And-Ones: Lowry, Summer League, EuroLeague, Mudiay
The destiny of unrestricted free agent veteran Raptors point guard Kyle Lowry this offseason will be a key story to monitor. The Athletic’s writers engaged in entertaining mock Lowry free agency negotiations this week, acting as Lowry’s agent, Mark Bartelstein, and team reps for the Raptors, Heat, Mavericks, Knicks, and Sixers. In the exercise, Lowry ultimately selected the Heat.
The 35-year-old Lowry, a six-time All-Star and a 2019 champion with the Raptors, averaged 17.2 PPG, 7.3 APG, and 5.4 across 46 games during the 2020/21 season. He posted a shooting line of .436/.396/.875.
Here are some other odds and ends from around the basketball world today:
- The NBA has announced its COVID-19 health and safety protocols ahead of the upcoming 2021 Summer League in Las Vegas, tweets Shams Charania of The Athletic. There are significant differences between the restrictions placed on fully-vaccinated players and non-vaccinated players, ranging from quarantine restrictions to the frequency of testing for the novel coronavirus and permitted activities while in Las Vegas.
- The EuroLeague has reached an agreement with its players’ association, the ELPA, on the first unified CBA across the league, per Alessandro Maggiuro of Sportando.
- Lithuanian EuroLeague club Zalgiris Kaunas may sign recent former NBA lottery pick Emmanuel Mudiay, writes Donatas Urbonas of BasketNews.com. The 6’3″ point guard opted to bypass college ball and turned pro after high school, playing with the Guangdong Southern Tigers of the CBA during the 2014/15 season. He was selected by the Nuggets in the 2015 draft with the No. 7 pick, and served stints with the Knicks and Jazz. He last played in the NBA for Utah during the 2019/20 season.
Kings, Lakers Have Discussed Possible Buddy Hield Trade
The Lakers, not satisfied with their first-round playoff exit in 2021, are apparently on the hunt for some shooting help in the offseason. According to Shams Charania of The Athletic, Los Angeles has talked with the Kings about a possible trade for shooting guard Buddy Hield.
Charania reports that such a deal that would likely see L.A. reserve power forward Kyle Kuzma headed to Sacramento, a team loaded with power forwards. The Lakers have received interest in Kuzma from multiple teams, Charania adds.
Kuzma inked a three-year, $40MM contract extension during the 2020 offseason that kicks in during the 2020/21 season. He averaged 12.9 PPG and 6.1 RPG on .443/.361/.691 shooting in 68 games (28.7 MPG) in 2020/21.
As for Hield, he had a stellar individual season in Sacramento, averaging 16.6 PPG, 4.7 RPG, and 3.6 APG, with a shooting line of .406/.391/.846. The 28-year-old swingman is under team control through the 2023/24 season, on a declining deal that will pay him $22.8MM this year, $20.8MM in 2022/23, and $18.9MM in its final year.
Several Lakers guards are unrestricted or restricted free agents this summer, so adding a sharpshooter in his prime with the pedigree of Hield to help spread the floor and allow Lakers superstars LeBron James and Anthony Davis room to operate makes sense on paper.
According to Charania, pursuing a Hield trade is just one possible path the Lakers could go down, as the team is also expected to show interest in free agent guards like Kyle Lowry, DeMar DeRozan, and Spencer Dinwiddie. All three are said to be interested in playing in L.A.
Raptors May Pursue RFA Jarrett Allen
Cavaliers center Jarrett Allen, a restricted free agent this summer, could be a target for the Raptors, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic, who says Toronto is expected to be one of Allen’s “strong” suitors. The Raptors are in clear need of an upgrade at the five spot.
Charania hears that the Cavaliers and Allen are both interested in a long-term agreement, so the Raptors may have to overpay if they hope to pry the 23-year-old Allen away from Cleveland. Charania notes that Toronto has tried to trade for Allen on prior occasions.
The Raptors could create upwards of $25MM in cap room this summer to make a run at Allen, but that would require the team to renounce Kyle Lowry and likely waive Chris Boucher.
After being dealt to Cleveland courtesy of the Nets early in the 2020/21 season as part of the trade that sent All-Star James Harden to Brooklyn, Allen thrived while with the underperforming Cavaliers. He averaged 13.2 PPG, 9.9 RPG, and 1.4 BPG across 51 contests.
Having let veterans Serge Ibaka and Marc Gasol depart for the two Los Angeles teams during the 2020 offseason, the Raptors pivoted by adding Aron Baynes and Alex Len to shore up the middle. Len was eventually waived. When Baynes proved overtaxed, the Raptors opted for small-ball lineups with Boucher frequently playing center.
