Charania’s Latest: Collins, Rockets, E. Gordon, I. Todd, More
John Collins‘ playoff averages of 13.9 points and 8.7 rebounds per game (in 32.0 MPG) don’t jump off the page. However, people around the NBA believe the Hawks big man bolstered his case for a maximum-salary type investment this offseason with his postseason performance, says Shams Charania of The Athletic. Collins played a key role in Atlanta winning two series as an underdog and getting to within two games of the NBA Finals.
Since Collins will be a restricted free agent, the Hawks will have the ability to either sign Collins to a new deal themselves or match any offer sheet he signs with another team. Still, the club has projected reluctance to go all the way up to max for the 23-year-old, so a rival suitor could put pressure on Atlanta’s ownership and front office by presenting an aggressive four-year offer. The Mavericks, Heat, Spurs, and Timberwolves are among the teams expected to display interest, sources tell Charania.
Here’s more from Charania:
- The Rockets have been actively exploring ways to move up from No. 2 and acquire the Pistons‘ No. 1 pick, sources tell Charania. A report last week suggested Houston has been “fixated” on Cade Cunningham, the top prospect in this year’s draft class, while multiple reports have stated that Detroit likes Jalen Green and Evan Mobley, so it’s possible the two teams could be motivated to work something out.
- The Rockets have also been discussing veteran guard Eric Gordon in trade scenarios, according to Charania. Gordon, who still has two guaranteed years left on his contract, would be a better fit on a win-now team than a rebuilding Houston squad.
- Isaiah Todd, who played for the G League Ignite in 2020/21, is canceling draft workouts with teams late in the first round, including the Jazz, and is focusing on teams with lottery picks, says Charania. That seems awfully optimistic for a prospect ranked 47th overall on ESPN’s big board.
- Villanova’s Jeremiah Robinson-Earl has been impressing teams, including the Pelicans, during the pre-draft process, per Charania. Robinson-Earl ranks 60th on ESPN’s board.
Pelicans Unlikely To Match Significant Offer For Lonzo Ball?
The Pelicans are unlikely to match a significant offer sheet for Lonzo Ball in restricted free agency this summer, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic.
Charania doesn’t clarify what would constitute a “significant” offer, but Ball’s market could be in the range of the four-year, $85MM deals signed by point guards Malcolm Brogdon and Fred VanVleet in recent years. Ball would be doing well to land a contract that matches or exceeds those deals.
The 23-year-old, who began his career with the Lakers, had perhaps his best NBA season in 2020/21, establishing new career highs in PPG (14.6), FG% (.414), and 3PT% (.378). He also chipped in 5.7 APG and 4.8 RPG in 55 games (31.8 MPG).
Star forwards Zion Williamson and Brandon Ingram have both spoken in favor of the Pelicans re-signing Ball, and the team will have the ability to match any offer sheet extended by a rival suitor. But it’s unclear just how committed New Orleans is to the former No. 2 overall pick, especially given the club’s cap situation.
Substantial investments in Ball and fellow restricted free agent Josh Hart would likely push the Pelicans into tax territory unless the club cuts costs by trading away a contract like Steven Adams‘ or Eric Bledsoe‘s. The team has never paid the luxury tax before. And while that doesn’t necessarily mean ownership wouldn’t sign off on a tax bill going forward, it would be a tough sell for a roster that hasn’t made the playoffs since 2018.
The Bulls and Clippers are among the teams expected to express interest in Ball, sources tell Charania. The Knicks have also been mentioned as a possible suitor, though Ian Begley of SNY.tv has reported there are mixed opinions on the point guard among New York’s decision-makers.
Knicks Showing Interest In Collin Sexton
The Knicks have been the most aggressive trade suitor for Cavaliers guard Collin Sexton so far, sources tell Shams Charania of The Athletic.
Sexton, who is entering the final year of his rookie contract and is eligible for a rookie scale extension this offseason, has been the subject of multiple trade rumors within the last month, with the latest one over the weekend suggesting he’s “very available.”
The Knicks have a surplus of future first-round picks – including the Nos. 19 and 21 selections in this year’s draft – at their disposal and remain in the market for a long-term answer at point guard, though it’s unclear if Sexton is capable of being that answer.
