Magic Notes: Fultz, Burning Questions, Aminu
Although the Magic exercised 2020/21 rookie scale options this week on three players, only one of those decisions really generated headlines. The option pick-ups for Jonathan Isaac and Mohamed Bamba came as no surprise, but Orlando’s decision to exercise Markelle Fultz‘s $12.3MM option for ’20/21 raised some eyebrows.
Picking up Fultz’s fourth-year option is “the most tangible sign yet” that the Magic are pleased with the progress the former No. 1 overall pick has made in his rehab from thoracic outlet syndrome, writes Josh Robbins of The Athletic. As Robbins points out, making the move official a month and a half before the October 31 deadline helped relieve some of the pressure on Fultz, since there was no opportunity for speculation about that option decision to gain any steam.
As we wait for an update on when we can expect Fultz to make his debut for the Magic, here’s more on the young point guard, plus a couple other notes out of Orlando:
- In the wake of their decision on Fultz, Paolo Uggetti of The Ringer wonders what the Magic know that we don’t. As Uggetti writes, guaranteeing another $12.3MM for the 21-year-old is a significant investment in a player who has appeared in just 33 total NBA games and has struggled with his shot.
- In a separate article for The Athletic, Robbins examines the burning questions facing each player on the Magic’s roster this season. Among the questions Robbins poses: Can Orlando’s major free agent addition, Al-Farouq Aminu, effectively space the floor on offense? Aminu is a career 33.7% three-point shooter.
- In a Q&A with John Denton of OrlandoMagic.com, Magic head coach Steve Clifford addressed a handful of topics, suggesting at one point that the team’s readiness to keep working hard is even more important than the roster’s continuity. “Often, we look at professional athletes as if they’re a given. The thing for us to all understand is this – we played better (in the second half) because we put a lot into it,” Clifford said. “The consistent players put a lot into it every year. And the really talented players who don’t really ever reach the level that they should, it’s because they have a fluctuation in their focus from year to year.”
Isaiah Thomas Undergoes Thumb Surgery, Out 6-8 Weeks
Isaiah Thomas, who has only appeared in 44 games over the last two seasons due to injuries, will have to recover from at least one more health issue before making his debut with the Wizards.
According to a press release from the team, Thomas underwent surgery today to repair a rupture of the radial collateral ligament of his left thumb. The Wizards say that Thomas will be sidelined for six to eight weeks while he recovers, meaning he won’t be ready for training camp or the start of the regular season.
“This was an unfortunate setback for Isaiah, but with his resolve and the top care he will receive from our medical team, we expect him to make a full recovery,” Wizards general manager Tommy Sheppard said in a statement. “In the meantime, he will continue to mentor our young guards and have a positive impact on the team as we start training camp.”
Hip injuries limited Thomas to 32 games in 2017/18 with the Cavaliers and Lakers and just 12 contests last season in Denver. The veteran point guard signed with the Wizards as a free agent this summer in the hopes of playing a major role in the backcourt for the club with John Wall sidelined due to an Achilles tear and Tomas Satoransky no longer in the mix.
Assuming Thomas is able to return to the court within six to eight weeks, he’d be on track to make his regular season debut in early November and could still end up being a major part of Washington’s rotation. However, fellow free agent signee Ish Smith figures to secure the starting point guard role in Thomas’ absence.
The Wizards have no real veteran point guards on the roster behind Smith and Thomas, with second-year guard Isaac Bonga or undrafted rookie Justin Robinson next in line on the depth chart. So we’ll see if the team adds another player before the season begins to address its lack of depth at the position.
NBA’s Board Of Governors Unanimously Approves Nets Sale To Joe Tsai
The NBA’s Board of Governors has unanimously approved the sale of the Nets – and the Barclays Center – to Joe Tsai, the league announced today in a press release.
Tsai, who had been a minority stakeholder in the franchise, finalized a deal last month to purchase the remaining shares from Mikhail Prokhorov, but that deal required approval from the Board of Governors before it could become fully official.
