Rodney Hood Expects To Return To Trail Blazers
Rodney Hood, whose 2019/20 season came to an early end in December when he suffered a torn Achilles tendon, fully expects to stick with the Trail Blazers for at least one more season, as Jamie Goldberg of The Oregonian details.
“One thing I know is that I’ll be in a Portland Trail Blazers uniform next year,” Hood said. “As far as the contract and all that type of stuff, that will work itself out when that time comes, but I fully expect to be in a Portland Trail Blazers uniform next year.”
Hood’s comments don’t come as a surprise — he has a $6MM player option for the 2020/21 season, and since he won’t be fully recovered from that Achilles injury by the start of the offseason, it wouldn’t make sense for him to opt for free agency. The only scenario in which he wouldn’t return to Portland for next season would be if the Blazers decide to trade him.
As for Hood’s recovery process, it was interrupted to some extent by the suspension of the NBA season, but the 27-year-old has been granted permission to continue visiting the Blazers’ practice facility for rehab purposes.
As Goldberg writes, Portland’s president of basketball operations Neil Olshey and director of player health and performance Jesse Elis worked with the NBA to ensure that Hood can continue rehabbing with physical therapist and sports scientist Logan Sullivan, as long as they follow enhanced safety measures.
“I’ve been working out with Logan three days a week,” Hood said. “It’s just one-on-one contact. We can’t be in group settings or nothing like that. Usually, when it’s me and him working together, it’s just us two in the weight room or the training room. We’re getting a lot of work in. It’s been very good. I’ve been making a lot of progress, even with everything going on.”
Hood, 27, has been the Blazers’ starting small forward prior to his injury, averaging 11.0 PPG and 3.4 RPG with an impressive .506/.493/.778 shooting line in 21 games (29.5 MPG).
Washington’s Jaden McDaniels Declares For Draft
Washington freshman power forward Jaden McDaniels has declared for the 2020 NBA draft, announcing his decision on Twitter late on Tuesday night. Although McDaniels has the option of testing the waters without forgoing his eligibility, his statement suggests he plans to go pro.
McDaniels was the Huskies’ second-leading scorer in his first and only college season, averaging 13.0 PPG, 5.8 RPG, 2.1 APG, and 1.4 BPG with a .405/.339/.763 shooting line in 31 games (31.1 MPG).
The 19-year-old currently ranks 16th overall on ESPN’s big board, including third among power forwards. In his scouting report, ESPN’s Mike Schmitz lauds the youngster’s ability to play above the rim, his versatile offensive attack, and the defensive upside generated by his agility and size.
McDaniels does need to add some weight to his frame and improve his decision-making, according to Schmitz, who notes that scouts see the 6’10” forward as “more of a long-term prospect” rather than someone who can make an immediate impact. While an up-and-down freshman season hurt McDaniels’ stock a little, it’s worth pointing out that he ranked atop one of Jonathan Givony’s first 2020 mock drafts back in January 2019.
McDaniels is the second Washington underclassman to declare for the draft this spring, joining fellow freshman Isaiah Stewart.
Adam Silver, Mark Cuban Among Potential White House Consultants
United States President Donald Trump addressed the nation earlier today, speaking about how he plans to re-open the economy and detailing some steps he will take that would hopefully result in the NBA and other leagues booting back up later this year.
“We have to get our sports back,” Trump said (h/t Kurt Helin of NBC Sports).
He added that he plans on talking to upwards of 120 people – including NBA commissioner Adam Silver and Mavericks owner Mark Cuban – about the best way to re-open the economy and restart sports. The advisory panel, which includes executives and leaders from many industries, also includes a number of other sports commissioners and team owners, including the NFL’s Roger Goodell and MLB’s Rob Manfred.
“We’re not going to rip out every other seat in (stadiums),” Trump said in discussing how to get fans back to sporting events.
All the commissioners of the North American sports leagues recently conducted a call with Trump. All parties want the leagues to start back up, but Trump said he needs to get the “all clear” from officials first.
In addition to the league’s conversations with the White House, the NBA is consulting with health experts on the best way to get back up and running.
Jeremiah Robinson-Earl Alters Draft Decision Because Of Coronavirus Concerns
Jeremiah Robinson-Earl will not enter the 2020 draft after all. Head coach Jay Wright had previously said the Villanova forward would test the draft waters, but Robinson-Earl provided Wright with his final decision earlier this week, as the University’s website relays.
