Quarantine Timelines For Embiid, Simmons
After having to miss the 2021 All-Star game Sunday due to potential COVID-19 exposure, Sixers stars Joel Embiid (voted an All-Star starter) and Ben Simmons (a reserve) will each be out for at least one regular season game, even if they continue to test negative for the novel coronavirus, per Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).
Embiid will have to isolate until Friday, meaning he will miss Philadelphia’s contest against the Bulls scheduled for Thursday, March 11. Simmons, meanwhile, is required to quarantine until at least Saturday. This will make Simmons a scratch against the Wizards in a Friday matchup, in addition to Thursday’s game vs. Chicago.
Charania tweets that both players were given seven-day quarantine windows following their interactions with their personal barber, who ultimately tested positive for COVID-19.
The two All-Stars had been enjoying tremendous years for the East-leading Sixers, currently 24-12. Embiid, 26, is having his best pro season to date en route to a fourth All-Star appearance. He is a leading MVP contender, averaging 30.2 PPG, 11.6 RPG and 3.3 APG, while shooting 52.1% from the field, including 41.6% from deep.
Simmons, 24, managed to make his third All-Star team with averages of 16.1 PPG, 7.9 RPG and 7.6 APG and stellar defense all over the court.
Heat Notes: Leonard, Trade Targets, Robinson
The Heat are reviewing a video clip that shows center Meyers Leonard using an anti-Semitic slur during a Twitch live stream on Monday night while playing ‘Call of Duty: Warzone,’ writes Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun Sentinel.
The NBA is also reviewing the incident, issuing a statement that reads, “We just became aware of the video and are in the process of gathering more information. The NBA unequivocally condemns all forms of hate speech.”
Leonard is out for the season with a shoulder injury and is a long shot to have his $10MM+ team option for 2021/22 exercised. If he was already in jeopardy of having played his last game for Miami, this video certainly didn’t help matters. So far, it’s unclear how the NBA and Heat will respond — a fine or a suspension seems like a possibility.
Here’s more on the Heat:
- A pair of veteran scouts who spoke to Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald agreed that the Heat’s roster is in need of a stretch four and said Sacramento forward Harrison Barnes and San Antonio forward Rudy Gay would be among their targets if they worked for the team. The Spurs would be open to listening on Gay, according to Jackson. The two scouts also identified Rockets forward P.J. Tucker and Kings forward Nemanja Bjelica as logical targets — Miami has been linked to both.
- With restricted free agency on tap this summer, Heat sharpshooter Duncan Robinson is putting in work to become a more complete player rather than just a three-point specialist. Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun Sentinel takes a closer look at Robinson’s development.
- After a slow start to the season, the Heat won seven of their last eight games entering the All-Star break. Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald explores what the club needs to do to carry that success over into the second half, starting with keeping Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo healthy.
Chris Bosh, Paul Pierce, Rick Adelman Among 2021 Hall Of Fame Finalists
The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame has announced 14 finalists for the Class of 2021 election, according to a press release. These nine players and five coaches are the candidates to be named Hall-of-Famers when this year’s class is announced on May 16.
This year’s finalists are as follows:
Players:
- Chris Bosh
- Michael Cooper
- Yolanda Griffith
- Tim Hardaway Sr.
- Lauren Jackson
- Marques Johnson
- Paul Pierce
- Ben Wallace
- Chris Webber
Coaches:
- Rick Adelman
- Leta Andrews
- Bill Russell
- Marianne Stanley
- Jay Wright
Hardaway, Johnson, Wallace, Webber, and Andrews have been finalists in the past and are receiving consideration again this year. The other nine are first-time finalists, though Russell has – of course – already been inducted into the Hall of Fame as a player.
Among this year’s first-time finalists, Bosh, Pierce, and Adelman are a few of the most interesting names. Bosh earned 11 All-Star nods and won a pair of NBA championships before a blood-clotting issue cut his career short. Pierce made 10 All-Star teams and won a title (and a Finals MVP award) over the course of his 19 NBA seasons. Adelman, meanwhile, is the ninth-winningest coach in NBA history, with an all-time regular season record of 1,042-749 (.582).
