Mavericks Notes: Jordan, Smith, Doncic
The success of the DeAndre Jordan signing will be determined by how well he can work in the pick and roll with Dennis Smith and Luka Doncic, writes Eddie Sefko of The Dallas Morning News. Adding Jordan on a one-year, $22.9MM contract and moving up in the draft to take Doncic were the major offseason moves for a team that finished 23 games out of the playoff race.
Jordan not only solves the Mavericks’ rebounding problem — he’s led the league twice in that category and averaged a career best 15.2 boards per game last season — he adds an extra dimension to coach Rick Carlisle’s offense. Jordan has shot better than 60% from the field in each of his 10 NBA seasons and mastered the pick and roll with Chris Paul in Los Angeles.
There’ more today out of Dallas:
- Improving his 3-point shot is the best way for Smith to avoid a sophomore slump, Sefko writes in a separate player profile. Smith shot just 31% from long distance last season, and defenders figure to give him more space as they try to cut off his drives to the basket. Sefko notes that Smith didn’t wear down during his first season in the league, with his scoring, assists and shooting percentages over the final 15 games all rating better than his season averages.
- The Mavericks insist Doncic can be a difference maker, but it’s going to be a while before we know for sure, Sefko writes in another profile. Dallas made a bold move to trade up to the No. 3 spot in the draft to acquire Doncic and team him with Smith in its backcourt of the future. Although he cautions it will take at least another year, Sefko expects Doncic and Smith to develop into the foundation of a playoff team.
- Doncic will be a strong candidate for Rookie of the Year honors, though he’ll get noticed more for his passing than scoring, writes Matt Mosley of The Dallas Morning News. He compares Doncic to Sixers guard Ben Simmons and suggests that the Knicks’ Kevin Knox may be a surprise winner of this year’s ROY honors.
Heat Notes: Wade, Winslow, Ellington
The Heat should follow the Spurs’ lead in putting together a contract for Dwyane Wade, writes Ira Winderman of The Sun-Sentinel. When Tim Duncan and Manu Ginobili were nearing the end of their careers, San Antonio gave them deals that were guaranteed for two years, even if they played just one more season.
Winderman suggests Miami should go all in on an effort to re-sign Wade, offering its entire $5.3MM taxpayer mid-level exception as the starting point for a two-year contract. That would give Wade more than $10MM in guaranteed money, which would be tough to turn down and would help compensate him for past years in which he played under his market value.
The downside is the effect the deal would have on the luxury tax. Miami is already about $5MM over the tax threshold without Wade on the roster and faces a similar situation for 2019/20 if Hassan Whiteside [$27MM], Tyler Johnson [$19.2MM] and Goran Dragic [$19.2MM] all opt in to their current contracts. Short of giving Wade all or part of the MLE, the only alternative is a veteran’s minimum deal that would pay him just $2.4MM.
- If Wade doesn’t continue playing and Dion Waiters isn’t completely healthy when training camp starts, the Heat should contact some of the free agent wings who are still available, Winderman states in a separate column. The ideal situation, he adds, would be someone willing to join the team for camp without a guaranteed contract.
- The Heat’s collection of large salaries may mean a delay in trying to re-sign Justise Winslow, Winderman states in another column. Winslow is eligible for an extension now, but with seven players already earning more than $10MM per year, Miami may decide to hold off on making an offer and deal with Winslow in free agency next summer.
- Wayne Ellington didn’t get much interest on the free agent market, but he will serve a valuable role for the Heat once again, writes Shane Rhodes of Basketball Insiders in a season preview on Miami. Ellington, who re-signed with the team for $6.27MM, averaged 11.2 points per game last year and shot 39.2% from 3-point range.
Community Shootaround: Timberwolves’ Future
Welcome to the new season, Timberwolves fans.
In the space of a few minutes today, we learned that Jimmy Butler will hold a meeting Monday with coach/executive Tom Thibodeau and GM Scott Layden to discuss his future with the team, and that second-year center Justin Patton broke a bone in his right foot.
