Atlantic Notes: Knicks, Thomas, Butler, Theis
Any dreams the Knicks may have had about teaming up Jimmy Butler and Kyrie Irving next season appear to be dead, writes Zach Braziller of The New York Post. The Sixers are considered likely to re-sign Butler to a long-term contract after acquiring him from Minnesota in a deal that should become official tomorrow. That follows Irving’s declaration last month that he intends to remain with the Celtics when he hits free agency.
Butler and Irving are friends and there was talk earlier this year that they might be interested in teaming up in New York, with Butler “liking” an Instagram comment that suggested such a move. New York would have needed to trade for one of them, then sign the other next summer. The Knicks were on the list of teams that Butler gave the Timberwolves when he first made his trade request, but they never seemed interested in making a deal.
The Knicks’ options to land a franchise-changing star in free agency are beginning to dwindle, Braziller notes, and their success may depend on getting Kevin Durant or Kawhi Leonard to consider New York.
There’s more from the Atlantic Division:
- Knicks forward Lance Thomas had been experiencing knee pain for weeks before deciding to have surgery on Thursday, tweets Ian Begley of ESPN. “Lance is our leader and we just [want to] get him back feeling good and get him back in that locker room with his voice,” coach David Fizdale said. Thomas will be re-evaluated in about a month, with Kevin Knox and Mario Hezonja expected to get more minutes while he’s sidelined. Fizdale may also use bigger lineups with Noah Vonleh at power forward (Twitter link).
- Sixers center Joel Embiid got a positive report on Butler when he reached out to Timberwolves stars Andrew Wiggins and Karl-Anthony Towns, relays Tim MacMahon of ESPN. Even though Butler clashed with both players during his time in Minnesota, they expect him to be a positive influence in Philadelphia. “They thought that he was going to be good for us,” Embiid said. “They thought that we were definitely going to get along. He wants to win. Wiggs told me that he thought that we were going to win the East for sure.”
- Celtics center Daniel Theis, who has been sidelined with a plantar fascia tear since October 27, hopes to return next week, tweets A. Sherrod Blakely of NBC Sports Boston.
Texas Notes: Anthony, Gordon, Harris, Gasol
The Rockets’ discussions with Carmelo Anthony are related to a possible reduction in playing time moving forward, according to Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle. Eric Gordon returned to the lineup Saturday night after missing three games with a hip injury, and rookie Gary Clark has moved into the rotation with his impressive play, particularly on defense. That may leave even less time for Anthony, who is already averaging a career-low 29.4 minutes per game in his first season in Houston.
The Rockets have been using Anthony as a backup power forward, hoping to expand his minutes when the matchups permit it. However, the team’s offense has been so bad that it has been forced to keep games close through defense, which isn’t Anthony’s strong point.
Feigen adds that the illness that kept Anthony out of Saturday’s game was legitimate, not a negotiating ploy. However, he states that Anthony will have to decide whether he wants to remain with the franchise if it means an even smaller role.
There’s more this morning out of Texas:
- Gordon should get a little break from trade rumors now that Jimmy Butler has been dealt to the Sixers. Frequently mentioned as part of an offer to Minnesota, Gordon told Kelly Iko of The Athletic that he understands the business side of the league. “All I can do is go out there and play,” he said. “The only tough thing is some of your friends always come to you with, ‘Do you think you’re gonna be traded?’ That’s the only annoying thing. At the end of the day I’m just a basketball player and I have to control what I can control.”
- A hamstring injury that forced Devin Harris to miss 10 games may have sparked the Mavericks veteran to consider coaching, relays Eddie Sefko of The Dallas Morning News. Harris, who returned to the lineup Saturday, said he got a different perspective on the game while sidelined. “I’ve kind of been forced to in our situation, just trying to help get everybody on the same page, what I see as a player, what I see that the coaches want and try to mend that together,” he said. “I see what drives Coach crazy sometimes, but I also see the players’ frustrations.”
- The Spurs aren’t releasing much information on Pau Gasol‘s condition, but he probably won’t be with the team on its three-game road trip, tweets Jabari Young of The Athletic. The team is calling it “soreness,” but Gasol had a walking boot on his left foot last night.
Behind The Scenes Of The Jimmy Butler Trade
After two months of trying to make a dysfunctional situation work with Jimmy Butler, the Timberwolves finally reached their breaking point after an 0-5 road trip, writes Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic.
A combination of losing, economic concerns and the stress of not knowing from game to game if Butler was going to be available became too much for team officials. The Wolves, who left home with a .500 record but returned at 4-9, were worn down by the pressure that Butler has been applying since making his trade request two months ago.
