Central Notes: Satoransky, P. Williams, Portis, Love
Billy Donovan isn’t ready to change his starting point guard, but the Bulls coach expects more playing time for Tomas Satoransky now that he has returned from his second COVID-19 experience, writes Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times. Satoransky was sidelined earlier in the season due to contact tracing, then tested positive for the virus later. Saturday marked his fifth game back, and his playing time has been gradually increasing.
“I think he’s getting his legs back under him, he’s trying to find himself, but each game I think he’s out there playing I think he’ll be more and more comfortable,’’ Donovan said.
There might be temptation to move Satoransky into the starting lineup in place of Coby White, who’s shooting 40% from the field and struggling as a lead guard, but Donovan remains committed to developing White as the long-term answer at point guard.
“Is it a situation where maybe you bring Sato in a little bit earlier? You stagger those guys? But I’m not at a point where I just say, ‘Hey, listen we’re done with him.’ I wouldn’t do that. I think he’s too important to our team,” Donovan said. “He does compete, I trust him in that area. I just think he’s a guy that’s 20 years old, and there’s going to be some of these moments where he’s going to be up and down.’’
There’s more from the Central Division:
- The Bulls drafted Patrick Williams for his defensive prowess, but injuries may force them to rely on him for more scoring, notes Darnell Mayberry of The Athletic. Williams is one of seven rookies in a regular starting role, but he’s only ninth on the team at 29.7 touches per game. “They just say whatever I do, be confident in it 100%,” Williams said. “They have confidence in me in whatever I decide to do, whether it’s drive or shoot. Just whatever I do, be 100% confident and don’t be in the middle.”
- Bobby Portis is excelling with the Bucks’ second unit, writes Spencer Davies of Basketball News. Portis, who signed as a free agent during the offseason, enjoys changing the atmosphere of a game. “I think the last three, four years of my career, I’ve kinda found the niche of coming in and bringing energy off the bench,” he said. “Just knowing if the game’s up and down or if our team needs energy, being that sparkplug that the team needs.”
- Cavaliers forward Kevin Love, who has been limited to two games this season because of a calf injury, went through a pre-game workout Saturday for the first time in more than a month, writes Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com. No date has been set for him to return.
Latest On A Potential Derrick Rose Trade
The Knicks are a “preferred destination” for Derrick Rose because of coach Tom Thibodeau and the experience the Pistons guard had when he played in New York during the 2016/17 season, according to Marc Berman of The New York Post. Word broke last night that the Knicks, along with the Clippers and a few other teams, are engaged in trade talks involving Rose.
Sources tell Berman that New York is willing to part with any of its three former lottery picks who aren’t in the rotation under Thibodeau — Kevin Knox, Frank Ntilikina and Dennis Smith Jr. However, Berman doesn’t expect Knox, the youngest of the three at age 21, to be included in the deal.
Berman also believes the team will hold on to the 2021 first-round pick it received from Dallas in the Kristaps Porzingis trade. With Dallas off to a 10-14 start, there’s a chance it could become another lottery selection. Berman notes that the Knicks have flexibility in a deal because they have $18MM in cap room and won’t have to match Rose’s $7.2MM salary.
He also points out that Saturday marked the first day that free agents who signed in November can be traded. That means Austin Rivers, Nerlens Noel and Alec Burks are all eligible to be moved.
There’s more on a potential deal:
- Sources tell Ian Begley of SNY.tv that Ntilikina’s name has been brought up in trade talks. The point guard has an expiring contract and will be a restricted free agent after the season. Begley notes that the Pistons will likely ask for at least one draft pick, but he doesn’t think New York is willing to give up a first-rounder. Some Knicks representatives believed the team was close to acquiring Rose during the offseason, according to Begley. He adds that if New York pulls off a deal, it will probably be with the intention to re-sign Rose, who is also headed for free agency. The Knicks would own his Early Bird rights and could offer a contract ranging from two to four years with a starting salary up to $13.4MM or a one-year deal for as much as $9.2MM.
- The Pistons are interested in acquiring Smith, who recently asked to be sent to the G League for more playing time, writes Vincent Goodwill of Yahoo Sports. With Blake Griffin‘s expensive contract likely on the books for another season, new general manager Troy Weaver has been working to reduce salary in other areas.
- Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic examines how a Rose deal would affect the Knicks, particularly rookie point guard Immanuel Quickley.
Community Shootaround: Do We Need An All-Star Game?
The NBA has a literal all-star team opposed to playing the All-Star Game this year.
