Thunder Notes: Extension, PRP Injection, Recruiting
The Thunder locked down MVP Russell Westbrook through the end of the 2022/23 season and it’s not hard to imagine the impact the deal will have on the franchise as a whole. Erik Horne of The Oklahoman broke down the role the extension might have in shaping the team’s roster in the years to come.
First and foremost, the fact that Westbrook will be under Oklahoma City control for the next half-decade could entice Carmelo Anthony to stay with the club after the 2017/18 campaign. Even in a scenario where Paul George could choose to opt out via his player option, Anthony may be inclined to stay in order to continue playing alongside the perennial All-Star.
The move also serves as a message, loud and clear, that the Thunder aren’t afraid to flirt with the luxury tax if the team stands a legitimate chance of being competitive.
Finally, the extension changes the perception that small market teams can’t be a destination for big name players. Anthony’s decision to accept a trade to the Thunder could inspire other players – perhaps during buyout season next February – to consider signing with Oklahoma City.
There’s more from the Thunder:
- Days before signing his historic contract extension, Russell Westbrook underwent a standard platelet rich plasma injection in his left knee, Brett Dawson of The Oklahoman writes.
- While there has been some resolution in regards to Russell Westbrook’s future, there’s no guarantee that this super-team-ified version of the Thunder will exist for long considering that both Paul George and Carmelo Anthony could conceivably exit next summer. Erik Horne of The Oklahoman writes that fans ought to embrace it while it’s here.
- He may still be settling into life in Oklahoma City but Paul George is a passionate enough member of the Thunder to recruit for the franchise. “My job is to make this team as good as possible, elevate this team as much as possible. Whatever I can do I will do, and that’s whether I’m on the court or off the court. My job is to try to make things happen,” George told the media, including Brett Dawson of The Oklahoman. The forward played a role in recruiting Carmelo Anthony and he tried to convince Dwyane Wade to sign with the team as well.
Atlantic Notes: Irving, Porzingis, Embiid
It hasn’t taken long for Kyrie Irving to gel with his new Celtics teammates, Marc D’Amico of the Celtics’ official website writes. The newly acquired point guard has made an effort to approach his new teammates on the bus and at practice in order to make the transition more comfortable.
Of course Irving’s performance has wowed a Celtics teammate or two as well. Through training camp, Irving has impressed Al Horford with his uncanny ability to finish shots and frustrated Terry Rozier with his slippery offensive game. “He’s a tough one to guard, probably one of the toughest guys I’ve ever had to guard in my life,” Rozier said.
After putting up 25.2 points and 5.8 assists per game in his final season with the Cavaliers, Irving will look to provide much-needed star power to a Celtics squad eager to take the next step toward contention. Irving may well be the player on the roster with the highest ceiling ahead of the 2017/18 campaign.
There’s more from the Atlantic Division tonight:
- There was a strategic effort in place to keep Kristaps Porzingis from getting caught up in the trade rumors that involved him last summer. The Knicks forward recently told ESPN’s Ian Begley that his brothers – who double as his unofficial spokespeople – made sure to keep his attention on basketball.
- There’s a coordinated song and dance that goes in to pulling off the perfect free agent signing. New Raptors general manager Bobby Webster spoke with Eric Koreen of The Athletic about how the club’s decision to trade DeMarre Carroll and Cory Joseph impacted their signing of C.J. Miles.
- Despite the fact that he’s been busy playing basketball all offseason – thanks to EuroBasket 2017 – Dario Saric look as impressive as ever, Brian Seltzer of the Sixers‘ official site writes.
- Second-year big man Joel Embiid has impressed teammates in his return to five-on-five action, Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer writes. Embiid needs to get back into game shape, Robert Covington says, but has otherwise looked good.
Glenn Robinson III To Miss Two Months With Ankle Injury
The Pacers are expected to be without forward Glenn Robinson III for two months, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN tweets. The 23-year-old severely sprained his left ankle during a team practice.
Prior to the injury, Robinson III had figured to factor into the team’s rotation in 2017/18 along with free agent acquisition Bojan Bogdanovic. In a career-best year last season, he played 20.7 minutes per game behind starting forward Paul George.
Despite the setback, this season could still mark a new opportunity for the son of Purdue University legend Glenn Robinson Jr. If the youngest Robinson can at least hit the ground running when he returns, he could still piece together a solid campaign from Thanksgiving Day on now that incumbent starter George has moved on to Oklahoma City.
