Shai Gilgeous-Alexander “Comfortable” With Thunder, Wants To Stay In OKC
The top player on the top team in the Western Conference plans to make a long-term commitment to the franchise.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander told reporters on Wednesday that he doesn’t want to play anywhere else. He’s not interested in going to a bigger market, as many of the league’s stars have done in recent years.
“I can only speak for myself. I love Oklahoma City and I can’t see a world where I’m not in Oklahoma City,” he said, as relayed by The Athletic’s Jason Lloyd. “I’m comfortable where I am. I like where I am. I love the people in the organization, love the people around me, and those are the things that matter. I go to work every day with a smile on my face.
“Me personally, the market doesn’t matter. The money doesn’t matter to a certain extent. But as long as I enjoy what I’m doing at a very high level, I love the people that I’m around doing it.”
Gilgeous-Alexander signed a maximum-salary rookie scale extension in 2021. He’s currently in the third season of that five-year, $179.3MM contract.
SGA met the performance criteria to sign a designated veteran (ie. super-max) extension worth 35% of the salary cap when he made All-NBA teams in 2023 and 2024. However, he was ineligible to ink that extension last summer because seven seasons of NBA service are required. This is his seventh season, meaning he’ll be able to sign it in July 2025.
It’s a virtual lock that the franchise will offer him that super-max, which projects to be worth as much as $293MM over four years, beginning in 2027/28.
Gilgeous-Alexander’s statistics this season are closely aligned with last season’s numbers, when he made the All-NBA First Team and finished second in MVP voting. He’s averaging 31.3 points, 6.1 assists, 5.6 rebounds, 2.0 steals and 1.2 blocks per game for the Thunder, who are 30-6 despite losing their showdown with Eastern Conference-leader Cleveland on Wednesday.
Pacific Notes: Beal, Nurkic, Finney-Smith, Vanderbilt, Batum, Leonard
Speaking to reporters prior to Phoenix’s game against Philadelphia on Monday, Suns head coach Mike Budenholzer discussed his reasons for benching Bradley Beal and Jusuf Nurkic, saying he needed to shake things up for his slumping team, Duane Rankin of the Arizona Republic tweets.
“Feel like we needed to make a change,” he said. “Throughout a 48-minute game, you got to figure out your best combinations, your best ways to try to have success. They’re two important players to us, two very good players.”
Beal said he was “100 percent” surprised by the move, Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic tweets.
Ryan Dunn and Mason Plumlee moved into the lineup and Phoenix posted a 10-point win over the Joel Embiid-less Sixers. Beal wound up leading the team in scoring with 25 points in 30 minutes while Nurkic had five points and seven rebounds in 14 minutes.
We have more from the Pacific Division:
- The Lakers‘ four-point loss to Houston on Sunday displayed the athleticism and physicality gap between the clubs, Jovan Buha of The Athletic writes. It could result in another lineup change. Recently acquired Dorian Finney-Smith could be moved into Rui Hachimura’s spot, Buha suggests, noting that Finney-Smith has outplayed Hachimura and provides better two-way balance.
- Lakers forward Jarred Vanderbilt is nearing his season debut after an extensive rehab from offseason foot surgery. He has participated in non-contact portions of practice. “He continues to progress and ramping up to on-court activities,” coach JJ Redick said, per Khobi Price of the Orange County Register. “And hopefully we have a firm update on the timetable soon. But his progress is real right now.”
- Clippers forward Nicolas Batum said Kawhi Leonard‘s return to action, in which Leonard scored 12 points against Atlanta on Saturday, unfolded as expected. “Nothing crazy. He didn’t force anything. He’s too good for that,” Batum said to Sportskeeda’s Mark Medina. “He’s going to let the game come to him. Then he’ll see the right opportunity to attack. He did that. It’s the first game. I wasn’t expecting him to get 30 [points]. But with the way he played and the way he took his shots and he attacked and he played defense, we’ll be fine.” Leonard was limited to eight points in 21 minutes in a loss to Minnesota on Monday.
