LaVine, Grant Commit To Team USA; Harden Withdraws
Bulls guard Zach LaVine and Pistons forward Jerami Grant have committed to play for Team USA at the Tokyo Olympics, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter links).
There were already 11 players who had committed to represent the U.S. in Tokyo, but one of those players – Nets guard James Harden – is withdrawing, Charania reports (via Twitter).
Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press had noted earlier today (via Twitter) that there are still concerns about the hamstring injury that sidelined Harden for part of the second half of the season and several games in the Eastern Semifinals. He’ll focus on getting that hamstring back to 100% this summer.
As a result of the new commitments and Harden’s decision to pull out, the 12-team roster for Team USA now looks like this:
- Guards: Damian Lillard, Bradley Beal, Devin Booker, Jrue Holiday, LaVine
- Forwards: Kevin Durant, Jayson Tatum, Khris Middleton, Grant
- Bigs: Bam Adebayo, Draymond Green, Kevin Love
Booker, Holiday, and Middleton are still alive in the postseason. However, Team USA managing director Jerry Colangelo previously said that Booker intends to play in Tokyo no matter how late the Suns’ season goes, and he suggested today that Holiday and Middleton have made similar commitments, per ESPN’s Brian Windhorst.
Even assuming those three players all remain committed, it’s possible the 12-man U.S. squad could undergo more tweaks if players suffer injuries or reconsider their summer plans. For now though, we have a pretty good idea of what the group competing for gold in Tokyo will look like. The Olympics are scheduled to begin a month from today.
Poll: Milwaukee Bucks Vs. Atlanta Hawks
The two Eastern Conference teams left standing this season, the Bucks and Hawks, took very different paths to the conference semifinals.
Milwaukee, led by two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo and All-Star Khris Middleton, has made the playoffs for five straight seasons, making it as far as the Eastern Finals in 2019, but never quite getting over the hump. This represents the club’s best chance to break through and compete for a title for the first time in decades.
Atlanta, meanwhile, last made the Eastern Finals back in 2015, when current Bucks head coach Mike Budenholzer was at the helm. That 60-win squad was slowly torn down over the next year or two as the Hawks entered a rebuilding process that saw the team win just 24, 29, and 20 games in the three seasons from 2017/18 to ’19/20.
Even with ascendant young players like Trae Young and John Collins leading the way, and several veteran free agents added to the roster in the 2020 offseason, this season’s Hawks appeared lottery-bound, getting off to a 14-20 start. However, since Nate McMillan replaced Lloyd Pierce as Atlanta’s head coach, this has looked like a different team. The Hawks finished the regular season by winning 27 of their last 38 games and have now made an unexpectedly deep postseason run, upsetting the Knicks and Sixers in the first two rounds.
The Bucks are built to win now, having traded several future draft picks last fall in a blockbuster deal for Jrue Holiday. They’ll enter the Eastern Finals as big favorites to win the series (they’re listed as -460 on BetOnline.ag). And after knocking off the Nets – who had been considered the championship frontrunners – anything short of an appearance in the NBA Finals will be considered a disappointmentin Milwaukee.
The Hawks’ season, on the other hand, is already a huge success, and that won’t change even if the team is swept by the Bucks. That doesn’t mean Atlanta will go down quietly though — this group showed during the second half of the regular season and the first two rounds of the playoffs that it’s for real, and has the luxury of entering the Eastern Finals with the pressure relatively off. The Hawks are essentially playing with house money and shouldn’t have to carry the weight of a looming roster or coaching staff shakeup should they fall short of the NBA Finals.
With Game 1 set to tip off in a matter of hours, we want to get your thoughts on the Eastern Conference Finals. Do you expect the Bucks or Hawks to advance to the NBA Finals? How many games do you think it will take for a team to get to four wins? Do you expect the Eastern winner to ultimately take home the championship?
Vote below in our poll, then head to the comment section to share your thoughts!
Which team will advance to the NBA Finals?
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Milwaukee Bucks in 6-7 games 42% (542)
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Milwaukee Bucks in 4-5 games 31% (400)
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Atlanta Hawks in 6-7 games 26% (337)
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Atlanta Hawks in 4-5 games 2% (26)
Total votes: 1,305
Trade Rumors app users, click here to vote.
