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Draft Notes: Second-Round Mocks, Round-One Winners, Trades

June 26th, 2025 at 7:32am CST by Luke Adams

With round one of the 2025 NBA draft in the books, ESPN’s Jonathan Givony and Jeremy Woo look ahead to what to expect on day two on Thursday, sharing an updated 29-pick mock draft covering the second round.

ESPN’s duo is projecting the Timberwolves to kick off the evening by nabbing Saint Joseph’s forward Rasheer Fleming at No. 31, with Stanford big man Maxime Raynaud going to the Celtics at No. 32, and the Hornets drafting Creighton’s Ryan Kalkbrenner and French forward Noah Penda with their picks at No. 33 and No. 34.

Still, Givony and Woo acknowledge that we’ll likely see plenty of draft-pick movement on Thursday, potentially involving one or more of those first few selections — Givony singles out the Hornets as a team to watch, noting that the club already added a pair of rookies on Wednesday (Kon Knueppel and Liam McNeeley) and may not want to add two more to their roster at the start of the second round.

Addressing their favorite under-the-radar prospects to keep an eye on during the second round, Givony mentions Penda as an ideal draft-and-stash target for a playoff team drafting in the 30s, though the 20-year-old would likely prefer to come stateside right away. Woo, meanwhile, suggests Florida State wing Jamir Watkins could be a perfect win-now fit for a team in the 30s. ESPN’s mock has him going to the Pacers at No. 38.

Here’s more on the 2025 draft as we prepare for Thursday evening’s second round:

Sam Vecenie of The Athletic has also shared an updated mock draft for the second round that starts with Fleming to Minnesota and Raynaud to Boston. Vecenie has the Hornets nabbing Sion James and Kalkbrenner, with Penda going to the Nets at No. 36 and Watkins sliding to the Cavaliers at No. 49.
A panel of ESPN experts, including Givony and Woo, breaks down the biggest winners, most surprising moves, and best picks from day one of the draft. ESPN’s experts liked the Suns taking Khaman Maluach at No. 10, the Spurs getting Carter Bryant at No. 14, and the Heat nabbing Kasparas Jakucionis at No. 20, but questioned the Pelicans‘ decision to give up a valuable unprotected 2026 first-round pick to move up 10 spots to take Derik Queen at No. 13.
Kevin O’Connor of Yahoo Sports isn’t as high on the Jakucionis pick for the Heat, giving them a D+, his lowest grade for any of the top 30 picks. The Grizzlies, conversely, earned an A++ grade from O’Connor for moving up to snag Washington State’s Cedric Coward at No. 11.
The price paid by teams like the Pelicans, Grizzlies, and Jazz to move up a few spots outside of the top 10 on Wednesday was awfully high, observes John Hollinger of The Athletic. New Orleans and Memphis gave up unprotected future first-round picks to move up 10 and five spots, respectively, with the Grizzlies also surrendering two future second-rounders. The 2026 first-rounder sent from New Orleans to the Hawks is considered a “superfirst” because it’ll be the most favorable of New Orleans’ and Milwaukee’s picks — it’s very possible one of those picks will end up being a pretty high one, Hollinger notes. Utah, meanwhile, didn’t give up a future first, but had to part with three second-round picks to move up just three spots from No. 21 to No. 18.

Kings Rumors: Sabonis, PG Targets, Westbrook, Kuminga, LaVine

June 26th, 2025 at 12:14am CST by Luke Adams

The Kings are viewed as “open for business” this offseason and appear willing to discuss a wide variety of potential trade scenarios, according to Sam Amick of The Athletic.

However, while that stance suggests Sacramento wouldn’t immediately shut down inquiries on Domantas Sabonis, team and league sources tell Amick that the club has continued to “signal a commitment” to its star center.

As Amick explains, Sabonis was frustrated by how the De’Aaron Fox situation played out, but he hasn’t asked for a trade and has had positive conversations with new head of basketball operations Scott Perry about the Kings’ plans going forward.

