Nuggets To Acquire RJ Hampton
The Pelicans will trade 24th pick RJ Hampton to the Nuggets, tweets Shams Charania of The Athletic. New Orleans will receive a 2023 lottery-protected first-rounder in return, according to Zach Lowe of ESPN (Twitter link).
Denver was among a handful of teams that worked out Hampton during the pre-draft process. The Nuggets also own the 22nd pick, which they used to select forward Zeke Nnaji of Arizona.
Hampton spent last season with the New Zealand Breakers in Australia’s National Basketball League. He appeared in 15 games before leaving in early February and returning to the United States to prepare for the draft.
Kennard To Clippers, Shamet To Nets In Three-Team Trade
The Clippers, Nets, and Pistons have agreed to a trade, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN and Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter links).
Wojnarowski and Charania report that Brooklyn will acquire Landry Shamet in the three-team trade, with Luke Kennard going to the Clippers and the Pistons acquiring Rodney McGruder and the No. 19 overall pick in tonight’s draft (Twitter link). Detroit selected Villanova forward Saddiq Bey using that selection.
The Clippers are betting that Kennard, who averaged 15.8 PPG on .442/.399/.893 shooting in 28 games for Detroit last season, will be an upgrade on Shamet, who recorded 9.3 PPG on .404/.375/.855 shooting in 53 games.
The Clippers also discussed a bigger trade with the Celtics which included Shamet, Vincent Goodwill of Yahoo tweets.
Kennard has a slightly less favorable contract than Shamet — he’s extension-eligible this fall and will be a restricted free agent in 2021 if he doesn’t sign a new deal. He’ll earn $5.3MM in 2020/21. Shamet, meanwhile, will earn $2MM in ’20/21 and $3.8MM in ’21/22 before potentially reaching restricted free agency in 2022.
Kennard is coming off an injury-marred season in which he played just 28 games due to tendinitis in both knees. However, he looked completely healthy during the team’s workouts in September.
Shamet provides another rotation guard for the Nets at a reasonable salary.
Bey is the third first-round pick by Detroit. It earlier selected Euro guard Killian Hayes at No. 7 and Washington center Isaiah Stewart at No. 16.
Draft-Night Rumors: Warriors, Pistons, Avdija, Baynes
Drafting James Wiseman won’t prevent the Warriors from looking to add another big man, according to Monte Poole of NBC Sports Bay Area, who reports (via Twitter) that Golden State is eyeing at least four different bigs. The team has its $17MM+ trade exception and the $5.7MM taxpayer mid-level exception available to acquire veterans later this week.
Here are a few more NBA draft-night notes and rumors:
- It sounds like Detroit’s long-reported interest in Patrick Williams was legit. The Pistons made an effort to trade up to No. 3 in order to leapfrog the Bulls for Williams, but the Hornets didn’t budge, sources tell Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times (Twitter link).
- Deni Avdija has a small buyout to get out of his contract with Maccabi Tel Aviv, as Bobby Marks of ESPN tweets. Avdija and the Wizards – who selected him at No. 9 – will pay that buyout. Kevin O’Connor of The Ringer adds (via Twitter) that he’s surprised by Avdija slipping to ninth — the Bulls and Cavaliers both considered the Israeli forward at No. 4 and No. 5, per O’Connor.
- NBA executives fully expect Aron Baynes to leave the Suns in free agency, opening the door for No. 10 pick Jalen Smith to fill Baynes’ role as a stretch big, tweets Kevin O’Connor. According to O’Connor, the Pelicans are a potential landing spot for Baynes.
Klay Thompson Suffers Apparent Lower Leg Injury
7:43pm: The fear is that Thompson has a heel injury, according to Charania (video link).
5:41pm: Warriors sharpshooter Klay Thompson suffered an apparent lower leg injury today and is undergoing tests to determine the severity of the injury, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link). Thompson was unable to place weight on the injrued leg when leaving the gym today, sources tell Charania (Twitter link).
Thompson sustained the injury during a workout in Southern California, notes ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (via Twitter). Woj hears from a source that the injury affects Thompson’s right leg (Twitter link).
Thompson has been sidelined since Game 6 of the 2019 NBA Finals, having suffered a torn left ACL in that game. He had been on track to return to the court for the Warriors to start the 2020/21 season — it’s not clear yet whether this setback will jeopardize his availability for next month’s opener
Thompson, 30, is one of the league’s best two-way wings, having averaged at least 20.0 PPG in each of his last five healthy seasons, earning All-Star nods in each of those five years. He’s a career 41.9% three-point shooter and is a strong perimeter defender. He’s entering the second season of a five-year, maximum-salary contract.
It’s unclear whether or not the Warriors fear Thompson’s injury is a major one. It also remains to be seen whether Golden State will get any answers before tonight’s draft, or how the news may affect the team’s approach to the offseason.
Timberwolves Trying To Acquire Ricky Rubio
The Timberwolves are talking to the Thunder about a deal to bring Ricky Rubio back to Minnesota, according to Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic. The Wolves are offering the 17th pick to Oklahoma City in exchange for Rubio and picks No. 25 and 28.