Sources tell Krawczynski that coach/executive Tom Thibodeau, who had been resisting a trade while trying to convince Butler to stay, informed his coaching staff after the latest loss that a deal had to be made. Owner Glen Taylor stepped in Saturday and finalized the trade with the Sixers.
Minnesota had three offers to consider before pulling the trigger on the package that brought Dario Saric, Robert Covington, Jerryd Bayless and a 2022 second-round pick from Philadelphia in exchange for Butler and injured center Justin Patton. Philadelphia made its latest offer on Wednesday, resuming discussions after a disappointing start to the season. The Rockets, who offered four first-round picks, never stopped pursuing Butler, while the Heat remained steadfast in their refusal to include Josh Richardson in any deal.
The schedule also factored into the timing of the Butler deal, Krawczynski adds. Attendance has plummeted as Wolves fans have grown tired of watching their team feud with its star player. The organization has been offering discounted ticket packages, but with 10 of its next 12 games at home, management wanted to resolve the situation to get paying customers back on their side.
There was also concern about the effect that the precedent that was being set for Karl-Anthony Towns, Andrew Wiggins and any other young players who will eventually be free agents. Butler has been allowed to set the terms of the dispute without consequence, whether through provocative public statements about teammates and the front office, well-publicized confrontations at his first practice and day-to-day decisions on whether “general soreness” would keep him out of the lineup.
Players had grown tired of answering questions about Butler after every game, Krawczynski reports, and the situation had become too much of a distraction to continue. The Wolves finally decided the cumulative effect of dealing with Butler was too much and sent him away less than 18 months after he arrived.
Community Shootaround: Sixers New Eastern Favorite?
The Sixers went through the offseason without adding a third star to join Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons, but they finally got their man today when an agreement was reached to acquire Jimmy Butler from the Timberwolves.
A four-time All-Star, Butler figures to provide immediate improvement on offense and defense. He will help Simmons with playmaking duties and will give Philadelphia another proven shot maker. At 29, he provides some veteran leadership on an otherwise young team along with a fiery presence.
This appears to be the start of a long-term relationship, although nothing is set in stone because Butler is expected to opt out of his $19.8MM salary for 2019/20 and become a free agent. Philadelphia will have nearly a whole season to watch Butler in action before committing to a new five-year contract that would be worth nearly $190MM.
Today’s deal provides a measure of vindication for a franchise that had two big misses during the summer. The Sixers were the only other team LeBron James met with before deciding to sign with the Lakers. And even if LeBron always had his heart set on L.A., Kawhi Leonard was a much more realistic target. Philadelphia was reportedly in the running to land Leonard before the Spurs opted for Toronto’s offer of DeMar DeRozan and Jakob Poeltl.
The Sixers drew criticism for taking their time in replacing former president of basketball operations Bryan Colangelo. He resigned from his position in early June and Elton Brand wasn’t installed as GM until mid-September, leaving a group effort in charge of the team during some of the NBA’s most crucial months.
Brand quieted much of that criticism today, with some help from owner Josh Harris, who reportedly closed the deal in direct talks with Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor. The East’s new Big Three is now in place in Philadelphia and the Sixers appear to have a roster that can make a run at a title.
We want to get your opinion on how today’s trade shakes up the Eastern Conference. Are the Sixers the new favorites or are they still a notch below the Raptors, Bucks and Celtics? Please leave your responses in the space below.
Carmelo Anthony Discussing Role With Rockets
There are signs that Carmelo Anthony‘s stay in Houston may not be a long one, tweets ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. Anthony and the team are having discussions about his current role and “how they might still be able to proceed together for the rest of the season.” Wojnarowski adds that talks remain fluid.
Houston has been among the league’s most disappointing teams with a 4-6 start, and much of the blame has fallen on Anthony, who signed as a free agent over the summer. The Rockets have opted to use Anthony primarily off the bench, as he has started just two of 10 games and is averaging a career-low 29.4 minutes per night.
The shooting problems that plagued him last year in Oklahoma City have followed him to Houston, as he is hitting just 40.5% from the field and 32.8% from 3-point range. His effort on defense has also been questioned as the Rockets have fallen into the bottom third of the league in defensive rating after being seventh overall last season.
Parting ways with Anthony wouldn’t present a huge financial loss for Houston, which signed him to a veteran’s minimum contract. He received full payment from the Hawks on his $25,534,253 salary when they waived him in July after acquiring him from the Thunder.
