NBA G League Assignments/Recalls: 1/19/18
Here are the G League moves from around the Association today:
- The Cavaliers assigned big man Ante Zizic to their affiliate in Canton, the team announced in a press release. Zizic is averaging 16.3 points and 8.9 rebounds in just 23.4 minutes for the G League squad this season.
- The Bulls sent Cristiano Felicio and Paul Zipser down to the G League, K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune tweets. The big men plied their trade for the Windy City affiliate on Friday night.
- The Rockets assigned Troy Williams to Rio Grande Valley, Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle tweets. The Vipers are Houston’s G League affiliate.
And-Ones: Predictions, Discipline, Prospects
In a debut installment of a new feature, Marc Stein of the New York Times made a number of predictions for the upcoming year in basketball. The scribe ventures a guess that this is the year the Trail Blazers blow up their backcourt of Damian Lillard and C.J. McCollum.
Stein writes that dealing one of the star guards would be the easiest way for the Blazers to balance their roster, something that could come in handy if the organization seeks to go in a new direction. Bear in mind, however, that Stein’s prediction applies to this year and not necessarily to this season.
Stein also makes a series of arguments that a pair of big names stay with their current teams, despite ongoing speculation to the contrary. The Times journalist says that LeBron James to the Lakers is no guarantee and that Cleveland stands a legitimate chance of retaining the King.
On a similar note, Stein reasons that DeMarcus Cousins isn’t likely to find the market teeming with attractive salary offers this season and that he’ll end up staying put with the Pelicans.
There’s more from around the league:
- One possible solution to curb the growing tension between NBA players and referees is to ramp up the discipline assigned to players who act hostile to officials. “The hammer has to drop from above,” one Western Conference team official told Ken Berger of Bleacher Report. “When you had David Stern and Rod Thorn there, none of this stuff was going on because they weren’t going to put up with it. I think we’ve gotten away from that. There’s something every night.“
- Four active front offices have made a dozen or more trade deadline deals over the course of their tenures, Bobby Marks of ESPN weighed in on them and the rest of the league’s executives in his latest for ESPN Insiders.
- There has been plenty of movement among the DraftExpress team’s list of the top 100 NBA prospects. Jonathan Givony of ESPN recently broke down a number of NCAA players who’ve recently seen their values rise dramatically.
Cavs Pursuing DeAndre Jordan, Lou Williams
6:30pm: Stein added in a later tweet that the Cavs have similarly inquired about Lou Williams. David Aldridge of TNT confirmed Cleveland’s interest in the former Sixth Man of the Year but notes that talks with the Clips have stalled due to L.A.’s request for the Nets’ 2018 pick.
6:13pm: The Cavaliers are pursuing separate deals for both DeAndre Jordan and George Hill, Marc Stein of the New York Times tweets. While the latter was reported earlier today, the fact that the Cavs are now more aggressively seeking a Jordan deal comes as news.
About a month ago, the Cavs were said to be “sniffing around” the 29-year-old Jordan. Now, third in the Eastern Conference and losers of nine of their last 13 contests, the team could be more desperate to make a bold move ahead of the deadline.
Given that Jordan is owed $22.6MM this season and holds a player option for $24.1MM next season, the luxury-tax-bound Cavs would have to get creative with outgoing packages if they planned on somehow netting both Jordan and Hill.
One of the major assets that the Cavs could offer in exchange for the 2017 NBA All-Star is the famous 2018 Nets pick they acquired from the Celtics in the Kyrie Irving trade. The team, however, has been said to be reluctant to deal the first-rounder.
The suddenly red-hot Clippers won’t be looking to give Jordan away for peanuts at the deadline, but there’s reason to believe that the club could be motivated to make a move. In 41 games for L.A. this season, Jordan has posted 11.8 points and 14.9 rebounds per game.
Andrew Bogut Expected To Sign After Trade Deadline
Veteran big man Andrew Bogut is expected to sign with a new team after the trade deadline, Marc Stein of the New York Times tweets. The 33-year-old is being courted by a number of playoff teams already, Stein adds.
Last seen with the Lakers prior to his release in early January, Bogut is a physical low-post presence that teams hope can still contribute, at least defensively, to a winner.
With the NBA trade deadline approaching and roster flexibility of particular importance, it’s unlikely that Bogut finds a new job prior to February 8. After the deadline, teams said to be interested in the Australian (like the Bucks) should have more roster clarity and are expected to pursue him more aggressively.
Cavs Emerge As Suitor For George Hill
The Cavaliers have emerged as a suitor for George Hill, expressing interest in the Kings guard Shams Charania of Yahoo Sports writes. The Cavs are said to be envisioning Hill in a dual role out of their backcourt.
Hill has had an underwhelming first season with the rebuilding Kings, admitting months after signing a three-year, $57MM contract that he didn’t expect suiting up as a mentor on a forlorn young roster to be so difficult.
In 37 games with Sacramento this season, Hill has averaged 10.5 points, 3.0 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game. Those marks are considerably lower than what he posted in a stellar season for the Jazz in 2016/17.
If a trade materializes, Hill would join a logjam of veterans in Cleveland’s backcourt, considering that the team already has Isaiah Thomas, Dwyane Wade, Derrick Rose and Jose Calderon in the mix.
Of course, in addition to depth chart issues, there are logistic issues to consider as well. If the Cavs were to land Hill and his $20MM contract, they’d likely have to send back a package of Channing Frye and either J.R. Smith or Iman Shumpert. None are particularly compelling assets for a team in Sacramento’s position, though Frye is at least on an expiring deal.
Lakers Sign Nigel Hayes To 10-Day Deal
JANUARY 19: The Lakers have officially signed Hayes to a 10-day contract, the team announced today in a press release. The deal will run through next Sunday.
