Rockets To Cut D.J. Augustin, Armoni Brooks
To carve out roster room to complete their one-for-three trade with Boston, the Rockets will waive reserve guards D.J. Augustin and Armoni Brooks, according to Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle.
Earlier this week, aware that his days in Houston might be limited, Augustin expressed an interest in remaining on the Rockets roster through the trade deadline, despite his awareness that the Rockets would be prioritizing the development of their younger players. The 5’11” point guard, a 14-year NBA veteran, averaged 5.4 PPG, 2.2 APG and 1.2 RPG across 15.0 in 34 contests with Houston this season.
The 23-year-old Brooks, a second-year player out of the University of Houston, also never carved out major minutes with the Rockets this year. The 6’3″ shooting guard averaged 16.8 MPG in 41 games this year. He scored 6.2 PPG on 34.7% field goal shooting, and also chipped in 2.0 RPG and 1.2 APG.
Brooks saw a far more robust role with the Rockets during his rookie season, albeit in just 20 games as a two-way contract signing. He averaged 11.2 PPG on 40.6% field goal shooting for the Rockets, along with 3.4 RPG and 1.5 APG.
Augustin’s $7.33MM salary for next season was partially guaranteed, but only for $333K. None of the remaining three years on Brooks’ contract beyond this season included guaranteed money.
Augustin and Brooks will become free agents on Saturday if they’re not claimed on waivers. Augustin could be a popular target for playoff teams looking to add backcourt depth.
Lakers, Warriors, Knicks, Bulls Among Teams Standing Pat At Deadline
The struggling Lakers, losers of seven of their last 10 games, opted not to make any moves leading up to the NBA trade deadline. According to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link), Los Angeles will instead look to the buyout market to shore up their club.
Underperforming Lakers wing Talen Horton-Tucker, who had been considered L.A.’s most logical trade chip, will now remain on the roster through at least this season. At 26-30, the Lakers occupy the Western Conference’s ninth seed, a far cry from their expectations heading into the 2021/22 season. Russell Westbrook, who is in the midst of one of the worst seasons of his career, will also remain with the team.
Dave McMenamin of ESPN adds (via Twitter) that, given that the Lakers currently possess a full roster of 15 players, the team would need to waive a player to make room for a new addition. Reserves DeAndre Jordan and Kent Bazemore would seem to be the likeliest candidates for this.
Several other teams with postseason hopes opted to not make trades during deadline day:
- Another team that had high hopes heading into 2021/22, the 24-31 Knicks, opted to stand pat today, reports Wojnarowski (Twitter link). The team made two trades earlier in the season, including acquiring Cam Reddish from Atlanta. Fred Katz of The Athletic notes (via Twitter) that, though New York may have possessed some trade-friendly contracts, the team was unable to find a willing partner.
- A relatively loaded Warriors club elected not to make a deadline transaction, and currently boasts a 15-man roster identical to their opening night group, per Anthony Slater of The Athletic (Twitter link). Led by All-Stars Stephen Curry, Draymond Green and Andrew Wiggins, plus a returning Klay Thompson and Sixth Man of the Year candidate Jordan Poole, this revamped Golden State club has comfortably established itself as one of the top teams in the Western Conference.
- The Bulls, a top seed in the East with a very injured roster, decided to also not make any trades during the season, and will instead look to the buyout market to improve their depth, per K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago. Johnson adds (Twitter link) that Chicago never really wanted to move on from second-year power forward Patrick Williams this season. Johnson notes that Williams, who has been hurt for all but five games this season, could be returning from his wrist fracture as soon as mid-March.
- The surging Hawks, winners of seven of their last ten games, ultimately did not make any deadline-day moves, according to Sarah K. Spencer of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution (via Twitter). The Reddish deal with New York ended up being their only move this season.
- The Timberwolves had several conversations around the league but ultimately could not find a trade that worked for them, tweets Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic. With an exciting core of All-Star center Karl-Anthony Towns, second-year shooting guard Anthony Edwards, and veteran point guard D’Angelo Russell, the team has developed into a frisky playoff contender. The front office will look to observe how the club wraps up the 2021/22 season. With a 29-26 record, the Timberwolves are the seventh seed in the West at present. Minnesota appears on track to make its first postseason berth since 2018.
