018/19 league year unless Kyrie Irving is involved.
There are still five weeks to go until the February 7 trade deadline, so injuries and various hot or cold streaks could re-shape the trade market in the coming weeks. For now though, it’s probably safe to bet that the Celtics won’t do anything drastic to their roster.