Since an agreement was announced Thursday between the league and the players union to hold the game March 7 in Atlanta, LeBron James, Giannis Antetokounmpo, James Harden, Kawhi Leonard and De’Aaron Fox have all spoken out against it.
Their objections are obvious. Twenty-three games have already been postponed due to COVID-19, and players are required to submit to frequent testing and follow a regimented lifestyle to make sure they haven’t been exposed to the virus. League personnel are even being forbidden to gather outside of their homes to watch the Super Bowl. But the NBA is planning to bring players from all over the country into Atlanta for the game and possibly skills competitions as well.
Leonard offered the best explanation for why the league insists on going through with the event.
“We all know why we’re playing it,” he said Friday. “It’s money on the line; it’s an opportunity to make more money. Just putting money over health right now, pretty much. … We’re playing games now, and it’s still a pandemic, doing all these protocols and rules, so it doesn’t really surprise me.”
The NBA has a serious need for revenue after going through nearly an entire calendar year with no paying customers, apart from severely limited capacity in 11 arenas. One of those is in Atlanta, which is why the city was chosen to host this year in place of Indianapolis, which will be given the 2024 game.
NBPA president Chris Paul is among the strongest advocates for holding a game and hopes to have proceeds benefit historically Black colleges and universities and COVID-19 relief efforts, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
Still, prominent players continue to express their opposition, and the league may have to rethink its position if the outcry grows strong enough. Opt-out clauses are believed to be part of the discussions, Wojnarowski reports, so no player would be forced to participate.
We want to get your opinion. Should the NBA hold an All-Star Game under the current conditions? Please leave your responses in the comments section.
Knicks Among Teams Hoping To Acquire Derrick Rose
The Pistons are talking to the Knicks about a Derrick Rose trade, but other teams have expressed interest as well, according to Shams Charania and James L. Edwards III of The Athletic. Sources tell Charania that Detroit’s front office agrees with the veteran guard that a trade would be best for both sides. The Clippers, along with a few other teams, have also asked about Rose, according to sources.
New York coach Tom Thibodeau would like to team up once again with Rose, who played for him in both Chicago and Minnesota. Rose has remained productive at age 32, averaging 14.2 points, 4.2 assists and 1.9 assists in 22.8 minutes per night, but he doesn’t fit the timeline of the rebuilding Pistons.
Detroit is hoping to get something in return for Rose, who is headed for free agency after signing a two-year, $15MM contract with the team in 2019. The authors point out that the Pistons were coming off two straight playoff appearances at the time and had a strong connection in vice chairman Arn Tellem, who was Rose’s former agent. The team has since started rebuilding and currently holds the league’s worst record at 5-17.
Rose sat out Friday’s game due to “rest” and is being held out tonight for “personal reasons.” He hasn’t played this week, but doesn’t appear to have any physical issues other than a stomach ailment that forced him to miss Tuesday’s game at Utah. Although he was plagued by injuries during his prime years, Rose has been able to play at least 50 games in each of the past two seasons.
Rose had his best season under Thibodeau in Chicago in 2010/11 when he was named MVP, averaging 25.0 points and 7.7 assists per game. He suffered an ACL tear the following season and was never able to reach that level again.
Knicks Notes: Thibodeau, Payton, Toppin, COVID-19
Tom Thibodeau deserves Coach of the Year consideration for the way he has transformed the Knicks, writes Stefan Bondy of The New York Daily News. This afternoon’s win over Portland puts the team at 11-13, good for sixth place in the East a third of the way through the season. Bondy notes that every starter on this year’s team was also on last year’s squad, which began the season 4-18.
Thibodeau has instilled a defense-first mentality and has given more minutes to players who excel in that area. As a result, the Knicks are holding opponents to the lowest field-goal percentage in the league at 43.5%. They also allow the second-fewest points and have a defensive rating in the top seven.
“There’s not one particular thing when you look at the analytics — which everybody does — that there wasn’t one thing that really stood out other than the fact that teams do not shoot the ball well against them, which is ultimately the best metric to have,” said Trail Blazers coach Terry Stotts. “What I see is a team that plays hard, they play physical, they’re active, they’re aggressive. They go after loose balls. They’re a hard-nosed defensive team.”
- One of Thibodeau’s most controversial decisions has been to stick with Elfrid Payton as his starting point guard ahead of high-scoring rookie Immanuel Quickley, notes Marc Berman of The New York Post. Quickley scored 31 points against the Blazers last month, but he remained on the bench for the entire first quarter today as Thibodeau relied on Payton to match up with Damian Lillard. “The big thing is the defense,’’ Thibodeau said of Payton’s contributions. “That’s the biggest tone-setter for us. The defensive component. That’s his strength and helps his team when he starts on the ball. And to keep us organized offensively and be opportunities with scoring opportunities.”
