Draft Notes: Kanter, Bucks, Swanigan
Kerem Kanter has withdrawn from the draft, Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com tweets. Kanter, who is the younger brother of NBA player Enes Kanter, graduated from Green Bay and will play for Xavier this year.
Here’s more on the upcoming draft:
- The Bucks will work out six players today, according to the team’s website. Frank Mason III, T.J. Williams, Luke Fischer, Isaac Humphries, Amida Brimah and Kennedy Meeks will all participate in drills for Milwaukee.
- St John’s Bashir Ahmed is expected to withdraw from the draft and return to the school, according to Jeff Borzello of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Ahmed scored 13.4 points per game in college last season.
- Purdue’s Caleb Swanigan will work out for the Knicks on Wednesday, Adam Zagoria of Zagsblog tweets. Swanigan, like all prospects on the fence, has until this Wednesday to make a final decision on whether or not he’ll stay in the draft.
Durant Talks Decision To Join Warriors, Future With Team
Kevin Durant recently spoke with Marc J. Spears of The Undefeated to discuss his decision to join the Warriors and his future with the team. Here are the highlights from the piece:
On whether or not he has any regrets about leaving the Thunder:
I made the 100 percent correct decision, win or lose. I feel like this is the place I was supposed to be. I appreciate everything I’ve done before this. But I’m here now, and I feel like it’s a great spot for me to be. This is where I am supposed to be at this point of my life. I’m taking it on and conquering every part of it. I’m enjoying every single step.
On where he’ll be playing next season (He can become a free agent this summer by turning down the player option in his contract):
I love it here. I love my teammates. I love the city [of Oakland]. I love the organization. I love it here. I don’t plan on going anywhere else
On the criticism he received for making the decision to join the Warriors:
I try to play the right way and handle myself the right way. I am just confused as to why that stuff doesn’t matter more than what happens on Twitter or whatever the topic of discussion is each day. I think it takes away from what is most important: that ball and that basket, everything in between the lines. I don’t expect anyone who has never been there before to understand that.
On whether or not the criticism will ever stop:
Somebody is always going to disagree. Somebody is always going to discredit. It’s just a part of life. When you want to do it for each other and for friends and family, that’s when it’s purer than anything.
On the best thing about playing for the Warriors:
You have people here who realize that the most important thing is it’s a game. You have fun. But you also should be passionate and dedicated. That is what everybody’s vision is.
Draft Notes: Allen, Irvin, Magic
Frontcourt may not be the Bulls‘ biggest need, but if someone as talented as Jarrett Allen is available at No. 16, the team shouldn’t hesitate to go in that direction, Mark Strotman of Comcast Sportsnet contends. Strotman believes Allen could be the team’s next Joakim Noah. Chicago drafted Noah in 2007 even though Ben Wallace was under contract and it worked out long-term for the franchise.
Allen may not surpass current starting center Robin Lopez this season, but by the time his rookie contract is up, Allen could be one of the best big men in the league. Jonathan Givony of Draft Express has the Texas product as the 17th best prospect in his class.
Here’s more on the upcoming draft:
- The Lakers recently met with Michigan’s Zak Irvin and the team was impressed with his workout, according to Michael Scotto of Basketball Insiders (Twitter link). Irvin will also work out for the Bucks later this week.
- Pittsburg’s Jamel Artis will work out for the Lakers and Rockets later this week, Scotto reports in a separate tweet. Artis isn’t ranked in Givony’s top 100 prospects.
- The Magic have several players scheduled to work out for the team on Tuesday, Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel passes along. Cal’s Ivan Rabb, Purdue’s Caleb Swanigan, Villanova’s Josh Hart and Houston’s Damyean Dotson will all participate in Orlando’s workouts.
Brandon Austin Cleared To Play In NBA, Worked Out For Sixers
A “secret arbitration ruling” within the league is helping Brandon Austin to have an opportunity to play in the NBA, sources tell ESPN’s Zach Lowe. Austin faced separate sexual assault allegations at two schools—Oregon and Providence—during his collegiate career and while he was never charged a crime, he was kicked off of both basketball teams.
Last summer, the league sent a memo to all 30 franchises which instructed any team interested in signing either Austin or another unnamed player to call the NBA office, sources tell Lowe. Teams that called the league were told about the allegations and the teams were warned that the two players could face discipline once they signed with a club.
