Southwest Notes: Ball, Richardson, Oladipo, Ingram
Lonzo Ball is listed as probable to play Tuesday against Utah after missing three games due to a knee injury, the team’s PR department tweets. Ball practiced in full on Monday, Christian Clark of the New Orleans Picayune Times writes. The Pelicans point guard said he “definitely” plans to play Tuesday, the first of two straight games against the Jazz. In nine games this season, he’s averaging 12.4 PPG and 4.4 APG.
We have more from the Southwest Division:
- Mavericks guard Josh Richardson has returned to Dallas after being quarantined in Denver for 10 days, ESPN’s Tim MacMahon tweets. Coach Rick Carlisle says there’s no timetable for Richardson’s return, MacMahon adds. One of several Dallas players sidelined by a COVID-19 positive or contact tracing, Richardson has not played since January 7.
- The Rockets appear to be in rebuild mode in the aftermath of the James Harden blockbuster. Victor Oladipo, the most prominent player they acquired in the four-team swap, isn’t buying into that thinking, MacMahon writes at ESPN.com. Oladipo, who will be a free agent after the season, expressed optimism after his 32-point debut with the club on Monday. “I know that better days are ahead for the Houston Rockets, and I’m looking forward to being a part of those special days,” Oladipo said.
- The Pelicans re-signed Brandon Ingram to a five-year max contract in late November and ESPN’s Zach Lowe takes an in-depth look at Ingram’s development and desire for greatness. Ingram is averaging 23.3 PPG, 6.3 RPG and 5.1 APG this season.
Atlantic Notes: Embiid, Celtics, Nets, McCaw, Knicks
The Celtics and Sixers have, at times this season, found themselves shorthanded due to the NBA’s health and safety protocols, which have required a number of players on both teams to quarantine for positive COVID-19 tests or contact tracing. Heading into their games on Wednesday and Friday of this week, both teams should be a little closer to whole.
As Tim Bontemps of ESPN details, Sixers center Joel Embiid, who missed Saturday’s game due to a sore right knee, is expected to be good to go on Wednesday, per head coach Doc Rivers. And while Seth Curry didn’t practice today, he’s in the final stages of the health and safety protocols and hasn’t yet been ruled out for Wednesday’s game, per Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer (Twitter link).
Meanwhile, Celtics head coach Brad Stevens said today that Kemba Walker‘s knee responded “great” after his season debut on Monday, and he practiced in full today (Twitter link via Bontemps). Robert Williams, who has been cleared following a positive COVID-19 test earlier this month, also practiced today, per Stevens, and will be available on Wednesday.
Still, the Celtics aren’t at full strength yet. Jayson Tatum and Carsen Edwards both remain in the health and safety protocols and won’t play on Wednesday, though Stevens left the door open for Tatum to return as soon as Friday (Twitter link via Bontemps).
Here’s more from around the Atlantic:
- John Hollinger of The Athletic expects the Nets to take their time filling their open roster spots so as not to unnecessarily increase their projected luxury tax bill, which is already substantial. Hollinger also suggests that promoting Reggie Perry from his two-way contract would be a good way to fill one of those slots, since Perry – a 2020 second-round pick – would only count for the prorated rookie minimum for cap and tax purposes.
- Raptors guard Patrick McCaw hasn’t played at all this season as he continues to recover from knee surgery, and it doesn’t sound like he’s close to returning. Head coach Nick Nurse said on Monday that he hoped McCaw would be much further along by this point, but the recovery progress has been slow (Twitter link via Josh Lewenberg of TSN.ca).
- The Westchester Knicks – New York’s G League affiliate – issued a press release confirming the previously-reported hiring of Jaren Jackson Sr. as an assistant coach and announcing that Ryan Borges has been promoted to assistant general manager.
Nuggets’ Whittington Out At Least 4-6 Weeks After Knee Arthroscopy
Nuggets forward Greg Whittington underwent a successful knee arthroscopy on Tuesday morning, the team announced today in a press release. According to the Nuggets, Whittington will be re-evaluated in about four to six weeks.
Whittington, who went undrafted in 2015 out of Georgetown, has played in the G League and a handful of international leagues since then before getting a shot in Denver this past fall. He signed a two-way contract with the Nuggets in November, but has been unable to make his NBA debut so far due to his left knee issues.
