Draft Notes: Black, Whitehead, Henderson, Hornets, Porter
In an interview with Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link), Arkansas guard Anthony Black describes himself as an unselfish player who’s willing to do whatever it takes to help his team win. Black displayed impressive passing skills during his freshman year with the Razorbacks, but he said he can defend, rebound and score as well.
Black, who grew up admiring Gilbert Arenas and Kobe Bryant, compares himself to Oklahoma City’s Josh Giddey among current players. Like Giddey, Black is exceptionally tall for a point guard and he uses his 6’7″ height to his advantage.
“I think it helps in my reads,” Black said. “I watch a lot of film, so I’m watching some of the film from the season and some of my reads I’m making just looking straight. There’s a defender, but he’s not tall enough to block it. I can read the back line of the defense a lot easier, I feel like, than a smaller guard who could be guarded by someone with some length and disrupt the passing lane.”
There’s more on the draft:
- The second surgery needed by Duke forward Dariq Whitehead wasn’t caused by a re-fracture of his right foot, tweets Jonathan Wasserman of Bleacher Report. A source tells Wasserman that Whitehead has met with several teams picking late in the lottery as well as teams with multiple first-round selections. He hasn’t been able to work out, but he’s gone through film sessions and met with head coaches, executives and medical personnel.
- The Hornets haven’t set a date for their workout with Scoot Henderson, according to Roderick Boone of The Charlotte Observer. The G League Ignite guard visited the Trail Blazers over the weekend and indicated that he will only work out for Portland and Charlotte. Boone notes that workout days usually aren’t publicized far in advance, and Henderson lives in Georgia so it wouldn’t take him long to get to the Hornets’ facility.
- The Hornets are hosting a workout today with Texas’ Timmy Allen, Baylor’s Adam Flagler, Florida’s Alex Fudge, Michigan State’s Joey Hauser, Southern Utah’s Tevian Jones and North Carolina State’s Terquavion Smith (Twitter link).
- Craig Porter Jr. has already conducted workouts with the Mavericks, Warriors, Celtics, Pistons, Magic and Cavaliers, and he has upcoming sessions with the Clippers, Wizards, Nuggets and Knicks, according to a tweet from Global Scouting. The Wichita State guard is a potential late second-round pick.
Heat Notes: Vincent, Lillard, Robinson, Undrafted Players
Gabe Vincent showed Heat teammate Bam Adebayo that he could handle a starring role during an exhibition game in the summer of 2021, writes Ira Winderman of The Sun-Sentinel. In what was expected to be an easy tune-up for Team USA as it prepared for the Olympics, Vincent scored 21 points as Nigeria surprised the Americans.
“Man, when he torched us in the Olympics, in the exhibition game facing Nigeria,” Adebayo said. “He came out with that type of energy, that type of voracity and that type of anger. I felt like, from there, he’s one of us.”
It took a while for Vincent to make his breakthrough in Miami, but it happened when Kyle Lowry was sidelined for a few games with knee soreness earlier this season. Vincent stepped into the starting point guard role and has kept it through the NBA Finals.
“Our stars, Jimmy (Butler), Kyle, Bam, they have just been in my ear and telling me just to play, play basketball,” he said. “They trust my IQ of the game, and they want me just to go out there and play hard.”
There’s more from Miami:
- In an appearance on Showtime’s “The Last Stand,” Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard names the Heat as one of the teams he would consider if he ever decides to ask for a trade, relays Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald. “Miami obviously,” Lillard said. “Miami is the obvious one. And Bam is my dog. Bam is my dog for real. Miami is the obvious one. Brooklyn is another obvious one, because Mikal Bridges is my dog too.”
- Duncan Robinson has been able to salvage his season after falling out of the rotation for a while, notes William Guillory of The Athletic. Robinson said he had to focus on incremental improvement every day as he tried to regain coach Erik Spoelstra’s trust. He provided a huge momentum shift in Miami’s Game 2 win with 10 points in a little over two minutes at the start of the fourth quarter. “We knew they were a really good team and we just needed to come out with a sense of urgency in that fourth,” Robinson said. “It was kind of like a now or never sort of thing.”
