2020 NBA Draft Rumors | Hoops Rumors

And-Ones: Mannion, Beilein, WNBA, Pitino

March 14th, 2020 at 4:00pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Arizona point guard Nico Mannion, one of the top college players in the country, has not made a decision on whether or not his first season as a Wildcat will be his last, despite reports to the contrary, per Sam Vecenie of The Athletic (Twitter link).

“He will make that decision after the season,” the 19-year-old’s father Pace Mannion told Vecenie on March 8. With the NCAA season officially canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, that determination may be coming up sooner than the Mannion family was anticipating.

There’s more from around the basketball world:

After resigning as Cavaliers head coach last month, John Beilein was hired as an analyst for the Big Ten Network studio team ahead of the anticipated start of the Big Ten Conference Tournament and March Madness, according to Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com. With the NCAA season canceled, Beilein may not have much to analyze for a while. Though Beilein is the winningest coach in Michigan basketball history, he struggled in the NBA, coaching the Cavaliers to a 14-40 record during 2019/20.
Rick Pitino will return to college coaching at Iona College, per Forbes’ Adam Zagoria.“My passion in basketball started in New York and will end there at Iona College,” Pitino said. Pitino has been coaching Greek EuroLeague club Panathinaikos since 2018. He last coached in the NCAA for the University of Louisville from 2001-2017.
WNBA executive director Terri Jackson spoke with Mark Medina of USA Today about the coronavirus and president Donald Trump’s travel ban precluding foreign nationals from traveling to the US from most European countries. Several WNBA players spend their offseasons overseas to supplement their earnings with more lucrative paydays from the international leagues. “Understanding [President Trump’s European] travel ban and understanding what came out of the White House is tough to grapple with,” Jackson told Medina.

Portsmouth Invitational Tournament Canceled

March 14th, 2020 at 12:51pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

The annual Portsmouth Invitational Tournament, one of the oldest pre-combine scouting showcases for the best college seniors, officially announced its cancellation because of the developing coronavirus pandemic, per P.I.T. Vice Chairman Mike Morris (Twitter link). The P.I.T. has been operating since 1953.

The P.I.T. was scheduled to run from April 15-18, 2020 at Churchland High School in Portsmouth, Virginia. Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium was the first to report the news (Twitter link).

College seniors to have benefited from the P.I.T. include Scottie Pippen (drafted with the No. 5 pick in 1987), Dennis Rodman (the No. 26 pick in 1986), Jimmy Butler (the No. 30 pick in 2011), John Stockton (the No. 16 pick in 1984), Tim Hardaway (the No. 14 pick in 1989), Ben Wallace (who went undrafted in 1996), Rick Barry (the No. 2 pick in 1965), Dave Cowens (the No. 4 pick in 1970) and Earl Monroe (the No. 2 pick in 1967).

USA Basketball Cancels Nike Hoop Summit

March 13th, 2020 at 1:48pm CST by Luke Adams

Amidst a slew of cancellations and postponements around the sports world, USA Basketball announced today that it is suspending all events until further notice.

The 2020 Nike Hoop Summit, which had been scheduled to take place in Portland, Oregon on April 10, – with practices during the days leading up to the event – has been cancelled, according to USA Basketball’s press release.

The event is a showcase for both domestic and international players, pitting the USA Basketball Men’s Junior Select Team against a team made up of international prospects. Ben Simmons, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Deandre Ayton are among the players who have participated in the event as part of the World Select Team in recent years, while top picks like Jayson Tatum, Markelle Fultz, De’Aaron Fox, Jaren Jackson Jr., and Wendell Carter have played for the U.S. team.

The next major scouting event on the NBA’s pre-draft calendar for 2020 is the Portsmouth Invitational, which is scheduled to take place from April 15-18. So far, no announcement has been made, but it wouldn’t be a surprise if it’s also canceled in the near future.

NCAA Cancels 2020 Basketball Tournaments

March 12th, 2020 at 3:22pm CST by Luke Adams

The NCAA has officially canceled the Division I men’s and women’s 2020 basketball tournaments, NCAA president Mark Emmert and the Board of Governors said today in a statement.

A Wednesday announcement had suggested the NCAA planned to move forward with the tournaments without fans in attendance. However, in the 24 hours since Wednesday’s press release was issued, the NBA, NHL, MLB, and MLS have all postponed their seasons, and virtually every Division I conference canceled their own tournaments, prompting the NCAA to reconsider its stance.

“This decision is based on the evolving COVID-19 public health threat, our ability to ensure the events do not contribute to spread of the pandemic, and the impracticality of hosting such events at any time during this academic year given ongoing decisions by other entities,” the NCAA said in its statement.

All remaining winter and spring NCAA championships will be canceled as well, according to the press release. The wording in the statement – including “cancel” rather than “postpone” – indicates that the NCAA won’t be leaving the door open to March Madness being pushed back and becoming April Madness or May Madness.

The decision also means that NCAA prospects who intend to become part of the 2020 draft class have played their last college games. It remains unclear how many opportunities NBA teams will get to scout those players this spring, with events like the Nike Hoop Summit, the Portsmouth Invitational, and the Draft Combine all up in the air as well.

