Atlantic Notes: Alvarado, Clarkson, Celtics, Nets, Barnes
Jose Alvarado‘s first game with the Knicks came in Boston rather than at Madison Square Garden, but the New York City native said that representing his hometown team felt “like it was meant to be,” according to Steve Popper of Newsday (subscription required).
“This is a blessing,” Alvarado said. “I’m from here. My family never left the city. To be in that atmosphere, I mean, they’ve been Knicks fans since before me. To be with a team that’s trying to contend for something and me be a part of it is pretty special. … To be part of the city, it’s just a surreal feeling.”
After being traded from New Orleans to New York on Thursday, Alvarado played 25 minutes on his Sunday in his Knicks debut, a 111-89 win over Boston.
The newest Knick immediately supplanted Jordan Clarkson in the team’s backcourt rotation — even with Miles McBride on the shelf following surgery for a sports hernia, Clarkson logged just eight minutes. The veteran guard, who has had four DNP-CDs in the past two-plus weeks, said that besides getting accustomed to inconsistent playing time, he’s also had to fit into a new role.
“Offensively and defensively,” Clarkson told Stefan Bondy of The New York Post (subscription required). “They’re asking me to do things defensively as well. And then offensively, I got to figure it out and make stuff out of what comes in the offense in terms of opportunities. It’s not like I’m featured in the offense or anything. I’m playing hard, I’m crashing the glass, figuring out different things — little things to be effective on that end. So it’s a whole new thing for me. But I’ll continue to be a pro and stay in the gym and working on my craft and keep it going.”
We have more from across the Atlantic:
- Jaylen Brown acknowledged after Sunday’s blowout loss to New York that there will be an adjustment period for the Celtics while they get used to their new-look roster, per Jay King of The Athletic. New center Nikola Vucevic had 11 points and six rebounds off the bench against the Knicks, but the team was outscored by 24 points in his 23 minutes on the court. “We got to figure out the chemistry a little bit, the flow a little bit,” Brown said. “We want Vuc to be a little bit more aggressive, looking for him to get going and make him feel confident in taking those shots and where he can catch the ball. I think he’s still learning, but we need him to be aggressive. So we’ll make adjustments, we’ll communicate, we’ll watch film, and we’ll be better for it.”
- The trades that sent Josh Minott and Ochai Agbaji to Brooklyn were essentially salary dumps for Boston and Toronto, respectively. However, as Brian Lewis of The New York Post writes, the Nets will give both Minott and Agbaji an opportunity to earn spots in their rotation — and maybe even spots in the club’s plans beyond this season. “We know they’re very good players. That’s why they’re here,” head coach Jordi Fernandez said. “Show me what you can bring to the group, and if you can be part of this group, you can be a future Net.”
- Scottie Barnes is headed to his second All-Star game this season, but Raptors head coach Darko Rajakovic sees an even higher ceiling for the star forward. “Scottie is Defensive Player of the Year. He’s an All-Star. He’s gonna be a Finals MVP. He’s going to be an MVP one day,” Rajakovic said after Barnes racked up 25 points, 14 rebounds, six assists, and four blocks in Sunday’s win over Indiana (Twitter link via Blake Murphy of Sportsnet.ca). “Write down the date I said that.”
Southeast Notes: White, Powell, Wagner Bros., J. Carter
After initially agreeing to give up three second-round picks in their trade for Coby White, the Hornets amended the terms of the deal to remove one of those selections when the guard’s physical showed a left calf injury. However, that calf issue didn’t diminish the team’s enthusiasm for its acquisition of the North Carolina native, writes Rod Boone of The Charlotte Observer.
“As soon as I touched down, I felt wanted,” White told Boone. “I called my family, and I’m like, ‘Everybody here is just super-welcoming and super-nice. And they keep talking about long term, long term, long term.’ And just hearing that somewhere where you’re valued for a long term, especially being back home, it means a lot.”