The bigger story is obviously the Butler news, which could affect the organization’s course for the next several years. Minnesota acquired Butler in a trade with the Bulls last summer to bring some star power and veteran leadership to a team whose best players were both young. Unfortunately, Karl-Anthony Towns and Andrew Wiggins haven’t responded well to Butler’s tough love, and reports of a locker room rift have haunted the Wolves all summer.
If things don’t go well at the meeting, the team’s best option is to work out a trade, tweets Sean Highkin of Bleacher Report. However, he notes that Thibodeau may not be on board because of his loyalty to Butler and the danger of taking a step back when his job could be in jeopardy.
There hasn’t been a good atmosphere in Minnesota for more than a year — roughly the time that Butler came on board — adds ESPN’s Zach Lowe (Twitter link). ESPN colleague Adrian Wojnarowski expects a lot of frank discussion Monday, with a source telling him, “Whatever needs to be communicated … will be.” (Twitter link).
Butler may be looking to the future and seeing control of the team slipping away from him, suggests Kurt Helin of NBC Sports (Twitter link). Towns is mulling over an extension that would pay him $158MM over five years. Once that happens, he will become the focus of the organization, not Butler.
The Wolves need to be careful about promising too much to Butler, warns ESPN’s Bobby Marks (Twitter link). The organization won’t have cap flexibility for several years once Towns’ extension takes effect, so the front office shouldn’t be talking about roster upgrades. Marks suggests approaching Butler like a free agent, then asking for a firm answer at the end of the meeting on whether he plans to stay or not (Twitter link).
Free agent Jamal Crawford, who spent last season in Minnesota, gave an insider’s view of the situation during an appearance Friday on Howard Beck’s Full 48 podcast. “For me, it just wasn’t a happy environment,” Crawford said. “It just wasn’t happy.”
How will the Wolves make things happier? Should they start offering Butler in trade talks or hope to re-sign him next summer? Will he and the other veterans brought in over the past year ever be able to co-exist with Towns and Wiggins? Should the team dismiss Thibodeau and his “Timber-Bulls” plan and get to work on building around its two young stars? Please leave your responses in the space below.
Author Claims LeBron Wanted Riley To Coach In Miami
Early in his first season in Miami, LeBron James sent a message to Heat president Pat Riley that he should take over coaching duties from Erik Spoelstra, author Ian Thomsen claims in a new book. That story is among several contained in “The Soul of Basketball: The Epic Showdown Between LeBron, Kobe, Doc, and Dirk That Saved the NBA,” which Thomsen promoted in a recent appearance on Zach Lowe’s podcast (Hat tip to Dane Delgado of NBC Sports).
Spoelstra was in his third year as head coach when a rift reportedly developed between him and James during a 9-8 start. After a loss to the Mavericks, James dropped a subtle hint to Riley that he wanted him back behind the bench.
“[I] asked how things were progressing,” Riley recalls in the book. “They just said, ‘We’re not feeling it, or something like that.’ We talked about the typical things we have to do, have patience, all that stuff. And I remember LeBron looking at me and he said, ‘Don’t you ever get the itch?’
“And I said, ‘The itch for what?’ He said, ‘The itch to coach again.’ I said, ‘No I don’t have the itch.’
“He didn’t ask any more questions and I didn’t offer any more answers but I know what it meant and I always go back and wonder what he was thinking at that time. He walked out scratching at his leg like it was itching.”
Riley, of course, remained in the front office as Spoelstra led Miami to four straight NBA Finals and a pair of championships. James was involved in a similar scenario after returning to Cleveland, where he reportedly clashed with coach David Blatt, who was eventually replaced by Tyronn Lue.
Wizards Notes: Brown, Mahinmi, Meeks, Go-Go
Rookie swingman Troy Brown has multiple skills and can handle multiple positions, but he’ll have to battle for playing time at each one, writes Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington. The 15th player selected in this year’s draft, Brown excels at handling the ball, passing, rebounding and playing defense. The Wizards were happy with his performance in the Las Vegas Summer League, where he spent time at point guard as well as his more natural positions of shooting guard and small forward.