The National Basketball Players Association felt the league had overstepped its boundaries. It filed an arbitration claim and the arbitrator agreed that the NBA could not fine or suspend players for allegations which occurred prior to entering the league. The league then sent a follow-up memo to all teams which told teams that it had the authority to “disapprove” any contract of a player based on Adam Silver’s broad authority. The league’s constitution states that “all players shall be of good moral character.”
In all, the ruling stated that the league can reject any contract, but can not impose punishment for a prior act once a contract is signed.
Austin worked out with the Sixers last week, according to Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer. The 6’7″ point guard previously talked to Pompey about the past allegations, stating that “everything was consensual.”
“I didn’t do anything wrong,” Austin told Pompey last summer. “The intention wasn’t wrong. I just made a mistake. A lot of people make mistakes. I just grew from it, and I continue to [grow] today.”
The Sixers told Pompey that they are only making their gym available for Austin as they have and will do for local NBA and D-League players this summer.
Dion Waiters Wants To Remain With Heat
Dion Waiters holds a $3MM player option to remain with the Heat for the 2017/18 season. He’s likely to turn that down, but it doesn’t mean he’s looking for a new team.
“I want to be there,” Waiters said of Miami on The Hochman and Crowder Show on WQAM (h/t Anthony Chiang of the Palm Beach Post). “When that time comes and we sit down, we just got to make it happen. Let’s get it over with as quick as possible.”
The Philadelphia native cites “Heat culture” as a reason he wants to return to South Beach next season.
“The things that they preach to us and really speaking it into existence, and being able to really buy in and see the results,” Waiters added. “I think once you start seeing the results, you start to trust the process more. That was my whole thing. My thing was about seeing the results. When I listen and I’m locked in, you see the results. And as far as my body, just being able to maintain the weight that I lost to help my play was huge for me.”
Waiters had a productive year one in Miami. He scored 15.8 points per contest and Chaing envisions him signing a contract with annual values around $15MM. The shooting guard made just under $3MM this season and he’s made slightly under $20MM during his five-year career.
Miami can carve out approximately $38MM in cap room this summer. Pat Riley has been known to chase stars and if one wants to join the Heat on a max contract, the team wouldn’t have the flexibility to add Waiters on a lucrative deal. Despite the threat of a bigger fish joining the team, the 25-year-old is optimistic about his chances of returning to the franchise.
“I think I’ll be back [with the Heat],” Waiters said. “We just got to make it work and hopefully everything can come together full circle.”
Mavericks Notes: Noel, Dirk, Draft
The Mavericks are eager to re-sign Nerlens Noel and owner Mark Cuban sounded optimistic about the team’s chances of doing so in a recent radio appearance on 105.3 The Fan’s Ben & Skin show (h/t The Dallas Morning News).
“I’m not allowed to talk about [negotiations] but all I can tell you is he’s one of a bunch of guys who came in, they all got together and said ‘Let’s go down to the practice facility and start working out together,'” Cuban said. “So they’re down there now and so that’s exciting to see, and he’s part of that group.”
Noel is a restricted free agent, meaning the team can match any offer sheet he receives. Here’s more on the Mavs:
- Cuban added that Dirk Nowitzki is becoming more involved with the Mavericks‘ scouting department, as The Dallas Morning News relays. “To his credit, there are some Europeans we’re talking to about him now, talking to him and getting feedback from [his coach] Holger [Geschwindner] who’s maybe seen them,” Cuban said. “And having him talk to coaches, he’s a little bit more involved early in the process rather than just walking into the war room and giving feedback then.”
- The Mavericks will take the best player available at No. 9, Cuban said during that same radio appearance. “We’ll probably air on the side of long term. We’re not drafting for need so we’ll probably take the best possible player,” the team’s owner added.
Celtics Were Willing To Deal Thomas For Lottery Pick In ’16 Draft
The Celtics had the No. 3 overall pick in the 2016 draft and they used the selection to nab University of California’s Jaylen Brown. GM Danny Ainge wanted to acquire another lottery selection in addition to the team’s top-3 pick and he dangled everyone on the team in trade discussions, including Isaiah Thomas, ESPN’s Jackie MacMullan reports.
“Before the draft last year, Danny was trying to get two picks, not just Jaylen Brown,” MacMullan told Bob Ryan on his podcast (h/t Comcast Sportsnet). “He was on the phone with everybody from coast to coast, and he was offering everybody. That includes Marcus Smart and Isaiah Thomas, and anything else they needed to get where he wanted to go. There were no untouchables on that team last year.”
