International Notes: Schröder, Bogdanovic, Lithuania, Bosnia
Veteran point guard Dennis Schröder, still a free agent, served as the primary force behind the German national team beating the Bosnian national team in EuroBasket play on Saturday, tweets Tim MacMahon of ESPN.
MacMahon notes that two high-ranking Mavericks front office executives, team president Nico Harrison and vice president Michael Finley, watched Schröder’s performance from court side seats. MacMahon adds that Harrison and Finley are present at EuroBasket to cheer on Dallas All-Star guard Luka Doncic, playing for Slovenia.
The 6’3″ Schroder, still just 28, split his time between the Celtics and Rockets last season on a one-year, $5.9MM deal. Cumulatively, he averaged 13.5 PPG, 4.6 APG, 3.3 RPG and 0.8 SPG across 64 games, including 29 starts.
The Mavericks currently have 14 players signed to their 15-man standard roster, as well as four training camp invitees and one two-way player.
Here are more notes from around the international basketball scene:
- Following the conclusion of this year’s EuroBasket competition, 33-year-old veteran Jazz forward Bojan Bogdanovic will retire from playing for the Croatian national team, per FIBA.basketball. “I would like to leave something behind me,” Bogdanovic said of his hopes to medal this year. “So this EuroBasket is a perfect chance for me and my teammates to do something special… It’s going to be pretty hard. I’m trying to help my young teammates to grow pretty quickly – and to make an impact on the game, right here, at this tournament.”
- After officials penalized German national team head coach Gordon Herbert with a technical foul in the final minutes of the third quarter of their EuroBasket game against the Lithuanian national team on Sunday, those referees failed to award a free throw to the Lithuanian national team. Germany would go on to win the game, 109-107, in double overtime, and Lithuania has opted to file a protest, per Donatas Urbonas of BasketNews. “I don’t know, we should’ve won the game before [the overtime] just like the last two,” [Lithuanian team forward Mindaugas Kuzminskas] told BasketNews. “It’s tough. That one shot that we weren’t given cost us in the overtime. There’s nothing you can do now. Maybe we paid too much attention to it.”
- In a surprising upset, Doncic, Goran Dragic and the Slovenian national team fell to Bosnia 97-93 today in EuroBasket play, per Eurohoops. The loss moves Slovenia into a tie with Bosnia due to an identical 2-1 record. Doncic had won all 11 of his prior EuroBasket contests.
Northwest Notes: Sexton, Jazz Vets, Jokic, Favors
Details have emerged on the new contract signed by combo guard Collin Sexton, a key return piece from the Jazz‘s trade of All-Star shooting guard Donovan Mitchell. According to Bobby Marks of ESPN (Twitter link), Sexton agreed to a four-year, $70.95MM guaranteed deal as part of a sign-and-trade with the team that drafted him in the 2018 lottery, the Cavaliers.
Marks reveals that Sexton will earn $16.5MM during the 2022/23 season, with 5% salary bumps in each subsequent season, ending in an $18.975MM cap hit in 2025/26. Marks notes that the deal includes $500K in annual unlikely incentives — if all were reached, the 6’1″ guard would earn a total of $72.95MM over four years.
Sexton, still just 23, missed all but 11 games in 2021/22, after which control of the Cavaliers’ offense landed primarily at the feet of eventual 2022 All-Star point guard Darius Garland. In his 11 healthy games, all starts, Sexton averaged 16.0 PPG, 3.3 RPG, 2.1 APG and 0.9 SPG.
There’s more out of the Northwest Division:
- Harrison Wind of DNVR Sports tweets that he is skeptical of the Nuggets being able to land any Jazz veterans. Utah appears to be open to trading all of the older players on its roster for future draft picks and younger pieces, having already made four such deals thus far this offseason, including of its two 2022 All-Stars, Mitchell and Rudy Gobert. Wind notes that, among Utah’s older players, jump-shooting power forward Bojan Bogdanovic would help Denver the most.
- Nuggets center Nikola Jokic, the reigning two-time NBA MVP, is looking to tear it up overseas in EuroBasket for the Serbian national team, writes Mike Singer of the Denver Post. Jokic, along with fellow All-NBA European stars Giannis Antetokounmpo and Luka Doncic, is set to play five group stage games before even getting to elimination rounds.
