Raptors Notes: Lin, VanVleet, Kawhi, Green
When the Raptors landed Jeremy Lin on the buyout market last month, it looked like a perfect fit. Toronto had just lost backup point guards Fred VanVleet (to injury) and Delon Wright (in a trade), opening the door for Lin to play a key role off the bench. However, the veteran hasn’t looked comfortable with the Raps so far — entering today, he was a minus-46 in 140 minutes and made 0-of-17 three-point attempts, as Josh Lewenberg of TSN.ca writes.
“We’ve gotta get him more comfortable,” Raptors head coach Nick Nurse said. “He’s just a little uncomfortable with me, I think, more than anything. I like to let those guys [have freedom]. I say to him, ‘Jeremy, hey, call something. You know, you get the ball in your hands and you look like you don’t know what you want to do out there.’
“I say, ‘You don’t have to look at me, just call this, this or this, pick one.’ He’s got to get a little more comfortable. Even though I’ve tried to shorten it down to three things, he’s so new that he can’t quite come up with one. I need to give him more help. I need to give him more help until he’s more comfortable with that.”
Lin admits that he has more freedom in Toronto than he’s accustomed to, suggesting that he hasn’t had this sort of “empowerment” since he played for Mike D’Antoni in New York, as Lewenberg relays. The 30-year-old welcomes the opportunity to return to that style of play.
“That is kind of how I always played,” Lin said. “I was always more of a free space, free-flowing playmaker. That’s just kind of who I am by nature. That’s my personality. That’s probably what attracted me to this team and obviously vice-versa. We got to just make the pieces fit and [we] will.”
Here’s more on the Raptors:
- The Raptors’ bench will get some reinforcement when VanVleet returns, and according to Lewenberg (via Twitter), he’s ahead of schedule in his recovery from a thumb injury. Nurse expects VanVleet to return to Toronto’s rotation at some point within the next couple weeks.
- Appearing on the Brian Windhorst & The Hoop Collective podcast, ESPN’s Michael C. Wright reiterated a point he’s made before, suggesting that he doesn’t believe Kawhi Leonard is interested in heading to the Lakers to play alongside LeBron James this offseason. “I do not,” Wright said, per RealGM.com. “That’s just what I’ve been told. It’s what I’ve been told going back to last summer. I don’t see that as something that’s happening. … I think he goes to the Clippers.”
- While Leonard’s free agency will be the biggest storyline in Toronto this summer, his longtime teammate Danny Green will also be an unrestricted free agent, and Green’s impact on the Raptors this season shouldn’t be overlooked, writes Dan Feldman of NBC Sports.
And-Ones: R. Wallace, Exum, Underclassmen
Four-time NBA All-Star Rasheed Wallace has secured a new job, having been named the boys’ basketball coach at Jordan High School in Durham, North Carolina, according to Jonas Pope IV of The News & Observer. Wallace, who last played in the NBA during the 2012/13 season, says that he considered taking an NBA job before instead opting for a head coaching position at the high school level.
“I did have some offers from a few NBA teams to be on their staff,” Wallace said. “The money was good, but it’s not about the money to me, it’s about that knowledge. Knowledge should be free and it doesn’t cost anything to pass that knowledge to these young men.”
A member of the Pistons’ 2004 championship team, Wallace briefly served as an assistant coach on Detroit’s staff in 2013/14 after he retired as a player.
Here are a few more odds and ends from around the basketball world:
- The Jazz offered an update on Dante Exum today, announcing that the point guard – who has been on the shelf since January 5 due to an ankle injury – plans to return to practice this week. The news suggests that Utah should expect to get Exum back in its rotation sometime in the not-too-distant future.
- Evan Daniels of 247Sports.com identifies eight NCAA underclassmen who could face tough decisions on whether or not to forgo their remaining college eligibility and go pro this season. Tyler Herro (Kentucky), Jordan Nwora (Louisville), Tre Jones (Duke), and Coby White (UNC) are among the prospects on Daniels’ list.
- Brian Windhorst’s latest column at ESPN.com focuses on several subjects of interest, including the challenges facing the Heat as they try to acquire a star, and commissioner Adam Silver‘s recent comments on the state of the NBA.
NBA G League Assignments/Recalls: 3/8/19
Here are today’s G League assignments and recalls from around the NBA:
- The Suns have assigned rookie guard Elie Okobo to the G League, the team announced today in a press release. Okobo, who has appeared in 43 games and started 11 for Phoenix this season, has fallen out of the club’s rotation since the All-Star break, so he’ll get some reps for the Northern Arizona Suns.
