Wolves Sign Derrick Rose
10:57am: The signing is official, the team announced via Twitter.
9:41am: Derrick Rose will sign with the Timberwolves for the rest of the season, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.
The move will reunite Rose with coach/executive Tom Thibodeau, who coached the point guard in Chicago during his MVP season of 2010/11. It also brings another former Bull to Minnesota, which has added Jimmy Butler, Taj Gibson, Jamal Crawford and Aaron Brooks since last summer.
Butler and Rose had a strained relationship in the past, but they worked out their differences two years ago, tweets K.C. Johnson of The Chicago Tribune. Rose delayed his signing because he was waiting for his wife to give birth, adds Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic (Twitter link). The baby arrived earlier this week.
Rose had hoped to revive his career in Cleveland when he agreed to a one-year, minimum-salary deal in July. However, he hurt his ankle in the second game of the season and took a leave of absence in November.
He played just 16 games for the Cavaliers, averaging 9.8 points and 1.6 assists, before being traded to Utah four weeks ago. He agreed to a buyout with the Jazz and has been out of the NBA since February 12.
The Wolves have two open roster spots, so no move will be necessary before adding Rose. Because he was waived before March 1, he will be eligible for the playoffs if Minnesota qualifies.
Italian Team Interested In Mavericks’ Scotty Hopson
Mavericks forward Scotty Hopson has an offer waiting in Italy if things don’t work out in Dallas, according to Emiliano Carchia of Sportando.
Hopson’s 10-day contract with the Mavs expired overnight, and the team is planning to sign Jameel Warney, so it doesn’t look like he will get another one. Italian club Virtus Bologna has already contacted his agent about a potential deal.
“We are interested in Scotty Hopson,” said Valeriano D’Orta, sports director for Virtus Bologna. “He is one of the three players we are following and we have already talked with his agent. He has been proposed [by] us and he is interested in returning to Europe. We are waiting to know if his contract will be extended for 10 more days.”
Hopson, who signed with the Mavericks on February 26, has appeared in just one game with eight minutes of playing time. The 28-year-old spent most of this season with Galatasaray in the Turkish League and has extensive overseas experience. His career has also taken him to Greece, Israel, Spain and China.
Mavericks Notes: Cuban, Front Office, Warney, Draft
The Mavericks don’t believe there’s any truth behind the sexual misconduct allegations against owner Mark Cuban, according to Eddie Sefko of The Dallas Morning News. A team source told Sefko the organization spent a lot of time on the matter today before determining the charges are unfounded.
A report Tuesday night said police in Portland investigated a complaint against Cuban in 2011 that was filed by a woman who claimed inappropriate physical contact. No charges were filed in the case and Cuban has denied the allegation. The team is concerned that more stories of this type will be unearthed as the investigation continues into sexual misconduct at team headquarters, Sefko adds.
There’s more tonight out of Dallas:
- Sexual misconduct allegations against former Mavericks CEO Terdema Ussery are still being investigated, and the process could continue into the the summer, Sefko notes in the same story. Ussery was a prominent figure in the Sports Illustrated story on the Mavs’ front office that resulted in the current investigation. Sefko also learned that Roger Caneda, GM of Mavs Gaming, was suspended after a racist tweet from 2016 was discovered. There are unconfirmed reports of similar Twitter comments in 2017, but it’s possible Caneda’s account had been hacked, and the team is continuing to investigate.
- Jameel Warney will make history as the first Stony Brook University alumnus ever to reach the NBA, relays Greg Logan of Newsday. The 24-year-old confirmed that he will sign a 10-day contract with the Mavericks on Sunday, allowing him to return to New York next week for road games against the Knicks and Nets. Warney is the university’s all-time scoring leader and a three-time American East Conference Player of the Year.
- The Mavericks will have to get better at using their draft choices before they can think about becoming a contender again, writes Shane Rhodes of Basketball Insiders. He notes that last year’s selection of Dennis Smith Jr. marked the team’s best pick since obtaining Dirk Nowitzki in 1998. The most pressing need is in the frontcourt, where DeAndre Ayton, Mo Bamba and Marvin Bagley would all be welcome additions, but the Mavs also need to find a partner for Smith in the backcourt.