- The 38-18 Grizzlies, the third seed in the Western Conference, did not make any trades at the deadline, per Chris Herrington of the Daily Memphian (via Twitter). Led by All-Star starter Ja Morant, Memphis is already a particularly deep club with several players signed to reasonable contracts.
- In a bit of a surprise, the usually very-active Thunder are another team that decided to not make any compositional changes at the trade deadline this season, per the Oklahoman’s Joe Mussatto (Twitter link). Oklahoma City is currently well below the salary cap and the minimum salary floor. The team’s cap space will still be in play in June before the new league year starts.
Southwest Notes: Augustin, Silas, Mavericks, McCollum
Veteran Rockets point guard D.J. Augustin, 34, hopes to remain in Houston through the NBA trade deadline, per Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle. Should the Rockets opt not to pick up his partially-guaranteed deal this summer, the rebuilding club’s oldest player could become a free agent. The 5’11” guard is averaging 5.4 PPG and 2.2 APG in just 15.0 MPG this season.
“At this point in my career, man, whatever the team needs from me, whatever the coach needs from me, the organization needs, I’m going to do my job and do what I need to do,” Augustin said.
At times this season, head coach Stephen Silas has opted not to play Augustin at all, in favor of giving the team’s younger prospects more run. Augustin does concede that he would like a consistent role in the Rockets’ rotation, but accepts that that may not be what Houston requires.
“I would like minutes, period,” he said. “That’s not my role right now with this team.”
There’s more out of the Southwest Division:
- With NBA trade deadline chatter swirling, Rockets head coach Stephen Silas is trying to help his current Houston players focus on the task at hand as much as possible, per Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle. Feigen notes that the Rockets have been active at the trade deadline for the past 16 straight years. “It is our job as a coaching staff, as a management team to make sure everybody is pointed in the direction of things that you can control,” Silas said. “I know that there’s other stuff out there and rumors. There’s always rumors and false narratives going on. But really focusing on what you can control makes everybody’s job easier. Whatever happens, you adapt to that.”
- The 32-23 Mavericks could opt to develop their current chemistry at the trade deadline or make changes. In a roundtable, Callie Caplan, Brad Townsend and Kevin Sherrington of the Dallas Morning News debate how Dallas should move forward at the deadline. Sherrington cautions that it may prove difficult for the Mavericks to re-sign both Jalen Brunson and Dorian Finney-Smith. Caplan suggests that the Mavericks maintain their core players, noting that the team seems capable of fending off most Western Conference contenders. Caplan adds that Raptors point guard Goran Dragic could make a nice addition with the Mavericks, should he get a buyout.
- After acquiring sharp-shooting guard CJ McCollum, forward Larry Nance Jr. and deep-bench reserve Tony Snell from the Trail Blazers today, the Pelicans are clearly hoping to make a play-in tournament push, writes Will Guillory of The Athletic. The club has gone 19-16 in its last 35 contests. Guillory notes that McCollum, an excellent scorer and ball-handler, could prove to be a stellar partner for star forwards Brandon Ingram and, when healthy, Zion Williamson. New Orleans is currently the tenth seed in the West, with a 22-32 record.
Pacers Notes: Turner, Rebuild, Roster, Carlisle
The deal today between the Pacers and Kings that exchanged headliners Domantas Sabonis and Tyrese Haliburton, among others, could prove to be good news for remaining Indiana big man Myles Turner, says Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link).
According to Wojnarowski, Turner seems to be excited to play alongside Haliburton. Turner, currently recuperating from a stress reaction in his right foot, has had another solid-if-injury-plagued season with Indiana. Turner, averaging 12.9 PPG and 7.1 RPG this year, should see additional offensive touches as he shifts over to a full-time center role.
There’s more out of the Hoosier State:
- After opting to move on from two-time All-Star big man Domantas Sabonis, the Pacers will pivot its focus to Turner and budding second-year guard Tyrese Haliburton as they retool their roster, writes James Boyd of the Indianapolis Star. Boyd credits the Indiana front office with making the right call in moving perhaps its best trade chip for a possible future star in Haliburton.
- Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle raved about his team’s new additions tonight, per Scott Agness of Fieldhouse Files (Twitter link). Carlisle praised new wing Buddy Hield as a high-level shooter, and expressed his enthusiasm to work with Haliburton, hailing the latter as “an elite young point guard that affects the game positively in many, many ways.”
