Tim Hardaway Jr. Receives Qualifying Offer
The Hawks have extended a qualifying offer to shooting guard Tim Hardaway Jr., making him a restricted free agent, Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.
The qualifying offer is for $3,335,707 but Hardaway Jr. is likely to receive a lucrative offer sheet during free agency. He averaged 14.5 PPG, 2.8 RPG and 2.3 APG in 79 games last season. His playing time increased after Kyle Korver was dealt to the Cavaliers.
He declared after the season that he would prefer to stay in Atlanta.
Eric Gordon Wins Sixth Man Award
Rockets guard Eric Gordon was named the league’s Sixth Man of the Year, which was announced on TNT’s awards show Monday night.
Gordon averaged 16.2 PPG and 2.5 APG in 75 games for one of the league’s most potent attacks. The oft-injured Gordon never appeared in more than 64 games in his five seasons with the Pelicans franchise before signing with Houston last summer as a free agent.
Teammate Lou Williams and the Warriors’ Andre Iguodala were the other finalists. Only one member of the Hoops Rumors staff chose Gordon as his top pick.
Brogdon Wins Rookie Of Year Award
Bucks guard Malcolm Brogdon was named the league’s Rookie of the Year, which was announced on the TNT awards show Monday night.
Brogdon, a second-round pick, edged out a pair of Sixers — Joel Embiid and Dario Saric — in the voting. The 36th overall pick last summer appeared in 75 regular-season games and started 28. He averaged 10.2 PPG, 2.8 RPG and 4.2 APG in 26.4 MPG. He also shot 40.4% from long range.
Embiid posted much bigger stats — 20.2 PPG and 7.8 RPG — but only appeared in 31 games.
A majority of the Hoops Rumors staff selected Brogdon as their choice for the award. He is the first non-lottery pick to win the award since Mark Jackson in 1988.
Spencer Hawes Opts In, Stays With Bucks
Bucks power forward/center Spencer Hawes has decided to opt in and retain his $6MM salary for next season, Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical tweets.
Hawes’ decision gives Milwaukee, which is already over the cap, an even higher payroll. Greg Monroe, the team’s second highest-paid player, had already chosen to opt in for next season and retain the remaining $17.88MM on his deal. Giannis Antetokounmpo will be paid $22.47MM in the first year of his extension, while four other players will make between $14.1MM (Khris Middleton) and $9.6MM (Matthew Dellavedova).
Milwaukee is now sitting approximately $11MM below the luxury tax line and still has to decide by Thursday whether to extend a qualifying offer to swingman Tony Snell, as Bobby Marks of The Vertical notes.
Hawes, 29, appeared in only 19 games for the Bucks after he was acquired from the Hornets in early February in a trade that sent Miles Plumlee to Charlotte. He averaged 4.4 PPG and 2.4 RPG in 9.0 MPG. He played in 35 games with the Hornets, averaging 7.3 PPG and 4.2 RPG in 17.9 MPG.
Community Shootaround: Awards Show
In past seasons, the winners of all the major NBA awards would have been unveiled weeks ago. The league traditionally announced the biggest awards one-by-one while the playoffs were going on.
The regular season has been over for nearly 2 1/2 months but the league has kept the voting under wraps, except for announcing the finalists for each prize. We’ll finally learn tonight who captured the most votes for Rookie of the Year, Coach of the Year, Sixth Man of the Year, Defensive Player of the Year and Most Improved Player along with the biggest individual honor, the Most Valuable Player.
The NBA decided to hold back those announcements this year until after the draft by putting together a two-hour extravaganza on TNT.
All of the awards were based on regular-season performance. The two that hold the most intrigue are the Rookie of the Year and MVP selections. Joel Embiid posted by far the best stats among first-year players but appeared in just 31 games. We’ll find out if that was enough games in the voters’ minds or if his Sixers teammate Dario Saric or the Bucks’ Malcolm Brogdon brings home the hardware. Saric and Brogdon were the only unanimous selections for the All-Rookie Team, which was unveiled earlier today.
