Tarik Black Signs Overseas
Tarik Black has agreed to a one-year contract with Israeli club Maccabi Tel Aviv, Marc J. Spears of The Undefeated reports (Twitter link). The financial terms of the agreement have not yet been reported.
The big man played for the Rockets last season, scoring 3.5 points in 10.5 minutes per game. Black has played a total of 220 games over four seasons, making a stop in Los Angeles between Houston stints.
Northwest Notes: Roberson, Butler, Draft Picks
Andre Roberson‘s 2017/18 season was cut short because of a ruptured patellar tendon and the Thunder are not rushing the defensive-minded wing back on the court, as Nick Gallo of NBA.com details. Oklahoma City realizes how crucial Roberson will be to their postseason success.
“I’m really excited for him to get back on the floor. I think we all know at this stage how important he is to the team and just what his size and length, and I think just his fiber in general, what it means to the team,” said GM Sam Presti.
Here’s more from the Northwest Division:
- The Roberson-Russell Westbrook–Paul George trio had the fifth-best defensive ranking in the league last season, Gallo notes in the same piece. “There was crazy potential there,” Roberson recalled. “We kind of finally started to figure it out, figured out how to play off of each other, and things were clicking.”
- Despite an ESPN forecast panel that gave the Wolves just a 12 percent chance to keep Jimmy Butler beyond this season, Michael Rand of the Star Tribune is still optimistic that the two sides can find common ground on a long-term deal. Rand also advises readers not to worry too much about the rumors of Butler teaming up with Kyrie Irving on a rival squad.
- The Nuggets are the only team in the Northwest Division that has traded away its own first-round pick, as Luke Adams of Hoops Rumors detailed this week. Denver sent the pick to Brooklyn in the Kenneth Faried deal.
Markieff Morris Gearing Up For 2019 Free Agency
The 2018/19 season is a pivotal one for Markieff Morris, as he’ll be a free agent for the first time in his career next summer. At that point, he’ll have to make a contract decision for the first time since he inked a team-friendly extension with the Suns, one that was predicated on him taking a discount to play alongside his brother, Marcus.
Fast-forward four years and both brothers are on different squads with the Suns dealing away each player in separate deals. The slightly older twin knows the importance of making this most of his upcoming free agency and with health finally on his side, he’s preparing for breakout contract year.
“I’m finally 100 percent, so I feel good,” Morris said via Chase Hughes of NBC Washington. “My play is gonna speak for itself. The most important thing we’ve gotta do is win as a team. That’s the most important thing.”
Change has been constant in Morris’ life recently. This was his first healthy offseason in Washington, his first summer as a father, and this season will bring another change on the court.
The Wizards shipped away Marcin Gortat and brought in Dwight Howard, a player who doesn’t have the greatest reputation when it comes to sustaining on-court chemistry. Still, Morris believes Howard will be a “perfect” fit in the locker room.
“I think it’s a great pickup. Dwight has been a great player his entire career. He averaged [16.6] and [12.5] last year,” Morris said. “Every time we played against him he has been a matchup problem for us. I’m excited to have him and welcome him to D.C.”
Morris likes Washington’s chances in the Eastern Conference this season. With Kawhi Leonard moving to The North, Boston getting its stars back from injury, and The Process surpassing the incubation stage, winning the conference will be no easy feat. Yet, with LeBron James now out west, the conference is as wide-open as its ever been.
Community Shootaround: Best Free Agents Left Unsigned
Team reaching deals with veterans in mid-August is not that unusual and those players can sometimes find meaningful roles as the season progresses. There’s still quite a bit of talent left unsigned this summer. Let’s take a look at who’s still available:
Rodney Hood
Hood is a restricted free agent whose talks with the Cavaliers appear to have stalled. He shined in Utah before going into a funk upon arriving in Cleveland but he’s still only 26 years old and some franchise should be able to use his three-point shot and athleticism to help its team.