- In his first season back with the Pacers since 2007, returning head coach Rick Carlisle has become a key voice as the Pacers make roster decisions with an eye towards the future, according to Joe Vardon of The Athletic. “We’re putting together a path forward that is going to be a little bit different, obviously, after, after today and tonight,” Carlisle said after the team traded veteran wing Caris LeVert in exchange for the expiring contract of injured guard Ricky Rubio and three future draft picks.
Knicks Notes: Robinson, Trade Deadline, Quickley, Randle
Knicks center Mitchell Robinson is uncertain of his long-term future in New York, writes Marc Berman of the New York Post. Robinson will be an unrestricted free agent this summer.
“Whatever happens, happens,” Robinson said of his future with the Knicks. “It’s still in the season. You’re not worried about the offseason or the break.”
Berman notes that the Pistons, Pelicans and Mavericks have all previously been mentioned as being potential suitors for the 23-year-old defensive stalwart during the 2022 offseason.
“He’s very gifted,” head coach Tom Thibodeau said. “I think he’s learned a lot over the last couple of years. I think he knows his opponents a lot better and [he is] a lot stronger than he was three years ago, when he came into the league.”
There’s more out of the City That Never Sleeps:
- The struggling Knicks have plenty of roster decisions to make ahead of this Thursday’s NBA trade deadline. Fred Katz of The Athletic considers which New York players are the best bets to be traded, identifying veteran guards Kemba Walker, Evan Fournier and Alec Burks as this week’s most likely trade candidates. Katz pegs New York native Walker, in the first season of a two-year, $18MM contract he signed in free agency with the Knicks last summer, as the most probable candidate to be shipped out.
- Young Knicks guard Immanuel Quickley has seen his scoring take a dive during his second season, writes Steve Popper of Newsday. Entering tonight’s game, Quickley, who has slid behind Walker and Quentin Grimes in the club’s guard rotation, has connected on just 28.6% from the floor and 28.8% from long range across his last 13 games. “I think when he gets a couple easy shots, then I think he can get into rhythm,” coach Tom Thibodeau said optimistically. “We believe in him. We believe in his shot. He’s got a great shot. Just take the right ones, take the open ones, and if you’re guarded well — you’re seeing more blitzes. You’re getting a lot of attention. Just get off the ball. Don’t fight the pressure.”
- The Knicks have gotten off to an 0-2 start to their current road trip as they continue to search for a cure to what ails them ahead of the encroaching trade deadline. The team has also lost eight of its last ten games overall. Embattled power forward Julius Randle appeared to chalk up the club’s issues on the jaunt to chemistry problems, as Marc Berman of the New York Post details. “I just feel like sometimes we have to be more aware of what’s going on and execute on both ends of the floor,” he said. “We gotta be more aware. A couple possessions in a row that aren’t good possessions, we just gotta be more aware and tighten things up on both ends.” Following an All-NBA 2020/21 season, Randle production and value as a primary scoring threat have fallen off during a mediocre ’21/22 campaign.
NBA Announces Slam Dunk, Three-Point, Skills Challenge Contestants
The NBA has announced a full list of the participants for its three-point, slam dunk and skills challenge competitions ahead of the upcoming 2022 All-Star Weekend in Cleveland.
Per the NBA (Twitter link), the following players will partake in the Mountain Dew Three-Point Contest, which appears to have outpaced the dunk contest as the premiere event for established stars at All-Star Weekend. Four 2022 All-Stars will compete:
- Desmond Bane, Grizzlies
- Luke Kennard, Clippers
- Zach LaVine, Bulls
- CJ McCollum, Pelicans
- Patty Mills, Nets
- Karl-Anthony Towns, Timberwolves
- Fred VanVleet, Raptors
- Trae Young, Hawks
According to the league (via Twitter), these are the contestants in the AT&T Slam Dunk Contest:
- Cole Anthony, Magic
- Jalen Green, Rockets
- Obi Toppin, Knicks
- Juan Toscano-Anderson, Warriors
Below are the NBA’s announced players for the newly revamped Taco Bell Skills Challenge (Twitter link). This year, the Skills Challenge will be divvied up into three teams: Antetokounmpo brothers (“Antetokounmpos”), Cavaliers players (“Cavs”), and rookies (“Rooks”).