NBA G League Assignments/Recalls: 3/7/18
Here are Wednesday’s G League assignments and recalls from around the NBA:
- The Thunder have recalled rookie center Dakari Johnson from their Oklahoma City Blue affiliate, the team announced in an email. Johnson has appeared in 26 games for the Thunder this season, averaging 1.9 points, 1.2 rebounds and 5.6 minutes of playing time per night.
Michael Porter Jr. To Play In SEC Tournament
Fans and scouts who have waited all season to see Missouri’s Michael Porter Jr. in action will get their wish in the SEC Tournament, tweets Paul Finebaum of ESPN. Tigers coach Cuonzo Martin confirmed today that the potential top-five pick in this year’s draft will see some playing time during the tourney.
“He said ‘Coach, I want to help the team,'” Martin said. “… for me it was always Mike’s decision to play or not play.”
Porter won’t start and won’t see a lot of action, Martin added. Porter suffered a back injury in November that required surgery and limited him to just two minutes in the season opener. He was medically cleared for basketball activities February 22. Missouri, the fifth seed in the SEC, will open the tournament Thursday against Georgia or Vanderbilt.
Porter is the sixth selection in the latest mock draft compiled by Jonathan Givony of ESPN, but he could move up the board with a strong showing in the conference and NCAA tournaments.
Eddy Curry Joins BIG3 Draft Pool
Eddy Curry is the latest former NBA star to join the BIG3 draft combine, the league announced today (Twitter link).
Curry, 35, played 12 seasons in the NBA, mainly for the Bulls and Knicks. The seven-footer’s last appearance in the league came early in the 2012/13 season when he played two games for the Mavericks. He owns a championship ring as a member of the Heat team that won the title in 2011/2012.
The fourth player taken in the 2001 draft, Curry had a brief stint in China after his NBA career ended but hasn’t played competitively since 2013.
The combine will be held this spring, giving the eight teams in the BIG3 a chance to evaluate the available talent ahead of the draft. Curry will have to be selected by one of the teams before he can join the three-on-three league.
The BIG3 began play last June with a variety of former NBA stars involved. It has received another infusion of talent for its second season, with ex-players such as Amar’e Stoudemire, Carlos Boozer, Glen Davis, Baron Davis, Metta World Peace, Drew Gooden, Greg Oden and others declaring their intentions to join the league.
Central Notes: R. Jackson, Dunn, LaVine, Love
Pistons point guard Reggie Jackson hasn’t given up on playing again before the end of the season, writes Rod Beard of The Detroit News. Jackson, who has missed the past 10 weeks with a severely sprained right ankle, was able to perform some quick movements in a workout today and step into his shot without discomfort.
“In a lot of ways, it’s been tough,” Jackson said. “It’s [past 30 games missed] now and I never envisioned a sprain lasting this long. Usually, you bounce back and play within a few hours or a few days or a week’s time. I never envisioned being out this long. The season’s been up and down and I just really want to go out there and play.”
Coach Stan Van Gundy recently suggested that Jackson may be ready for a full-contact practice by next week, but Beard cautions that’s unlikely without significant progress in the next few days.
There’s more out of the Central Division:
- The young Bulls stars are showing respect to one another now, but conflict will come when someone has to emerge as the team leader, predicts Vincent Goodwill of NBC Sports Chicago. Zach LaVine and Kris Dunn are both aware that possibility is coming, but they are focused on more immediate goals. “I don’t worry about that. I don’t get into that — who’s the best player and all that,” Dunn said. “We all have to be leaders for this team. We have to be leaders in different ways. It’s a matter of time to see how we jell out. Right now we just keep playing.”
- After sitting out seven games as the Bulls opted for a youth movement, center Robin Lopez will return to the starting lineup Friday in the wake of a warning from the NBA about resting healthy players. “It’s a little bit of a crazy situation,” Lopez told K.C. Johnson of The Chicago Tribune (Twitter link). “I’m always excited to get out there and play with the guys.”