“A few days ago Jeremiah called me and told me he wanted to just continue working out and concentrate on getting better,” Wright said. “He said ‘ I don’t want to bother with the NBA stuff, so I just want to say I’m coming back. He didn’t want to make a big deal out of this.”
Wright added that JRE had gotten some feedback on his game from the NBA early entry committee and it was likely that he would have been drafted.
Robinson-Earl, who is No. 64 on ESPN’s big board, said the uncertainty surrounding the coronavirus and how the NBA will respond to it played a role in his decision.
“The uncertainty of what the NBA is going to do did a play a part in this,” the forward said. “I just feel like I don’t want to worry a lot about that with the times we’re all going through right now. I just want to focus on getting better, going back to Villanova and getting my mindset on that.
“I did get some feedback [from the NBA] and it was good feedback. I just felt like I wanted to focus on being a better overall player. The feedback was that I would have gotten drafted but I feel like I can put myself in a better position just by coming back.”
Central Notes: Pistons, Beasley, S. Brown, Brogdon
The Pistons will enter the NBA offseason looking for upgrades in free agency and James Edwards III of The Athletic examines some restricted free agent options in the upcoming draft.
Malik Beasley is among the possibilities suggested by Edwards, though Detroit may have to overpay if the franchise hopes to land the shooting guard. Beasley came to Minnesota in the Robert Covington deal at the trade deadline and the Wolves have the right to match any offer sheet he receives.
Here’s more from the Central Division:
- Sterling Brown is another possible target, Edwards notes in the same piece. Brown has shown flashes in limited minutes for the Bucks and it’s feasible that the 25-year-old could perform better with more run.
- Malcolm Brogdon was nursing a quad injury prior to the NBA’s hiatus, but Indiana’s prized offseason addition has informed Pacers president of basketball operations Kevin Pritchard that he’s 100 percent recovered, as Scott Agness of The Athletic tweets.
- If the season resumes, the Pacers may benefit from a healthy backcourt, J. Michael of the Indianapolis Star writes. In addition to Brogdon healing up, Victor Oladipo would have more time to get back to top form. Doug McDermott, who was nursing a big toe injury, has already returned to full health.
Trevor Booker Announces Retirement
Veteran NBA forward Trevor Booker is officially calling it a career, publishing a letter on Twitter today to announce his retirement as a player.
“THANK YOU BASKETBALL!” Booker wrote within his retirement announcement. “I have no clue where I would have ended up without you, but watch where you take me. I hope you guys continue to watch my journey because it’s definitely not over, it’s just the beginning.”
The 23rd overall pick in the 2010 draft, Booker spent his first four NBA seasons with the Wizards before spending time with the Jazz, Nets, Sixers, and Pacers. He appeared in a total of 532 regular season games, primarily as a backup, averaging 6.9 PPG, 5.5 RPG, and 1.1 APG. He also saw action in a total of 16 postseason contests for Washington and Indiana.
Booker, 32, last appeared in the NBA during the 2017/18 campaign, playing a total of 68 games for the Nets, 76ers, and Pacers, averaging 6.3 PPG and 4.7 RPG in 17.0 MPG. After failing to catch on with an NBA team in the summer of 2018, he signed with China’s Shanxi Brave Dragons, but left the team early in the season and returned stateside to undergo foot surgery.
Booker worked out for NBA teams last summer and was said to still be on some clubs’ radars as recently as January. However, after another season without an NBA opportunity, he apparently decided it was time to hang up his sneakers.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Northwest Notes: Blazers, Aldridge, Nuggets, Nader
When Damian Lillard took over the Trail Blazers‘ Twitter account on Monday evening for a Q&A with fans, most of the questions and his responses were fairly innocuous. However, one of Lillard’s answers had to be deleted after the fact.
As Nico Martinez of Fadeaway World details (hat tip to NBC Sports), when asked which former teammate he’d like to have on the current Trail Blazers roster, Lillard replied, “I’d add LaMarcus (Aldridge).”
That sort of comment wouldn’t be a big deal if Lillard said it during a Zoom or Instagram Live session, but the NBA may not take kindly to him making it on the Trail Blazers’ official Twitter account. The league introduced new anti-tampering measures last year and Lillard’s tweet – by way of the Blazers’ account – arguably violates those rules.