Here’s more on the Kings:

Following up on comments he made during a radio appearance, Amick confirms the Kings had some interest in Jrue Holiday before Boston agreed to send him to Portland, but were concerned about his age and contract. Amick also notes that some of the team’s “power-brokers” were interested in pursuing Hawks guard Trae Young, but the Kings opted against it due to his offense-first style of play and his sizable contract.
Confirming that the Kings have serious interest in Dennis Schröder and are eyeing Tyus Jones, as has been previously reported, Amick says former MVP Russell Westbrook is among the other free agent point guards the front office is considering. Westbrook is on track for unrestricted free agency after declining his player option with Denver.
While Amick classifies it as a long shot, he says the Kings will be among the teams with interest in Warriors restricted free agent forward Jonathan Kuminga this summer. Miami and Chicago have previously been mentioned as possible suitors for Kuminga, who is hoping for an increased role whether he remains in Golden State or ends up elsewhere.
Zach LaVine will become extension-eligible this offseason, but Sacramento has no plans to make a new deal for LaVine a priority, league sources tell Amick. The former Bull has one guaranteed year worth $47.5MM left on his current contract, with a $49MM player option for 2026/27.

Hawks Select Asa Newell At No. 23

June 25th, 2025 at 9:52pm CST by Earnest Marshall

After trading down from No. 13 to No. 23, the Hawks have used their first-round pick to select Georgia big man Asa Newell.

According to Jake Fischer of The Stein Line (Twitter link), the Hawks considered Newell at No. 13 before making their deal with New Orleans. He has strong hometown ties to Atlanta; he was born there before playing collegiately at Georgia.

Newell averaged 15.4 points, 6.9 rebounds, 1.0 steal and 1.0 block in 29.0 minutes for contest on .543/.292/.748 shooting in 33 games for the Bulldogs. He helped Georgia advance to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2015.

Newell’s defensive versatility, athleticism, and compete level are considered assets, though he’s a bit undersized for a center (6’9″ with a 6’11” wingspan), so it remains to be seen whether he’ll see more time at the four or five at the NBA level.

Regardless of where he ends up spending time at the next level, Atlanta could use another depth big man. Larry Nance Jr. and Clint Capela are free agents, leaving the team without much frontcourt depth to complement Kristaps Porzingis and Onyeka Okongwu if Nance and Capela don’t return.

Pelicans Acquire No. 13 Pick From Hawks, Draft Derik Queen

June 25th, 2025 at 8:39pm CST by Luke Adams

10:31 pm: The trade is official, the Pelicans confirmed in a press release.

8:39 pm: The Pelicans and Hawks have agreed to a trade that will send the No. 13 overall pick from Atlanta to New Orleans in exchange for No. 23 overall and a 2026 first-round pick, reports ESPN’s Shams Charania (Twitter link). The 2026 first-rounder is unprotected and will be the most favorable of the Pelicans’ and Bucks’ picks.

The Pelicans are using that newly acquired pick to draft Maryland big man Derik Queen, per Charania (Twitter link).

Queen was highly productive in his freshman season with the Terrapins, averaging 16.5 points, 9.0 rebounds, 1.9 assists, 1.1 steals and 1.1 blocks in 30.4 minutes per contest across 36 total games. He helped guide Maryland to a 27-9 record and a spot in the Sweet 16, scoring 27 points in a loss to Florida.

While Queen is perhaps the most offensively gifted big man in the 2025 draft class, reports during the pre-draft process indicated some NBA evaluators had concerns about his lack of length and explosiveness, as well as some questions about what types of players he would guard on defense.

Still, he’s an intriguing addition for a New Orleans team that badly needs frontcourt depth to complement 2024 first-rounder Yves Missi and ranked last in the NBA in defensive rebounding percentage this post season, as ESPN’s Bobby Marks tweets.

Reporting earlier today from Jonathan Givony of ESPN suggested the Pelicans had their eye on Queen in part to new front office executive Troy Weaver, who has “long-standing connections” to Baltimore- and D.C.-area prospects, and whose son was a graduate assistant on Maryland’s coaching staff in 2024/25.

As for the Hawks, after agreeing to trade the No. 22 overall pick to Brooklyn in their three-team Kristaps Porzingis deal, they’ll now move down 10 spots from No. 13 and end up in that range once again. They’re using that No. 23 pick on Georgia forward/center Asa Newell.

Meanwhile, the 2026 first-rounder they’re acquiring from New Orleans could end up being a valuable one. The Bucks will be missing Damian Lillard as he recovers from a torn Achilles and Giannis Antetokounmpo‘s future in Milwaukee still isn’t a certainty, while the Pelicans are coming off a 21-win season. The most favorable of those two teams’ picks could easily land in the top half of the first round.

