Raptors center Serge Ibaka twisted his left ankle during the second half of the team’s Game 5 loss on Monday, potentially jeopardizing his status for Game 6 on Wednesday. As Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca tweets, Ibaka was in a walking boot today and said that he “will see” about his availability for Wednesday’s game.
Toronto’s initial injury report for Game 6 lists Ibaka as questionable. With the Raptors’ season on the line, down 3-2 to Boston, the big man will presumably do all he can to suit up.
Here’s more from around the Atlantic:
- Celtics forward Gordon Hayward is back on campus, but the team isn’t sure when he’ll clear quarantine and when he’ll be able to play, writes Tom Westerholm of MassLive.com. Meanwhile, Chris Forsberg of NBC Sports Boston wonders if the C’s will extend their season long enough for Hayward to contribute — Monday’s win certainly increased those odds.
- Celtics president of basketball operations Danny Ainge, who has suffered multiple mild heart attacks in the past, was advised by doctors that he’d be “at risk” if he contracts COVID-19, he tells Jackie MacMullan of ESPN. As a result, Ainge didn’t accompany the C’s to the Orlando campus and has been watching the team’s playoff run from afar. “My doctors said it would be best if I did not go,” Ainge said. “But, as we’ve gone along — and I’ve thought about it since — I say to myself, ‘Man, it feels to me like the bubble is the healthiest place to be.'”
- While Brett Brown, Elton Brand, and the Sixers‘ supporting cast have taken much of the blame for the team’s lack of playoff success in recent years, Sopan Deb of The New York Times notes that Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid haven’t necessarily shown the growth expected of “prospective superstars” and questions whether either player is still capable of taking his play to another level.
Take Simmons and Embiid to another level
Trade Horford , salary and picks for Chris Paul
Big 4 can win the East
And why would OKC want the horrible Al Horford contract?
Centerpiece is future firsts
Paul is the 4th best point guard of all time
You can ask for 2 Firsts and 2 seconds
Once again, why would a team with Steven Adams at center trade for al horford and his contract?
Okc has Adams so they wouldn’t take horford
According to reporters
Adams will be traded too
IMO
Any Thunder over age 25 will be traded away
If OKC is trading away anyone over 25, why would they want Horford whose under contract til he’s 37?
Thunder ask for at least 2 future Firsts
Probably going to need at least 3 unless they are throwing in a couple players of value with Horford
haha. Stat…dodon’t ask him logical questions like that.
Simmons & Embiid— the problems that occur when a team goes purity and gets rid of relevant old guys and tries to assemble young princes so that it becomes all prince-y. Hinckle did Not have the right idea.
I will agree with Hinkle fans though, that he should have been allowed to stay… but in order to be the captain at the helm when the ship sinks.
Or, in the young Hawk’s case, when the ship can’t get out of the harbor.
How does such an unproven concept get so many fans? Who has won titles by losing first? link to basketball-reference.com
GSW may be the only answer but they were not losing on purpose or use high draft picks. They did phase out young Monta Ellis and phase in old Andrew Bogut. Picks 7,11,35 & splash; attract older high picks AB, Iguodala, West & Durant; Barnes at 7 temporary.
The cavs landed Kyrie and lebron with #1 picks. Golden state went from zero to champion with home run top 10 picks Klay and Curry. If the lakers win this year, their tanking gave them assets to acquire AD. The heat and Celtics were gifted superstar talent. Superstars win championships. The easiest way to land one is by getting high draft picks.
The Sixers wouldn’t have embiid or simmons if they didn’t embrace the tank. They were perennial .500 squad hovering around 8th seed in the east, just spinning tires in the late lotto or mid teens. Sure, you can find a diamond in the rough like kawhi, but those are few and far between
How were the Celtics “gifted” superstar talent? I’m assuming you’re talking about Brown and Tatum? But both of those guys were really high draft picks — Ainge and company just did a really good job at scouting and taking Tatum over Fultz and LaMelo — and Jaylen was a really good choice at #7 but not even necessarily the best player from that draft. (As a Celtics fan I’m biased in thinking maybe he was the best pick — but statistically there are guys with better stats above and below him in that draft). So I don’t really see how they were “gifted” superstar talent… they just drafted well and also have put a TON of development into those two guys (along with Smart who was a 10th overall pick — I believe — or around there). But it’s really not like they just got super lucky with a mid/late round pick or anything… they drafted top picks and hit on a couple of them. (They also missed on a few) but I don’t really understand the notion that they’ve been “gifted” superstar talent.
They were gifted high picks by the nets but they did draft well with those picks
Jaylen Brown was a number 3 pick. But totally agree, Brown, Tatum, and Smart were all draft picks, Walker and Theiss were free-agent signings. Nothing “gifted” about it.
I was talking about the Celtics teams that won the title. They were gifted Kevin Garnett and ray Allen for spare parts.
Dude he did say high draft picks. And Celts got picks from trades. That is gifted. You both right you gotta do the scouting (Fultz). High draft picks is best way to get real talent, star material. It’s also assets for trades. Very few teams are going to sign top FA. Cause he going where he wants. IMO a lottery pick should always net you a future starter. If you are doing your scouting right.
