Pistons Notes: Galloway, Weaver, Draft, Wood
New Pistons general manager Troy Weaver remains excited about Detroit’s prospects in the 2020 draft, despite the team falling two slots from its pre-lottery position to No. 7, according to Keith Langlois of Pistons.com. Weaver is confident in the depth of this season’s draft lottery prospects.
“From three to 13, it’s going to be a scramble,” he said. “We have to continue to do our work and be disciplined and be ready, because this is a draft where you don’t know.”
There’s more out of the Motor City:
- Pistons free agent guard Langston Galloway and his wife Sabrina have continued to represent the Pistons for charitable events within the community this year despite 28-year-old’s impending free agency, writes Vince Ellis of Pistons.com. The 6’1″ Galloway, a sharpshooting combo guard, signed a three-year, $21MM contract with the Pistons in the summer of 2017.
- Though the Pistons fell out of the running for likely top picks LaMelo Ball, Anthony Edwards and James Wiseman, the team should still have a shot at a prospect with a high ceiling, opines Keith Langlois of Pistons.com in a separate piece. Langlois mentions that current All-Star forwards Paul George, Kawhi Leonard, and Giannis Antetokounmpo were all drafted at or below the No. 10 pick in their respective drafts.
- Promising Pistons power forward Christian Wood, a free agent this summer, could be used in a sign-and-trade if he wants to join a team without salary cap space, as we relayed earlier this week. The 24-year-old stepped into a full time starting role with the team soon after Detroit traded former All-Star center Andre Drummond.
Draft Notes: Potential Trades, Warriors, Mock Drafts
Thursday’s lottery results could produce a wave of trades before draft day, writes John Hollinger of The Athletic. The former Grizzlies executive believes the Warriors, who landed the second overall selection, will try to swap the pick for more immediate help and lists the Hawks, Knicks, Wizards, Suns, Kings and possibly even the Timberwolves as other lottery teams that may be active on the trade market.
Hollinger proposes a couple of moves for Golden State, which also has a $17MM trade exception from last summer’s Andre Iguodala deal. He suggests offering the second pick to the Thunder for Shai Gilgeous-Alexander or to the Hawks for John Collins, although Atlanta hopes to make the playoffs next season and may not be interested in dealing for the future.
Hollinger adds that the Knicks may want to package their picks at No. 8 and 27 to move up in the draft for one of the top point guards, the Wizards have incentive to improve quickly before Bradley Beal gets a chance to leave again and the Suns possess cap space to take on another player and have playoff aspirations after going undefeated in Orlando.
There’s more draft news to pass along:
- Salary cap concerns may make it difficult for the Warriors to find an appealing deal, according to Kevin Pelton of ESPN. Counting its draft pick, Golden State already has more than $150MM in committed salary for next season, which puts the franchise far into the lottery tax, even if the threshold remains at this year’s figure of $132.7MM. Trading the No. 2 pick for a player with a $17MM salary could leave the Warriors with a record-setting $103MM tax bill and a total payroll of nearly $270MM.
- The eight teams not in Orlando were relieved that the Grizzlies, Pelicans, Kings, Spurs, Suns and Wizards didn’t move up in Thursday’s lottery, notes Zach Lowe of ESPN. He cites resentment among some of the non-invited teams that they didn’t get a chance to form chemistry the way Phoenix did, and one general manager said it would have been “our worst nightmare” if any of those teams had jumped into the top four.
- Georgia guard Anthony Edwards tops the latest mock draft released by Sam Vecenie of The Athletic. Most NBA executives agree that Edwards is a top-three prospect, Vecenie writes, and many think his physical tools give him the highest upside in this year’s class. LaMelo Ball is the No. 1 choice in a mock draft compiled by Jonathan Givony of ESPN.
Jim Pallotta To Sell Minority Stake In Celtics
Jim Pallotta will sell his 8% share of the Celtics, sources tell Scott Soshnick of Sportico. Three people confirmed the planned deal, which hasn’t yet been approved the NBA.
