Warriors Viewed As Potential Trade-Deadline Wild Card
With a 19-18 record at the All-Star break, the Warriors have slipped out of the top eight in the Western Conference and haven’t kept pace with many of the teams viewed as legit title contenders this season. However, as Tom Haberstroh writes for TrueHoop, Golden State is better equipped than many of those top teams to make a major trade at this month’s deadline.
One of the Warriors’ most intriguing assets is the first-round pick they’re owed from the Timberwolves. That pick is top-three protected in 2021 and would be unprotected in 2022 if it doesn’t convey this year.
“Golden State is the team to watch right now,” one general manager told Haberstroh. “No one knows what they’re going to do with that pick.”
The Warriors had a lottery pick for the first time in years in 2020 and used it to select James Wiseman, who is viewed as a foundational piece for the franchise. If Minnesota’s pick falls outside the top three this year, that would give Golden State another opportunity to add a young building block to its core.
However, Warriors star Stephen Curry will turn 33 years old next Sunday and the team wants to remain in title contention while he’s still in his prime. A package built around Wiseman, the Timberwolves’ pick, and Andrew Wiggins‘ sizeable contract could return a star.
A couple of factors reduce the odds of the Warriors making a big swing at this year’s deadline though. For one, it’s not clear if it will be worth mortgaging the team’s future for any players on the trade block this month, with Bradley Beal and other stars expected to be off limits. Additionally, it might not make sense for Golden State to make a splash on the trade market right now when Klay Thompson won’t be back on the court until next season.
Rival teams still view the Warriors as a wild card at the March 25 deadline, but as Haberstroh writes, the club may ultimately have to wait until the offseason to make its move.
Latest On Potential Timberwolves Sale
Longtime NBA star Kevin Garnett expressed interest last summer in bidding on his former team, the Timberwolves, as part of a prospective ownership group, but Garnett said in an Instagram story on Thursday that he’s no longer in the running to buy the franchise.
“Sooo just got the news that this process in trying to acquire the TWOLVES IS OVER for me n my group,” Garnett wrote, adding that he plans to “focus on other places” such as Seattle and Las Vegas. “Thx Glen for being yourself n what I kno you to be!!!”
Garnett’s comments – including renewed criticism of current Wolves owner Glen Taylor, with whom KG has feuded in the past – suggested that perhaps the franchise is paring down its list of potential suitors and informed Garnett’s group that it’s no longer a candidate.
However, Taylor told Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic and other reporters that neither he nor his representatives received any offer from Garnett and that he wasn’t sure what prompted KG’s public announcement.
“Kevin never contacted me at all saying that he was interested,” Taylor said. “Nor was his name listed on any of the buying groups that asked for financial information to review.”
According to Krawczysnki, Taylor was always open to considering a bid from Garnett or a group representing the Hall-of-Famer, but there was some skepticism about KG’s ability to put together the money necessary to make a competitive offer — Forbes’ latest franchise valuations projected the Wolves’ worth to be $1.4 billion.
Taylor said that he has received inquiries from at least 10 groups or families, per Krawczynski and Darren Wolfson of 5 Eyewitness News (Twitter link). The Wolves’ owner also informed Chris Hine of The Star Tribune that he spoke to four former NBA players who expressed interest in the team and asked if they were affiliated with Garnett — they all said no.
“If he would’ve called or had been a person who wanted some help, I would’ve tried to help him like anybody else,” Taylor said of Garnett.
Taylor told Wolfson that some of the interested parties are completing their due diligence, suggesting the sale process could gain momentum soon. However, Krawczynski believes “the betting money” is on Taylor retaining control of the franchise for the foreseeable future, since the ongoing effects of the coronavirus pandemic, the Wolves’ on-court struggles, and Taylor’s insistence that the club remain in Minnesota are all factors working against a bidding war.
“The process has taken longer than anticipated just because we’re not sure when we’re going to have attendance at the games,” Taylor said, per Hine. “And so that’s a hard thing to kind of figure in there, the value or lack of value. Probably the only thing that’s holding it up. I still have interest.”
Multiple reports in the last seven months have indicated that former Grizzlies minority owner Daniel Straus has gotten furthest down the road in negotiations with Taylor. Those talks seem to have hit a standstill though, and aren’t going anywhere at the moment, sources tell Krawczynski.
Bucks Waive Jaylen Adams
MARCH 5: The Bucks officially waived Adams on Thursday, according to NBA.com’s transactions log.
MARCH 3: The Bucks are set to waive point guard Jaylen Adams, a source tells Eric Nehm of The Athletic (Twitter link). This news comes in the wake of Milwaukee planning to ink Myles Powell to a two-way contract.
Adams and Mamadi Diakite occupied the club’s two available two-way contract slots on the current roster, so a move like this was inevitable for the Bucks to accommodate the addition of Powell.