Russell Westbrook, James Harden and Kawhi Leonard are the three finalists for MVP but most people expect a tight race between Westbrook and Harden. Westbrook broke Oscar Robertson‘s triple-double record, while Harden put up monster numbers of his own after becoming the primary ballhandler in Mike D’Antoni‘s attack.
This leads us to our question of the day: Do you like the idea of having a postseason awards show following the playoffs or would you prefer that the NBA go back to announcing the major awards during the postseason?
Please take to the comments section to weigh in on this topic. We look forward to what you have to say.
Timberwolves Waive Jordan Hill
The Timberwolves have waived power forward/center Jordan Hill, the team announced in a press release.
Hill was signed as a free agent last summer but appeared in just seven games, averaging 1.7 PPG and 2.0 RPG in 6.7 MPG. He inked a two-year, $8.18MM contract but the second year was not guaranteed. He was due to make $4.18MM next season and the club had until June 30th to decide whether to retain him.
The cost-saving move gives Minnesota more money to play with in free agency, as well as to absorb salaries in trades. Given Hill’s lack of playing time, the move comes as no surprise, as Jon Krawczynski of the Associated Press tweets.
Hill, 29, has played a total of 409 career games for the Rockets, Knicks, Lakers and Pacers as well as the Timberwolves. He posted averages of 7.9 PPG and 5.8 RPG during those games.
Trade Rumors: Jackson, George, Porzingis, Kanter
Numerous teams are trying to obtain a top-4 pick in order to select Kansas swingman Josh Jackson, Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical tweets. With the Sixers having obtained the top overall pick to select Markelle Fultz, that means a blockbuster deal involving the Lakers, Celtics or Suns could be on the horizon. It also strongly suggests that the Celtics have settled on Duke forward Jayson Tatum as their preferred choice, since Jackson wouldn’t be available at No. 4 if Boston wants him.
Here are some of other trade rumors floating around as the draft approaches:
- There is a growing sense that unless the Pacers get a suitable offer for Paul George today, President of Basketball Operations Kevin Pritchard will wait until next month to re-engage talks regarding the 2018 free agent, according to Basketball Insiders’ Steve Kyler. However, the latest projected salary cap of $99MM could motivate Indiana and the Lakers to get a deal done today, as Kyler details. The Spurs and Blazers are also making a run at George, Kyler adds in another tweet.
- The Knicks believe Kristaps Porzingis would have been the top selection in today’s draft and next year’s draft and desire a package of picks that reflect his value, David Aldridge of NBA.com tweets. Team President Phil Jackson confirmed Wednesday he is listening to offers for the disgruntled big man. Talks between the Knicks and Suns have not gained any traction because Phoenix is unwilling to part with shooting guard Devin Booker, Wojnarowski tweets.
- The Thunder could deal center Enes Kanter as early as today, Jenni Carlson of The Oklahoman speculates. The team has enough big men to take over his minutes, though Kanter is the most offensively-gifted frontcourt player they have, Carlson continues. It makes sense to obtain more shooters and veterans to help out Russell Westbrook, which makes Kanter expendable, Carlson adds. Kanter will make approximately $17.9MM next season and holds an $18.6MM player option on the final year of his contract next summer.
Spurs Rumors: Hill, Aldridge, Jackson, Summer League
A reunion between unrestricted free agent point guard George Hill and the Spurs is a possibility, according to Jabari Young of the San Antonio Express-News. Hill wouldn’t mind playing once again for coach Gregg Popovich and he continues to maintain a residence in San Antonio, according to Young. Hill played for the Spurs from 2008-11 until he was traded to the Pacers in a deal that gave San Antonio the draft rights to Kawhi Leonard, among others. The Spurs are expected to make contact with Hill, who played for the Jazz last season, when free agency begins next month. However, Hill would seemingly be a fallback target for San Antonio, which is expected to make a serious run at the top point guard in free agency, Chris Paul.