The 6’1″ guard is undoubtedly a talented scorer, having averaged a career-best 24.3 points per game on .475/.371/.815 shooting in 60 games (35.3 MPG) in 2020/21. However, he’s not exactly a traditional point guard — facilitating for teammates isn’t one of his strengths, and Darius Garland has assumed primary point guard duties in Cleveland over the last couple years.
Sexton also isn’t an above-average defender, so he’d probably need to be paired with a backcourt partner capable of handling the tougher assignments.
Still, NBA players capable of efficiently averaging 24+ points per night are rare, so if the price is right (in terms of both the trade return and his next contract), Sexton could be a worthwhile investment for the Knicks or another team.
Community Shootaround: U.S. Olympic Team
After losing their first exhibition game to Nigeria on Saturday, the U.S. men’s basketball team dropped its second pre-Olympics tune-up to Australia on Monday, falling 91-83 to the Boomers. Team USA has now lost four of its last five international contests with NBA players on the roster, dating back to the 2019 FIBA World Cup.
As Joe Vardon of The Athletic writes, conditioning has been an issue for the USA team so far, as has rebounding — the roster is fairly undersized, especially with bigs like Bam Adebayo and Kevin Love playing sparingly.
Reinforcements will be coming for Tokyo, with three players who are participating in the NBA Finals – Devin Booker, Jrue Holiday, and Khris Middleton – set to join the Olympic roster once the NBA season ends.
But it’s becoming increasingly clear that the gap between the U.S. and the rest of the world isn’t as significant as it once was, especially when the NBA veterans representing other international programs – including Australia – have spent so much more time playing together.
“We’re not just going to come out here, roll the ball out and beat these teams,” U.S. point guard Damian Lillard said after Monday’s loss. “We’ve got to play the right way, compete, and we’ve got to come out here to win and do everything to give ourselves our best chance to win. If we don’t, we can be beat.”
While Team USA will still be the overwhelming favorite to win the gold medal in Tokyo next month, the squad’s first two exhibition games have been a reminder that bringing home the gold isn’t a given.
France and the Czech Republic could give the U.S. some trouble in the round-robin group stage of the Olympic tournament, while Australia, Spain, Nigeria, and Slovenia (featuring Luka Doncic) are among the teams that could be threats to pull off an upset in the medal round.
We want to know what you think. Do you still expect the U.S. to win gold? Have these exhibition losses caused your confidence to waver? Do you believe there are flaws in the way the roster was constructed that could be exposed at the Olympics?
Head to the comment section below to weigh in with your thoughts!
Pacific Notes: S. Barnes, C. Thomas, Hield, Williams
Versatile Florida State point forward Scottie Barnes possesses some of the same qualities that make Warriors veteran Draymond Green such a valuable teammate, writes Kendra Andrews of NBC Sports Bay Area. Barnes also is an unselfish player who prioritizes defense and winning over personal statistics, and could be an intriguing successor to Green if he falls to Golden State’s No. 7 pick in the upcoming 2021 draft.
Though Barnes was a below-average jump shooter in college, Andrews notes that his Green-esque impact could offset his modest scoring contributions. In his lone season for FSU, the 6’9″ Barnes averaged 10.3 PPG, 4.1 APG and 4.0 RPG, with a shooting line of .503/.275/.621.
There’s more out of the Pacific Division:
- LSU guard Cameron Thomas is scheduled to work out for the Warriors this Wednesday, tweets Nick Friedell of ESPN. The 6’4″ guard averaged 23.0 PPG, 3.4 RPG and 1.4 APG during the 2020/21 NCAA season. He posted a shooting line of .406/.325/.882.
- Kings shooting guard Buddy Hield faces a potentially tenuous future with the club, as he touched on in a podcast interview with Yahoo Sports’ Chris Haynes. “I see my name in trade rumors, but I can’t control all that,” Hield said. “My job is to go out there and play basketball and everybody’s goal is to get to the playoffs and win a championship.” The Kings have not made the playoffs since 2006. Hield has two years left on the four-year, $86MM contract extension he signed with Sacramento during the 2019 offseason.
- Suns head coach Monty Williams notes that Nets head coach Steve Nash, a former two-time MVP while a point guard for Phoenix, reached out to him over text during the playoffs, tweets Mark Medina of USA Today. “It spoke to me about how those guys feel about the Suns and the fanbase,” Williams said.
