James Ennis To Sign With Israeli Team
Free agent forward James Ennis has agreed to a lucrative deal in Israel with Hapoel Haifa, sources told Hoops Rumors. Ennis will head overseas for the first time since the 2013/14 season.
Ennis, who has signed 10-day contracts with the Nets, Clippers and Nuggets since December, plans to leave the door open for an eventual NBA return, sources said.
After being selected with the 50th overall pick in the 2013 draft, Ennis began his professional career as a draft-and-stash player, spending a year in Australia and Puerto Rico before coming stateside in 2014.
An eight-year NBA veteran, Ennis has since appeared in 395 regular season games. In addition to Brooklyn, Los Angeles and Denver, he has also made stops in Miami, Memphis, New Orleans, Detroit, Houston, Philadelphia and Orlando since making his NBA debut.
In 41 games with Orlando last season, Ennis averaged 8.4 points per game and made 43.3% of his three-point attempts, the second-highest mark of his career. The 31-year-old also showed versatility by guarding multiple positions defensively.
Hapoel Haifa currently ranks seventh in the 12-team Israeli Basketball Premier League with a 9-8 record, putting the club on track to qualify for the eight-team postseason. Ennis will join former Celtics and Knicks guard Kadeem Allen as the players on the roster who have NBA experience.
Western Notes: Simons, Suns, Jazz, Thunder
Blazers guard Anfernee Simons is adjusting to his new role of being the number one option on the team, Casey Holdahl of NBA.com writes. Portland traded away CJ McCollum, Norman Powell and others at the trade deadline and is missing Damian Lillard due to an abdominal injury, clearing the way for Simons to receive a larger role.
“Obviously I’m going to be at the top of the scouting report even more now that (Jusuf Nurkic) is out,” Simons said. Nurkic is dealing with a foot injury and will miss at least three more weeks. “So just learning how to navigate through that. Obviously it’s going to be even more tougher for me but it’s the perfect time to see everything.
“Like, the Warriors threw a box-and-one at me, probably the first time I’ve been boxed-and-one’d since high school. That was an interesting thing to kind of navigate though.”
Simons is in his fourth season with the franchise. He’s averaging a career-high 17.3 points and 3.9 assists per game, shooting 44% from the field, 40.5% from deep and 89% from the free throw line. He most recently finished with 38 points in a loss to the Timberwolves on Saturday.
Here are some other notes from the Western Conference:
- Unlikely heroes are stepping up for the Suns in the absences of Chris Paul (thumb) and Devin Booker (protocols), Cydney Henderson of USA Today writes. Phoenix received a key performance from Cameron Johnson on Friday, as the 26-year-old finished with 38 points and a buzzer-beating game-winner. Mikal Bridges also added 20 points, while Cameron Payne recorded 17 points and 16 assists.
- The Jazz could be facing an offseason of massive change if they don’t make a deep postseason run, ESPN’s Tim McMahon suggested on The Lowe Post. Utah has had an inconsistent season — the team is 8-2 in its last 10 games but lost by 34 on Friday against New Orleans — and could break up the Donovan Mitchell–Rudy Gobert partnership if it doesn’t succeed this year.
- Eric Pincus of Bleacher Report explores how the Thunder could drive various blockbuster deals this summer. Oklahoma City will be armed with cap space and draft picks from a massive rebuild. As Pincus notes, the team currently has up to $31.8MM in cap space, but nearly all of it will be lost when the league calendar year flips on July 1. The assessment comes from factoring in Shai Gilgeous-Alexander‘s new extension and assuming Derrick Favors exercises his $10.2MM player option.
Southwest Notes: Pelicans, Wieskamp, Primo, Nix
The Pelicans‘ recent surge is largely because of their improved defense, William Guillory of The Athletic writes. New Orleans has won four straight games, including a 124-90 victory over the Jazz on Friday.
Prior to that, the Pelicans held the Kings and Lakers to 95 points each, plus the Suns to 102 points. On the season, the team has allowed 108.7 points per game, which ranks 13th in the league. New Orleans currently holds the No. 10 seed in the West at 27-36.
“I feel like we’re doing a great job of defending, keeping guys out of the paint and just forcing them into tough shots,” said Herbert Jones, one of the league’s rising young defenders. “We’re flying all over the place, helping each other out. One guy gets beat, it’s another one of our brothers there to help him out. Hopefully, we can stay consistent and keep defending how we’re defending.”
There’s more from the Southwest:
- Joe Wieskamp earned a standard deal with the Spurs by trusting in their development process, Tom Orsborn of the San Antonio Express-News explores. The Spurs converted Wieskamp’s two-way deal into a traditional contract on Friday. San Antonio drafted the 22-year-old with the No. 41 pick last year.
