Kings Notes: Bagley, Dedmon, Parker, Bazemore
Marvin Bagley‘s status for the rest of the season remains uncertain as he recovers from a sprained left foot, writes James Ham of NBC Sports Bay Area. The second-year forward has barely played since suffering the injury December 26, and the Kings announced last week that he will be re-examined after the All-Star break.
Bagley was wearing a walking boot as he visited the team in the locker room following last night’s game. He talked to the media for the first time since the injury, but wasn’t able to add much clarity to his situation.
“I’m definitely going to try to come back this year, but that’s too far ahead at this point,” Bagley said. “The most important thing for me right now is to make sure I’m healthy. Honestly, who knows, I’m just going one day at a time with this, I’m trying not to think too far ahead. I obviously want to play, I want to be out there. … I’ve only played however many games I’ve played this season over things I can’t control.”
There’s more from Sacramento:
- General manager Vlade Divac admitted the Kings didn’t get what they hoped for from Dewayne Dedmon when they signed him to a three-year, $40MM contract in free agency, Ham relays in a separate story. Sacramento granted Dedmon’s trade request this week, sending him back to Atlanta. “Definitely disappointed for me, for the organization and I’m sure from Dedmon’s side that things didn’t work,” Divac said. “We had good intentions. He didn’t work out. We’re happy to move on and wish Dedmon all the best. Definitely, he wasn’t what we expected.”
- The players the Kings received in the deal with the Hawks are both close to returning from injuries, Ham adds. Jabari Parker may play tomorrow after missing most of the past month with a shoulder impingement, while Alex Len is making progress in his recovery from a hip flexor. In a video posted by Sean Cunningham of KXTV, Parker said he wasn’t surprised to be traded. “I’ve always had a perspective I’m not employed by individual teams; I’m employed by the NBA,” he said.
- The Kings began to turn their season around when they acquired Kent Bazemore from the Trail Blazers, observes Jason Jones of The Athletic. Bazemore has brought energy and attention to detail to the Sacramento defense. “He goes out there and does a lot of the dirty work,” De’Aaron Fox said. “… He does a lot of things for us, and the chemistry we’ve had since he’s been here has been great. It feels like we’ve been playing with him a lot longer than two weeks.”
Northwest Notes: Lillard, Beasley, Nuggets, Dort
Damian Lillard won’t be fined for his post-game tirade against the officials on Friday, reports Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports. The Trail Blazers guard had to be held back following a loss in Utah that included a missed goaltending call with 11.2 seconds remaining on a shot that would have tied the game.
Jazz center Rudy Gobert blocked Lillard’s shot, but it clearly hit the backboard first. Because no call was made, the play couldn’t be challenged or reviewed. Crew chief Josh Tiven admitted after the game that referees got it wrong.
Lillard met with league officials yesterday to discuss the incident.
“We get to the last play of the game, and they miss an easy call,” Lillard said after the game. “And then they tell us that’s an easy no-call, like that was obviously not a goaltend. It cost us a (expletive) game, man.”
There’s more from the Northwest Division:
- Timberwolves guard Malik Beasley, acquired from the Nuggets in a four-team deal this week, brings some much-needed passion to his new team, writes Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic. After word of the trade broke, Beasley flew to Minnesota Wednesday morning and hoped to play that night. However, the trade call wasn’t completed until almost game time and he was held out, even though he insisted to his new coaches that he was ready to go. “I’m like a mini-vet,” Beasley said. “I’m like a young vet for a team, so I have to bring the winning mentality from Denver over here and watch some extra film, make sure guys are on time, making sure I get extra guys in the gym in the morning, things like that. Just pushing each other and holding each other accountable.”
- Nuggets coach Michael Malone is glad that Beasley, along with Juan Hernangomez and Jarred Vanderbilt, all left the team on “positive terms,” relays Mike Singer of The Denver Post. Malone sent messages to his former players last night before their first game in Minnesota. “Change is inevitable in the NBA,” he said. “Players come, players go. Malik and Juancho were here for four years, Jarred for two. Everybody’s leaving on positive terms. I’m happy for those guys. Those guys are going to get opportunities in Minnesota that they deserve.”
- Luguentz Dort has become a starter for the Thunder, but he’s still not practicing with the team, notes Maddie Lee of The Oklahoman. Dort’s two-way contract limits him to 45 days in the NBA, and team officials want to maximize his number of games. “You’ve got to watch a lot of film with him,” coach Billy Donovan said. “You’ve got to catch him up. He’s got to certainly watch and spectate. All those things become important, following the rules in terms of how we can best keep him engaged to what’s going on and what we’re doing.”
