Suns Interview Steve Clifford, James Borrego
Former Hornets coach Steve Clifford and Spurs assistant James Borrego are the latest candidates to interview for the head coaching spot in Phoenix, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.
Clifford, who was fired in Charlotte two weeks ago, had a meeting with Suns officials today, Wojnarowski relays. Clifford has expressed a desire to coach again next season after compiling a 196-214 record in five years with Charlotte.
Borrego, an assistant to Gregg Popovich for the past three seasons, interviewed in Phoenix on Thursday. He has brief NBA head coaching experience, compiling a 10-20 mark as an interim with Orlando at the end of the 2014/15 season.
The Suns have been among the most active teams in the search for a new coach, with David Fizdale, Igor Kokoskov, Frank Vogel, Jason Kidd, Vinny Del Negro, David Blatt and Kevin McHale all either interviewing or being linked to the position in the rumor mill.
Keep up with all the latest action on the coaching front by following our 2018 NBA Head Coaching Search Tracker.
Injury Updates: Curry, Porter, VanVleet, Mbah a Moute
Stephen Curry is officially listed as questionable for the start of the Warriors‘ series with the Pelicans tomorrow night, relays Mark Medina of The San Jose Mercury News.
The star guard, who is recovering from a Grade 2 MCL sprain in his left knee, was able to go through a full-court scrimmage today for the first time since suffering the injury March 23. However, the team isn’t ready to commit to playing him in Game 1, and Curry calls his chances “50-50.”
“Still to be determined. They come up with those snazzy words for a reason – doubtful, questionable, probable,” he said. “Just trying to work my way up whatever I need to do with whatever [trainer] Chelsea [Lane], the rest of the athletic training staff and coaching staff need to see before I can get back out there.”
Curry and Lane spent about 20 minutes after practice talking to coach Steve Kerr, who said Curry will be re-examined tonight and after Saturday’s morning shootaround before making a decision.
“It’s not as simple as, ‘Does he feel good? Then throw him out there,’” Kerr said. “It’s more about, ‘Let’s give him a few days and see how he responds from it.’”
There’s more playoff-related injury news to pass along:
- Wizards forward Otto Porter, who is out indefinitely following a surgical procedure today on his left leg, has been experiencing pain since Game 4 of the series with Toronto, tweets Josh Lewenberg of TSN Sports. The decision to perform a lower leg fasciotomy to address a build-up of blood flow in the contusion area was made after reviewing the results of an MRI conducted today. Kelly Oubre will take Porter’s spot in the starting lineup, with Tomas Satoransky and Ty Lawson both expected to get more playing time, according to ESPN’s Ohm Youngmisuk (Twitter link). “We need Kelly on the floor,” coach Scott Brooks said to Candace Buckner of The Washington Post. “Now that Otto is out, we need Kelly to give us great minutes. … It’s a great opportunity for him.” (Twitter link).
- The Raptors will have guard Fred VanVleet available for tonight’s Game 6 with the Wizards, Lewenberg tweets. VanVleet has been limited to three minutes in the series because of soreness in his shoulder stemming from a collision on the final night of the season. “I don’t know what to expect,” said coach Dwane Casey, “but we’ll get him in.”
- The Rockets had hoped to get Luc Mbah a Moute back for the start of their second-round series, but it appears that won’t happen, according to Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle. Sidelined by a dislocated shoulder, Mbah a Moute won’t be re-evaluated until next week, although he was able to participate in the non-contact part of today’s practice, said coach Mike D’Antoni.
- Cavaliers coach Tyronn Lue still wasn’t sure of George Hill‘s status when he met with reporters before tonight’s game, relays Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com. Hill, who has been experiencing back spasms, warmed up before the game with a heat wrap on his back, notes ESPN’s Brian Windhorst (Twitter link).
Mike James Agrees To Three-Year Deal In Italy
Mike James, who spent time with the Suns and Pelicans this season, has signed a three-year deal worth more than $5MM with Olimpia Milano in Italy, tweets international writer Chema de Lucas (hat tip to Sportando).
James spent five seasons in Europe before agreeing to a two-way contract with Phoenix last July. That was converted to a full NBA contract in December, but he was waived two weeks later. James’ next stop was New Orleans, where he signed another two-way deal in mid-January. However, he was waived in February and finished the season with Panathinaikos in Greece.
James appeared in 32 games for the Suns and four more for the Pelicans, averaging 9.3 points and 3.5 assists in about 19 minutes per night.
Cavaliers Notes: Hill, Love, Hood, Korver
The Cavaliers still aren’t sure if George Hill will be available for tonight’s Game 5, according to Colton Jones of AmicoHoops. Hill sat out Sunday’s game with severe back spasms, even though he had four injections in an attempt to play.