Minnesota became interested in bringing back Rubio as soon as the trade was announced, sources tell Krawczynski. The Wolves had hoped to pursue Rubio in free agency last summer, but he agreed to a three-year deal with Phoenix.
After learning that he was sent to Oklahoma City, Rubio and his agents at Excel Sports began searching for a deal to a team more likely to be competitive this season. After looking throughout the league and seeing the interest from the Wolves, Rubio became receptive to returning to Minnesota.
He remains close to Wolves head coach Ryan Saunders, who has been looking for another ball-handler to team with D’Angelo Russell. Rubio is also a former teammate of Karl-Anthony Towns, playing with the center during his first two years in the NBA.
Rubio began his career in Minnesota, being selected with the fifth pick in the 2009 draft. He came to the NBA two years later and spent six years with the Wolves before being traded to Utah.
Hornets Draft LaMelo Ball With No. 3 Pick
The Hornets have used the No. 3 overall pick in the 2020 NBA draft to select guard LaMelo Ball.
President of basketball operations Mitch Kupchak had long vowed to select the best player available in the draft, and the Ball pick reflects that. The Hornets’ backcourt is one of the team’s strengths, with Terry Rozier and Devonte’ Graham having led the team in scoring in 2019/20.
There was a belief that Charlotte may prefer a big man in the draft, but James Wiseman came off the board at No. 2 and the Hornets decided not to use the No. 3 pick on USC’s Onyeka Okongwu. The Hornets will have cap room available and may look to address their frontcourt in free agency later this week.
A report earlier today indicated that Hornets owner Michael Jordan had given the team the “stamp of approval” to draft Ball.
Ball will be in line for a $7.8MM salary in his first NBA season.
Warriors Draft James Wiseman at No. 2
The Warriors used the second pick in the draft to select former Memphis center James Wiseman.
The selection reflects Golden State’s desire to add size this offseason to compete with the Lakers and the league’s other big teams. Wiseman has the build of a traditional center at 7’1″ and 240 pounds.
Scouts and college basketball fans only got a brief look at Wiseman during his three-game career at Memphis. After being embroiled in an eligibility battle with the NCAA, Wiseman left school in December to focus on preparing for the NBA. He was dominant in his brief time with the Tigers, averaging 19.7 points, 10.7 rebounds and 3.0 blocks per game.
Free Agent Roundup: Gallinari, Harris, Millsap
The Heat could be among the teams bidding for free agent forward Danilo Gallinari, according to Michael Scotto of HoopsHype. If Giannis Antetokounmpo accepts a super-max offer from the Bucks, there will be less incentive for Miami to preserve cap room for next summer. If the two-time MVP is off the market, Scotto hears that the Heat will extend Bam Adebayo, try to re-sign Goran Dragic and look to add a forward, possibly Gallinari, in free agency.
Oklahoma City is expected to structure the trade for Al Horford so it can retain Gallinari’s cap hold, according to Tim Bontemps of ESPN (Twitter link).
There’s more free agent news to pass along:
- A rumor circulating earlier today that the Mavericks and Thunder were negotiating a sign-and-trade deal involving Gallinari is false, at least so far, tweets Brad Townsend of The Dallas Morning News.
- The Hawks and Hornets were both planning to pursue Nets sharpshooter Joe Harris, but it seems increasingly likely that he will remain in Brooklyn, Scotto notes in the same piece. Charlotte will look for more affordable guards who can give the team veteran leadership and shooting.
- Nuggets forward Paul Millsap could be in line for the Trail Blazers‘ full mid-level exception if he signs in Portland, Scotto adds. The Blazers are expected to make a strong push for the 35-year-old.
Timberwolves Select Anthony Edwards With No. 1 Pick
The Timberwolves have selected Georgia guard Anthony Edwards with the first overall pick in the 2020 NBA draft. The selection was first reported by Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).
The Wolves were on the phone discussing potential trade scenarios right down to the wire, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (via Twitter). Ever since Minnesota won the lottery in August, there was a belief that the team preferred to trade down and pick up extra assets, but it seems as if a favorable deal never materialized.
In Edwards, the Wolves will add a shooting guard to a core that features big man Karl-Anthony Towns and point guard D’Angelo Russell.
In his first and only college season, Edwards averaged 19.1 PPG, 5.2 RPG, and 2.8 APG on .402/.2.94/.772 shooting in 32 games (33.0 MPG) for the Bulldogs.
The Timberwolves have a second first-round pick at No. 17, so it’ll be an eventful night for the team.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Suns Pick Up Option On Cameron Payne
The Suns have picked up their $1.98MM option on guard Cameron Payne, according to John Hollinger of The Athletic.
Payne’s contract for the upcoming season only carries a $25K guarantee. He is expected to be the primary backup to Chris Paul, according to Hollinger, unless Phoenix drafts another point guard tonight.
Payne signed with the Suns at the end of June and appeared in all eight games at the Disney World complex, averaging 10.9 points, 3.9 rebounds and 3.0 assists in a reserve role. A first-round pick by the Thunder in 2015, Payne also played for the Bulls and Cavaliers. He was in Toronto’s training camp last fall, but was released before the start of the season and didn’t get another NBA opportunity until joining the Suns.