Warriors Notes: Wiggins, Curry, Chriss, Luxury Tax
Andrew Wiggins‘ first game with the Warriors may have eased the doubts from those who wonder if he will be a good fit for the organization, writes Anthony Slater of The Athletic. Acquired Thursday in exchange for D’Angelo Russell, Wiggins posted 24 points and five steals Saturday night. Coming to Golden State gives him a chance to change the arc of his career after five-and-a-half seasons with the Timberwolves.
“We lost a lot in Minnesota,” Wiggins said. “So coming here, being part of a winning culture, it’s different. Losing’s never fun. Being here, you can tell by everyone’s attitude, everyone’s approach, everything that’s everywhere, they’re winners. That’s something I’ve wanted to be my whole career.”
Slater points out that one of the benefits of making the Russell deal now instead of hoping for a better return this summer is that Wiggins has 30 games to adjust to the Warriors’ style of play. Ideally, he will evolve into a new version of Harrison Barnes, who was able to play power forward in brief stretches next to Draymond Green at center.
“A huge part of this trade is we know Andrew is a better positional fit for us than D’Angelo was,” coach Steve Kerr said. “… To be able to get a valuable wing player is not easy. There’s very few of them in the draft according to scouts and very few of them available in free agency. Wings are hard to come by. Just by bringing in a positional fit, a guy who has a lot of talent, I think the move makes sense.”
There’s more Warriors news this morning:
- Stephen Curry confirmed on last night’s broadcast that he’s targeting the first week of March to return from his broken hand (video from NBA.com). Curry played just four games before suffering the injury in late October. He called his rehab “a work in progress.”
- Marquese Chriss gave himself flexibility by signing for two years rather than three, tweets Bobby Marks of ESPN. Chris will be just 24 years old when he becomes a free agent in 2021.
- After reshaping the roster at the trade deadline, general manager Bob Myers talked about the importance of getting under the luxury tax line for this season (video link from Slater). “To see the numbers of being a repeater the level we would’ve been, the numbers got pretty high,” Myers said. “If we would’ve drafted in top five … the (taxpayer mid-level exception) … the traded player exception, all of a sudden you’re talking high 200 (millions).”
Clippers Notes: Morris, Beverley, Noah, Collison
The Clippers believe newly-acquired Marcus Morris will have a smooth transition to his new team, writes Mirjam Swanson of The Orange County Register. Morris was averaging a career-best 19.6 points per game with the Knicks and shooting 43.9% from beyond the arc before Thursday’s trade. Clippers officials expect him to provide an upgrade offensively over Maurice Harkless, who was sent to New York in the deal.
“There may be no better fit than Marcus,” general manager Michael Winger said.
In addition to his scoring prowess, Morris brings another dose of on-court toughness that the organization prides itself on. He’s joining a pair of former teammates in Patrick Beverley and Patrick Patterson, who played alongside him in Houston.
“My brother back with me. It’s on,” Beverley tweeted after the trade was announced.
There’s more Clippers news to pass along:
- Coach Doc Rivers said the team did plenty of background work on Morris before the deal and was pleased with the responses, tweets Jovah Buha of The Athletic. “A lot of research goes into when you make a trade, especially with this team and where we’re trying to go,” Rivers said. “You can’t take any chances. You have to make sure guys are a good fit. … All the intel we had was very positive.” Rivers plans to experiment with some smaller lineups using Morris and JaMychal Green surrounded by three shooters (Twitter link).
- Meeting with reporters tonight, Morris said the Clippers made a positive impression when he met with them in free agency, even though he wound up with the Knicks, relays Andrew Greif of The Los Angeles Times (Twitter link). “I could tell that the main goal here was trying to win a championship and that’s something that I wanted to be part of,” Morris said. “Obviously last summer some things didn’t go the way I thought it would, but we here now, $15MM richer.”
- Joakim Noah remains an option for the Clippers, according to Sean Deveney of Heavy.com. A minor injury forced Noah to cancel a workout with L.A. just before training camp opened in September, but the 34-year-old center has been targeting a return once buyout season began. A source tells Heavy that Noah is fully healthy and “has been working on maintaining his conditioning and is hopeful that he’ll play this season.”
- Even if Darren Collison decides against returning to the NBA this season, that may not mark the end of his career, according to Sean Deveney of Heavy. Collison, who is expected to decide soon and prefers to join the Clippers or Lakers, could put off his comeback until summer.