A six-footer out of St. Bonaventure, the 24-year-old Adams was recently involved in an argument with an Uber driver, during which local police were called. Details of the conflict remain fairly murky as the situation is ongoing, and it’s unclear whether that incident was a major factor in the Bucks’ decision to cut him.
Last season, while playing for Milwaukee’s G League affiliate the Wisconsin Herd, Adams averaged 20.9 PPG, 5.2 APG, and 4.9 RPG across 34 games. He also posted a shooting line of .487/.401/.788. Adams has logged time across just seven games with the Bucks this year.
Pacific Notes: Jones, Kings, Suns, Clippers
New Lakers reserve center Damian Jones, currently on a 10-day contract with Los Angeles, could have another 10-day deal waiting for him. Head coach Frank Vogel suggested Jones deserved to be “optimistic about what’s ahead of him” after his current contract expires, Jovan Buha of The Athletic tweets.
In three games with the Lakers (including one start), the 6’11” Jones is averaging 4.0 PPG, 1.7 RPG and 1.3 BPG across just 10.3 MPG. The 25-year-old was drafted with the No. 30 pick out of Vanderbilt by the Warriors in 2016. After Golden State, Jones suited up for the Hawks and Suns before his current stop with the Lakers.
There’s more out of the Pacific Division:
- When asked on Wednesday about his long-term fit alongside fellow exciting young Kings teammates De’Aaron Fox and Tyrese Haliburton, former No. 2 draft pick Marvin Bagley III was noncommittal, according to Jason Anderson of the Sacramento Bee. “You don’t know what can happen in the future,” Bagley said. “When I step on the court with this group of guys that we have now, I try to do my best and just give it everything I have so we can try to win.”
- Kevin O’Connor of The Ringer takes a deep dive on the rising Suns, currently owners of a sparkling 23-11 record, good for the No. 2 seed in the West. “There’s no secret sauce,” Suns GM James Jones said of his team’s construction. “It’s not like good organizations take clay and immediately mold it into something spectacular. They build a good foundation, and then grow it from there.” O’Connor assesses how the arrival of savvy veterans like Chris Paul and Jae Crowder this offseason has greatly aided the development and output of intriguing recent lottery selections Devin Booker, Deandre Ayton, Mikal Bridges and Cameron Johnson.
- Clippers head coach Tyronn Lue met with All-Stars Kawhi Leonard and Paul George ahead of their last game before the All-Star break tonight, hoping to address the team’s recent late-game woes, according to Mirjam Swanson of the Orange County Register. Before tonight, Los Angeles had a league-worst “clutch minutes” rating of -24.3. Whatever they were working on did not quite click this evening, as the Clippers (without George) lost a close contest to the Wizards, 119-117.
Atlantic Notes: Embiid, Celtics, Randle, Vučević
Sixers All-Star center Joel Embiid has used Jazz All-Star center Rudy Gobert‘s All-NBA Third Team selection last year and recent Defensive Player of the Year hardware as motivation this season, per Tim Bontemps of ESPN. Embiid, an MVP frontrunner so far in 2020/21, looks to have a good chance at besting Gobert’s All-NBA finish this season.
“I want to dominate,” Embiid said. “But going up against him, one of my goals is to also be Defensive Player of the Year. So, you know, when you go up against those types of guys, he’s a great player, and you know, he does a lot for his team that don’t show up on the stat sheet … but when you go against those guys, you know, it brings something else to my game.”
There’s more out of the Atlantic Division:
- Jay King of The Athletic considers players the Celtics could target with the $28.5MM traded player exception they generated in their sign-and-trade of Gordon Hayward this summer. Athletic Pistons forward Jerami Grant merits special mention, as well as reliable veteran forwards Harrison Barnes and Thaddeus Young, along with guard Victor Oladipo.
- Newly-minted Knicks All-Star forward Julius Randle hopes to remain with New York for a while, Ian Begley of SNY tweets. “When I came here almost two years ago, that was the plan,” Randle asserted. “I would definitely love to be here long-term.” Marc Berman of the New York Post contemplates whether or not team president Leon Rose will work out a contract extension with Randle when he becomes eligible for one this summer.
- After chatter emerged that the Celtics were interested in adding All-Star Magic center Nikola Vučević to their roster by the trade deadline, Josh Robbins, Jay King, and Jared Weiss of The Athletic speculate about what a deal could look like.
All-Star Teams Drafted By LeBron, KD
All-Star team captains LeBron James and Kevin Durant have each finished picking their squads for the March 7 All-Star game, via a live broadcast on TNT.
For the first round of the All-Star draft, the two former MVPs alternated picks among their fellow starters. With the first pick, James drafted reigning two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo. James’ Lakers frontcourt mate Anthony Davis will of course be absent as he continues to rehabilitate strained right calf injury.