Pallotta’s stake will be purchased by Steve Pagliuca, a managing partner and executive committee member of the Celtics. Pagliuca is among the team’s majority stakeholders, along with Wyc Grousbeck.
A managing director at Bain Capital, Pagliuca will acquire the share at a $2.8 billion valuation, according to Soshnick. The Celtics’ value was listed at $3.1 billion in the latest estimate by Forbes, but sales of minority stakes in teams usually come at a 10-30% discount, Soshnick explains, because they don’t include control or voting rights.
Pallotta recently sold AS Roma, a Serie A soccer team, which his group purchased in 2011. The sale came after his unsuccessful attempt to get a new stadium.
Teams Believe 2020 Draft Day May Be Delayed
Team executives are skeptical that the league will be able to hold its draft on the scheduled date of October 16, according to Zach Lowe of ESPN, who was in the drawing room for last night’s lottery.
Lowe cites doubt that the NBA and its players union can agree to firm salary cap figures for next season in time for the draft or free agency, which is set to begin two days later.
The salary cap is determined by the projected revenue for the following season, which is based on the league’s revenue from the previous season, Lowe explains. However, this year featured a disastrous economic downturn brought on by a dispute with China and the loss of paying customers due to the coronavirus.
Neither NBA officials or the union want next year’s cap to be determined by that, so it’s possible that this year’s $109MM figure might be carried over into next season with a larger portion of players’ salaries being placed into escrow so they don’t exceed their guaranteed share of revenue.
Lowe expects the process to require extensive negotiations, which could delay free agency into November or December. It may also result in a complete rewriting of the collective bargaining agreement, although he states that neither side wants that.
The league normally provides the final cap number sometime between the draft and the start of free agency, but the current schedule only provides a 48-hour window. Lowe also notes that the draft marks one of the most active times of the year for trades, and teams will be reluctant to make moves involving veteran players without knowing the cap figure.
Some executives have suggested changing the rules so teams can only trade picks before the draft, but many organizations make those decisions with an eye on free agency, which may not have a set date when draft night arrives. Lowe says the league may decide to keep its current draft plans in place or it could try to race through negotiations so it can provide teams with preliminary cap estimates. He emphasizes that nobody really knows at this point what the solution will be.
Damian Lillard Dislocates Finger, Plans To Play In Game 3
Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard dislocated his left index finger in last night’s loss to the Lakers, but he insists he’ll be ready when the series resumes Saturday, writes Baxter Holmes of ESPN.
“Oh, I’m playing,” Lillard said after the game, later adding, “It’s just sore. A little bit tender to the touch.”
The injury occurred in the third quarter when Lillard tried to slap the ball away from Anthony Davis, who was driving to the basket. He was taken out of the game, which L.A. was leading handily at the time, and didn’t return. X-rays showed there was no break.
Lillard told reporters this is the first time he has dislocated a finger, and he tried to pull it back into place before receiving medical attention.
“[The staff] had to put it back for me, and at that point, I thought it was broken,” Lillard said. “I was just frustrated because I had to go back and get it looked at. I was just frustrated. It was just bad timing. I handle the ball a lot, so just knowing there’s going to be some discomfort, I don’t know how that’s going to feel or how that’s going to go. It’s frustrating. That’s all it was.”
Lillard has been spectacular since arriving at the Disney World complex, helping the Blazers rise out of a pack of contenders to claim the eighth seed in the West. He has averaged 36.6 PPG in Orlando and was a unanimous choice for MVP of the seeding games.
2020 NBA Draft Picks By Team
In addition to claiming the top three spots in the 2020 NBA draft based on this year’s lottery results, the Timberwolves, Warriors, and Hornets are three of eight teams that will own more than two draft picks this fall.