- In a separate story for the San Antonio Express-News, Orsborn examines a number of recent Spurs takeaways, including a learning lesson for rookie Joshua Primo. The 19-year-old played 11 fourth-quarter minutes against the Hornets on Saturday, finishing with 10 points.
- Daishen Nix has offered the Rockets a glimpse into the future, Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle writes. Nix has averaged 22.5 points in the G League this season, shooting 49% from the floor and 40% from deep. Houston promoted him from his two-way deal and signed him to a four-year deal last month.
Central Notes: Ball, Caruso, Williams, Vucevic, Love, Jackson
Bulls guards Lonzo Ball (knee) and Alex Caruso (wrist) did individual, non-contact work at the team’s practice on Sunday, K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago tweets. Joining them was forward Patrick Williams (wrist), who hasn’t played since October.
Caruso will need to be checked by a doctor again before being cleared for contact, coach Billy Donovan said. Still, all three players are now traveling with the team, Johnson adds (Twitter link).
Chicago next plays at Philadelphia on Monday. Johnson notes the club hasn’t decided if Ball, Caruso and Williams will continue traveling to Detroit on Wednesday, as they could benefit more from rehabbing at home before the team returns Saturday.
Here are some other notes from the Central Division:
- Bulls star Nikola Vucevic didn’t practice on Saturday due to hamstring tightness, according to K.C. Johnson (Twitter link). Vucevic did weightlifting work and is listed as questionable to play against Philadelphia on Monday. He finished with 19 points, nine rebounds and two steals in a loss to the Bucks on Friday.
- Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com examines how Kevin Love — a strong candidate for Sixth Man of the Year — found his basketball joy again. Love has revitalized his career with the Cavaliers this season, averaging 13.9 points and 7.1 rebounds in 22.1 minutes per game. He’s also shot 38.9% from three-point range, which is his highest mark since the 2017/18 campaign.
- Pistons guard Frank Jackson (spine) will see a specialist and miss at least one more week, James Edwards III of The Athletic tweets. Jackson is receiving further evaluation after missing two straight games. He’s averaged a career-high 10.7 points per game this season.
Eastern Notes: Simmons, Oladipo, Nash, Knicks
Nets star Ben Simmons was seen taking shots at the team’s practice on Saturday, but there appears to be no change in his return timetable, Peter Botte of the New York Post writes. General manager Sean Marks said on Thursday he believes the best-case scenario is Simmons returning within two weeks.
“He’s still in the same boat that Sean talked about, still his individual work and getting treatment at the same time, so nothing’s changed,” assistant coach Jacque Vaughn said, according to Botte.
Simmons was acquired by the Nets in a deal involving disgruntled superstar James Harden nearly one month ago. He last played on June 20 — when the Sixers were eliminated by the Hawks in the playoffs.
There’s more from the Eastern Conference tonight:
- Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel examines whether Victor Oladipo will back up Kyle Lowry at point guard for the Heat. Miami is listing Oladipo as questionable to make his season debut on Monday against Houston, but the expectation is that he’ll play. The team used him at point guard when it acquired him from the Rockets last season.
- Nets coach Steve Nash said he didn’t have any COVID-19 symptoms while in the league’s health and safety protocols, Brian Lewis of the New York Post tweets. Nash exited protocols on Saturday and coached his first game back on Sunday. Brooklyn wound up losing its fourth straight game, dropping a 120-126 road contest to Boston.
- The Knicks are continuing to search for answers at point guard, Marc Berman of the New York Post writes. New York has mostly played without Derrick Rose due to injury, but former All-Star Kemba Walker recently decided to shut it down after receiving inconsistent minutes. The team has also given Alec Burks and Immanuel Quickley heavy minutes. It trails the Hawks by six games for the No. 10 seed in the Eastern Conference.
Lakers Notes: LeBron, Caruso, Vogel, Magic, Augustin, Gabriel
LeBron James dropped 56 points on the Warriors Saturday night, leading the Lakers to a 124-116 win and ending a four-game losing streak, writes Jovan Buha of The Athletic. James shot 19-of-31 from the field, 6-of-11 from three, and 12-of-13 from the line while adding 10 rebounds and three assists in nearly 39 minutes of action.
The 56-point effort tied Trae Young‘s NBA season-high and is the most points LeBron has scored in a game for Los Angeles, Buha notes. James said he was just happy to get a win.
“It’s funny, our guys were following me off the floor tonight going into the locker room and they asked me, ‘How does it feel to score 56?’” James said. “I said, ‘Right now, I don’t give a damn about the 56. I’m just happy we got a win.’ That’s just literally the first thing that came to my mind.”
James’ spectacular performance was historic for a couple other reasons, Buha writes. He passed Karl Malone for the most combined regular season and postseason minutes, and became just the fourth player to record 50-plus points in a game at age 37 or older, joining Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant and Jamal Crawford.