- The Clippers have recalled guards Jerome Robinson and Sindarius Thornwell from the Agua Caliente Clippers of Ontario, a day after sending them down (Twitter link). Robinson and Thornwell combined for 33 points on 9-of-26 shooting for L.A.’s NBAGL affiliate on Thursday.
- The Pistons have sent a pair of 2018 second-rounders, Khyri Thomas and Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk, to the G League, tweets Vince Ellis of The Detroit Free Press. The duo will get an opportunity to suit up for the Grand Rapids Drive on Friday night against the Erie BayHawks.
New York Notes: McCall, White, Dinwiddie, Jordan
Tahjere McCall, who had been on a 10-day contract with the Nets, had that deal expire overnight on Thursday, and has returned to Brooklyn’s G League affiliate in Long Island, the club announced today in a press release. That means that, for now, the Nets will have an open spot on their 15-man roster.
G League forward Okaro White, who has been playing well for the Long Island Nets, might have been a candidate for that final roster spot, but White recently sustained a season-ending ankle injury, tweets Brian Lewis of The New York Post. McCall will take White’s place on Long Island’s roster, and Brooklyn will have to look elsewhere for a potential 10-day signee.
Here’s more on the NBA’s two New York teams:
- Speaking to Alex Kennedy of HoopsHype (audio link), Nets guard Spencer Dinwiddie said he’d be happy to get involved in recruiting free agents this summer. “I would love to do anything that’s within the rules and not considered tampering to get guys to come to Brooklyn,” Dinwiddie said, adding that the club should appeal to star players because it’s a “players-first” organization.
- It may seem like 11-year NBA veteran DeAndre Jordan has been around forever, but the Knicks center is still only 30 years old. As he prepares to re-enter unrestricted free agency, Jordan wants to push back on the idea that he’s getting old, writes Marc Berman of The New York Post. “People think you’re 30 and think you’re old,” Jordan said this week. “I hate that. When I do something athletic, they’re like, ‘Oh my god, he’s so athletic and especially because he’s so old.’ I’ll take that.”
- After securing one of the most lucrative rookie contracts ever for a second-round pick last summer, Knicks center Mitchell Robinson has continued to cash in off the court, lining up endorsement deals with Nike and several other companies, writes Tommy Beer of Forbes.com.
Southeast Notes: Briscoe, Magic, Wizards, Hawks
An MRI on Isaiah Briscoe‘s injured right knee revealed a small meniscus tear, the Magic announced today (via Twitter). According to the club, Briscoe has been ruled out for tonight’s game against Dallas and treatment options are being evaluated.
It’s a tough break for the Magic, as Briscoe had recently taken the reins from Jerian Grant as the club’s backup point guard behind D.J. Augustin. Depending on how the Magic and Briscoe decide to treat his meniscus tear, he could miss significant time, which would put pressure on Grant to re-assume a key role during Orlando’s playoff push.
If the Magic decide to look outside of the organization for veteran help at the point guard position, there are plenty of options available, including Tim Frazier and Jarrett Jack. For now though, Grant appears set to become Augustin’s primary backup once more.
Here’s more from around the Southeast:
- In an extensive Q&A with Roy Parry of The Orlando Sentinel, Magic president of basketball operations Jeff Weltman discusses Markelle Fultz‘s rehab process, what it would mean to the franchise to make the playoffs, and 2019’s free agent period, particularly as it relates to Nikola Vucevic and Terrence Ross. Weltman was extremely noncommittal when asked about a recovery timetable for Fultz, whom head coach Steve Clifford is not expecting back this season.
- Fred Katz of The Athletic explores what could be a logjam at center for the Wizards in 2019/20. While the club would like to retain restricted free agents Bobby Portis and Thomas Bryant, Ian Mahinmi remains under contract and Dwight Howard appears increasingly likely to exercise his player option.
- Chris Vivlamore of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution provides injury updates on a trio of Hawks bigs, most notably tweeting that Omari Spellman looks like a long shot to return before the ennd of the 2018/19 season. Vivlamore also tweets that Alex Poythress is in a walking boot and will be out for “a while” after spraining his ankle, and adds (via Twitter) that Miles Plumlee has begun to take contact in his one-on-one work.
No NBA Teams Below Salary Floor For 2018/19
The salary cap line and the luxury tax threshold receive far more attention, but there’s another noteworthy level of spending that NBA teams must adhere to each season: the minimum salary floor.