Robinson III was a second-round pick out of Michigan in 2014 and has played for his home state Pacers since the summer of 2015.
Central Notes: LaVine, Jackson, Calderon
The Bulls have had a busy week signing Nikola Mirotic and buying out Dwyane Wade. Now, Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times writes, the team will turn its attention to Zach LaVine, their recently acquired guard currently eligible for a contract extension.
“They [the Bulls and his representation] have had some conversations,” LaVine said. “It doesn’t really matter to me. I’m going to let all that take care of itself. I know I’m a big part of this team and I’m excited to be in negotiations with them. I want to be here for a long period of time. If it’s now or later, I know it’s going to be done either way.”
The guard averaged 18.9 points per game for the Timberwolves last season before tearing his ACL last February. He, along with Kris Dunn and the No. 7 pick ended up with the Bulls in the Jimmy Butler deal.
Just yesterday we wrote about how the Bulls’ front office was clear about their intentions to build around a core that featured the 22-year-old dunk contest champion. Whether that means committing to him on the heels of a significant injury before he even suits up for a game, however, is a whole other question.
There’s more from the Central Division:
- After four months resting and recovering from knee tendinitis, Reggie Jackson has officially returned to contact practice. The Pistons guard was able to get through his most recent test pain-free, Rod Beard of the Detroit News writes, but will need to work his way back into game shape. “I’m happy to be feeling good each and every day. The best thing is to wake up and be pain-free; even if [I’m] sore, it’s really body soreness and nothing with the knee. My legs may be a little fatigued because I’m getting back to the swing of things,” Jackson said.
- Consider Jose Calderon‘s role with the Cavaliers in danger, Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com writes. The Cavs have 16 players on guaranteed deals and the 36-year-old veteran doesn’t have the upside that somebody like Cedi Osman has.
- The Pacers were among the 28 teams that supported draft lottery reform, Jim Ayello of the Indianapolis Star writes. Indiana’s support for the new system is particularly interesting considering they’re a small market team perceived to face inherent challenges recruiting talent via free agency.
Southeast Notes: Hornets, Wizards, Jordan
The Hornets struggled to keep leads when their starters – particularly Kemba Walker and Cody Zeller – were on the bench last season. The question ahead of 2017/18 then, Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer asks, is whether or not that will change this season.
Gone are all of Walker’s and Zeller’s backups, a veritable laundry list of players from Ramon Sessions, Brian Roberts and Briante Weber to Spencer Hawes, Roy Hibbert and Miles Plumlee. In their place are Michael Carter-Williams and Dwight Howard, both of whom were attained by the Hornets at relative bargains over the summer.
Of course the addition of Carter-Williams will provide size and defense to the Hornets’ second unit but the real draw is Howard, not because of what he’ll add off the bench but because of what his addition to the starting lineup entails.
As we’ve already written, head coach Steve Clifford has already committed to starting Howard when the season begins, that means Zeller himself will be able to work directly with the Hornets’ second unit to help do for them what he did for the starting five in 2016/17.
There’s more from the Southeast Division:
- The Wizards will have a number of players to replace Markieff Morris with when the season tips off. The forward is currently expected to miss six to eight weeks with a sports hernia. “We have versatility and we have depth. We can go in many different directions. We can go small. We can throw Kelly Oubre]in there. We can throw Jason Smith in there. Mike Scott we can put in there. There’s a lot of players that we can throw into the mix,” head coach Scott Brooks told Chase Hughes of CSN Mid-Atlantic.
- Hornets majority owner Michael Jordan will soon have a stake in another professional sports franchise. Jordan is part of Derek Jeter‘s group that has been approved to buy the Miami Marlins, Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer writes.
- Only time will tell how Hawks head coach Mike Budenholzer and new general manager Travis Schlenk mesh over the next few years but the dynamic between the two could be worth watching as the organization’s priorities shift from winning ball games to developing for the future. Michael Cunningham of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution writes that Budenholzer will embrace the rebuild, whether that’s his preference or not.
Central Notes: Bulls, Smith, Johnson
The Bulls have fully embraced a rebuild and it’s centered around Zach LaVine, Kris Dunn and Lauri Markkanen. Vice president of basketball operations John Paxson and general manager Gar Forman declared as much at media day, Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times.