- Following the Jazz’s aforementioned decision to enact a roster teardown and accrue future assets to kick off a rebuild, it seems likely that the heavily protected 2024 first-round draft pick included as part of last year’s trade of bench big man Derrick Favors from Utah to the Thunder will remain with Utah, writes Joe Mussatto of the Oklahoman. The selection is top-1o protected from 2024-25, and then top-eight protected through 2026. If it lands in its protected range for all three years, it would stay with the Jazz and the Thunder wouldn’t get anything.
Trail Blazers Waive Norvel Pelle
The Trail Blazers have opted to waive camp signing Norvel Pelle, the team announced in a press statement.
Pelle, who signed an Exhibit 10 deal with Portland last month, inked a pair of 10-day hardship deals – one with the Celtics and one with the Jazz – during the 2021/22 season. In three contests for Utah, the 29-year-old big man scored six points and six rebounds in 19 total minutes.
A 6’10” center who went undrafted in 2013, Pelle played off and on for several seasons with the Sixers’ Delaware affiliate, during the team’s tenures as the 87ers and Blue Coats. He also played internationally for clubs in Taiwan, Beirut, and Italy.
After spending some time with the Cavaliers’ G League affiliate, Pelle eventually made his NBA debut in 2019 with the Sixers. He has since played for the Nets, Kings and Knicks, appearing in a total of 40 games at the NBA level.
With Pelle off their roster, the Trail Blazers currently have 17 players heading into training camp. It was reported earlier today that the club is signing 23-year-old center Olivier Sarr to a training camp deal — he’ll join guards Jared Rhoden and Isaiah Miller as the Portland players on Exhibit 10 contracts.
Pacific Notes: Beverley, Westbrook, Saric, Kings
Since the Lakers traded for veteran point guard Patrick Beverley, the future of 2021/22 starter Russell Westbrook has seemed murky. Mirjam Swanson of the Orange County Register wonders if the duo can actually share the floor together, or at the very least both stick around on the team this season.
Swanson reads tea leaves in recent public statements from head coach Darvin Ham and team owner Jeanie Buss that seem to suggest they appreciate Westbrook and his contributions to the club last year. Swanson writes that, because Beverley can function so well off the ball as a catch-and-shoot long range sniper, and can defend at least both guard positions, he could theoretically play alongside Westbrook, who tends to be significantly more ball-dominant.
There’s more out of the Pacific Division:
- With Donovan Mitchell headed to the Cavaliers, Dan Woike of the Los Angeles Times opines that the Lakers could look to move Westbrook (and draft compensation) to the Jazz, who have already offloaded four of their best veteran players in separate deals this summer, including both their All-Stars. Woike writes that combo forward Bojan Bogdanovic should be L.A.’s top priority, and also floats the possibility of adding some combination of Mike Conley, Jordan Clarkson, Malik Beasley and Rudy Gay into such a deal.
- Suns reserve big man Dario Saric missed all of the 2021/22 season while he recovered from a ruptured ACL in his right knee suffered in the first game of the 2021 Finals. The 6’10” big man played well during the Croatian national team’s FIBA EuroBasket 2025 pre-qualifiers in August, writes Duane Rankin of the Arizona Republic.
- Three reserve point guards will be duking it out during the Kings‘ training camp later this month. James Ham of Kings Beat assesses each player in terms of their relative strengths and weaknesses on the current Sacramento roster. As a former lottery pick, defensive-oriented second-year guard Davion Mitchell seems guaranteed to get some run behind pricey starter De’Aaron Fox. Ham predicts that Quinn Cook could have an edge over Matthew Dellavedova as the team’s third point guard option.
Suns Express Interest In Bojan Bogdanovic
With a full-out fire sale seemingly transpiring in Utah, it makes sense that the Jazz will be listening to offers for the rest of its veterans. The Jazz have thus far traded All-Stars Rudy Gobert and Donovan Mitchell, wing Royce O’Neale, and point guard Patrick Beverley, all in separate deals, for younger players and future draft equity.