As our full 2020 draft order shows, the Sixers lead the way with five picks, while the Kings, Pelicans, and Celtics have four apiece. Like Minnesota, Golden State, and Charlotte, the Knicks also hold three selections. On the other end of the spectrum, the Rockets are the only team without a 2020 draft pick.
To present a clearer picture of which teams are most – and least – stocked with picks for the 2020 NBA draft, we’ve rounded up all 60 picks by team in the space below. Let’s dive in…
Teams with more than two picks:
- Philadelphia 76ers (5): 21, 34, 36, 49, 58
- Sacramento Kings (4): 12, 35, 43, 52
- New Orleans Pelicans (4): 13, 39, 42, 60
- Boston Celtics (4): 14, 26, 30, 47
- Minnesota Timberwolves (3): 1, 17, 33
- Golden State Warriors (3): 2, 48, 51
- Charlotte Hornets (3): 3, 32, 56
- New York Knicks (3): 8, 27, 38
Teams with two picks:
- Chicago Bulls: 4, 44
- Atlanta Hawks: 6, 50
- Washington Wizards: 9, 37
- San Antonio Spurs: 11, 41
- Orlando Magic: 15, 45
- Portland Trail Blazers: 16, 46
- Dallas Mavericks: 18, 31
- Brooklyn Nets: 19, 55
- Oklahoma City Thunder: 25, 53
- Toronto Raptors: 29, 59
Teams with one pick:
- Cleveland Cavaliers: 5
- Detroit Pistons: 7
- Phoenix Suns: 10
- Miami Heat: 20
- Denver Nuggets: 22
- Utah Jazz: 23
- Milwaukee Bucks: 24
- Los Angeles Lakers: 28
- Memphis Grizzlies: 40
- Indiana Pacers: 54
- Los Angeles Clippers: 57
Teams with no picks:
- Houston Rockets
Northwest Notes: Morgan, Millsap, Nuggets/Jazz Series, Draft
Defensive-oriented Jazz rookie swingman Juwan Morgan, who went undrafted in 2019 out of Indiana University, has already developed into a playoff starter for the West’s No. 6 seed. Tony Jones of The Athletic details Morgan’s journey.
After starting point guard Mike Conley left the NBA’s Orlando restart campus to attend the birth of his child, coach Quin Snyder elected to move All-Star Jazz shooting guard Donovan Mitchell to the point to make room for Morgan as the team’s starting power forward in their quarterfinals matchup with the Nuggets, currently knotted at 1-1.
“My main focus was the same thing any time I step on the floor,” Morgan said of his playoff debut as a starter. “I wanted to hustle hard, play defense, get offensive boards and block out. I wanted to do all the little things and then make life easier for all of the other guys.” Conley has since returned to Disney World and is probable to rejoin his Jazz teammates for tomorrow’s third game in the series.
There’s more out of the Northwest:
- Veteran Nuggets power forward Paul Millsap needs to be relegated to the bench in favor of the more athletic Jerami Grant, Mark Kiszla of the Denver Post opines. Millsap is currently the team’s highest paid player earning $30.5MM this season on an expiring deal, but Kiszla sees the 35-year-old former All-Star as a liability to the team’s success in third-seeded Denver’s playoff quarterfinals series against the Jazz.
- The outcome of the series between the Nuggets and the Jazz may be determined by which team can out-rebound the other, per Sarah Todd of the Deseret News. Because Nuggets All-Star center Nikola Jokic represents a threat to initiate his team’s offense or shoot from outside the paint, he draws his All-Star counterpart Rudy Gobert away from the basket, which leaves his Jazz teammates vulnerable to taller Nuggets players in the battle of the boards. “It’s really a point of emphasis for our team,” Gobert said. “Especially with the way [the Nuggets] crash the boards and the way my guys have been fighting. I need to go back out there and make sure I get those long rebounds.”