ACC, Big Ten, Big East Among Conferences To Cancel Tournaments

March 12th, 2020 at 2:33pm CST by Luke Adams

A slew of college basketball tournaments that were scheduled to take place this weekend have been postponed or canceled. The ACC, Big Ten, and SEC, and Big 12 were among the major conferences to shut down their respective tournaments before games began. The Big East announced at halftime of this afternoon’s Creighton/St. John’s contest that its tournament would also be canceled.

Here are the other conference tournaments which were nixed today, accompanied by links to the official announcements:

The Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) is essentially the only Division I conference that has yet to formally announce the cancellation of its tournament, and it may just be a matter of time before that announcement comes.

It was less than 24 hours ago that the NCAA announced it would hold its 2020 March Madness tournament without fans in attendance. Now it seems increasingly unlikely that the event will take place at all.

Schools with major basketball programs, such as Duke and Kansas, have announced increased coronavirus measures restricting athletic events, while the ACC announced that it has suspended “all athletic-related activities,” including “participation in NCAA championships.” The Big Ten is likely headed in that direction too, according to Jeff Goodman of Stadium (Twitter link).

The potential cancellation of the remaining college basketball schedule will affect NBA teams’ preparations for the 2020 draft, as John Hollinger and Sam Vecenie of The Athletic write. However, this month’s tournament is just one of many pre-draft scouting opportunities that could be impacted.

As The Athletic’s duo explains, there’s still no word on whether events like the Nike Hoop Summit (early April), the Portsmouth Invitational (mid-April), and the combine (mid-to-late May) will go forward as planned. Of course, given the possibility that the NBA’s season will resume and run later than usual, we don’t even know for sure that the draft will happen in late June.

The Jordan Brand Classic, a high school All-Star game that features many of the nation’s most highly-recruited seniors, has been canceled, according to an announcement today.

NCAA To Hold Tournament Without Fans In Attendance

March 11th, 2020 at 3:42pm CST by Luke Adams

With March Madness around the corner, the NCAA’s COVID-19 advisory panel has recommended against opening up sporting events to the public, per a press release. As a result, the 2020 NCAA men’s and women’s tournaments will be held without fans in attendance, NCAA president Mark Emmert announced.

“We do believe sport events can take place with only essential personnel and limited family attendance, and this protects our players, employees, and fans,” the NCAA said in its statement.

“While I understand how disappointing this is for all fans of our sports, my decision is based on the current understanding of how COVID-19 is progressing in the United States,” Emmert said. “This decision is in the best interest of public health.”

The changing circumstances surrounding the NCAA tournament may not have a major adverse impact on NBA teams, who have had all season to scout and form opinions on the players expected to be part of the 2020 draft class. However, it will make for an unusual and surreal event, with students and hardcore supporters no longer packing arenas to cheer for their schools.

The NCAA has yet to determine whether media will be allowed into arenas for the tournament, according to Jeff Goodman of Stadium (Twitter link).

And-Ones: Gortat, Felton, Ball, Okoro

March 8th, 2020 at 7:16pm CST by JD Shaw

Veteran NBA center Marcin Gortat decided to retire from professional basketball last month, walking away from a league where he played for four teams across 12 years.

Gortat, 36, saw his last NBA season come during the 2018/19 campaign with the Clippers and spent much of this season contemplating his future.

“It’s sad but you know, the whole adventure and the whole ‘Polish Hammer’ thing has to end at some point,” Gortat said, according to Mike DePrisco of NBC Sports. “I’m happy that after 12 years I achieved so much being the 57th pick in the draft. Now, I’ve got the good part and I’m going to enjoy my life and enjoy the other guys watching them play on the court.”

Gortat returned to Washington and watched the Wizards play the Hawks on Friday, receiving a video tribute from the organization. He helped the franchise make the playoffs in four of his five seasons, playing physical basketball on both ends of the floor.

Here are some other odds and ends from around the basketball world:

Free agent Raymond Felton won’t be signing in the Czech Republic after all, according to Niccolo Scavuzzo of Sportando. Felton reportedly reached agreement with Jindřichův Hradec, with the team’s GM suggesting in an official statement that the point guard would report until April, but it appears that announcement was premature.
LiAngelo Ball is signing with the Oklahoma City Blue, G League affiliate of the Thunder, Shams Charania of The Athletic tweets. Ball is continuing his pursuit of an NBA deal by way of the G League, with the 21-year-old going undrafted back in 2018.
In an article for ESPN Insider, Jonathon Givony and Mike Schmitz detail why Isaac Okoro might be a top-five NBA draft pick this June. Okoro, 19, is a 6-foot-6 small forward who currently plays at Auburn.

International Notes: Mirotic, Bolomboy, Douglas, N’Doye

March 3rd, 2020 at 6:00pm CST by Luke Adams

Nikola Mirotic was said to be in line for at least one contract offer in the three-year, $45MM range if he had remained in the NBA last summer, but he opted instead to return to the country where he began his professional career, signing with Barcelona. While he may not be earning quite as lucrative a salary in Spain, the veteran forward is enjoying a successful season so far.