NBA G League Assignments/Recalls: 2/8/20
Here are Saturday’s G League assignments and recalls from around the league:
- The Wizards assigned Anzejs Pasecniks, Gary Payton II and Admiral Schofield to their Capital City affiliate for tonight’s game. (Twitter link).
- The Thunder assigned Deonte Burton and Isaiah Roby to Oklahoma City Blue, the team announced in a press release.
- The Knicks assigned Ignas Brazdeikis to Westchester, according to the G League transactions log.
Wayne Ellington Considers Buyout With Knicks
Wayne Ellington is talking to his agent, Mark Bartlestein, about working out a buyout deal with the Knicks, according to Marc Berman of The New York Post.
The 32-year-old shooting guard has appeared in just 25 games after signing as a free agent over the summer. His $8MM salary for next season is partially guaranteed for just $1MM, so his days in New York appear numbered.
“There will be a decision to make,’’ Ellington said at today’s shootaround. “I’m just listening to my agent at this point. I come in here, come into work every single day like it’s a normal day. Listen and get advice and take it from there.’’
The Knicks are expected to accommodate Ellington if he decides he wants out, Berman adds. Ellington’s playing time has been cut significantly since Mike Miller took over as interim head coach and Reggie Bullock returned from injury. The team showcased him a little bit on Thursday against the Magic, and Ellington responded with 12 points in 18 minutes.
Berman suggests the Lakers, who Ellington spent the 2014/15 season with, could have some interest.
“There’s a lot of stuff out there,’’ Ellington said. “There’s a lot of different things floating around for options. It’s part of the business. It’s part of the game. There’s nothing imminent right now. There’s nothing for sure. I’m going to keep pushing forward. We won three games in a row, try to keep that going.’’
Berman shares a few more buyout tidbits in his story:
- The Knicks could have obtained rookies Terance Mann and Mfiondu Kabengele along with Maurice Harkless in Thursday’s trade that sent Marcus Morris to the Clippers, but they opted for Harkless and a package of draft picks because they wanted to avoid waiving players right away. New York has a full 15-man roster and would have needed to open two spots before the deal could have been finalized. Berman suggests that management is either counting on saving money with buyouts or just wants the veterans to stay for leadership.
- Bobby Portis, another Bartlestein client, is also a buyout candidate. The Knicks have a $15.75MM team option next season on Portis, who was reportedly included in a trade offer to the Warriors for D’Angelo Russell.
- Buying out Ellington would give the Knicks a better chance to evaluate Damyean Dotson before he enters free agency this summer.
Five Key Stories: 2/2/20 – 2/8/20
If you missed any of this past week’s biggest headlines from around the NBA, we’ve got you covered with our Week in Review. Here are some of the most noteworthy stories from the last seven days:
The Grizzlies finally found a taker for Andre Iguodala as the NBA’s trade deadline arrived this week. The veteran forward, who hasn’t played since the Warriors sent him to Memphis over the summer in a cost-cutting move, was shipped to Miami for Justise Winslow, Dion Waiters and James Johnson, but not the first-round pick the Grizzlies had been insisting they wanted in return.
The Rockets, Timberwolves, Hawks and Nuggets put together this season’s largest trade, with 12 players changing teams. The biggest names involved were Robert Covington, who went from Minnesota to Houston, and Clint Capela, whom the Rockets sent to Atlanta.
The Wolves added a player they’ve been chasing since the offseason by trading Andrew Wiggins to the Warriors for D’Angelo Russell. In addition to providing a long-term solution at point guard, Russell is a close friend of franchise cornerstone Karl-Anthony Towns, who expressed frustration this week with the team’s frequent losing.
The Clippers added an important piece for the postseason by acquiring veteran forward Marcus Morris from the Knicks in a three-team deal. The Clippers outbid their cross-town rivals, as the Lakers refused to include Kyle Kuzma in their final offer.
The Cavaliers picked up Andre Drummond from the Pistons in exchange for a pair of expiring contracts and a second-round pick. Drummond has indicated that he will opt in to his $28.75MM salary for next season, giving Cleveland a potential All-Star in the middle.
Here are 10 more noteworthy headlines from around the basketball world this week:
- The Knicks fired team president Steve Mills and hired player agent Leon Rose as head of basketball operations. Despite rumors that the franchise was expected to pursue Raptors executive Masai Ujiri, there was pessimism that the move was possible without a huge price tag.
- Owner James Dolan issued a statement that he won’t sell the Knicks. Dolan has become unpopular with fans during a string of losing seasons, and there was a loud “Sell the team!” chant at the end of a recent loss.
