Hawks Notes: Huerter, Okongwu, Bogdanovic, Hunter, Capela, Collins, Hill
The Hawks are engaged in extension talks with Kevin Huerter, and coach Nate McMillan hopes an agreement can be reached before next month’s deadline, tweets Sarah K. Spencer of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Speaking at Media Day, McMillan said the Hawks are “crossing their fingers” that a new deal will happen and the team is laying a foundation by signing core players to long-term contracts this offseason.
Huerter also expressed hope, telling Spencer, “We’re still working. It’s something we’ve kind of worked through throughout the summer. Mostly I let my agent and (general manager Travis Schlenk) handle (it). Obviously I hope to get something done, but there’s no guarantees.” (Twitter link).
Huerter continues to rehab from offseason ankle surgery, and said he’s “95% healthy” heading into the start of training camp (Twitter link).
There’s more from Atlanta:
- Onyeka Okongwu tells Spencer that he hopes to be ready to play in December (Twitter link). The second-year center underwent surgery in July to fix a torn labrum in his right shoulder and was given a six-month timetable for recovery.
- Bogdan Bogdanovic, De’Andre Hunter and Clint Capela entered the offseason with health concerns, but McMillan expects them all to be ready for the October 21 season opener, tweets Chris Kirschner of The Athletic. However, McMillan doesn’t plan for them to see much playing time in the team’s four preseason games. Bogdanovic experienced soreness in his right knee during last season’s playoffs, but recently said he feels completely healthy. Hunter had surgery on his right knee in June, while Capela had to get a PRP injection in his Achilles tendon. He told reporters that he played through an Achilles injury last season (Twitter link).
- Re-signing restricted free agent John Collins was an offseason priority in Atlanta, but he revealed today that he never talked with any other teams, Kirschner adds (Twitter link). Collins reached a five-year, $125MM deal to stay with the Hawks.
- Veteran forward Solomon Hill said his close relationship with McMillan influenced his decision to re-sign with Atlanta (Twitter link). “I knew this is where I wanted to be,” Hill said.
Russell Westbrook Helped Engineer His Trade To Lakers
Russell Westbrook “took control of his situation” when he saw a chance to join the Lakers, according to Bill Oram, Shams Charania and Sam Amick of The Athletic in a thorough look at how the team remade its roster over the offseason.
A Southern California native, Westbrook had dreamed of returning home to play and thought he might be headed to the Clippers along with Kawhi Leonard two years ago. When a second chance emerged with the Lakers in August, Westbrook was determined to make it happen.
He was among several potential additions discussed in a “war room” setting of players that was led by LeBron James and included Anthony Davis and Jared Dudley. They saw Westbrook as an asset because he’s a perennial All-Star who can share playmaking duties with LeBron. However, he still had two years remaining on his contract and the Wizards weren’t looking to move him.
Although The Athletic’s sources say Westbrook would have been willing to stay in Washington if a trade didn’t happen, he decided to act on the morning of the draft when he heard that the Lakers were near a deal with the Kings to acquire Buddy Hield. Westbrook approached Wizards owner Ted Leonsis and asked him to work out a trade with L.A.
Leonsis agreed and Washington general manager Tommy Sheppard called Lakers GM Rob Pelinka to start trade talks. Within a few hours, a deal was in place to give up Westbrook and a pair of second-round picks in exchange for Kyle Kuzma, Montrezl Harrell, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, and the No. 22 selection in this year’s draft.
There’s much more information packed in The Athletic report, which is worth checking out in full. Here are a few highlights:
- Another player who received serious consideration from the Lakers was DeMar DeRozan, who also hails from Southern California and eventually signed with the Bulls. He met twice with James and had several other phone calls. DeRozan’s representatives had concerns over whether the Lakers’ front office was on board with the players’ plans, but sources tell The Athletic that Pelinka “strongly considered” a sign-and-trade offer that would have sent Kuzma and Caldwell-Pope to the Spurs. L.A. couldn’t come to an agreement with San Antonio or on a new contract for DeRozan, and the proposed sign-and-trade never advanced to the stage where it was presented to owner Jeanie Buss.