- John Hollinger of The Athletic is the latest analyst to examine the Heat’s penchant for finding productive undrafted players. He notes that many of Miami’s G League finds began their careers with other organizations, adding that team president Pat Riley showed the same ability to uncover undrafted gems in New York.
Dariq Whitehead Has Second Foot Surgery
Projected first-round pick Dariq Whitehead underwent a second surgical procedure on his right foot this week, reports ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, who adds that the Duke forward is expected to be ready when training camps open in late September.
Whitehead’s first foot surgery was performed last August, and Dr. Martin O’Malley of the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York called the latest procedure a “revision operation with bone grafting for a fifth metatarsal Jones fracture,” according to Wojnarowski.
“He will begin his rehab process in two weeks and should be ready for full participation at the start of NBA training camp,” O’Malley told ESPN.
Whitehead was considered a 10-top draft prospect when he committed to Duke, and he was able to recover from the first surgery to play 28 games. He averaged 8.3 PPG and shot 43% from three-point range as a freshman with the Blue Devils.
Whitehead, who is projected at No. 26 in ESPN’s latest mock draft, has met with several teams during the pre-draft process, including some in the lottery, sources tell Wojnarowski.
Damian Lillard: “I Want To Have An Opportunity To Win”
Damian Lillard talked more about whether he wants to finish his career in Portland in an interview with Erick Savage on Showtime’s “The Last Stand” (video link).
Lillard has said numerous times that he prefers to remain with the Trail Blazers, but only if the team is able to compete for a title. He noted the good fortune that the organization received by landing the No. 3 pick in this year’s lottery and seemed to send a message to Blazers management to use it wisely.
“I want to have an opportunity to win in Portland,” Lillard said. “… We got an opportunity, asset-wise, to build a team that can compete. If we can’t do that … then it’s a separate conversation we would have to have.”
Lillard made a statement after the end of the regular season that he’s “not interested” in rebuilding and wants the front office to seek out veterans rather than add more young talent in the draft. The Blazers are widely reported to be doing just that, shopping their first-rounder to see what they can get in return.
While Lillard has never directly asked Portland’s management for a trade, rumors that’s he’s unhappy with the direction of the organization have persisted for a long time. The team has missed the playoffs the past two years, even though Lillard is coming off the highest-scoring season of his career.
In the interview, Savage asks Lillard if it’s time for the Blazers to move him to a contender.
“I think that’s a loaded question,” Lillard responded, “because they could trade me to somewhere that we all say, you know, ‘This is a contender.’ But what is it going to cost for me to get there? What is it going to cost that team that we’re saying is a contender for me to get there? And how is it a guarantee that we’re gonna be playing in June when I get there? How do we know if everybody’s gonna be healthy? How do we know if it’s gonna work out?”
Lillard stated that he doesn’t want to end up in a situation like Russell Westbrook did with the Lakers. Although there was optimism when Westbrook arrived, he quickly became an outcast in L.A. and Lillard said the team “had him coming off the bench like he’s not a Hall of Famer.”
Lillard admits nothing is guaranteed no matter where he goes, but added that he has made his wishes clear to Blazers management.
Draft Notes: Wembanyama, Lively, Mocks, Lewis, Warriors, Wizards
Las Vegas is a glitzier setting for Victor Wembanyama‘s first game with the Spurs, but the NBA won’t be upset if it happens in Sacramento instead, writes Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press. San Antonio is one of six teams involved in the California Classic Summer League, which will take place during the first week of July — shortly before the Las Vegas showcase that includes all 30 teams.
“All summer leagues are NBA Summer Leagues,” commissioner Adam Silver said. “I’m very supportive of the Sacramento summer league. I remember when (Kings owner Vivek Ranadive) first came to the league and said this was something he wanted to do. I said, ‘As long as you have enough other teams who support it and players who want to play in it, it’s a good thing.’”
Reynolds points out that the Hornets will also be playing in Sacramento, so the top two picks in this year’s draft could be on display.
There’s more draft news to pass along:
- Dereck Lively II may be the second-best shot blocker in the draft outside of Wembanyama, per Christian Clark of NOLA. The Duke center has reportedly been rising up draft boards and could be under consideration for the Pelicans at No. 14. Clark notes that Lively’s skills are still raw and he’s coming off a disappointing season with the Blue Devils, but he points out that New Orleans has a history of gambling on players with size and athleticism.