However, the 19-year-old won’t have an easy path toward getting minutes at any of those spots. All-stars John Wall and Bradley Beal are entrenched as the starting backcourt, and Austin Rivers was picked up in an offseason trade to provide depth. Otto Porter and Kelly Oubre will see most of the playing time at small forward, along with free agent addition Jeff Green.
Hughes suggests that Washington may see Brown as a long-term prospect and could use him at both the G League and NBA levels this season.
There’s more out of Washington:
- The Wizards got to see more of backup center Ian Mahinmi last season, but not enough to justify his sizable contract, Hughes states in a separate piece. Injuries forced Mahinmi to miss 51 games in his first season after signing a four-year, $64MM deal, but he rebounded to play 77 games last year. He will remain the backup center after Washington signed Dwight Howard to replace Marcin Gortat, who was traded to the Clippers. Howard averages more minutes per game, which will limit Mahinmi’s role, as will the use of smaller lineups that could feature Markieff Morris or Green at center.
- Jodie Meeks and Jason Smith will both be trying to improve after disappointing seasons, Hughes adds in another story. Meeks appeared in 77 games last year after two injury-filled seasons, but his numbers were down sharply in every category from his best years. He will start this season by serving the remaining 19 games of a 25-game suspension for a violation of the league’s drug program. Smith was healthy last year, but was only used in 33 games, and the addition of Green will continue to block his playing time. Both players will be free agents next summer.
- Candace Buckner of The Washington Post chronicles today’s tryouts for the Capital City Go-Go, Washington’s new G League affiliate. Ninety-three players showed up in hopes of winning one or two invitations to the new team’s training camp.
Jimmy Butler To Discuss His Future With Wolves
Jimmy Butler has a meeting set for Monday with Timberwolves coach/executive Tom Thibodeau and GM Scott Layden to “have honest conversations about the All-Star’s future with the team,” a source tells Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic.
Butler can opt out of his contract next summer, and Krawczynski suggests he may have reached “a fork in the road” after one season in Minnesota. Butler has said repeatedly that he wants the chance to compete for a title and he may not believe that’s possible with the Wolves, who claimed the No. 8 seed last season and were ousted in five games in the first round.
Butler remains close with Thibodeau, who also coached him in Chicago, Krawczynski adds, and wants to hear his coach’s road map for the future before deciding on his next move.
Butler had a strong first year in Minnesota, posting a 22.2/5.3/4.9 line and making the All-Star team for the fourth time. He brought star power to an inexperienced team that hadn’t reached the postseason since 2004.
However, there have been reports that Butler often clashed with the Wolves’ younger players, especially Karl-Anthony Towns and Andrew Wiggins. Thibodeau has downplayed those rumors, but they haven’t gone away.
Butler is considered a virtual lock to opt out of a $19.84MM salary for 2019/20 and become a free agent. He will be eligible to receive a five-year, $188MM contract from the Wolves or a four-year, $139MM deal from anyone else. There has been talk that Butler and Kyrie Irving, who both turned down extensions this summer, are interested in joining forces.
If Minnesota officials don’t come out of Monday’s meeting with the feeling that Butler is likely to re-sign, a trade becomes more likely before the February deadline. Plenty of offers would surely be coming for one of the league’s most talented and most competitive players, who just turned 29 yesterday.
Spurs Asked For Embiid Or Simmons For Leonard
Before the Spurs agreed on a Kawhi Leonard trade package focused around DeMar DeRozan, they were asking for much bigger names from the Sixers, according to ESPN’s Zach Lowe. (Hat tip to Dale Delgado of NBC Sports).
In his latest Lowe Post podcast, Lowe says Philadelphia turned down San Antonio offers that would have included Joel Embiid or Ben Simmons. The Sixers were reluctant to part with stars in exchange for a player who isn’t guaranteed to stay beyond this season, and Embiid and Simmons are probably untouchable in any circumstances.
Another name that popped up in rumors was Markelle Fultz, whose rookie season was cut short by a combination of injuries and problems with his shooting form. However, Lowe says the Spurs were never interested in the top pick in the 2017 draft.
“There is no evidence that the Spurs wanted Fultz,” Lowe said. “I’ve been told the Spurs never asked for Fultz, and actively didn’t want Fultz, and in fact wanted one of the two big guys.”
