Hoops Rumors Chat Transcript: 5/26/2022
The transcript for our weekly live Thursday chat can be found here.
Please join us again next Thursday for another live chat.
Khem Birch Undergoes Arthroscopic Surgery On Knee
Raptors center Khem Birch underwent arthroscopic surgery on his right knee on Wednesday in Los Angeles, the team announced today in a press release. The procedure took place at the Cedars-Sinai Kerlan-Jobe Institute, a day after Zach LaVine underwent a similar procedure there.
According to the Raptors, the surgery cleaned up “loose debris” in Birch’s knee. The expectation is that he’ll be ready to go for the start of training camp in September.
After joining the Raptors on the buyout market during the second half of the 2020/21 season, Birch signed a new three-year, $20MM contract with the club last offseason. Hampered by his troublesome right knee and other injuries in ’21/22, the 29-year-old appeared in just 55 games, starting 28 of them. He averaged 4.5 PPG and 4.3 RPG with a career-worst .485 FG% in 18.0 minutes per contest.
Still, Birch’s deal is fully guaranteed for all three years, so barring a trade, he’ll be back in Toronto next season. It’s unclear whether he’ll have an opportunity to reenter the starting lineup, however, given the emergence of young big man Precious Achiuwa, as well as the Raptors’ willingness to start three forwards – Pascal Siakam, OG Anunoby, and Scottie Barnes – in lieu of a center.
Southeast Notes: Hawks, Lowry, Strus, Wizards, Magic
By earning a spot on the All-NBA Third Team this week, Hawks guard Trae Young ensured that his five-year, maximum-salary rookie scale extension will start at 30% of the 2022/23 cap rather than 25%, as we outlined on Tuesday. Based on the current maximum-salary projections, that means Atlanta’s projected team salary for next season will increase by $6.1MM.
As Chris Kirschner of The Athletic writes, Young’s salary bump means Atlanta is more likely to be over the luxury-tax line in 2022/23 and perhaps less likely to bring back Danilo Gallinari, whose $21.45MM salary is only partially guaranteed for $5MM. According to ESPN’s Bobby Marks (Twitter link), the Hawks currently project to be about $7.8MM over the tax line, so they could, at least temporarily, get out of tax territory by waiving Gallinari and saving that $16MM+.
Young’s more lucrative contract may place a few more constraints on the Hawks over the next five years as they attempt to build a championship-caliber roster around him. However, as Kirschner observes, the team will at least no longer have to worry about Young being disgruntled as a result of missing out on an All-NBA spot and an extra $35MM.
Here’s more from around the Southeast:
- With Kyle Lowry still clearly being affected by the left hamstring injury that has forced him to miss eight playoff games, Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun Sentinel and Joe Vardon of The Athletic believe the Heat have to seriously consider whether or not Lowry should start – or even play – in a do-or-die Game 6. Vardon says the team should probably bench both Lowry and Max Strus, who are a combined 1-of-28 from the floor in the last two games.
- Josh Robbins and John Hollinger of The Athletic take a look at the Wizards‘ future, discussing whether a full-fledged rebuild or building around Bradley Beal would be a better course of action for the franchise. Hollinger wonders if the team missed an opportunity to get a Jrue Holiday-esque haul (or better) for Beal by not moving him a year or two ago, but believes that the best course of action at this point would be to re-sign the All-Star guard, since he could always be traded later.
- Khobi Price of The Orlando Sentinel explores what the Magic‘s starting five may look like next season, depending on whether the team drafts Jabari Smith or Chet Holmgren. In Price’s view, floor-spacing issues mean that Cole Anthony may be a better fit alongside Holmgren, while Jalen Suggs could make more sense alongside Smith.
2022 NBA Offseason Preview: New York Knicks
The Knicks were one of the most pleasant surprises of the 2020/21 NBA season, outperforming expectations by finishing 10 games above .500 and returning to the playoffs for the first time since 2013. Instead of building on that progress in ’21/22, however, the team took a step backward, falling eight games below .500 and missing the playoffs and the play-in tournament entirely.
