Kevin Love: Eventually Playing For Blazers Would Be “Special”
During the first half of the 2019/20 season, a report stated that if Cavaliers power forward Kevin Love was traded, he preferred to end up with his hometown Trail Blazers. Portland reportedly offered expiring contracts to Cleveland in exchange for Love, but were unable to complete a deal.
Love – who was born in Southern California and played for UCLA but grew up in Lake Oswego, Oregon – never publicly confirmed that Portland would have been his ideal landing spot. However, with the veteran forward and the Cavs increasingly likely to part ways sometime before his contract expires in 2023, Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports asked Love during the most recent episode of his Posted Up podcast about the possibility of eventually joining the Blazers.
“Who wouldn’t want to play with Dame Lillard, first of all,” Love responded. “Dame, he’s special. He’s amazing. I claim Portland when they ask me where I’m from. It’s where I spent all of my formative years. I grew up in Portland. When people ask where I was born, obviously I say L.A. But Portland is always going to be a special place in my heart.
“Whether it be at the end of my career, whether it be in six months, or whatever it may be, if I was wearing a Portland jersey, that’s special,” Love continued. “That’s playing at home.”
Love still has two years and $60MM+ left on his contract with the Cavaliers, which will make a trade challenging, especially for Portland — if they’re going to take on that sort of money, the Blazers will be targeting an impact player in his prime.
Still, after Love’s latest on-court display of frustration, speculation has increased that the 32-year-old and the Cavs could be headed for a divorce sooner rather than later, even if that means Cleveland negotiating a buyout or accepting pennies on the dollar in a trade. If Portland could sign the former fifth overall pick at a discount once he eventually reaches free agency, the idea of a union between the two sides seems much more viable.
While he figures to be the subject of trade rumors again this offseason, Love is on track to finish the 2020/21 season with the Cavs. He has averaged 11.5 points and 6.8 rebounds per games in 21 contests (23.9 MPG) so far. Those numbers are all well below his career averages, as are his .404 FG% and .349 3PT%.
Dennis Schröder Out At Least 10-14 Days Due To Protocols
MAY 3: Schröder is expected to miss at least 10-to-14 days due to the protocols, sources tell Shams Charania and Bill Oram of The Athletic (Twitter link). That’s typically the timeline associated with a positive COVID-19 test, though that hasn’t been confirmed in Schröder’s case.
The regular season ends on May 16, so it’s very possible we won’t see Schröder again until the postseason.
MAY 2: Lakers guard Dennis Schröder has entered the NBA’s health and safety protocols and will miss the team’s game against the Raptors on Sunday, according to Marc J. Spears of The Undefeated (Twitter link). It’s unclear how long he’ll be sidelined.
Los Angeles just welcomed back LeBron James (ankle) after 20 games, rolling with a starting lineup of Schröder, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, James, Anthony Davis and Andre Drummond on Friday for the first time this season.
Building chemistry is imperative for championship contenders, and the loss of Schröder will hurt the Lakers’ ability to do so just weeks before the playoffs. In 59 starts this season, Schröder has averaged 15.5 points, 5.8 assists and 32.2 minutes per game, shooting 44% from the field and 34% from deep.
The Lakers own the sixth-best record in the West at 36-27 and have lost seven of their last 10 contests. They lead the No. 7 seed Blazers by just one game.
Nets Sign Mike James To Second 10-Day Contract
MAY 3: The Nets have made it official, announcing in a press release that they’ve signed James to his second 10-day contract.
MAY 2: The Nets plan to sign guard Mike James to a second 10-day contract, Marc Stein of the New York Times tweets.
James’ initial 10-day deal with Brooklyn will expire on Sunday night, so he’ll be able to sign his new deal on Monday. The 30-year-old’s second 10-day would expire during the last week of the regular season, at which point he’d be eligible to sign a standard contract if the Nets want to keep him around for the playoffs.
James averaged 7.4 points, 4.2 assists and 19.6 minutes per game during his first 10-day deal, appearing in a total of five contests. He shot 36% from the floor and 27% from deep in those outings.
Brooklyn signed James to a 10-day deal last month after releasing veteran LaMarcus Aldridge, who retired after dealing with health concerns. The team owns the second-best record in the East at 43-22 and plays Milwaukee for a second straight game on Tuesday.