- The Kings’ front office was left “steaming” over the Lakers’ decision to pull out of the Hield deal. It would have come at a lower cost — only Kuzma and Harrell were needed to match salaries — so the Lakers could have kept Caldwell-Pope and their first-round pick. As an elite three-point shooter, Hield might seem like a more natural fit alongside James and Davis, but the Lakers believe Westbrook will make them a better team in the playoffs.
- With limited resources to fill out their roster after the trade, both James and Westbrook contacted Carmelo Anthony before the official start of free agency. Anthony was still hoping to hear from the Trail Blazers and ultimately received interest from the Knicks and Sixers, but he opted to join James, who was a longtime friend. The chance to win a title attracted other low-cost veterans such as Trevor Ariza, Wayne Ellington and Kent Bazemore to what became the league’s oldest team with an average age of 30.9 years.
- James has always enjoyed close relationships with the veterans on his team and was particularly upset when Dudley wasn’t re-signed. Dudley was 36 and coming off an MCL tear, and the Lakers felt it was important to maximize every roster spot. He was offered other positions with the organization, but opted to become an assistant to Jason Kidd in Dallas.
- James, Davis and Dudley also talked about Damian Lillard and Bradley Beal, but the Lakers didn’t have the assets to land either of them. Sources tell The Athletic that Westbrook tried to convince Beal that they should both ask to be traded out of Washington. Although Beal didn’t agree, he supported Westbrook’s desire to get to L.A. The Lakers’ group also targeted free agent guard Kyle Lowry, who eventually signed with the Heat.
- The Lakers announced an extension this summer with Frank Vogel to avoid having him enter the season as a lame-duck coach. However, multiple sources told The Athletic that the extension only covers one year, which takes Vogel through the end of the 2022/23 season.
- Many people in the Lakers’ organization were frustrated by the decision not to compete with the four-year, $37MM offer that Alex Caruso received from the Bulls, per The Athletic. He has become of the NBA’s best role players after starting in the G League, and many believed he was worth what it would have cost to keep him.
JaKarr Sampson To Play For Italian Team
After spending the past two seasons with the Pacers, JaKarr Sampson has reached an agreement to play in Italy. Virtus Pallacanestro Bologna announced in a press release that it will sign Sampson to a two-year deal that runs through June 30, 2023.
“Jakarr Sampson is a 28 year old athlete, with 200 NBA games of experience, and with characteristics of physicality and dynamism that we believe are useful to our roster,” said general manager Paolo Ronci. “On behalf of Virtus Segafredo I welcome JaKarr, who will be in Bologna in the next few days after completing the paperwork for the issuance of a visa to enter Italy.”
Sampson signed with the Sixers in 2014 after going undrafted out of St. John’s. He also had brief stops with the Nuggets, Kings and Bulls before coming to Indiana in 2019. He got into 29 games last season, starting four, and averaged 4.6 points and 2.7 rebounds in 10.9 minutes per night.
There was a report last month that the Lakers might have interest in Sampson, but without a training camp invitation he decided to play overseas.
Pacific Notes: McNair, Warriors, McGee, Suns
The Kings‘ roster may appear imbalanced, but general manager Monte McNair is satisfied with the group that will gather for training camp, writes Jason Anderson of The Sacramento Bee. Sacramento has eight guards and five centers, but an apparent shortage of depth at the wing. The team will bring 20 players into camp, assuming a reported deal with DJ Steward is finalized by Tuesday.
The most significant offseason addition was Davion Mitchell, who was taken with the ninth pick in the draft. The Kings already have a crowded backcourt, but Mitchell was a Summer League star and could be a difference maker no matter how he is used.
“This is going to be our team going in,” McNair said. “I look at our roster and I see a lot of versatility, guys who can slide up, slide down and really give us different looks. Talking with (coach Luke Walton), I think we’re excited about the possibilities of different lineups, how we can match up in different situations. I think we actually have pretty good roster balance in the sense of, not traditional thinking, but … I think we can put a lot of different lineups out there to match up with whatever we need.”