“There’s really no words for it,” coach Frank Vogel said of James’ 56-point game. “An incredible performance by the best to ever do it, in my opinion, and as I’ve said.”
The Lakers have had an undeniably disappointing season, barely clinging to the No. 9 seed in the West with a 28-35 record, but James has been consistently great on offense. He’s now tied with Giannis Antetokounmpo for second in the league in scoring with 29.4 points per game, just a tenth of a point behind Joel Embiid‘s league-leading 29.5. It’s James’ highest scoring average since 2009/10.
Here’s more on the Lakers:
- A source tells Marc Stein of Substack that James was a leading supporter of Alex Caruso and badly wanted the Lakers to re-sign him, but the team declined to offer Caruso a contract comparable to the four-year, $37MM deal he received from the Bulls last summer due to luxury tax concerns. Caruso was having a strong season for Chicago, but has played just 28 games to this point and is currently sidelined with a fractured right wrist.
- Appearing on NBA Today, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reports (video link) that the Lakers haven’t moved on from Vogel due to long-term injuries to Anthony Davis and Kendrick Nunn, and more importantly the front office doesn’t think that replacing Vogel would make a difference in the team’s performance. “(The Lakers) would like to get through the rest of this season with Frank Vogel,” Wojnarowski said.
- Prior to Saturday’s game, in an appearance on NBA Countdown (video link), Magic Johnson said the trade for Westbrook “could go down as the worst trade in Laker history” if L.A. is unable to advance past the play-in tournament.
- D.J. Augustin and Wenyen Gabriel are eager to make an impact with their new club, according to Kyle Goon of The Southern California News Group. “I know they haven’t been playing up to everybody’s expectations, I would say,” Augustin said of the Lakers. “But it’s the NBA, and things happen. But we’re still in a good position where we can still have a chance. And that’s all you need in this league, is a chance.”
Raptors’ Malachi Flynn Out Indefinitely With Hamstring Strain
Raptors point guard Malachi Flynn is out indefinitely after suffering a strained left hamstring, the team announced. The injury occurred during Toronto’s 103-97 loss to Orlando Friday night. He had a season-high 20 points and tied a season high with eight assists in the game.
It’s a very unfortunate setback for the second-year guard, who’s had arguably the best four-game stretch of his young career filling in for injured All-Star Fred VanVleet. In Flynn’s past four games, all starts, he averaged 16.0 points, 4.0 rebounds, 5.5 assists and 1.0 steal per game on .571/.500/.556 shooting. Remarkably, he only had one turnover across the four contests, good for a 22/1 assist-to-turnover ratio.
Flynn, 23, was the 29th overall pick of the 2020 draft. He has struggled to crack Toronto’s rotation this season, but coach Nick Nurse recently praised his effort and gave Flynn significant playing time — 35.6 minutes per night — in VanVleet’s absence.
Strangely, Flynn had previously been listed as questionable for Sunday’s game against Cleveland, but now he’s out indefinitely, Michael Grange of Sportsnet observes (via Twitter). As Grange notes, it’s terrible timing for both the player and the team, as the Raptors have an extremely difficult schedule coming up, with eight of their next nine games on the road, mostly against teams vying for the playoffs.
With Flynn and VanVleet both sidelined, rookie Dalano Banton and the newly-signed Armoni Brooks could get extended playing time for the Raptors, currently 34-29, seventh in the East.
Julius Randle Fined $50K By NBA
Knicks power forward Julius Randle has been fined $50K by the NBA, the league announced in a tweet. Randle was fined for initiating an on-court altercation with Suns forward Cameron Johnson, making contact with a game official, and for not complying with an NBA investigation.
Randle received two technical fouls and was ejected for the incident, while Johnson received a single technical. It occurred with 2:40 remaining in the third quarter of New York’s 115-114 loss at Phoenix on Friday night.
Randle had 25 points, seven rebounds and four assists in 28 minutes when he was tossed from the game. The Knicks were leading at the time, but wound up losing when Johnson banked in a three-pointer at the buzzer, giving New York its 17th defeat in the last 20 games.
The Knicks reportedly have concerns about Randle’s “overall psyche” after the latest in a series of incidents from the 27-year-old. Randle’s behavior is potentially a long-term concern for the franchise considering that he received a four-year, $117MM extension during the offseason, including a player option in 2025/26.
The reigning Most Improved Player, Randle has taken a step back from his second-team All-NBA performance from last season. He’s still posting nice counting stats of 19.8 points, 10.0 rebounds and 5.2 assists per game, but his shooting line of .417/.301/.765 has fallen off from last season’s .456/.411/.811, his turnovers are up and his assists are down. Randle has also been lackadaisical at times defensively after showing great effort on that end last season.