- Lively is mentioned among the risers in the latest mock draft from Krysten Peek of Yahoo Sports. Joining him are Wembanyama’s teammate, Bilal Coulibaly, and UCLA’s Amari Bailey.
- Ausar Thompson might be a better fit than his brother for the Rockets with the No. 4 pick, according to Jonathan Givony and Jeremy Woo of ESPN (Insider link). In their latest mock draft, the authors consider team fit as well as talent in projecting the first round. Among the surprises with fit factored in are Gradey Dick going No. 6 to the Magic and Amen Thompson slipping to the Wizards at No. 8.
- Pepperdine’s Maxwell Lewis will hold a workout with the Pelicans this week after already having sessions with the Mavericks and Thunder, who are also in the lottery, tweets Jonathan Wasserman of Bleacher Report. In addition, Lewis has worked out for the Hawks at No. 15, the Lakers at No. 17 and the Rockets at No. 20.
- The Warriors hosted Kansas State’s Keyontae Johnson and Kansas’ Jalen Wilson for a workout on Monday, tweets Adam Zagoria.
- The Wizards are holding a workout on Tuesday with Arkansas’ Ricky Council, Memphis’ Kendric Davis, Marist’s Patrick Gardner, Overtime Elite’s Jazian Gortman, Alabama-Birmingham’s Trey Jemison and Providence’s Noah Locke, the team announced in an email.
Celtics Notes: Cassell, Lee, Mazzulla, Brown
Sam Cassell was the perfect choice to fill the role of lead assistant to Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla, writes Jared Weiss of The Athletic. Cassell held the same position on Doc Rivers’ staff with the Sixers and was universally liked throughout the organization, Weiss adds.
After losing Damon Stoudamire to Georgia Tech in March, Boston needed an ex-player on its bench who could relate to the team’s stars as well as those who rarely play, Weiss notes. He states that Cassell was responsible for keeping James Harden focused in Philadelphia and helped to develop Tyrese Maxey.
The Celtics have a lot of open spots to fill on the coaching staff, especially if Ben Sullivan, Mike Moser, Garrett Jackson and possibly Aaron Miles are joining Ime Udoka in Houston, as rumored. Weiss suggests that Boston might consider other Sixers coaches such as Dave Joerger, Dan Burke and Jamie Young, who spent several years with the Celtics as an assistant to Rivers and Brad Stevens, along with Jerome Allen, who coached under Dwane Casey with the Pistons.
There’s more from Boston:
- Charles Lee, who was one of the finalists for Detroit’s head coaching job, is under consideration to join the Celtics as an assistant, tweets Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports. However, Lee “remains involved in several situations,” Fischer adds.
- Former Celtics boss and current Jazz CEO Danny Ainge is a strong supporter of Mazzulla after watching his first year as a head coach, per Dan Shaughnessy of The Boston Globe. Ainge says the players never quit on Mazzulla, despite accusations after Game 3 of the conference finals, and he adapted and learned as he made his way through the playoffs. “You see Joe’s toughness and stubbornness,” Ainge said. “He’s a relentless worker. He has a passion to learn. Joe is a leader, and I think this was a difficult situation with the high expectations the team had coming in. I don’t think there’s anybody there that doesn’t believe that Joe is better than Ime (Udoka) as a coach.”
- Steve Bulpett of Heavy.com talks to several rival executives and coaches who believe the Celtics should keep Jaylen Brown and re-sign Grant Williams. “I hear fans up there are debating whether to give Brown the super-max, but at some point the numbers don’t really matter,” one general manager said. “First of all, the guy is one of the better players in the league. Start there. I know people are all upset about his last game, and sure he was bad, but that was a team-wide collapse. Just take a step back and look at where he is and what he can do. The guy can play.”
Grizzlies Notes: Morant, Jackson, Bane, Adams
Adam Silver will wait until after the NBA Finals to announce Ja Morant‘s punishment for his latest gun-related incident, but the commissioner dropped some hints about the length of a potential suspension during his press conference last week, writes Mark Giannatto of The Memphis Commercial Appeal.
