Nets Notes: Levy, Business Ventures, Projections
Nets owner Joe Tsai, who was unanimously approved by the NBA Board of Governors to take over control of the team earlier this week, believes the franchise has done an excellent job creating a winning environment.
“They established the culture, developed talent others couldn’t see, and made Brooklyn the place where the best players want to play,” Tsai said (via Brian Lewis of the New York Post). “In a great position to compete. I am thrilled to be partners with winners!”
Tsai has David Levy, who formerly lead Turner Broadcasting, overseeing his sports portfolio.
“It all starts with putting a competitive product on the floor. That means we have to win games, both in the regular season and the playoffs,” Levy said. “That’ll help us attract more fans.
“We’re going to market our stars, our team, our culture. That’s opportunities for bigger sponsors, and the foundation [GM] Sean [Marks] and [head coach] Kenny [Atkinson] built is going to help me do that.”
Here’s more from Brooklyn:
- The Nets are looking at opportunities around esports (Brooklyn owns one of the 22 teams in the 2K League) and sports betting in order to capitalize on the increased interest in the team, Lewis relays in the same piece. Levy also tells Lewis that he intends to look into trying to re-negotiate the team’s TV deal.
- Steve Kyler believes the Nets will finish fourth in the Atlantic Division, as he writes in a collaborative piece with the staff at Basketball Insiders. Kyler doesn’t see Kyrie Irving’s transition to the lead role in Brooklyn going smoothly.
- In the same piece, Eric Pincus details how the Nets were creative with their financial moves this past offseason. Brooklyn negotiated a double sign-and-trade with Golden State for Kevin Durant rather than signing him outright, which allowed the team to maximize its cap space.
Celtics To Sign Yante Maten To Exhibit 10 Deal
The Celtics will sign Yante Maten, a source tells Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe (Twitter link). The pact will be an Exhibit 10 deal.
Maten played for the Heat on a two-way contract last season, splitting time between Miami and the Sioux Falls Skyforce. The 23-year-old forward averaged an impressive 23.5 PPG and 9.7 RPG in 30 G League contests, earning a spot on the All-NBAGL Second Team. Hoever, he was waived by the Heat in July.
The Celtics already have filled both of their two-way contract slots (Tremont Waters, Max Strus). Once Boston officially signs Maten and finalizes its reported deal with Kaiser Gates, the team’s training camp roster will feature 20 players, which is the maximum allowed.
Pelicans Apply For Disabled Player Exception
The Pelicans have applied for a disabled player exception for their season-ending loss of Darius Miller, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link). The amount of the exception would be $3.625MM, half of Miller’s $7.25MM salary.
As we outline in our glossary entry on the disabled player exception, a team can apply for a DPE to replace a seriously injured player. Miller ruptured his Achilles in August, rendering him unlikely to see action this season.
In order for a disabled player exception to be granted, an NBA-designated physician must determine that the player is “substantially more likely than not” to be sidelined through at least June 15 of that league year. If granted, the disabled player exception allows a club to sign a replacement player for 50% of the injured player’s salary, or for the amount of the non-taxpayer’s mid-level exception, whichever is lesser.
New Orleans isn’t the only team to file for a disabled player exception for the upcoming season. The Lakers (DeMarcus Cousins) and Wizards (John Wall) have applied for exceptions as well.
Pelicans Notes: Holiday, Melli, Projections
The Pelicans will look much different this season after trading away Anthony Davis over the summer. However, the vibe in New Orleans appears to be on the upswing with executive vice president of basketball operations David Griffin leading the franchise.
“I feel like the whole vibe, the whole attitude in the facility and with the staff has just been different,” Jrue Holiday said (via Andrew Lopez of ESPN.com). “It definitely feels like people are ready and excited. It’s been like that ever since Griff has come into place.”
Here’s more from New Orleans:
- Holiday (same piece) said that Griffin is “putting his money where his mouth is,” with the help of team ownership, referring to the upgrades the Pelicans made to their practice facility. Holiday added that he felt like he was walking into a brand new facility when he returned from offseason workouts in Los Angeles.