John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7 FM reports that the Suns inquired about the availability of forward Bojan Bogdanovic in the wake of today’s deal that will send Mitchell to the Cavaliers. To match the 33-year-old veteran’s expiring $19.3MM salary, Phoenix would need to include multiple players in a trade, as well as future draft equity, Gambadoro speculates.
Last season, the 6’7″ veteran averaged 18.1 PPG on 45.5% shooting from the floor, along with 4.3 RPG and 1.7 APG across 69 games for the Jazz while starting as the team’s power forward. Bogdanovic could help spread the floor for the Suns, and is an efficient shooter at the charity stripe. He connected on 38.7% of his 6.8 triples per game for Utah, as well as 85.8% of his free throws.
Though the Suns had a league-best 64 wins, they flamed out in the playoffs, falling in a seven-game Western Conference semifinal matchup against the Mavericks. The Suns have made few moves this offseason thus far. When the Pacers tendered a four-year, maximum offer to restricted free agent starting Phoenix center Deandre Ayton, the Suns opted to match, making the big man ineligible to be traded until January.
Jazz Notes: Sexton, Mitchell Trade Grades, Rebuild, Veterans
After landing combo guard Collin Sexton in a sign-and-trade deal with the Cavaliers as part of the package for All-Star shooting guard Donovan Mitchell, the Jazz intend to keep Sexton in Utah, ESPN’s Brian Windhorst said in an emergency edition of his podcast The Hoop Collective.
Sexton had been a restricted free agent this offseason, and negotiations between the 6’1″ guard out of Alabama and Cavaliers brass reportedly remained far apart in recent weeks. The team had offered him a deal in the range of a three-year, $40MM contract, which he had turned down. He’ll be inking a four-year, $72MM contract in the sign-and-trade that is sending him to the Jazz.
Sexton, still just 23, was unavailable for all but 11 games last season for Cleveland after tearing his meniscus. When healthy, he averaged 16.0 PPG, 3.3 RPG, 2.1 APG and 0.9 SPG, on .450/.244/.744 shooting splits. Through his four NBA seasons, he boasts career averages of 20.0 PPG, 3.3 APG, 3 RPG, and 0.8 SPG, with a .458/.378/.827 shooting line.
There’s more out of Utah:
- Zach Harper of The Athletic doles out trade grades to both the Cavaliers and the Jazz following the team’s exchange earlier today. Harper is higher on the addition of Mitchell for Cleveland than he is on the return acquired by Utah, noting that he sees the Cavaliers as a potential Eastern Conference contender.
- The Jazz now appear to be going all-in on a full-bore rebuild, writes Sarah Todd of the Deseret News. Todd takes stock of the team’s new assets thanks to its four offseason trades to date. The Jazz now have bolstered their roster with six players aged 25 or younger, plus two young players from the first round of this year’s draft, eight future first-round draft selections, and three upcoming draft pick swaps. Todd notes that this rebuild could be an extended process.
- Following these summer deals that have sent away All-Stars Rudy Gobert and Mitchell, the Jazz futures of veterans Mike Conley, Bojan Bogdanovic, Jordan Clarkson and Rudy Gay appear to be up in the air. On today’s edition of his podcast The Lowe Post, ESPN’s Zach Lowe talks to colleague Bobby Marks about the potential trade destinations for these various players.
Knicks Notes: Barrett, Rival Opinions, Mitchell, Next Steps
The Knicks officially signed fourth-year small forward RJ Barrett today to a lucrative four-year rookie contract extension that can be worth up to $120MM. Taking a closer look at the deal in the latest edition of their podcast The Mismatch (YouTube video link), Kevin O’Connor and Chris Vernon of The Ringer argue the extension is a smart play for New York. The duo thinks that Barrett, at worst, will be a solid role player, and at best could reach All-Star greatness.
Vernon and O’Connor also both think Barrett will thrive best as a large shooting guard, the same position that undersized All-Star Donovan Mitchell, who was just dealt from the Jazz to the Cavaliers instead of the Knicks, plays.
Mike Vaccaro of the New York Post opines that Barrett’s extension serves as proof positive that team president Leon Rose and the rest of New York’s front office see Barrett as a core building block for the future. Vaccaro notes that Barrett has improved as a shooter each season, and says he’s worth the investment.