White is on an expiring contract and will be eligible for unrestricted free agency this summer, so there’s no guarantee the Hornets will be able to re-sign him. But president of basketball operations Jeff Peterson made it clear that’s the plan, as Boone relays.
“Just being able to acquire Coby and being able to acquire his Bird rights is very, very important for us in terms of how we’re operating and how we are building it out,” Peterson said. “So, as I said earlier, he fits everything that we want to be about and hope that he’s a Hornet for a very long time.”
Head coach Charles Lee is also excited about adding White to the roster, breaking into a smile when he was asked about the team’s newest guard on Saturday (Twitter video link via Boone).
“Spend a minute with him, you can already feel a sense of maturity, a sense of eagerness to want to play and build relationships, a competitiveness to him,” Lee said. “He’s super engaged in everything we do. A great human being. … I think he’s already trying to put his fingerprint – or put his stamp – on our environment and on our culture.”
We have more from around the Southeast:
- Heat swingman Norman Powell was initially listed as questionable for Sunday’s game in Washington due to a right hand sprain, then left the blowout victory in the third quarter due to lower back tightness. However, with a busy All-Star weekend on tap in a few days (in addition to being named a first-time All-Star, the 32-year-old will also take part in the three-point contest), Powell didn’t sound concerned about either health issue. “I think a lot to do with being stuck on the plane for a lot of hours,” Powell said of his back tightness, according to Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald. “And then soft beds at the hotel. We tried to make an adjustment. But they didn’t have what we needed to have, a little firmer mattress there. I always get a little back flare-up when I’m sleeping on soft mattresses.”
- Magic forward Franz Wagner, who has missed nine consecutive games – and 25 of the past 27 – due to a left ankle injury, has been upgraded to questionable for Monday’s game vs. Milwaukee and hopes to play before the All-Star break, writes Jason Beede of The Orlando Sentinel (subscription required). If Wagner isn’t activated on Monday, his last pre-All-Star opportunity to return would be on Wednesday in a rematch against the Bucks.
- Franz’s brother Moritz Wagner has played in 11 of the Magic‘s 12 games since returning from an ACL tear last month, but he admitted this week that his recovery process hasn’t been “linear” and that he’s still trying to get back to feeling 100%. “My days are full, my recovery protocol is huge, (and) my confidence is still not at a point where it used to be,” Moritz said (Twitter video link via Beede). “This injury is heavy, man. It’s a really long process and it takes a long time, so I have a lot of respect for that.”
- After being waived by Chicago at the start of trade deadline week, Jevon Carter was informed that the Magic were “very interested” in signing him. That made it an easy decision for him to sign with Orlando, Beede writes for The Orlando Sentinel (subscription required). “It was kind of a like a no-brainer for me,” Carter said. “They wanted me. I like to go where I’m wanted. Talking to (Magic president of basketball operations) Jeff (Weltman), he still remembered my pre-draft work out that I did here back in 2018. So, he was excited to have me, and I’m excited to be here.”
Cam Thomas Signs With Bucks
9:20 pm: Thomas has officially signed with the Bucks, per a press release from the team.
4:37 pm: Thomas confirmed his decision to sign with the Bucks in a statement to Spears (Twitter link).
“I picked Milwaukee because they wanted me and they told me they’ve been interested for years now,” Thomas said. “So, it’s good to have this opportunity come to fruition. And I’m just hoping to meet everybody, get to know everybody and contribute as soon as possible.”
Thomas’ contract with Milwaukee will cover the remainder of the season, reports Eric Nehm of The Athletic.
4:02 pm: Free agent guard Cam Thomas has reached a contract agreement with the Bucks, agent Tony Ronzone tells Shams Charania of ESPN (Twitter link).
Thomas was waived by the Nets on Thursday evening after he wasn’t traded prior to the deadline. He was hoping he would be released if he wasn’t included in a deal so he could pick his next team.
“Super excited ready to actually help and contribute to another team,” Thomas told Marc J. Spears of Andscape. “My next team is getting elite scoring, good play-making and a good combo guard.”