Community Shootaround: Lakers’ Season
There’s still a month to go before the trade deadline arrives, but the Lakers have gotten the jump on the competition.
Late last month, they acquired forward Dorian Finney-Smith and guard Shake Milton from the Nets in exchange for D’Angelo Russell, Maxwell Lewis and three second-round picks.
Finney-Smith was the centerpiece of the deal for the Lakers. They were seeking a forward who could upgrade their defense and also space the floor.
Thus far, coach JJ Redick has used Finney-Smith off the bench in four games since the deal was completed. The Lakers have a 2-2 record during that stretch. Milton has also received second-unit minutes.
The Lakers’ hopes in the Western Conference still rely on the health and steady contributions of Anthony Davis and LeBron James, as well as the perimeter shooting of Austin Reaves.
Rui Hachimura, Max Christie, rookie Dalton Knecht, and Gabe Vincent are the other players who have received steady minutes. The Lakers have played well since moving Christie into the starting lineup. Knecht has cooled off after a strong start. They’re hopeful of getting a boost soon from forward Jarred Vanderbilt, who has yet to play this season due to foot and knee ailments.
Statistically, the Lakers rank among the top 10 in field goal percentage and fewest turnovers. However, they’re a middling three-point shooting team and they’re in bottom 10 in rebounding and defensive field goal percentage.
The deal with the Nets gave the Lakers some relief below the second tax apron and they still have some draft capital to offer in future deals — a pair of 2025 second-rounders, first-rounders in 2029 and 2031, and first-round pick swaps in 2026, 2028, and 2030.
They don’t have any players with expiring contracts who are making $4MM or more, so they’ll have to be more creative to make another deal.
That brings us to today’s topic: Did the Lakers improve their postseason prospects enough with the addition of Finney-Smith? If not, what other upgrades do they need to make to become true contenders again?
Please take to the comments section to weigh in on this topic. We look forward to your input.
Central Notes: Cavs, Garland, Vucevic, Giannis, Bucks, Johnson
With a 31-4 mark, the Cavaliers are tied for the fifth-best start in league history through 35 games. However, they’re not chasing regular season records. Guard Darius Garland told Joe Vardon of The Athletic that his main focus is how well they do in the postseason.
“I really don’t think it will (ever) become important (to chase regular season history),” Garland said. “We all know what it’s like to win regular games. Our next step is to go to the Eastern Conference finals, go to the finals. I mean, the regular season is super cool, it’s like a ramp-up for what we’re trying to get to. If we’re on that pace, keep trying to win games, there’s nothing you take for granted. We’ll take it for sure, we love it, but our next step is to win playoff games.”
We have more from the Central Division:
- Bulls center Nikola Vucevic is considered one of the most likely players to be dealt before next month’s deadline. He told Julia Poe of the Chicago Tribune that he tries to ignore all the chatter. “This time of year, it’s part of it,” Vucevic said. “You can’t get caught up into that stuff. I’ve heard rumors ever since I was in Orlando. Everybody knows it and that’s just how it goes. Everybody online is going to have their opinions.”
- Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo battled an illness recently and he says he’s still trying to regain his strength, according to Eric Nehm of The Athletic. “Think about it like a savings account. Now I’m in the minus,” he said. ” So, I’ve gotta keep building. I’ve gotta build my body, gotta get some weights, gotta get some food in me, gotta get some cardio in me to go back to the positive and be able to compete, because I’m digging myself into a hole right now.”
- The Bucks have dropped six games to sub-.500 teams and they’re growing weary of their mediocre play, Nehm writes in the same story. “What’s not happening is we’re getting off to bad starts,” coach Doc Rivers said. “We’re not moving the ball. We’re not playing right. We’ve gotta play right. We’ve done that. We’ve gotta get back to doing it.”