- In case you missed it: The Timberwolves, who entered the NBA draft lottery with a 14% chance of moving up to take the top pick, will now draft first during the 2020 draft, as we detailed earlier tonight. Anthony Edwards, LaMelo Ball, James Wiseman, and Obi Toppin are among the most-coveted players ahead of this year’s draft. The Wolves last had the No. 1 draft pick in 2015, when the team selected future All-Star Karl-Anthony Towns.
Silver No Longer Optimistic About December 1 Start For 2020/21
NBA commissioner Adam Silver told ESPN’s Rachel Nichols ahead of tonight’s draft lottery that he now expects the league’s previously-estimated December 1 start date for the 2020/21 regular season to be pushed back, per Brian Windhorst of ESPN.
In explaining his thinking, Silver indicated that he would prefer to have fans be able to attend games in person next season.
“I think our No. 1 goal is to get fans back in our arenas,” he told Nichols. “So my sense is, in working with the [National Basketball] Players Association, if we could push back even a little longer and increase the likelihood of having fans in arenas, that’s what we would be targeting.”
The ongoing coronavirus pandemic has prevented gatherings of large crowds, with fan attendance for major concerts, indoor movie theaters, and sporting events having been widely postponed until 2021. The United States saw 43,798 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 yesterday.
Until an effective vaccine is widely available to the public, it may be difficult to allow fans inside basketball arenas, though Silver remains hopeful that the anticipated development fast-response coronavirus tests may soon make in-arena attendance more feasible.
Crowd attendance makes up a significant portion of the league’s seasonal revenue. Per the Windhorst piece, Silver accredits approximately 40% of NBA revenue to fans filling arenas.
Full 2020 NBA Draft Order
Now that the NBA’s draft lottery results are in, the full 2020 draft order has been set.
We’ll likely see some of these picks change hands on November 18, or in the days leading up to draft night — we’ll be sure to update the list below if and when picks are traded.
Here’s the full 2020 NBA draft order:
First Round:
- Minnesota Timberwolves
- Golden State Warriors
- Charlotte Hornets
- Chicago Bulls
- Cleveland Cavaliers
- Atlanta Hawks
- Detroit Pistons
- New York Knicks
- Washington Wizards
- Phoenix Suns
- San Antonio Spurs
- Sacramento Kings
- New Orleans Pelicans
- Boston Celtics (from Grizzlies)
- Orlando Magic
- Houston Rockets (from Trail Blazers)
- Minnesota Timberwolves (from Nets)
- Dallas Mavericks
- Brooklyn Nets (from Sixers)
- Miami Heat
- Philadelphia 76ers (from Thunder)
- Denver Nuggets (from Rockets)
- New York Knicks (from Jazz)
- New Orleans Pelicans (from Pacers via Bucks)
- Oklahoma City Thunder (from Nuggets)
- Boston Celtics
- Utah Jazz (from Clippers via Knicks)
- Oklahoma City Thunder (from Lakers)
- Toronto Raptors
- Boston Celtics (from Bucks)
Second Round:
- Dallas Mavericks (from Warriors)
- Charlotte Hornets (from Cavaliers)
- Minnesota Timberwolves
- Oklahoma City Thunder (from Hawks via Sixers)
- Sacramento Kings (from Pistons)
- Philadelphia 76ers (from Knicks)
- Washington Wizards (from Bulls)
- Utah Jazz (from Hornets via Knicks)
- New Orleans Pelicans (from Wizards)
- Memphis Grizzlies (from Suns)
- San Antonio Spurs
- New Orleans Pelicans
- Sacramento Kings
- Chicago Bulls (from Grizzlies)
- Milwaukee Bucks (from Magic)
- Portland Trail Blazers
- Boston Celtics (from Nets)
- Golden State Warriors (from Mavericks)
- Philadelphia 76ers
- Atlanta Hawks (from Heat)
- Golden State Warriors (from Jazz)
- Sacramento Kings (from Rockets)
- Oklahoma City Thunder
- Indiana Pacers
- Brooklyn Nets (from Nuggets)
- Charlotte Hornets (from Celtics)
- Los Angeles Clippers
- Philadelphia 76ers (from Lakers)
- Toronto Raptors
- Milwaukee Bucks (via Pelicans)
Timberwolves Win 2020 Draft Lottery; Warriors, Hornets, Bulls In Top Four
With Thursday night’s lottery results now official, the top 14 picks in the 2020 NBA draft have been set. The lottery order is as follows:
- Minnesota Timberwolves
- Golden State Warriors
- Charlotte Hornets
- Chicago Bulls
- Cleveland Cavaliers
- Atlanta Hawks
- Detroit Pistons
- New York Knicks
- Washington Wizards
- Phoenix Suns
- San Antonio Spurs
- Sacramento Kings
- New Orleans Pelicans
- Boston Celtics (from Memphis Grizzlies)
The Timberwolves, who entered the lottery with a 14.0% shot at the No. 1 overall pick, will get the opportunity to add a top prospect to a core that already includes D’Angelo Russell – the team’s draft representative on Thursday – and Karl-Anthony Towns, who is a former No. 1 pick himself.