Atlantic Notes: Noel, Brown, Tatum, Fournier, Trent
The Knicks moved closer to securing a guaranteed playoff spot in the East with their win over Houston on Sunday, but it may have come at a cost. Veteran big man Nerlens Noel left the game after suffering an ankle injury in the third quarter and didn’t return.
According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link), who notes that Noel was diagnosed with a left ankle sprain, X-rays on that ankle were negative. While that’s good news for the Knicks and their starting center, he’ll undergo further evaluation on Monday to determine the severity of the injury and a potential timeline for his return.
If Noel is forced to miss time, the Knicks – already missing Mitchell Robinson – will have to lean more heavily on Taj Gibson and Norvel Pelle at the center spot.
Here are a few more notes from around the Atlantic:
- Celtics guard Jaylen Brown limped off the court favoring his right leg after colliding with teammate Jayson Tatum late in Sunday’s loss to Portland, writes Tim Bontemps of ESPN. Both players headed to the locker room after the collision, though Tatum said after the game that he felt OK. Brown’s status isn’t yet known.
- Celtics wing Evan Fournier has been back for six games after dealing with COVID-19 and scored 21 points on 8-of-10 shooting on Sunday. However, he told reporters he’s still feeling the aftereffects of the virus. “I feel like I have a concussion,” Fournier said, per Jared Weiss of The Athletic (Twitter link). “Right now, it’s actually doing a little bit better. But at first, the bright lights were bothering my eyes, my vision was blurry, and everything was going too fast for me. … My depth perception is really bad right now, but I saw a specialist and she gave me some exercises, and hopefully I can get better.”
- As Blake Murphy of The Athletic notes, Raptors swingman Gary Trent Jr., who has missed the last five games with a leg injury, is just one start (or 57 minutes played) away from meeting the starter criteria, which would increase the value of his qualifying offer and cap hold. While it may just be a coincidence based on which Raptors were available, it’s worth noting that Trent came off the bench in his last two healthy games after starting his first eight with the team. Toronto would gain a little extra cap flexibility this offseason if Trent falls short of meeting the starter criteria.
Magic’s Steve Clifford Cleared To Return On Wednesday
Magic head coach Steve Clifford, who has been in the NBA’s health and safety protocols for over a week, has been cleared and is on track to coach the team on Wednesday vs. Boston, the team announced today (via Twitter).
We heard back on April 24 that Clifford had registered a positive test for COVID-19. However, he had just received his second vaccination shot and reportedly didn’t experience any symptoms following his diagnosis. Despite not feeling ill, Clifford had to clear the league’s protocols before being given the go-ahead to be around the Magic again.
Clifford has missed five games so far and also won’t be available for Monday’s game against the Pistons, since the team has already traveled to Detroit for that contest. He’ll be ready to go when the Magic return home to host the Celtics on Wednesday.
In Clifford’s absence, Tyrone Corbin temporarily took the reins as Orlando’s acting head coach. He has led the team to a 2-3 record so far, with wins over Cleveland and Memphis.
LeBron James Exits Game Due To Ankle Pain, Criticizes Play-In Format
After the Lakers lost for the sixth time in their last seven games on Sunday night, forward LeBron James became the latest star player to criticize the NBA’s new play-in tournament that will determine the final two playoff teams in each conference, as Dave McMenamin of ESPN writes.
“Whoever came up with that s–t needs to be fired,” James said.
Last month, Mavericks All-Star guard Luka Doncic and owner Mark Cuban both offered similar assessments of the play-in format, with Doncic saying he didn’t see the point of it and Cuban calling it an “enormous mistake” to have implemented it this season.
As was the case with Doncic’s and Cuban’s comments, it’s impossible to accept LeBron’s critique at face value without considering his team’s place in the standings. After starting the season with a 21-6 record, the Lakers have gone just 15-22 and are now in a three-way tie for fifth place in the West — Dallas, Portland, and L.A. have matching 36-28 records, so if the Lakers’ slump continues in the season’s final two weeks, they’ll likely find themselves participating in a play-in game.