There’s more out of Madison Square Garden:
- Rival coaches and executives are weighing in on the team’s decision to extend Barrett, writes Marc Berman of the New York Post. “The Knicks normally overpay for decent players,’’ a coach told Berman. “Is RJ ever going to be more than a low efficiency, high usage scorer? Maybe. But maybe not. That’s the point. But they think he’s got a lot of room to get better.’’ An NBA scout offered the following assessment: “RJ is a really good player, but only if he’s surrounded by a really good team. (The Knicks) are a mediocre team, and they have a lot of money tied up in three players (Jalen Brunson and Julius Randle being the other two) who are third/fourth options. That would be the concern. It’s where do they go from here with this much money tied into three players. Are these contracts going to be (tradable) if need be, or you’re stuck with them?’’
- The Knicks had the assets needed to trade for three-time Jazz All-Star Donovan Mitchell, who ultimately was sent to the Cavaliers today in a blockbuster deal. Ian Begley of SNY.tv breaks down New York’s thinking in not going all-in for Mitchell. In addition to being reticent to include three unprotected first-round picks as has been previously reported, Begley writes that the team was hesitant to trade Barrett or Quentin Grimes, both of whom Utah had been interested in adding.
- Deciding to not make a deal for Mitchell may work out for the Knicks, according to Steve Popper of Newsday. Popper writes that a starting backcourt of two 6’1″ guards in Brunson and Mitchell could have put New York at a defensive disadvantage in a league full of bigger, longer guards. Popper wonders if the Knicks will now move on to considering 6’6″ Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, currently trapped on a franchise in the midst of a long-term rebuild.
Pistons Notes: Breakout Players, Walker, Casey
Before the Pistons can take a leap in the win column and contend for the postseason, the team will need its young role players to improve in their development. Mike Curtis of The Detroit News identifies power forward Marvin Bagley III — the former No. 2 lottery pick in 2018 — athletic wing Hamidou Diallo, and center Isaiah Stewart as three such role players capable of growing their games in 2022/23.
Curtis thinks that Bagley could become a reliable option in the post if he can stay healthy next year. Curtis also opines that Diallo could see his standing in the Detroit hierarchy improve if he grows as a long-range shooter. Stewart’s three-point output has been limited in the last two seasons. He has connected on 33% of his 0.8 attempts thus far in his NBA career. Curtis writes that the 6’8″ big man showed off an increased willingness to let fly from outside during two Summer League contests with Detroit in Las Vegas this year. Overall, Stewart shot 5-of-9 from outside.
There’s more out of the Motor City:
- The Pistons may still be holding out hope that they can use the expiring $9.2MM remaining on veteran point guard Kemba Walker‘s current contract in a trade. Keith Langlois of Pistons.com notes in a new mailbag that, if such a deal does not materialize in time for the start of NBA training camps later this month, Detroit could move to buy him out of his deal. Elsewhere in the mailbag, Langlois says he considers Isaiah Livers the most likely new addition to the Pistons’ starting lineup this season, and thinks star point guard Cade Cunningham, the top draft pick in 2021, could be in line for All-Star consideration this season if he continues to develop.
- In an interview with Johnny Kane of Bally Sports Detroit (Twitter video link), Pistons head coach Dwane Casey expressed enthusiasm about the team’s ability to grow next season. Casey hailed Cade Cunningham and 2022 No. 5 overall pick Jaden Ivey as “stars to be.” Casey anticipates that the team will at the very least improve from its 23-59 record in 2021/22. “You expect growth,” Casey said (hat tip to Mike Curtis of The Detroit News for the transcription). “The internal growth is very important. One thing [GM] Troy Weaver has done is brought a bunch of young, hard-working, character guys in that have been working all summer. I can see the improvement. The game has slowed down for a guy like Saddiq Bey. You mentioned Cade Cunningham. You mention Isaiah Stewart — all those guys, the game has slowed down for them.”
- The Pistons recently agreed to sign free agent big man Micah Potter to a training camp deal. Get the full details here.