Hawks Notes: Young, Draft, Porzingis, Lineups

June 25th, 2025 at 6:21pm CST by Arthur Hill

Speaking with reporters Monday at a news conference, Hawks general manager Onsi Saleh dispelled any speculation that Trae Young might be on the trade market, according to Lauren Williams of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Saleh spoke highly of the four-time All-Star and indicated that he’ll remain in his role as the team’s on-court leader.

“We’re locked in with Trae. We talked last year (about) next season,” Saleh said. “We’re just locked in the next season, ready to move forward and be the best team that we could possibly be moving forward. And I think a lot of his leadership from last season went probably unnoticed to the common eye. Like the way that he helped develop our young guys and make them better was significant. So I mean just continuing on with that and hopefully just making our team better.”

Young posted typically great numbers in his seventh season with Atlanta, averaging 24.2 PPG in 76 games, claiming his first assists title with 11.6 per night and recording .411/.340./.875 shooting splits. He has one year left on his contract at almost $46MM, along with a nearly $49MM player option for 2026/27.

Saleh also said that ownership has given him permission to go into the luxury tax, which might be necessary if the Hawks use a significant portion of the $25MM+ traded player exception they generated in last summer’s Dejounte Murray deal.

There’s more from Atlanta:

The Hawks are parting with the 22nd pick in tonight’s draft as part of the Kristaps Porzingis trade, but Saleh is confident he can find help with the remaining selection at No. 13, Williams adds in the same piece. Saleh listed “competitiveness, toughness, resilience and adaptability” as the traits he looks for in prospects and said he concentrates more on finding the best player available than positional fit. “Ways to impact winning, I think, are just always important,” Saleh said. “Like, there’s skill sets that we probably would love to have, but at the same time, if somebody’s really good at something that impacts winning on either end of the court. That’s ultimately what we’re looking for, and that fits within the guys we currently have on our team.”
The Porzingis deal is a signal that the Hawks are ready to make a strong move in the depleted Eastern Conference, states John Hollinger of The Athletic. Hollinger views Porzingis as the best pick-and-pop partner that Young has ever teamed up with, as well as a dangerous three-point option when Young and Jalen Johnson are running various actions. He also provides elite rim protection and should help improve a defense that ranked 19th in efficiency this season.
The addition of Porzingis provides lineup flexibility, Williams notes in a separate story. He can either start at power forward alongside Onyeka Okongwu or he can be the center with Zaccharie Risacher remaining in the starting lineup.

Trade Rumors: Brown, White, Holiday, Hawks, NAW, Collins

June 25th, 2025 at 8:06am CST by Luke Adams

After having agreed to trades that send out Jrue Holiday and Kristaps Porzingis, the Celtics have moved below the second tax apron. However, they may not be done dealing yet. Appearing on ESPN’s SportsCenter on Tuesday night (YouTube link), Shams Charania reported that Boston is fielding calls from teams with interest in Jaylen Brown and/or Derrick White.

According to Charania, the Celtics’ preference is still to hang onto Brown and White, and they’ve set “high price thresholds” for both players. But they’re also not entirely shutting down inquiries on those guys, so it remains possible that there will be a team willing to meet Boston’s high asking price.

“At minimum,” Charania says, the Celtics are still a strong candidate to make additional deals involving role players who are a little less valuable than Brown and White. Charania specifically identifies Sam Hauser and Anfernee Simons as players who might fit that bill.

Simons technically isn’t even a Celtic yet, so the agreed-upon deal involving him and Jrue Holiday could be expanded to include more pieces and send Simons to a third team before it’s officially finalized. Even if that trade is completed as currently constructed, Simons could be flipped to another team immediately — his salary simply couldn’t be aggregated with another player’s salary for two months after he’s traded.

Here are a few more trade rumors from around the NBA:

According to Aaron Fentress of The Oregonian (Twitter link), he has heard from two sources who refuted the report claiming that Holiday is unhappy about being traded to the Trail Blazers. We passed along that rumor on Tuesday, but suggested taking it with a grain of salt.
As the Hawks continue to mull various scenarios for how they could use the $25MM+ traded player exception they generated in last summer’s Dejounte Murray deal, one possible target to watch is Nickeil Alexander-Walker, according to Marc Stein and Jake Fischer of The Stein Line (Substack link). The Hawks are expected to show interest in Alexander-Walker, who will be a free agent this summer, and could potentially use that TPE to acquire him via sign-and-trade. The Timberwolves have expressed a desire to retain the three-and-D guard, but will also have Julius Randle‘s and Naz Reid‘s contract situations to resolve.
Although John Collins is considered a potential offseason trade candidate, his market is still taking shape, so a deal seems more likely to happen after the draft than before or during it, per Stein and Fischer. Collins also must exercise his $26.6MM player option before he officially becomes trade-eligible. His decision is due on Thursday.
Heat forward Andrew Wiggins, Raptors forward RJ Barrett and guard Immanuel Quickley, Jazz guards Collin Sexton and Jordan Clarkson, Wizards guard Marcus Smart, and Bucks wing Pat Connaughton are among the other players viewed as candidates to be on the move this summer, according to Stein and Fischer.