It’s probably safe to assume that LeBron wouldn’t be speaking out against the play-in format if the Lakers comfortably held a top-four seed — especially since he favored a play-in tournament to determine the last playoff team prior to last summer’s restart, as Sean Highkin of Bleacher Report notes (via Twitter).
Still, it sounds as if LeBron’s frustration with the format comes from a similar place as Cuban’s — the Mavericks owner wasn’t necessarily against the play-in tournament in general, but said that it was a mistake to introduce it during a compressed season, following a shortened offseason.
The play-in format makes the regular season results more important at a time when the league has squeezed 72 games into a 146-day calendar (instead of 82 in 177), meaning teams have to fight harder for their position in the standings when they may prefer to be resting key players and getting them healthy.
In James’ case, he recently returned from a right ankle sprain that sidelined him for 20 games, but it appears he’s still bothered by that injury. As McMenamin writes, the 36-year-old left Sunday’s loss midway through the fourth quarter due to right ankle soreness and didn’t return.
“I definitely want to get healthy. Not only for myself, but for our team,” James said. “I need to make sure my ankle is where it was before the injury. I’ve got to be smart with it.”
Western Notes: Ayton, Warriors, Suns, Bridges, Murray
Suns star Chris Paul praised third-year center Deandre Ayton for changing his game and adapting to a new role with the team, Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic tweets.
Despite a decrease in his overall numbers, Ayton has improved his activity on both ends of the court, serving as a valuable screen-setter and rebounder for the top-ranked team in the league.
Paul, a 16-year veteran, mentioned that every player on Phoenix has grown this season, though none quite like Ayton. The former first overall pick has served as a key cog in the team’s success and has accepted the idea of starring in his complementary role, averaging 14.8 points and 10.7 rebounds per game.
There’s more out of the Western Conference tonight:
- The Warriors‘ loss to the Timberwolves on Thursday was their most consequential defeat of the season, Anthony Slater of The Athletic writes, noting that the result negatively impacted both the Dubs’ playoff position and the Wolves’ lottery position. Golden State lost the contest 126-114 (and was out-rebounded by 23), though the team bounced back on Saturday to defeat Houston 113-87.
- The Suns could be facing a sizable money crunch soon, Zach Lowe of ESPN notes. Star guard Devin Booker is under a maximum-salary contract, veteran Chris Paul owns a $44.2MM player option for next season and both Ayton and Mikal Bridges will be eligible for extensions this summer. Rival executives believe Bridges’s next contract may approach $20MM per season, Lowe reports.
- Nuggets guard Jamal Murray reunited with his team and offered an inspiring message on Saturday, Mike Singer of the Denver Post writes. Murray suffered a torn ACL last month and re-emphasized that the team still has one major goal: win the championship. “You just felt the energy lift when he walked in,” teammate PJ Dozier said. “We cheered for him. Just good to have our brother back. Good to see him, see him doing well at that. We just wanted to make sure his spirits were high.”
Southeast Notes: Ariza, Westbrook, Robinson, Brazdeikis
Heat forward Trevor Ariza has provided a maximum payoff since being traded to Miami earlier this year, Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel writes. Ariza has since earned a role in the team’s starting lineup, giving consistent production on both ends of the floor.
“Trevor’s one of the most underrated players in this league,” head coach Erik Spoelstra said of Ariza. “But I would say that the contending teams that had him before, he’s not underrated. He does so many things — his activity, his deflections, his ability to guard multiple positions.
“And he also has been a very underrated scorer over the course of his career.”
Ariza has averaged 8.9 points, 4.5 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game this season, playing an average of 27.1 minutes across 23 contests. He’s provided versatility alongside Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo at 6’8″, also shooting 35% from downtown.
Here are some other notes from the Southeast Division tonight:
- Wizards guard Russell Westbrook further proved that he’s still a star in the team’s game against the Mavericks on Saturday, Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington writes. Westbrook finished with 42 points, 10 rebounds, nine assists and two steals against Dallas, shooting 17-of-30 from the floor.
- Anthony Chiang of the Miami Herald examines the impressive milestone from Heat sharpshooter Duncan Robinson. Robinson became the fastest player to reach 500 made threes in NBA history on Saturday, finishing the game against Cleveland shooting 6-of-9 from deep. He’ll be a restricted free agent in August.
