Nets Sign Mitch Creek To Second 10-Day Deal
After his 10-day contract with the Nets expired overnight, Australian forward Mitch Creek has re-signed with the club on a second 10-day deal, Brooklyn announced this morning in a press release.
The new pact will keep Creek under contract through February 13, at which point the Nets will have to decide whether to re-sign him for the season or let him go. A player can sign no more than two 10-day contracts with the same team in a given league year.
Creek, 26, arrived stateside in 2018 after spending most of his professional career with the Adelaide 36ers in Australia. He played for the Mavericks in Summer League, the Nets in the preseason, and the G League’s Long Island Nets for most of the 2018/19 campaign until signing with Brooklyn on January 25.
While Creek didn’t see much action during his first 10 days in the NBA, averaging 2.3 PPG and 1.7 RPG in three games (6.7 MPG), the Nets apparently liked what they saw. Brooklyn will have him fill the club’s 15th and final roster spot for at least the next week and a half.
Atlantic Notes: Stevens, Raptors, Musa
There’s no denying that Brad Stevens wasted little time establishing himself as one of the best strategically minded coaches in the NBA. Now, amid rampant Anthony Davis discussion and speculation that Kyrie Irving will renege on his verbal commitment to re-sign with the Celtics, Stevens is getting a taste of a big league coach’s other responsibility: managing melodrama.
Sean Deveney of Sporting News writes that even though the Celtics have been winning games at an elite rate (nine of their past 10), Stevens will need to manage the personalities in his locker room more carefully than he ever had to during his time coaching in the NCAA.
Deveney writes that it’s been said that Stevens “tends to handle his players with too much emphasis on Xs-and-Os and not enough TLC.” The fate of this Celtics team could depend on him striking a balance.
There’s more from the Atlantic Division:
- Pressure is mounting on the Raptors to click and establish themselves as the legitimate title contenders that stakeholders hoped they would be after the acquisition of Kawhi Leonard. As Bruce Arthur of the Toronto Star writes, if Leonard does choose to leave the organization, the stakes will be lower than they’ve been in years. That ought to make the time leading up to the decision particularly tense.
- Recent comments from Anthony Davis‘ father have cast new light on one of the teams most commonly linked to the superstar. Thomas Lott of Sporting News writes about Davis’ father slamming the Celtics organization for their treatment of former star Isaiah Thomas during the summer of 2017. Davis’ father says that although he would not want his son to play for the franchise, that’s not necessarily how the youngest Davis feels.
- Rookie guard Dzanan Musa will remain with the Nets‘ G League affiliate in Long Island for the foreseeable future, Brian Lewis of the New York Post tweets. The 19-year-old will stay with the minor league squad to get minutes. Musa is recovering from a shoulder injury that sidelined him in December.
NBA G League Assignments/Recalls: 2/3/19
Here are Sunday’s assignments and recalls from the G League:
- The Spurs have announced that they’ve recalled Lonnie Walker IV from their affiliate in Austin in a press release on their website. Walker is averaging 16.2 points per game in 20 contests with the G League squad.
Knicks Notes: Smith Jr., Kanter, Staying Woke
While there has been much discussion about the Knicks’ recently freed up cap space and what they’ll be able to do with it, it’s important to remember that New York landed a 2017 lottery pick heralded as a prized acquisition mere months ago. Ian Begley of ESPN writes about head coach David Fizdale‘s plans to utilize Dennis Smith Jr.
“I want to put the ball in his hands a lot and get him out in the open court and get him a lot of space. Give him some freedom to make some mistakes,” Fizdale said. “There’s no doubt about it. The kid’s a talent, and hopefully we can bring it out consistently.”
Although his role changed dramatically in Dallas when Luka Doncic arrived, Smith averaged 17.1 points and 6.5 assists per game for the Mavs during the final 15 games of the 2017/18 season and was widely regarded as a building block for the future of the franchise.