Celtics Trade Porzingis To Hawks In Three-Team Deal

June 24th, 2025 at 6:07pm CST by Dana Gauruder

July 7: The trade is official, according to the Hawks. The final terms are as follows:

Hawks acquire Kristaps Porzingis and a 2026 second-round pick (from Celtics).
Celtics acquire Georges Niang, the Cavaliers’ 2031 second-round pick (from Hawks), and cash (from Nets).
Nets acquire Terance Mann and the draft rights to Drake Powell (No. 22 pick).

“Kristaps is a unique and versatile talent with championship pedigree,” Hawks general manager Onsi Saleh said in a statement. “His ability to stretch the floor, protect the rim, and make plays on both ends adds another dimension to our team. We are fortunate to add a player of his caliber to our group. We’d also like to thank Terence and Georges for their contributions last season and wish them the best.”

June 24: One day after agreeing to trade Jrue Holiday, the Celtics are moving another starter. Kristaps Porzingis is headed to the Hawks in a three-team trade, ESPN’s Shams Charania reports (Twitter link).

Atlanta will acquire Porzingis and a second-round pick in the deal; Terance Mann and Atlanta’s No. 22 pick in Wednesday’s draft are headed to the Nets; and the Celtics are acquiring Georges Niang and a second-round pick.

That second-round pick headed to Boston is coming from Atlanta and is the Cavaliers’ 2031 second-rounder, per Jake Fischer of The Stein Line (Twitter link). In exchange, the Celtics are sending a 2026 second-rounder with “least favorable” language to the Hawks, tweets Michael Scotto of HoopsHype.

The trade, coupled with the agreed-upon Holiday deal with Portland, will allow the Celtics to drop below the second tax apron by $4.5MM, Spotrac contributor Keith Smith tweets. The two deals will reduce their projected luxury tax penalty by nearly $210MM, estimates cap expert Yossi Gozlan (Twitter link).

Porzingis has an expiring $30.7MM contract, while Niang’s expiring deal totals just $8.5MM. Shedding salary has been a goal this offseason for the Celtics, who were facing second-apron restrictions and substantial repeater taxpayer penalties with Jayson Tatum expected to miss most or all of next season while he recovers from a torn Achilles.

A 6’7″ marksman with a career average of 39.9% from beyond the arc, Niang will fit right in as the newest member of the NBA’s leading three-point shooting team in his hometown of Boston. The 32-year-old forward played some of the best basketball of his career after being traded from Cleveland to Atlanta in February, averaging 12.1 points and posting a 41.3% mark on 6.6 threes per game in 28 games for the Hawks.

While the deal gives the Celtics another shooter and creates substantial tax savings, it depletes their depth in the frontcourt, where Al Horford and Luke Kornet are eligible for free agency. Re-signing one or both of those players while potentially adding another big man figures to be a top priority for Boston this summer.

Meanwhile, with Clint Capela headed to free agency, it appears Porzingis will slot in as the Hawks’ starting center ahead of Onyeka Okongwu. He’ll give Atlanta a quality pick-and-pop partner to team up with franchise player Trae Young and will become extension-eligible in July, though it’s unclear whether his new team will look to extend him right away.

Porzingis has an extensive injury history and was hampered this past season by a lingering illness that affected him during the second half and into the postseason, but the expectation is that he’ll be fully recovered by the fall. The veteran big man continues to produce at a high level when he’s available, having averaged 19.5 points, 6.8 rebounds, 2.1 assists, and 1.5 blocks in 28.8 minutes per game across 42 starts for the Celtics in 2024/25, with a shooting line of .483/.412/.809.

The Hawks were rumored to have interest in free agent big man Myles Turner, another rim-protecting, floor-stretching center. Their acquisition of Porzingis will presumably take them out of the mix for Turner, but they’re still well below the projected tax line and continue to explore opportunities to use a trade exception worth $25MM+, either on the trade market or in free agency (via sign-and-trade), tweets Fischer.