There were a variety of reasons for the Knicks’ letdown of a season. Regression affected certain players, including Julius Randle, who came back to earth after earning a spot on the All-NBA Second Team and a Most Improved Player award a year ago. Injuries were an issue, with point guard Derrick Rose limited to just 26 appearances. And New York’s offseason personnel changes didn’t pay dividends. Kemba Walker, in particular, was a bust — knee issues continued to diminish his effectiveness, and his offensive production was no longer good enough to make up for his subpar defense.
The Knicks built a reputation as a hard-nosed defensive team under Tom Thibodeau in 2020/21, placing fourth in the NBA in defensive rating, but didn’t look like that same club in the first half of last season. The good news? New York had the NBA’s best defensive rating after the 2022 All-Star break. The team will try to carry over that success to the fall, though it’s safe to assume next season’s roster will look a little different than the one that finished 2021/22.
The Knicks’ Offseason Plan:
The Knicks’ offseason intentions are difficult to ascertain, and not just because president of basketball operations Leon Rose has zero interest in ever speaking to the media. The team doesn’t project to have any cap room, but it also has very few long-term veteran contracts on its books and has an excess of future draft picks, so there’s some flexibility to make significant changes this summer if the front office wants to take that path.
Rose, Walker, Alec Burks, and Nerlens Noel will earn a combined $43MM in 2022/23, but all four are on either expiring contracts or de facto expiring deals that include a 2023/24 team option, making them intriguing trade chips, either in the offseason or at next year’s trade deadline.
Even the team’s two most expensive veterans, who are on longer-term deals, are potential trade candidates. Randle and Evan Fournier will be more difficult to move since they’re pricier and aren’t coming off their best seasons, which will make it challenging to agree on fair value. But it’s safe to assume the Knicks would listen on either one if they receive inquiries from potential trade partners.
While no player on the Knicks’ roster should be considered a mortal lock to return, RJ Barrett is pretty close. The former No. 3 overall pick struggled to maintain his level of scoring efficiency in 2021/22 as his usage rate continued to increase, but he has shown enough upside to be viewed as a long-term cornerstone in New York.
Barrett will be eligible for a rookie scale extension this offseason and it will be interesting to see how the Knicks approach those negotiations. If the 21-year-old isn’t willing to sign for anything less than the maximum salary, the club is probably better off waiting another year to further assess whether he’s worthy of that kind of financial commitment.
Besides Barrett, the Knicks will probably be inclined to hang onto most of the rest of their 24-and-under group, including Obi Toppin, Immanuel Quickley, Quentin Grimes, Miles McBride, and Cam Reddish. Perhaps one or two of them could be used to sweeten a trade package for an impact player, but if that sort of deal isn’t available, the team will want to continue evaluating its youngsters to determine which ones are keepers.
Reddish, like Barrett, is extension-eligible this offseason, but the Knicks haven’t seen enough from him yet to guarantee him anything long-term.
As the Knicks consider potential trades or free agent signings, adding a starting point guard remains a top priority. Jalen Brunson has been repeatedly linked to New York for months, and his connections to the franchise (via Rose and his father Rick Brunson) have been well documented, but it won’t be easy to pry him away from the Mavericks, who have repeatedly conveyed a desire to keep him.
Since they won’t have any cap room, the Knicks would either have to shed a couple contracts via trade to create the cap room necessary to make a serious offer for Brunson, or negotiate a sign-and-trade deal with a Dallas team that won’t be eager to help them out.
Neither one of those scenarios is out of the question, especially since Brunson will be unrestricted — if he wants to go to New York, he can make it happen. But the Knicks may be wary about giving up assets (in a sign-and-trade or in salary-dump trades) in order to give an undersized point guard upwards of $20-25MM per year. They weren’t interested in seriously pursuing a similar player (Fred VanVleet) at a similar rate a year ago when they had cap room available, so we’ll see if they make a real push for Brunson or look elsewhere for point guard help.
