Pacific Notes: Morris, Pierce, Karl
Suspended power forward Markieff Morris could be allowed to return to practice with the Suns today after he meets with members of the front office, Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports reports. Morris has also been asked to apologize to his coaches and teammates, make a renewed commitment to the team for games, practices, weight-training sessions and treatment sessions and attend all NBA and Suns community appearances, a source close to the situation relayed to Wojnarowski.
Though Morris is expected to comply, the source also informed the Yahoo scribe that some within Morris’ camp are puzzled by the organization’s requests since the player already apologized via Twitter and sent an apologetic text to coach Jeff Hornacek, at whom Morris threw a towel during a game, prompting his suspension. Morris has also reportedly spoken with his teammates regularly during the suspension that cost him $145,455 in earnings, Wojnarowski adds.
Here’s more from the Pacific Division:
- Though Clippers small forward Paul Pierce hasn’t made up his mind about returning for another season or retiring after this campaign, he did drop a hint to which way he may be leaning after Monday’s contest in Washington D.C. when he popped into the Wizards’ locker room and told his former teammates, “This could be my last time in D.C. — as a player,” Ben Standig of CSNWashington.com relays (via Twitter).
- Kings coach George Karl is attempting to motivate his team without resorting to the shouting and bluster that he became known for during his coaching tenure in Denver, Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee writes. “Just tell stories,” Karl said when asked what tactics he’s utilizing. “You try to bring up situations. My explanation is the last couple of weeks is just trying to explain to them how difficult this league is, how tough it is to be successful in this league.”
Knicks Interested In Tony Wroten
The Knicks are one of a number of NBA teams that are interested in potentially signing Tony Wroten, Ian Begley of ESPN.com (ESPN Now link) reports. The point guard cleared waivers over the weekend after having been released by the Sixers last week. Begley didn’t specify the names of the other teams thinking about adding Wroten. The Clippers had expressed some interest in Wroten last season, as Dan Woike of the Orange County Register noted (on Twitter), but they don’t have room on their roster to accommodate his addition without making a corresponding personnel move.
New York’s exact level of interest in Wroten is unclear at this point, but Begley’s sources informed him that the club has expressed interest in obtaining a guard via trade or free-agent signing in recent days. The franchise has also been monitoring D-League players as potential additions, Begley adds. The Knicks roster count currently stands at 14 players, meaning the club can add Wroten without trading or waiving another player.
Wroten was in the fourth and final year of his rookie-scale contract and will still collect the remainder of his $2.179MM fully guaranteed salary from Philadelphia. Although he only played in 30 contests last year due to injury, he led the Sixers in points per game, averaging a total of 16.9 per contest. But Wroten struggled this season as he made his way back from injury, appearing in just eight contests and averaging 8.4 points, 2.6 rebounds and 2.5 assists in 18.0 minutes per night.
Eric Bledsoe To Miss Remainder Of Season
The Suns announced today that point guard Eric Bledsoe underwent successful surgery to repair a torn meniscus in his left knee and he will miss the remainder of the season as a result. Initial reports predicted Bledsoe would be out of action for about six weeks, though that timetable may have been reflective of the team’s hope that Bledsoe’s surgery would remove the meniscus, which usually entails a shorter recovery time, rather than make an attempt to repair it, though that is merely my speculation.
Bledsoe, now in his sixth year in the league, was enjoying the best season of his career prior to suffering the injury. His 20.4 points, 6.1 assists and 2.0 steals per game are either tied with or exceed career highs. His absence is certainly a blow to the 12-21 team, and it could hasten the front office in pressing the reset button on its current rebuild. The Suns are eligible to apply for a disabled player exception with the loss of Bledsoe, which would be valued at $5.464MM, notes former NBA executive Bobby Marks (Twitter link). The team is not currently eligible to apply for a hardship exception, however.
The 26-year-old is in the second season of the five-year, $70MM deal he inked in 2014. This is now the second major knee injury that Bledsoe has suffered since arriving in Phoenix, with the point guard limited to just 43 games during the 2013/14 campaign, courtesy of a torn right meniscus. With Phoenix still owing the player $43.5MM over the next three seasons, the organization is certainly crossing its fingers that he can return to form.
