Southeast Notes: Livers, Bagley, Christopher, Hawks’ Trade Chatter, Washington
The Wizards view Isaiah Livers and Marvin Bagley III as the most important parts of their trade with the Pistons on Sunday, according to Josh Robbins of The Athletic, rather than the two second-round picks Detroit tossed in to rid itself of Bagley’s contract.
Washngton parted with Danilo Gallinari and Mike Muscala in the deal. The Wizards are banking on their player development system to get more out of the two forwards they acquired. The team can make Livers a restricted free agent this summer if it likes what it sees from him the rest of the season.
We have more from the Southeast Division:
- Josh Christopher is joining the Heat’s NBA G League affiliate, the Sioux Falls Skyforce, Michael Scotto of HoopsHype tweets. Christopher, who had a two-way contract with the Jazz before he was waived on Monday, appeared in 138 games with Houston from 2021-23 but hasn’t seen any NBA action this season. He has appeared in 18 games (17 starts) for the Jazz’s G League affiliate, the Salt Lake City Stars, averaging 17.1 points, 4.9 rebounds, and 6.0 assists in 29.0 minutes per contest.
- Trae Young and Jalen Johnson are the only players the Hawks are unwilling to trade, John Hollinger of The Athletic confirms. There’s plenty of trade chatter involving Dejounte Murray and they’re also trying to determine the trade value of De’Andre Hunter and Clint Capela. The Hawks could use Murray as means to shed the contract of either Capela or Hunter.
- Hornets forward P.J. Washington returned to action on Sunday after missing the previous three games with a foot injury. the team’s PR department tweets. Washington, who is averaging 13.0 points and 5.2 rebounds per game this season, signed a three-year contract over the summer.
Stein’s Latest: Hield, Wiggins, Finney-Smith, O’Neale, Fultz, McDermott, Osman
The Pistons and Wizards pulled off a trade involving four players and two draft picks on Sunday. Expect a lot more activity in the coming weeks, according to Marc Stein in his latest Substack post.
Stein offers a number of interesting tidbits from around the league:
- Buddy Hield‘s name was prominently mentioned around the trade market after the veteran guard and the Pacers failed to reach an extension agreement during training camp. Sources tell Stein that Indiana continues to look for ways to move Hield. The Pacers are trying to package his expiring $18.6MM contract and a future first-rounder to get an impact player. Raptors forward Pascal Siakam continues to be talked about as a potential Pacers target. However, Indiana would be reluctant to give up second-year guard Bennedict Mathurin or rookie Jarace Walker in any trade.
- Warriors forward Andrew Wiggins is looked upon as another potential Pacers target but it may be difficult for Golden State to create a market for him, Stein writes. Wiggins not only has three more years left on his contract, his production has nosedived.
- Dorian Finney-Smith and Royce O’Neale could be on the move. The Nets are listening to offers for both of those forwards and Stein suggests the Cavaliers should pursue O’Neale, considering they need a wing and he’s close friends with Donovan Mitchell. O’Neale has an expiring contract, while Finney-Smith is signed through 2025/26.
- Speaking of expiring contracts, the Magic are “exploring the trade market” the top pick of the 2017 draft. They’ve made guard Markelle Fultz and his $17MM expiring deal available, along with center Wendell Carter Jr, per Stein.
- Another team dangling expiring contracts is the Spurs. Forwards Doug McDermott and Cedi Osman are available for teams looking to clear cap room this summer or upgrade their second unit, according to Stein.
Jazz Notes: Lineup, Preston, George, Confidence
Jazz coach Will Hardy has been doing a lot of tinkering with the starting lineup and rotation and it’s paying off, according to Sarah Todd of the Deseret News. Utah has had 12 different players in the starting lineup at some point.
“I think it just shows our depth and that we can win in a lot of different ways,” guard Collin Sexton said. “You’ve just got to be ready when your number is called.”
In their win over Milwaukee on Monday, the Jazz started John Collins, Lauri Markkanen, Simone Fontecchio, Sexton and Kris Dunn.