- Jarrett Allen, Cavaliers
- Darius Garland, Cavaliers
- Evan Mobley, Cavaliers
- Alex Antetokounmpo, Raptors 905 (Antetokounmpos)
- Giannis Antetokounmpo, Bucks (Antetokounmpos)
- Thanasis Antetokounmpo, Bucks (Antetokounmpos)
- Scottie Barnes, Raptors (Rooks)
- Cade Cunningham, Pistons (Rooks)
- Josh Giddey, Thunder (Rooks)
These three events will take place on All-Star Saturday on February 19.
Gordon Hayward Sidelined Indefinitely With Ankle Injury
The Hornets have ruled forward Gordon Hayward unavailable indefinitely due to a left ankle injury, per the team’s PR department (Twitter link). Charlotte notes that an MRI on the ankle showed sprained ligaments, and that the team will announce any changes in his condition “as appropriate.”
This is a major blow for Hayward, who had just returned to action a few days ago after being in the NBA COVID-19 health and safety protocols for two weeks.
Currently the No. 9 seed in the East with a 28-27 record, Charlotte has a serious chance to earn a postseason berth for the first time since the 2015/16 NBA season. As a valuable two-way forward who can shoot and defend, the former All-Star Hayward has been a key part of the club’s rotation. Across 48 games as the Hornets’ starting small forward, the 31-year-old was averaging 16.1 PPG, 4.6 RPG, 3.6 APG and 1.0 SPG. He boasted a strong shooting line of .460/.390/.846.
The team is led by top scorers LaMelo Ball, a newly-minted injury replacement All-Star, and forward Miles Bridges. The absence of Hayward could lead to an expanded role for P.J. Washington, who had previously been elevated to a starting position during the 6’7″ veteran’s coronavirus-related absence.
Hayward’s injured ankle is the same one he broke in 2017 during his Celtics debut. A long-term absence for the oft-injured vet could necessitate a trade to bolster the team’s playoff chances ahead of the Thursday deadline.
Raptors Notes: Trade Options, Roster Flexibility, Trent, Boucher
The Raptors‘ front office, led by team president Masai Ujiri and GM Bobby Webster, will have a variety of intriguing options ahead of Thursday’s trade deadline, writes Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca. Grange notes that Toronto, a team that has won six straight contests, could look to improve its current roster without wholly sacrificing its future.
The team can offload the $19.4MM expiring contract of veteran point guard Goran Dragic, who has not been with the Raptors since November. Future draft picks and the expiring deal of big man Chris Boucher could also be moved.
The Raptors clearly need to shore up their bench depth, per Grange, who observes that four of the team’s starters rank within the NBA’s top seven in minutes per game. Scoring and passing are particular areas in which Toronto could look to improve. Grange considers Hawks guard Bogdan Bogdanovic and Rockets guard Eric Gordon to be potential targets.
There’s more out of Toronto:
- Beyond seeking a ball-handler or shooter, the Raptors could also be on the prowl for a center at the trade deadline, opines Doug Smith of the Toronto Star. Smith believes that the expiring contract of Dragic equips the club with significant leverage at the deadline. Today’s trades that saw players at the caliber of CJ McCollum, Domantas Sabonis and Tyrese Haliburton changing zip codes have apparently not impacted Toronto’s trade plans. “You always take a look at as far as setting the kind of market value, but I don’t think any of the deals have materially changed that.” Raptors GM Bobby Webster said. “I don’t feel like the value proposition has changed for many teams. They’re still interested in the deals or they’re still not interested.”
- Raptors wing Gary Trent Jr. is much happier with the Raptors than he had been with the Trail Blazers, his father, Gary Trent Sr., told Alex Wong and William Lou of Sportsnet.ca on The Raptors Show With Will Lou. “My biggest thing when I’m watching my son play is the happiness and joy that he plays with now,” the elder Trent said. “My son was depressed and so down and so sad in Portland that watching him play actually used to hurt.”
- Raptors big man Chris Boucher, a possible trade candidate for the club, could just be solidifying his place as a key reserve in the Toronto pecking order with his strong recent play, opines Eric Koreen of The Athletic. Boucher has honed his craft in his fifth NBA season. “He is a good rebounder, but he used to do it (by) just chasing the ball,” head coach Nick Nurse said. “And now we’ve asked him to put his body on people and do it a little bit more, I guess, fundamentally to make sure the other guy doesn’t get it… He’s hanging in there, and, well, he’s really playing well, and that’s a big improvement area for him to go find somebody to hit when a shot goes up.”