Sixers guard J.J. Redick, who was a guest on Lowe’s podcast, defended Fultz and claimed he was poorly treated by the media last season.
Knicks Likely To Part With Joakim Noah Before Camp
The Knicks plan to resolve the Joakim Noah situation before training camp begins, tweets Shams Charania of The Athletic. The team continues to make calls in an effort to find a trading partner and is expected to waive and stretch the veteran center’s contract if a deal can’t be worked out.
Noah has two seasons and $37.8MM remaining on the four-year, $72MM agreement he signed in 2016. With this year’s salary already locked in, New York can stretch the remaining $19.295MM over three years. That would amount to payments of about $6.4MM per year and would add an additional $12.9MM in cap space for next summer, when the Knicks are hoping to make a splash in free agency.
It’s also possible that Noah might accept a partial buyout on this season’s salary of $18.53MM to gain his freedom from a team that no longer want him, just as Luol Deng did with the Lakers.
Noah appeared in just seven games last season because of a combination of suspensions, injuries and coach’s decisions. He left the team in January after a heated confrontation with former coach Jeff Hornacek in practice and never returned.
It’s not clear where Noah’s next destination might be, whether he gets traded or waived. The Timberwolves, who have added four former Bulls under coach/executive Tom Thibodeau, were thought to be a possibility, but a report this week claims they aren’t interested.
Dwyane Wade Still Hasn’t Made A Decision On Playing
Dwyane Wade was evasive about his playing future in a public appearance Thursday in Miami to promote a new restaurant, writes Ira Winderman of The Sun Sentinel. He reiterated to reporters that he will definitely remain with the Heat if he continues his career, but he hasn’t made a decision yet.
“I wish I had an answer for you. I don’t have it today,” Wade said. “… A lot goes into it. We’ve kind of talked about it over the course of my career. So you guys can play the tape back and hear the same answers over and over again. But a lot goes into it.”
Wade was a valuable reserve in Miami after the Cavaliers traded him back to his long-time home in February, averaging 12.0 PPG in 21 games. He reportedly wants to feel comfortable with his role on the team before committing to another year, which likely includes an increase in playing time from the 22.2 minutes per game he saw last season.
There’s also the matter of money. The Heat are over the cap, but have a $5.3MM taxpayer mid-level exception still available. If they don’t want to give Wade at least part of that, the best they can offer is the $2.4MM veteran’s minimum.
“You’ve got to call my agent and ask him,” Wade responded when asked what the team is offering. “I haven’t dealt with the money part of it.”
The Heat have been holding a roster spot open for Wade all summer, and they would like an answer soon with training camp opening in a week and a half. However, Wade doesn’t seem to be influenced by any deadlines.
“Whichever day the decision comes, it comes,” he said. “And that’s the right day, whatever date that is.”
Jabari Bird Arraigned On Assault Charges
3:35pm: Bird has issued a statement saying he’s “taking some time away from the team as I deal with my legal and medical issues,” ESPN’s Chris Forsberg relays. He also apologized to his family, teammates, fans, organization and league for the “unnecessary distraction” but that “information that has been released does not tell the full story.”
12:30pm: The Celtics have issued a statement saying the organization “deplores domestic violence of any kind,” tweets Gary Washburn of The Boston Globe. The team promises to work with the NBA and law enforcement officials in their investigation.
12:03pm: Celtics guard Jabari Bird was arraigned today on charges of assaulting and kidnapping his girlfriend, reports Travis Andersen of The Boston Globe. Bird pleaded not guilty to the charges and is being held on $50K cash bond.
The woman claims Bird choked her about a dozen times, kicked her and held her against her will while the couple was arguing Friday. She said he began suffering mental distress before police arrested him Friday night.
Bird, 24, had been hospitalized for an “evaluation” until today, when doctors ruled that he was healthy enough for a court appearance. The victim was taken to a separate hospital.
The Celtics have declined to comment on the arrest since last weekend, Andersen adds. The team signed Bird to a two-year, $3MM contract following his strong performance in Summer League play. The first year is fully guaranteed for $1.55MM, while the second year is non-guaranteed.