We have more on the Jazz:
- Jason Preston received a two-year two-way contract from the Jazz on Monday, Michael Scotto of HoopsHype tweets. Preston will get the maximum two-way guarantee for next season, which is equivalent to an Exhibit 10 bonus –that figure was worth $75K this season and will increase at the same rate as the salary cap. Utah waived Josh Christopher to make room for Preston, who had been playing for the Memphis Hustle in the G League.
- Keyonte George admits it’s been a struggle for him since returning from an ankle injury that sidelined him for six games, he told Eric Walden of the Salt Lake Tribune. The rookie has been relegated to a bench role, though he delivered a 19-point, four-assist performance against Milwaukee on Monday. “Yeah, to be honest, a little difficult for sure. I mean, I’m human,” George said. “It’s gonna take some time to get back to where I was and try to figure out times be aggressive and times where you’re trying to get people involved.”
- After winning eight of their last 10 games, including road victories over Philadelphia and Milwaukee, the Jazz are feeling better than they have all season, Walden writes. “I like to call it ‘swag,’ and our swag is a little up right now,” Dunn said. “We just keep doing the right things. We have a lot of talent on this team. If we move the ball, if we guard at a high level, good things can happen, as we showed in this three-game road trip.”
Bulls Notes: LaVine, Terry, Drummond, Vucevic
The trade market for Zach LaVine has been cold and there’s a real possibility he’ll remain on the Bulls roster through the season, Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times writes.
Word leaked early in the season that LaVine was open to being moved but there’s been little traction in that regard. His recent foot injury and modest production since his return hasn’t helped that cause.
However, LaVine seems to be focused on contributing to the team, rather than a fresh start.
“In my conversations with Zach — and again he’s never really talked about his future, his feelings toward the organization and the team, never anything like that — everything he’s talked about is: How does he help the group? And it’s always been really positive, constructive conversations with him,” coach Billy Donovan said. ‘I know there is a lot of reporting and things that were out there about what potentially may or may not happen, but my conversations with him leading into his return was he needed to come in and help the group any way he could.”
We have more on the Bulls:
- Dalen Terry has received steady minutes and the 2022 first-rounder is earning Donovan’s trust, according to Cowley. “The thing I like about him is [that] as a young player, maybe getting consistent minutes this year where last year he didn’t, you know there’s going to be these moments of down where he’s not going to play well,” Donovan said. “I always try and look at younger players as, ‘How do they come back and respond?’ . . . It’s not even making or missing shots, [but] defensive rotations, assignments, sending a guy left and he doesn’t do that, or [he] forgets to block out, leaves his feet on a shot fake and fouls a shooter. Those are the things that he’s got to get more consistent on. [But] when he’s had games where he’s done those things, he’s always come back and responded really well, and I always think that’s a good sign.”
- Andre Drummond has put up impressive stats while starting the last seven games but he’s headed back to his usual bench role on Wednesday, Cowley reports. Drummond averaged 14 points and a whopping 17.4 rebounds per game during that span as the Bulls went 4-3. Nikola Vucevic has been eased back into the rotation since returning from a groin injury but he’ll start against the Rockets. “Vooch brings a different thing to the table as far as what he does offensively,” Donovan said.
- In case you missed it, the Bulls haven’t dismissed the possibility of including Lonzo Ball‘s contract as part of a trade package to upgrade the team.
Heat Coach Erik Spoelstra Signs Eight-Year Extension
8:04pm: It’s an eight-year deal, a source tells Reynolds (Twitter link). The contract is worth over $100MM, Chiang tweets, while ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski pegs that figure above $120MM (Twitter link).
7:51pm: Heat coach Erik Spoelstra has signed a long-term contract extension, according to Tim Reynolds of the Associated Press (Twitter link).
Spoelstra had been in the last year of his contract. While the exact terms of the extension are unknown, Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel reports that it’s for more than five years at a rate of over $10MM per season (Twitter link).
Spoelstra will be one of the league’s highest-paid coaches, per Anthony Chiang of the Miami Herald. Head coaching salaries have risen dramatically over the past year. Spurs coach Gregg Popovich signed a five-year contract worth a reported $80MM and Pistons coach Monty Williams inked a six-year, $78.5MM deal.