The Rockets had been trying to add Anthony for several years, meeting with him as a free agent in 2014, then attempting to trade for him in the summer of 2017. Anthony had told the Knicks that Houston was the only team he would waive his no-trade clause to join, but he relented near the start of training camp when the Thunder made an offer.
NBA G League Assignments/Recalls: 11/10/18
Here are Saturday’s assignments and recalls from around the NBA:
- Grizzlies rookie Jevon Carter was on the move today, being recalled from the Memphis Hustle, reassigned for the G League team’s practice, then recalled again for tonight’s NBA game, according to a tweet from the Grizzlies.
- The Thunder recalled Abdel Nader from Oklahoma City Blue, the team announced in an email.
- The Magic sent rookies Isaiah Briscoe and Melvin Frazier to their Lakeland affiliate for tonight’s home opener, tweets Josh Robbins of The Athletic.
- The Pistons recalled Henry Ellenson and Khyri Thomas from their Grand Rapids affiliate, according to an email from the team.
- The Suns recalled rookie De’Anthony Melton from their affiliate in Northern Arizona, the team announced on its website.
- Jacob Evans has been recalled from Santa Cruz, according to a story on the Warriors‘ website.
Reactions To The Jimmy Butler Trade
Jimmy Butler never meshed with two young stars in Minnesota, but he’ll have to make a similar situation work with the Sixers, writes Mike Sielski of The Philadelphia Inquirer. Butler was abrasive with Karl-Anthony Towns and Andrew Wiggins, often questioning their toughness and their work ethic. Sielski believes the All-Star wing will have to take a different approach to be successful in Philadelphia.
The confrontations could be at least partially explained by Butler’s background, Sielski notes. He was picked 30th overall in 2011 and didn’t enter the league as a ready-made star like Towns and Wiggins or like the Sixers’ Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons. Butler’s attitude may endear him to fans, but it could lead to clashes with teammates, particularly Simmons, who has been known to pass up open jumpers and avoid contact late in games to avoid going to the foul line, where he is a 57% career shooter.
Coach Brett Brown talked about the need to add toughness after his team was eliminated from the playoffs last year. Butler brings plenty of that, Sielski adds, but some of his Sixers teammates may find it hard to adapt to the new atmosphere.
There’s more to pass along in the wake of today’s blockbuster:
- The trade makes the Sixers better right away and still leaves the flexibility to improve in the future, states David Murphy of The Philadelphia Inquirer, who adds that it won’t take much roster tinkering to be able to offer another maximum contract next summer. Philadelphia will have about $22MM in available cap room after accounting for Butler, Simmons and Embiid, along with Markelle Fultz, Landry Shamet, Zhaire Smith and Jonah Bolden. Fultz will make $9,745,200 next season, so trading him and another young player could free up the roughly $11MM the Sixers will need for a max deal.
- Butler now has all the advantages he could ask for and needs to prove he can fit in, according to Ben Golliver of Sports Illustrated. The Sixers provide owners that are willing to spend, a forward-thinking and popular coach in Brown and proven talent already in place. Embiid and Simmons have the franchise set up for a long run as contenders, and Butler needs to settle into a role that doesn’t disrupt the chemistry that’s already in place.
- The Sixers talked to the Cavaliers this summer about trading for Kyle Korver and still have interest in the 3-point specialist, according to Kevin O’Connor of The Ringer. The Knicks’ Courtney Lee is another possibility as Philadelphia looks for shooters after sending Dario Saric and Robert Covington to Minnesota. O’Connor suggests that the team may also wait for buyouts as it did last year when it picked up Marco Belinelli and Ersan Ilyasova.
- There was a big change in the Sixers’ odds to capture the NBA title after news of the trade was announced, according to Ed Barkowitz of The Philadelphia Inquirer. The team moved to a 16-1 shot to win it all at the Westgate SuperBook in Las Vegas after starting the day at 30-1.
Southeast Notes: Riley, Whiteside, M. Williams, Carter
Heat president Pat Riley told his players just before the season started that he was pulling out of trade talks with the Timberwolves involving Jimmy Butler, according to Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald. Riley held a team meeting October 14 in which he acknowledged that negotiations had been going on and apologized to players whose names became public in trade rumors. That was just days after the teams nearly completed a deal that would have sent a package that included Josh Richardson and a protected first-round pick to Minnesota. However, Riley didn’t guarantee that negotiations with the Wolves wouldn’t resume.
