Mike Conley To Play In Game 3
2:30pm: It has been confirmed that Conley will be available for today’s pivotal third game of the Nuggets-Jazz quarterfinals playoff series, per Eric Walden of the Salt Lake Tribune (Twitter link).
9:48am: The Jazz will have point guard Mike Conley back in their lineup for today’s playoff game with the Nuggets, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN. He is in the process of clearing quarantine and is expected to be ready for tipoff.
Conley left the Disney World campus on Sunday to be present for the birth of his son in Columbus, Ohio. He returned late Monday, giving him just enough time to complete his quarantine requirements by today.
Utah gained a split in its two games without Conley, dropping an overtime decision in Monday’s opener, then bouncing back with a 19-point win on Wednesday. Conley averaged 18.0 points and 5.0 assists in six seeding games, and his presence could give the Jazz an advantage for the rest of the series.
Draft Notes: Potential Trades, Warriors, Mock Drafts
Thursday’s lottery results could produce a wave of trades before draft day, writes John Hollinger of The Athletic. The former Grizzlies executive believes the Warriors, who landed the second overall selection, will try to swap the pick for more immediate help and lists the Hawks, Knicks, Wizards, Suns, Kings and possibly even the Timberwolves as other lottery teams that may be active on the trade market.
Hollinger proposes a couple of moves for Golden State, which also has a $17MM trade exception from last summer’s Andre Iguodala deal. He suggests offering the second pick to the Thunder for Shai Gilgeous-Alexander or to the Hawks for John Collins, although Atlanta hopes to make the playoffs next season and may not be interested in dealing for the future.
Hollinger adds that the Knicks may want to package their picks at No. 8 and 27 to move up in the draft for one of the top point guards, the Wizards have incentive to improve quickly before Bradley Beal gets a chance to leave again and the Suns possess cap space to take on another player and have playoff aspirations after going undefeated in Orlando.
There’s more draft news to pass along:
- Salary cap concerns may make it difficult for the Warriors to find an appealing deal, according to Kevin Pelton of ESPN. Counting its draft pick, Golden State already has more than $150MM in committed salary for next season, which puts the franchise far into the lottery tax, even if the threshold remains at this year’s figure of $132.7MM. Trading the No. 2 pick for a player with a $17MM salary could leave the Warriors with a record-setting $103MM tax bill and a total payroll of nearly $270MM.
- The eight teams not in Orlando were relieved that the Grizzlies, Pelicans, Kings, Spurs, Suns and Wizards didn’t move up in Thursday’s lottery, notes Zach Lowe of ESPN. He cites resentment among some of the non-invited teams that they didn’t get a chance to form chemistry the way Phoenix did, and one general manager said it would have been “our worst nightmare” if any of those teams had jumped into the top four.
- Georgia guard Anthony Edwards tops the latest mock draft released by Sam Vecenie of The Athletic. Most NBA executives agree that Edwards is a top-three prospect, Vecenie writes, and many think his physical tools give him the highest upside in this year’s class. LaMelo Ball is the No. 1 choice in a mock draft compiled by Jonathan Givony of ESPN.
Jim Pallotta To Sell Minority Stake In Celtics
Jim Pallotta will sell his 8% share of the Celtics, sources tell Scott Soshnick of Sportico. Three people confirmed the planned deal, which hasn’t yet been approved the NBA.
Pallotta’s stake will be purchased by Steve Pagliuca, a managing partner and executive committee member of the Celtics. Pagliuca is among the team’s majority stakeholders, along with Wyc Grousbeck.
A managing director at Bain Capital, Pagliuca will acquire the share at a $2.8 billion valuation, according to Soshnick. The Celtics’ value was listed at $3.1 billion in the latest estimate by Forbes, but sales of minority stakes in teams usually come at a 10-30% discount, Soshnick explains, because they don’t include control or voting rights.
Pallotta recently sold AS Roma, a Serie A soccer team, which his group purchased in 2011. The sale came after his unsuccessful attempt to get a new stadium.
Teams Believe 2020 Draft Day May Be Delayed
Team executives are skeptical that the league will be able to hold its draft on the scheduled date of October 16, according to Zach Lowe of ESPN, who was in the drawing room for last night’s lottery.
Lowe cites doubt that the NBA and its players union can agree to firm salary cap figures for next season in time for the draft or free agency, which is set to begin two days later.
The salary cap is determined by the projected revenue for the following season, which is based on the league’s revenue from the previous season, Lowe explains. However, this year featured a disastrous economic downturn brought on by a dispute with China and the loss of paying customers due to the coronavirus.
Neither NBA officials or the union want next year’s cap to be determined by that, so it’s possible that this year’s $109MM figure might be carried over into next season with a larger portion of players’ salaries being placed into escrow so they don’t exceed their guaranteed share of revenue.
Lowe expects the process to require extensive negotiations, which could delay free agency into November or December. It may also result in a complete rewriting of the collective bargaining agreement, although he states that neither side wants that.
