NBA Hires Malik Rose, David Booth As VPs Of Basketball Ops
The NBA has officially hired executives Malik Rose and David Booth as vice presidents of basketball operations, the league announced today in a press release.
According to the NBA, Rose and Booth – who both begin today and will report to president of league operations Byron Spruell – will be “responsible for interfacing directly with teams and players regarding league programs, rules, new initiatives, and competitive elements.”
Both Rose and Booth previously worked in team front offices. Rose recently left his position as an assistant general manager for the Pistons, while Booth had been the director of player personnel for the Pelicans from 2014-19. Rose and Booth each played professional basketball as well, though Booth spent his playing career in international leagues rather than the NBA.
Rose and Booth were hired after an “extensive” search and interview process, Spruell told Marc J. Spears of The Undefeated.
Heat’s Gabe Vincent Named NBAGL Most Improved Player
Heat two-way player Gabe Vincent has been named the NBA G League’s Most Improved Player for the 2019/20 season, the league announced today in a press release.
Vincent, who went undrafted out of UC Santa Barbara in 2018, played for the Stockton Kings – Sacramento’s G League affiliate – in his first professional season, averaging 8.4 PPG, 2.4 APG, and 2.2 RPG on .382/.291/.710 shooting in 25 games (17.8 MPG).
He took a major step forward in 2019/20, first for Stockton and then for the Sioux Falls Skyforce – Miami’s NBAGL affiliate – after he signed a two-way deal with the Heat in January. In 31 total games (29.3 MPG), Vincent recorded 21.1 PPG, 3.1 RPG, and 2.1 APG with a .450/.406/.923 shooting line. The 6’3″ guard also made his NBA debut earlier this year, appearing in six total games for the Heat.
The runners-up in the G League’s Most Improved Player vote are also under contract with NBA teams. Raptors two-way player Paul Watson finished second, with Warriors guard Mychal Mulder coming in third.
Raptors Travel To Florida For Pre-Disney Camp
The Raptors confirmed today in a press release that select players and staff members are traveling to Fort Myers, Florida to prepare for the resumption of the 2019/20 season. According to Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca (Twitter link), most Raptors players are already in Florida or are en route.
Although NBA teams aren’t expected to report to the league’s campus at Walt Disney World for training camps until around July 7, the Raptors are headed to Florida early in order to get their international travel across the U.S./Canada border out of the way. Training in Toronto would have put the team at risk of being subject to a longer quarantine period once they traveled to Orlando in July.
According to today’s announcement, the Raptors will remain in the Fort Myers area until going to Disney in July. While the press release doesn’t mention it, the expectation is that the team will use the Alico Arena in Florida Gulf Coast University as its practice facility for the time being, per an earlier report from Shams Charania of The Athletic.
No group workouts will be permitted until teams report to Disney next month, so for now, the Raptors will continue to conduct individual workouts. Players and staffers are expected to remain at their hotels, leaving only for workouts and other “essential activities,” as Josh Lewenberg of TSN.ca notes (via Twitter).
Davis Bertans To Sit Out NBA Restart
Wizards forward Davis Bertans has decided to sit out when the NBA resumes its season next month, according to Adrian Wojnarowski and Tim Bontemps of ESPN (via Twitter).
As Wojnarowski notes, Bertans has suffered a pair of ACL injuries in the past and will be entering free agency this offseason on the heels of a career year. It’s not clear whether Bertans has any additional safety concerns related to COVID-19, but if he suffers an injury this summer, it could diminish his value as he seeks a new contract in the coming months.
Of course, it’s also worth noting that – with or without Bertans – the Wizards aren’t exactly championship contenders. Already missing star point guard John Wall, Washington will enter the restart trailing the Magic for the No. 8 seed in the East by 5.5 games. In order to earn a playoff spot, the Wizards would have to gain at least two games on Orlando or Brooklyn during the eight seeding contests, then win two consecutive games in a play-in tournament.
According to Wojnarowski, the Wizards “fully support” Bertans’ decision, which is viewed as a preventative measure. The veteran sharpshooter is still expected to participate in pre-Orlando training with the team, Woj adds.