Heat Notes: Mitchell, Potter, Eastern Conference, Lineups
With Nets forward Kevin Durant off the table as a trade target for the time being, the Heat could look elsewhere for All-Star reinforcements. In a mailbag, Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel discusses alternatives, including Jazz All-Star guard Donovan Mitchell. Winderman does not consider the undersized shooting guard to be worth a package centered around reigning Sixth Man of the Year Tyler Herro and future draft picks.
Winderman also notes that the Heat should be cautious when it comes to trading forward Duncan Robinson, who will earn $16.9MM in 2022/23 after falling out of the club’s rotation near the end of last season due to his defensive shortcomings. Winderman notes that Robinson’s contract could be crucial as an inclusion for a trade to acquire a maximum-salaried superstar. Herro remains on his rookie deal, and will make just $5.7MM this season.
There’s more out of South Beach:
- In another mailbag, Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel reflects on the recent decision by the Heat’s NBAGL affiliate, the Sioux Falls Skyforce, to offload Micah Potter to the Pistons’ G League club, the Motor City Cruise. Winderman writes that the decision ultimately came down to which players Miami is prioritizing developing, noting that other prospects – including Orlando Robinson – took priority over Potter.
- Now that the Nets are, at least for now, stabilizing and whole heading into the 2022/23 season, Winderman wonders if Brooklyn has leapfrogged Miami in the Eastern Conference pecking order and explores just how dangerous the Nets coul dbe.
- Even beyond the departure of starting power forward P.J. Tucker, the Heat’s rotation could look markedly different than it did during the 2021/22 NBA season, when a top-seeded Miami club pushed the Celtics to seven games in the Eastern Conference Finals, Winderman writes in another Sun Sentinel story. As Winderman observes, 6’5″ Caleb Martin appears to be the current leader in the competition to become Miami’s new starting power forward, though that situation remains fluid with training camp still ahead of the team. Miami’s internal search for its starting swingman next to point guard Kyle Lowry and small forward/shooting guard Jimmy Butler also remains fairly open, with several intriguing candidates on the roster.
Stein’s Latest: Morris, Hornets, Mitchell, Lakers
Veteran free agent power forward Markieff Morris is under consideration as a reserve acquisition for the Sixers in addition to the Nets, writes Marc Stein in a new article for Substack.
Stein notes that the 32-year-old was known to be a vocal locker room presence while on a star-studded 2019/20 championship-winning Lakers club, and could be a good fit for a Brooklyn team fielding several at-times angsty superstars.
Morris missed most of his 2021/22 season with the Heat due to a major neck injury after entering the season as a key reserve. In his 17 available regular season games with Miami, Morris averaged 7.6 PPG, 2.6 RPG, and 1.4 APG. The 6’9″ big man out of Kansas posted a shooting line of .474/.333/.889.
Here’s more from Stein:
- As the Hornets consider reserve point guard options behind developing All-Star LaMelo Ball, the team has broadened its list of potential targets to include former Suns point guard Elfrid Payton, according to Stein. Isaiah Thomas, who fulfilled the role adequately last season, is still being looked at, as is Pistons point guard Kemba Walker, a three-time All-Star while with Charlotte whom Stein expects to be bought out of his current deal.
- The Lakers‘ 2027 and 2029 first-round draft selections, along with the expiring contract of incumbent point guard Russell Westbrook, could be used to help complete a three-team Donovan Mitchell trade for the Jazz, either with the Knicks or even another suitor. Stein writes that the draft picks could hold significant appeal for Jazz team president Danny Ainge, who earlier this summer received quite a bounty in future draft equity as part of his blockbuster deal that shipped former Utah All-Star Rudy Gobert out to the Timberwolves.
- Stein cautions that the Lakers, who leveraged a lot of future draft picks in their trade for Anthony Davis, remain fairly protective of the 2027 and 2029 picks. Given that L.A. is fielding a team with (currently) three maximum-salaried veterans all with at least 10 years of experience, one would expect the club to very much be in win-now mode, but the team only wants to make a move if it values the returning players as being worth the sacrifice. Stein defines that as players who can help the team return to its standing as a championship contender, following a disappointing 33-49 season that saw the Lakers on the outside of the play-in tournament looking in.