Due to the coronavirus, 2020’s Hall of Fame induction ceremony couldn’t be held as planned last year and has been rescheduled for May 14-16. The Class of 2020 includes Kevin Garnett, Tim Duncan, and the late Kobe Bryant.
The ceremony for the Class of 2021 is scheduled to take place in September 2021, following May’s announcement of the inductees.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Atlantic Notes: Griffin, Rivers, Siakam, Celtics
The chance to win a title played a huge role in Blake Griffin‘s decision to sign with the Nets after clearing waivers Sunday, writes Brian Lewis of The New York Post. That was one of the topics Griffin addressed Monday when he answered questions from fans during a session with Bleacher Report.
“My only goal is to help win a championship,” Griffin responded when asked why he chose Brooklyn. “Some years it’s more realistic than others. But that’s why I came to Brooklyn.”
Griffin hasn’t been past the second round of the playoffs in his 11 years in the NBA, but the Nets may give him a legitimate chance at a ring. Griffin will add another versatile offensive weapon to a team that already has three stars in place and sits a half game away from the best record in the East. Front court depth is one of Brooklyn’s few weaknesses, and Griffin is confident he can make a difference.
“They have a need for a 4-man,” he said. “I’ve always had a lot of respect for (head coach) Steve Nash and all of the guys they have. (General manager) Sean Marks has done a great job there. It was a tough decision and I wanted to be on a team that was contending.”
There’s more from the Atlantic Division:
- Sixers coach Doc Rivers is concerned about how a condensed schedule will affect his team over the second half of the season, according to Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer. The 76ers will play 36 games in 67 days as they try to hold onto the top spot in the East. “I would say (this) is not the way I wanted it for our team, you know, being so young,” Rivers said. “We are really young, actually look at the guys that are playing. To cut off practice time for a young team is usually not good.”
- The Raptors need a strong return from Pascal Siakam to be contenders in the second half, writes Doug Smith of The Toronto Star. Siakam will have missed almost two full weeks due to health and safety protocols when Toronto resumes play Thursday night.
- The Celtics would love to pry Nikola Vucevic away from the Magic, but Orlando has other pieces that could be helpful in Boston. Josh Robbins, Jay King and Jared Weiss of The Athletic examine potential Celtics deals involving Evan Fournier, Aaron Gordon and Terrence Ross.
Hoops Rumors Chat Transcript: 3/9/2021
With the 2021 NBA trade deadline fast approaching, we’re holding weekly live chats to discuss the trade market, along with topics related to free agency, the salary cap, the Collective Bargaining Agreement, or any other NBA-related topics you’d like to discuss. Those chats will take place each Tuesday at 12:00pm central time (1:00pm ET).
The transcript for today’s live chat can be found right here!
Rockets Rumors: Oladipo, Tucker, Gordon, More
With the Rockets in the midst of a 13-game losing streak and their playoff chances dwindling, people around the NBA are wondering if general manager Rafael Stone will launch a full-scale rebuild this month in what could be a seller’s market, writes Jake Fischer of Bleacher Report.
One rival scout told Fischer that he keeps hearing the Rockets will hold a “fire sale” prior to this year’s deadline, while an assistant general manager predicted that the club will “burn the house down.” Another assistant GM told Bleacher Report that Houston has been starting to call teams about deals.
The Rockets haven’t had a sub-.500 season since 2005/06 and it’s unclear whether team owner Tilman Fertitta would have the patience for a multiyear rebuild. As Fischer explains, Houston still had playoff aspirations when it traded James Harden to Brooklyn in January — the decision to flip Caris LeVert for Victor Oladipo in that blockbuster deal was made in part due to the club’s belief that Oladipo would make more of an impact in the postseason race.
However, the Rockets also have incentive not to try to fight their way back up the standings, as their first-round pick will be swapped with either the Thunder’s or Heat’s pick (whichever is worse) if it doesn’t land in the top four. Even a last-place finish won’t guarantee that the Rockets hang onto their own first-rounder, but the lower they finish, the better their odds are of hanging onto a top pick that could help them secure a long-term franchise cornerstone.
