George Hill To Miss At Least Four Weeks With Thumb Injury
George Hill will be sidelined after having a minor surgical procedure on his right thumb today, the Thunder announced in an email. The veteran guard will be re-evaluated in four weeks.
Oklahoma City coach Mark Daigneault told reporters last week that Hill suffered a sprain to his thumb, but X-rays were negative. He hasn’t played since January 24, with Theo Maledon taking his place in the starting lineup.
Hill, who was acquired in a four-team trade in November, has appeared in 14 games this season, all starts, and is averaging 11.8 points and 3.1 assists per night.
Hoops Rumors Chat Transcript: 2/2/2021
With the NBA’s season starting to hit its stride and the March 25 trade deadline less than two months away, we’re bringing back our weekly live chats at Hoops Rumors.
Each Tuesday at 12:00 pm central time (1 pm ET), join me to talk potential trades, free agent signings, salary cap machinations, or whatever else you feel like discussing!
Today’s chat transcript can be found right here.
Wolves Notes: Towns, McDaniels, Nowell, Rosas
Star center Karl-Anthony Towns is with the Timberwolves on their current road trip and is a good bet to return to action at some point this week, team owner Glen Taylor told David Shama of Sports Headliners.
Towns, 25, has been limited to just four games so far this season due first to a wrist injury and then to a positive COVID-19 test. He has been in the NBA’s health and safety protocols for more than two weeks and hasn’t played since January 13.
Minnesota won its first two games of the 2020/21 season with Towns in the lineup, but has bottomed out since then, losing 15 of its last 18. Still, Taylor is hopeful that the club can make a push for a playoff spot this season, especially with a health Towns.
“I recognize that it’s going to be difficult, but on the other hand, there’s other teams that aren’t performing up to their expectations, too, and I guess we just gotta catch them,” he told Shama.
Here’s more on the Wolves:
- When the Wolves selected Jaden McDaniels with the 28th pick in November’s draft, he was viewed as a long-term project who was unlikely to contribute much right away. However, as Chris Hine of The Star Tribune writes, the rookie forward has emerged as part of Minnesota’s regular rotation and has acquitted himself well, blocking three shots on Sunday and scoring 11 points on 5-of-10 shooting on Monday.
- Wolves guard Jaylen Nowell has also recently entered the rotation and has scored double-digit points in four straight games. The 21-year-old remains a work in progress though, according to Hine, who notes that Nowell hasn’t been able to translate his G League scoring efficiency to the NBA, where he has made just 9-of-48 career three-pointers (18.8%). Nowell is on a non-guaranteed contract.
- Now that the Wolves are a full 82 games into Gersson Rosas‘ tenure as president of basketball operations, Britt Robson of The Athletic‘s evaluates Rosas’ performance to date. Robson likes what Rosas has done to fill out the front office and to identify low-cost, low-risk players with upside, but identifies the team’s hole at power forward and its mismatched point guard duo as problems, and says the jury is still out on both of Rosas’ lottery picks (Jarrett Culver and Anthony Edwards).
Wizards Notes: Beal, Brooks, Neto
Having seen other NBA stars face criticism for requesting trades in recent years, Wizards guard Bradley Beal is privately “frustrated and confused” by the portrayal of his situation in D.C., according to Fred Katz and Shams Charania of The Athletic.
As Katz and Charania explain, Beal likes the idea of spending his career with one team and would love to establish a legacy in Washington like Dirk Nowitzki‘s in Dallas — Nowitzki spent his 21-year NBA career with the Mavericks, winning a title with the club in year 13. However, Beal feels as if he’s being “nitpicked” for remaining loyal to a struggling Wizards club.
The Athletic’s duo confirms that Beal continues to express a desire to remain in Washington rather than a preference to be traded. The Wizards have just a 4-12 record so far this season, but the hope is that Sunday’s impressive comeback win over Brooklyn can be the start of a turnaround rather than a rare bright spot.