- Pacers 37-year-old big man James Johnson signed a one-year, $3.3MM veteran’s minimum contract in July that had a $750K guarantee. Johnson has only appeared in five games and Indiana would have to waive him by Tuesday to prevent the contract from being fully guaranteed. However, that’s not going to happen, according to coach Rick Carlisle. “He’s not going anywhere. We need him,” Carlisle said, per Dustin Dopirak of the Indianapolis Star (Twitter link).
Southwest Notes: Sheppard, Adams, Williamson, Murray, Grimes
Reed Sheppard was touted as a strong Rookie of the Year candidate after the Rockets selected him with the No. 3 overall pick in last June’s draft. However, Sheppard has found it difficult to get into an offensive groove, averaging just 3.3 points and 1.2 assists in 11.6 minutes off the bench during his first 30 games. Now, Houston has assigned Sheppard to its NBA G League club, the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, the G League team tweets.
We have more from the Southwest Division:
- After missing all of last season due to right knee surgery, Rockets center Steven Adams says his knee is “back to normal,” Ben Dubose of Rockets Wire relays. Adams has been playing limited minutes but racked up eight points and nine rebounds in 17 minutes against the Lakers on Sunday. “It’s back to normal,” he said. “It’s been progressing more and more. We’ve been keeping an eye on it, and my comfort with the team has just been progressing, as we planned.”
- Zion Williamson is getting close to returning to action. Williamson participated in the Pelicans’ 5-on-5 practice on Monday and coach Willie Green stated “there’s a chance” he could suit up sometime this week, Will Guillory of The Athletic tweets. Williamson, who hasn’t played since Nov. 6 due to a left hamstring strain, is listed as questionable to play against Minnesota on Tuesday, according to the team’s injury report.
- The Pelicans have posted back-to-back victories for the first time since the first two games of the season. They snapped a 15-game road losing streak on Sunday, beating the Wizards in Washington after beating them at home on Friday. Dejounte Murray notched his first triple-double since New Orleans acquired him in the offseason. “He’s keeping the game simple and making solid decisions and he’ll continue to build from there,” Green told Rod Walker of the New Orleans Times-Picayune.
- In the short run, Mavericks guard Quentin Grimes has been thrust into the role of primary play-maker with Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving sidelined by injuries. It’s an opportunity to prove Dallas can rely on him to provide offense as the team’s third play-maker, Brad Townsend of the Dallas Morning News writes. “Big opportunity for me, for sure, knowing we’re not gonna have Luka for a while, and then Kyrie was out,” said Grimes, who delivered a season-high 26 points and six assists against Cleveland on Friday.
Pistons Sign Ron Harper Jr., Tolu Smith To Two-Way Deals
JANUARY 6, 4:03pm: The Pistons have officially signed Smith and Harper and placed Williams and Swider on waivers, the team confirmed in a press release (Twitter link).
JANUARY 5, 8:30pm: The Pistons are also signing Tolu Smith to a two-way deal, according to Jake Fischer (Twitter link).
Smith, a 6’11” rookie forward, was waived by Detroit in training camp and has been playing for the G League’s Motor City Cruise. He’s averaging 20.2 points and 14.8 rebounds in four regular season NBAGL games and also made five appearances with the Cruise in the G League Showcase Cup.
Smith spent his freshman season at Western Kentucky before transferring and playing the final four years of his collegiate career at Mississippi State. He went undrafted in 2024 and made three preseason appearances with Detroit.
To make room for Harper and Smith, the Pistons are waiving Alondes Williams and Cole Swider, according to Fischer.
Detroit signed Williams to a two-way deal just before the start of the season after he was cut loose by the Clippers. Similarly, the Pistons signed Swider after he was waived during the latter stages of training camp by the Pacers.
JANUARY 5, 7:17pm: The Pistons have agreed to a two-way deal with Ron Harper Jr., ESPN’s Tim Bontemps tweets.