Atlantic Notes: Hinkie, Faverani, Fisher
Sixers GM Sam Hinkie admits that he has made some mistakes during his tenure with the team, though he is proud of his coaching hires and some player acquisitions that he has made, Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer writes. “I think our record speaks kindly to all that,” Hinkie said. “But I think there are other things we could have handled differently.” One of those issues Hinkie wishes he’d handled differently was the team’s response to Jahlil Okafor‘s recent off the court incidents, Pompey notes. “I think it’s fair during a time when there’s a question about someone that is as important to us as Jahlil, maybe people want to hear from another voice [besides coach Brett Brown],” Hinkie said. “Brett and I have been communicating there and I often let him speak on behalf of the team, and he’s often happy to, he doesn’t mind it and I don’t mind it. Sometimes a different voice helps.”
One of Hinkie’s player acquisitions, power forward Richaun Holmes, had a solid showing in last night’s loss to the Jazz, notching 18 points, three rebounds and adding this highlight reel dunk (video link). Here’s more from the Atlantic Division:
- Former Celtics center Vitor Faverani has reached an agreement with the Spanish club UCAM Murcia, Emiliano Carchia of Sportando relays (Twitter link). The 27-year-old reached a two-year agreement to play for Maccabi Tel Aviv back in July but was let go due to knee issues. Faverani last appeared in a regular season NBA contest during the 2013/14 season, playing in 37 games for Boston and averaging 4.4 points and 3.5 rebounds.
- Charley Rosen, who has long been Knicks president Phil Jackson’s confidant, noted that the triangle offense is flawed under coach Derek Fisher’s direction, Marc Berman of The New York Post writes. A source close to the Knicks informed Berman that there’s a growing sense among some players in the locker room that Fisher is viewed more as a “preacher’’ and “motivator’’ than an expert in-game tactician. “If you run the triangle, you have to make a total commitment to the triangle,’’ said Rosen. “It’s not like a part-time thing that you just use some of it. If that’s your offense, you got to commit to it. It doesn’t look like they’re really committed to it. They’re running it in a half-[expletive] way. It’s not creating the kind of shots it would normally create.’’
Central Notes: Hill, Morris, Portis
Pacers small forward Solomon Hill has maintained a positive attitude despite falling out of coach Frank Vogel‘s regular rotation, which could have been an issue for the player seeing as he’s in the final year of his contract, Mark Montieth of NBA.com writes. “I have to keep being upbeat,” Hill said. “If I was down in the gutter and C.J. Miles went out and I was thrown out there and I’m not ready, it’s just going to show why I shouldn’t be playing. It’s days like this that show my hard work is paying off.” Hill also noted that he’s aware that he has been mentioned as a potential trade candidate, but insists he doesn’t want to leave Indiana, even if it would mean more playing time, Montieth adds. “I’m an Indiana Pacer,” he said. “They drafted me. I’d definitely love to be here and be part of something great with this team. We have the makings of a special team. We have the potential to be one of the top two teams in the East.”
Here’s more from the Central Division:
- Marcus Morris is excelling for the Pistons and he should be given a larger role in the offense, David Mayo of MLive.com argues. Morris isn’t pushing for more shots, as he thinks more opportunities will come within the offensive system. “At the end of the day, coach does a great job of getting me the ball, finding spots for me to get the ball in my isos and my posts, so I’m not really too worried about whether I’m going to get my shots up, because half the time I know they’re going to come,” Morris said. “It’s more just the ball-movement thing.”
- With so many players returning from injury, the Cavs realize it’s going to take time for the team to gel, Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal writes. “Just because guys are coming back doesn’t mean everything is going to be right,” LeBron James said. “It’s going to take time because for the first eight weeks we had built chemistry, we knew who was playing, we knew who wasn’t playing. We had rotations, Coach had rotations down, so we got to get back to that.”
- The solid play of rookie Bobby Portis for the Bulls will make it difficult for coach Fred Hoiberg to sit him when Joakim Noah returns from injury, writes Vincent Goodwill of CSNChicago.com. “He’s not afraid of the moment that’s for sure,” Hoiberg said of Portis. “To be 20 years old and go out there, big minutes against Oklahoma City in a game on Christmas Day on ABC, it shows you what the kid’s makeup is all about. The kid’s got no concern, just thrives and has all kinds of confidence. You love to see that. He’s not gonna back down from anybody.”