“We are thrilled that Joe Tsai is becoming the principal owner and governor of the Brooklyn Nets,” NBA commissioner Adam Silver said in a statement. “In addition to being a passionate basketball fan, Joe is one of China’s preeminent internet, media and e-commerce pioneers and his expertise will be invaluable in the league’s efforts to grow the game in China and other global markets.”
In addition to formally finalizing his purchase of the Nets and their arena, Tsai has also officially installed veteran executive David Levy as the CEO of the Nets and the Barclays Center, per a team press release. Levy, the former president of Turner, will also serve as the president of J Tsai Sports, the sports investment and holding vehicle controlled by the new Nets owner.
“David brings a unique combination of sports and media know-how, strategic thinking and operating skills to our sports and entertainment business. He is an entrepreneur at heart with the experience of managing and scaling organizations, and I really look forward to working with him,” Tsai said in a statement.
For more details on the sale of the Nets to Tsai and the hiring of Levy, be sure to check out our previous stories on those moves.
Stephen Curry Talks 2020 Olympics, KD’s Departure
Count Stephen Curry among the potential Team USA players who didn’t participate in the 2019 World Cup but is interested in helping the program recapture gold at the 2020 Olympics. Speaking to ESPN’s Rachel Nichols (link via Nick Friedell at ESPN.com), the Warriors‘ star said that he intends to join Team USA in Tokyo next summer, health permitting.
“That is the plan, for sure,” Curry said. “You know, obviously knock on wood, you don’t want any injuries or things like that to interfere. … [I] definitely want to go. I’ve never been on the Olympic team. I’ve been on two World Cup Championship gold medal teams. But the Olympics is the experience that I want. And next year will hopefully be it.”
Besides Curry, a handful of other stars have spoken out in recent days about being part of the USA Basketball roster in 2020. Some, like Donovan Mitchell and Kemba Walker, were part of this year’s World Cup roster and have expressed interest in representing Team USA again at the Olympics. Others, like Curry and Damian Lillard, passed on participating this year but would like to play next summer.
Of course, before Team USA makes any decisions on its 12-man roster for Tokyo, we’ve got a full NBA season to play. In his conversation with Nichols, Curry offered several thoughts on the upcoming year and looked back at Kevin Durant‘s free agent decision. Here are a few of Curry’s most notable comments, via Friedell:
On Durant’s decision to leave the Warriors for the Nets:
“At the end of the day, we live in an age where choice at the forefront, and K made a decision for himself and you can’t argue that. I wish we could still play with K. He’s an unbelievable talent, unbelievable person. We accomplished a lot together. But things have changed a little bit. So you obviously wish him the best, obviously with his recovery first and foremost and things on and off the court. But we’re gonna have to battle down the road. So this should be a fun, new experience on that front too.”
On potential “load management” during the 2019/20 season:
“I want to be smart about what I’m doing. I doubt there will be any games where I’m playing 48 minutes (laugh). I could, but that’s not part of how you achieve greatness, at the end of the day, for what we’re trying to accomplish, which is a championship. So everything’s going to be in light of trying to get another banner. All the other stuff is — it’ll take care of itself.”
On the possibility of winning his third MVP award this season:
“I always say, I’m playing like I’m the best player on the floor no matter what the situation is. That’s my mentality. It might not mean I’m taking every shot, but that’s the aggressiveness that I need to play with and the confidence I need to have. So, that’ll carry me the rest of my career. And at the end of the day, winning an MVP would be special. And it’s something that I’ve experienced before and would love to experience again. I’d love to push the envelope and push the limits a little bit. [But] you won’t see anything different about how I play this season versus years past.”
Several Nets Players Remain In Favor Of Adding Carmelo Anthony
Multiple Nets players remain “fully in favor” of the team signing free agent forward Carmelo Anthony, sources tell Ian Begley of SNY.tv.