I was kind of down with the Jaylen Brown pick at that draft position. Though I’m a fan of Cal Bears basketball, I thought Brown needed another year to work on his mid to long range shooting including FT. He’s improved tremendously with those and more.
Cavs tanked one year for Lebron, but it was a crappy tank; mostly they just got lotto-lucky. It could have been conventional FO incompetence.
The tanking done by the Lakers, if it was tanking, was for an older veteran or two, not picks. They saved capspace and sent picks out, like the Clippers.
Teams picking in the 7 to 11 range are probably just weak, having natural bad years, not tanking. Tankers are at the top.
Now maybe, if a good (expensive) team falls apart like the Hawks did around 2017… why not try it. I recall crediting new GM Schlenk for letting players go and rebuilding using GSW as a blueprint (Huerter & Trae as Klay & Curry). Luke Adams was doubtful about Schlenk! Now John Collins says they’re too young to learn to win.
Hinkie is his name. And for those of you who don’t remember the era when free agency and “big 3” teams was not the norm, yeah, that was the way people built teams – over time, with good draft picks and good development coaching.
This was also the era when the draft was not composed of raw 18 year olds for the most part. Probably better for the players to no longer be part of the fiction that they are “amateur college athletes” who are “on scholarship” and getting an education, but I suspect in a few years the NBA will start to look more like baseball, with a true minor league system and bonus contracts, etc.
Trade Ben Simmons, Al Horford and a second round pick for Andrew Wiggins, Kevin Looney and this years 2nd overall pick using the the Trade exception.
Joel Embiid and Andrew Wiggins we’re together at college we’re both players were really good. Maybe Joel can help Wiggins get back to looking like the number 1 pick again, and if he doesn’t Wiggins is still solid putting up good numbers this year.
Plus the Sixers get the number 2 pick, they get rid of Al Horfords contract and can continue to build around Embiid.
Then look at trading Tobias Harris. I’d do Harris, JRich and pick 20th in the draft for Harrison Barnes and Buddy Heild.
1. Haliburton. Milton
2. Heild. Thybulle
3. Wiggins. Korkmaz
4. Barnes. Scott
5. Embiid. Looney
Can continue to build around Embid but for now this will work better than Simmons and Horford
Sixers are not trading Simmons and will want a king’s ransom for Embiid.
So let’s trade Embiid to the Kings. two 2020 2nd round picks
Sixers trade: Embiid, Mike Scott
Kings trade: Hield, Bagley, #12 pick in 2020, 1st round for 2021
Two 2020 seconds would be included in Sixers offer.
Probably still not enough for Embiid, despite him having problems. Bagley does too after all.
I’m sure Embiid will stay, if I’m predicting, at least until a new coach is tried. But I doubt they get far.
I’m not a Sixers fan BUT I think it’s unfair to group Embiid and Simmons together as “not developing into stars” — I think Embiid is certainly a star and has the stats to back it up. Simmons on the other hand… still can’t shoot, doesn’t exactly seem to have a good fit position wise and hasn’t really improved his game much since being drafted. I’d agree that I really don’t think he’s a “superstar” nor do I think he’s going to develop into one — unless he all of a sudden dramatically improves his shooting ability. But I do think the Sixers could potentially find a way to deal him and maybe another player or two or picks and bring in someone else as their “second star” and then Embiid would get a chance to really show what he can do.
What the 6ers need is to hire the right coach.One that will show Simmons what developing a shot will do to his game,as well as others around him.All he needs is a mid-range game.If he shoots the ball,then Embiid won’t need to play away from basket as much as he does.
Hire the right coach that’ll get them 2 to play the games they should’ve been all along,and hit on 2 of their top 3 picks,and I feel the 6ers will be right back in the mix up top.Trading either of Simmons or Embiid would be a dumb panic move.Embiid is a top center who can dominate,and Simmons is a jump shot away from being a perennial MvP candidate.And they’re both still young,they just need a coach who’ll put them into the best situations to be successful.
Jaylen Brown was a number 3 pick. But totally agree, Brown, Tatum, and Smart were all draft picks, Walker and Theiss were free-agent signings. Nothing “gifted” about it.
Embiid n Simmons are the future. Article makes some sense. Cause Ben still won’t shoot. An Embiid flys of the handle still. There is not a better 2way center. And Ben is a unique talent. IMO he should be playing on wing. With a scoring PG. He can attack and get passes. Or he can post. He can also get more second chances reb. Chemistry is biggest issue with Sixers. That’s management n coaching fault. This yr they were coming off a yr. Losing to eventual champion by a bounce. Instead of signing Kemba or DAngelo, both would of signed. They signed Horford.
IMO they can move Harris no problem. You can’t just give him away. Or they can at least move Horford. You have to be creative. Three way or attach pick, s. But it can be done. Rockets are never winning with that team. Moving Westbrook now. Can get them high return. Sixers should be knocking that door.