As we explain in our glossary entry on the subject, the league’s salary floor means that a club to spend at least 90% of the salary cap on player salaries. For instance, with the 2018/19 cap set at $101,869,000, the salary floor for this season is $91,682,100.
If a team finishes the regular season below the NBA’s salary floor for that league year, the penalty isn’t harsh — the franchise is simply required to make up the shortfall by paying the difference to its players. For example, if a team finished this season with a team salary of $88,682,100, that team would be required to distribute that $3MM shortfall among its players.
In contrast to most recent NBA seasons though, no teams are currently projected to fall below the league’s salary floor for 2018/19.
The Mavericks appear on the surface to be below the salary floor — Basketball Insiders’ data lists their current team salary as $89,266,661, making them the only team with a payroll below $100MM.
However, when determining whether a team has reached the salary floor, the NBA considers how much the club has actually paid to players over the course of the season, rather than the team’s current cap figure. And when a team makes trades during the season, that team only owes its incoming players their remaining prorated salaries, having already paid its outgoing players a prorated portion of their salaries.
[RELATED: Hoops Rumors Glossary: Proration]
In Dallas’ case, the club made a pair of trades prior to last month’s deadline – one with the Knicks and one with the Kings – that reduced team salary considerably.
Because of the prorated money the Mavericks had paid to those outgoing players during the first two-thirds of the season – including nearly $16MM to Harrison Barnes and almost $14MM to DeAndre Jordan – there’s a significant gap between their current team salary (about $89MM) and the salaries they’ve actually paid. By my count, the Mavs are currently on the hook for about $99MM in total player salaries for 2018/19 once all the prorated figures have been calculated.
Conversely, the Kings carried a team salary below the floor for much of the season, but a trio of deadline deals – most notably that one with Dallas involving Barnes – helped pushed them above the floor.
According to Basketball Insiders, Sacramento currently has a team salary of $104,029,182. Based on my math, the Kings will actually only pay about $97MM in player salaries once the prorated figures for the likes of Barnes, Alec Burks, and others are taken into account. Either way, they’ll easily clear the 2018/19 salary floor.
Walton: No Guarantee Lonzo Ball Will Return This Season
Lakers point guard Lonzo Ball still isn’t close to returning to the court, according to head coach Luke Walton, who told reporters today that there’s a possibility Ball misses the rest of the 2018/19 season (Twitter links via Tania Ganguli of The Los Angeles Times and ESPN’s Dave McMenamin).
Ball, who will be re-evaluated on Saturday, hasn’t done any on-court work besides dribbling drills and stand-still shooting, per McMenamin. Ganguli notes that the Lakers’ priority is to make sure Ball gets 100% healthy and has a full offseason, rather than rushing him back to play in a few games at the end of ’18/19.
A left ankle injury has sidelined Ball since January 19, during which time the Lakers have slumped badly and fallen to 11th in the Western Conference. Entering that January 19 contest in which the former No. 2 overall pick got hurt, the Lakers were 25-21. Since then, they’re 5-14.
While the Lakers were always weighing the long-term view for Ball, the team is presumably even more willing to be patient now that its playoff chances have been all but extinguished. We heard on Thursday that LeBron James‘ minutes will be monitored going forward, a strong signal that the franchise is waving the white flag on a postseason push.
Speaking of James, Walton confirmed today that the Lakers will be keeping a close eye on LeBron’s minutes going forward. However, as Mike Bresnahan of Spectrum SportsNet tweets, Walton said that there’s no official, set-in-stone restriction on the star forward’s minutes. There might be games in which James sees normal minutes if the Lakers are playing well, according to Walton.
Warriors Notes: Bogut, Jones, Looney, Cousins
Andrew Bogut could return to the Warriors for their March 16 game at Oklahoma City, according to Mark Medina of The San Jose Mercury News. Circumstances are setting up for Bogut to make his debut in an ABC prime time game against one of Golden State’s top challengers, featuring a matchup against New Zealand rival Steven Adams.
After receiving clearance from his Australian team to rejoin the NBA, the next step for Bogut is to obtain a U.S. work visa, Medina continues. Bogut must decide whether to have a visa sent to the American consulate in Sydney or to obtain a tourist visa that would enable him to travel to Oakland. If he picks the second option, he will have to fly to Vancouver during the week to obtain a work visa.