Michael Scotto of HoopsHype linked Thomas to the Bucks multiple times leading up to the deadline. The Cavaliers also expressed trade interest in Thomas, according to Scotto, who reports (via Twitter) that the deal would have included Lonzo Ball and second-round draft compensation. The Cavs instead traded a pair of second-rounders to Utah take on Ball’s $10MM salary.
Thomas, 24, led the Nets in scoring during the 2023/24 and 2024/25 seasons. However, he was limited to just 25 games last season due to a left hamstring injury, which he strained again in early November. He wound up missing 20 consecutive games as a result of that injury.
Although Thomas is an undeniably talented scorer, he isn’t the most efficient offensive player, and his game isn’t very well-rounded. In 24 games this season, he has averaged 15.6 points, 3.1 assists and 1.8 rebounds on .399/.325/.843 shooting splits.
Milwaukee has an opening on its 15-man standard roster and won’t have to waive anyone to add Thomas. The Bucks also have an open two-way spot.
Mavs Notes: Flagg, Middleton, Jones, Bagley
As the consensus No. 1 overall prospect in the 2025 draft, Cooper Flagg appeared likely to become the new face of a franchise for a rebuilding team. Instead, after the Mavericks lucked into the top pick on lottery night, he joined a club that already featured a pair of veteran stars – Anthony Davis and Kyrie Irving – and hoped to make it back to the playoffs right away.
Less than a year later though, with the Mavericks holding a 19-33 record, Irving still not back from a torn ACL, and Davis having been sent to Washington at this week’s trade deadline, Dallas has become exactly the kind of rebuilding club that Flagg seemingly avoided last June.
In trading Davis to the Wizards, the Mavs are handing the former Duke star the keys to the franchise and placing a new level of responsibility on his shoulders, writes Mike Curtis of The Dallas Morning News (subscription required). For his part, Flagg seems unfazed by the change in plans.
“Honestly, it doesn’t really change much,” he said on Saturday. “I’m just gonna go out there every night and try to be consistent and try to be the best version of myself. Whatever that looks like, whoever is out there with me, I hope we just compete at a very high level.”
After a slightly slow start in the fall, Flagg has ramped up his production over the course of his rookie year. The NBA’s youngest player has increased his season-long averages to 20.3 points, 6.6 rebounds, and 4.2 assists per game and is shooting 48.4% from the floor and 80.6% from the free throw line. His ability to quickly adjust to the NBA game gave the front office the confidence to move on from Davis and pivot to Flagg’s timeline.
“He’s such a special individual at just 19 years old,” interim co-GM Matt Riccardi said, per Curtis. “He carries himself at a mature age. Everything he does is just natural to him. He is genuinely that person and we’re lucky to have him and grateful that we get to build a roster around him.”
Here’s more on the Mavs:
- While there has been some speculation that veteran forward Khris Middleton could emerge as a buyout candidate after being traded from Washington to Dallas in the Davis blockbuster, there’s no indication that’s the plan in the short term. Middleton joined his new team in San Antonio on Saturday and is hoping to make his Mavs debut on Tuesday in Phoenix, tweets Christian Clark of The Athletic.
- Having traded three guards (D’Angelo Russell, Jaden Hardy, and the injured Dante Exum) to the Wizards along with Davis, Dallas tweaked the deal to make it a three-teamer that sent Tyus Jones from the Hornets to the Mavs. Head coach Jason Kidd said on Saturday he expects Jones to be “successful” with the Mavs, lauding the point guard for his “extremely high” basketball IQ (Twitter video link via Curtis). Jones had four points and seven assists and was a +18 in 17 minutes in his first game as a Maverick.
- Jones wasn’t the only new Mav who had a strong debut on Saturday in a losing effort in San Antonio. Big man Marvin Bagley III racked up 16 points, 12 rebounds, and four blocks in 24 minutes off the bench. According to Curtis, his eight offensive rebounds represented a franchise record for a Mavs debut. “I just tried to go out there and play my game and be myself,” Bagley said. “It was a lot of traveling the last couple of days, coming into Dallas yesterday, doing physicals and getting right on a plane to come (to San Antonio). But that’s a part of it. That’s a part of the job. I just tried to control what I could control and do my best to be myself.”