The league normally provides the final cap number sometime between the draft and the start of free agency, but the current schedule only provides a 48-hour window. Lowe also notes that the draft marks one of the most active times of the year for trades, and teams will be reluctant to make moves involving veteran players without knowing the cap figure.
Some executives have suggested changing the rules so teams can only trade picks before the draft, but many organizations make those decisions with an eye on free agency, which may not have a set date when draft night arrives. Lowe says the league may decide to keep its current draft plans in place or it could try to race through negotiations so it can provide teams with preliminary cap estimates. He emphasizes that nobody really knows at this point what the solution will be.
Damian Lillard Dislocates Finger, Plans To Play In Game 3
Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard dislocated his left index finger in last night’s loss to the Lakers, but he insists he’ll be ready when the series resumes Saturday, writes Baxter Holmes of ESPN.
“Oh, I’m playing,” Lillard said after the game, later adding, “It’s just sore. A little bit tender to the touch.”
The injury occurred in the third quarter when Lillard tried to slap the ball away from Anthony Davis, who was driving to the basket. He was taken out of the game, which L.A. was leading handily at the time, and didn’t return. X-rays showed there was no break.
Lillard told reporters this is the first time he has dislocated a finger, and he tried to pull it back into place before receiving medical attention.
“[The staff] had to put it back for me, and at that point, I thought it was broken,” Lillard said. “I was just frustrated because I had to go back and get it looked at. I was just frustrated. It was just bad timing. I handle the ball a lot, so just knowing there’s going to be some discomfort, I don’t know how that’s going to feel or how that’s going to go. It’s frustrating. That’s all it was.”
Lillard has been spectacular since arriving at the Disney World complex, helping the Blazers rise out of a pack of contenders to claim the eighth seed in the West. He has averaged 36.6 PPG in Orlando and was a unanimous choice for MVP of the seeding games.
Draft Notes: Ball, Edwards, Madar, Hayes
ESPN’s Mike Schmitz examines the unusual path LaMelo Ball has taken to become a potential No. 1 pick in this year’s draft. Ball first gained notice when he skipped eighth grade so he could play a season in high school with his brothers Lonzo and LiAngelo. Since then, he has grown from 5’11” to 6’7″ and has taken a circuitous route through Lithuania, his father’s basketball league (JBA) and Illawarra in the NBL.
Several NBA general managers and executives told Schmitz they consider Ball to have the most star power in the draft and expect him to be selected in the top two or three. However, questions remain about the quality of competition he has faced and whether LaVar Ball will provide a distraction like he did when Lonzo was with the Lakers.
There’s more draft news ahead of tomorrow’s lottery:
- This year’s draft class is among the most balanced in recent memory, and many teams would privately prefer to pick second or third to avoid the spotlight that comes with the top choice, according to Jeremy Woo of Sports Illustrated. He previews what’s at stake for all 14 teams involved in tomorrow’s drawing and cites the Warriors as the most intriguing. Woo suggests that if Golden State decides to keep its pick, it may prefer someone with more of a fully developed game, such as Obi Toppin or Tyrese Haliburton, rather than a talented project like Anthony Edwards, James Wiseman or Ball.
- Edwards remains at the top of the latest mock draft from ESPN’s Jonathan Givony. He states that Edwards, Ball and Wiseman have become a consensus top three, but a shortage of information resulting from the postponement of the draft combine and a ban on in-person interviews continue to make this year’s draft unpredictable. Rounding out Givony’s top five, in order, are Wiseman, Ball, Israeli forward Deni Avdija, and USC big man Onyeka Okongwu.
- Israeli point guard Yam Madar confirmed his signing with CAA Sports, tweets international basketball writer Donatas Urbonas. Sources tell Urbonas that the 19-year-old has received “strong interest” from NBA teams after a good performance in the Israeli League playoffs. Madar, who projects as a possible late second-round pick, is training in Las Vegas.
- Shams Charania of The Athletic posted a video chat with French point guard Killian Hayes, a possible lottery selection.
Nets’ Joe Harris Leaves Disney World For Non-Medical Issue
The already short-handed Nets will have an even tougher time trying to get back into their series with the Raptors. Joe Harris has left the Disney World campus to deal with a non-medical personal matter, tweets Shams Charania of The Athletic.
Harris played 39 minutes in today’s Game 2 loss, scoring 14 points and pulling down 15 rebounds. The status of his return will be updated later, according to Brian Lewis of The New York Post (Twitter link). However, because Harris would have to quarantine for at least four days upon returning, it won’t matter unless Brooklyn can significantly extend the series.
ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski suggests that Harris’ quarantine period might be even longer than four days, tweeting that the Nets will have to extend the series to six or seven games for the 28-year-old to play again, based on “the circumstances of his departure.”
The sharpshooting swingman averaged 14.5 PPG this year and helped the Nets reach the playoffs in a season where Kevin Durant was unavailable and injuries limited Kyrie Irving to 20 games.