Giannatto examines five statements from Silver to get an idea of what Morant’s suspension might look like. He suggests that the commissioner seemed more disappointed than angry about Morant’s behavior when he talked about creating “better circumstances going forward” for the Grizzlies star.
Silver mentioned the involvement of the players’ union in the process, which Giannatto believes may be encouraging for Morant. He points out that no player has ever been suspended for more than 30 games without being charged with a crime and theorizes that the NBPA won’t let that happen to Morant without putting up a fight.
There’s more on the Grizzlies:
- Appearing on Paul George‘s podcast, Jaren Jackson Jr. expressed support for Morant and said he’s holding up well amid the likelihood of suspension, relays Damichael Cole of The Commercial Appeal. “He’s good,” Jackson said. “That’s my brother, though. No matter what, I stand by my brother, and I think that’s the lesson everybody should take away from this. … Everybody is going to say whatever, but they’re everybody. It never matters at the end of the day. This is your family. This is your brother.”
- The absence of Morant will make this an especially important season for Desmond Bane, Cole adds in a separate story. Bane, who will be on the final year of his rookie contract, will have to assume a larger leadership role on the team and Cole states that he might have All-Star potential. Cole also points to Santi Aldama, Ziaire Williams, Kenneth Lofton Jr. and Tyus Jones as players to watch heading into next season.
- The Grizzlies never fully recovered after losing Steven Adams to a right knee injury in January, Cole states in another Commercial Appeal piece. The team’s starting center appeared in a career-low 42 games this season and was especially missed in the playoffs when Memphis was outmuscled in a first-round loss to the Lakers. Cole adds that in addition to his rebounding, the Grizzlies also missed Adams’ screen setting and his leadership as the oldest player on the team.
Mavericks Notes: LeBron, Irving, Van Gundy, Draft
Although Kyrie Irving‘s desire to have the Mavericks trade for LeBron James is unrealistic, Dallas is a market the Lakers star would consider if he ever decides to leave L.A., Marc Stein writes in his latest Substack column.
Sources tell Stein that the Mavs began investigating their chances of landing James last season before they acquired Irving in February. The organization understands that James would have to take the initiative in asking for a trade to Dallas for the move to become possible, according to Stein’s sources.
There’s no indication that James will consider requesting such a deal, Stein adds, with his family settled in Los Angeles and his oldest son committed to play for USC. Stein also points out that instead of trying to break up the team’s foundation of James and Anthony Davis, the Lakers opted to rebuild around them and wound up in the conference finals.
Stein’s theory is that it benefits Irving to show the Mavericks that he might have some value as a recruiter who can attract high-level talent to Dallas. It’s believed throughout the league that Dallas wants to re-sign him to a team-friendly contract, so reaching out to James may be a negotiating ploy.
Stein adds that not much has changed for either the Mavericks or the Lakers since their seasons ended. L.A.’s priority will be to keep free agents Austin Reaves and Rui Hachimura, while the Mavs plan to re-sign Irving and try to trade their first-round pick for veteran help. Stein cites two sources who told him Monday that Irving is happy in Dallas and wants to stay there.
There’s more on the Mavericks:
- Dallas will reach out to ESPN analyst Jeff Van Gundy to see if he is interested in returning to the sidelines as an assistant coach, Stein reports in another Substack piece. Van Gundy’s last NBA coaching job was 16 years ago, but he has done some international work with Team USA since then. League sources tell Stein that the Mavericks still have interest in adding Jeff Hornacek to Jason Kidd’s staff.
- Tim Cato of The Athletic looks at seven potential trades the Mavs could make with their No. 10 pick. He proposes deals with the Raptors, Hawks, Nets, Kings and Pelicans.
- If the Mavericks keep their pick, the new front office will focus more on athleticism and physicality more than shooting or other skills, Cato adds in a separate story. Team and league sources tell Cato that Dallas isn’t likely to have interest in Kansas sharpshooter Gradey Dick, who may still be on the board in that range.