Thunder’s Jalen Williams To Return On Monday
Thunder forward Jalen Williams will return to action on Monday after missing the team’s past 10 games due to a right hamstring strain, writes Justin Martinez of The Oklahoman. Williams isn’t on Oklahoma City’s injury report for its game in Los Angeles against the Lakers.
It has been a stop-and-start season so far for Williams, who didn’t make his debut until November 28 after recovering from right wrist surgery. The 24-year-old appeared in the Thunder’s next 24 games before going down in Miami on January 17 with his latest injury.
In his 24 appearances, Williams has averaged 16.8 points, 5.6 assists, and 4.8 rebounds in 29.6 minutes per night, with a .470/.300/.833 shooting line. With a couple exceptions (his assists represent a career high), those numbers are down across the board from the ones he posted in his All-NBA campaign in 2024/25.
For most of ’25/26, Williams’ extended injury absences and his slight dip in production haven’t mattered for a deep Thunder team that won 24 of its first 25 games and still holds the NBA’s best record. However, the team has been struggling a little – at least by its lofty standards – as of late, with both Williams and reigning MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (abdominal strain) sidelined.
Oklahoma City lost back-to-back games this week to the Spurs and Rockets without Gilgeous-Alexander and has now dropped five of its last eight games. Williams will be looking to help the club turn things around heading into the All-Star break — after Monday’s matchup with the Lakers, OKC will wrap up its pre-All-Star schedule by visiting Phoenix on Wednesday and then hosting the Bucks on Thursday.
Injury Notes: Furphy, Zubac, Giannis, CMB, Luka, Thiero
Second-year Pacers wing Johnny Furphy may have suffered a significant right leg injury in Sunday’s loss at Toronto, tweets Scott Agness of Fieldhouse Files. Furphy landed awkwardly after converting a dunk and immediately went down in a great deal of pain while grabbing at his leg (YouTube link).
The 21-year-old was initially helped off the floor with assistance and then was taken to the tunnel in a wheelchair. Furphy was formally ruled out for the remainder of the game with what the team called right leg soreness (Twitter link).
“We’re not sure on Furphy’s situation. He’ll get testing tomorrow in New York and we’ll see where things are,” head coach Rick Carlisle said after the game (Twitter link via Tony East of Circle City Spin).
The 35th overall pick in the 2024 draft, Furphy has become a rotation mainstay in his second season, averaging 5.2 points and 4.4 rebounds on .466/.324/.486 shooting through 34 games, including 20 starts (18.5 minutes per contest).
We have more injury updates from around the NBA:
- Carlisle suggested on Friday that trade acquisition Ivica Zubac may not make his Pacers debut until after the All-Star break, writes Jamal Collier of ESPN. The former Clippers center is still dealing with the lingering effects of a Grade 2 ankle sprain he sustained in December and Carlisle said the team wants the injury fully heal. “It’s kind of yo-yo’d a little bit,” Carlisle said. “My understanding from talking to him is that there’s still something there that’s not quite right. We’re not going to put him out there until he’s really ready. … He’s a guy that has played 94 or 95 percent of his games through his career and I’m presuming that’s because he’s always raring to go through things. That’s not going to be an option here.”
- The Bucks have no plans to shut down Giannis Antetokounmpo for the rest of the season and the two-time MVP is close to returning from a right calf strain, head coach Doc Rivers said on Friday (story via Collier of ESPN). “He’s going to play when he’s healthy,” Rivers said. “We just got to make sure he’s healthy. He’s getting close. He’s working out. He looks good. So I would say hopefully sooner than later.”
- Raptors forward/center Collin Murray-Boyles exited Sunday’s game early after aggravating a left thumb injury, according to Blake Murphy of Sportsnet.ca (Twitter links). The rookie big man’s injured digit was hit during the game and he is considered day-to-day, Murphy adds.