Trades may be the focus of the offseason for the Knicks, since 13 of their 15 standard-roster players remain under contracts, but there’s one key free agent to watch: big man Mitchell Robinson.
Like Brunson, Robinson signed a four-year contract as a second-round pick and will be an unrestricted free agent this summer, having never had to deal with restricted free agency. That will reduce the Knicks’ leverage and allow Robinson to sign outright with a new team without giving his current team a chance to match. It wouldn’t surprise me if he departs, given that he didn’t always seem thrilled about his role in New York — that could open the door for a new team to sell the young center on its vision for him.
Salary Cap Situation
Note: Our salary cap figures are based on the league’s latest projection ($122MM) for 2022/23.
Guaranteed Salary
- Julius Randle ($23,760,000)
- Evan Fournier ($18,000,000)
- Derrick Rose ($14,520,730)
- RJ Barrett ($10,900,635)
- Alec Burks ($10,012,800)
- Nerlens Noel ($9,240,000)
- Kemba Walker ($9,165,471)
- Cam Reddish ($5,954,454)
- Obi Toppin ($5,348,280)
- Immanuel Quickley ($2,316,240)
- Quentin Grimes ($2,277,000)
- Miles McBride ($1,563,518)
- Feron Hunt (two-way)
- Jericho Sims (two-way)
- Total: $113,059,128
Player Options
- None
Team Options
- None
Non-Guaranteed Salary
- Taj Gibson ($5,155,500)
- Total: $5,155,500
Restricted Free Agents
- None
Two-Way Free Agents
- None
Draft Picks
- No. 11 overall pick ($4,508,640)
- No. 42 overall pick (no cap hold)
- Total: $4,508,640
Extension-Eligible Players
Note: These are players who are either already eligible for an extension or will become eligible before the 2022/23 season begins.
- RJ Barrett (rookie scale)
- Cam Reddish (rookie scale)
Unrestricted Free Agents / Other Cap Holds
- Mitchell Robinson ($1,811,516 cap hold): Bird rights
- Ryan Arcidiacono ($1,811,516 cap hold): Non-Bird rights
- Total: $3,623,032
Offseason Cap Outlook
The Knicks currently project to operate over the cap. Their guaranteed salary and the cap hold for their first-round pick total approximately $118MM, so the mid-level and bi-annual exceptions would push team salary well past the projected $122MM cap.
The Knicks remain far below the projected luxury tax line ($149MM), so they should have the flexibility to re-sign Robinson and use the full mid-level exception, if they so choose. Theoretically, New York could even clear a little cap space by moving a mid-sized salary or two, but to take that route, the team would probably need to have a specific free target in mind and be very confident about its chances to secure that target.
Cap Exceptions Available
- Mid-level exception: $10,349,000 1
- Bi-annual exception: $4,050,000 1
- Trade exception: $1,175,818
Footnotes
- These are projected values. If the Knicks decide to go under the cap and use cap room, they’ll forfeit these exceptions (and their trade exception) and instead gain access to the room exception ($5,329,000).
Salary and cap information from Basketball Insiders and RealGM was used in the creation of this post.
Jalen Harris Signs With CEBL Team, Will Apply For NBA Reinstatement
Former NBA second-round pick Jalen Harris signed this week with the Scarborough Shooting Stars of the Canadian Elite Basketball League, the team announced in a press release.
The Shooting Stars, an expansion team in the CEBL, will begin their season on Thursday night and play 20 games over the course of the season, which wraps up with the playoffs in August. Harris is one of a handful of notable signings made by the Scarborough club, which also added rapper J. Cole and shooting guard Xavier Rathan-Mayes, who appeared in five NBA games for the Grizzlies in 2018.