Patrick McCaw
Golden State has done an excellent job finding pieces that mesh well with their top stars and McCaw is another example of fringe guy fitting in. He’s expected to take his qualifying offer with the Warriors, but if another team is looking for a young prospect late in the offseason, the right offer may dissuade Golden State from matching.
Nick Young
One year after fitting in nicely with Golden State, Young is back on the market looking for another deal. The Rockets were linked to the swingman earlier in the offseason, although there hasn’t been much chatter about him joining CP3 & Company since Carmelo Anthony came to town.
Jamal Crawford
Crawford remains on the market after taking a bit of a step backward last season, as he nailed 33.1% of his attempts from behind the arc. There was some speculation that the Sixers would be a fit for the 38-year-old, though nothing has come to fruition.
Can one of these players or another remaining free agent still help a team this upcoming season and where are the best fits?
Let us know your thoughts in the comment section below. We look forward to what you have to say!
Nets Notes: Harris, Russell, Walker, Musa
Joe Harris, who re-signed with Brooklyn on a two-year, $16MM deal, believes the Nets‘ young players can make “significant jumps” this season, as NetsDaily relays.
“We definitely have some new pieces to the team, but I think just being around everybody so far this offseason — although it’s relatively young — I think we have a lot of reasons to be optimistic,” said Harris. “If anything, we have an extremely competitive group and I think a lot of our younger players are gonna make significant jumps.”
Harris previously has said that he’s seen D’Angelo Russell take “considerable strides.”
“All I know is I’m really excited for the season to get going and I know everyone else is,” Harris said. “I’m not gonna go out here guaranteeing anything that’s gonna happen. I know we are gonna go out and compete every single night.”
Here’s more from Brooklyn:
- How much success the Nets have this season will depend on the health of Russell, Brian Lewis of the New York Post writes. “As he moves forward, he needs to create those habits and take care of his body,” GM Sean Marks said. “And I think people will be pretty surprised when they see what he’s done. He’s worked extremely hard on purely that, strengthening up his body and so forth.”
- Kemba Walker spoke about his love for Brooklyn during a youth summer basketball camp appearance recently. “That’s one thing about people from Brooklyn, they’re very loyal, they’re die-hard, they believe in their team,” Walker said (via NetsDaily). “I love Brooklyn. I love going there. I love playing there. It always gives me a chance to come back home, too, so that’s why I love it as well. I like the organization, too. It’s cool.” The point guard is expected to be a free agent in the summer of 2019.
- No. 29 overall pick Dzanan Musa believes he can play point guard among other positions for the Nets. “I can handle the ball like a lot,” the 6’9″ rookie said (via NetsDaily). “So, point guard, shooting guard, three, whatever. I’m ready to do it.”
Sixers Hire Former WNBA Star Lindsey Harding As Full-Time Scout
The Sixers have hired Lindsey Harding as a full-time scout for the 2018/19 season, Ramona Shelburne of ESPN.com reports. Harding was one of the best women’s basketball players in Duke history and was selected with the No. 1 overall pick in 2007.
“I think when you have this goal in mind, your gender shouldn’t even matter,” Harding said about landing the position. “It should be about if you can do it, if you’re good, you’re experienced, if you know what you’re doing and what you’re talking about.”
Harding spent last season in the NBA’s Basketball Operations Associates Program, She interviewed with several NBA teams with an eye on a role that would allow her to get exposure to the front office.
“I would love to be in the front office and really understand how to put a team together,” she said. “I still love being on the floor and having the opportunity to coach. But I really just wanted to get my foot in the door.”
Harding is the second former WNBA player to be hired in a full-time scouting role, as Jenny Boucek, who is now a Mavericks assistant coach, performed advanced scouting work for the SuperSonics in 2006.
Steph Curry Wants To Be A Warrior For Life
It’s hard to envision Stephen Curry playing for another franchise and for Warriors fans, it sounds like that’s something they’ll never have to do.
“I love the Bay Area, man,” Curry said on The Bill Simmons Podcast (h/t Ben Rohrbach of Yahoo Sports). Curry added that he doesn’t think about going back to his hometown of Charlotte. “The only reason I go home now is if my sister’s getting married or to go play the Hornets for that one game, so I haven’t really been back much. I haven’t put my mind there.”