- Nicolo Melli, who signed with the Pelicans after playing in Europe for over a decade, is expected to be a highly-valued glue guy in New Orleans, as Jim Eichenhofer of NBA.com relays. “A guy like Nicolo, you can look at his stat line and be like, ‘I don’t understand the intrigue from the NBA for the last three years.’ But it’s what he brings – he’s a team-first guy, a winner. He’s highly motivated and a competitor,” GM Trajan Langdon said. “Those are the kind of people we want here, to be a part of the Pelicans organization. He’s another guy who’s going to make people better, on and off the court.”
- FiveThirtyEight’s model indicates that the new-look Pelicans could live up to the hype, as Chris Herring passes along. Herring writes that it’s not a total long shot that New Orleans finds its way into the playoffs in year one post-Davis.
Jason Terry Joins Texas Legends As Assistant GM
The Mavericks‘ G League affiliate – the Texas Legends – has added Jason Terry to its front office staff as an assistant GM.
“We are thrilled to have Jason come on board,” said Legends President/General Manager Malcolm Farmer in a statement. “His resume speaks for itself. He had a tenured NBA career for a reason, and to have him bring that skillset and work ethic to the table is invaluable for our team and staff.”
Terry, who previously won a championship with the Mavericks, will be assisting the G League club with all aspects of basketball operations. Terry spent eight of his 19 years in the NBA with the Mavericks, appearing in 619 games for the club.
“It’s great to begin my front office career here,” said Terry. “The Dallas area has been home to me and my family for many years and the Mavericks franchise has always been family. To get to work with this organization in this capacity is exciting. I look forward to getting started.”
And-Ones: Klutch Sports, Singleton, Adrien
Klutch Sports, the player agency led by Rich Paul, is expanding its reach to the NFL, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com reports (Twitter link). The agency, which represents LeBron James and Ben Simmons among other notable NBA players, is in talks with Damarius Bilbo to lead its football division.
Here’s more from around the league:
- Former NBA big man Chris Singleton has signed with Turkish team Anadolu Efes Istanbul, according to Emiliano Carchia of Sportando. The power forward was the No. 18 overall pick in the 2011 draft (Wizards), but hasn’t played in the NBA since the 2013/14 season.
- Hamed Haddadi, who previously played for the Grizzlies and Suns, has agreed to return to the Sichuan Blue Whales of the Chinese Basketball Association, Carchia relays in a separate piece. The 7’2″ center averaged a double-double for Iran during the FIBA World Cup.
- Jeff Adrien will play in Israel again this season after inking a deal with Ironi Nahariya, David Pick tweets. The forward last played in the NBA for the Timberwolves during the 2014/15 season.
World Cup Notes: Brown, Canada, Rubio
Jaylen Brown has stepped up for Team USA since Jayson Tatum went down with an ankle injury. The Celtics wing has played in the frontcourt for USA Basketball, excelling in an unfamiliar spot.
“I feel like I’m not a position player, I’m a basketball player. 4-3-2, whatever coach needs me to do, I will make the adjustment,” Brown said (via Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com). “Obviously with Jayson out, there’s a little more opportunity and maybe it was a little more visible. But every time I take the floor, I want to be aggressive.”
Here’s more from the FIBA World Cup:
- Coach Nick Nurse doesn’t see many changes for the Canadian National Team next summer in the Olympics, as Michael Grange of Sportsnet relays. The team has a core of veteran players but could see prospects like RJ Barrett and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander break through next summer.
- Thunder guard Dennis Schroder has impressed during international play, as Erik Horne of the Oklahoman writes. Germany was eliminated in the first round after losing its first two games by a total of six points, but the point guard helped the country win three consecutive games to close the tournament (the team’s final first-round game and two consolation contests).
- Cody Cunningham of NBA.com breaks down Ricky Rubio‘s 2019 FIBA World Cup. The point guard has helped Spain reach the semi-finals.