Atlantic Notes: Tatum, Harrison, Vildoza, Knicks
Speaking to Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe, Celtics All-Star forward Jayson Tatum discussed the hiring of new Boston head coach Ime Udoka, logging time with Team USA in this summer’s Tokyo Olympics, and more.
“Extremely happy about Ime,” Tatum said of Udoka. “I’ve known him for a little while. He’s extremely motivated and I think everybody has a good feeling about this. I think this is going to be great.” Tatum noted that he and fellow Celtics All-Star Jaylen Brown were both consulted as the team interviewed a variety of head coach candidates.
“It was tough, just everything that we had to endure, everything that kind of happened,” Tatum said of the Celtics’ disappointing 2020/21 season, which saw the club finish as the No. 7 seed in the East and lose in the first round to the Nets. “It put in perspective and made me appreciate those good years that we had and we made those deep playoff runs. It’s not always guaranteed and it made me appreciate that.”
There’s more out of the Atlantic Division:
- Shooting guard D’Angelo Harrison is scheduled to attend the Sixers‘ mini-camp later in July, tweets Emiliano Carchia of Sportando. Since going undrafted out of St. John’s in 2015, the 6’4″ 27-year-old has played for a variety of international teams. During the 2020/21 season, Harrison played for Italian League club New Basket Brindisi.
- Newly-added Knicks point guard Luca Vildoza showed off his sharpshooting bona fides during an Olympics exhibition match for Team Argentina last Saturday, as Marc Berman of the New York Post details. Vildoza connected on three of his eight three-point looks in the 87-84 loss to Team Australia.
- The Knicks have a clear need to upgrade their starting point guard position. With that in mind, Ian Begley of SNY.tv examines several restricted free agent options for New York, noting that lead guards who are not ball-dominant (including Lonzo Ball, Kendrick Nunn, and Devonte’ Graham) could be ideal fits alongside All-Star forward Julius Randle, who thrives with the ball in his hands.
Australian League Coach Trevor Gleeson To Join Raptors As Assistant
Raptors head coach Nick Nurse will be adding former Perth Wildcats head coach Trevor Gleeson to his bench for the 2021/22 season, tweets Marc Stein.
As Stein notes, Gleeson led the Wildcats to five National Basketball League championships in 2014, 2016, 2017, 2019, and 2020. Gleeson is the reigning NBL Coach of the Year for the 2020/21 season. Gleeson asked to be released from the final year of his contract with Perth this weekend in order to pursue an NBA opportunity, per a team press statement.
Gleeson led the club to a 171-99 record during his eight seasons with Perth. The Wildcats made it to the championship round again this year, but lost to Melbourne United.
Nurse has been the head man in Toronto since the team’s championship 2018/19 season. He inked a multiyear extension with the club ahead of the 2020/21 season that is set to take him through at least 2024. The Raptors have a 226-138 record under Nurse.
Josh Lewenberg of TSN tweets that Nurse appreciates assistants with head coaching track records, which may have added to Gleeson’s appeal. Lewenberg adds (Twitter link) that Gleeson also served as a basketball coach in Korea and the NBA G League, and moonlit as an Australian rules football coach.
2021 NBA Offseason Preview: Portland Trail Blazers
After an injury-plagued 2019/20 season in which they barely sneaked into the Western Conference playoffs, the Trail Blazers entered the ’20/21 campaign with loftier goals. Portland added Robert Covington and Derrick Jones on the wing and was counting on the frontcourt duo of Jusuf Nurkic and Zach Collins to get healthy and help complement the team’s star backcourt duo of Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum.
However, injuries continued to be a problem for Nurkic, who missed half the season, and for Collins, who missed the entire year. And while Covington meshed well with the current core, Jones didn’t have the impact the Blazers had hoped for, falling out of the rotation in the second half.
President of basketball operations Neil Olshey added some midseason reinforcements by acquiring Norman Powell from Toronto, but it wasn’t enough to make a serious playoff run. Portland was eliminated from the postseason in the first round by a shorthanded Nuggets squad, spelling the end of Terry Stotts‘ tenure as the club’s head coach.
The offseason has gotten off to a shaky start in Portland. There are questions about whether Lillard’s loyalty to the franchise might start wavering after what he called the most frustrating season of his career, and the Blazers came under fire for hiring Chauncey Billups as their new head coach in light of the sexual assault allegations he faced in 1997.