Nuggets Notes: Cousins, Malone, Barton, Gordon, Jokic
DeMarcus Cousins had a stellar game on Friday night for the Nuggets, putting up a season-high 31 points on 14 shots in just 24 minutes of action. Cousins also contributed nine rebounds, four assists and three steals in the team’s 116-101 win over the Rockets. Cousins started in place of reigning MVP Nikola Jokic, who was out with a non-COVID illness, as Mike Singer of The Denver Post relays.
Cousins said he was released by the Bucks earlier in the season due to a calf strain, giving Denver the opportunity to pick him up. Coach Michael Malone says he’s never lost faith in Cousins, even if others have. “Most people had given up on him,” Malone said after Friday’s game. “All you need is somebody to believe in you.”
Malone said Cousins lost eight-to-10 pounds after arriving in Denver, per Singer. Malone also said Cousins’ strong recent play could help lessen the load on Jokic, who’s having another MVP-caliber season. “He keeps on playing like this … you don’t have to run Nikola into the ground,” said Malone, who suggested the Nuggets might have the best center tandem in the NBA.
“It’s very satisfying,” said Cousins when asked what it’s meant to him to take advantage of his latest stop. “It’s even a better feeling to have a coach that believes in you, an organization that believes in you.”
Here’s more from Denver:
- Advice from his basketball idol Kobe Bryant helped Will Barton become the Nuggets’ all-time leader in three-point field goals, according to Harrison Wind of DNVR Sports. “Kobe told me, ‘If you get a jump shot, you’re going to be deadly,'” Barton said. “Once he told me I had talent and all I had to do was work on my jumper, it further solidified what I already thought about myself.” The former second-round pick struggled with his shot early in his career, but transformed himself into a solid marksman over the past eight seasons with Denver, making 36% of his 3-pointers. Barton set the franchise mark with his 769th trey in the team’s win over the Rockets on Friday, breaking a record held by J.R. Smith.
- Aaron Gordon has developed impressive chemistry with Jokic, writes Singer in a separate article for The Denver Post. “Jok’s IQ is through the roof,” Gordon said. “He’s a basketball savant. Just genius. It’s great talking to him, understanding how he sees the game. How we can make it easier for him and where he needs us to be.” Gordon is taking advantage of Jokic’s elite passing by making smart cuts to the basket, leading to a career-best 51.7% from the field, including 60.6% on two-pointers. Gordon told Singer that he’s “seeing the game differently.” “Just angles,” he said. “Attacking angles. Making reads. I finally feel like I’m making better reads.”
- Jokic gave a typically self-effacing reply regarding his conversations with Gordon, Singer relays in the same piece. “I don’t know the right answer,” said Jokic. “I’m just trying to help him. … I’m just telling him what I know. If that helps him, or not, I don’t know. I’m just trying to tell him what I see.” Singer notes that a quarter of Jokic’s assists this season have gone to Gordon, the highest mark on the team.
Celtics Notes: Stauskas, Tatum, White, Nesmith
The Celtics were among several teams that expressed interest in Nik Stauskas, coach Ime Udoka told reporters before today’s game (Twitter link from Tim Bontemps of ESPN). Stauskas signed a two-year contract with Boston on Friday after scoring a combined 100 points in his last two G League games. Udoka said the C’s reached out to Stauskas because they need more shooting.
Stauskas has a chance to see playing time as a floor spacer for the rest of the season, adds Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe. Many fans were hoping Isaiah Thomas could be brought back to fill the roster opening, but Thomas has signed with the Hornets and Himmelsbach doesn’t think he would have been a good fit because of his defensive liabilities. He suggests that signing Thomas would have been a distraction and could have ultimately harmed his reputation in Boston.
There’s more on the Celtics:
- When Nets forward Kevin Durant became the all-time leading scorer for Team USA at the Summer Olympics, he speculated that Jayson Tatum may someday break that record, Chris Forsberg of NBC Sports Boston recalls in a preview of today’s matchup between the two stars. Forsberg notes that Durant made a strong impression on Tatum during their time as international teammates. “It means a lot [to hear Durant’s praise]. I mean he’s definitely somebody I looked up to growing up,” Tatum said. “Getting to have that matchup with him during the playoffs and then being his teammate and having conversation with him overseas, is something I will always remember.”
- The Spurs‘ decision to trade Derrick White last month took him completely by surprise, per Souichi Terada of MassLive. White has turned out to be a perfect fit for the defensive-minded Celtics, but he expected to spend more time in San Antonio. “He was sad, it’s hard to say goodbye to some of those guys you’ve had good relationships with,” said Alex Welsh, White’s friend and former college teammate. “But then he was pumped. We got him all fired up. It was a great day for him in Boston to be able to play that next day. But it was a total shock.”
- Jaylen Brown has been cleared to play today after missing time with a sprained right ankle, but Aaron Nesmith‘s ankle sprain will keep him out for a while, tweets Jared Weiss of The Athletic.