The Nuggets have had relatively good luck so far this season when it comes to injuries and COVID-19, so even if Whittington had been healthy, there may not have been many opportunities for him yet. Fellow two-way player Markus Howard has logged just seven minutes across five games for Denver.
Players on two-way contracts are limited to being active for 50 of their team’s 72 games. Because Whittington will have missed more than 22 games by the time he gets healthy, the Nuggets will be able to activate him for any and every game down the stretch, if needed.
Raptors Waive Alex Len
The Raptors have waived veteran center Alex Len, the team announced today in a press release. The transaction opens up a spot on Toronto’s roster, leaving the club with 14 players on standard contracts and a pair on two-way deals.
The fifth overall pick in the 2013 draft, Len had only played in seven of the Raptors’ 13 games so far this season, and was averaging 2.3 PPG in 10.9 MPG — both marks were his lowest since his rookie season. With Chris Boucher enjoying a breakout year and Aron Baynes also in the mix, Len was third on the depth chart at center.
Although Len hadn’t been playing regular minutes for the Raptors as of late, it’s still a somewhat unexpected move, since he signed a guaranteed contract with the team in free agency less than two months ago.
The 27-year-old recently missed multiple games for personal reasons and was listed as out due to the NBA’s health and safety protocols on Monday, but there has been no indication that his release was related to his recent absence.
Len’s $2.258MM salary will remain on Toronto’s cap unless he’s claimed on waivers, which seems unlikely. Assuming he clears waivers, he’ll become an unrestricted free agent on Thursday afternoon and will be eligible to sign with any team.
The Raptors, meanwhile, won’t be required to fill their open roster spot, but could eventually use it to sign a veteran free agent, to accommodate a trade, or to promote two-way player Yuta Watanabe to the 15-man roster.
Kyrie Irving Practices With Nets, Expected To Play Wednesday
Nets guard Kyrie Irving, who hasn’t appeared in a game since January 5, returned to practice on Tuesday and is expected to be back in action on Wednesday when Brooklyn takes on the Cavaliers, head coach Steve Nash told reporters today (Twitter link via Ian Begley of SNY.tv).
Irving was required to quarantine for several days after violating the NBA’s health and safety protocols, and more recently has been going through workouts in an effort to get his conditioning level back to 100%. Before that, he had been away from the team on personal leave.
Asked today about his absence, the star point guard declined to go into much detail, telling the media – including Malika Andrews of ESPN (Twitter link) – that he’s had “a lot of family and personal stuff” going on during the last two weeks.
“I’m happy to be back, I’m happy to be with these guys,” Irving said, per Adam Zagoria of Forbes (Twitter link). “I addressed the team and ready to move on.”
Irving also apologized to the fans he disappointed by not playing, explaining that he “just needed a pause,” according to Andrews (Twitter link). He added that he’s excited about joining the Nets’ new-look lineup alongside James Harden, and is looking forward to letting his “game speak for itself.”
Assuming Irving returns to the court on Wednesday, it’ll be the first time we see Brooklyn’s new Big Three (Irving, Harden, and Kevin Durant) in action, as well as the first time Kyrie has played a game in Cleveland since October 17, 2017, as Marc Stein of The New York Times notes (Twitter link). A longtime Cavalier, Irving played in his first game for the Celtics on that date over three years ago.
Myles Turner Has Avulsion Fracture In Right Hand
1:06pm: The Pacers have issued an update on Turner, confirming in a press release that he has sustained an avulsion fracture in his right hand. However, the big man won’t require surgery and is being considered day-to-day for now.
While we still don’t know exactly when Turner will be back on the court, it sounds like he won’t miss much – if any – time. Head coach Nate Bjorkgren said that Turner participated in practice today, as J. Michael of The Indianapolis Star tweets.
As a point of reference, when Gordon Hayward suffered a similar injury during the preseason, he was good to go for the Hornets’ regular season opener just over a week later.
10:34am: Pacers center Myles Turner has been diagnosed with a slight fracture in his right hand and will be re-evaluated in the coming days, reports Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link). It’s not yet clear how much time he’ll miss.