Today’s trade that sent Butler to the Sixers eliminates that as a possibility. With about $130MM in salary, Miami is hovering above the $123.7MM luxury tax threshold and would face a $9.7MM tax payment if the team can’t trim $6.3MM by the end of the season. Riley said Thursday that the team isn’t currently active on the trade market, but tax concerns may change that before the February deadline.
There’s more from the Southeast Division:
- Heat center Hassan Whiteside, who has reportedly been on the trade block for several months, is “changing his mindset to be great,” teammate Bam Adebayo tells Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press. Whiteside posted his best game in a long time Wednesday with 29 points, 20 rebounds and nine blocked shots. “I think a lot of people had written me off,” Whiteside said. “That’s fine. I don’t need anybody’s justification. But I feel like if I do those things for myself, it’ll put me in the conversation of being an All-Star, being defensive player of the year.”
- Marvin Williams says the players were thrilled this summer when they learned that Tony Parker was leaving the Spurs to join the Hornets as a free agent, writes Alex Kennedy of HoopsHype. Parker brought championship experience to Charlotte, having won four titles in San Antonio. “He’s so willing to teach everyone and he’s very patient with all of us,” Williams said. “He’s obviously been in certain situations that a lot of us haven’t been able to experience yet, so that knowledge and that wisdom really helps us.”
- Williams believes the way the game has changed in recent years has helped the Hawks‘ Vince Carter stay productive at age 41, relays Brendan Marks of The Charlotte Observer. Carter still displays his vertical leap on occasion, but he has prolonged his career with a deadly jump shot. “As the league has evolved, he’s almost benefited from it because he still can guard multiple positions, and he can still really shoot the lights out,” Williams said.
Pacific Notes: Walton, LeBron, Booker, Warriors
Lakers president Magic Johnson has said Luke Walton’s job is safe for the rest of the season, but Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders believes rumors of a coaching change will reignite if things don’t improve soon. Teams tend to look at their seasons in 10-game stretches, he explained, and the Lakers had a mix of positives and negatives in their 4-6 start.
However, they could start to slide out of the playoff race if the next 10 games aren’t better, which may cause management to reconsider Walton’s future. Kyler notes that Walton was hired in 2016 to oversee a gradual rebuilding process, but the timetable sped up quickly when LeBron James signed with the team over the summer. L.A. is focused on landing a second star in next year’s free agency, and a winning season could be an essential selling point in a highly competitive market.
Kyler believes it’s also possible that Walton is retained, but some of his assistants will be replaced. He doesn’t think Tyronn Lue, who was recently fired in Cleveland, would be considered if Walton is axed. Although Lue still has a good relationship with James, such a move could lead to a locker room “rebellion,” and James isn’t pushing for Walton to be replaced.
There’s more tonight from the Pacific Division:
- James supports the decision to televise the All-Star draft, relays Sam Amico of AmicoHoops. He and Stephen Curry served as captains last year as the top vote-getters in each conference, but the draft was done by phone and the order of picks wasn’t released. “What’s bad about it? It’s All-Star Weekend,” James said before tonight’s game. “You got 24 of the best players in the world that’s going to make the team. It doesn’t matter if you’re first or last, you’re 24 of the best in the world at that point in time. I don’t think it’ll be bad. We’ll see.”
- Suns star Devin Booker believes chemistry issues have affected the team as it has stumbled to a 2-8 start, according to an ESPN story. Phoenix fell at home to the Nets by 22 points Tuesday, marking its sixth defeat already by 18 or more points. “I think all good teams have that trust and chemistry, where they’re able to get on each other and know that it’s for a better purpose,” Booker said. “For us, I don’t think we have that right now. We’re not comfortable with each other, we don’t step on each other’s toes, we don’t push each other, and I think that’s what we need to do.”
- Dieter Kurtenbach of The San Jose Mercury News examines the challengers in the Western Conference and wonders if any of them presents a legitimate threat to the Warriors.
NBA G League Assignments/Recalls: 11/7/18
Here are Wednesday’s assignments and recalls from around the NBA:
- The Pistons have sent forward Henry Ellenson and guard Khyri Thomas to their Grand Rapids affiliate, the team announced in an email. Both have played two games for the Drive this season.
- The Grizzlies have recalled rookie guard Jevon Carter from their Memphis Hustle affiliate, according to a tweet from the team.
- The Pacers announced that guard Edmond Sumner and forward Alize Johnson have been assigned to their affiliate in Fort Wayne. Both have seen action for Indiana this season, with Sumner appearing in five games and Johnson playing three.