There’s more from the Pacific Division:
- James Wiseman and Kevon Looney are the only traditional centers on the Warriors‘ roster and the team may not be in the market for another big man, per Ali Thanawalla of NBC Sports By Area. “I think the league has changed quite a bit,” coach Steve Kerr said in a recent appearance on Tim Kawakami’s podcast. “I know if you look at our team historically over the last six, seven years, we’ve always carried a lot of centers. But think about the last part of last season, we played Draymond (Green) at five so much, we even played Juan (Toscano-Anderson) at five. The league seems to be getting smaller and quicker every single year.”
- JaVale McGee is the Suns‘ most important offseason addition, contends Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic. Rankin notes that Phoenix hasn’t had a rim-protecting center to back up Deandre Ayton since he was a rookie, and suggests that McGee can serve another veteran leader in the locker room.
- The Suns get an A-minus from Zach Harper of The Athletic for their offseason moves. Phoenix kept the core of last season’s Finals team together, re-signing both Chris Paul and Cameron Payne, and added depth with McGee and Landry Shamet.
Knicks Notes: Point Guards, Perry, L. Rose, Selden
The Knicks‘ fortunes will depend largely on a pair of veteran point guards with a history of knee issues, writes Marc Berman of The New York Post. The team addressed the position over the offseason by re-signing Derrick Rose and adding Kemba Walker after his buyout with the Thunder.
Rose didn’t have any physical problems after the Knicks acquired him in February. He played 35 games and the only time he missed was due to COVID-19. Walker, however, was slowed by an arthritic left knee all season and managed just 43 games for the Celtics.
“Health, I think it’s a big question for every team, and it’s important (Walker) feels good,’’ coach Tom Thibodeau said. “(Kemba’s) been in. He’s doing a lot of work. And you got to trust him. He understands what he has to do to be ready for a season.’’
There’s more from New York:
- The Knicks plan to continue their approach of gradually building a title contender and won’t look for shortcuts after the surprising success of last season, according to Steve Popper of Newsday. Armed with more than $50MM in cap room, the front office concentrated on roster stability, re-signing much of the team’s core to long-term deals. “We wanted to bring enough of those guys back from last year that started to set a bar for us to get better,” general manager Scott Perry said. “And as you look around the league, teams that improve tend to have a lot of the same guys back. You’ve got to be able to have enough time to develop a core group of guys, so that was reflective of what we did this summer.”
- Addressing the media Friday for the first time in 14 months, team president Leon Rose said there are certain advantages to being a former agent, per Stefan Bondy of The New York Daily News. Rose came to the Knicks from CAA, where he used to be one of the NBA’s most influential dealmakers. “I think being an agent gives me a great perspective from the other side of the table, and allows me to have a greater understanding of the things we come up against every single day and the way the other people think,” Rose said. “So I think it’s a huge benefit.”
- Wayne Selden‘s new deal with the Knicks is an Exhibit 9 contract, according to Spotrac. As Bondy explains (via Twitter), the non-guaranteed deal offers protections for the team if Selden is injured during training camp.
Yogi Ferrell In Talks With Greek Team?
9:25am: A source told JD Shaw of Hoops Rumors (Twitter link) that no deal between the sides is imminent. Ferrell continues to keep his options open for an opportunity with an NBA team.
9:15am: Yogi Ferrell, who was waived by the Clippers three weeks ago, is in talks to join Panathinaikos in Greece, writes Dario Skerletic of Sportando. The news was first reported by Gazzetta.gr.
The 28-year-old point guard appeared in eight games for L.A. last season after joining the team in April on a 10-day contract and then signing for the rest of the year. He also played two games for the Cavaliers in January and averaged a combined 5.6 points, 1.9 rebounds and 2.2 assists for the season. In addition, Ferrell was in the G League bubble with the Salt Lake City Stars.
He had a non-guaranteed $1.98MM salary for the upcoming season, but the Clippers decided to explore other options for backcourt help. The Thunder were rumored to have interest in Ferrell, but it appears he will be headed overseas.
Ferrell began his career with the Nets in 2016 after going undrafted out of Indiana. He later signed with the Mavericks and enjoyed his best season in 2017/18, playing all 82 games and averaging 10.2 PPG. He then spent two years with the Kings and signed an Exhibit 10 contract with the Jazz last offseason, but never played for Utah.