Turner suffered the injury last Thursday in a game in Portland against the Trail Blazers. It appeared to happen on a dunk attempt with about five minutes left in the fourth quarter, as Scott Agness of Fieldhouse Files relays (video link). Turner was subsequently ruled out for Indiana’s game on Sunday vs. the Clippers.
Turner, 24, was off to a strong start this season, averaging 12.4 PPG, 6.8 RPG, 1.5 SPG, and a league-leading 4.2 BPG in 12 games (31.7 MPG). In his absence, Doug McDermott slid into the Pacers’ starting lineup on Sunday.
If Turner is forced to miss an extended period, he’ll become Indiana’s third key rotation player who is expected to remain on the shelf for the foreseeable future — T.J. Warren (foot surgery) and Caris LeVert (small mass in his kidney) have been ruled out indefinitely. On the plus side, Jeremy Lamb is reportedly close to making his season debut after being sidelined since last February as he recovers from an ACL tear.
Nets Notes: Harden, Durant, Kyrie, Allen, Prince
The superstar duo of James Harden and Kevin Durant has looked terrific in Harden’s first two games with the Nets, wins over Orlando and Milwaukee.
Durant has averaged 36.0 PPG in those two victories, while Harden has contributed 33.0 PPG, 13.0 APG, and 9.0 RPG. Their 138 combined points are the highest total since 1961 for any two teammates in their first two games with a franchise, according to Malika Andrews of ESPN.
Harden and Durant, of course, played together with the Thunder earlier in their respective NBA careers, and Nets coaches and management have said they’d lean on the two stars’ previous chemistry in the early going this season. As Andrews details, Harden believes the increased maturity level of the two former MVPs has helped them quickly reestablish that chemistry.
“We were young in Oklahoma City,” Harden said. “We are grown men now. We know what we want. We really know the game of basketball now. We are not those young guys that want to run around and just shoot and dunk all day. And then for me, I sit back and I know what player Kevin Durant is. He’s one of the best players to ever touch a basketball.”
While Durant said the Nets still have “room to improve,” he told reporters after Monday’s game that incorporating Harden into the lineup has been “pretty seamless,” per Andrews.
Here’s more on the Nets:
- Head coach Steve Nash said that Kyrie Irving will “hopefully” be available to return to the Nets’ lineup on Wednesday against Cleveland, tweets Andrews. Irving is back with the team and has been cleared from COVID-19 protocols, but is still ramping up his conditioning. “What you want to see is him to get some time in his legs so he’s more able to adapt back to playing,” Nash said.
- Asked on Monday if they would have pulled the trigger on the trade that brought Harden to Brooklyn if they were running the Nets, both Jarrett Allen and Taurean Prince admitted they would have, writes Brian Lewis of The New York Post. “Look at what happened with the Lakers, they did the same thing,” Allen said, referring to the Lakers’ 2019 acquisition of Anthony Davis. “The next year they went and got their ring. So take myself out of it, I’d love to stay in Brooklyn, but I understand in the opportunity like that you have to go do it.”
- Both Allen and Prince also said on Monday that while they understand the business side of the NBA, that understanding didn’t necessarily make it easier to be traded. “It was definitely rough on me,” Allen said, according to Lewis. “Even though you say it’s the business of basketball, it never makes it easier. But it’s the business and I had to move on.”
- In case you missed it on Monday, we relayed a report indicating that the Nets shopped Landry Shamet in an effort to avoid including Allen in the Harden blockbuster. We also passed along a series of NBA franchise valuations that estimate the Nets’ worth to be $3.4 billion, fourth-highest in the league.
2020/21 In-Season NBA Trades
As we did with 2020’s offseason trades and the in-season swaps from 2019/20, we’ll be keeping track of all the NBA trades completed this season as they become official, updating this post with each transaction. This post can be found anytime throughout the season on our desktop sidebar under “Hoops Rumors Features,” or in our mobile menu under “Features.”
Trades are listed here in reverse chronological order, with the latest on top. So, if a player has been dealt multiple times, the first team listed as having acquired him is the one that ended up with him. Trades listed in italics have been agreed upon but are not yet official. For more details on each trade, click the date above it.
For more information on the specific conditions dictating if and when draft picks involved in these deals will actually change hands, be sure to check out RealGM.com’s breakdown of the details on traded picks.