Nuggets Notes: Malone, Jokic, Strategy, Game 3
Nuggets coach Michael Malone was incredulous about the way his team approached Game 2 of the NBA Finals, writes Mike Singer of The Denver Post. With a chance to take control of the series, the Nuggets came out flat Sunday night, allowing Miami to start the game on a 10-2 run.
“We had guys out there that were just whether feeling sorry for themselves for not making shots or thinking they can just turn it on or off. This is not the preseason, this is not the regular season,” Malone said. “This is the NBA Finals. That to me is really, really perplexing, disappointing.”
Malone was particularly upset about “miscommunication, game-plan breakdowns, personnel breakdowns” that enabled the Heat to shoot 17-of-35 from three-point range. He cited slow rotations and called for his players to start making contact with Miami’s shooters as soon as they cross mid-court.
“Those are guys that we are supposed to have a heightened awareness to,” Malone said. “As I mentioned after Game 1, the fact that they got 16 wide-open threes was concerning. They didn’t make them. So we got lucky in Game 1. ”
There’s more from Denver:
- Nikola Jokic had 41 points Sunday night, but Miami was able to disrupt the Nuggets’ offense by turning him into more of a scorer than a passer, notes Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN. Jokic had 10 assists by halftime in Game 1, but only four overall in Game 2. “They just put us in their rhythm,” Jokic said. “And we didn’t want to play that way, and they want to, obviously. But maybe just to play a little bit faster is going to help us.”
- Malone explained his decision to not call a timeout on the final possession of the game with his team trailing by three points, per Bennett Durando of The Denver Post. Denver wound up with a step-back three-point shot by Jamal Murray that spun out. “Some nights, yeah, I think we can take the timeout,” Malone said. “Other nights, give our guys the freedom to get out and run. But with how well they were guarding in that quarter and how hard it was for us to generate looks, I felt in that transition we had the best chance to get the look that we wanted.”
- Sunday’s game marked the Nuggets’ first home loss of the playoffs and the first time they haven’t held a 2-0 lead in a series, states Parker Gabriel of The Denver Post. The team will be facing real adversity for the first time in the postseason as the series resumes Wednesday at Miami. “I think we understand what’s at stake,” Jeff Green said. “They did what they were supposed to do. They came in here, got a split. Now they’re going home, and I think we have to go in there worried about Game 3. We can’t worry about Game 4. We have to worry about Game 3.”
Kyrie Irving Wants Mavericks To Pursue Trade For LeBron James
The Lakers may not have interest in a sign-and-trade deal for Kyrie Irving, but sources tell Shams Charania of The Athletic that Irving has reached out to LeBron James to see if they can reunite in Dallas (Twitter link).
That report meshes with a story by Chris Haynes of Bleacher Report, who hears from league sources that Irving wants the Mavericks to pursue an offseason trade for James to form a new Big Three alongside Luka Doncic.
Sources tell Haynes that Dallas was preparing to make an offer for James before this year’s trade deadline. However, that would not have been possible, as James was ineligible to be traded after signing an extension last summer.
James has dropped hints about wanting to play alongside Irving again, and the Lakers were reportedly strong candidates to acquire him when he considered opting out of his contract last summer and again when he asked the Nets for a trade in February.
L.A.’s asking price for James would surely be exorbitant if the team would consider a trade at all. He has one year remaining on his contract at $46.9MM and then a player option for the 2024/25 season worth $50.65MM.
Haynes points out that penalties imposed by the new Collective Bargaining Agreement will make it extremely difficult for any team to carry three max-salary players. He states that Irving and James would both have to take significant pay cuts to make the arrangement work and suggests that the most viable path for James to get to Dallas would be to demand a buyout with the Lakers, which Haynes admits is extremely unlikely.
James has a good relationship with Doncic, so that wouldn’t be an impediment to a potential deal, Haynes adds. He’s also close with head coach Jason Kidd, who formerly served as a Lakers assistant, as well as assistant coach Jared Dudley, an ex-teammate.
Re-signing Irving remains Dallas’ top priority for the offseason, sources tell Haynes. Even though they missed the playoffs, the Mavs see a bright future for their All-Star backcourt and are determined to keep Irving after giving up two rotation players and three future draft picks to acquire the 31-year-old guard from Brooklyn.