JANUARY 18: The Lakers plan to sign forward Nigel Hayes to a 10-day contract, Shams Charania of The Vertical tweets. The 23-year-old went undrafted out of Wisconsin last summer but did end up briefly catching on with the Knicks in training camp.
Hayes averaged 14.0 points and 6.2 rebounds per game across three seasons with the Badgers and will slot into a Lakers depth chart that could use depth down low.
In 30 games with the G League’s Westchester Knicks this season, Hayes has averaged 14.9 points and 6.6 rebounds per contest.
2018 Free Agent Stock Watch: Toronto Raptors
Last summer, the Raptors made the decision to commit to the core that powered them to four consecutive playoff berths. As a result, the organization is somewhat financially handcuffed for the foreseeable future.
Given such financial constraints – the team already has $126MM on its books for 2018/19 – Toronto will need continue to rely heavily on the starters that the roster has been built around.
That said, a conscious decision to speed up the game has helped the team show signs of growth in other areas, and in addition to an impressive starting five, the Raps suddenly boast one of the more intriguing second units in the league.
While many of Toronto’s key rotation players are under team control through 2018/19 and beyond, not all of them are, and retaining each and every one of them may prove difficult.
Fred VanVleet, PG, 24 (Up) – Signed to a two-year, $1.8MM deal in 2016
The undrafted guard out of Wichita State has proved to be one of the driving factors behind Toronto’s impressive second unit. His ability to handle the offense and knock down threes has helped facilitate the Raps’ transition from an iso-heavy squad to one that swings the ball and gets everybody involved. While VanVleet may have been the team’s No. 3 point guard to start the season, early returns from 2017/18 show that there is plenty of room in the rotation for both VanVleet and Delon Wright. For tax reasons, don’t expect the Raps to break the bank for the restricted free agent, but it’s a safe bet that the sharpshooter will land a bigger deal than his first NBA contract. Even if that doesn’t happen in Toronto.
Bruno Caboclo, SF, 22 (Down) – Signed to a four-year, $7MM deal in 2014
Toronto’s famously raw project hasn’t quite shown the growth that members of the team’s front office hoped they’d see when they inexplicably drafted him with their 2014 first-round pick. Caboclo remains as tantalizing a physical prospect as any, but hasn’t even reached a point where he can thrive in the G League on a consistent basis. There may still be some glimmer of promise in the 22-year-old out of Brazil, but again, the Raps may not want to venture further into luxury tax territory to chase it.
Lucas Nogueira, C, 25 (Up) – Signed to a four-year, $8.5MM deal in 2014
While he may have a ceiling as a high-energy reserve, Nogueira’s length and athleticism can be a plus for team’s looking to add cheap frontcourt depth. Nogueira will be a restricted free agent in the summer and could well find a team interested in taking a flyer on him. In that scenario, it won’t be hard for opposing teams to outbid the Raptors, especially considering that they’ve had success with Jakob Poeltl serving as the team’s primary backup big.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
NBA G League Assignments/Recalls: 1/18/18
Here are the G League moves from Thursday:
- The Hawks have assigned DeAndre’ Bembry, Tyler Cavanaugh and Isaiah Taylor to their G League affiliate in Erie, the team announced on its website.
Pistons Seek Disabled Player Exception For Jon Leuer
With Jon Leuer sidelined indefinitely, the Pistons have applied for a disabled player exception, Rod Beard of The Detroit News writes. Leuer was once regarded as a key rotation piece in Detroit’s frontcourt, but has been limited to just nine games of action this season.
The deadline for the DPE application was January 15 and the Pistons made their case for salary-cap relief, with the 28-year-old now considering season-ending surgery.
Should the application be approved, the Pistons would be granted an exception worth about $5.25MM. That said, the provision wouldn’t grant the team an additional roster spot. Since the Pistons currently roster 15 players, they would have to cut or trade someone if they intend to use a DPE.
As we outline in our glossary entry, a disabled player exception allows a team to sign a player to a one-year deal or trade for a player in the final year of his contract. If the Pistons receive a DPE and don’t use it by March 12, it will expire.
Atlantic Notes: Embiid, Bolden, Tatum
While the team has not offered up an official date at which Joel Embiid will be cleared to play in back-to-backs, the Sixers center would like to do so by the end of the month, Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer writes.
Embiid, who was voted in as an All-Star Game starter earlier today, has averaged 23.8 points and 10.9 rebounds per game for the Sixers this season, but has only played in 31 of the team’s 40 contests.
Through the first three months of the regular season, the Sixers have played five sets of back-to-backs and in each game, Embiid has missed at least one match.
“I just need not to take days off,” Embiid said. “It’s not on me. It’s on the [Sixers’] medical staff. But hopefully, back-to-backs by the end of this month, I will be allowed to play.”
There’s more from the Atlantic Division:
- The Celtics appear to have landed a gem in rookie Jayson Tatum. Chris Forsberg of ESPN recently profiled the 19-year-old forward, painting a picture of how Tatum’s confidence and poise have served him just as well as his length and athleticism have so far in his young career.
- A feature by The Athletic’s Rich Hoffman profiles Sixers‘ draft-and-stash prospect Jonah Bolden. The 36th pick in the 2017 draft was named the Adriatic League’s Top Prospect, an award that Dario Saric and Nikola Jokic also earned during their stints there.
- Despite a breakout year with the Nets, Joe Harris hasn’t concerned himself with the fact that he’ll be a free agent in the summer. “I love playing for [head coach Kenny Atkinson]”, Harris told Sam Blum of The Daily Progress. “I love the teammates that we have and everybody else that’s in the organization. We have a lot of great people, top to bottom. I really don’t think about that stuff a whole lot. I focus on trying to get better here collectively and individually and just enjoying it while I can.“