Since the CEBL schedule doesn’t overlap with the NBA season, Harris would still have an opportunity to go to training camp with an NBA team this fall, but he’ll need to be reinstated to the league first. The former Nevada guard, who will turn 24 in August, was dismissed and disqualified from the NBA last year after violating the terms of the league’s anti-drug program.
Harris intends to apply for reinstatement once he’s eligible to do so on July 1, he said during an appearance this morning on Sportsnet 590 The Fan in Toronto (Twitter link via Blake Murphy). He believes that application will be approved based on the treatment and aftercare he has undergone, as prescribed by the league.
The 59th overall pick in 2020, Harris spent his first professional season on a two-way contract with the Raptors, then signed with Vanoli Cremona in Italy for the 2021/22 campaign following his suspension from the NBA.
He averaged 7.4 PPG on .500/.472/.778 shooting in 13 NBA games (13.2 MPG) and put up 17.6 PPG on .457/.500/.667 shooting in seven NBAGL contests (29.4 MPG) as a rookie in ’20/21. In 18 games in Italy, he led Vanoli Cremona with 13.8 PPG, but his shooting percentages dipped to .385/.295/.700.
Latest On Lakers’ Coaching Search
Former Trail Blazers head coach Terry Stotts became the first of the three reported finalists to have an in-person interview for the Lakers‘ coaching vacancy, writes Dan Woike of The Los Angeles Times.
Stotts, who coached 10 years in Portland before parting ways with the organization last offseason, is only interested in the head coaching role, sources tell Woike. He informed Lakers management that he doesn’t want to join the team as a lead assistant if he’s not hired as the head coach. Stotts turned down an opportunity to take a lead assistant’s role under former head coach Frank Vogel last season, Woike adds.
There had been rumors that L.A. would consider making Stotts an assistant if it hires Ham, who would be a first-time head coach, tweets Jake Fischer of Bleacher Report.
Among the reasons Vogel was fired was a disappointing season for Russell Westbrook, whom the Lakers expected to form a Big Three with LeBron James and Anthony Davis when they acquired him in a major trade last summer. Stotts is intrigued by Westbrook’s talents and believes he can help him find a more comfortable role than he had this season, according to Mark Medina of NBA.com (Twitter link).
Bucks assistant Darvin Ham and Warriors assistant Kenny Atkinson are expected to meet with the Lakers soon. Scheduling an in-person interview with Atkinson is complicated because Golden State is in the Western Conference Finals.
Stotts, Ham and Atkinson are the only finalists that have been reported for the position, although a source told Marc Stein this week that the Lakers may still be considering other candidates. Sixers coach Doc Rivers and Jazz coach Quin Snyder have been mentioned as possibilities if they were to become available, but there has been no indication that’ll happen.
In a separate L.A. Times story, Woike and Broderick Turner review the qualifications for Stotts, Ham and Atkinson and examine the arguments for and against hiring each of them.
Northwest Notes: Mitchell, Gobert, Thunder, Branch, Timberwolves
Eric Walden and Andy Larsen of the Salt Lake Tribune wonder what Jazz general manager Justin Zanik might be able to get for All-Stars Donovan Mitchell or Rudy Gobert on the trade market, should the team opt to break up its playoff core during the offseason
Walden and Larsen note that the Jazz own one of the NBA’s priciest rosters. The club lacks a pick in the 2022 draft, through which it could have theoretically added complementary young talent under team control. Utah has yet to get beyond the second round of the playoffs with its Mitchell-Gobert core.
The authors also express skepticism that offloading the contracts of expensive starters Mike Conley, Bojan Bogdanovic, and Royce O’Neale, or sixth man Jordan Clarkson would result in any sort of meaningful return. This leaves the pathway to improve the team without offloading Mitchell or Gobert fairly narrow.
There’s more out of the Northwest Division:
- The Thunder are likely looking at a variety of players with the No. 12 pick near the end of the 2022 draft lottery, writes Joe Mussatto of the Oklahoman. Mussatto previews the fits of several young prospects, including G League Ignite guard Dyson Daniels, Baylor forward Jeremy Sochan, and Memphis center Jalen Duren, among others.