Southeast Notes: Zeller, Bogdanovic, Reddish, Magic, Dedmon
Cody Zeller has been in the NBA since 2013, but since the Hornets center signed a rookie scale extension in 2016 that tacked four years onto his four-year rookie contract, he has never been a free agent. Zeller, an unrestricted free agent this offseason, acknowledged that it’ll be a new experience for him, as Sam Perley of Hornets.com details.
“It’s crazy – my first free agency,” Zeller said. “I’ve only played for one team, so I don’t know how it’ll go or even logistically how it goes. I am eight years into my career and who knows how much longer I’m going to do this.
“I think the biggest thing is just being somewhere where I’m valued. I just want to win. I think we can make that step here if we’re all healthy and make that jump to becoming a competitive team that can make a deep run.”
Although Zeller referred to Charlotte as “home” and said he’s had a “great eight years” with the Hornets, he recognizes that his future is somewhat up in the air. The Hornets have identified center as a position they want to upgrade, so if they bring in a new big man or two, it’s possible there won’t be a spot for Zeller.
Here’s more from around the Southeast:
- Hawks swingman Bogdan Bogdanovic (right knee soreness) and Cam Reddish (right Achilles soreness) have both been listed as questionable for Game 1 of the Eastern Conference on Wednesday, tweets Chris Kirschner of The Athletic. Bogdanovic has started every game of the playoffs so far for Atlanta, while Reddish has yet to make his postseason debut.
- After winning just 20 games a year ago, the Hawks are an unlikely final-four team, but they’ve succeeded this season by finding the exact contributions they need from every corner of their roster, says Rob Mahoney of The Ringer.
- The degree of difficulty for the Magic‘s rebuild increased a little on Tuesday, according to Josh Robbins of The Athletic. As Robbins writes, Orlando was fortunate to get the No. 8 pick from Chicago, but the team’s own pick slipping outside the top four will make it more challenging to land a future All-Star in the 2021 draft.
- Heat center Dewayne Dedmon said at season’s end that he’d like to remain in Miami. Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald takes a look at whether that’s a realistic possibility.
Olympic Notes: Spain, Simmons, Nigeria, Turkey, Garland
Veteran center Pau Gasol, who has represented Spain in four Olympic tournaments so far, remains on track to be part of the team in Tokyo, per an Associated Press report. Gasol was one of 18 players included on Spain’s preliminary roster for the Tokyo games, joining his brother – Lakers center Marc Gasol – and Timberwolves point guard Ricky Rubio.
Timberwolves forward Juan Hernangomez, Pelicans big man Willy Hernangomez, and projected first-round pick Usman Garuba are among the other notable names on Spain’s preliminary roster, according to The Associated Press.
Here’s more on the Tokyo Olympics:
- Sixers All-Star Ben Simmons isn’t expected to play for Australia in the Olympics, tweets Brian Windhorst of ESPN. After a tough postseason, Simmons will spend the offseason focused on developing skills, including his jump shot.
- No African team has ever earned an Olympic medal – or even advanced beyond the preliminary stage – in the men’s basketball tournament, so Nigeria head coach Mike Brown will be looking to make history in Tokyo, writes Marc J. Spears of The Undefeated. According to Colin Udoh of ESPN, Nuggets guard Monte Morris, Raptors forward OG Anunoby, Pistons big man Jahlil Okafor, Jazz teammates Miye Oni and Udoka Azubuike, and Heat teammates Precious Achiuwa and KZ Okpala are among the new additions to Nigeria’s roster.
- Turkey has announced its preliminary roster for the upcoming Olympic qualifying tournament in Canada, as Sportando relays. In addition to NBA players like Cedi Osman, Ersan Ilyasova, Furkan Korkmaz, and Omer Yurtseven, the squad includes projected first-round pick Alperen Sengun.
- Cavaliers guard Darius Garland will be part of the U.S. Select Team that scrimmages against Team USA’s Olympic squad ahead of the Tokyo games, as Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com writes. Cavs center Jarrett Allen has also received an invite to join the Select Team, but hasn’t made a decision yet, Fedor adds.
2021 NBA Draft Picks By Team
It wasn’t a great night for the Thunder at Tuesday’s draft lottery. The team had about a two-in-three chance that its own first-round pick would land in the top five and nearly a 50-50 chance that Houston’s pick would slide to No. 5, allowing OKC to swap the No. 18 selection for it. Instead, the Rockets kept their own pick and the Thunder’s selection slipped to No. 6.