A strained left hamstring will keep Durant off the floor during the actual All-Star game on Sunday, as well, but he still had the honor of making picks by benefit of being one of the two players receiving the most fan votes, along with James. Durant chose his fellow Net Kyrie Irving with the No. 2 pick.
When it came time to make picks for the second round of 2021 All-Star reserves, Durant drafted his other All-Star Nets teammate, James Harden. Meanwhile, James chose Damian Lillard, also his first pick from among the reserves in 2020.
Rudy Gobert (Team LeBron) and Donovan Mitchell (Team Durant), both players for the team with the best record in the NBA, the 27-9 Jazz, were the last two picks of the draft. James addressed the decision from his perspective on the broadcast, as recounted by Tim Bontemps of ESPN.
“I just want to say something, because there’s no slander to the Utah Jazz,” James said. “But you guys got to understand, just like in video games growing up, we never played with Utah. Even as great as [Hall of Fame Jazz power forward] Karl Malone and [Hall of Fame Jazz point guard] John Stockton were, we never would have picked those guys. Never.”
Here’s a full recap:
Team LeBron
- Starters:
- 1: Giannis Antetokounmpo, Bucks
- 3: Stephen Curry, Warriors
- 5: Luka Dončić, Mavericks
- 7: Nikola Jokić, Nuggets
- Reserves:
- 11: Damian Lillard, Trail Blazers
- 13: Ben Simmons, Sixers
- 15: Chris Paul, Suns
- 17: Jaylen Brown, Celtics
- 19: Paul George, Clippers
- 21: Domantas Sabonis, Pacers
- 23: Rudy Gobert, Jazz
Team Durant
- Starters:
- 2: Kyrie Irving, Nets
- 4: Joel Embiid, Sixers
- 6: Kawhi Leonard, Clippers
- 8: Bradley Beal, Wizards
- 9: Jayson Tatum, Celtics
- Reserves:
- 10: James Harden, Nets
- 12: Devin Booker, Suns
- 14: Zion Williamson, Pelicans
- 16: Zach LaVine, Bulls
- 18: Julius Randle, Knicks
- 20: Nikola Vučević, Magic
- 22: Donovan Mitchell, Jazz
MCW, Ross Fined $15K After Arguing With Refs
The NBA has fined Magic guards Michael Carter-Williams and Terrence Ross $15K apiece after altercations with referees in their 115-112 Wednesday home loss to the Hawks, JD Shaw of Hoops Rumors tweets.
Jason Anderson of the Sacramento Bee (via Twitter) shared an official NBA press statement on the penalties. The league listed the charges as “verbal abuse of game officials and failing to leave the court in a timely manner.”
Ross, who scored 28 points on 9-of-17 shooting in the loss, and Carter-Williams, who logged 20 points, six assists and six rebounds, were upset about two late-game referee decisions. Carter-Williams was irked over a foul call that went against him while defending a Trae Young layup attempt with 18 seconds left in regulation.
Carter-Williams was called for hitting Young in the head. Magic head coach Steve Clifford debated the foul in postgame remarks (video link), saying in part, “In my opinion that’s not a foul, particularly at that point in the game. I’ll tell you with 100% certainty there was no contact to the head.”
On the other end of the floor, Ross was upset over not receiving a foul call in his favor while being guarded by Solomon Hill with eight seconds remaining in regulation.
Northwest Notes: McDaniels, McCollum, Jokic, Nuggets
Rookie Timberwolves forward Jaden McDaniels, the No. 28 pick out of Washington in the 2020 draft, has emerged as a potential keeper for Minnesota, writes Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic. Though his counting stats are currently modest, the 6’9″ McDaniels’ defensive upside and corner three-point shooting have earned him a spot on the Timberwolves depth chart. He is averaging 19.1 MPG across 30 contests.
“Just trying to help them out as many ways as I can, rebounding as hard as I can, playing defense, just I feel like that does help a lot,” McDaniels said of his first NBA season. “You can come in fresh and nobody knows who I am and they don’t know what I can do.”
There’s more out of the Northwest:
- There have been some minor updates on the health status of key Trail Blazers starters CJ McCollum and Jusuf Nurkic. Shooting guard McCollum continues to rehabilitate the left foot he broke in January, and has been cleared to participate in contact practices, according to Jason Quick of The Athletic (Twitter link). Center Nurkic, who underwent a right wrist surgery earlier this season, is gradually progressing in his on-court workouts, Quick noted in a separate tweet. Both players will be re-evaluated next week.
- Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN assesses All-Star Nuggets center Nikola Jokic‘s atypical path to MVP candidacy. Youngmisuk tracks Jokic’s rise from overlooked No. 41 pick in the 2014 draft to one of the best-passing big men in the history of the NBA. Fellow MVP contender LeBron James recently praised the center’s court vision. “The guy has an unbelievable talent of seeing the floor and seeing plays happen before they happen,” James said.