Coach Tyronn Lue said Hill was able to do “some shooting” during Tuesday’s practice and will be reinserted into the starting lineup if he is able to go tonight. If not, veteran point guard Jose Calderon will get another start.
There’s more news today out of Cleveland:
- Kevin Love won’t blame an injured thumb for his shooting problems against the Pacers, Jones relays in a separate story. Love suffered a partially torn ligament in his left thumb while breaking up a pass in Game 2. It’s the same hand that he broke late in the regular season, an injury that sidelined him for six weeks. “I’ve been able to get up a lot of shots,” said Love, who is shooting .362 during the series. “I think initially it was painful in the few days that followed, but now it’s kind of subsided, and just getting the feeling back in my left thumb.”
- Rodney Hood is still trying to adjust to a less-structured offense in Cleveland, writes Terry Pluto of Cleveland.com. Hood, who was acquired in a flurry of deals at the February deadline, saw his scoring average drop by six points per game after leaving Utah and his shooting percentage from 3-point range dipped from .389 to .352. He’s down to 7.0 points per game in the playoffs.
- For all the roster changes the Cavs made this season, Lue relied on a group with experience playing together when he desperately needed a win in Game 4, notes Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com. LeBron James teamed with Love, J.R. Smith, Kyle Korver and Jeff Green to pull out the victory. “That’s not a knock on anything or anybody,” Korver said. “When you’ve been through something at a high level, there’s experience there and there’s something to draw from. When you’ve been through experiences in life, you’ve been through tough games, whatever it is, it gives you a comfort level to go with people you’ve kind of done it with before.”
Northwest Notes: Westbrook, George, Butler, Trail Blazers
Thunder guard Russell Westbrook will be available for tonight’s Game 5 after being fined but not suspended for going onto the court during an altercation, writes Erik Horne of The Oklahoman. The league levied a $10K fine against Westbrook, who became involved in a fourth quarter shoving match during Game 4. Players are typically suspended for leaving the bench area during a fight, but Westbrook was given a break because he was about to check into the game when it happened.
“I was at the scorer’s table waiting,” he said. “The foul went, the horn blew. So, I walked on the court. I was already in the game. Once I was in the game, they told me to wait because they told me I was going to review it or whatever. Once they did that, then obviously the altercation happened so I was already on the floor.”
There’s more from the Northwest Division:
- Paul George‘s upcoming free agency becomes more interesting with every Thunder loss, notes Andrew Sharp of Sports Illustrated. George said earlier this season that he wouldn’t make a decision based on the playoffs, but obviously a first-round exit won’t help Oklahoma City’s chances of keeping him. Sharp acknowledges George’s talent, but questions whether he can be a team leader and speculates that things may not turn out well for the Lakers if they sign him but not LeBron James.
- It’s conceivable that Jimmy Butler could wind up back in Chicago after next season, according to Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times. The Timberwolves traded for Butler last summer to bring a veteran presence to the organization, but he can opt out of a $19.8MM salary next summer and may be tempted to leave if Minnesota can’t make an impact in the playoffs. Bulls president Michael Reinsdorf remains a huge fan of Butler and would be interested in a reunion. “I loved the city of Chicago, and I love the Reinsdorfs,’’ Butler said. “I’m forever grateful for them in taking a chance on me, allowing me to become the player that I am today. It’s still incredible to me that I got to hoop in a Bulls jersey. I got to play in the house that [Michael] Jordan built, that [Scottie] Pippen played, all that stuff. That’s because of the Reinsdorfs. If the time comes where I say, ‘You know what, I do want to end this thing in a Bulls jersey,’ I think that would be amazing. But it’s all about being wanted and winning.’’
- The Trail Blazers posted all their exit interviews on the team website after a surprising first-round sweep by New Orleans.
Heat Notes: Whiteside, Wade, Ellington
Hassan Whiteside headed into the offseason last night with one last jab at Heat coach Erik Spoelstra over playing time, relays Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald. Whiteside spent just 10 minutes on the court during the season-ending loss and played 77 total minutes in the five-game series.
“At least give me a chance to fight,” Whiteside said. “I can understand if I was playing 30 minutes and I played bad. At least give me a chance. … We played a style of play Coach wanted. He wanted to utilize more spacing I guess in the playoffs, so that’s why he did it.”
Foul trouble played a role in Whiteside’s lack of minutes, Jackson notes, as did matchup concerns with Philadelphia’s smaller lineups, but there’s an apparent feeling from the coaching staff that the Heat are better without Whiteside on the floor. His playing time dropped sharply during the season, going to 25.3 minutes per game after a career high of 32.6 last year.
The 28-year-old center said he will address the matter this summer with Spoelstra and team president Pat Riley. He is under contract for more than $25.4MM next season with a $27.1MM player option for 2019/20, and Jackson states that the Heat are expected to explore trade options.