Chris Crouse contributed to this post.
Grizzlies Sign Ryan Hollins, Waive Russ Smith
TUESDAY, 11:30am: The signing of Hollins is official, the Grizzlies announced. The team also confirmed that Smith has been waived.
MONDAY, 11:00pm: The Grizzlies will waive Russ Smith in order to make room on the roster for the signing of center Ryan Hollins, Shams Charania of Yahoo Sports reports. Hollins was with Memphis during training camp prior to the season and he made a strong impression on the team, Charania adds. The Grizzlies are limited to giving Hollins the minimum salary, though it’s unclear if he’ll have any guaranteed money.
Smith’s contract runs through the 2016/17 season and he’ll make slightly more than $845K this year, all of which is guaranteed. His salary for next season was set to be roughly $980K, though that salary is non-guaranteed. The Louisville product was averaging 1.5 points in 4.4 minutes per game this season.
The move to add Hollins isn’t expected to be a temporary one, Chris Herrington of The Commercial Appeal reports (Twitter links). Backup center Brandan Wright remains out with a knee injury, so Hollins shouldn’t have to wait too long to see minutes for the Grizzlies.
Chris Crouse contributed to this post.
Pacific Notes: Morris, Dudley, Rondo
There is too much bad blood for Markieff Morris to thrive with the Suns in Phoenix, but there is belief that he can succeed elsewhere, like his brother Marcus is doing in Detroit, Chris Mannix of SI.com pass along (Twitter links). Mannix adds that several teams still really like the combo forward, especially because of his team-friendly contact.
Here’s more from the Pacific Division:
- Jared Dudley wishes he had played better during his lone season for the Clippers, J. Michael of CSN Mid-Atlantic writes. “How it ended with us, I can always say that’s the one team I played on I played really, really bad,” Dudley said. “Fans probably look at me, ‘Jared was a failure,’ which is very true. I was at that time. I’d be the first to admit it.”
- The Rajon Rondo–Darren Collison pairing in the backcourt is starting to show improvement, Jason Jones of the Sacramento Bee observes. “For some reason, the first 10, 15 games, it just didn’t seem like it had much rhythm,” Coach George Karl said. “But it seems D.C. plays off the ball most of the time when that happens. I still like two guys who can run pick-and-rolls and pick and choose your opportunities with two point guards on the court.”
Chris Crouse contributed to this post.
And-Ones: Pistons, Robinson, D-League
Brandon Jennings declared himself ready to play for the Pistons, but with backup point guard Steve Blake playing so well, the team has a good problem, Keith Langlois of NBA.com writes. “It’s a tough thing to weigh,” coach Stan Van Gundy said of possibly taking minutes away from Blake. “It’s a dilemma a little bit. But Brandon has looked good.” The 35-year-old realizes he will most likely lose minutes once Jennings returns to the rotation, but that is something that was expected.
“That was an understanding of mine coming here,” Blake said. “Coach Van Gundy and I talked about that. There will be times when I’m playing well while he’s injured. When he comes back, the chance of me going to the bench and him playing at some point was an understanding of mine. He’s working his way back to where he wants to be and when that time comes, that’s fine with me. It’s a team thing. I don’t see it as him and I as competition. We’re teammates playing against other people, so when that time comes, that’s totally fine with me.”
Here’s more from around the league:
- The Pacers like Glenn Robinson III and they can envision the 22-year-old carving out a role with the team, Candace Buckner of The Indianapolis Star writes. Robinson appreciates the team communicating with him about his future. “They’ve done a great job of talking to me. They haven’t really given me a definite timeframe or when it’s going to come, but they’re saying that that point is going to come,” Robinson said. “Just knowing my moment is coming, I think that really locks me in, too. That keeps me going. So that’s a good thing to hear, especially from Larry [Bird].”
- The Spurs have recalled Ray McCallum from their D-League Affiliate, the Austin Spurs, per the team’s website. McCallum is averaging 18.0 points, 4.8 assists and 3.4 rebounds in five D-League games this season.