Spoelstra, who has been in the Heat organization since 1997, has been the team’s head coach since the 2008/09 season and has two championships to his credit. He has also guided the franchise to the NBA Finals in four other seasons, including last season’s appearance after surviving the play-in tournament.
In total, Spoelstra has compiled a 725-506 (.589) regular season record across his 15-plus seasons in Miami, with an impressive 109-75 (.592) mark in the playoffs.
Popovich is the NBA’s only current head coach who has been with his current organization longer than Spoelstra has been with the Heat.
Central Notes: Morris, Cunningham, Haliburton, Antetokounmpo
With Cade Cunningham sidelined by a left knee strain, the Pistons would love to have guard Monte Morris available. However, Morris has been out all season due to a quad injury.
Morris, who was acquired in an offseason trade with Washington, is making progress but he won’t return to action for at least a couple more weeks, Omari Sankofa II of the Detroit Free Press tweets. Morris has started ramping up his basketball activities this week and could make his season debut before the end of the month.
“Monte’s chomping to get back,” coach Monty Williams said. “This is the first time he hasn’t had pain in his leg since he got injured.”
Morris could be a trade chip for the Pistons — he has an expiring $9.8MM contract.
We have more from the Central Division:
- Speaking of Cunningham, Williams doesn’t believe his star guard was injured against Golden State on Friday, as some have speculated, Sankofa adds in another tweet. Cunningham played in the first half against Denver on Sunday. Williams blames himself for the heavy workload he has placed on Cunningham and some other players. “We looked at the film. We don’t think (he was injured against the Warriors). I just think it’s a bit of load,” Williams said. “I’m playing guys way too much in long stretches. It’s something that I have to look at when he comes back to make sure he’s not in this situation again.”
- The Pacers were 1-9 last season when Tyrese Haliburton was sidelined by an elbow injury, but they feel confident that can hold the fort without him this season, according to Dustin Dopirak of the Indianapolis Star. Haliburton will miss at least two weeks with a hamstring strain. “I think we have a better mentality moving forward than we did last year without him,” forward Aaron Nesmith said. “We have a really good next-man-up mentality, especially because we’re just so deep. Everyone on this team works hard, deserve to play, and they always showcase what they’re able to do when they get the chance. I think we’ll be alright.”
- The Jazz shredded the Bucks’ defense on Monday and Milwaukee heard boos from the home fans. Giannis Antetokounmpo, who criticized the team’s defensive effort after Saturday’s loss to Houston, didn’t mince words again when asked about the team’s performance. “At the end of the day, you gotta play hard,” Antetokounmpo said. “I don’t think it’s about making or missing shots. It’s about giving effort out there and when you don’t, I think people feel that. When you wear a Bucks jersey and you don’t play hard — not just Bucks jerseys, any jersey — I think we have great fans. But around the league, if you don’t play hard and don’t give everything for the team, there are times where you might get booed.”
And-Ones: Dumars, Nwaba, Vildoza, 2024 Draft
Last week, the Nets became the first team to get fined for resting healthy players since the NBA introduced its new player participation policy in September. Joe Dumars, the league’s executive vice president and head of basketball operations, told ESPN’s Tim Bontemps that the rules will continue to be enforced when teams try to sit multiple players who are not legitimately injured.
“We are serious about this,” Dumars said. “We talked to people, we talked to everyone, all parties we talked to before the season started. And to not follow through with this would not be right of us. It would not be the thing to do, to not follow through. So yeah, we are very serious about this. We communicated, we overly communicated with everyone about this, and we made very clear that if your guys can play or we feel that your guys can play, they should be on the court. And it’s gone over extremely well this year.”
We have more from around the international basketball world:
- The London Lions have officially signed former NBA guard David Nwaba, Sportando relays. The Lions’ interest in Nwaba was reported by BasketNews last week. Nwaba’s last NBA stint was with Houston in 2021/22. The six-year veteran appeared in 237 regular season games during his NBA career, averaging 6.8 points and 3.7 rebounds in 19.3 minutes per game.