Jeremiah Robinson-Earl Breaks Right Foot
Thunder center Jeremiah Robinson-Earl has fractured the third metatarsal in his right foot, the team announced today. The Thunder estimate they will reexamine Robinson-Earl in about six weeks.
The 6’9″ rookie big man, selected with the No. 32 pick in the 2021 draft out of Villanova, has appeared in 44 contests for Oklahoma City this season, starting 36. The 21-year-old has posted averages of 7.1 PPG, 5.8 RPG, 1.0 APG and 0.6 SPG in 23.0 MPG. He has emerged as a bright spot on a young, lottery-bound 16-34 club.
Prior to playing an NBA game for the Thunder, Robinson-Earl inked a four-year, $7.9MM contract with the team, a lucrative deal for a second-round draft pick.
Robinson-Earl was active as recently as January 28 with the Thunder, before being sent to the team’s NBAGL affiliate club, the Oklahoma City Blue, ostensibly to see extended minutes beyond his already-respectable averages as a starter at the NBA level. In his lone game with the Blue on Monday, Robinson-Earl scored 25 points on 60% shooting from the floor. He also chipped in 10 rebounds and a block.
Atlantic Notes: Trent, Celtics, Beal, Harden
Raptors shooting guard Gary Trent Jr. has been proving his mettle as a valuable addition to a scrappy Toronto team, opines Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca. Trent has firmly carved out a role for himself as a starter with the Raptors.
“It’s big,” head coach Nick Nurse said of Trent’s current scoring tear (31+ points in five straight games). “It gives you a huge lift and then he gives you somewhere to go, too, with some play calls and then it usually gives you something to counter back against, too, because he’ll draw so much attention that we can go back to someone else. That’s big.”
After shipping Norman Powell to the Trail Blazers for Trent at the trade deadline last season, the Raptors showed how much they expected out of Trent when they signed him to a three-year, $54MM contract in the offseason. Grange notes that Nurse and the rest of the Raptors organization emphasized their interest in seeing Trent step up as a defender and develop into a more significant three-point catch-and-shoot scorer.
Trent’s season has been so good, writes Josh Lewenberg of TSN, that the 23-year-old may be too valuable to the 26-23 Raptors to use as a potential trade chip ahead of next week’s deadline.
“It’s just the opportunity to shoot and score, unlimited shots, kind of let me go out there and play,” Trent said. “You don’t have to worry about anything. I don’t have to look over my shoulder anymore. If I miss a shot or kick it off my leg, my coaching staff believes in me. They’re allowing me to play and allowing me to roll with the punches.”
There’s more out of the Atlantic Division:
- As the NBA trade deadline approaches, Chris Forsberg of NBC Sports Boston previews potential options available to the Celtics. The team is coming off a hot January, in which it went 10-6 to move to a respectable 28-25 on the season, still only good for the No. 9 seed in the crowded East. Because Boston remains mired in relative mediocrity, Forsberg suggests the club could be in tax-avoidance mode, making big transactions less than likely before the 2022 offseason. That said, Forsberg speculates that the team could opt to offload guards like Romeo Langford or Dennis Schröder, among others.
- The Sixers could face an intriguing opportunity at the trade deadline. Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer ponders what Philadelphia should do if adding Wizards shooting guard Bradley Beal suddenly becomes a viable option. Beal could opt out of the last year of his current deal with the Wizards and become an unrestricted free agent this summer. With that reality in mind as the deadline approaches, Beal could force Washington’s hand and compel the only team he has ever known to trade him. Pompey wonders if the Sixers will consider adding a high-level isolation scorer in his prime, even if Beal is having a down scoring year by his standards and has never been much of a defender. The team’s reluctance to include Tyrese Maxey or Matisse Thybulle in an outgoing trade could limit its ability to add a star player.
- Nets shooting guard James Harden did not mince words when discussing Brooklyn’s current six-game losing slump, per Nick Friedell of ESPN. “I think we’ve done too much talking,” Harden said. “It’s just, we got to go out there and do it, and do it consistently. We have times when we’re great, and we have times when we’re really bad. We just got to find some consistency throughout the course of games more times than not.” It should be noted that Harden, averaging 22.5 PPG, 10.2 APG and 8.0 RPG on the season, said this on a night when he shot 2-of-11 from the floor and netted a total of four points, 12 assists, seven rebounds and six turnovers.