- Dillon Brooks received a contract extension from the Grizzlies. The move wraps up Brooks, who would have been a restricted free agent this summer, for the next three seasons.
- Former Pacers guard Darren Collison is nearing a decision on whether to return to the NBA. The Lakers and Clippers are considered to be the favorites to sign him.
- The Suns listened to offers for Kelly Oubre before the deadline. Although no deal was made, it’s surprising that Oubre’s name was leaked as a potential trade target.
- As the top vote-getters, LeBron James and Giannis Antetokounmpo held their draft for the All-Star Game. Lakers teammate Anthony Davis was James’ first pick, and Antetokounmpo followed by taking Joel Embiid.
- Participants were also announced for the 3-point and slam dunk contests, along with the skills challenge.
- The Wizards don’t expect John Wall to play this season, general manager Tommy Sheppard confirmed.
- The Hawks waived Chandler Parsons, who suffered serious injuries in a car accident last month.
- RJ Hampton left his Australian team and returned to the United States to get ready for the draft.
Rockets Tried To Trade For DeAndre Jordan
The Rockets attempted to add the Nets to their four-team trade this week, hoping to acquire center DeAndre Jordan, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reveals in an Instagram video.
Brooklyn turned down the offer and elected to hold onto the veteran center, but Wojnarowski’s report indicates two things about the Rockets. The team may not have intended to fully commit to the small-ball approach it has used since trading away Clint Capela, and owner Tilman Fertitta was apparently willing to back up his statement that moves won’t be determined by the luxury tax.
Jordan makes $9.88MM this year and is signed for the next three seasons at a total cost of about $30MM. He’s coming off the bench for the Nets and averaging 7.9 points and 9.6 rebounds per night.
Because of how the trade was structured, the Rockets had the flexibility to add up to $12MM in salary before it was finalized. Fertitta gave general manager Daryl Morey the freedom to expand the deal, Wojnarowski adds, even though it would have cemented Houston as a taxpaying team.
Woj doesn’t say what the Rockets were offering the Nets in terms of players and draft picks.
Clippers Waive Isaiah Thomas
As expected, the Clippers have waived veteran guard Isaiah Thomas, two days after acquiring him from the Wizards in a three-team trade, tweets Shams Charania of The Athletic.
The move gives L.A. two open roster spots as it prepares to compete in the buyout market. The Clippers are expected to be leading contenders, along with the Lakers, for ex-Pacers guard Darren Collison if he decides to make an NBA comeback.
Thomas was sent to L.A. as part of the Marcus Morris deal, which was announced just before Thursday’s deadline. He averaged 12.2 points and 3.7 assists per night in 40 games for Washington, starting 37 of them.
The Clippers were Thomas’s fifth team in the past three seasons as he tries to work his way back into a stable situation after a devastating hip injury. He has a $1.62MM salary on a veteran’s minimum deal, so any team that claims him off waivers wouldn’t need cap room or a trade exception.
Nuggets Notes: Trade Deadline, Bates-Diop, Health, Bench
When the Nuggets traded bench players Malik Beasley, Juan Hernangomez and Jarred Vanderbilt in a series of deadline deals this week, the team was actually improving its long-term outlook by shoring up its collection of draft picks, Mike Singer of the Denver Post contends.
Beasley and Hernangomez, free agents in 2020, could not finalize extensions with Denver last October. After that, it became clear both players would seek more playing time elsewhere this summer, in Singer’s view.
The Nuggets were able to secure the Rockets’ 2020 first-round draft pick, plus intriguing youth in Keita Bates-Diop, Jordan McRae, and Noah Vonleh to shore up their bench. Extracting a first-round pick for a few little-used players destined to depart anyway was a smart play, Singer argues.
There’s more out of Denver:
- Bates-Diop, the lengthy, rangy No. 48 pick out of OSU by the Timberwolves in 2018, could be a valuable addition as a multifaceted forward off the Nuggets’ bench, Kyle Fredrickson of the Denver Post notes.
- The Nuggets hope to finally reach full health after the All-Star break. “Paul [Millsap] is right there,” Denver president of basketball operations Tim Connelly told Denver’s Altitude Sports Radio (92.5 FM), according to DNVR Sports’ Adam Mares (Twitter link). “Michael [Porter Jr.] is getting right there. I think Mason [Plumlee] will be after the All-Star break…Will [Barton] is just banged up… I think coming out of the all-star break you should see a fully healthy roster.”
- The newest bench assets should serve to enhance a backup roster whose play has improved in 2020, according to Alex Labidou of Nuggets.com.