- Cavaliers forward Kevin Love, who is getting a positive response throughout the league over a piece he posted on The Players Tribune about panic attacks, said he was motivated to write it after the issue came up at a team meeting in January. “One of the things that was brought up was [coach] Ty Lue had mentioned the panic attack [from] early in the season,” Love told Michael Singer of USA Today. “And I wasn’t aware how many people knew. I kind of buried it and put it off to the side. And that kind of started a big push in the back to why I wanted to write this article.”
Southwest Notes: Davis, Cousins, Gasol, Rockets
Anthony Davis isn’t concerned about losing his All-Star partner on the Pelicans‘ front line this offseason, relays William Guillory of The Times-Picayune. Davis believes free agent DeMarcus Cousins will re-sign in New Orleans, although a season-ending Achilles injury may have clouded his future somewhat.
“I hope so. That’s a decision he has to make. I’m pretty confident that he’ll stay,” Davis said. “From what I hear, he plans on it. But I’m going to keep selling the dream here. I’ll be very involved — I want him here.”
Davis and Cousins formed the league’s most productive duo of big men before the injury, with each averaging better than 25 points and 10 rebounds per game. The Pelicans faltered immediately after losing Cousins, but have won nine in a row to rise to fourth place in the West. Cousins, who still doesn’t have a timetable to start playing again, is eligible for an offer of up to five years and $175MM from the Pelicans this summer.
There’s more from the Southwest Division:
- Pau Gasol advised his younger brother to remain professional and mentally tough as the Grizzlies suffer through a long losing streak, writes Ronald Tillery of USA Today. The frustration in Memphis is something new for Marc Gasol, who has been to the playoffs the past seven years. “What I told him is, ‘Do your best. Keep competing.’ That’s the only thing you can control,” Pau said. “You can’t control that one of your best players, Mike Conley, is out for the year. You can’t control that [Chandler] Parsons, one of your biggest signings, has an [injury] issue and so forth. All you can control is your effort, your work ethic, your mindset going into games.”
- The Grizzlies should make trading Gasol a priority for the offseason, contends Spencer Davies of Basketball Insiders. Moving Gasol would not only bring a nice package of players and draft picks, Davies argues, it would also get rid of an unhappy star and shed one of the three huge contracts that are clogging the team’s salary cap.
- Lost amid the Rockets‘ 16-game winning streak is the fact that the team has been dealing with a series of injuries and illnesses, notes Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle. The two most pressing concerns are a left hip injury to Ryan Anderson, who hopes to return this week, and knee soreness bothering newly signed center Brandan Wright.
Grizzlies Sign Xavier Rathan-Mayes To 10-Day Contract
MARCH 5: The Grizzlies have officially signed Rathan-Mayes, the team announced today in a press release. The deal will run through March 14, next Wednesday.
MARCH 4: The Grizzlies will sign G League guard Xavier Rathan-Mayes to a 10-day contract, tweets Shams Charania of Yahoo Sports.
Undrafted out of Florida State last summer, Rathan-Mayes joined the Knicks for training camp and was one of the team’s final cuts before the season began. He has been playing for Westchester in the G League, where he is averaging 16.6 points, 7.2 assists and 6.4 rebounds in 39 games.
The signing will bring the Grizzlies back to a full 15-player roster. They have been carrying an open spot since February 12 when they bought out Brandan Wright.
Weekly Mailbag: 2/26/18 – 3/4/18
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.
Do you think the Pelicans will make Anthony Davis available this offseason if they aren’t able to re-sign DeMarcus Cousins? Could the Celtics be a fit for both Davis and Kawhi Leonard? Would it work with the current salary cap? — Patrick Nyen
The cap isn’t the issue, as both players would have to be traded and salaries would have to be matched. The Celtics have no way to meet that requirement without giving up two of their three most expensive players: Gordon Hayward, Al Horford and Kyrie Irving. Even if Boston was willing to part with them, the Pelicans won’t let go of Davis, no matter what happens with Cousins or anyone else on the roster. He has become a legitimate MVP candidate while keeping New Orleans alive in the playoff race. The more intriguing case is Leonard, who is eligible for a super max extension this summer and can opt out after next season. We don’t know how much of the rumored behind-the-scenes feud is true, but the Spurs are facing a difficult decision on a star player who has only been on the court for nine games this season. If they can’t work out an extension, San Antonio will start to look at trades and the Celtics will surely make an offer.