Atlanta made “a lot of calls” about Mann this week, according to Fischer (Twitter link), before eventually finding a taker for the 6’5″ swingman.

Mann, a Brooklyn native, has three years and $47MM remaining on his contract. Acquired from the Clippers at this year’s trade deadline, he had a solid finish to the season on Atlanta’s second unit alongside Niang, averaging 9.8 points, 3.1 rebounds, and 2.1 assists in 22.7 minutes per game across 30 outings. He posted a shooting line of .541/.386/.667 as a Hawk.

Accounting for Mann’s $15.5MM salary and the $3.4MM cap hold for the No. 22 overall pick, the Nets will use up roughly $19MM in cap space to make the deal, which can’t be completed until July 6, after the new league year begins and the July moratorium lifts.

Brooklyn still projects to have substantial cap room and now controls an amazing five first-rounders in this week’s draft — Nos. 8, 19, 22, 26, 27 — which figures to lead to more deals.

Luke Adams contributed to this story.

Draft Notes: Spurs, Newell, Hawks, Essengue, More

June 24th, 2025 at 1:06pm CST by Luke Adams

The Spurs haven’t entirely shut down trade inquiries on the No. 2 overall pick in this year’s draft, but they still seem likely to end up with Dylan Harper themselves, since no team is expected to meet their high asking price, Kevin O’Connor of Yahoo Sports writes in his latest mock draft.

“They want a ridiculous haul,” one front office executive told O’Connor. “Far more than I’d expect anyone to give up.”

Elsewhere in O’Connor’s mock draft, he cites league sources who say that Georgia forward Asa Newell, the No. 19 prospect on ESPN’s big board, could end up being a lottery pick — O’Connor has him going to Toronto at No. 9.

O’Connor also hears that the Hawks have been exploring a potential move up from No. 13, having even placed calls to teams picking in the top five. They’re targeting a center, O’Connor adds. Based on earlier reporting from Jake Fischer, it sounds like several teams in the back end of the lottery are in the same boat, as Fischer mentioned Phoenix (No. 10), Chicago (No. 12), and San Antonio (No. 14) as clubs eyeing big men.

Here are a few more draft-related notes from around the league:

French forward Noa Essengue, a potential lottery pick who ranks ninth overall on ESPN’s board, will miss the conclusion of the German League finals in order to travel to New York for this week’s NBA draft, reports Donatas Urbonas of BasketNews.com. His team, Ratiopharm Ulm, holds a 2-1 lead over Bayern Munich in the best-of-five Basketball Bundesliga championship, though the 18-year-old has been playing a pretty limited role in the series. Essengue’s draft-eligible teammate Ben Saraf has had a bigger hand in Ulm’s two victories and is remaining with the team for Tuesday’s Game 4.
John Hollinger of The Athletic has published his list of this year’s top 75 draft prospects. While there are no surprises at the very top, Hollinger is higher than the consensus on guys like Collin Murray-Boyles (No. 6), Essengue (No. 7), Thomas Sorber (No. 10), and Saraf (No. 15), with Tre Johnson (No. 11) and Ace Bailey (No. 12) ranked outside of his top 10.
Law Murray of The Athletic identifies some players that might make sense as targets for the Clippers with their 30th and 51st overall picks this week, including point guards like Saraf and Kameron Jones and centers such as Ryan Kalkbrenner and Maxime Raynaud. Rod Walker of NOLA.com, meanwhile, performs a similar exercise with the Pelicans‘ seventh and 23rd overall picks, suggesting that coming away with a duo like center Khaman Maluach and guard Walter Clayton Jr. would make it a successful draft for the team.
The Thunder recently worked out potential second-round pick Micah Peavy, according to Rylan Stiles of SI.com. The Georgetown wing ranks 54th on ESPN’s board.

Fischer’s Latest: Kuminga, Grimes, Grizzlies, Nets

June 21st, 2025 at 5:28pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Bulls expressed interest in Warriors forward Jonathan Kuminga during past trade talks and could be a candidate for a sign-and-trade deal to land the restricted free agent, according to Jake Fischer of The Stein Line (Substack link). Sources tell Stein that Chicago inquired about Kuminga during discussions that involved Alex Caruso, Zach LaVine and Nikola Vucevic.