There’s more out of New York:
- The Enes Kanter saga continues in New York as fans clamor for the 25-year-old to see court time but the coaching staff doesn’t budge. In five of the past seven games, Kanter has recorded DNP-CDs. Today, Kanter told Jonathan Lehman of the New York Post that he awaits his future. “I have four days left,” Kanter said, referring to Thursday’s trade deadline. “I’m just going to wait four more days to see what happens, and then if something happens, it happens. If [it doesn’t happen], I’ll just go sit down with the front office, see what’s going on, see what they plan to do with me.“
- We wrote earlier today about Knicks president Steve Mills‘ comments about the Kristaps Porzingis trade, listing the various reasons why the club chose to trade their once prized franchise pillar. ESPN’s Ian Begley wrote about Porzingis’ own commentary on the situation. “The city deserves better than that,” Porzingis posted on Instagram. “My suggestion for Knicks fans is to stay woke.”
- It’s hypothetically possible for the Knicks to land Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving and Anthony Davis but don’t expect much of a balanced roster if that happens. As Kevin Pelton of ESPN Insider writes, even if New York just acquires Durant and Irving, they’ll have a steep drop-off to the team’s third-best player.
Warriors Notes: Luxury Tax, Chase Center, Free Agents
Re-signing pending free agents Kevin Durant and Klay Thompson to substantial, long-term contracts would have major financial implications for the Warriors – upward of $300MM per year, potentially – but franchise owner Joe Lacob doesn’t think luxury tax and salary costs are the issue heading forward, Tim Kawakami of The Athletic writes.
“We can do whatever we want [financially],” Lacob said. “And you should expect that that’s not going to be a reason this team … doesn’t stay great going forward. We have the capital to pay our players what they deserve. And we will.”
Kawakami notes that this is a change in tone from what we’ve heard from the team’s ownership group in the past. There may be several factors responsible for that, including the “unprecedented influx of cash” that the team’s new stadium is expected to bring. The Warriors will begin playing at the Chase Center next fall.
There’s more from the Bay Area tonight:
- The Warriors are in somewhat of a holding pattern until Durant makes his decision whether to remain with the franchise or move elsewhere, Kawakami notes in the above-mentioned article. These dynamics may have put Anthony Davis just out of reach for the team. “The best thing for us to do is keep our great players together as long as we can, as long as we should, and then develop on the margins,” Lacob said.
- With free agency looming and the Knicks posturing to be a major player, New York appears to at the very least be an option for Durant. Kevin O’Connor of The Ringers writes that the forward has wavered between staying or leaving all season.
- Since the blockbuster trade that freed up two max contract slots in the Knicks’ books last Thursday, Durant has been quieter than usual, Mark Medina of The Mercury News writes. Durant has avoided post-game interviews after each of Golden State’s last two matchups.
Central Notes: Pacers, Love, Dunn
The Pacers, fresh off of a season-worst four-game losing streak, lack swagger without star Victor Oladipo, J. Michael of the Indianapolis Star writes. And it’s not just at the end of close games.
Michael notes that plenty of the Pacers’ struggles could be addressed by the addition of an established shot-maker, the likes of which could very realistically be available when the buyer’s market typically ramps up after the trade deadline.
If a player like Wesley Matthews, who was recently acquired by the Knicks in their Kristaps Porzingis‘ trade, has his expiring contract bought out, he could be of great service to a team like the Pacers.
There’s more from the Central Division:
- For the first time in over three months, Cavaliers forward Kevin Love is taking part in 5-on-5 contact practices, Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com writes. Love’s last taste of action was on Oct. 24, prior to undergoing surgery to repair a toe injury. Guard David Nwaba, who has missed 18 games of his own, did not fare as well in the practice — the Cavs have pulled back somewhat on his rehab process.
- Despite reports that the Bulls will be gauging Kris Dunn‘s worth over the final 30 games of the regular season, the 24-year-old former fifth-overall pick is unfazed. The third-year-guard tells Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times that he’ll compete anywhere he ends up, just as he has this year, through a knee injury and mid-season coaching change.