- In an extensive Nuggets mailbag, Mike Singer of the Denver Post examines a variety of trade options for Denver ahead of the March 25 deadline. The fits of Rockets vets Victor Oladipo and P.J. Tucker, plus Kings forward Nemanja Bjelica, are assessed.
Hawks’ GM Schlenk Talks McMillan, Trade Market, Collins
Hawks general manager Travis Schlenk, who spoke today to Chris Kirschner of The Athletic and Sarah K. Spencer of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, acknowledged that a number of the team’s free agent additions “haven’t performed as well as they wanted to.”
However, Schlenk said that veterans like Danilo Gallinari and Rajon Rondo have had an impact on the team off the court and expressed confidence that they can turn things around on the court. He also reiterated that the Hawks’ goal is still to have a winning season and to make the playoffs.
New head coach Nate McMillan will be tasked with getting the squad – which currently has a 16-20 record, back into the postseason mix. And while leading the team to a second-half surge might improve McMillan’s chances of getting his interim tag removed at season’s end, Schlenk insists that the veteran head coach has nothing to prove and is already assured of receiving consideration for the permanent job.
“He’s certainly going to have the opportunity to be the permanent head coach,” Schlenk said, per Kirschner. “No doubt about it. You can certainly argue that he’s got the best chance because he’s here right now, and we’ll have the ability to work with him for the next three months. He’s going to have the opportunity to coach games. I don’t know that there’s necessarily anything that I need to see. He’s got a proven track record. He doesn’t need to prove to me that he can coach NBA basketball. I know that.”
Schlenk also addressed a handful of other topics today, confirming that the Hawks hope Kris Dunn can make his debut with the team at some point later this month and discussing Atlanta’s approach to the trade deadline. Here, via Kirschner and Spencer, are a few of the highlights from the Hawks’ GM:
On whether the Hawks are actively exploring trade scenarios:
“Right now, it doesn’t seem like there’s anything on the horizon, but that can change. You rarely get teams’ best offers. Nobody gets real serious until you get down to the last week or two. It’s hard to gauge. We certainly will look to do anything we can to do anything we can that feels like, is going to make us a better team in the short-term and the long-term. Those sometimes don’t go hand-in-hand, but we’ll look at any situation we think that will help us.”
On the team’s plan for John Collins:
“John’s a big part of our team… He’s made the decision this fall to go to restricted free agency, and that was his choice and obviously we respect it. But we’re going to have the opportunity to match any offer he gets. We’ll certainly make him an offer in free agency as well, and he’ll have the ability to see if he can get an offer from another team. But at the end of the day, we view him as part of our team, and I don’t see a restricted free agency situation where we would just let him walk for nothing.”
On whether Collins could be moved before the trade deadline:
“We listen about all our guys, that’s our job, to see what the value of all our guys are. John is a good young player, and teams have interest in him, no question about it. But we listen on all our guys, I guess is the short answer.”
Bulls Have Rebuffed Pacers’ Interest In Garrett Temple
The Pacers made an effort to trade for Bulls guard Garrett Temple, a source with knowledge of the negotiations tells J. Michael of The Indianapolis Star (subscription required; hat tip to Blog A Bull). However, according to Michael, Chicago “showed no interest” in sending Temple to a division rival.
Temple has played a regular rotation role in Chicago this season, averaging 8.8 PPG, 3.2 RPG, and 2.1 APG in 33 contests (28.4 MPG). While those numbers don’t exactly pop off the page, Michael notes that Temple is capable of guarding a variety of guards and wings, can knock down 3-pointers (.347 career 3PT%), and would provide the sort of veteran experience and intangibles that Indiana seeks. He’s also on an affordable $4.8MM expiring contract.
The Bulls and Pacers are currently neck-and-neck in the Eastern Conference standings, with matching 16-18 records putting them in a tie for the No. 9 seed. So in addition to being a division rival, Indiana is one of Chicago’s prime competitors in the playoff race, making the Bulls’ reluctance to make a deal unsurprising.
According to Michael, the Pacers initially weren’t planning on making any major moves before the trade deadline, and still may not — if Caris LeVert and T.J. Warren are able to return at some point in the second half, that duo is capable of making a bigger impact than just about any other deadline acquisition. Michael says that LeVert could be back before the trade deadline, with Warren’s return coming later.
However, after starting the season with eight wins in 12 games, the Pacers are just 8-14 since, and could be in the market for a proven veteran to help stabilize the defense. Michael points to Thaddeus Young as a player who would be an ideal fit for Indiana, but acknowledges the Bulls are probably even less likely to move Young than Temple.