Here’s more on the Rockets:
- Fischer suggests that if the Rockets hang onto Oladipo through the trade deadline, a sign-and-trade deal in the offseason appears to be the most likely outcome. “They’re too smart to just whiff and get nothing off of him,” a Western Conference official said. Still, getting anything of value in a sign-and-trade would hinge on Oladipo wanting to join a team that doesn’t have the cap room available to sign him outright.
- The Sixers are on a long list of potential suitors for P.J. Tucker, according to Fischer, who says the veteran forward would welcome the opportunity to join a 76ers team led by former Rockets GM Daryl Morey. League sources tell Bleacher Report that Houston could’ve gotten a late first-round pick from the Timberwolves in the 2020 draft for Tucker, but the team will be hard-pressed to get that strong a return now, since the 35-year-old has had a down year. “If they had a first for him now, he’d already be gone,” one GM said.
- Fischer adds that there has been a “long-whispered rumor” that the Nets and Rockets could make a swap involving Tucker and Spencer Dinwiddie. According to Fischer, wherever Tucker ends up, he’ll be looking for one last lucrative contract in the offseason, having turned down a two-year extension from the Rockets earlier in the season.
- There’s little expectation that the Rockets will trade Eric Gordon, sources tell Fischer. However, clubs may target some of the team’s other, more affordable wings, including Sterling Brown, Danuel House, Ben McLemore, and Jae’Sean Tate.
Blazers Rumors: Open Roster Spot, McCollum, Nurkic, More
The Trail Blazers have held their 15th roster spot open for the entire regular season so far, but hope to fill that spot in the coming weeks via the trade or buyout market, says Jason Quick of The Athletic. According to Quick, Portland will be looking to add a player who will “unquestionably be in the rotation for the remainder of the season.”
Quick cautions that the Blazers likely won’t make a major move like they did in 2017 when they acquired Jusuf Nurkic at the deadline — the goal will simply be to add a player who is more productive and/or reliable than back-of-the-rotation contributors such as Anfernee Simons, Nassir Little, and Rodney Hood.
A wing who can shoot would be an ideal addition, according to Quick, who notes that Bulls forward Otto Porter is a player that Blazers president Neil Olshey has liked for a long time. Porter would only be a realistic target if he’s bought out.
If Portland can’t find a wing who can shoot, the club may shift its focus to addressing the backup point guard spot, per Quick. Simons has been handling that role for much of the year and has shot the ball well, but his ball-handling has been a little shaky.
Here’s more on the Blazers:
- The Blazers still haven’t set exact dates for their respective returns, but there’s a sense that CJ McCollum (foot) and Jusuf Nurkic (wrist) are days, not weeks, away from getting back on the court, according to Quick.
- A source tells The Athletic that Portland isn’t considering signing big man DeMarcus Cousins, who reached the free agent market last month.
- In addition to having an opening on their 15-man roster, the Blazers also have an open two-way contract slot. However, the club has no plans to fill that opening, since any two-way player would just be “a warm body” on the bench, says Quick.
- The Blazers are about $1.8MM below the luxury tax line and are “adamant” about not crossing that threshold, which will be a factor in what trades they’re able to make and how much they’re willing to offer to players on the buyout market.
Cam Reddish Receives PRP Injection, Out At Least Two Weeks
MARCH 9: Reddish received a platelet-rich plasma (PRP) injection and will be sidelined for at least two weeks, general manager Travis Schlenk said during an appearance on 92.9 The Game on Tuesday morning (Twitter link).
MARCH 8: Hawks forward Cam Reddish underwent a non-surgical procedure on Monday, the team announced (via Twitter).
Reddish, who has missed the last six games due to right Achilles soreness, will be placed in a walking boot. He’ll be re-examined in approximately one week.
Reddish is averaging 11.2 PPG, 4.0 RPG and 1.3 APG in 26 games this season, including 21 starts. He’s struggled from the field, making just 36.5% of his shots overall and 26.2% of his 3-point attempts.
The Duke product was the 10th overall pick in the 2019 draft. The Hawks will have to decide this fall whether to exercise their team option on him for the 2022/23 season. Prior to this season, Atlanta exercised its option on Reddish’s contract for next season.