Here’s more on the Wizards:
- In a HoopsHype podcast, Fred Katz and Michael Scotto discussed a number of Wizards-related topics, including where things stand with head coach Scott Brooks. Katz believes that Wizards owner Ted Leonsis will be less inclined to fire Brooks during the season and pay him the remainder of his $7MM salary after having furloughed 40% of his company’s employees in 2020. “I think this is an organization that thinks about optics and that kind of stuff,” Katz said. “I don’t think the optics are there to pay somebody that much when you just furloughed that many people not to work for you in the middle of an economic crisis in the middle of a pandemic.”
- Brooks told reporters on Monday that Raul Neto will be out for at least a couple games due to a left groin strain (Twitter link via Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington). Ish Smith, who missed a handful of games due to the NBA’s health and safety protocols, will reclaim backup point guard duties in Neto’s absence.
- In case you missed it, we noted on Monday that Wizards guard Garrison Mathews is among the players on two-way contracts making a case for a promotion to a standard contract.
NBA, NBPA Progressing Toward Agreement On All-Star Game
The NBA and the National Basketball Players Association are making progress toward an agreement to hold an All-Star Game on Sunday, March 7 in Atlanta, reports ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. If finalized, it would be a single-night event at State Farm Arena that includes both a game and skills competitions, Wojnarowski adds.
The 2021 NBA All-Star weekend was originally scheduled to take place in Indianapolis, but the league postponed it — Indiana will now host the All-Star festivities in 2024.
Chris Paul, the president of the players’ union, has been among those pushing a revamped All-Star Game in Atlanta, which he’d like to use to benefit historically black colleges and universities and COVID-19 relief, Woj notes.
The idea of holding an All-Star Game at all amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic has faced “resistance and skepticism” from a number of players and team executives, who view it as an unnecessary risk, according to Wojnarowski.
The safer approach would be to select two All-Star teams but not require players to travel from all over the country to a single site for a game, since one positive test among that group could result in mass postponements around the league at the start of the second half.
Still, the NBA sounds committed to trying to hold an All-Star Game, which is typically one of the league’s top events in terms of fan engagement, Wojnarowski observes. If an agreement can be officially reached, it would include a number of extra safeguards and protocols related to health and safety. Those details are still being negotiated.
The two sides are also believed to be discussing giving players the opportunity to opt out of participating in the game, which is usually mandatory for those selected, sources tell ESPN.
Pistons Expected To Resume Schedule On Tuesday
Following a postponement on Monday night, the Pistons are expected to avoid further schedule disruptions this week, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link).
Monday night’s game between the Pistons and Nuggets was postponed due to the NBA’s health and safety protocols, as a Detroit player reportedly returned a positive or inconclusive COVID-19 test, resulting in retesting and a contact tracing investigation.
[RELATED: 2020/21 NBA Game Postponement Tracker]
However, according to James Edwards III of The Athletic (Twitter link), the test in question was determined to be a false positive. Edwards and Wojnarowski both indicate that the Pistons were en route to Salt Lake City late on Monday night and anticipate being able to play Tuesday’s game against the Jazz.
When a Grizzlies player recorded a confirmed positive test two weeks ago, the team had its next five games postponed out of an abundance of caution. It’s safe to assume a similar fate could have befallen the Pistons if Monday’s result had been a confirmed positive test rather than a false positive.
Assuming everyone on the roster tests negative again today, the Pistons should be given the go-ahead to play the Jazz on Tuesday, with contests against the Suns on Friday and the Lakers on Saturday to follow.
And-Ones: Milutinov, Macon, G League, Dunk Contest
Serbian center and former Spurs first-round pick Nikola Milutinov has suffered a major shoulder injury playing for CSKA Moscow and will undergo surgery, Ennio Terrasi Borghesan of Sportando relays. Milutinov, who suffered the injury last week against Bayern Munich, signed a three-year contract with the EuroLeague powerhouse last June. Milutinov was selected by the Spurs with the 26th overall pick in the 2015 NBA draft. However, he has yet to sign an NBA contract. He played five seasons with Olympiacos in Greece.
We have more from around the basketball world:
- The G League will have 14 additional players on the Orlando campus as fill-ins in case of injuries, callups or other issues, Jonathan Givony of ESPN tweets. Rawle Alkins, Isaiah Briscoe and Malik Pope are among the players on the list.