Nets Notes: Marks, Big Three, Aldridge, Two-Way Slot
The Nets welcome their role as favorites as the new season approaches, writes Brian Lewis of The New York Post. Brooklyn was expected to win the title last season after acquiring James Harden to go with Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving, but injuries made it rare that all three were on the court at the same time. With a deeper bench to to back up the Big Three, the Nets are honest about what they hope to accomplish.
“Our goal is to be the last team standing,” general manager Sean Marks said. “There’s probably, six, eight, 10 teams that have that same similar goal, and a realistic one. For us it’s about owning that and not shying away from it and doing everything we possibly can … to try and accomplish that. We’ve also got to take into account that it’s a long season. Anything can happen, as we’ve seen over the course of last year.”
Marks has been hoping to negotiate extensions with all three stars to give the team a championship window that will last for several years. He reached a four-year deal with Durant last month and would like to have similar arrangements soon with Harden and Irving.
“We’re looking forward to sitting down with them over the course of the next week, two weeks, and furthering those discussions,” Marks said. “Those guys know exactly how we feel, and they’ve been vocal about wanting to be part of this and build this together. We’ve got an opportunity to hopefully build something special here for the foreseeable future. … They want to collaborate, they want to come here together, they want to build this together.”
There’s more from Brooklyn:
- The Nets were thrilled to bring back LaMarcus Aldridge, who received medical clearance this summer after being forced into retirement last season with a heart condition, per Greg Logan of Newsday. Aldridge provides some familiarity for a team that returns just eight players from last year’s postseason squad. “I thought he added a lot to our room,” coach Steve Nash said. “Unfortunately, we didn’t get to see much of him on the floor, but he was an experienced, skilled, versatile big that knows how to play and was adding a lot to our collective IQ. So we’re excited to have him back.”
- Brooklyn got a grade of B-plus for its offseason moves from Zach Harper of The Athletic. The addition of Aldridge, along with Patty Mills and Paul Millsap, gives the Nets a collection of low-cost veterans who can complement their stars, Harper states.
- The battle for an open two-way slot will be one of the intriguing things to watch in training camp, writes Tom Dowd of NBA.com. Rookie free agent David Duke Jr. and recently signed Devontae Cacok will be among the candidates, but the Nets could decide to leave the position open and wait for cuts from other teams, like they did when they signed Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot in 2019.
Nuggets Notes: Barton, Bol, Porter, Gordon
Nuggets swingman Will Barton has fully recovered from the hamstring injury that forced him to miss most of the playoffs and he’s looking forward to the start of training camp, writes Eric Spyropoulous of NBA.com. Entering his 10th season, Barton is the longest-tenured player on Denver’s roster. It appeared he might be headed elsewhere when he declined a $14.7MM player option this summer, but he wound up re-signing for two years at $32MM.
“This is the best I’ve felt going into a season in two years,” Barton said. “So, I feel like I’m rejuvenated really. I got to really work on my game this offseason, I didn’t get to do that last year.”
During last year’s shortened offseason, Barton was immobilized by an injured right knee and said he had to step away from the game to avoid getting depressed. This year, he immersed himself in basketball and spent a lot of time studying opponents on film when he wasn’t in the gym.
“I’m so excited man. I haven’t been this excited in a while just to be feeling good, knowing I put the work in, knowing I got a lot of work in and got better,” Barton said. “We have a good team. Like I said, we have a lot of good guys and a lot of good talent.”
There’s more from Denver:
- The Nuggets’ status as a contender has limited the opportunities for Bol Bol, but he may be ready for a breakthrough as he heads into his third season, per Mike Singer of The Denver Post. Bol stands 7’3″ but has the skills of a smaller player. That can be an asset on offense, but it’s often a liability on defense as his height and thin frame make it difficult for him to guard either inside or on the perimeter. With a compressed schedule last season, Denver rarely was able to practice, which left little time to experiment with the best ways to use Bol. “Our first three years, we were developing, and young guys were given the opportunity to play, and more importantly, play through all their mistakes,” coach Michael Malone said. “Well, Bol doesn’t have that option, man. It’s all trying to be homecourt advantage in the playoffs.”