- Lakers star Luka Doncic will miss his second straight game on Monday due to a left hamstring strain, tweets Dan Woike of The Athletic. There’s reportedly optimism that the soft-tissue injury isn’t serious. Adou Thiero, who has been out since the end of December because of sprained MCL, was assigned to the G League for a practice on Sunday, according to Dave McMenamin of ESPN, who reports (via Twitter) that the rookie forward went through a full contact stay-ready game last week.
Lakers Sign Kobe Bufkin To Two-Year Contract
February 8: Bufkin has officially re-signed with the Lakers, the team confirmed today (Twitter link via Brad Turner of The Los Angeles Times).
February 7: Free agent guard Kobe Bufkin will sign a two-year contract with the Lakers, sources tell Shams Charania of ESPN (Twitter link). The deal includes a team option for next seas0n.
Bufkin, 22, has been a standout with the organization’s G League affiliate in South Bay and spent time with the Lakers on a 10-day contract in January. He appeared in four games during that stint, averaging 3.0 PPG in 11 minutes per night.
He also signed a 10-day hardship contract with Memphis in late November, but didn’t see any game action.
Bufkin was selected by Atlanta with the 15th pick in the 2023 draft, but only appeared in 27 games over two years before being traded to Brooklyn in September. The Nets waived him before the start of the season, and he headed to the G League, where he’s averaging 27.7 points, 3.9 rebounds and 4.7 assists in 14 regular season games.
Bufkin will be the Lakers’ 15th standard contract once his signing is official. That means they would have to waive a player and eat some guaranteed money if they want to add anyone in the buyout market, notes Brett Siegel of ClutchPoints (Twitter link).
Wizards GM Expects Anthony Davis To Return This Season
NBA insider Chris Haynes recently reported that Anthony Davis, who was traded from Dallas to Washington last week, was expected miss the remainder of the 2025/26 campaign to recover from hand and groin injuries. Citing a league source, The Athletic confirmed that the Wizards big man was unlikely to play again this season.
However, general manager Will Dawkins said on Sunday that he anticipates Davis making his Wizards debut this season, though a return timeline won’t be established until the All-Star break (Twitter video link via Bijan Todd of Monumental Sports Network).
“The plan for AD right now is to go back to Dallas and finish his rehab,” Dawkins said. “He has a really good team down there. Our doctors met with them, and our medical staff’s going to go down with him. So we want to keep that good thing going that he has.
“During All-Star break, he takes another visit for a doctor. And that’s a big appointment for us to kind of see where his progress is at. And after that, after (the) All-Star break, he’ll return to D.C. and be here with the team.”
According to David Aldridge and Josh Robbins of The Athletic, Dawkins said the Wizards think Trae Young (another trade acquisition) and Davis will help the team be more competitive next season.
“AD is a special player, a special talent,” Dawkins said. “He, obviously, opens up so much on offense because he demands double teams. He can score in different areas. Defensively, he’s been an anchor, rebounder, rim protector when you have him at the four (and) Alex (Sarr) at the five, protecting the paint. (With) Bilal (Coulibaly), Kyshawn (George), Jamir (Watkins), some of our elite wing defenders out there, we want to be long, we want to be athletic, we want to be able to protect the paint better than we have.”
Dawkins also provided an injury update on Young, per Ian Nicholas Quillen of The Associated Press. The four-time All-Star, who has yet to play for the Wizards after dealing with a right knee sprain and quad contusion with the Hawks, will be reevaluated during the break.
“He’s still working on the court,” Dawkins said. “He started doing 1-on-0, he started doing a little bit of more 2-on-2 type actions. … He’s trending in a positive direction.”
Pistons To Promote Daniss Jenkins, Waive Dario Saric
5:35 pm: Jenkins will receive a two-year, $8MM contract, league sources tell Michael Scotto of HoopsHype (Twitter link). His salary will represent the largest single-season sum a two-way player has ever received on a conversion, Scotto notes.