The two-time MVP has four years remaining on the massive five-year, $201MM contract he signed back in the summer of 2017. Curry will be 34 when his deal expires and he has no plans of moving on from the franchise at that time.
Simmons asked him if he feels like he’ll be a Warrior for life and the point guard’s response was great news for the Bay Area. “For sure I do,” Curry said “This is home. This is where I want to be, for obvious reasons.”
Kemba Walker Discusses His Future, Knicks’ Possibilities
Hornets point guard Kemba Walker has said in the past that he doubts he’ll end up with the Knicks once he’s eligible for free agency. He touched on the subject yet again during a visit to the Player’s Association’s kids camp in New York City.
“I’ve been hearing it for years now — the Knicks,” Walker said (via Marc Berman of The New York Post). “Every time I come home, it’s, ‘When are you coming home to the Knicks?’ MSG is a special place, man. The Knicks are a special team. Of course, I’ve been a Knicks fan growing up, always rooted for the home team. But I really can’t see myself in a Knicks jersey — only because I’ve been in one jersey. I really don’t know.”
As for what the future holds, Walker said he doesn’t “have a clue,” while hinting that a Knicks offer next summer might be tempting.
“Got to see. We got to see. I’ve never been free, never been a free agent. We’ll see.” Walker added. “I have no idea. I’ve never been a free agent. I don’t know how the process works. I will have options unless Charlotte gets something done.”
Walker has one year and $12MM remaining on his contract.
Jazz Sign Isaac Haas
The Jazz have signed center Isaac Haas, according to the team’s website. The terms of the deal were not disclosed, though it will likely be a minimum salary arrangement.
Haas played for the Jazz in Summer League this past July. During his four Las Vegas games, he had a total of 15 points, 19 rebounds, and three blocks.
The rookie spent four years at Purdue where he earned All-Big Ten Third team honors during his senior season. In 139 collegiate games, Haas scored a total of 1,555 points and grabbed 643 rebounds.
After signing Haas, the Jazz have 19 players under contract, leaving one opening on their 20-man offseason roster.
Steve Ballmer Talks Team Strategy, Moving The Clippers
The past year for the Clippers has been about reconstruction, with the team having traded both Chris Paul and Blake Griffin since the end of the 2016/17 season, and letting DeAndre Jordan walk in free agency. The team’s brass finally has salary-cap flexibility and the franchise is eager to take that flexibility into the summer of 2019, when many stars – such as Kawhi Leonard – are expected to be available.
“You’ve got to take the payroll down to take it up. We’re going to recruit our asses off, whatever it takes to give you the best team that we can give you year in and year out,” owner Steve Ballmer said (via Helene Elliot of The Los Angeles Times).
While this season is expected to be a down year for the club, don’t expect Ballmer and company to tank.
“That ain’t us. Nuh-uh, no way,” Ballmer told Clippers’ season ticket holders and fans. “People can do it their way. We’re going to be good our way. We’re not going to show up and suck for a year, two years. I think we got higher expectations on us than the long, hard five, six years of absolute crap like the 76ers put in. How could we look you guys in the eye if we did that to you?”
Ballmer also spoke about his plans to take the Clippers out of the Staples Center.
“We’re moving to Inglewood come hell or high water,” he said of a proposed arena near the site of the stadium being constructed for the NFL’s Rams and Chargers. “We gotta have a house. So we’re working on a plan to get our own house. We want to get our own house. It turns out the way this works in L.A., which is much beloved to me, that if you start now you might be done in six years.”
Ballmer’s wife, Connie, has remained in the Pacific Northwest, an area where Ballmer served as the CEO of Microsoft for 14 years. That has resulted in speculation that the Clippers could potentially be relocated to Seattle. However, the former CEO shot down those rumors.
“I love L.A. I also love my wife, by the way, but I love L.A. and I don’t want there to be any mistake about it. We want to be part of the fabric of this community,” Ballmer exclaimed.