“Maybe at the end of next week would be the hope,” Warriors GM Bob Myers said yesterday in his weekly interview on 95.7 The Game.
There’s more Warriors news to pass along:
- Coach Steve Kerr hasn’t given up on the possibility that Damian Jones might return for the playoffs, even though it appears unlikely, Medina adds in the same piece. Jones hasn’t played since undergoing surgery in December on a torn left pectoral muscle. Kerr said the third-year center has done on-court work “in the last week or two,” but still hasn’t participated in “anything live,” such as a full-court scrimmage. The Warriors are already well stocked at center, with Bogut joining DeMarcus Cousins, Kevon Looney, Jordan Bell and Jonas Jerebko. Golden State has Jones under contract for $2.3MM next season.
- The right pelvic soreness that Looney has been experiencing isn’t related to hip injuries that limited him to 58 games over his first two seasons, Medina relays in a separate story. Looney has missed the past two games and said the training staff told him to rest until the problem was resolved. “I know what real pain feels like. I know when it’s really serious,” he said. “I feel all ends of the injuries in that area. I knew it wasn’t serious and knew I could clean it up in a couple of days. It was best for me to take care of it now.”
- Cousins credits assistant coach Jarron Collins for making his comeback from a ruptured Achilles successful, Medina writes in another piece. Cousins calls the 10-year NBA veteran and fifth-year coach “the biggest help for me this entire season.”
Mavericks Preparing For Long-Term Deal With Porzingis
Negotiations can’t begin until July, but the Mavericks are doing everything they can to prepare for a long-term relationship with Kristaps Porzingis, writes Brad Townsend of The Dallas Morning News.
Porzingis was acquired from the Knicks at the end of January in a surprising trade that altered the future of both franchises. He continues to rehab his left knee after suffering a torn ACL more than a year ago and won’t play, or probably even practice, before the end of the season.
Dallas recently added Manolo Valdivieso, who serves as Porzingis’ personal trainer, to its training staff. Porzingis has been joining the Mavericks on road trips, which Townsend notes he didn’t do with the Knicks, and Valdivieso has come along with him.
“Nobody has any problem of the territory,” Porzingis said of Valdivieso’s relationship with the other trainers. “It’s all open and we’re all working together. That was something that I wanted to have. And I’m happy that the Dallas Mavericks organization and the people who are here are so open and so willing to help us out with anything.”
It’s similar to the arrangement the Mavs have provided for years with Dirk Nowitzki and his personal trainer, Townsend adds.
At Porzingis’ introductory press conference in Dallas, coach Rick Carlisle made a point to introduce not only Valdivieso, but also Janis Porzingis, Kristaps’ brother and agent, who reportedly upset the front office in New York by seeking jobs for some of Porzingis’ inner circle.
Carlisle offered a health update on Porzingis who has been doing shooting, cutting and dribbling drills after each practice. However, he confirmed that the Latvian star won’t take the court this season.
“They had a plan in place,” Carlisle said of Porzingis and his advisers. “And we’re helping facilitate them executing their plan. And I know our trainer, strength coaches and medical [staff] are adding value to it. It’s a win-win as far as I can see.”
Because the Knicks didn’t reach an extension agreement with Porzingis last fall, the Mavericks can’t start negotiations until July 1. As a restricted free agent, Porzingis could accept a one-year qualifying offer of $4.5MM and become unrestricted next summer or seek a deal with another team that Dallas would have the right to match, but the Mavs’ preference is to lock him up to a five-year, $158MM extension that would start at $27.25MM next season.
“I love it here so far,” Porzingis said. “I’ve been extremely happy here.”
E’Twaun Moore Out At Least 7 To 10 Days
A recurrent left quadriceps contusion that Pelicans swingman E’Twaun Moore suffered Wednesday night will sideline him for more than a week, the team announced on its website. An MRI conducted Thursday confirmed the injury, and the medical staff will re-evaluate his condition in seven to 10 days.
Moore’s absence leaves the Pelicans even more short-handed in the wake of last night’s news that Jrue Holiday will miss at least seven to 10 days with a lower abdominal strain.
With newly-signed Dairis Bertans still not available and Trevon Bluiett sidelined after thumb surgery, New Orleans will have a limited roster tonight against the Raptors. In addition, Jahlil Okafor is questionable with a right ankle sprain and Anthony Davis remains on a minutes limit.
Moore has posted an 11.9/2.4/1.9 line in 53 games, making 36 starts. An eight-year veteran, he is in this third season with the Pelicans and is signed through next year.