Harper was waived in training camp by the Celtics and has been playing for the Maine Celtics in the G League. He has averaged 22.8 points, 4.0 rebounds and 2.5 assists in four regular season G League games and also played 11 games in the NBAGL’s Tip-Off Tournament.
Harper went undrafted out of Rutgers in 2022 and signed to a two-way deal shortly after the draft by the Raptors. He only appeared in six games in the G League last season. He suffered a season-ending shoulder injury after playing in just one NBA game in ’23/24 and was waived by the Raptors in December of last year.
Detroit has all of its two-way spots filled, so it will have to make a corresponding move to bring in Harper.
With Jaden Ivey sidelined indefinitely with a fractured fibula, Harper will give Detroit more depth at the guard spots.
Pistons Notes: Cunningham, Bickerstaff, Thompson, Billups
Pistons star guard Cade Cunningham scored a season-high 40 points against the Timberwolves in the second game of a back-to-back on Saturday. His aggressive approach is a good sign for a franchise on the upswing, Hunter Patterson of The Athletic writes. Detroit has won six of its last seven games.
“I’m trying to make the best basketball play available for the team at all times,” said Cunningham, who also had nine assists. “Sometimes confidence can get in the way of that, feeling like I’m in a groove or my shot is the best. But I’m just trying to make sure everybody is in a rhythm and everybody knows what’s going on. Getting everybody involved early. My teammates trust me so much with making plays that it’s a two-way street.”
We have more on the Pistons:
- J.B. Bickerstaff has shown a willingness to challenge officiating calls and the players appreciate having their first-year coach back them up, Omari Sankofa of the Detroit Free Press writes. “You can see his passion on the floor,” big man Isaiah Stewart said. “When you have a coach that’s showing that kind of passion, standing the whole game, encouraging you mid-game, talking to you during the game, that just gives you a different kind of energy. It’s like, ‘OK, I got you coach. I’m going to play hard for you.’” Bickerstaff has used his coaches challenge regularly in recent weeks, including a successful one in the final minute of a close win over the Lakers.
- In the first two games since Jaden Ivey suffered a fractured fibula, Bickerstaff has changed his starting lineup both times. He went with Wendell Moore against Charlotte, then switched to Ausar Thompson against Minnesota. Thompson may have earned a long look as a starter after posting 10 points, 10 rebounds, and a career-best six steals. “He had five steals in the first half. He got deflections, did a good job defensively, helps us play faster,” Bickerstaff said. “That was one of the things versus this team we wanted to do. We knew we needed to play faster and let out athletes kind of run and A.T. did that for us.”
- Detroit can reach the .500 mark with a win over Portland on Monday. The Pistons also have something special planned for Trail Blazers coach Chauncey Billups, who was the 2004 Finals Most Valuable Player when the Pistons won their last championship. He was inducted into the Naismith Hall of Fame during the offseason and the Pistons will celebrate his Detroit career with a video montage and other events. “I know the atmosphere will be a lot of fun,” Billups said. “They’ve got some things planned for me since I’m going back there for the first time since the Hall of Fame (induction).”
- The Pistons are making several moves regarding their two-way contracts. Get the details here.
Stein’s Latest: Johnson, Vucevic, Poeltl, Brown, Olynyk, Ball
The Nets have already dealt Dennis Schröder, Dorian Finney-Smith and Shake Milton. Could forward Cameron Johnson be next?
Citing league sources, Marc Stein reports in his latest Substack article that the Pacers are a team to watch in terms of Johnson’s next destination. Brooklyn is looking to clear as much salary as possible for the offseason and Johnson is in the second year of a four-year, $94.5MM contract.
Johnson, who is averaging career highs in points (19.5) and assists (3.0) per game, could fortify the Pacers at the wing position. The Grizzlies have also been mentioned as a likely Johnson suitor, though Stein notes that they might not be inclined to deal with the Nets. Memphis had extensive talks with the Nets regarding Finney-Smith before he was dealt to the Lakers and there were said to be “hard feelings” between the two teams about how those discussions played out.