Central Notes: Turner, Pacers, Moran, Pistons
The Pacers have talked about a deal that could send center Myles Turner to the Warriors, Kevin O’Connor of the Ringer said in a recent podcast with Chris Vernon (h/t BasketballNews.com).
The Warriors possess two lottery picks in this Thursday’s 2021 NBA draft, the No. 7 and No. 14 selections. A mobile, defensive-oriented center who can guard multiple positions and is a career 35.2% shooter from deep, Turner could be an excellent fit in Golden State. The 25-year-old big man averaged 12.6 PPG, 6.5 RPG and 3.4 BPG across 47 games during the 2020/21 season.
There’s more out of the Central Division:
- The Pacers will be holding their eighth pre-draft workout on Monday, tweets Scott Agness of Fieldhouse Files. The Pacers have the No. 13 pick in the upcoming draft. The players set to partake are Marcus Burk of IUPUI, Trevion Crews of Bethel College, Kyle Mangas of Indiana Wesleyan, Matt Mitchell of San Diego State, Jordan Schakel of San Diego State, and Aaron Wiggins of Maryland.
- The Pistons intend to hire former Trail Blazers assistant Jim Moran to Dwane Casey‘s coaching staff for the 2021/22 season, tweets James L. Edwards III of The Athletic. Moran served under former Portland head coach Terry Stotts from 2015/16 through this past season.
- Beyond the top selection in the 2021 NBA Draft, the Pistons also have three second-round picks. In a recent column, James L. Edwards III of The Athletic examines some options for Detroit while conducting a mock draft.
Central Notes: Bulls, Pistons, Pacers Workouts
After the Bulls mortgaged their long-term future to nab 2021 All-Star center Nikola Vučević in a deadline deal with the Magic, they still missed out on a play-in tournament appearance. The club is understandably anticipated to be seeking roster upgrades this summer, especially at the point guard position, writes Matt Moore of the Action Network.
Moore suggests that free agent point guards Kyle Lowry, Dennis Schröder, Lonzo Ball, and Spencer Dinwiddie are among Chicago’s preferred targets. Given the ages of the Bulls’ two best players – 30-year-old Vučević and 25-year-old All-Star Zach LaVine – 35-year-old veteran Lowry may not be a long-term fit, but would certainly raise the team’s floor for the 2021/22 season.
There’s more out of the Central Division:
- The Pistons will get to choose from a handful of highly-touted NBA prospects with the top selection of the 2021 draft. Where Detroit opts to go in the second round of the draft is less clear. In a new piece, James L. Edwards III of The Athletic examines several possible draft-and-stash prospects the Pistons could pursue in the second round. Detroit has the Nos. 37, 42 and 52 picks in the second round. Edwards examines the fits of several draft candidates, including Zalgiris Kaunas guard Rokas Jokubaitis, Minas wing Guilherme Santos, Paris Basketball guard Juhann Begarin, and Antwerp Giants forward Vrenz Bleijenbergh.
- Among 2020/21 season holdovers, the Pistons will face some interesting roster decisions in the summer, writes Keith Langlois of Pistons.com. Langlois notes that restricted free agents Hamidou Diallo and Frank Jackson, forward Josh Jackson, deep-bench center Jahlil Okafor, 2019 draft selections Sekou Doumbouya and Deividas Sirvydis, and guard Tyler Cook all could move on during the offseason.
- The Pacers are set to hold their sixth round of pre-draft workouts Tuesday, per a team press release. The club possesses the No. 13 pick in the 2021 draft, as well as the No. 54 and No. 60 picks in the second round. Indiana will work out Kansas guard Marcus Garrett, South Carolina guard A.J. Lawson, Alabama guard John Petty Jr., Tennessee forward Yves Pons, Mississippi State guard D.J. Stewart Jr., and Clemson forward Aamir Simms.
Atlantic Notes: J. Johnson, Duarte, Fournier, Sixers
The Knicks will have a great opportunity to add some immediate help in the 2021 draft, stocked with two first-round and two-second round picks. David Vertsberger of Yahoo Sports examines the pros and cons of intriguing Duke small forward Jalen Johnson in a new piece.
The 19-year-old Johnson appears to have a high upside, per Vertsberger. He has exhibited flashes of being a solid playmaker and dangerous transition option at the next level. Defensive-oriented Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau might enjoy working with Johnson, who should be a valuable contributor on that end of the floor thanks to his athleticism and size (6’9″ with a 6’11” wingspan).