- The clock is ticking for Michael Porter Jr. to get a contract extension before the season starts, but he’s not fretting about the outcome, Singer adds in a separate story. Porter said he trusts agent Mark Bartelstein to act in his best interests. “I love basketball,” he said. “It’s not too stressful for me about the money stuff. Of course that’s part of it. I’m just trying to stay in the gym and get better.”
- The Nuggets saw enough from Aaron Gordon in his two and a half months with the team to be comfortable giving him a four-year extension, president of basketball operations Tim Connelly said on a podcast with Singer and Mark Kiszla of The Denver Post. Connelly said the team was particularly impressed by Gordon’s ability to adapt to a new role after being acquired at the trade deadline.
Warriors Sign Langston Galloway To Training Camp Deal
SEPTEMBER 25: Galloway’s deal with Golden State is now official, according to the transactions log at RealGM.
SEPTEMBER 24: Free agent guard Langston Galloway will sign a training camp contract with the Warriors, tweets Shams Charania of The Athletic.
Galloway, 29, went to the NBA Finals with the Suns last season after signing with the team in free agency. However, he was unhappy with his role, playing just 11.0 minutes per night in 40 games, and expressed a desire to join a new team after the season ended.
Galloway broke into the league with the Knicks after going undrafted out of St. Joseph’s in 2014. He also spent time with the Pelicans, Kings and Pistons, averaging 8.2 PPG in 445 career games while shooting 37% from three-point range.
Once the signing is official, Golden State will have 18 players heading into camp with 13 fully guaranteed contracts. The Warriors have been in touch with several other guards, including Avery Bradley, Isaiah Thomas and Darren Collison, and it’s not clear how the addition of Galloway will affect the team’s interest in them.
Sixers Notes: Wall, Simmons, Embiid, Training Camp
John Wall‘s contract and injury history prevent him from being a realistic option for the Sixers as they try to work out a Ben Simmons trade, writes Derek Bodner of The Athletic. The Rockets and Wall have agreed that he won’t play again until he’s traded elsewhere, but Philadelphia president of basketball operations Daryl Morey is looking for a far greater return for Simmons than the 31-year-old point guard.
Wall will make $44.3MM this season and has a $47.4MM player option for 2022/23, which means he, Joel Embiid and Tobias Harris would take up a huge chunk of the Sixers’ salary cap over the next two years. Philadelphia can only take back about $39.5MM by trading Simmons, so the team would have to include at least one more player in any deal for Wall.
Wall played just 40 games last season, which was his first after returning from an Achilles injury. Although he averaged 20.6 points, 3.2 rebounds and 6.9 assists per night, there are concerns about his overall game and his fit alongside Embiid due to his limited outside shot. Bodner believes the Rockets would have to include several high-value draft picks to get Morey’s attention and doesn’t see the teams as realistic trading partners.
There’s more from Philadelphia:
- ESPN’s Brian Windhorst hears that Sixers fans are part of the reason Simmons wants to leave. Appearing on SiriusXM NBA Radio, Windhorst says Simmons’ relationship with the city soured last season (hat tip to Alek Arend of The Spun). “It’s not just that he doesn’t wanna play there anymore,” Windhorst said. “He doesn’t want to be in front of those fans. I don’t think he ever intends to show his face there again unless he’s part of the visiting team.”
- The Simmons drama will continue to hang over the Sixers until he either reports to the team or is traded, states Marcus Hayes of The Philadelphia Inquirer. Simmons has insisted that he won’t be present when training camp opens this week, and he reportedly turned down an offer to meet with teammates who want to smooth over the situation. Hayes contends that Simmons’ stance shows a lack of concern for his teammates, the organization that made him the No. 1 overall draft pick in 2016, and the fan base that has supported him.
- Gina Mizell of The Philadelphia Inquirer looks at several other training camp storylines, including how Embiid adjusts in the post-Simmons era, the development of second-year guard Tyrese Maxey and other young players, and the addition of Andre Drummond, who has a long-simmering rivalry with Embiid.