- Luca Vildoza, who played seven games with Milwaukee in 2021/22, suffered a ruptured lateral meniscus in his left knee while playing for Greece’s Panathinaikos, according to Sportando’s Allesandro Maggi. The Argentinean guard will undergo surgery on Tuesday, according to the Greek club.
- In his latest mock draft, Bleacher Report’s Jonathan Wasserman has the Pistons taking French big man Alexandre Sarr with the top pick. Wasserman compares Sarr, who’s playing in Australia with the Perth Wildcats, with Memphis’ Jaren Jackson Jr. Point guard Nikola Topic, who recently suffered a knee injury while facing EuroLeague competition, goes at the No. 2 spot to the Spurs in Wasserman’s mock, while another European, French wing Zaccharie Risacher, comes off the board at No. 3 to the Wizards.
- ESPN’s Jonathan Givony and Jeremy Woo (Insider link) have put out another roundup of notes on 2024 draft prospects, exploring what’s gone wrong for UCLA’s top three NBA prospects (Aday Mara, Adem Bona, and Berke Buyuktuncel) and whether recent injuries to Sarr and Topic will hurt their stock, among other topics.
Luke Adams contributed to this post.
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Pacers’ Star Haliburton Suffers Left Hamstring Strain
JANUARY 9: Haliburton has been diagnosed with a Grade 1 left hamstring strain and is expected to be reevaluated in about two weeks, sources tell Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link).
Although the star guard will miss some time, there’s a sense of relief that the injury isn’t more serious, Wojnarowski adds.
JANUARY 8: Pacers star guard Tyrese Haliburton suffered a left hamstring strain during the first half of Indiana’s game against the Celtics on Monday and did not return.
Haliburton was injured late in the second quarter while driving to the basket. He slipped in the lane and did the splits. He then twisted around on the court in pain while grabbing the back of his left leg.
Buddy Hield and James Johnson carried Haliburton off the court and into the locker room. He’ll undergo an MRI to determine the severity of the injury, Scott Agness of Fieldhouse Files writes.
Haliburton leads all Eastern Conference guards in the All-Star voting and it’s much deserved. He’s averaging career highs at 24.2 points and 12.7 assists per game.
If Indiana has to go an extended stretch without him, Andrew Nembhard and T.J. McConnell would take over the essential role of lead ballhandlers.
Agness points out that Haliburton was wearing high-top Kobe shoes, rather than his usual low-top Kobe’s. He also slipped on the court during the first quarter.
The Pacers pulled out a 133-131 victory.
“Really amazing effort from our team,” head coach Rick Carlisle said. “A lot of emotions in this game for a lot of reasons. You’re playing the best team in basketball and Tyrese’s injury situation is a very deflating moment. We hope that it’s not serious.”
Cade Cunningham Will Be Reevaluated In 7-10 Days
JANUARY 9: The Pistons announced today in a press release that Cunningham has been diagnosed with a left knee strain and will be reevaluated in about seven-to-10 days.
JANUARY 8: The Pistons got some good news regarding Cade Cunningham‘s latest ailment. He avoided a serious injury to his left knee, according to Shams Charania and James Edwards III of The Athletic (via Twitter).
Cunningham didn’t play in the second half of the Pistons’ loss to Denver on Sunday due what the team described as a knee strain. There was no obvious play in which he was injured and there’s been speculation he might have tweaked the knee in the team’s previous game against Golden State.
“Our franchise player. A guy like that can’t play, it has a trickle-down effect across the board,” coach Monty Williams said during the postgame press conference. “We have different guys stepping up in the pecking order, having to handle the ball and make plays and that kind of thing. Pretty clear how important Cade is to our program.”
Cunningham could miss at least a few games, The Athletic duo adds. Detroit has a back-to-back against Sacramento on Tuesday and San Antonio on Wednesday. The Pistons will complete a three-game home stand against Houston on Friday.
Cunningham, the top pick of the 2021 draft, missed most of last season due to shin surgery. He’s averaging 22.8 points, 7.3 assists and 4.1 rebounds in his third season in the league.
Detroit is 3-33, having dropped four straight since snapping its record-breaking 28-game losing streak.