Vertsberger cautions that Johnson’s long-range jump shooting is the biggest question mark in his game, as he took just 1.4 three-point attempts a night during his lone season at Duke (though he did convert 44.4% of them). He also made just 63% of his free-throw attempts, a low number for a ball-handler. Johnson is currently listed as a late-lottery prospect on ESPN’s big board. The Knicks possess the No. 19, No. 21, No. 32 and No. 58 picks this year, so if they want Johnson, they may need to move up.
There’s more out of the Atlantic Division:
- 6’6″ three-and-D Oregon wing Chris Duarte could be a perfect fix for what ails the Knicks in this year’s 2021 draft, writes Marc Berman of the New York Post. “I’m ready to step in,’’ the 24-year-old said during a Zoom interview with reporters Friday. “No doubt in my mind, [Duarte is] good enough for an NBA rotation now,’’ Oregon assistant coach-turned-DePaul head coach Tony Stubblefield raved. “And he’s ready to impact winning in an NBA franchise. He’s still got more upside to his game.’’ This season, Duarte won the Jerry West Award, given to the country’s top shooting guard, and was honored as the Pac-12 Player of the Year by The Associated Press. Duarte averaged 17.1 PPG, 4.6 RPG, 2.7 APG and 1.9 SPG. His shooting percentages are encouraging too: he averaged .532/.424/.810. ESPN projects Duarte to be available within the range of where New York will be selecting, as a mid-to-late first-rounder.
- Now that Nuggets shooting guard Will Barton will opt out of the final season of his contract this summer, the free agent market for swingmen has gotten that much more competitive. Brian Robb of MassLive suggests that this could help the Celtics retain free agent wing Evan Fournier. Robb notes that no more than five-to-10 clubs will have the salary cap space to add players for more than the full $9.7MM mid-level exception, and thus Barton’s availability could mean one fewer team is in the mix to lure Fournier away with a big-money offer.
- Wells Fargo Center, home court to the Sixers, is soon set to resume its $300MM renovation, which had been paused due to the COVID-19 pandemic. New club level seating tweaks will be added this fall, and further improvements will be built next summer. Mike Sielski of The Philadelphia Inquirer wonders if the club will opt to remain at Wells Fargo long-term or will continue pursuing the rumored construction of their own arena. The team’s lease with Wells Fargo expires in 2031. Sielski notes that the improvements to Wells Fargo could entice Sixers ownership to stay. “I don’t want to get into speculation about how the Sixers think about this,” Valerie Camillo, Wells Fargo’s president of business operations, said. “The Sixers know we want them to stay.”
Pacific Notes: Booker, Ayton, Lakers, Draft
After falling 123-119 to the Bucks, the Suns find themselves on the brink of losing the 2021 NBA Finals. They have their sights squarely set on a must-win Game 6 on Tuesday. Mark Medina of USA Today opines that the club may be relying too much on the production of 24-year-old All-Star shooting guard Devin Booker.
“We know what Book can do with the ball, but the one thing we talked about was getting to the paint, finding guys on the back side,” Suns head coach Monty Williams said of the ball sticking with Booker. “We feel like that’s a formula.”
Medina contends that the Suns suffered due to their dependence on Booker to bail out possessions with isolation scoring.
There’s more out of the Pacific Division:
- Suns center Deandre Ayton – who has thrived during a breakout postseason, his first playoff appearance – welcomes the challenge of a must-win Game 6, writes Mark Medina of USA Today. “I like it. It’s fun; the tables are turned now,” Ayton said. “Now we’re the desperate team. We had our chances of being up and trying to finish the job, now we’re in the same position that they were in. They’re up, and now we got to go get it. That’s why it’s a little bit more fun.” The top pick in the 2018 draft, Ayton is eligible for a contract extension during the 2021 offseason. His recent play should earn him a maximum-salary offer or something close to it.
- The Lakers, who own the No. 22 pick in the upcoming 2021 draft, hosted 6’5″ Illinois guard Ayo Dosunmu and 6’4″ Tennessee guard Jaden Springer during their latest pre-draft workouts Saturday, per Broderick Turner of the Los Angeles Times. Both guards are good shooters who could help space the floor for L.A.
- The Lakers need to land a win-now type of player in the 2021 draft with their No. 22 selection, opines Kyle Goon of the Orange County Register. Goon notes that the Lakers front office, under the stewardship of Rob Pelinka, last retained a first-round pick through the draft in 2018, when the club selected center Moritz Wagner out of Michigan — however, Wagner did not last long in L.A., having been sent to Washington in the Anthony Davis blockbuster. The team appears determined to add shooting this offseason — Los Angeles has examined versatile guard prospects and stretch forwards thus far.