Here’s the full list of the trades completed during the 2020/21 NBA season:
- Jazz acquire Matt Thomas.
- Raptors acquire the Warriors’ 2021 second-round pick.
- Nuggets acquire JaVale McGee.
- Cavaliers acquire Isaiah Hartenstein, the Nuggets’ 2023 second-round pick (top-46 protected), and the Nuggets’ 2027 second-round pick.
- Mavericks acquire J.J. Redick and Nicolo Melli.
- Pelicans acquire James Johnson, Wesley Iwundu, the Mavericks’ 2021 second-round pick, and cash ($1.1MM).
- Celtics acquire Evan Fournier.
- Magic acquire Jeff Teague, either the Celtics’ or the Grizzlies’ 2025 second-round pick (whichever is less favorable), and the Celtics’ 2027 second-round pick.
- Kings acquire Delon Wright.
- Pistons acquire Cory Joseph, the Lakers’ 2021 second-round pick, and the Kings’ 2024 second-round pick.
- Nuggets acquire Aaron Gordon and Gary Clark.
- Magic acquire Gary Harris, R.J. Hampton, and the Nuggets’ 2025 first-round pick (top-five protected).
- Spurs acquire Marquese Chriss and cash ($1.85MM).
- Warriors acquire the draft rights to Cady Lalanne.
- Hornets acquire Brad Wanamaker, the Raptors’ 2022 second-round pick (top-54 protected), and cash ($2MM).
- Warriors acquire the Hornets’ 2025 second-round pick (top-55 protected).
- Heat acquire Victor Oladipo.
- Rockets acquire Kelly Olynyk, Avery Bradley, and the right to swap the Rockets’ or Nets’ 2022 first-round pick with the Heat’s 2022 first-round pick (top-14 protected).
- Note: If the Heat’s pick falls within its protected range, the Rockets would instead receive either the Nuggets’ or Sixers’ 2022 second-round pick (whichever is less favorable).
- Kings acquire Terence Davis.
- Raptors acquire Grizzlies’ 2021 second-round pick.
- Clippers acquire Rajon Rondo.
- Hawks acquire Lou Williams, the Trail Blazers’ 2023 second-round pick, the Clippers’ 2027 second-round pick, and cash ($1.25MM).
- Heat acquire Nemanja Bjelica.
- Kings acquire Maurice Harkless and Chris Silva.
- Sixers acquire George Hill and Ignas Brazdeikis.
- Thunder acquire Tony Bradley, Austin Rivers, the Sixers’ 2025 second-round pick, and the Sixers’ 2026 second-round pick.
- Knicks acquire Terrance Ferguson, Vincent Poirier, the Sixers’ 2021 second-round pick, the Heat’s 2024 second-round pick (top-55 protected; from Sixers), and the draft rights to Emir Preldzic (from Sixers).
- Bulls acquire Daniel Theis, Troy Brown, Javonte Green, and cash ($1.3MM from Celtics; $250K from Wizards).
- Celtics acquire Moritz Wagner and Luke Kornet.
- Wizards acquire Chandler Hutchison and Daniel Gafford.
- Trail Blazers acquire Norman Powell.
- Raptors acquire Gary Trent Jr. and Rodney Hood.
- Bulls acquire Nikola Vucevic and Al-Farouq Aminu.
- Magic acquire Wendell Carter, Otto Porter, the Bulls’ 2021 first-round pick (top-four protected), and the Bulls’ 2023 first-round pick (top-four protected).
- Kings acquire Mfiondu Kabengele, the Hawks’ 2022 second-round pick (top-55 protected), and cash ($2.75MM).
- Clippers acquire the Kings’ 2022 second-round pick (top-54 protected).
- Bucks acquire P.J. Tucker, Rodions Kurucs, and their own 2022 first-round pick (traded away in a previous deal).
- Rockets acquire D.J. Augustin, D.J. Wilson, the Bucks’ 2023 first-round pick (unprotected), and the right to swap their own 2021 second-round pick with the Bucks’ 2021 first-round pick (top-nine protected).
- Suns acquire Torrey Craig.
- Bucks acquire cash ($110K).
- Heat acquire Trevor Ariza.