Zach Collins Has Stress Reaction In Ankle
An MRI conducted today on Trail Blazers forward Zach Collins revealed a Malleolar stress reaction in his left ankle, tweets Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports. His condition will be re-evaluated in a week.
Collins missed Game 1 of Portland’s playoff series with the Lakers because of what was believed to be inflammation in the ankle. Wenyen Gabriel took his place in the starting lineup and produced four points, three rebounds and three assists in nearly 16 minutes.
The NBA’s restart provided a fresh opportunity for Collins, who missed most of the season after having surgery on his left shoulder. He played in all eight seeding games, averaging 6.3 points and 7.1 rebounds per night.
And-Ones: Ujiri, COVID-19 Testing, Injury Policy, P. Gasol
Raptors president Masai Ujiri has filed a countersuit in connection with an incident at Oracle Arena last year on the night his team won the NBA title, writes Laura Armstrong of The Toronto Star. The 108-page claim, filed Tuesday in an Oakland court, relates to an altercation with security guard Alan Strickland, who tried to stop Ujiri from going onto the court to celebrate with the Raptors.
The suit includes a body-cam video allegedly showing that Ujiri wasn’t the aggressor in the dispute. Ujiri can be seen trying to pull out his team credentials before Strickland grabs him by the jacket and pushes him backward, according to Armstrong.
“After being shoved and cursed at, Mr. Ujiri did not respond aggressively toward Mr. Strickland,” the lawsuit states. “… Rather than trying to communicate with Mr. Ujiri, Mr. Strickland chose to dismiss Mr. Ujiri’s claim that he was the Raptors’ president and ignore the all-access credential Mr. Ujiri was trying to show him. Mr. Strickland then forcefully shoved Mr. Ujiri a second time.”
Here are more odds and ends from around the basketball world:
- The NBA’s “bubble environment” at the Disney World complex continues to be a success. The league announced today that the latest round of testing produced no positive results among the 341 players tested (Twitter link).
- The league is changing its policy on reporting injuries, tweets Shams Charania of The Athletic. Teams have been told they must be specific about reasons why players are sidelined rather than using general terms such as conditioning, reconditioning, soreness and fatigue. “If a player has been diagnosed with a fracture of any type, the team’s public injury report must disclose the injury even if the player is certain to play in the team’s next game,” the memo states.
- If Pau Gasol is going to make a comeback next season, it won’t be with Barcelona, according to Emiliano Carchia of Sportando. Team president Josep Maria Bartomeu said his franchise can’t afford Gasol. “He is a person who has helped us a lot, he is an ambassador for Barcelona and represents us in the U.S.,” Bartomeu said. “He is an NBA star, and Barcelona would hardly pay what he asks.” There was speculation of a deal in July, but that later fell through.
- Stanton Kidd, who briefly played for the Jazz this season, has signed with Ormanspor in Turkey, Carchia writes in a separate story. The small forward started the season with Utah, but was waived in November after appearing in four games.
Injury Notes: Porzingis, Beverley, Oladipo, J. Brown, Westbrook
Mavericks center Kristaps Porzingis has been upgraded to probable for tonight’s game against the Clippers, tweets Shams Charania of The Athletic. He had been listed as questionable with irritation in his right knee, similar to the condition that forced him to miss 10 games in December and January, adds Tim MacMahon of ESPN (Twitter link). The ACL tear Porzingis suffered in 2018 was in his left knee.
Dallas may need a huge effort from Porzingis to even up the playoff series. He posted 14 points and six rebounds before being ejected early in the third quarter of Game 1, which may have been the turning point in L.A.’s victory.
There’s more injury news to pass along:
- Clippers guard Patrick Beverley is listed as questionable for tonight with a left calf strain that forced him to miss the final five seeding games, according to Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN (Twitter link). Beverley was able to play 20 minutes in the series opener, but was limited by foul trouble.
- The Pacers have “no immediate concerns” about guard Victor Oladipo, who was poked in the eye during Monday’s game, writes Nick Friedell of ESPN. Oladipo played just 8:34 in the loss, as the injury happened in the first quarter and coach Nate McMillan never considered putting him back in the game. “It wasn’t an option,” McMillan said. “His vision was really blurry, really couldn’t see out of his eye when we spoke to him at halftime, and he was going to get that checked out.” Oladipo, who is listed as day to day, was able to participate in today’s walkthrough (Twitter link from Ira Winderman of The Sun-Sentinel).
- The Celtics are listing Jaylen Brown as probable for today’s game with a right thigh bruise, tweets Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer. Brown suffered the injury in a collision with Sixers center Joel Embiid in the second half of Game 1 and was able to remain in the game.
- Rockets guard Russell Westbrook continues to make progress in recovering from a strained quardriceps muscle, writes Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle, but coach Mike D’Antoni said he’s still not cleared to take the court and there’s no timetable for him to return. “I don’t know how long it’s going to take,” D’Antoni said. “It’s going to take a little bit. He’s working hard and he’s feeling better every day. The images are looking better. But I think it’s too early to say how many days he’s out. I don’t think anybody knows.”