The Blazers said they investigated the incident and came away confident that Billups hadn’t engaged in any wrongdoing, but their caginess and lack of transparency left many fans with a bad taste. Olshey and Billups may have some work to do to ensure that both Lillard and those fans feel comfortable moving forward with the franchise.
The Trail Blazers’ Offseason Plan:
The Blazers will be capped out even before attempting to re-sign Powell, all but eliminating free agency as a viable path for pursuing roster upgrades. The team also doesn’t have either of its 2021 draft picks, having traded away its first-rounder last year for Covington and its second-rounder two years ago for Rodney Hood.
That leaves the trade market as Olshey’s best bet for reshaping the roster.
Lillard is, of course, Portland’s best trade chip, but the team won’t move the All-NBA point guard unless he expresses a desire to leave. Lillard has long been loyal to the Blazers and still has four years left on his contract, so I wouldn’t expect him to force his way out this summer — it’s not impossible, but I imagine he’ll want to at least see what Billups brings to the team before making any major decisions.
If Lillard is off the table, that leaves McCollum and Nurkic as two potential major trade chips for the Blazers. Olshey has long insisted he doesn’t want to break up Portland’s high-scoring backcourt duo, but trading McCollum for an impact forward or big man would certainly help balance the roster. It’s unclear how high McCollum’s value will be on the trade market though, since he has $100MM left on his contract and will be entering his age-30 season.
Nurkic, meanwhile, has played solid two-way basketball in the middle in the past, but leg injuries have limited his effectiveness. The veteran center also dropped hints at the end of the season that he didn’t necessarily envision a long-term future for himself in Portland. While his value isn’t as high as it would’ve been two years ago, his $12MM expiring salary would certainly be movable. He’d even have positive value if he’s back to full health.
No other players on the Blazers’ roster should be untouchable, though Covington is on a team-friendly deal and the club may still be high on young players like Anfernee Simons and Nassir Little, despite their up-and-down development.
In free agency, re-signing Powell should be a priority, especially if the Blazers make a trade involving McCollum. Portland gave up a productive and controllable rotation player in Gary Trent Jr. to acquire Powell and won’t want to lose him for nothing.
Collins once looked like a long-term keeper, but he has undergone three surgeries on his foot in the last year. It’s possible he’ll be back, but it would have to be at a bargain rate. Portland may not even tender him a qualifying offer.
Role players like Carmelo Anthony and Enes Kanter will also be free agents and seem to enjoy playing for the Blazers. If Lillard remains in Portland, I wouldn’t be surprised to see them stick around too.
Salary Cap Situation
Note: Our salary cap projections are based on a presumed 3% increase, which would result in a $112.4MM cap for 2021/22.
Guaranteed Salary
- Damian Lillard ($39,344,970) 1
- CJ McCollum ($30,864,198)
- Robert Covington ($12,975,471)
- Jusuf Nurkic ($4,000,000) — Partial guarantee. Non-guaranteed portion noted below. 2
- Anfernee Simons ($3,938,818)
- Andrew Nicholson ($2,844,429) — Waived via stretch provision.
- Nassir Little ($2,316,240)
- CJ Elleby ($1,517,981)
- Total: $97,802,107
Player Options
Norman Powell ($11,615,328): Bird rights 3- Derrick Jones ($9,720,900): Bird rights 4
- Total: $21,336,228
Team Options
- None
Non-Guaranteed Salary
- Jusuf Nurkic ($8,000,000) 2
- Total: $1,824,003
Restricted Free Agents
- Zach Collins ($7,031,451 qualifying offer / $16,218,765 cap hold): Bird rights
- Total (cap holds): $16,218,765
Two-Way Free Agents
Draft Picks
- None
Extension-Eligible Players
- Anfernee Simons (rookie scale)
- Robert Covington (veteran)
- Jusuf Nurkic (veteran)
Unrestricted Free Agents / Other Cap Holds
- Enes Kanter ($6,506,955): Early Bird rights
- Caleb Swanigan ($3,665,787): Bird rights 6
- Carmelo Anthony ($1,669,178): Early Bird rights
- Harry Giles ($1,669,178): Non-Bird rights
- Rondae Hollis-Jefferson ($1,669,178): Non-Bird rights
- Total: $15,180,276
Offseason Cap Outlook
It’s a safe bet that the Blazers will guarantee Nurkic’s salary for 2021/22, and Jones seems likely to opt in. Those moves would bring Portland’s total guaranteed commitments to about $115.5MM for eight players, pushing team salary over the cap. If they re-sign Powell, the Blazers may find themselves in luxury tax territory again next season.