- Thunder acquire Meyers Leonard and the Heat’s 2027 second-round pick.
- Pistons acquire Hamidou Diallo.
- Thunder acquire Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk and the Rockets’ 2027 second-round pick.
- Knicks acquire Derrick Rose.
- Pistons acquire Dennis Smith Jr. and the Hornets’ 2021 second-round pick.
- Rockets acquire Kevin Porter Jr.
- Cavaliers acquire the Warriors’ 2024 second-round pick (top-55 protected).
- Nets acquire James Harden.
- Rockets acquire Victor Oladipo, Dante Exum, Rodions Kurucs, the Nets’ 2022 first-round pick (unprotected), the Bucks’ 2022 first-round pick (unprotected; from Cavaliers), the Nets’ 2024 first-round pick (unprotected), the Nets’ 2026 first-round pick (unprotected), and the right to swap first-round picks with the Nets in 2021, 2023, 2025, and 2027 (all unprotected).
- Note: Oklahoma City has the ability to swap first-round picks with the Rockets in 2021 (top-four protected) and 2025 (top-10 protected). Check RealGM for more details on how this affects the Rockets’ ability to swap with the Nets in those years.
- Note: Oklahoma City has the ability to swap first-round picks with the Rockets in 2021 (top-four protected) and 2025 (top-10 protected). Check RealGM for more details on how this affects the Rockets’ ability to swap with the Nets in those years.
- Pacers acquire Caris LeVert, a 2023 second-round pick (least favorable of the Rockets’, Mavericks, and Heat’s picks; from Rockets), a 2024 second-round pick (least favorable of the Cavaliers’ and Jazz’s picks; from Cavaliers), and cash ($2.6MM; from Nets).
- Note: If the Rockets’ 2023 second-round pick is No. 31 or No. 32, the Pacers will instead receive that pick.
- Cavaliers acquire Jarrett Allen, Taurean Prince, and the draft rights to Aleksandar Vezenkov (from Nets).
2022 NBA Free Agents
Hoops Rumors’ up-to-date list of 2022 free agents is below. The player’s 2022 age is in parentheses.
These are players who are currently free agents. They finished the 2021/22 season on an NBA roster, appeared in at least 10 games in ’21/22, or appeared in at least one game in ’22/23. A small handful of other notable free agents are also listed.
You’ll be able to access this list anytime under the “Hoops Rumors Features” menu on the right sidebar on our desktop site, or in the “Free Agent Lists” section of our mobile menu. If you have any corrections or omissions, please contact us.
Updated 6-25-23 (6:23am CT)
Unrestricted Free Agents
Point Guards
- Ryan Arcidiacono (28)
- Jamaree Bouyea (23)
- Trey Burke (30)
- Devin Cannady (26)
- Kennedy Chandler (20)
- Chris Chiozza (27)
- Darren Collison (35)
- Sharife Cooper (21)
- Devon Dotson (23)
- Marcus Garrett (24)
- Brandon Goodwin (27)
- Frank Jackson (24)
- Elfrid Payton (28)
- Rajon Rondo (36)
- Zavier Simpson (25)
- Javonte Smart (23)
- Keifer Sykes (29)
- Tyrell Terry (22)
- Isaiah Thomas (33)
- Kemba Walker (32)
- John Wall (32)
- Keaton Wallace (23)
- Brad Wanamaker (33)
- Brandon Williams (23)
Shooting Guards
- Avery Bradley (32)
- Armoni Brooks (24)
- Charlie Brown Jr. (25)
- Chaundee Brown (24)
- Sterling Brown (27)
- Deonte Burton (28)
- Jarrett Culver (23)
- Nate Darling (24)
- Wayne Ellington (35)
- Malik Fitts (25)
- Bryn Forbes (29)
- Melvin Frazier (26)
- Langston Galloway (31)
- R.J. Hampton (21)
- Note: On waivers until June 26.