- Newly appointed All-Star Khris Middleton had high praise for the Bucks organization, Matt Velazquez of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel tweets. “For us,” Middleton told Velasquez, referring to himself and Giannis Antetokounmpo,”It’s not being in the right market, it’s being with the right team. This organization laid down everything that they can to make sure we succeeded.”
Steve Mills Discusses Kristaps Porzingis Trade
The Knicks made the decision to trade Kristaps Porzingis last week, ending a three-and-a-half year run that featured a number of highs and lows. Porzingis, the team’s 2015 lottery pick, began to express his displeasure with the team and its losing ways, culminating in a meeting involving him, his agent, and Knicks management last Thursday.
“We started to get a feel that everything wasn’t going as well as we would’ve liked with Kristaps,” Knicks president Steve Mills said in an interview on MSG. “So Scott [Perry] and I spent a lot of time saying, ‘Okay. We need to be prepared if things aren’t going well or if he doesn’t want to be here, or that we need to be ready.'”
Mills then revealed he held exploratory trade conversations with several different teams to test Porzingis’ value, sifting through the best offers before zeroing in on a package from the Mavericks.
“We at the end of the day had about eight potential scenarios we thought would be great for us if we made the decision that we were going to trade Kristaps,” Mills said.
It was then in the meeting, which was held just hours before the trade, that Porzingis officially made his trade request alongside his brother and agent Janis Porzingis.
For the Knicks, reaching a trade agreement before the February 7 trade deadline was paramount. Porzingis was set to become a restricted free agent at season’s end, and made his intentions known that he would sign elsewhere if the team didn’t honor his request.
“We felt the 7th was really important because if we let this go beyond the 7th, the leverage completely shifted. We would not have control of the situation,” Mills said, as relayed by Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic. “We weren’t sure what Kristaps was going to come in and tell us. We didn’t know if he’d come in and tell us he wanted to be traded or he may have come in and said he wanted to do a one-year contract with the player option, which would then have made him untradeable and he would have had all the leverage. We just felt we needed to have some certainty by the 7th.
“When they came in to meet with us, they made it clear to us — it was a meeting that they requested — they made it clear to us that he did not want to play for the Knicks, that he was not going to re-sign with us as a free agent. And we in one way thanked him for the clarity because it gave us the information we needed to know.”
The Knicks would acquire Dennis Smith Jr., DeAndre Jordan, Wesley Matthews and two future first-round picks for offloading Porzingis, Tim Hardaway Jr., Courtney Lee and Trey Burke, ending the run for Porzingis in New York and placing a focus on free agency by creating two maximum-salary roster spots.
LeBron Supports Kyrie, Discusses Phone Call
LeBron James complimented former teammate Kyrie Irving on his latest comments about free agency and spoke for the first time about their recent phone call, writes Joe Vardon of The Athletic.
“Me and Kyrie are in a good place right now,” James said, explaining that Irving’s apology when they talked by phone helped to repair their relationship. “I love the man that he’s becoming, I love the challenges he’s accepted and I always wish the best for him.”
Irving placed the call last month to apologize to James for being difficult during his younger years in Cleveland, saying he understands the situation better now that he’s a veteran. Kevin Love, the other member of the Cavs’ former Big Three, happened to be out for dinner with LeBron during the call.
James called it “a great conversation,” but wouldn’t reveal what he said to Irving.
The Celtics guard made news on Friday with a terse statement regarding his plans for this summer, when he can opt out of his contract and become a free agent. Irving previously pledged to re-sign in Boston, but there has been talk that he’s having second thoughts.
“He handled it great,” James said of Irving’s comments. “His post interview was great as well. Just a lot of things that’s going on in our league right now, and the one thing you want to focus on is getting that team to place where he wanted it to be, and that’s competing for a championship.”