There’s more from Miami on the first day of the offseason:
- The Heat are stuck with a roster talented enough to make the playoffs, but not to be a legitimate contender once they get there, Jackson writes in a separate piece. He recommends significant changes, which will have to come through trades because of the team’s cap situation. He says the Heat would prefer to keep Josh Richardson, Goran Dragic, Bam Adebayo and Kelly Olynyk, but adds that Riley should give the Spurs their choice of any two players on the roster if Kawhi Leonard becomes available.
- Dwyane Wade is in no rush to make a decision about another NBA season, according to Andre C. Fernandez of The Miami Herald. The 36-year-old played well after returning to Miami in February, including a 28-point performance in Game 2 of the playoff series. “Fresh off the NBA season, my 15th year, I’ll sit back and think about that,” Wade said after Tuesday’s loss. “Then, I’ll dive and throw myself into my family. They’re next on my bucket list of making sure I’m there for them. Then when it comes to the basketball side of it, which is a long time away from now, then I’ll think about that. But right now I ain’t concerned with it.”
- Wayne Ellington hopes to return to Miami, but financial realities could make that difficult, notes Manny Navarro of The Miami Herald. The Heat own Early Bird Rights on Ellington as he heads into free agency, allowing them to offer a four-year contract starting at $10.9MM with raises up to 8%. However, Miami is roughly $15MM over next year’s cap, so some salary may have to be trimmed before it makes that kind of commitment to Ellington.
Rice Commission: Eliminate One-And-Done Rule
The Commission on College Basketball takes sharp aim at the one-and-done rule, AAU summer basketball and the current penalties for rules violations in a report released this morning, according to The Associated Press.
The 12-member commission, headed up by former U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, was formed in the wake of a federal corruption probe that resulted in bribery and kickback charges and touched high-level programs such as Arizona, Louisville and Kansas.
Of particular interest in NBA circles is a recommendation to scrap the current rules for draft eligibility, which requires that players be at least age 19 or one year past their graduation date. The current regulations were adopted in 2006 to stop the wave of high school players who were choosing to bypass college.
“One-and-done has to go one way or another,” Rice said.
The commission considered recommending rules similar to the ones used by Major League Baseball, which permits players to be drafted out of high school but requires them to spend at least three years in college if they opt for that route. Instead, it wants a system where players can test the draft waters after any season without losing their college eligibility.
The NBA has talked to the players’ union about changing the one-and-done rule, but any move wouldn’t take effect before the 2020 draft, tweets ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. The league sees value in letting players return to college because there are too many prospects to handle, even with the G League (Twitter link).
The league and the union released a joint statement in response to the report. “Regarding the NBA’s draft eligibility rules,” it stated, “the NBA and NBPA will continue to assess them in order to promote the best interests of players and the game.”
Spurs Notes: Leonard, Ginobili, Parker, Gasol
A meeting with Kawhi Leonard will be the Spurs’ top priority of the offseason, according to Michael C. Wright of ESPN. Head coach Gregg Popovich is expected to lead the session as the team tries to determine whether it can work through a dispute with its top player and forge a long-term relationship.
An MVP candidate last year, Leonard was limited to nine games this season by a lingering quad injury. He was cleared to return by team doctors, but not by his personal physicians in New York, where he made two extended visits during the season. Rumors persisted of disharmony between Leonard and the organization, and they intensified when he opted not to join the team for its playoff series.
“Kawhi, everybody asks questions, but he’s still here,” Danny Green said after last night’s season-ending loss at Golden State. “He’s still locked in. He’s a part of the team until things change.”
This summer’s meeting will go a long way for the Spurs in deciding whether to offer Leonard a supermax extension valued at about $219MM over five years. Complicating matters, Wright notes, are divorce proceedings between Peter Holt, the team’s former chairman and CEO, and Juliana Hawn Holt, the current chairman and co-CEO, which could affect any major financial decisions for the organization.
Wright offers more news about possible changes coming in San Antonio:
- Manu Ginobili is signed for $2.5MM next season, but isn’t sure if he’ll return. Ginobili, who will turn 41 in July, plans to make the decision sometime this summer. “As I’ve done it the last two or three seasons, I’ll sit back, relax and, after two or three months, see if I feel retired or not,” he said. “I like to let it season a little bit, to see how I feel. Don’t expect news until July, probably. I just don’t know. I let a month, two months go by and see how I feel. I’m not the type of guy who makes decisions on the fly, and when you are upset, hurt or whatever.”
- Tony Parker, who turns 36 next month, is headed toward free agency after 17 years with the Spurs. He has expressed a desire to return to the team, but will probably have to accept a significant pay cut after making $15.4MM this season. “I said already I want to keep playing,” Parker stated. “I’m happy I don’t have those retirement parties. I want to keep playing, and we’ll see if it’s in San Antonio. Everybody knows I would love to stay here. But free agency is always crazy, so we’ll see.”