- The Grizzlies assigned forward Jarell Martin to the Iowa Energy, the team’s D-League affiliate, according to the team’s website. This will be Martin’s third stint with Iowa this season.
Chris Crouse contributed to this post.
Hoops Rumors Community Shootaround 12/28/15
Many expected the Pelicans to challenge for a spot in the top echelon of the Western Conference. Instead, through two months of the season, New Orleans is idling in the cellar and the team’s defense is a major reason why. The Pelicans are hemorrhaging points, allowing 107.1 per game, with the Lakers the only team to allow more.
Despite the defensive letdowns and the 10-20 start, the team sits only three games back of the Jazz for the eighth seed in the conference entering Monday’s contests. There’s still time to turn the season around and tonight’s shootaround is about the moves that New Orleans should make. If I were in GM Dell Demps‘ seat, I would give a call to the Magic and try to work a trade for Channing Frye.
The Arizona product was reportedly available for very little return prior to the start of the season, according to Zach Lowe of ESPN.com, although the big man’s play, along with Orlando’s win total this season, probably raises the asking price. The Magic found success inserting Frye into the starting lineup last month, going 11-5 since the move, and they sit in the thick of the playoff hunt with a record of 17-13 on the year. Still, I speculate that an offer of Omer Asik and a protected first-round pick would get the attention of GM Rob Hennigan since the 32-year-old Frye doesn’t fit into the Magic’s long-term plans.
Frye has been a stalwart on the defensive end this season. He ranks fourth among power forwards in ESPN’s Defensive Real Plus/Minus and he ranks 14th among all players in Possession Adjusted Points Saved per 36 minutes, an advanced stat developed by Seth Partnow of Nylon Calculus to measure rim protection. His offense has been excellent, especially from downtown, where he is making 46.9% of his attempts, which is good for third in the league this season.
Frye has played less than 20% of his minutes this season at the center position, but he has proven over his career he is comfortable playing the five. New Orleans could form a lethal unit that could spread the floor with Anthony Davis, Ryan Anderson and Frye sharing the frontcourt. With the addition of Frye, the Pelicans could also shop Anderson in hopes of adding an upgrade on the wing.
Tell us what you think of this hypothetical trade and let us know what you would do if you were running the show in New Orleans. Take to the comments section below to share your thoughts and opinions on the matter. We look forward to what you have to say.
Chris Crouse contributed to this post.
Pacific Notes: Cousins, Morris, Nance Jr.
In an interview with Tzvi Twersky of Slamoline.com, Kings center DeMarcus Cousins said that he believes because he’s been on a struggling team for his entire career he doesn’t get the credit for being a tough leader the way that the Timberwolves’ Kevin Garnett has. “This is what I’ve come to conclude: Winning covers up everything,” Cousins told Twersky. “If KG was always losing and was the same person, they would think he was the worst guy ever. That’s basically the situation I’m in. Since I’m losing, no one loves a loser—everyone loves a winner. That’s how it goes. I don’t see a difference between me and Joakim Noah. If anything, I feel Joakim has more crazy moments than I do—but his is passion, mine are an attitude or anger problems.”
Here’s more from the Pacific Division:
- It’s unclear if and when the Suns will look to trade disgruntled forward Markieff Morris, but there are a number of teams that are intrigued with the combo forward and his reasonable contract, Chris Mannix of SI.com relays (Twitter links). There is likely too much bad blood between Morris and the Suns organization for that relationship to be salvaged, but there is belief around the league that Morris can thrive in a different environment than Phoenix’s, Mannix adds.
- The Lakers have moved rookie Larry Nance Jr. into the starting lineup thanks to his energy and versatility, but he’ll need to look for his shot more often if he wants to continue in that role, writes Janis Carr of The Orange County Register. “I talked to him today that again when you have an open shot, you got to take the shot,” coach Byron Scott said. “[I told him] ‘You have a nice enough stroke’ and if he can make them on a consistent basis, the defense will start to respect him. But he moves the ball. That’s the only thing about Larry. He doesn’t take a lot of shots; he doesn’t even take the ones that are open. That’s one of the main reasons we changed the starting lineup – to get more ball movement.“