The phone call sparked some speculation that Irving might be interested in a reunion with LeBron in Los Angeles. The Knicks are reportedly hoping to team Kyrie with Kevin Durant after opening enough cap space for two top-level free agents with this week’s trade of Kristaps Porzingis. If Irving stays in Boston, he and James could wind up as competitors in the summer’s hottest story line — the battle to get Anthony Davis out of New Orleans.
Irving told reporters Friday that he is tired of all the rumors.
“Obviously you’d hope it would quiet down, but it doesn’t help when across the league it’s just outside noise again, and my name gets thrown into it,” he said. “Conversations, speculations, everybody’s worried about their credibility. I don’t know how this media empire works. I know it’s a bunch of nonsense to me. So I have a focus on winning a championship this year, and that’s where my focus is going to stay.”
Weekly Mailbag: 1/28/19 – 2/3/19
We have an opportunity for you to hit us up with your questions in this, our weekly mailbag feature. Have a question regarding player movement, the salary cap or the NBA draft? Drop us a line at HoopsRumorsMailbag@Gmail.com.
Other than maybe Anthony Davis, do you see any big trades going down in the next couple of days? — Jimmy Robinson, via Twitter
There may not be any All-Stars on the move this week, but the trade deadline is shaping up to be more active than it originally appeared. Because so many teams remain in playoff contention, there will be far more buyers than sellers, but the sellers should have their pick of attractive offers. The Cavaliers, Bulls, Hawks, Suns and Grizzlies all have players they would like to move, and most of those teams are willing to take on long-term salary to make it happen. The big names most likely to be traded before the deadline are Memphis’ Mike Conley and Marc Gasol, but as the Kristaps Porzingis trade reminded us this week, huge deals sometimes happen without warning.
How available is Julius Randle, how much does he fit with Philly and what would he cost? Would a combo of Nikola Mirotic and Randle work out if Markelle Fultz is involved (I don’t want Fultz to go)? — Sean Hamilton
There was a report last week that the Pelicans were looking for takers for Randle, Mirotic and E’Twaun Moore, so availability shouldn’t be an issue. Mirotic has a $12.5MM expiring contract, while Randle makes $8.64MM, so the Sixers can’t realistically match salaries to get both of them without giving up players they prefer to keep. Either one would be a welcome addition in Philadelphia, particularly Mirotic, who would provide a badly needed outside shooter. However, it’s hard to see how a deal gets done unless Fultz is included, and at least from public statements, the Sixers don’t appear ready to give him up.
The Bucks were 16-8 (9-8 after starting season 7-0) when they traded Matthew Dellavedova and John Henson for George Hill and some other guy (Jason Smith). They are 22-5 since. Underrated, rated or overrated trade of the year? — Roger Skifstad
It was certainly an under-the-radar deal that has benefited the Bucks. Hill’s numbers aren’t flashy since arriving in Milwaukee (6.0/2.6/2.2 in about 21 minutes per game), but he has provided a stabilizing veteran presence off the bench. It didn’t get a lot of headlines when it happened, but small trades like this can sometimes have a huge impact at playoff time.
Aron Baynes To Be Sidelined “A Few Weeks”
Celtics center Aron Baynes is “shutting it down for a few weeks” because of pain in his left foot, tweets Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe. The team says the injury is to the cuboid bone, adds Chris Forsberg of NBC Sports Boston (Twitter link).
Baynes said the pain started about two weeks ago and “wasn’t getting any better,” relays A. Sherrod Blakely of NBC Sports Boston (Twitter link). He has tried to play through it, logging 21 minutes Friday against the Knicks, but it has become too severe.
The timing means Baynes will almost certainly be out through the All-Star break. Baynes’ absence will mean more minutes for Daniel Theis, Guerschon Yabusele and rookie Robert Williams, although Williams will miss today’s game with back soreness.
Baynes has seen reduced playing time in his second season with the Celtics, averaging, 5.7 PPG and 4.3 RPG in about 15 minutes per night. He has a $5.45MM player option for next season.