- The Trail Blazers are reshaping their front office under new permanent general manager Joe Cronin during the offseason. Jason Quick of The Athletic (Twitter link) reports that assistant GM Bill Branch, who had been in Portland since 2010, has been let go by the team. This latest move continues a brain trust overhaul that began in December 2021.
- Tulsa forward Jeriah Horne, St. John’s wing Julian Champagnie and Alabama guard JD Davison are among the NBA hopefuls who have been brought in to work out for the Timberwolves as Minnesota prepares for the 2022 draft, per Darren Wolfson of 5 Eyewitness News (Twitter video links). The Timberwolves possess the Nos. 19, 40, 48, and 50 picks this year.
Heat Notes: Oladipo, Robinson, Haslem, Celtics Series
Heat guard Victor Oladipo is slowly starting to regain his offensive form ahead of unrestricted free agency this summer after missing most of the season while recovering from a second surgery to repair his right quadriceps tendon last May. The 30-year-old said he plans to fine-tune his game with a healthy offseason.
“I really haven’t had a summer healthy to really work on my game,” he said, per Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald. “This summer I’m looking forward to fine-tuning all the stuff I’m great at, which includes [three-pointers, pull-ups, drives to the basket] and more. Transition, half-court, all the stuff that was second nature to me.”
After averaging 12.4 points, 2.9 rebounds and 3.5 assists on .479/.417/.737 shooting in eight regular season games (21.6 minutes), Oladipo is averaging 11.5 points, 3 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.3 steals on .387/.313/.787 shooting through 12 postseason contests (24.8 minutes). He’s provided impressive defense to the Heat in the playoffs, but acknowledges he’s still trying to find his rhythm on the other end of the court.
“Definitely [offensively], especially because I didn’t have had an opportunity to find my rhythm,” Oladipo said last week. “I can still be effective, find ways to affect the game. Even offensively, it’s more of a mind-set thing. I haven’t played a lot. I don’t have as much reps as everyone else but I can still play at a high level.”
As Jackson notes, the Heat hold Oladipo’s Bird Rights this summer, giving them the ability to go over the salary cap to re-sign him.
Here are a few more notes on Miami:
- Duncan Robinson‘s five-year, $90MM contract with the Heat is only guaranteed for $80MM, and the $10MM discrepancy is tied to both the team’s and his own postseason performance, according to Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun Sentinel. If the Heat win a championship in any of his five seasons, including this one, the final $10MM in the fifth season of his contract will be guaranteed if the following criteria are met: Robinson plays at least 70 regular season games while averaging at least 25 minutes per night, and he appears in 75 percent of his team’s postseason games while averaging at least 25 minutes per contest. As Winderman observes, Robinson has met both of the regular season criteria, but is falling short in the playoffs. He’s appeared in 11 of 15 postseason games (73.33%) while averaging just 11.5 minutes.
- Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports takes an inside look at what Udonis Haslem does behind the scenes to help the Heat win games, with the veteran emphasizing preparation as a key to success. “If they’re not prepared, I’m taking my notes on what we need to work on. For me, this is full-time job, bro. No days off. Even when it’s summer time, I’ll just take a week off and then I’m right back in the lab, in the weight room, in the gym, conditioning. My body has to stay right. That’s the most important thing for me is that my body has allowed me to be able to keep up with these guys,” Haslem said.
- Joe Vardon of The Athletic shares 25 thoughts heading into Wednesday’s Game 5 against the Celtics, noting that health has played a major factor in the series to this point, and the Heat need a more aggressive version of Jimmy Butler and more contributions from Gabe Vincent and Max Strus if they hope to advance. In case you missed it, Miami will be without Tyler Herro again for Game 5, as he continues to deal with a strained left groin.
Herro Out For Game 5; Smart, R. Williams Active
Heat guard Tyler Herro (left groin strain) will miss Wednesday’s Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Finals against Boston, tweets Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald.