Although the tweet has since been removed, it’s sure to fuel speculation about an eventual reunion between the Trail Blazers and Aldridge, which has been a topic of discussion multiple times in recent years. For what it’s worth, Aldridge himself responded to Lillard’s tweet with an eyes emoji.
Here’s more from around the Northwest:
- Once it became clear that Nuggets general manager Arturas Karnisovas wanted the Bulls‘ head of basketball operations job, president of basketball operations Tim Connelly organized mock interview sessions to help him make a good impression in his actual meeting, per Mike Singer of The Denver Post. “It was amazing,” said Karnisovas, who was officially hired by Chicago on Monday. “It’s a prep, but that’s what I’m all about. I like to be all prepared. We prepared for all the questions and we covered all the bases. He helped me out.”
- Nick Kosmider and John Hollinger of The Athetic take an in-depth look at the state of the Nuggets, examining what steps are necessary to turn Denver from a strong playoff team into a legitimate title contender.
- In his third NBA season and second with the Thunder, Abdel Nader improved his shooting efficiency and made major strides on the defensive end, writes Logan Meyer of Daily Thunder. Oklahoma City is in position to keep Nader for one more year before he reaches free agency — he has a minimum-salary team option for 2020/21.
2020/21 Salary Cap Preview: Chicago Bulls
Hoops Rumors is looking ahead at the 2020/21 salary cap situations for all 30 NBA teams. Due to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on the NBA, it’s impossible to know yet where the cap for 2020/21 will land. Given the league’s lost revenue, we’re assuming for now that it will stay the same as the ’19/20 cap, but it’s entirely possible it will end up higher or lower than that.
Viewed as a potential playoff sleeper pick in the Eastern Conference entering the 2019/20 season, the Bulls made little forward progress. Presumed building block Lauri Markkanen had his worst year as a pro, newcomer Thaddeus Young didn’t fit in as planned, and starting small forward Otto Porter missed nearly the entire season with a foot injury.
The disappointing showing resulted in some front office changes for the Bulls, who fired Gar Forman, reassigned John Paxson, and hired Arturas Karnisovas as their new head of basketball operations. With 12 of 15 Chicago’s players under contract for 2020/21, Karnisovas may not have a ton of cap flexibility to make significant changes right away, so it will be interesting to see how many of the current pieces he retains and how soon he looks to put his own stamp on the roster.
Here’s where things stand for the Bulls financially in 2020/21, as we continue our Salary Cap Preview series:
Guaranteed Salary
- Zach LaVine ($19,500,000)
- Thaddeus Young ($13,545,000)
- Tomas Satoransky ($10,000,000)
- Cristiano Felicio ($7,529,020)
- Lauri Markkanen ($6,731,508)
- Coby White ($5,572,680)
- Wendell Carter ($5,448,840)
- Ryan Arcidiacono ($3,000,000)
- Chandler Hutchison ($2,443,440)
- Luke Kornet ($2,250,000)
- Daniel Gafford ($1,517,981)
- Total: $77,538,469
Player Options
- Otto Porter ($28,489,239)
- Total: $28,489,239
Team Options
- None
Non-Guaranteed Salary
- None
Restricted Free Agents
- Kris Dunn ($7,091,457 qualifying offer / $16,044,021 cap hold): Bird rights
- Denzel Valentine ($4,642,800 qualifying offer / $10,132,706 cap hold): Bird rights
- Shaquille Harrison ($2,025,705 qualifying offer / $2,025,705 cap hold): Early Bird rights
- Adam Mokoka (two-way qualifying offer / $1,445,697 cap hold): Non-Bird rights
- Total (cap holds): $29,648,129
Unrestricted Free Agents / Other Cap Holds
- No. 4 overall pick ($7,068,360)
- Max Strus ($1,445,697): Non-Bird rights
- Total: $8,514,057
Offseason Cap Outlook
With just shy of $78MM in guaranteed money on their 2020/21 books for 11 players, the Bulls seemingly could create cap room. However, adding Porter’s $28MM+ player option – which he’ll almost certainly exercise – and the cap hold for their No. 4 pick eliminates that potential space in a hurry.