Bertans, 27, averaged a career-best 15.4 PPG, 4.5 RPG, and 1.7 APG in 54 games (29.3 MPG) during his first season as a Wizard, making an impressive 42.4% of 8.7 three-point attempts per game. The Wizards, who turned down offers for Bertans at the trade deadline in February, view re-signing him as a top offseason priority, says Wojnarowski.
As for the short term, the Wizards will be eligible to sign a substitute player to replace Bertans in Orlando, without needing to open up a roster spot for that replacement. Once the franchise signs a substitute, Bertans would become ineligible to return this season.
Bertans will also forfeit 1/92.6th of his salary for each game he misses this summer — based on his $7MM salary for 2019/20, that would normally work out to about $605K for eight games. However, Bobby Marks of ESPN tweets that the actual figure will likely be close to $520K, since it will take into account previous reductions.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Knicks To Interview Mike Brown For Head Coach Job
The Knicks will interview Warriors associate head coach Mike Brown for their head coaching vacancy, reports Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link). New York’s list of coaching candidates has now cracked double-digits, with Brown representing the club’s 10th known interviewee.
Brown has served as an NBA coach for more than two decades, holding assistant roles in Washington, San Antonio, and Indiana to start his career. He became the Cavaliers’ head coach in 2005 and led the team to a 305-187 (.620) record over the next five seasons, earning a spot in the 2007 Finals and winning a Coach of the Year award in 2009.
After departing the Cavs in 2010, Brown over as head coach of the Lakers for the lockout season of 2011/12, leading the team to a 41-25 (.621) record. He was let go just five games into the following season when L.A. got off to a 1-4 start, and rejoined the Cavs for a single season in 2013/14.
Since 2016, Brown has been a top assistant on Steve Kerr‘s staff in Golden State. Brown, who interviewed with the Knicks in 2018 before they hired David Fizdale, is also coaching the Nigerian national team that will compete in next year’s Olympics in Tokyo.
The full list of the 10 known candidates for the Knicks’ head coaching position can be found within our tracker. According to Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic (Twitter link), the team started conducting phone calls with those candidates last week.
Top 2021 Prospect Cade Cunningham Sticks With Oklahoma State
Cade Cunningham, projected to be the potential No. 1 pick in the 2021 NBA draft, has decided to maintain his commitment to Oklahoma State for the 2020/21 season, he announced today on Twitter (video link).
After Cunningham made his original commitment to Oklahoma State, the school was sanctioned by the NCAA for recruiting violations. A 2021 postseason ban was among the penalties levied upon the Cowboys, leading to speculation that Cunningham may opt for a different program or even take the G League professional path. However, he has decided to play for Oklahoma State after all, despite not getting the chance to participate in next year’s NCAA tournament, barring an appeal that reverses the one-year ban.
According to Jeff Goodman of Stadium (Twitter link), Cunningham never seriously considered joining the G League option, having turned down a $500K+ offer to play for the new Select Team along with Jalen Green, Daishen Nix, and others.
Although Green edged out Cunningham on ESPN’s list of 2020’s top 100 high school recruits, draft guru Jonathan Givony has Cunningham ranked as the top player on his board for the 2021 draft. Givony noted in his most recent ’21 mock that both Cunningham and Green would likely go No. 1 in 2020’s draft if they were eligible.
A 6’7″ point guard, Cunningham was named the Naismith Prep Player of the Year in 2020, leading Montverde Academy in Florida to a 25-0 record with averages of 13.9 PPG, 6.4 APG, and 4.2 RPG.
Western Notes: Green, Sarver, Grizzlies, Jokic
Although the veteran big man struggled throughout most of the season, Warriors coach Steve Kerr expects to see the very best version of Draymond Green next year, recently explaining his thoughts on KNBR’s “Tolbert, Kreuger and Brooks” podcast (hat tip to Sportando).
“I think this year was really frustrating for him offensively, and then as a competitor, it was frustrating for him just losing night after night,” Kerr said. “It’s just too difficult in this league to try to win games when you’re that shorthanded. I think he dealt with the frustration. He definitely boiled over several times, got kicked out. But, overall, I just thought he handled himself well.”