“We’re in a position now where we have supportive ownership, we’ve defined our direction and we’re looking forward,” Paxson said. “That’s all Gar and I can do every day.”
The three players mentioned were all acquired a draft day deal between the Bulls and Timberwolves that sent Jimmy Butler to Minnesota. The change of course to embrace a rebuild came after a season of trade rumors and speculation that the organization should dismantle its core (among other things).
“I do think we can win our fans’ trust back by showing them we can put a group of young players out there who care and show them there’s promise ahead,” Paxson said.
There’s more from the Central Division:
- For now at least, J.R. Smith is the starting shooting guard on the Cavaliers, Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com writes. “I’m not going to sit here and get into a ‘blank’ measuring contest with Dwyane Wade,” Smith said. “I’m not going to win that. I’m not going to do that. I’m going to continue to work hard for our team and however they choose to do it, that’s who it’s going to be.”
- Citing mental maturation and a commitment to improving, Pistons head coach Stan Van Gundy is optimistic about third-year forward Stanley Johnson‘s progress, Keith Langlois of the team’s official site writes. Van Gundy also praised rookie Luke Kennard‘s performance at training camp thus far.
- There’s a case to be made for Cavaliers forward LeBron James winning the MVP this season. Brian Windhorst of ESPN writes that the 15-year veteran is coming off one of the best offseasons he’s had since he came into the league.
2017 Offseason In Review: Toronto Raptors
Hoops Rumors is breaking down the 2017 offseason for all 30 NBA teams, revisiting the summer’s free agent signings, trades, draft picks, departures, and more. We’ll evaluate each team’s moves from the last several months and look ahead to what the 2017/18 season holds for all 30 franchises. Today, we’re focusing on the Toronto Raptors.
Signings:
- Kyle Lowry: Three years, $93MM. Includes unlikely incentives.
- Serge Ibaka: Three years, $65MM.
- C.J. Miles: Three years, $25MM. Third-year player option.
- Lorenzo Brown: Two-way contract. One year, $50K guaranteed.
- Malcolm Miller: Two-way contract. One year, $50K guaranteed.
Camp invitees:
- Alfonzo McKinnie: Two years, minimum salary. $100K guarantee.
- K.J. McDaniels: One year, minimum salary. $100K guarantee.
- Kennedy Meeks: One year, minimum salary. Summer contract.
- Kyle Wiltjer: One year, minimum salary. Summer contract.
- Andy Rautins: One year, minimum salary. Exact terms not yet known.
Trades:
- Acquired Magic’s 2018 second-round pick from the Magic in exchange for the right to hire Jeff Weltman.
- Acquired Justin Hamilton from the Nets in exchange for DeMarre Carroll, the Raptors’ 2018 first-round pick (top-14 protected), and a 2018 second-round pick (less favorable of Lakers and Magic picks).
- Acquired the draft rights to Emir Preldzic from the Pacers in exchange for Cory Joseph.
Draft picks:
- 1-23: OG Anunoby — Signed to rookie contract.
Departing players:
- DeMarre Carroll
- Cory Joseph
- Patrick Patterson
- P.J. Tucker
Other offseason news:
- Promoted Bobby Webster to general manager after GM Jeff Weltman left to become Magic’s president of basketball operations.
- Tendered qualifying offer to Nando De Colo to retain RFA rights.
Salary cap situation:
- Operating over the cap and slightly under the tax. Hard capped. Carrying approximately $117MM in guaranteed salary. Full bi-annual exception ($3.29MM) still available.
Check out the Toronto Raptors’ full roster and depth chart at RosterResource.com.
Story of the summer:
The Raptors faced an existential fork in the road this summer and made the decision to keep their core in place. By re-signing Kyle Lowry and Serge Ibaka, the club doubled down on a formula that has delivered mixed results, depending on whom you ask.
Put simply, the Medium Three of DeMar DeRozan, Lowry, and Ibaka may not be enough to legitimately contend with the Cavaliers or Celtics, but it’s reasonably safe to say it’s enough to clinch home-court advantage in the first round of the playoffs in the watered-down Eastern Conference.
To afford Lowry and Ibaka, owed $28.7MM and $20.1MM this season, Toronto needed to drastically limit future financial flexibility and also forego some of its peripheral core, including several prominent rotation pieces.