The EuroLeague announced this week that Mirotic has been named the league’s MVP for the month of February, the equivalent of the NBA’s Player of the Month award. It’s the second time this season that Mirotic has earned the honor — he knocked down a pair of game-winning shots in February and averaged 21.0 PPG for the month. His Barcelona squad is now 20-6, good for third in the EuroLeague standings.

Here are more notes from around the international basketball world:

Former NBA forward Joel Bolomboy has signed a two-year contract extension with Russia’s CSKA Moscow, the club announced this week in a press release. Bolomboy, a former Weber State standout who appeared in 18 NBA games between 2016-18 for Utah and Milwaukee, is now under contract with the EuroLeague club through the 2021/22 season.
Veteran guard Toney Douglas, who played 394 regular season NBA games from 2010-17, has signed with Italian team Pallacanestro Varese for the remainder of the season, the club announced in a press release (hat tip to Sportando). Douglas has also played in Turkey and Spain since last suiting up for an NBA team.
After testing the draft waters a year ago, French prospect Abdoulaye N’Doye wasn’t sure he’d be drafted and decided to try to improve his stock leading up to his final year of eligibility. So far, N’Doye’s plan to bet on himself has been a success, according to Jeff Greer of The Athletic, who explores how the young guard’s impressive season for Cholet Basket has improved his standing on big boards for 2020.

2019/20 NBA Reverse Standings Update

March 3rd, 2020 at 8:48am CST by Luke Adams

Throughout the 2019/20 NBA season, Hoops Rumors is maintaining a feature that allows you to keep an eye on what the 2020 draft order will look like. Our 2019/20 Reverse Standings tool, which lists the NBA’s 30 teams from worst to first, is updated daily to reflect the outcomes of the previous night’s games.

Our Reverse Standings are essentially a reflection of what 2020’s draft order would look like with no changes to lottery position. We’ve noted each club’s odds of landing the No. 1 overall pick, based on the league’s current lottery format.

In instances where two non-playoff teams or two playoff teams have identical records, the order in our standings isn’t necessarily definitive — for draft purposes, the NBA breaks ties via random drawings, so those drawings would happen at the end of the year. Of course, the 14 non-playoff teams all draft before the 16 playoff teams, even if some non-playoff teams have better records than playoff teams. Our reverse standings account for that.

Traded first-round picks are included via footnotes. For example, the note next to Brooklyn’s pick says that the Nets will send their pick to the Timberwolves if it’s not in the top 14. As of today, Brooklyn has the worst record of any playoff teams, meaning that pick would be No. 15 and would change hands.

The Warriors are currently in the driver’s seat at the “top” of our reverse standings — their 13-48 record giving them a four-game cushion on the second-worst team, the 17-44 Cavaliers. It will be interesting to see whether that gap tightens when Stephen Curry returns.

Although the league’s bottom three teams will all have an equal chance at the No. 1 overall pick (14.0%) and a top-four selection (52.1%), finishing atop the reverse standings would still benefit the Warriors — the NBA’s worst team can’t fall further than the No. 5 pick, while the third-worst team could end up selecting as low as No. 7.

The Thunder‘s spot in the reverse standings is another detail worth noting. Their first-round pick will be sent to the Sixers if it’s not a top-20 selection. Based on Oklahoma City’s over the last few months (the team is 32-13 since starting the season 5-10), that pick currently projects to be No. 21.

Our Reverse Standings tracker can be found at anytime on the right sidebar under “Hoops Rumors Features” on our desktop site, or on the “Features” page in our mobile menu. It’s a great resource not just for monitoring a team’s draft position, but also for keeping an eye on whether or not traded picks with protection will be changing hands in 2020. So be sure to check back often as the season progresses!

Note: Mobile users are advised to turn their phones sideways when viewing the Reverse Standings in order to see team records and lottery odds.

Coronavirus Could Impact Combine, Workouts

March 2nd, 2020 at 6:35pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Concerns over the coronavirus could impact the NBA’s pre-draft combines, on-site workouts and international scouting events, Adrian Wojnarowski and Zach Lowe of ESPN report.

League officials and team executives are monitoring the situations and those events could become more limited in scope, or even cancelled, depending upon the spread of the virus. The global Hoop Summit is scheduled to be held in Portland in April, and the draft combine is, as usual, scheduled to be held in Chicago in May.

The league has already outlined short-term recommendations to its teams. Players are being asked to fist-bump instead of high-fiving fans and avoid handling items from fans such as pens, balls and jerseys to autograph, according to a league memo.

Blazers guard CJ McCollum has already stated in a Twitter post he won’t sign autographs until further notice and many other players are likely to take the same stance.

According to the ESPN report, the NBA and the Players Association have been consulting with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and infectious-disease experts.

To date, there have been no reports of anyone associated with the league contracting the disease. A player who contracted the coronavirus would likely miss two weeks, the ESPN report adds.