4:53 pm: The Pistons are converting Daniss Jenkins from a two-way contract to a two-year standard deal using a portion of their bi-annual exception, reports Shams Charania of ESPN.
The second-year guard’s new contract will feature a team option for 2026/27, Charania adds.
To make room on their standard roster, the Pistons are expected to waive veteran forward/center Dario Saric, sources tell Brett Siegel of ClutchPoints (Twitter link). Hunter Patterson of The Athletic confirms Saric will be the odd man out (Twitter link).
Jenkins will now be eligible to play for the rest of the regular season and the playoffs. Two-way players are not playoff-eligible.
Pistons head of basketball operations Trajan Langdon said prior to Friday’s game that the team planned to promote Jenkins this weekend. Jenkins reached his 50-game active limit on Friday evening in the blowout victory over New York.
Jenkins reportedly turned down a two-year, minimum-salary contract offer near the end of January, which turned out to be the right call. The 24-year-old point guard recently told Omari Sankofa II of The Detroit Free Press that he was motivated by going undrafted out of St. John’s in 2024.
“If I’m being honest, and everybody knows I’m a very humble guy, but in college, most of these dudes that got drafted, what was the difference between me and them?” he said. “What? You tell me, what was the difference? For me, going undrafted is insanity to me, literally insanity, and that burns inside of me every single day.”
In 42 games this season (16.8 minutes per contest), Jenkins has averaged 8.2 points, 3.3 assists, 1.8 rebounds and 0.9 steals on .430/.391/.800 shooting. He has been Detroit’s primary backup behind Cade Cunningham for much of 2025/26.
The bi-annual exception, as its name suggests, is only available to teams once every two years. Detroit will not have access to the exception in ’26/27.
Saric is earning a guaranteed $5,426,400 this season, but most of that total was already paid by Sacramento, which traded him to Chicago on February 1. The Bulls sent him to the Pistons a couple days later in the deal that saw Kevin Huerter land in Detroit and Jaden Ivey in Chicago.
Saric, 31, only appeared in five games in 2025/26 after playing in 16 contests with Denver last season.
D’Angelo Russell Won’t Report To Wizards, May Be Bought Out
Veteran guard D’Angelo Russell is technically a member of the Wizards after being included in the Anthony Davis trade last week. However, it sounds as though his tenure with the team might end before it even begins.
General manager Will Dawkins said the front office has been in contact with Russell and his agents, but Russell won’t report to the team “as we try to figure out what’s best for him and us and our future,” per Henry J. Brown of SI (Twitter video link).
While he didn’t state it outright, Dawkins’ comments suggest the Wizards may either waive or reach a buyout agreement with Russell, who makes $5.7MM this season and holds a player option worth nearly $6MM for 2026/27.
On Sunday morning, Washington waived Dante Exum, another player included the trade. The injured guard will miss the rest of the season following December knee surgery. Exum was on a minimum-salary contract.
Russell was Dallas’ primary free agent addition last summer. The 29-year-old struggled to make an impact in 26 games (19.0 minutes per contest) with the Mavericks though, averaging 10.2 points, 4.0 assists and 2.3 rebounds on .405/.295/.717 shooting.
The No. 2 overall pick in the 2015 draft, Russell has suited up for the Lakers (two different stints), Nets (ditto), Warriors, Timberwolves and Mavs over the course of his 11 NBA seasons. The one-time All-Star holds career averages of 17.0 PPG, 5.6 APG, 3.3 RPG and 1.0 SPG on .427/.363/.793 shooting in 655 games (29.4 MPG).
Dawkins also discussed Jaden Hardy, the fourth former Mav who was sent to Washington. The fourth-year guard arrived in D.C. on Sunday and was inactive for today’s game. Hardy earns $6MM next season with a $6MM team option for ’27/28.
“Excited to have another young, scoring athlete in the mix with our young guys,” Dawkins said. “We’ll see him play a little bit towards the end of the season.”