“He made it through, and he is getting a much-needed rest,” Kerr continued. “And I think we’re going to see the very best version of Draymond next year, whenever next season starts. I feel really good about where he’s going to be mentally and physically.”
Green posted averages of 8.0 points, 6.2 rebounds, and 6.2 assists per game on 39% shooting from the floor and 28% shooting from deep this season. By comparison, he averaged 11 points, 7.6 rebounds and 7.3 assists per contest during Golden State’s last title run in 2017/18, shooting 45% from the floor.
The Warriors dealt with a series of injuries this season, playing without Klay Thompson and losing Stephen Curry to an injury in late October. The team finished with the NBA’s worst record at 15-50 and is among eight clubs that weren’t invited to the league’s restart in Orlando next month.
Here are some other notes out of the Western Conference today:
- Suns owner Robert Sarver wanted to own an NBA franchise in Las Vegas, Jeremy Cluff of the Arizona Republic writes. Sarver, who purchased the Suns in 2004, explained that then-commissioner David Stern pointed him toward Phoenix after Sarver initially expressed interest in Vegas.
- The Grizzlies have hired Austin Spurs assistant Blake Ahearn to their coaching staff, the team announced in a press release. Ahearn is the sixth assistant coach on Memphis’ staff, leaving the Spurs’ minor league affiliate in Austin to accept the position. He’ll participate in various player development efforts with the Grizzlies, including shooting development.
- Mike Singer of the Denver Post examines whether Nikola Jokic‘s sudden weight loss could negatively impact his game. Jokic has slimmed down during quarantine with hopes of getting in better shape and becoming quicker, though his past successes with the Nuggets have come with a wide seven-foot, 280-pound frame.
And-Ones: 2021 Free Agency, Harrison, Poythress, Tyndall
As it stands, preparing for the free-agent class of 2021 is unimaginable for NBA executives, players, coaches and agents alike, David Aldridge and John Hollinger of The Athletic write.
Next summer’s class is notably star-studded compared to year’s past, headlined by the likes of Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo. In addition, several other players such as LeBron James, Kawhi Leonard and Paul George must decide on their respective player options.
“Before this year, you knew what that crop of ’21 is going to be,” one prominent, unnamed agent told The Athletic. “It’s going to be even more crowded, because you’re going to have a significantly higher number of players (this summer) doing 1+1s (two-year deals with a player option for the second season). … I’m very lucky that I’m not going nuts going into this free agency. It’s going to be a bloodbath. We don’t know what the cap is going to be, but if it stays the same, how many owners are going to go with more than 13 guys?”
In addition to not knowing salary-cap numbers and how COVID-19 will affect player’s decisions in free agency this summer, a clear timetable for when next season will end has yet to be established — and that’s assuming next season will be held under different circumstances.
“We don’t know whether they’re going to play or not,” another prominent agent told The Athletic. “I know everyone’s assuming they’re going to play, but you see all these things going on, people coming back (testing positive) from football, people protesting, I don’t know the effects of all this. … you can’t tell me that if I’m a 65-year-old executive, with a family, that I’m comfortable being in this bubble? Me, it’s just too much unknown. … it probably makes sense for everybody to sign a one-year deal. Even the big free agents like Anthony Davis – sign a one-year deal (this summer) and see what the numbers are for ’21, and sign a contract based off the projections for that.”
Here are some other odds and ends from around the basketball world:
- CSKA Moscow is expressing interest in free agent guard Andrew Harrison, according to basketball reporter Tolis Kotzias (as relayed by Sportando). Harrison, the No. 44 pick in 2015, has made past stops with Memphis, Cleveland and New Orleans, most recently playing for the Warriors’ G League affiliate in Santa Cruz.
- Free agent big man Alex Poythress is registering interest from Olympiacos, according to Nikos Varlas of Eurohoops. Poythress averaged 13.6 points and 7.1 rebounds with Galatasaray last season, holding NBA experience with the Sixers, Pacers and Hawks.