Fischer states that re-signing with the Warriors appears to be the most likely outcome for Kuminga, but cautions that it’s hard to predict his potential market until the Suns decide where they’re trading Kevin Durant. Fischer hears that Kuminga could be among several players the Heat plan to target if they don’t land Durant, echoing a report earlier this week from Michael Scotto of HoopsHype, who mentioned Chicago and Miami as potential sign-and-trade destinations for Kuminga.

Fischer adds that Kuminga will probably need a sign-and-trade to change teams because the Nets, the only current club with significant cap space, don’t appear to be interested, nor do the Pistons, who could theoretically create enough room to make a competitive offer, or the Hawks, who have a $25MM trade exception from the deal that sent Dejounte Murray to New Orleans last summer.

Warriors general manager Mike Dunleavy Jr. will meet with the media on Monday, and Fischer expects Kuminga’s future to be a prominent topic.

Fischer shares more inside information from around the NBA:

“Numbers-crunchers” who talked to Fischer expect Sixers free agent guard Quentin Grimes to get offers in excess of the $14.1MM non-taxpayer mid-level exception. Grimes turned into a potent scoring threat after being acquired from Dallas in February, averaging a career-high 21.9 PPG in 28 games. The financial experts that Fischer consulted expect Philadelphia to be able to afford to keep Grimes, although the team’s financial situation will be affected by what Kelly Oubre, Eric Gordon and Andre Drummond do with their player options.
After acquiring the No. 16 pick from Orlando in last weekend’s Desmond Bane trade, the Grizzlies may opt to move up or down by draft night, sources tell Fischer. He hears that the team’s priority with any moves will be to create enough financial flexibility to renegotiate and extend Jaren Jackson Jr.‘s contract and to re-sign free agent forward Santi Aldama.
With four first-round picks and a ton of cap space, the Nets have a chance to be the league’s most active team on draft night. Fischer suggests that one option will be to facilitate deals by taking on unwanted contracts and then try to flip those players for more assets ahead of next season’s trade deadline.

Trade Rumors: Kings, Holiday, Young, Wizards, Celtics, Wolves

June 20th, 2025 at 2:02pm CST by Luke Adams

Asked during a radio appearance on Sactown Sports 1140 (YouTube link) this week about the Kings‘ offseason plans and whether new general manager Scott Perry might make drastic changes to the roster, Sam Amick of The Athletic said Sacramento is exploring “a lot” of possibilities.

“I don’t know how much they’re going to overhaul the roster,” Amick said (hat tip to Brian Robb of MassLive.com). “But I think they are looking at big stuff, I think they’re looking at small stuff. The point guard pursuit is very real. I don’t know where they will land on that front. It’s kind of an ‘If only Jrue Holiday was five years younger’-type thing. I think that type of option has been considered and explored, but is imperfect because of his age.

“If you go younger, a lot of Trae Young rumors. My understanding is that there’s not interest there unless it came attached to a bunch of first-round picks.”

While Holiday has been one of the NBA’s best two-way players for years, the Celtics veteran is entering his age-35 season and is owed $104.4MM over the next three years. Young, meanwhile, is one of the NBA’s top play-makers but isn’t a great defender and lacks positional size. The Hawks guard is owed $46MM in 2025/26 and could become an unrestricted free agent a year from now if he declines a player option worth nearly $49MM.

Here are a few more trade-related notes and rumors from around the NBA:

The Wizards have explored trading up from No. 6 in the hopes of landing a long-term point guard like Dylan Harper or Jeremiah Fears and have been willing to part with “surprising names” in their conversations about the second overall pick, reports Grant Afseth of RG.org. However, those efforts have been rebuffed, with the Spurs still considered likely to hang onto that No. 2 pick. As Afseth explains, stabilizing the point guard position has become a priority for the rebuilding Wizards, who have also done extensive due diligence on point guard prospects who may be on the board at No. 18.
Appearing on The Pat McAfee Show on Thursday (Twitter video link), ESPN’s Shams Charania reiterated that it will be very difficult to convince the Celtics to move either Jaylen Brown or Derrick White this summer. “I’m sure teams are throwing crazy offers for guys like Jaylen Brown and Derrick White, but it’ll take a pretty insurmountable package to get those guys out of Boston,” Charania said.
While the Timberwolves are reportedly hoping Suns forward Kevin Durant warms to the idea of playing in Minnesota, current Wolves star Anthony Edwards isn’t actively recruiting his former Olympic teammate, ESPN’s Marc J. Spears and Brian Windhorst said on NBA Today this week (YouTube link; hat tip to RealGM).