- Former NBA guard Daryl Macon has parted ways with Galatasaray Istanbul, the team tweets. He’s joining AEK Athens, Lithuanian journalist Donatas Urbonas tweets. Macon began the 2019/20 season on a two-way deal with Miami and was waived last January. He also played for Dallas.
- Reports surfaced last week that the All-Star Game, which originally was scheduled to be held in Indianapolis this season, could be held after all in Atlanta. Now, the NBA and the players’ union are discussing the addition of both a dunk and three-point contest there on the weekend of March 6-7, Marc Stein of the New York Times tweets.
Windhorst’s Latest: Tucker, House, Shumpert, Oubre, Ball, Butler, Lowry
The Rockets are seeking a first-round pick or three second-rounders for P.J. Tucker, ESPN’s Brian Windhorst said on his latest Hoop Collective podcast. Houston was unable to reach an extension agreement with Tucker prior to the season and he has been the subject of trade rumors. He’s making a reasonable $8MM this season and will be an unrestricted free agent this summer.
The Rockets’ desire to accumulate multiple second-rounders for Tucker has previously been reported but Windhorst indicates they’d want a first-rounder as an alternative. Houston already has a stockpile of first-rounders from the James Harden blockbuster.
Windhorst also divulged a number of other tidbits during his podcast:
- Speaking of the Rockets, forward Danuel House has attracted some trade interest around the league. House is signed through next season but he has a team-friendly contract — $3.72MM this season and $3.89MM next season.
- Iman Shumpert’s new contract with the Nets is non-guaranteed. Brooklyn filled a roster spot by signing the veteran guard over the weekend.
- There are rumors circulating about a potential Warriors–Pelicans trade involving Kelly Oubre and Lonzo Ball. The Bulls, who continue to look for a long-term solution at point guard, might also be interested in Ball, who will have a qualifying offer in excess of $14MM this offseason.
- Heat star wing Jimmy Butler lost more than 10 pounds during his recent bout with COVID-19, something that Ethan J. Skolnick also noted last week on the Five on the Floor podcast (hat tip to Radio.com).
- The Raptors could be in the market for a player who could jolt their offense. If Toronto doesn’t turn things around, the team might consider offers for Kyle Lowry, who could become an “interesting” rental for a contender. Lowry is headed to unrestricted free agency but his $30.5MM contract would complicate the process of moving him.
Pistons-Nuggets Game Postponed
The Pistons–Nuggets game on Monday has been postponed, Shams Charania of The Athletic tweets.
The postponement came just minutes before tipoff. It’s the 23rd this season under the league’s health and safety protocols.
According to an NBA press release, the postponement was due to ongoing contact tracing within the Pistons. The team does not have the league-required minimum of eight available players.
Detroit had not experienced any COVID-19 related issues prior to Monday. Its game against Washington on January 15 was postponed due to virus-related issues with the Wizards.
The Pistons just began a West Coast trip on Saturday with a loss at Golden State. They’re due to play the Jazz on Tuesday, the Suns on Friday and the Lakers on Saturday before returning home.
More testing will be required before any decisions are made regarding the status of their upcoming games, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN tweets.
A positive or inconclusive coronavirus test on one player led to the postponement, Wojnarowski reports in another tweet. The Pistons were watching pregame film when they were notified.
Cheick Diallo To Sign With Russian Team
Former Pelicans and Suns big man Cheick Diallo is signing with Avtodor Saratov in Russia’s top league, Will Guillory of The Athletic tweets.
Diallo became an unrestricted free agent in November when Phoenix declined the $1.824MM option on his contract for this season.
After spending his first three seasons with the Pelicans, Diallo agreed to a two-year veteran’s minimum deal with the Suns in 2019. He was drafted with the No. 33 pick in 2016.
The 24-year-old Diallo averaged 4.7 PPG and 2.8 RPG in 10.2 MPG in 47 games last season. He’s appeared in 180 NBA games, averaging 5.3 PPG and 4.2 RPG in 12.0 MPG.