Still, no NBA team has more draft picks in 2021 than the Thunder, who control three first-round selections and three more second-rounders.
The Pelicans, Pistons, Knicks, and Nets join them as teams that hold at least four draft picks this year. Those five clubs currently control 23 of the 60 picks in the 2021 draft, so it’s probably safe to assume they’ll be active on the trade market before or during the draft.
To present a clearer picture of which teams are most – and least – stocked with picks for the 2021 NBA draft, we’ve rounded up all 60 picks by team in the space below. Let’s dive in…
Teams with more than two picks:
- Oklahoma City Thunder (6): 6, 16, 18, 34, 36, 55
- Brooklyn Nets (5): 27, 29, 44, 49, 59
- Detroit Pistons (4): 1, 37, 42, 52
- New Orleans Pelicans (4): 17, 35, 43, 51
- New York Knicks (4): 19, 21, 32, 58
- Houston Rockets (3): 2, 23, 24
- Toronto Raptors (3): 4, 46, 47
- Orlando Magic (3): 5, 8, 33
- Charlotte Hornets (3): 11, 56, 57
- Indiana Pacers (3): 13, 54, 60
- Philadelphia 76ers (3): 28, 50, 53
Teams with two picks:
- Golden State Warriors: 7, 14
- Sacramento Kings: 9, 39
- San Antonio Spurs: 12, 41
- Memphis Grizzlies: 10, 40
- Atlanta Hawks: 20, 48
Teams with one pick:
- Cleveland Cavaliers: 3
- Washington Wizards: 15
- Los Angeles Lakers: 22
- Los Angeles Clippers: 25
- Denver Nuggets: 26
- Utah Jazz: 30
- Milwaukee Bucks: 31
- Chicago Bulls: 38
- Boston Celtics: 45
Teams with no picks:
- Dallas Mavericks
- Miami Heat
- Minnesota Timberwolves
- Phoenix Suns
- Portland Trail Blazers
Alex Caruso Arrested For Marijuana Possession
Lakers guard Alex Caruso, an unrestricted free agent this offseason, was arrested in Texas on Tuesday and charged with possession of marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia, both misdemeanors, according to KJ Hiramoto of Fox 11 Los Angeles.
Caruso, who played his college ball at Texas A&M, tried to board a flight on Tuesday afternoon at Easterwood Airport in College Station, Texas, which is on A&M property, local police told Ramona Shelburne of ESPN. In the process of searching Caruso’s bags, the TSA found a herb grinder that contained marijuana.
Caruso, who was arrested by Texas A&M police for possession of less than two ounces of marijuana, was released after posting bond, per ESPN’s report.
Given that marijuana has been decriminalized and/or legalized in many parts of the country, Caruso’s run-in with the law will likely be viewed as a careless mistake rather than as any sort of major transgression that will affect his stock in free agency this summer.
Caruso has been a key part of the Lakers’ rotation over the last four years. In 2020/21, he averaged 6.4 PPG, 2.9 RPG, and 2.8 APG in 58 games (21.0 MPG), knocking down 40.1% of his three-point attempts and playing tough perimeter defense.
Mavs Notes: Finley, Front Office Search, Carlisle
Former Mavericks champion Michael Finley has emerged as a strong candidate to be named the team’s new head of basketball operations, writes Marc Stein of the New York Times. Brad Townsend of The Dallas Morning News also believes Finley is likely to become Dallas’ new president of basketball ops.
Finley spent eight seasons in Dallas as a player and was a two-time All Star for the Mavs. He’s currently the team’s VP of basketball operations, and Stein and Townsend both suggest that team owner Mark Cuban is more likely to stay in-house to replace longtime executive Donnie Nelson than to bring in someone new with the draft and free agency around the corner.
Stein also reports that the Mavs aren’t pursuing veteran executives such as Danny Ainge and Masai Ujiri for their front office opening. There’s an expectation that – even if Finley is promoted – the team would make at least one outside addition to its front office, but execs like Ainge and Ujiri would likely expect more autonomy than Cuban is willing to cede, Stein writes.