Former NBA Commissioner David Stern: “I Have No Regrets”
Former NBA commissioner David Stern, who handed over duties to Adam Silver five years ago, sat down with Marc J. Spears of the Undefeated to discuss his tenure and the state of the NBA since he left the position. In the piece, which is worth a read, Stern tells Spears that he has “no regrets” about his time leading the NBA.
“I have no regrets. I know that sounds crazy,” Stern said. “Other than the regrets of lockouts, I would love to have had clear sailing and unanimous agreement on collective bargaining, but I didn’t, and that’s a failure, I would say. I am so happy because when I took over the NBA, our players’ reputations were, I would say, in the basement of the pyramid of celebrity. And now they’re at the tippy-tip of the celebrity pyramid. They’re the most listened to, the most beloved, in some ways, and the most important athletes in all of sports.”
Stern added the NBA “couldn’t be in better shape” and said that he believes the heavy player movement in free agency “gives the NBA ownership of a huge chunk of calendar real estate.”
The former commissioner also touched on the dress code that he implemented back in 2005, telling Spears that fashion was always an opportunity for them to shine and he’s “glad” that many are taking advantage of that opportunity now. Outside of fashion, players are using their platforms in different ways than they did just five years ago, such as speaking out on social issues. Stern is “very pleased to see those developments” and he’s particularly thrilled with the work of LeBron James.
“I take enormous pride in watching LeBron and his school activities, his charitable activities, and his leadership activities on social issues. It’s a great thing,” Stern said.
Stern took over as commissioner of the NBA in February of 1984 and held the post for 30 years, stepping down in 2014.
Sixers’ Mike Scott Won’t Face Discipline Over Weekend Scuffle
Mike Scott got into a scuffle with fans of the NFL’s Philadelphia Eagles over the weekend with TMZ Sports obtaining video of the incident. Scott won’t face discipline for the altercation, as the Sixers tell Kyle Neubeck of the Philly Voice. As is the case when Sixers players attend sporting events in the city, Scott was accompanied by a member of team security at the tailgate.
While the video is obviously just part of the story, Scott, who was wearing a jersey of the late Sean Taylor on Sunday, was seen throwing several punches as Philadelphia fans surrounded him. Neubeck reports that some of the fans’ insults quickly escalated from standard unfriendly team hostility – such as obnoxious anti-Redskins chants – to racial slurs.
Scott was on his way to a popular “4th and Jawn” tailgate event, having planned for weeks to make an appearance. He stopped at a nearby tailgate at which the patrons had a coffin, which prominently displayed a “Party Like It’s 1991” shirt on it in reference to the last time the Redskins won the Super Bowl. Per Neubeck, the crowd did not recognize Scott as a member of the Sixers and greeted him with hostility.
Scott, who is a Virginia native, re-signed with the Sixers this offseason on a two-year, $9.8MM contract.
Nene Returns For 18th NBA Season, Re-Signs With Rockets
SEPTEMBER 6: The Rockets have officially announced the signing, according to a team press release.
SEPTEMBER 3: Free agent big man Nene plans on returning to the Rockets, according to Kelly Iko of The Athletic (Twitter link).
Nene opted out of the final year of his most recent contract back in June, which led many to believe he would retire. He has spent 17 years in the NBA so far, with the past three seasons coming in Houston.
The Rockets inked veteran center Tyson Chandler this offseason, so with Chandler and Nene in the frontcourt, the team has solid depth at the five. Houston shouldn’t need to rely heavily on either veteran big man to spell starter Clint Capela, which should allow the team to give their elder centers nights off when needed.
Nene was selected by New York with the No. 7 overall pick in the 2002 draft and he was subsequently traded to Denver on draft night along with Marcus Camby and Mark Jackson in a package for Antonio McDyess. Nene is the only member of the 2002 draft class still in the league.
In addition to the Rockets and Nuggets, the Sao Carlos native has also played for the Wizards. Only nine active players have appeared in more NBA games than Nene.