For now, we’re assuming Portland will have its full mid-level exception and bi-annual exception available, but that could change if team salary creeps into the $130-135MM range (or higher).
Cap Exceptions Available
- Mid-level exception: $9,536,000 7
- Bi-annual exception: $3,732,000 7
- Trade exception: $1,737,145
- Trade exception: $1,663,861
- Trade exception: $661,655
Footnotes
- This is a projected value. Lillard’s salary will be 35% of the 2021/22 salary cap.
- Nurkic’s salary becomes fully guaranteed after August 3.
- Powell’s decision is reportedly due by July 22.
- Jones’ decision is reportedly due by July 28.
- Because he’ll have four years of NBA service, Leaf is ineligible to sign another two-way contract.
- The cap hold for Swanigan remains on the Trail Blazers’ books from a prior season because he hasn’t been renounced. He can’t be used in a sign-and-trade deal. The Blazers also can’t offer Swanigan a starting salary worth more than his cap hold, since his rookie scale team option for 2020/21 was declined.
- These are projected values. If the Trail Blazers approach or cross the tax line, they may forfeit these exceptions and instead gain access to the taxpayer mid-level exception ($5.9MM).
Salary and cap information from Basketball Insiders, RealGM, and ESPN was used in the creation of this post.
Following Specific Players On Hoops Rumors
Hoops Rumors makes it easy to keep up with your favorite NBA teams as they plot their next moves, and we also provide multiple ways to follow the latest updates on all of your favorite players, including the top free agents and trade candidates from around the league.
You can get news about players wherever you go with our Trade Rumors app, available for iOS and Android devices. The app, which is free, allows you to add a feed for any player and set up notifications that will alert you whenever we write about him. It’s the easiest way to keep tabs on specific players.
If you’re using the desktop or mobile version of our site, there are other ways to follow your favorite player(s). Every player we’ve written about has his own rumors page. You can find any player by using our search box, by clicking his tag at the bottom of a post in which he’s discussed, or by simply typing his name in your address bar after hoopsrumors.com, substituting dashes for spaces.
For example, LeBron James‘ page is hoopsrumors.com/lebron-james. Those player pages can be added to RSS readers too.
In addition to players, there are a number of other subjects you can track by clicking on the tags that we use at the bottom of posts or by searching for them in the app.
For instance, you can keep tabs on our 2021 NBA draft stories right here. Items about the NBA G League can be found on this page. Olympics-related stories about the Tokyo games are all here. And you can simply scan our top stories here.
Tad Brown Hired As Sixers’ CEO
Longtime Rockets executive Tad Brown has reached an agreement to become the new CEO of the Sixers, as well as the NHL’s New Jersey Devils, reports ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. Both franchises are owned by Harris Blitzer Sports and Entertainment, which officially announced the hiring today in a press release.
“We are thrilled to welcome Tad to the HBSE family,” Sixers co-owner Josh Harris said in a statement. “Tad is an exceptional leader in our industry, and one with a deep passion for innovation and community engagement. With nearly twenty years’ experience leading the Houston Rockets and Toyota Center, we are confident that he will bring a fresh energy and new ideas to our teams, organization and local communities.”
Brown spent 15 years as the Rockets’ CEO, announcing earlier this year that he’d be stepping down from that position at the end of the 2020/21 season.
It didn’t take Brown long to find a new job. The position in Philadelphia will reunite him with former Rockets general manager Daryl Morey, who is now the Sixers’ president of basketball operations. Brown will be replacing Scott O’Neil, who left the franchise last month after eight years as the CEO of Harris Blitzer Sports and Entertainment.
During his time in Houston, Brown helped the Rockets secure All-Star games in 2006 and 2013 and oversaw the sale of the club in 2017. In his new role with the 76ers, he’ll oversee the team’s business functions, per ESPN’s report.
Although his role is ostensibly on the business operations side of the franchise, Brown did discuss basketball matters with the media a number of times during his tenure in Houston and figures to be involved in negotiations involving players or coaches in Philadelphia. As Wojnarowski notes, Brown and Morey developed a “shorthand” with one another during their many years of collaboration that should be beneficial going forward.