- First-round pick Obi Toppin broke into a huge smile when asked about participating in a dunk contest if the league holds one along with its All-Star game, Berman adds in the same story. Toppin’s playing time has been limited in his first NBA season, but he was a prolific dunker in college. “The dunk contest, I guess we’ll just have to wait and see,’’ Toppin said. “I don’t want to just give you all answers, but hopefully I might be able to be there. Maybe not. So we’re just going to have to wait and see.’’
- While COVID-19 has caused havoc for many NBA teams, the Knicks haven’t had any players miss a game due to the virus, according to Steve Popper of Newsday.
Kevin Durant Won’t Rejoin Nets Until Friday
Coach Steve Nash told the media that Kevin Durant will be able to rejoin the Nets on Friday, tweets Malika Andrews of ESPN. Durant is sidelined due to contact tracing after being with someone who tested positive for the coronavirus.
That person is a team employee who Durant was with yesterday, sources tell Andrews (Twitter link). They were together for drives to and from testing and to the arena for last night’s game and didn’t appear to be wearing masks.
Although Durant has continued to test negative, the decision was made that he should quarantine for seven days due to his contact with the employee (Twitter link). All other Nets players and staff have tested negative, including tests conducted after the game (Twitter link).
Nash stated that the person Durant was in contact with isn’t the same one who caused his last quarantine, per Brian Lewis of The New York Post (Twitter link). Nash added that he trusts Durant’s judgment, along with all of his players, in matters involving the virus.
Durant will miss three games this week, starting with tonight’s contest in Philadelphia. Brooklyn also plays Tuesday at Detroit before returning home Wednesday against Indiana. If he continues to test negative, Durant’s next game will be his return to Golden State next Saturday.
The Nets are angry over how the NBA handled Durant’s situation, Lewis writes in a full story. The league ruled that Durant had to be scratched from the starting lineup, but then permitted him to play in the first quarter before deciding that he had to leave the game during the third quarter.
“We get tested every single day. He’s been negative, so I don’t understand what the problem is,” James Harden said. “If that was the case, the game should’ve been postponed. If we’re talking about contact tracing, he was around all of us, so I don’t understand why he was wasn’t allowed to play then was able to play and then taken back off.”
Rockets Notes: Cousins, Wood, Wall, Nwaba
DeMarcus Cousins showed flashes of his All-Star days when Christian Wood missed three games with a sprained right ankle in January. He’ll get a much longer chance to prove he can still be effective as a starter now that Wood is sidelined with a more severe injury, writes Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle.
Wood has been listed as week to week after spraining the ankle again Thursday in Memphis. Until he returns, the under-sized Rockets will rely heavily on Cousins, who is the only other true center on the roster. Pressed into starting duty last month, the four-time All-Star averaged 17.3 points, 14.3 rebounds and 4.7 assists per game.
“Obviously, that helped me with my confidence going through this season,” he said. “I mean, it’s unfortunate what happened to C-Wood. I’m going to come in and do my job. That’s really all I can do, play my part and help us get another W in the win column.”
There’s more from Houston:
- The Rockets aren’t offering a firm estimate of how much time Wood might miss, so Kelly Iko of The Athletic talked to Dr. Rajpal Brar, a physical therapist and sports scientist at 3cB Performance. “Really hard to tell severity just based on video,” Brar said. “However, if the Rockets are saying it’s a weekly eval, it’s my inclination that it’s a Grade 2 tear without any fracture (the fact he walked off was a very good indicator of the latter). Grade 2 is typically 2-3 weeks. Grade 3 is 4-6.”
- John Wall has claimed leadership of the Rockets since James Harden was traded to Brooklyn last month, tweets Mark Berman of Fox 26 in Houston. “I feel like I’m the franchise guy now that James has left,” Wall said. “You very rarely get the opportunity to be a franchise (guy) in two different cities and two different teams. … I feel like that’s my job, to be the leader of this team.”
- David Nwaba is listed as questionable for tonight against the Spurs, and the Rockets are optimistic that he’s close to returning after missing the past three games with a sprained left ankle, Feigen adds in a separate story. “He has been doing his treatment, has been working on it,” coach Stephen Silas said. “… He’s definitely moving in the right direction.”