As such, the Bulls figure to operate as an over-the-cap team, though they shouldn’t be anywhere close to the tax line. That means the club will have the full mid-level exception and bi-annual exception available this offseason.
Cap Exceptions Available
- Mid-level exception: $9,258,000 1
- Bi-annual exception: $3,623,000 1
Footnotes
- This is a projected value.
Note: Minimum-salary and rookie-scale cap holds are based on the salary cap and could increase or decrease depending on where the cap lands.
Salary information from Basketball Insiders and Early Bird Rights was used in the creation of this post. Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Follow Pro Football Rumors For Latest NFL Draft Updates
There’s no stopping the NFL offseason. Whether you’re a hardcore football fan or a casual Sunday watcher, you can follow every pick, trade, and rumbling with Pro Football Rumors (@pfrumors on Twitter).
The “fully virtual” NFL Draft is just around the corner with several potential superstars on the board. At No. 1, the Bengals seem keyed in on quarterback Joe Burrow, who threw for 5,671 yards, 60 touchdowns (!), and just six interceptions in his final year at LSU. Then, at No. 2, the Redskins could snag Chase Young, an absolute sack machine who could be a generational talent in the making.
Beyond that, the draft is wide open: The Lions are listening to offers for the No. 3 pick and the Giants are “open for business” at No. 4. The Dolphins, at No. 5, are one of several teams that could be tempted to move up for their next QB, which could be Alabama’s Tua Tagovailoa or Oregon’s Justin Herbert.
For the latest on the draft, free agency, and more from this wild NFL offseason, stay tuned to Pro Football Rumors and follow along on Twitter, @pfrumors.
Heat Notes: Nunn, Culture, Dragic, Crowder
Ja Morant is considered the consensus frontrunner for the NBA’s 2019/20 Rookie of the Year award, and figures to be a unanimous or near-unanimous winner when voting eventually takes place. However, one person who’s not on board with the consensus choice is Heat guard Kendrick Nunn, who believes he should be this season’s Rookie of the Year, as he tells Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun-Sentinel.
“I think people will say that (Morant) is Rookie of the Year, but I don’t believe it,” Nunn said. “The most value should be in the wins. And we’re both starting guards on teams, and our team has been holding it down. We’re a playoff team, so go ahead and give that Rookie of the Year to Kendrick Nunn.”
While there’s no chance Nunn beats out Morant in the final vote, the Heat’s starting point guard is certainly worthy of a spot on voters’ Rookie of the Year ballots. He has averaged 15.6 PPG and 3.4 APG with a solid .448/.362/.837 shooting line in 62 games (29.8 MPG).
Still, Morant’s numbers (17.6 PPG, 6.9 APG) have been better in a similar role and while the Grizzlies’ record isn’t as strong as the Heat’s, Memphis is still a playoff team in the West. Perhaps most importantly, Nunn is a complementary option on a Miami roster that features multiple All-Stars (Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo), while Morant has been the Grizzlies’ MVP this season.
Here’s more on the Heat:
- After a handful of up-and-down years in Miami following LeBron James‘ departure, the 2019/20 season represented “rebirth, regeneration, (and) renewal” for the Heat and their culture, according to Ira Winderman of The Sun-Sentinel. In Winderman’s view, it has been a long time since the Heat looked so different from one year to the next, which could be attributed to the departures of players like Hassan Whiteside and Dion Waiters, along with the arrivals of Butler, Tyler Herro, and others.
- While there appears to be mutual interest between the Heat and Goran Dragic in extending their relationship beyond this season, Dragic will be one of the top point guards on the free agent market and he’s no stranger to relocating, Winderman writes for the Sun-Sentinel. This will be the first time that Dragic has reached free agency since he signed a five-year deal with Miami in 2015, just a few months after being traded to the club.
- In a separate Sun-Sentinel mailbag, Winderman wonders how the Heat’s decision on Jae Crowder in free agency will be impacted by the fact that the team only really got to evaluate him for a month following his arrival at the trade deadline. As Winderman notes, Miami has Bird rights on all its key free agents – including Crowder, Dragic, Derrick Jones, and Meyers Leonard – so it could be a matter of picking and choosing which players the team is most comfortable investing in — and which ones won’t require commitments that compromise the Heat’s 2021 cap flexibility.