- Pau Gasol, 37, expressed a desire to play another three to four seasons. He is under contract for $16.8MM next year, with a non-guaranteed $16MM in 2019/20.
- Green [$10MM for next season], Rudy Gay [$8.8MM] and Joffrey Lauvergne [$1.7MM] all have a June 29 deadline to exercise their player options. “This organization is a big part of me,” Green said, “and I would love to play here again, would love to come back. But things get interesting in free agency.”
Bogut To Play In Australia, Done With NBA
APRIL 23rd, 9:48pm: Bogut said he will play two seasons with the Sydney Kings and that he’s retired from the NBA, Olgun Uluc of Fox Sports Australia tweets. There are no outs in his contract to return to the NBA or play in Europe, Uluc adds.
APRIL 22nd, 9:02am: Andrew Bogut‘s comeback will continue next season in Australia, relays Jake Michaels of ESPN.
The Sydney Kings announced on social media overnight that they are signing the 33-year-old center, who played 13 NBA seasons. A press conference has been scheduled for Monday.
Bogut was never able to re-establish himself in the NBA after fracturing his left tibia in his lone game with the Cavaliers last season. He signed with the Lakers just before the opening of camp in September, but he got into just 23 games before being waived in January.
Bogut told Michaels last week that he turned down offers to join four playoff-bound teams late in the season. He opted to return to Australia at the time to deal with personal issues, including his wife’s high-risk pregnancy and his grandfather’s death.
“I had an offer from one in the east and I got an offer for a 10-day [contract] from a team in the west,” Bogut said. “The one out east was for the rest of the season but I just decided they weren’t great fits for me and the way I play so I just decided to wait it out.
“The other thing I had in my back pocket was there were two other teams that expressed a lot of interest but had some cap space issues and they wanted me to wait until late March, early April to sign so it wouldn’t affect their salary cap as much as it would by signing in January. Those teams called immediately after I was released from the Lakers.”
He added that he was “blindsided” by his release in L.A. and speculated that Lakers management didn’t want to deal with a potential buyout situation.
Bogut spent seven seasons in Milwaukee after being taken with the first pick in the 2005 draft. He was traded to the Warriors in 2012 and became a defensive anchor of their 2015 championship team. He was shipped to the Mavericks in 2016 as Golden State cleared cap room to sign Kevin Durant.
Weekly Mailbag: 4/16/18 – 4/22/18
We have an opportunity for you to hit us up with your questions in this, our weekly mailbag feature. Have a question regarding player movement, the salary cap or the NBA draft? Drop us a line at HoopsRumorsMailbag@Gmail.com.
Who says no: Lakers trade Brandon Ingram, Kyle Kuzma and 2019 1st round pick to Spurs for Kawhi Leonard? — VJ Cruz, via Twitter
If the Spurs make the decision to trade Leonard, that would be an exceptional return, even though L.A. would likely become a playoff team and next year’s pick won’t be very high. Several things have to happen to get to that point. First, Leonard has to turn down a supermax offer and the Spurs need to be convinced he will opt out and become a free agent next summer. Next, the Lakers have to strike on Plan A, which is to get LeBron James with either Paul George or DeMarcus Cousins in free agency. The Lakers like Ingram an awful lot, and Kuzma has shown he has a bright future. If L.A. is willing to make this offer for Leonard, it may be the best one the Spurs get.
Does anyone want to talk about the East vs West disparity in talent? Does anyone think the Sixers would sweep the Pels? The East seems overmatched in talent. — CH O, via Twitter
The West has enjoyed better talent for a few years, but young teams in the East are cutting into that disparity. The Rockets and Warriors would probably be favored against any Eastern team in the Finals, but the rest of the seeds are much more even: Trail Blazers vs. Sixers, Thunder vs. Cavaliers, Jazz vs. Pacers, Pelicans vs. Heat, Spurs vs. Bucks and Timberwolves vs. Wizards. These things go in cycles, but it wouldn’t be surprising if the Celtics, Sixers or Bucks become the NBA’s next dominant team.
The Clippers signed C.J. Williams, but why LAC didn’t sign Tyrone Wallace? Wallace was 10 times better than Williams. — Richard Garcia
Both were two-way players who saw significant playing time during their 45-day NBA limits, and statistically Wallace was quite a bit better. Williams played 38 games, started 17, and averaged 5.5 points and 1.1 assists per night. Wallace saw action in 30 games, starting 19, and averaged 9.7 points and 2.4 assists. Williams also turned 28 in February, while Wallace is still 23, so he seems like the better long-term investment. Ultimately, it came down to money. Williams was willing to accept a contract with no guarantees for the next two seasons, while Wallace’s representatives were seeking a better deal. They may both be back with the Clippers next season, but Wallace can take a shot at free agency first.