We have more on the Mavs:
- Tim Cato of the Athletic provides a post-mortem on the Rick Carlisle era with the Mavericks, highlighting the coach’s adaptability as a tactician and thinker of the game, as well as his abrasive personality, including his rocky relationship with star Luka Doncic. Both star and coach seemed at times to bristle at each other, as Carlisle felt Doncic publicly showed him up and Carlisle was known for lashing out at players verbally, including several Doncic was close with. The piece also discusses more about his contentious give-and-take towards the end with Mavericks executive Haralabos Voulgaris. Cato concludes that the era was a successful one, culminating in a championship with longtime Mav Dirk Nowitzki, but in the end, it was time for both sides to move on.
- The Mavericks will not seek any compensation from the team that hires Carlisle, tweets ESPN’s Tim MacMahon. Carlisle still had two years on his deal when he stepped down, but MacMahon writes that owner Cuban has no interest in complicating Carlisle’s job search and drawing out what has already been an ugly process. Carlisle and Cuban have a long-standing relationship and Cuban has expressed nothing but gratitude to Carlisle for his time as Mavericks head coach.
- In case you missed it, a report earlier this week indicated that the Mavericks kicked the tires on Kelly Oubre at the trade deadline and could have interest in the forward again in free agency.
Suns Hopeful Chris Paul Will Be Available For Game 3
Chris Paul has missed the first two games of the Western Conference Semifinals after testing positive for COVID-19 last week, but there’s optimism within the Suns‘ organization that the veteran point guard could be available for Game 3 on Thursday, sources tell ESPN’s Dave McMenamin and Adrian Wojnarowski.
[RELATED: Chris Paul Symptom-Free, Hoping To Return Soon]
Paul had only been isolated for six days as of Tuesday, and players who tested positive for the coronavirus during the regular season typically missed at least 10-14 days. However, ESPN’s duo notes that the NBA has different standards for players who have been vaccinated. Multiple reports have stated that CP3 has been vaccinated.
Despite his vaccination status, the expectation is that Paul will still need to test negative for the virus before being cleared. He hadn’t received clearance as of the start of Game 2 on Tuesday, per McMenamin and Wojnarowski.
The Suns haven’t really missed Paul in the first two games of the series, winning both contests in Phoenix as replacement point guard Cameron Payne averaged 20.0 PPG and 9.0 APG. However, as the series shifts to Los Angeles, the Suns would undoubtedly feel better about their chances of making the NBA Finals with their All-NBA point guard on the floor.
Full 2021 NBA Draft Order
Now that the NBA’s draft lottery results are in, the full 2021 draft order has been set.
We’ll likely see some of these picks change hands on July 29, or in the days leading up to draft night — we’ll be sure to update the list below if and when picks are traded.
Here’s the full 2021 NBA draft order:
First Round:
- Detroit Pistons
- Houston Rockets
- Cleveland Cavaliers
- Toronto Raptors
- Orlando Magic
- Oklahoma City Thunder
- Golden State Warriors (from Timberwolves)
- Orlando Magic (from Bulls)
- Sacramento Kings
- Memphis Grizzlies (from Pelicans)
- Charlotte Hornets
- San Antonio Spurs
- Indiana Pacers
- Golden State Warriors
- Washington Wizards
- Oklahoma City Thunder (from Celtics)
- New Orleans Pelicans (from Grizzlies)
- Oklahoma City Thunder (from Heat)
- New York Knicks
- Atlanta Hawks
- New York Knicks (from Mavericks)
- Los Angeles Lakers
- Houston Rockets (from Trail Blazers)
- Houston Rockets (from Bucks)
- Los Angeles Clippers
- Denver Nuggets
- Brooklyn Nets
- Philadelphia 76ers
- Brooklyn Nets (from Suns)
- Utah Jazz
Second Round:
- Milwaukee Bucks (from Rockets)
- New York Knicks (from Pistons)
- Orlando Magic
- Oklahoma City Thunder
- New Orleans Pelicans (from Cavaliers)
- Oklahoma City Thunder (from Timberwolves)
- Charlotte Hornets (from Raptors via Pistons)
- Chicago Bulls (from Pelicans)
- Sacramento Kings
- Memphis Grizzlies (from Bulls via Pelicans)
- San Antonio Spurs
- Detroit Pistons (from Hornets)
- New Orleans Pelicans (from Wizards)
- Brooklyn Nets (from Pacers)
- Boston Celtics
- Toronto Raptors (from Grizzlies)
- Toronto Raptors (from Warriors)
- Atlanta Hawks (from Heat)
- Brooklyn Nets (from Hawks)
- Philadelphia 76ers (from Knicks)
- New Orleans Pelicans (from Trail Blazers via Grizzlies)
- Detroit Pistons (from Lakers)
- Philadelphia 76ers (from Mavericks via Pelicans)
- Indiana Pacers (from Bucks)
- Oklahoma City Thunder (from Nuggets)
- Charlotte Hornets (from Clippers)
- Detroit Pistons (from Nets via Hornets)
- New York Knicks (from Sixers)
- Brooklyn Nets (from Suns)
- Indiana Pacers (from Jazz)
Northwest Notes: Nuggets, Jazz, D’Antoni, Wolves, Bolmaro, Walker
The Nuggets‘ season was over long before they expected it to be, especially given the stellar play of star center Nikola Jokic, which was rewarded with an MVP award. But a devastating knee injury to point guard Jamal Murray, the team’s leading scorer in last year’s playoffs, in addition to some disappointing play from key contributors, left the team reeling after a four-game sweep at the hands of the Suns.