Reports linking Anthony to Brooklyn have become a near-weekly occurrence as of late. We initially heard at the end of August that the Nets continued to monitor the 10-time All-Star and that Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant were reportedly “pushing” the team to sign him. Meanwhile, a report last week suggested that Brooklyn’s interest in Anthony might be increasing with Joe Johnson off the market.
Even if Irving, Durant, and other Nets players are in favor of Anthony coming aboard, two key questions would have to be answered before it becomes a reality. The first is whether general manager Sean Marks is actually interested in signing the 35-year-old, since Marks will be the one ultimately making the decision, regardless of how many players support the idea.
The second is where Anthony would fit on the roster, which already features 15 players on guaranteed contracts. As Begley details and as we’ve noted before, Wilson Chandler‘s 25-game suspension will help create an opening on the regular season roster. But Chandler can’t be moved to the suspended list until he spends the first five games of the year on the active roster, and the Nets would have to activate or waive him once his suspension ends, essentially creating a 20-game window for the club to carry an extra player.
It’s not known whether Anthony would be interested in signing a non-guaranteed contract to essentially spend those 20 games auditioning for a more permanent spot on the Nets.
Training camps will get underway around the NBA in less than two weeks, and opening night is less than five weeks away, so if Anthony hopes to start the season on an NBA roster, he’ll need to secure a deal pretty soon.
Michael Beasley Ineligible To Sign With Chinese Team
SEPTEMBER 18: The Chinese Basketball Association has notified Shanxi that Beasley is ineligible to sign in China due to his NBA drug suspension, a source tells Carchia (Twitter link).
SEPTEMBER 17: The Shanxi Loongs are interested in bringing free agent forward Michael Beasley back to China, a source tells Emiliano Carchia of Sportando. According to Carchia, Shanxi would look to part ways with Malcolm Thomas if the club is able to sign Beasley.
This is the second time this offseason we’ve heard about Beasley drawing overseas interest. A report in early August suggested that the 30-year-old had an offer in the range of $5MM on the table from a team in the Chinese Basketball Association. It’s not clear if that team was Shanxi — or if Beasley would still be able to land a payday in that range.
Rather than accepting that reported offer, Beasley reached a tentative agreement to sign with the Pistons in mid-August. However, he never technically finalized that deal. With Detroit now poised to bring in Joe Johnson to fill the final spot on its offseason roster, the former No. 2 overall pick is the odd man out and won’t sign with the club after all, forcing him to resume his search for a new home.
Beasley has had multiple stints in the CBA in the past, playing for Shanghai in 2014/15, Shandong in 2015/16, and Guangdong earlier in 2019. So if he does sign with Shanxi, he’d be returning to a familiar setting.
It’s worth noting that Shams Charania of The Athletic reported last month that the CBA was in the process of implementing a new guideline that would bar a player facing a drug- or violence-related ban or suspension in another league from signing with a CBA team.
Charania cited Tyreke Evans, who has been banned from the NBA for at least two years due to drug violations, as a player who would affected by this rule, but it’s not clear if Beasley – who is facing a five-game NBA suspension for violating the league’s anti-drug policy – would also be impacted. Presumably, if Shanxi is interested, the rule either hasn’t been made official or wouldn’t specifically apply to a short-term suspension like Beasley’s.
Wizards Sign Justin Anderson To Non-Guaranteed Contract
Free agent swingman Justin Anderson has officially signed a one-year contract with the Wizards, per RealGM’s NBA transactions log. Fred Katz of The Athletic, who reported in August that the two sides were working toward an agreement, confirmed that a non-guaranteed deal has been finalized (Twitter link).
Anderson, who will turn 26 in November, reached the open market this summer following the expiration of his rookie scale contract. He initially signed that four-year deal with Dallas after being selected 21st overall in the 2015 draft, but was traded to Philadelphia at the 2017 trade deadline and then to Atlanta during the 2018 offseason.