- Donnie Tyndall has accepted the position of head coach of Chipola College, according to The Detroit News. Tyndall served this past season as head coach of the Grand Rapids Drive, the G League affiliate of the Pistons.
Central Notes: Bulls, Weaver, Cavaliers
It’s time that the Bulls make a final decision on who will serve as head coach next season, opines Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times.
Chicago recently hired Arturas Karnisovas as executive vice president of basketball operations. The job security of current head coach Jim Boylen, which is uncertain, the decision will ultimately fall in the hands of Karnisovas and his team.
“Coaching in the league is very difficult,” Karnisovas said in a recent Zoom call, according to Cowley. “To make a decision about coaching is really hard. It’s probably the hardest thing for executives. So I look at a lot of aspects. I’ve had numerous conversations.
“Talking to players and coaches, obviously everyone is disappointed with the results last year. They definitely underperformed. . . . [But] in order for me to keep players and coaches accountable, I have to have personal relationships with them. That’s what I need to cultivate.’’
The Bulls finished with the fifth-worst record in the East at 22-43 this season, failing to secure an invite for the NBA’s restart in Orlando next month.
Boylen has elicited mixed feelings from players, staffers, and fans since succeeding Fred Hoiberg as coach in December of 2018. Chicago has failed to make the playoffs in each of the past three seasons, currently sporting a nucleus of Zach LaVine, Lauri Markkanen and others.
There’s more from the Central Division tonight:
- Omari Sankofa II of the Detroit Free Press looks at how new Pistons general manager Troy Weaver could avoid failure by examining some of the franchise’s past mistakes. Weaver, who most recently served as vice president of basketball operations with the Thunder, was hired by Detroit last week. The Pistons accrued just a 20-46 record on the season and have reached the playoffs just twice in the past ten years.
- Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com examines some pressing offseason topics for the Cavaliers, including Kevin Love‘s future and the chances of Tristan Thompson returning in free agency. Cleveland hopes to have Thompson return for a 10th consecutive season, but the 29-year-old is set to enter unrestricted free agency with the team also acquiring star center Andre Drummond ($28.7MM player option) last February.
Restart Notes: NBPA Agreement, Facilities, Cuban, Long Shots
The NBA is close to reaching an agreement with the National Basketball Players Association on restarting the season, ESPN’s Brian Windhorst said this morning on SportsCenter (video link). Despite concerns over COVID-19 rates in Florida, the bubble environment, injury risks and other issues, Windhorst called the plan “too big to fail” and said the “overwhelming majority” of players want to start playing again.
“They all admit there’s concerns. But they all admit this is the best they can do,” he said. “And they’re steeling themselves for the wave of potential positive tests back that are going to come in the next few days explaining it that we want to find out who’s sick so we can get them healthy so we can establish the bubble. Again, that is a rhetoric that may look silly in a few days or it may be reality, but we are headed towards at least a restart of training camp with agreement from the union very soon.”
Windhorst added that a deal with the NBPA could be announced “in the next 48 hours” and definitely by the end of the week.
There’s more as the restart draws closer:
- The NBA will allow teams to have 10 coaches in their facilities beginning Tuesday, tweets ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. Four players at a time will be permitted from June 23-30, then eight from July 1-9. Full training camps will begin once teams arrive in Orlando (Twitter link).
- Mavericks owner Mark Cuban tells Steve Serby of The New York Post that players will be safer in the bubble environment of Orlando than they would be in their respective cities. It’s part of a wide-ranging interview that also touches on Black Lives Matter, the challenges of playing in an empty arena, Dallas’ chances to make a playoff run, and the danger of injuries after a long layoff. “The four-month break since March 11 till the start of camp isn’t all that different than the end of the regular season to summer league or the midpoint of the playoffs to the start of training camp,” Cuban said. “So I don’t expect any difference on the injury front than a traditional start of season. Plus our training and medical staffs are going to be hyper-vigilant for obvious reasons. So I think we will all err on the side of caution when it comes to player health.”
- Ethan Strauss of The Athletic picks the Thunder, Nuggets, Raptors and Rockets as the best long-shot bets to win the NBA title.