- Josh Cohen of NBA.com examines 10 interesting basketball facts about new Magic forward Ignas Brazdeikis, who signed a 10-day contract with the team on Sunday. Brazdeikis, the No. 47 pick in 2019, holds brief NBA experience with the Knicks and Sixers.
Eastern Notes: Butler, Spoelstra, Hayes, Williams, Wizards
Heat star Jimmy Butler recently reflected on his relationship with head coach Erik Spoelstra, a partnership that’s lasted since the team acquired Butler in a sign-and-trade back in July of 2019.
Butler and Spoelstra are known as basketball purists, a competitive player-coach duo that helped lead Miami to its first Finals berth since 2014 last season.
“(We) keep it real with one another,” Butler said of his relationship with Spoelstra, as relayed by Anthony Chiang of the Miami Herald. “We got in a little predicament [Wednesday against the Spurs]. But it’s nothing new. Everything is not all good all the time. But we both want to win, we both have the same agenda.
“So I think he’s helping me grow a tremendous amount, talking about leadership as a player and what to look for with my guys. He’s making sure that I put a lot of trust in my teammates and in my young guys, and I appreciate him for it.”
There’s more from the Southeast Division tonight:
- Pistons rookie Killian Hayes is still playing with a sense of urgency despite his team being eliminated from playoff contention, as relayed by Rod Beard of The Detroit News. The 19-year-old Hayes was the team’s No. 7 pick in the draft last year and has only appeared in 19 games this season due to injury.
- The Bulls need more production from rookie Patrick Williams, Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times opines. “I’m trying to be aggressive,’’ Williams said. “But kind of like I said, it’s a learning experience, for sure. We have some more games to go, so hopefully I can continue to get better at that.’’ On the season, Williams has averaged 9.2 points and 4.6 rebounds in 28.2 minutes per game across 63 starts.
- The red-hot Wizards have three secret weapons in the middle, Thomas Boswell of the Washington Post writes. Boswell examines the production the club has received from Daniel Gafford, Robin Lopez and Alex Len, all of whom have seen valuable minutes in recent weeks. Washington has been playing without its starting center, Thomas Bryant, since he suffered a partially torn ACL in January.
Atlantic Notes: Randle, Raptors, Nesmith, Harris
A major factor in the blossoming of Knicks forward Julius Randle into an All-Star has been his improved passing, contends Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic. Randle is averaging a career-best 5.9 APG this season.
Vorkunov credits Randle’s excellent aptitude for last-second passes, frequently distributed nanoseconds before he lands from his jumps. The extended timing is designed to attract defenders away from his passing targets. “A lot of coaches hate that,” Knicks reserve guard Derrick Rose said. “But I’m somebody [who has] been doing it for a while, too. As long as his turnover ratio isn’t greater than his assist ratio, I feel like it’s alright. He makes smart decisions. He’s delivering the ball.”
There’s more out of the Atlantic Division:
- The Raptors already appear to be playing with an eye towards next season as their play-in tournament odds continue to shrink, writes Michael Grange of Sportsnet. One sign is the team’s willingness to experiment. To wit, head coach Nick Nurse has tried new center Khem Birch as a fast-break ball handler of late. The club is 26-38, three games behind the 10th-seeded Wizards with just eight games left to make up ground.
- After the Jazz defeated the Raptors 106-102 yesterday, the Knicks will officially at least make the league’s play-in tournament, according to Marc Berman of the New York Post. This will mark the team’s first postseason appearance since 2013.
- Though the Celtics anticipated that rookie first-round draft pick Aaron Nesmith could be an instant contributor as a shooter, he has made more of an impact with his hustle on both ends of the floor. A. Sherrod Blakely of the Boston Sports Journal examines the disparity between Nesmith’s anticipated skill set at the next level and the reality thus far. “I’m happy for him because it seems he has found a role with those guys now,” an Eastern Conference scout said. “It’s not the role we thought it would be or the role the Celtics thought it would be, but give him credit, he’s figured out a way to get on the floor which is huge for a rookie.”
- Raptors head coach Nick Nurse said on Saturday that he appreciated the recent performance of Jalen Harris in limited minutes, and hopes to find more time for the rookie guard during the season’s home stretch, tweets Josh Lewenberg of TSN Sports.