In 48 games last season for the Hawks, Anderson recorded 3.7 PPG and 1.8 RPG on .408/.312/.743 shooting in just 9.6 minutes per contest. His union with the Wizards represents a homecoming of sorts, as he attended high school in Maryland and played his college ball at Virginia.
With Anderson locked up, the Wizards now have 19 players under contract. Of those 19 players, 13 have fully guaranteed salaries for 2019/20, five are on non-guaranteed deals, and one has a two-way contract.
It’s not clear what Washington’s plans are for the 14th spot on its roster or if the club plans to carry a 15th man to start the season. Assuming Anderson gets a chance to compete for one of those spots, he’d be up against the likes of Jordan McRae, Justin Robinson, Jemerrio Jones, and Phil Booth.
Celtics To Sign Yante Maten To Exhibit 10 Deal
The Celtics will sign Yante Maten, a source tells Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe (Twitter link). The pact will be an Exhibit 10 deal.
Maten played for the Heat on a two-way contract last season, splitting time between Miami and the Sioux Falls Skyforce. The 23-year-old forward averaged an impressive 23.5 PPG and 9.7 RPG in 30 G League contests, earning a spot on the All-NBAGL Second Team. Hoever, he was waived by the Heat in July.
The Celtics already have filled both of their two-way contract slots (Tremont Waters, Max Strus). Once Boston officially signs Maten and finalizes its reported deal with Kaiser Gates, the team’s training camp roster will feature 20 players, which is the maximum allowed.
Pelicans Apply For Disabled Player Exception
The Pelicans have applied for a disabled player exception for their season-ending loss of Darius Miller, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link). The amount of the exception would be $3.625MM, half of Miller’s $7.25MM salary.
As we outline in our glossary entry on the disabled player exception, a team can apply for a DPE to replace a seriously injured player. Miller ruptured his Achilles in August, rendering him unlikely to see action this season.
In order for a disabled player exception to be granted, an NBA-designated physician must determine that the player is “substantially more likely than not” to be sidelined through at least June 15 of that league year. If granted, the disabled player exception allows a club to sign a replacement player for 50% of the injured player’s salary, or for the amount of the non-taxpayer’s mid-level exception, whichever is lesser.
New Orleans isn’t the only team to file for a disabled player exception for the upcoming season. The Lakers (DeMarcus Cousins) and Wizards (John Wall) have applied for exceptions as well.
Pelicans Notes: Holiday, Melli, Projections
The Pelicans will look much different this season after trading away Anthony Davis over the summer. However, the vibe in New Orleans appears to be on the upswing with executive vice president of basketball operations David Griffin leading the franchise.
“I feel like the whole vibe, the whole attitude in the facility and with the staff has just been different,” Jrue Holiday said (via Andrew Lopez of ESPN.com). “It definitely feels like people are ready and excited. It’s been like that ever since Griff has come into place.”
Here’s more from New Orleans:
- Holiday (same piece) said that Griffin is “putting his money where his mouth is,” with the help of team ownership, referring to the upgrades the Pelicans made to their practice facility. Holiday added that he felt like he was walking into a brand new facility when he returned from offseason workouts in Los Angeles.
- Nicolo Melli, who signed with the Pelicans after playing in Europe for over a decade, is expected to be a highly-valued glue guy in New Orleans, as Jim Eichenhofer of NBA.com relays. “A guy like Nicolo, you can look at his stat line and be like, ‘I don’t understand the intrigue from the NBA for the last three years.’ But it’s what he brings – he’s a team-first guy, a winner. He’s highly motivated and a competitor,” GM Trajan Langdon said. “Those are the kind of people we want here, to be a part of the Pelicans organization. He’s another guy who’s going to make people better, on and off the court.”
- FiveThirtyEight’s model indicates that the new-look Pelicans could live up to the hype, as Chris Herring passes along. Herring writes that it’s not a total long shot that New Orleans finds its way into the playoffs in year one post-Davis.