Wizards Notes: Brooks, Bertans, Winston, Hachimura, Avdija
Wizards head coach Scott Brooks doesn’t think the All-Star Game should be played this season, Fred Katz of The Athletic tweets. The league and the National Basketball Players Association agreed to hold it in Atlanta next month.
“I saw (LeBron James‘) thoughts on it. I agree. I’m upset,” Brooks said. “I love Atlanta, but I don’t want to go. I’ve been to two All-Star Games…and I don’t want to go. I agree with him.”
We have more on the Wizards:
- Davis Bertans re-signed with the club for five years and $80MM in November, but his 3-point stroke has been off this season. Katz breaks down Bertans’ struggles in an in-depth Athletic story. Bertans is shooting 33.1% from long range after making 42% of his attempts the past two seasons and it appears he still doesn’t have his legs under him, according to Katz.
- Rookie guard Cassius Winston has been transferred to the Erie BayHawks to play in the G League season in Orlando, the team tweets. Washington’s G League team, the Capital City Go-Go, is not participating in the event. The second-round pick out of Michigan State has appeared in six NBA games and will receive much-needed playing time in Orlando.
- Prior to Washington’s 27-point loss to Miami on Friday, second-year forward Rui Hachimura and rookie forward Deni Avdija appeared to be trending in the right direction after the team’s COVID-19 pause, Ava Wallace of the Washington Post writes.
And-Ones: All-Star Game, Super Bowl, Trade Restrictions, Jerebko
LeBron James publicly spoke out this week against holding an All-Star Game this year. Several other stars have joined that chorus, according to Eric Woodyard of ESPN.
Giannis Antetokounmpo, James Harden and Kawhi Leonard also made their feelings public on Friday after the league and Players Association agreed to hold an All-Star Game in Atlanta on March 7.
“I’ve got zero energy, zero excitement,” Antetokounmpo said. “At the end of the day, if they tell us we’re going to show up, we’ve got to do our job. … Inside, deep down, I don’t want to do it. I want to get some break.”
We have more from the basketball world:
- The league is discouraging players and personnel from holding Super Bowl parties, Shams Charania of The Athletic tweets. They are not permitted to gather outside of their home for Super Bowl Sunday. At home, individuals are expected to watch the game only with household members. Team members that are on the road may host up to four family members or close friends in a hotel with advance testing.
- Trade restrictions on most free agents that signed contracts this offseason have been lifted, Bobby Marks of ESPN tweets. A total of 90 players that signed offseason deals are trade-eligible, while 29 others are still restricted in some fashion, Marks adds. However, there haven’t been any trades on the date that those restrictions were lifted in prior seasons, dating back to 2012, Marks adds.
- Former NBA big man Jonas Jerebko had his contract with BC Khimki Moscow terminated last month and he told Swedish news organization Aftonbladet that his time there was an unpleasant experience, Sportando relays. The dispute began when Jerebko asked permission to visit his family in December. “The day before departure my agent writes me. He told me I could stay at home. Coach said I might not come back. It was not such a difficult decision to stay at home when he said so. Since then, there have been some non-payments and stuff like that.”
Bulls Fielding Calls On Thaddeus Young, Others
The Bulls are receiving plenty of attention from potential trade partners but it’s uncertain whether Arturas Karnisovas, their executive VP of basketball operations, is interested in making any deals, Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times reports.
The March 25 trade deadline is still in the distance but teams are looking increasingly at the Bulls to fortify their rotations, with power forward Thaddeus Young is drawing the most interest, according to Cowley. That confirms an earlier report that Young is the team’s most viable trade candidate.
Young’s contract could give teams some cap flexibility. He’s making approximately $13.5MM this season with a salary of $14.2MM next season. However, only $6MM of next season’s salary is guaranteed.
Young, 32, has played 982 career games but he’s still got something left in the tank. In 17 games this season off the bench, the veteran is averaging 11.1 PPG, 5.4 RPG, 4.3 APG and 1.1 SPG.
There are some strong reasons for Karnisovas to hold onto Young. He’s highly respected in the locker room and the Bulls can contend for a playoff berth this season. They’re 8-13 but only five Eastern Conference teams currently have winning records.
Quite a few others on the Bulls’ roster could attract interest. Certainly, Zach LaVine and Lauri Markkanen could give contenders an offensive jolt if the Bulls were willing to part with either one of their top two scorers. They also have several players — Otto Porter Jr., Cristiano Felicio, Garrett Temple and Denzel Valentine — in the final year of their contracts. Additionally, Tomas Satoransky‘s $10MM salary for next season is only partially guaranteed for $5MM.