Reddish was one of the players said to be unhappy with coach Lloyd Pierce, who was replaced by Nate McMillan on an interim basis last week.
Draft Notes: Cunningham, Top Shooters, Todd, Nix
With the NBA G League season nearly over and the NCAA tournament around the corner, Oklahoma State guard Cade Cunningham remains atop experts’ big boards for the 2021 NBA draft. The freshman capped off an impressive regular season by being named the Big 12 Player of the Year and Freshman of the Year, as the conference announced in a press release.
Cunningham averaged 19.7 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 3.5 assists per game with a .455/.425/.854 shooting line in 22 contests (35.1 MPG) in his first – and almost certainly only – college season. He’ll get a chance to further cement his claim as 2021’s top prospect in this week’s Big 12 tournament and during March Madness. Oklahoma State was banned from the postseason for a year, but their appeal to overturn that penalty is still pending, making the program eligible for the NCAA Tournament.
Here’s more on the 2021 NBA draft:
- Sam Vecenie of The Athletic takes a look at the top shooters in the 2021 draft class, identifying WCC Player of the Year Corey Kispert (Gonzaga) as the No. 1 option. Joe Wieskamp (Iowa), Sam Hauser (Virginia), Isaiah Livers (Michigan), and Trey Murphy (Virginia) round out Vecenie’s top five.
- The G League Ignite’s season is over, as the NBAGL’s select team – which features projected top-five picks Jalen Green and Jonathan Kuminga – was knocked out of the single-elimination postseason by the Raptors 905 on Monday. Jonathan Givony of ESPN (Insider link) examines what we learned about the Ignite’s prospects in the G League bubble, writing that Isaiah Todd boosted his stock with his play down the stretch, while Daishen Nix struggled a little. Todd is considered a first-round prospect by many NBA teams, but Nix is looking more like a second-rounder than a potential lottery pick, Givony adds.
- The most recent big boards from Givony and Mike Schmitz at ESPN and from Jonathan Wasserman of Bleacher Report have plenty of similarities in the lottery, but there are a few notable differences. Connecticut’s James Bouknight is No. 6 on Wasserman’s board and just 11th on ESPN’s, while Tennessee’s Jaden Springer is ranked 12th by Wasserman and all the way down at No. 39 by ESPN. Meanwhile, ESPN ranks Auburn’s Sharife Cooper and Kispert as top-10 prospects, while Wasserman has them 17th and 18th, respectively.
Pacific Notes: James, Lakers, Batum, Warriors
How much longer does LeBron James want to keep playing? Long enough to make history by playing with his son Bronny, Mark Medina of USA Today tweets. “That’s definitely one of my goals, but that’s a long-term goal,” The Lakers‘ star said. “My son right now is in high school and enjoying what being a teenager is all about. But that would be pretty cool to go on my resume.” Bronny, 16, attends Sierra Canyon in Chatsworth, Calif. and recently had surgery to repair torn meniscus.
We have more from the Pacific Division:
- The Lakers are unlikely to find help via a trade due to salary-cap restrictions and the fact that their best trade pieces are rotation players, Jovan Buha of The Athletic opines. The team could use help at backup center, as well as a large wing with 3-point ability. Their best place to find that would be in the buyout market, with Andre Drummond, P.J. Tucker and Trevor Ariza as possibilities. The Lakers’ reported interest in Drummond was already noted here.
- Nicolas Batum was looking to redeem himself after his career went sour in Charlotte. The Clippers entered the season seeking redemption after an abrupt dismissal from the postseason. That’s one of the reasons Batum decided to sign with the team, as Andrew Greif of the Los Angeles Times details. Batum is averaging 9.0 PPG, 4.8 RPG and 2.4 APG in 35 starts this season. He’s on a one-year, veteran’s minimum deal and will re-enter the free agent market this summer.
- The Warriors would be better off building toward next season rather than making moves to collect more victories this season, Tim Kawakami of The Athletic argues. There’s no reason to use their $9.2MM disabled player exception, especially with the luxury-tax implications it would bring. The better course of action would to give lottery pick James Wiseman ample playing time and wait for the loaded draft.