Wolves president of basketball operations Gersson Rosas will face a fascinating decision with the No. 1 pick, since the 2020 draft class has no consensus top prospect — Anthony Edwards, James Wiseman, LaMelo Ball, and Obi Toppin are among the players expected to receive consideration at the top of the draft board. With Russell and Towns as anchors, some of those players look like better fits than others for Minnesota.
“We couldn’t be more pleased to land the first overall pick in this year’s draft, marking only the second time in franchise history,” Rosas said in a statement. “We are excited for the possibilities ahead of us to bring in a high caliber player now that we secured the first overall selection. As a front office, we are proud of what we’ve built here in Minnesota so far and we are looking forward to continuing to build upon that foundation in this year’s draft.”
The Warriors, who were tied with the Wolves for the lottery’s best odds, claim the No. 2 pick, which will give president of basketball operations Bob Myers and his team plenty of options this offseason. With Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson coming back from injuries, Golden State hopes to return to contention in 2020/21, so the club is expected to consider trading its lottery pick for immediate help if a favorable deal arises.
The Hornets and Bulls entered the lottery with the eighth- and seventh-best odds, so they got lucky in moving up to No. 3 and 4, respectively. Charlotte had a 6.7% shot at the No. 3 pick, while Chicago’s odds for No. 4 were 8.5%.
Charlotte is in rebuilding mode and president of basketball operations Mitch Kupchak has repeatedly stated that the club will prioritize adding the best player available rather than focusing on a specific need. New Bulls executive VP of basketball operations Arturas Karnisovas has expressed a similar sentiment, and is in position to put a stamp on the franchise with a top-four pick in his first year on the job.
The Cavaliers are perhaps the biggest loser of the night, having slipped from second in the lottery standings to fifth. This will be the second consecutive year in which Cleveland has had the No. 5 overall pick — the club will look to add to a young core that features Collin Sexton and Darius Garland.
The Hawks, Pistons, and Knicks each slid two spots in the lottery to Nos. 6, 7, and 8, respectively. Those picks will represent the first draft picks for new Detroit general manager Troy Weaver and New York’s new president of basketball operations Leon Rose.
The remaining lottery selections – for the six lottery teams who were part of the NBA’s summer restart in Orlando – played out as expected. However, the Wizards‘ fate is worth noting — they technically finished with the league’s eighth-worst record, but were locked into the No. 9 spot in the lottery standings because the eight teams not invited to Orlando were assigned the top eight spots.
If the order had instead been based on records after the summer seeding games and the Wizards had entered the evening at No. 8 in the lottery standings, it would’ve been Washington – not Charlotte – that moved up to claim the third overall pick.
Assuming it’s not postponed again, the 2020 NBA draft will take place on October 16. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, teams are expected to have to make their picks without having evaluated any prospects in person for the last few months.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.