The jury is out on whether or not the Raps’ decision to stick with their stars as opposed to explore a more intensive overhaul was a smart one, but that’s a question for basketball philosophers.
Will the moves bring the franchise the success that it pines for? And what constitutes success for a fringe contender in the Super-Team Era anyway?
NBA Releases Future Salary Cap Projections
The NBA has informed teams that it expects the 2018/19 salary cap to be $101MM, Shams Charania of The Vertical tweets. The league also said that they forecast the 2019/20 figure to be $108MM, although both figures are subject to change.
The modest $2MM increase is a stark contrast from what teams around the league have seen over the course of the past two years. From 2015/16 the cap jumped from $70MM to $94MM and then the next year it bumped up another $5MM to the $99MM mark it sits at for the 2017/18 season.
A 2018/19 cap projection of $101MM falls short of the $108MM prior projection the league forecast back during the summer of 2016, but after the final 2017/18 figure came in $2MM below projections, it’s not all that surprising.
During the summer we wrote that the league lowered its 2017/18 projection on the heels of lower than expected playoff revenue and it’s possible we’re still seeing the impact of that.
Given the latest projections, the salary floor for the 2018/19 season would be roughly $91MM.
Atlantic Notes: Hayward, Saric, Rambis
Among the biggest things that Gordon Hayward will have to adjust to when suiting up for the Celtics this year is the big market environment, Mark Murphy of the Boston Herald writes.
Ever since rumors started to swirl that Boston may be the ultimate landing spot of the 2017 free agent (thanks in large part to Celtics head coach Brad Stevens), Hayward started to notice just how much attention he was generating in New England.
“It is different, and that’s something that’s different for me because I’ve flown under the radar since I’ve been in high school,” Hayward said. “Going into making this decision [to join the Celtics], we talked about how there’s going to be more of a spotlight.”
Hayward averaged 21.9 points and 5.4 rebounds per game for the Jazz last season. This year he’ll look to mesh well with a Celtics team dead-set on competing for the Eastern Conference title.
There’s more from the Atlantic Division:
- Despite a solid string of performances when given the opportunity to lead the Sixers, Dario Saric is poised to come off the bench for the squad at the start of the 2017/18 season. As Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer writes, there were spacing issues when Saric played alongside Joel Embiid last season and it’s hard to envision a good fit for him with the rest of Philly’s expected starters on defense.
- After a dismal 2016/17 season, Kurt Rambis has been relieved of his unofficial duties as the Knicks‘ defensive coordinator, Marc Berman of the New York Post writes. Rambis remains an associate head coach with the team, however.
- Unsurprisingly, the Sixers have not engaged with Nik Stauskas about a possible contract extension, Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer writes. Despite that, the shooting guard would be open to remaining with the team beyond this season.
Pacific Notes: Rivers, Looney, Bennett
If Austin Rivers is going to silence naysayers who claim his career has been propped up by his head coach father, now is as good an opportunity as any. Broderick Turner of the Los Angeles Times spoke with the 25-year-old Clippers guard about life after Chris Paul.
Rivers averaged 12.0 points per game in 74 games for the Clippers last season but drove that up to 16.1 in 29 games as a starter. With Paul and shooting guard J.J. Redick no longer with the squad, he could see a lot more time as a primary scoring option.
Rivers also spoke about the rumor that Paul requested a trade because Doc Rivers, then still the president of basketball operations, refused to trade his son in an effort to bring Carmelo Anthony to the Clippers.
“I talked to him after that rumor came out, confronted him about it and he said it wasn’t coming from him or coming from his camp,” Austin said. “So we left it at that.”
There’s more from the Pacific Division:
- Although the mission was to get the Kings into the postseason when he signed on with the team, head coach Dave Joerger is comfortable with and committed to the rebuild at hand, too, Ailene Voisin of the Sacramento Bee writes.
- Now down to 232 pounds, the lightest he’s been in years, 24-year-old Anthony Bennett is ready to resuscitate his career, Scott Bordow of the Arizona Republic writes. The former first-overall pick is on a non-guaranteed deal with the Suns.
- The Warriors could wait until the deadline to accept Kevon Looney‘s fourth-year option, Anthony Slater of the Athletic writes. The forward has been hard-struck by injuries over the course of the past few years but could finally be ready to show potential.