Omri Casspi Announces Retirement
1:54pm: Casspi announced his retirement decision in a press conference today, writes Ennio Terrasi Borghesan of Sportando.
1:31pm: Ten-year NBA veteran forward Omri Casspi will retire from professional basketball, tweets James Ham of NBC Sports Bay Area.
Casspi, now 33, was selected with the No. 23 pick in the 2009 NBA draft by the Kings. The first Israeli NBA player to be drafted in the first round, Casspi logged two tours of duty in Sacramento, playing with the Kings from 2009-11 and again from 2014-2017.
Casspi also had NBA stops with the Cavaliers, Rockets, Timberwolves, Pelicans, Warriors and Grizzlies. He most recent NBA season was 2018/19, Casspi’s lone year with Memphis.
A 6’9″ tweener who saw time at both forward positions, Casspi boasts NBA career averages of 7.9 PPG, 4.0 RPG, and 1.1 APG. He will retire with an NBA shooting line of .454/.368/.678.
More recently, Casspi played the prior two professional seasons in Israel, where he also had started his pro career in 2005. He primarily played for Maccabi Tel Aviv during his two Israeli League tenures (2005-2009 and 2019-21), but was loaned to Hapoel Galil Elyon during the ’06/07 season.
Pelicans Plan To Hire Willie Green As Head Coach
JULY 16: Green is expected to be officially hired after the Finals, Andrew Lopez of ESPN tweets.
JULY 13: The Pelicans plan to hire Green as their next head coach, reports Shams Charania of The Athletic. The two sides are working through the final stages of the process, Charania adds.
JULY 12: Current Suns assistant coach Willie Green appears to have become the strong favorite to nab the position of Pelicans head coach, writes Andrew Lopez of ESPN.
Lopez is the latest to name Green as the frontrunner for the job. Christian Clark of NOLA.com said the same thing over the weekend, as did Fletcher Mackel of WDSU (Twitter link).
Green, 39, has served as an assistant with Phoenix during the past two seasons under head coach Monty Williams. He is currently facing off in the NBA Finals against the Bucks. Bucks assistant coach Charles Lee had been floated along with Green last week as one of New Orleans’ preferred candidates.
Green was also a Warriors assistant coach under Steve Kerr from 2016-19, winning two titles with the club in 2017 and 2018. Green has appeared in four NBA Finals as an assistant coach.
Lopez writes that Green’s skill in building relationships with players has made him an especially appealing contender for a head coaching position. Green was a 12-year NBA pro, and actually suited up alongside current starting Pelicans guard Eric Bledsoe on the Clippers during the 2012/13 season. Green played for New Orleans during the lockout-abbreviated 2010/11 NBA season, prior to the club’s re-brand as the Pelicans.
Pacific Notes: S. Barnes, C. Thomas, Hield, Williams
Versatile Florida State point forward Scottie Barnes possesses some of the same qualities that make Warriors veteran Draymond Green such a valuable teammate, writes Kendra Andrews of NBC Sports Bay Area. Barnes also is an unselfish player who prioritizes defense and winning over personal statistics, and could be an intriguing successor to Green if he falls to Golden State’s No. 7 pick in the upcoming 2021 draft.
Though Barnes was a below-average jump shooter in college, Andrews notes that his Green-esque impact could offset his modest scoring contributions. In his lone season for FSU, the 6’9″ Barnes averaged 10.3 PPG, 4.1 APG and 4.0 RPG, with a shooting line of .503/.275/.621.
There’s more out of the Pacific Division:
- LSU guard Cameron Thomas is scheduled to work out for the Warriors this Wednesday, tweets Nick Friedell of ESPN. The 6’4″ guard averaged 23.0 PPG, 3.4 RPG and 1.4 APG during the 2020/21 NCAA season. He posted a shooting line of .406/.325/.882.
- Kings shooting guard Buddy Hield faces a potentially tenuous future with the club, as he touched on in a podcast interview with Yahoo Sports’ Chris Haynes. “I see my name in trade rumors, but I can’t control all that,” Hield said. “My job is to go out there and play basketball and everybody’s goal is to get to the playoffs and win a championship.” The Kings have not made the playoffs since 2006. Hield has two years left on the four-year, $86MM contract extension he signed with Sacramento during the 2019 offseason.
- Suns head coach Monty Williams notes that Nets head coach Steve Nash, a former two-time MVP while a point guard for Phoenix, reached out to him over text during the playoffs, tweets Mark Medina of USA Today. “It spoke to me about how those guys feel about the Suns and the fanbase,” Williams said.