MacMullan believes the only untouchable on Boston’s roster this summer will be Al Horford. The big man signed a four-year, $113MM deal with the team last offseason.
The Celtics won the lottery earlier this week and earned the top selection in the 2017 draft. In addition to the No. 1 overall selection, the franchise owns three second round picks. Only the Sixers have more selections in the upcoming draft.
If Boston wants to acquire another lottery pick in this year’s draft, I’d speculate that trading Thomas would fetch them a top-14 selection this time around. The point guard had an excellent season, scoring 28.9 points per game, a figure which only trailed Russell Westbrook and James Harden. He has just one season at a salary of approximately $6.26MM left on his deal after this year.
Phil Jackson Recently Met With Kristaps Porzingis’ Camp
Team president Phil Jackson recently met with Kristaps Porzingis‘ brother and the two sides discussed the the power forward’s issues with the club, Stefan Bondy of The New York Daily News reports. A Knicks‘ source tells Bondy that the sit down didn’t accomplish very much as Phil Jackson remained “steadfast” in his ways.
Jackson remains focused on installing and running the triangle. He’s aimed to tailor the teams’ workouts and training sessions around the offense, sources tell Bondy.
What specifics the two sides discussed is not clear, but Porzingis’ camp has previously called for New York to “create an environment where he can develop and grow as a player and win.”
Porzingis has two years remaining on his deal and in the summer of 2019, he can become a restricted free agent. At that point, the team will be able to match any offer. If Porzingis badly wants out, the quickest route to secure a place on a new franchise without a trade is playing out the final two years of his deal, then signing a qualifying offer during the 2019 offseason. That would allow him to become an unrestricted free agent in the summer of 2020.
Porzingis has said he wants to remain in New York, but with the aforementioned conditions. The team has some time to repair the relationship and build a winning team, though as we’ve seen with the Carmelo Anthony saga, ongoing Knicks’ turmoil isn’t guaranteed to get better with time.
Jackson only has two seasons remaining on his deal. I’d speculate that he’ll make it through his current agreement, but he won’t see another deal in the 2019 offseason unless Kristaps Porzingis is happy with the state of the franchise. By that time, we’ll likely have more data on the triangle offense in our current pace-and-space culture and it should be clear whether or not the system has a place in the league.
Draft Notes: Fox, Ntilikina, Chartouny
De’Aaron Fox was eyeing Sacramento as a destination even before the Kings moved up in the lottery, Scott Howard-Cooper of NBA.com tweets. The Kings need a long-term option at the point guard position and Fox could be the answer when they pick at No. 5. Howard-Cooper notes that Fox is friends with center Willie Cauley-Stein.
Here’s more on the upcoming draft:
- Jonathan Wasserman of Bleacher Report (Twitter link) hears that the Knicks, Mavericks, Sixers and Kings are the franchises which spent the most time scouting Frank Ntilikina in France over the past month. Ntilikina is the 10th best prospect in the draft, according to Draft Express’ Jonathan Givony.
- Joseph Chartouny will withdraw from the draft and return to Fordham next season, sources tell Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports (Twitter link). The point guard scored 11.9 points and dished out 4.6 assists during his sophomore campaign at the university.
- While it appears the Ball family may get their dream outcome of Lonzo Ball playing for the Lakers, Adi Joseph of USA Today lays out four scenarios that could hurt LaVar Ball‘s master plan.
Isaiah Thomas To Miss Remainder Of Postseason
Isaiah Thomas will miss the remainder of the playoffs because of a hip injury, according to the Celtics’ website. The team called the ailment a re-aggravation of a right femoral-acetabular impingement with labral tear.
“Isaiah has worked tirelessly to manage this injury since it first occurred,” said Celtics Chief Medical Officer Dr. Brian McKeon. “The swelling increased during the first two games against Cleveland, and in order to avoid more significant long-term damage to his hip, we could no longer allow him to continue.”
Thomas first injured his hip back in March and it forced him to miss two starts. He aggravated the injury in Boston’s Game 6 loss to the Wizard before re-aggravating it again during Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Finals on Friday.
The team added that the point guard is currently evaluating treatment options. The Celtics traveled to Cleveland to play Game 3 and Game 4 of the series, but Thomas did not make the trip.