In other news regarding the Spurs:
- The Blazers are interested in bringing back LaMarcus Aldridge and reuniting him with point guard Damian Lillard, according to Young. That is unlikely because Portland only wants to make a deal in which it can match salaries, Young continues. The Spurs are trying to move Aldridge in a deal that would clear cap space in their pursuit of top free agents.
- The Spurs’ efforts to land a Top 10 pick by moving Aldridge are hampered by Aldridge’s contract situation, Marc Stein of ESPN.com tweets. Any lottery team trading for Aldridge would have to feel comfortable it can re-sign him, Stein adds. Aldridge will make $21.46MM next season but can opt out of the final year of his contract next summer if he chooses to leave $22.3MM on the table.
- The Suns, who hold the No. 4 pick, could be a trade match for Aldridge, according to radio host Ric Bucher (Twitter link). Phoenix went hard after Aldridge in free agency before he chose San Antonio and the Spurs cover Kansas swingman Josh Jackson, Bucher adds.
- The team has hired Dejan Radonjic of Red Star Belgrade as its associate head coach for its Summer League team, international journalist David Pick tweets.
Draft Rumors: Giles, Sixers, Celtics, Knicks
Duke forward Harry Giles could go as high as No. 10 overall to the Kings despite lingering concerns over his knee injury, according to ESPN.com’s Chad Ford. The Blazers, who control the No. 15 and No. 20 picks, are also intrigued by Giles, whose lone college season was marred by the injury, Ford continues. The Thunder, who pick No. 21, could also be a destination for Giles, who has been cleared medically by most doctors that have examined him, Ford adds.
In other draft-related news:
- The Sixers are trying to obtain another first-rounder in the bottom third of the draft by packaging the No. 36 and No. 39 overall picks in the second round, David Aldridge of NBA.com tweets. President of Basketball Operations Bryan Colangelo said earlier this week he was still seeking another first-round pick even after the trade with the Celtics for the No. 1 overall pick was finalized.
- Celtics GM Danny Ainge has executives around the league guessing as to what he’ll do with the No. 3 pick, according to Chris Forsberg of ESPN.com. Most believe that he’ll pick Kansas swingman Josh Jackson or Duke forward Jayson Tatum, but it’s not out of the realm of possibility he’ll pull off a shocker and draft Florida State forward Jonathan Isaac or North Carolina State point guard Dennis Smith Jr. Forsberg continues. He may trade down a couple of spots to land one of the latter two players, Forsberg adds.
- The Knicks are also looking to package a couple of second-rounders at No. 44 and No. 58 in order to secure a higher second-rounder, Michael Scotto of Basketball Insiders tweets.
Cavs Rumors: George, Butler, Billups, James
While the front office is in a state of upheaval, the Cavs are continuing to work the phones to shake up the roster, as Sam Amico of AmicoHoops.net reports. With GM David Griffin out of the picture, front office holdovers Koby Altman and Mike Gansey are on the verge of making multiple trades, including a potential blockbuster, Amico continues. They are still trying to acquire Pacers All-Star forward Paul George despite George’s well-documented desire to play for the Lakers when his contract expires after next season, Amico adds.
Some other nuggets from Amico:
- The Cavs are far apart in any talks with the Bulls to acquire All-Star Jimmy Butler but there is no traction to rumors that Cleveland players have told Butler to “stay away” from the organization.
- Chauncey Billups has been offered the top executive position and members of the organization anticipate he’ll take the job, despite reservations about leaving ESPN. He’ll make a decision today or Friday.
- LeBron James has been receiving updates about the team’s plans to upgrade the roster.
- James wasn’t mad, just surprised, about owner Dan Gilbert’s inability to come to an extension agreement with Griffin.