Now, there are questions that must be answered, writes Mike Singer of The Denver Post. One area of focus will be shoring up the Nuggets’ frontcourt, as Paul Millsap, JaMychal Green and JaVale McGee are all free agents. Singer also touches on how despite a disappointing end to his second year, Michael Porter Jr. is still very much a player worth keeping faith in, as he enters the first healthy offseason of his career.
Singer, along with Mark Kiszla and Matt Schubert of The Denver Post also answered a few of the most pressing questions facing the Nuggets, such as Aaron Gordon‘s future after his struggles stepping into a scoring role in the second round, potential areas of improvement for head coach Mike Malone, and Austin Rivers‘ impending free agency.
We have more from around the Northwest Division:
- Like Denver, the Jazz‘s season also ended in ignominious fashion after they surrendered a 2-0 lead to the Clippers to lose in six games, culminating in a blown 25-point lead in Game Six. Tony Jones of The Athletic takes a look at where the Jazz can go from here. One area of focus will be finding another forward along with Royce O’Neale who can take the tough defensive matchups on the wing. There’s also the question of Mike Conley‘s free agency to consider, and the related question of whether the Jazz want to try to turn Donovan Mitchell into their full-time point guard. The roster isn’t far away, Jones says, but it still needs some work if Utah is to have any hope of taking the next step towards being a bona-fide contender.
- Mike D’Antoni is getting a second interview with the Trail Blazers sometime this week, tweets ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. Becky Hammon has already met with Blazers ownership for her second interview, and Chauncey Billups is set to do the same later in the week. Those three appear to be the finalists for the head coach job in Portland, though it’s possible other top candidates haven’t been reported yet.
- The Timberwolves could be an interesting landing spot for Ben Simmons if the Sixers decide to trade him, writes Michael Rand of The Star Tribune. With an elite-shooting big man in Karl-Anthony Towns and another high-level shot creator in last year’s number one pick Anthony Edwards, Simmons could focus on defense and passing, the way he has always wanted to. The question comes down to cost. The Wolves have D’Angelo Russell and Malik Beasley, either of whom could hold some interest to the Sixers, but Sixers GM Daryl Morey may want to hold out for more.
- The Timberwolves aren’t crying over lost picks, writes Chris Hine of the Star Tribune. “We prepared accordingly,” GM Gersson Rosas said pre-draft lottery, about the possibility of losing their first-round draft pick. “We drafted a player last year that has the opportunity to come this season in case there wasn’t a pick.” That’s a reference to Leandro Bolmaro, a very interesting point guard prospect recently named “Most Spectacular Player” of the Spanish league. Rosas also emphasized the added financial flexibility from not having to pay a high-end rookie-scale contract. “That’ll allow us to be more aggressive in terms of trades and free agency based on our financial position,” Rosas said.
- Thunder general manager Sam Presti hasn’t had a chance to meet with new addition Kemba Walker yet, as Walker has been out of the country, tweets Joe Mussatto of The Oklahoman. Presti did say that he liked Walker’s fit with star guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who has grown used to playing with multiple lead guards — he spent much of the 2019/20 season playing alongside Chris Paul and Dennis Schröder.