- Jalen Harris (24)
- Nate Hinton (23)
- David Johnson (21)
- Mason Jones (24)
- Jeremy Lamb (30)
- Scottie Lewis (22)
- Skylar Mays (25)
- E’Twaun Moore (33)
- Mychal Mulder (28)
- David Nwaba (29)
- Joshua Primo (20)
- Trevelin Queen (25)
- Jahmi’us Ramsey (21)
- Davon Reed (27)
- Jordan Schakel (24)
- Jay Scrubb (22)
- Nik Stauskas (29)
- D.J. Stewart Jr. (23)
- Brodric Thomas (25)
- Stanley Umude (23)
- Denzel Valentine (29)
- Quinndary Weatherspoon (26)
- Alondes Williams (23)
- Lou Williams (36)
Small Forwards
- Justin Anderson (29)
- Kent Bazemore (33)
- DeAndre’ Bembry (28)
- Keljin Blevins (27)
- Greg Brown (21)
- CJ Elleby (22)
- Jordan Hall (20)
- Maurice Harkless (29)
- Malcolm Hill (27)
- Solomon Hill (31)
- Rodney Hood (30)
- Elijah Hughes (24)
- Feron Hunt (23)
- Wes Iwundu (28)
- Josh Jackson (25)
- Justin Jackson (27)
- Stanley Johnson (26)
- Braxton Key (25)
- Jake Layman (28)
- Didi Louzada (23)
- Kelan Martin (27)
- Alfonzo McKinnie (30)
- Justin Minaya (24)
- Abdel Nader (29)
- Jamorko Pickett (25)
- Tony Snell (31)
- Robert Woodard (23)
Power Forwards
- Carmelo Anthony (38)
- Trevor Ariza (37)
- Jarrell Brantley (26)
- Marquese Chriss (25)
- Gary Clark (28)
- Tyler Cook (25)
- Michael Foster Jr. (19)
- Juancho Hernangomez (27)
- Alize Johnson (26)
- Paul Millsap (37)
- Juwan Morgan (25)
- KZ Okapala (23)
- Jabari Parker (27)
- Reggie Perry (22)
- Chris Silva (26)
- Noah Vonleh (27)
- D.J. Wilson (26)
Centers
- Tony Bradley (24)
- Moses Brown (23)
- DeMarcus Cousins (32)
- Ed Davis (33)
- Derrick Favors (31)
- Enes Freedom (30)
- Serge Ibaka (33)
- Nerlens Noel (28)
- Killian Tillie (25)
Restricted Free Agents
Point Guards
- None
Shooting Guards
- None
Small Forwards
- None
Power Forwards
- Miles Bridges (24)
Centers
- None
Two-Way Restricted Free Agents
Note: All of this year’s two-way restricted free agents have been signed. The details can be found here.
Player Options
Note: All of this year’s player option decisions have been made. They can be found here.
Team Options
Note: All of this year’s team option decisions have been made. They can be found here.
Contract information from Basketball Insiders was used in the creation of this post.
CJ McCollum Out At Least Four Weeks With Foot Injury
JANUARY 19: Further testing on McCollum’s foot injury revealed a small hairline fracture to the lateral cuneiform, the Blazers announced late on Monday night (Twitter link). According to the club, the standout guard will wear a walking boot and will be re-evaluated in four weeks.
McCollum is the third key Portland rotation player to be sidelined with a multi-week injury, joining Jusuf Nurkic and Zach Collins. The increasing number of absences may put more pressure on the Blazers to make use of one of their open roster spots.
JANUARY 18: Trail Blazers guard CJ McCollum, who left Saturday’s win over Atlanta due to a left foot sprain, will be re-evaluated in one week, head coach Terry Stotts said today (link via Casey Holdahl of Blazers.com).
McCollum remained in the locker room at halftime on Saturday after appearing to suffer the injury in the first quarter when Hawks center Clint Capela landed on his foot following a layup attempt. Rodney Hood was moved into the starting lineup for today’s game vs. San Antonio to replace the Blazers’ second-leading scorer.
If McCollum remains sidelined for a week, he’d also miss two games against the Grizzlies (Wednesday and Friday) and one against the Knicks (Sunday). While there’s no guarantee he’ll be ready to go next week, it doesn’t sound like the injury will result in a long-term absence for McCollum.
Hood, Gary Trent Jr. and Anfernee Simons are the other most obvious candidates to see some extra minutes for Portland until McCollum gets healthy. The club also has a pair of open roster spots (one standard and one two-way), but there has been no indication that any signings are imminent.