The Kings have held trade talks with the Nets regarding Johnson, but aren’t willing to part with rookie guard Devin Carter, who made his NBA debut on Friday after recovering from a shoulder injury.
Here’s more from Stein:
- The Raptors have turned aside inquiries regarding center Jakob Poeltl, Stein reports. The big man is averaging career-bests in both scoring (15.4 PPG) and rebounding (10.7 RPG) and is signed through at least 2026, with a player option for ’26/27. Bruce Brown and Kelly Olynyk are considered the veterans that Toronto is most open to trading prior to the February deadline.
- While it’ll be difficult to move Zach LaVine‘s contract, the Bulls are expected to deal center Nikola Vucevic and possibly Lonzo Ball prior to the deadline, says Stein. Vucevic is averaging 2o.4 points and 10.1 rebounds per game, while Ball is on an expiring contract and has made a respectable comeback from his long-term knee issues. As Stein notes, the Bulls have incentive to tank. If they finish with the league’s sixth-worst record or below, it’ll guarantee that they’ll hold onto their pick in this year’s June draft. Chicago owes a top-10 protected pick to San Antonio.
Jonathan Kuminga Out Multiple Weeks With Ankle Sprain
Warriors forward Jonathan Kuminga has suffered a significant ankle sprain and will be out multiple weeks, the team’s PR department announced (via Twitter).
Kuminga exited Saturday’s game against Memphis with 2:27 remaining in the second quarter due to a sprained right ankle. He underwent an MRI Sunday which confirmed that he suffered a significant lateral ankle sprain. He will be reevaluated in three weeks, per the club.
It’s a huge blow to the Warriors, as Kuminga has come on strong in recent weeks. He posted back-to-back 34 point games late last month. For the season, Kuminga has averaged 16.8 points and 5.0 rebounds per game.
Kuminga and the club failed to agree on a rookie scale extension before the October deadline, so he’ll be a restricted free agent after the season.
For now, the team will have to scramble to replace Kuminga’s production and might be more inclined to make a significant move before next month’s trade deadline. Kyle Anderson and former starter Kevon Looney figure to play more prominent roles in his absence.
Southeast Notes: Suggs, Johnson, Wallace, Ball, Miller
Magic starting guard Jalen Suggs missed Sunday’s game against Utah due to a lower back strain. He seems certain to sit out their road game against the Knicks on Monday as well, according to coach Jamahl Mosley. “Backs can be tricky. So, it’s like on and off a little bit. He’s just going to continue to be evaluated over these next few days,” he told Jason Beede of the Orlando Sentinel (Twitter link). Suggs is averaging 16.4 points and 3.7 assists per game.
We have more from the Southeast Division:
- Jalen Johnson has become Trae Young‘s co-star in the Hawks‘ offensive attack. They are increasingly relying on Johnson in their quick-passing, fast-breaking offense, according to John Hollinger of The Athletic. Hollinger notes how Johnson ranks among the top five in the league in passes made per game and that he also ranks the top 10 in frontcourt touches for non-centers. Johnson is averaging a career-best 5.3 assists per game.
- Two-way Hawks player Keaton Wallace has spent the majority of his time with the College Park Skyhawks, Atlanta’s G League affiliate, but he also saw action in four late December games with the NBA club. Wallace, a 25-year-old rookie, doesn’t mind going back and forth between the two teams, he told Lauren Williams of the Atlanta Journal Constitution. “I’ve been feeling all right,” he said. “This is part of the process of being converted to a two-way (contract). I’m just accepting everything that comes with it.”
- LaMelo Ball and Brandon Miller were back in the Hornets lineup against Cleveland on Sunday. They hadn’t appeared in a game since Dec. 26. Ball was battling left ankle soreness and right wrist soreness, while Miller had a left ankle injury.