Miami head coach Erik Spoelstra said Herro was itching to return to action after missing Game 4’s 102-82 blowout loss, but the team’s training staff thought it would be irresponsible to let him play, so he was held out (Twitter link via Jackson). The groin injury isn’t considered to be a long-term concern, but obviously the Heat are being cautious with their Sixth Man of the Year winner after seeing Kyle Lowry re-injure his hamstring against Philadelphia.
The Celtics will have their full starting lineup intact for the first time this series, as both Marcus Smart (sprained right ankle) and Robert Williams (knee soreness) will be active tonight, per Jared Weiss of The Athletic (Twitter link). Smart missed Game 4 with the injury, while Williams missed Game 3.
Boston head coach Ime Udoka said the Defensive Player of the Year isn’t 100 percent healthy, but his mobility is “good enough” to play through the pain.
“He (Smart) has enough movement where he’s not restricted in certain areas like a few days ago,” Udoka said.
As for Williams, Udoka said he won’t have any type of minutes restriction, but added that the team is hopeful to reduce his minutes if possible (Twitter links via Weiss).
All three players had previously been listed as questionable for Wednesday’s crucial Game 5. The series is currently tied at two games apiece.
Miami holds home-court advantage and would host a potential Game 7 if it gets that far, but Boston has looked like the slightly better team through four games, posting a +7.7 net rating. In our poll earlier today, a bit more than 72 percent of our readers predicted the Celtics to advance to the NBA Finals.
With Herro sidelined, Victor Oladipo, who has emerged as a regular part of the Heat’s rotation since midway through the first-round series vs. Atlanta, figures to once again play significant minutes. Oladipo contributed 23 points, four rebounds and six assists in Game 4, but unfortunately for Miami, he outscored the entire starting lineup (23 to 18). The Heat will need a much more balanced effort to take Game 5 and the lead in the series.
Eastern Notes: Cavs, Draft, Simmons, Knicks, Ivey
The Cavaliers control three picks in next month’s draft — besides the No. 14 selection, the team also has No. 39 and No. 56. However, the odds of Cleveland drafting three rookies for the 2022/23 roster are low, says Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com (subscriber-only link).
Multiple sources have told Fedor that the Cavaliers using the No. 39 pick on a player who will make next season’s team is a “50-50 proposition.” As for No. 56, Fedor suggests that pick is “highly likely” to be used on a prospect who could be stashed internationally with an eye toward the future.
If the Cavaliers don’t have a specific player they like at No. 39 or No. 56, it sounds like at least one of those picks for a future second-rounder or two will be a viable option. In that scenario, Cleveland would gain at least one extra pick that could be used as a sweetener in a future trade or to eventually draft a player when the roster has more openings and is in greater need of an injection of young talent.
Here’s more from around the East:
- In a separate article for Cleveland.com, Fedor attempts determine which prospects the Cavaliers are most likely to target at No. 14. Fedor stresses that the Cavs are still doing their due diligence and that it’s impossible to know exactly who will be available at the end of the lottery, but identifies Ohio State’s Malaki Branham and LSU’s Tari Eason as two players to watch, adding that Kansas’ Ochai Agbaji would also be a logical fit.
- Nets guard Ben Simmons is “progressing well” in his rehab from back surgery and is “in great spirits,” a source tells Brian Lewis of The New York Post (Twitter link). It’s a somewhat generic update, but it’s still good news for the Nets that Simmons remains on track for training camp, given the injury setbacks he experienced this spring.
- The Knicks are doing their homework on Purdue’s Jaden Ivey, having used one of their allotted 20 interviews on him at last week’s draft combine, writes Marc Berman of The New York Post. While Berman suggests the meeting is a sign that New York has at least explored the idea of trading up from No. 11, he acknowledges that it’s not unusual for the Knicks to do their due diligence on players projected to be drafted outside of their range, if only to gather information for the future.